BLACK CAKE - TV - Disney +
I was able to forgive the Caribbean accents in this one for the following reasons.
At its core, Black Cake is a musing on the ways our lives are inextricably tied with our ancestors. It’s inspired by a novel of the same name - which I have not read, so cannot vouch for how closely it sticks to the story. The show unpacks how we must make sense of the past in order to do the same for our future. It's twisty, propulsive and in the oral style which our ancestors' stories are always passed down. We watch as the mother of our two protagonists reveals secrets of her identity after her death.
THE JURY - TV - Channel 4
A different kind of reality TV recommendation from me. It felt very Channel 4 in a way that was refreshing, and a reminder of why I once hailed them as the holy grail of imaginative television.
The Jury is a TV experiment designed to test our jury system. It asks the question - can two separate juries come up with the same verdict? In a courtroom staffed by actors - two juries sit, deliberate, and watch the case, not knowing they aren't the only ones doing so. It’s a fascinating insight into how lived experience shapes people's choices, and the power of exuberant voices in a group. I won't ruin the ending but it's a must watch and also rather terrifying!
MR AND MRS SMITH - TV - Amazon Prime
I already recommended the first half of this show, but I had to come back and recommend the second. You know how almost every show has a scene in a therapist’s chair - usually as a lazy way to extrapolate the characters back story? Well, this FRESH reimagining of Mr and Mrs Smith (which was perfectly cast btw) does this in a way I haven't seen before. In episode six, Sarah Paulson plays the therapist brilliantly, accurately and hilariously. This episode is a masterclass in writing. I was howling from start to finish. Bravo Francesca Sloane.
DOPAMINE LAND - Exhibition
Omg there's absolutely no way I would usually go to an exhibition that is purely designed to make you have fun. It's nothing like the usual types of art I gravitate towards - but my partner knew I'd been having a sad little time ruminating in my grief, and took me here to have a little bit of fun. We played in an adult sized ball pit, danced to ballads and fought with pillows. We lay down in rooms with mesmerising, colourful light displays and, most importantly, I laughed at how silly I felt doing it. If you need a little pick me up, this might just be the thing for you.
CATASTROPHE - TV - Netflix
Boy, am I late to the Catastrophe party. Pure joy and hilarity. Excellent writing and acting from Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney. I reckon it might be classed as an anti rom-com. Two strangers hook up while one is in town, they end up getting pregnant and birthing 5 brilliant series of TV about the mundanity of normal life.
HOT MILK - Deborah Levy
One of the best novels I've read in MY LIFE! It's about co-dependence, mothers, daughters and the pain we can inflict on one another. It's about the forced and complicit clipping of wings. It's about longing, searching and belonging. I loved every second of this delicious read and Deborah Levy needs no introduction. I'm also now reading Things I Don’t Want to Know, part one in her three part autobiographical series. Because who wouldn't want to get into the mind - and behind the scenes of the writing practise - of this undeniably brilliant human being?