Latest content in culture

2 October 2023

We explore the medium of short stories through the prism of two new collections by two UK writers. Tessa Hadley’s new book, “After the Funeral”, is characteristically full of sharp observations about personal and familial…

1 October 2023

Georgina Godwin sits down with bestselling author, journalist and documentary-maker Thomas Harding. They discuss his new book, ‘The Maverick: George Weidenfeld and the Golden Age of Publishing’, which tells the story of the…

30 September 2023

This week we speak with the team behind news publication ‘The Manchester Mill’. Plus: highlights from DistriPress Congress 2023 and the new issue of ‘Bibliotech’.

25 September 2023

We celebrate the 40th anniversary of ‘Stop Making Sense’ – Jonathan Demme’s film with Talking Heads – which is often regarded as the greatest concert movie of all time. Robert Bound is joined in the studio by Will Hodgki…

24 September 2023

British author Neil Blackmore’s third novel, ‘The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle’, was shortlisted for the Polari Prize for LGBT+ fiction, while his 2021 novel, ‘The Dangerous Kingdom of Love’, was included in ‘The Times’ list of…

23 September 2023

Monocle Radio’s Meet the Writers special season, A Word in Your Ear, begins with an excerpt from Naomi Alderman’s third novel, ‘The Liars’ Gospel’, a bold retelling of biblical narratives around the life of Jesus. She was…

23 September 2023

“Literature needs flaws,” says Tahar Ben Jelloun. The accomplished Moroccan author had some tough love for his protégé on the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, Edem Awumey. Listen to the acclaimed actor Paterson…

23 September 2023

Renowned Mozambique author Mia Couto still works as a biologist – an apt side career for someone who dissects complex subjects with precise curiosity. For the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, Couto coaxed Brazilian…

23 September 2023

Colombian writer Antonio García Ángel was just 33 years old when the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative paired him with the great Peruvian novelist – and later Nobel literature laureate – Mario Vargas Llosa. A dozen…

23 September 2023

Winner of Pulitzer and Nobel prizes, the late Toni Morrison was one of the all-time great American novelists. For the inaugural Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, she was paired with Australian writer Julia Leigh,…

23 September 2023

Texas-based Bulgarian writer Miroslav Penkov wasn’t sure if anyone would pay attention to his first English-language novel, Stork Mountain. However, when the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative paired him with The…

23 September 2023

A Word in Your Ear, Monocle Radio’s special season of Meet the Writers, concludes with a reading from Tracy K Smith’s dazzling memoir, Ordinary Light. The American writer began her time as a Rolex protégée in 2010 under the…

23 September 2023

This week, it’s a newsstand special. We speak to Sandeep Garg from Shreeji Newsagents on Chiltern Street and Magculture’s founder, Jeremy Leslie. Plus: the newsstand winners of Monocle’s new Retail Awards and our fashion…

18 September 2023

This week we take a spin around the Americas. Sheena Rossiter speaks to indie-pop singer Feist at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival. Then we head to Brazil to explore São Paulo’s art scene and catch a new film depicting the…