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Channel Hopper
Dispatches from the sofa, with Brian Donaldson
■ With the ballyhoo of its pilot being the most expensive in the history of TV and with Marty Scorsese at the directorial helm, Boardwalk Empire (Sky Atlantic, Tue, 9pm) now gets a chance to settle into its prohibition groove and show whether it is indeed ‘the new Sopranos’. Time will only tell on that front, but with its glorious 20s setting, a stirring cast (Steve Buscemi, Gretchen Mol and wee Kelly Macdonald are the neon names) and crackling dialogue that could only have been created by someone (Terence Winter) involved in the great mob drama of our times, it’s looking good.
For Tony Soprano, read Enoch ‘Nucky’ Thompson (Buscemi), the flawed and contradictory controller of Atlantic City who in public preaches the ills of inebriation and fights for women’s rights, yet behind starched closed doors takes whoring and boozing (as well as ordering assassinations) to a whole new level. Chuck in some determined cops, Irish widows, Al Capone, wise mentors and hot-headed protégés and you should be left with a head fuzzier than a night on bootlegged liquor. But the intoxicating direction and sharp script make this a rich and rousing ride. It also marks the seizure of the finest US drama by Sky Atlantic which is not only showing Six Feet Under and The Sopranos from the off, bringing us the latest Mad Men and Entourage, but debuting the likes of David Simon’s Treme, fantasy epic Game of Thrones and family-cop show Blue Bloods. Buckle up.
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Rewind festival returns with The Human League
Fringe AROUND TOWN Following months of debate, stalwarts Assembly have announced they will move to make way for an 18-month renovation of their George Street premises, a space they have called home for 30 years on the Fringe. Assembly will move to George Square and take over five spaces there. Assembly director William Burdett Coutts said that although he planned to put in a tender to return to the George Street space, he expected to be in George Square for a ‘long time’. Assembly on the Mound will remain.
Elsewhere, those still suffering from the post-Christmas slump can head for the Drumsheugh Baths Club. Edinburgh’s oldest privately owned and independent swimming club is waiving its joining fee for the first time in its 120-year history, throughout February.
BOOKS Here at List Towers we are proud as punch of the wonderful Liz Lochhead, who has been named Scotland’s new Makar. She steps into the shoes of her late, great friend Edwin Morgan. Massive congratulations to her. See First Word, page 2.
COMEDY As if the Stand Comedy Club wasn’t busy enough with venues in Glasgow and Edinburgh and a burgeoning International Comedy Festival to its name, they now look set to expand further, opening their doors in the basement of a former Wards building, in Newcastle. Stand director Tommy Sheppard said of the expansion: ‘We’ve been looking for premises in Newcastle for many years and we are delighted that we’ve finally identified the right location. Newcastle provides an entertainment hub for over a million people in Tyne and Wear.’ 8 THE LIST 3–17 Feb 2011
FESTIVALS Scotland is gearing up to welcome this year’s instalment of the highly innovative International Festival of Live Art, this month, from 14 Feb–26 Mar. Look out for preview coverage in the next issue of The List and keep ‘em peeled for their new strand for 2011: TIPA – This is Performance Art, a new programme examining the history of performance art across the world, this year focusing on Europe. Check out talks and performances by guest artists, as well as a mammoth 10- hour performance to round it all off. See www.newmoves.co.uk for more. 80s fans, get your leggings at the ready following news that Rewind: The 80s Music Festival is launching a brand spanking new weekend event at Scone Palace in Perthshire, from 29–31 Jul with a line-up featuring The Human League, Bananarama and ABC. Elsewhere, a new Channel 4 series Sounds From the Cities will visit Edinburgh later in the year as part of a city hop analysing the local music scenes. See more at www.bobcom.com T H S T L E
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THEATRE Scottish theatre favourite Gagarin Way is set for a new lease of life with a new tour for the production. See it when it opens at Carnegie Hall, in Dunfermline, on 17 Feb. VISUAL ART And finally, The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, the UK Arts Council, Creative Scotland and the British Council have awarded £820,000 funding to a round of major commissions celebrating arts and culture by the disabled and deaf. Three of the thirteen commissions have been awarded to Scottish artists including Claire Cunningham, Caroline Bowditch and Marc Brew.