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The Decameron and the power of stories
(5 minute read) Though telling stories might seem an escape from our Covid confinement reality, Jaqueline Silverio believes that doing so will help us face up better to its challenges.
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When is a painting not just a painting?
(4 minute read) Luca La Monica goes behind the masterpiece by Raphael, ‘School of Athens’, and discovers a recipe for a new way of living.
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Harmed by hyperlinks and why fireflies spark: it’s time to rediscover books
(7 minute read) Prakarsh Singh opens some unread books around the house and ends up in some very strange places.
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Log in, contemplate and transcend: an art lover’s guide to online viewing
(7 minute read) Carolyn Morrison takes a look at what’s on offer on social media platforms while the world’s great museums and galleries remain closed.
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Lost in golden times: how a 20th century literary masterpiece could help you cope with Covid woes
(5 minute read) Martin Ketterer suggests that Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited could be just what you need in this time of confinement.
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The Leningrad Symphony – Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony and how the Russians survived a siege
(4 minute read) The Russian composer Shostakovich began writing his symphony while the city was besieged by German forces. Kenson Li believes we can draw lessons for our current crisis.
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Poetry page
(2 minute read) We offer some haiku and tanka poems by Neena Singh, from her recently published One Breath Poetry: A journal of haiku, senryu & tanka (2020) and a poem by Richard Bauckham, Virus, specially written as a reflection on the coronavirus epidemic.
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Frame by frame to Hollywood
(10 minute read) Ladislav Maluch asks animator and director Timothy Reckart two big questions: How do you make it into Hollywood? And once there, can you stay true to your deepest convictions?
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The Marvel-lous world of the family
(7 minute read) Superheroes they may be, but they still need a loving home. Tom Willcox finds a discreet pro-family message in Marvel movies.
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Closing the Circle: Travelling with ‘The Railway Man’
Kevin Murphy recalls a meeting with Eric Lomax, one of the real-life survivors of the construction of the infamous bridge over the River Kwai. Lomax wrote about his experiences in the acclaimed book The Railway Man, published 25 years ago this year.
