Monocle on Culture
Robert Bound and guests explore what’s new in art, film, books, and media. Expect lively discussions, in-depth interviews, and expert insights.
Latest Episodes
Is no news good news?
It’s August and we’re officially in silly season, the name given to the quiet summer period during which the people who usually make the news are off on holiday. We find out how you keep the news cycle rolling when there’s no one to provide you with a juicy headline.
How do you write a review?
We discuss the art of being a critic – whether of art, food, technology or music – with Nancy Durrant, commissioning arts editor for ‘The Times’, Alexi Duggins, editor at large of ‘Time Out’ and our technology correspondent David Phelan. Plus: music journalist Jude Rogers discusses the relevance of the…
Why do we love talking animals?
We take a look at what’s been popular on the silver screen so far this year. While talking-animal films made up half of the top 12 grossing movies in the first half of 2016, sequels aren’t enjoying much success. We analyse the trend with film critics Karen Krizanovich and Tim…
Who wants a piece of the Four Seasons?
The iconic Four Seasons restaurant has served its final meal in its current guise, as it leaves the Seagram Building on Park Avenue in New York. As the contents of the restaurant come up for sale we take a look around to see what we might like to place our…
What on earth has happened to the news?
When journalists, columnists and commentators have news flying at them from all angles, and it feels a little bit like the world is going mad, how do they begin to make sense of it all and mould it into thoughtful prose? Robert Bound sits down with Richard Godwin, columnist for…
Beach versus seaside: part two
In our quest to investigate the difference between the seaside and the beach, we take to the latter for a spot of surfing in Australia and California. Plus: we head to Belgrade and Madrid to find out how they are bringing beach culture to the city to make themselves summer…
Beach versus seaside: part one
In the first of a two-part episode we investigate the difference between the beach and the seaside, two coastal cultures that are quite different despite both involving sand and sea. This week it’s the seaside’s turn. We speak to writer and cultural historian Travis Elborough and visit Margate on the…
Summer holiday hits
As the Culture team heads on its summer holiday, we recap some of our favourite moments from 2016 so far, from cruising the Mediterranean with acrobats aplenty to the local newspaper of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.
The Switch House
We visit the brand new wing of the Tate Modern to find out how architecture firm Herzog & De Meuron extended the art institution into a giant ziggurat. Plus: we assess the success of the new building with editor of ‘The Art Newspaper’ Jane Morris.
How do you sell a natural history museum?
We profile a rather unique auction house, Summers Place Auctions, as they put the entire collection of a Dutch natural history museum up for sale, including the skeleton of a seven-metre-tall duck-billed dinosaur called Freya.
