Five for your radar: TV, books, film - top tips for the week ahead
Some of Michelle McGlynn's selections for next week. L-R: Emma Mackey in Sex Education, Naomi Klein looks at conspiracy theories, John Robbs talks Goth at UCC
Moordale is closed but it's not quite time to say goodbye to the crew from Sex Education. The fourth and final season looks like it will deliver everything that has made this show a hit that spawned fans of all ages and triggered conversations on topics that most would have shied away from in the past. Venturing beyond the walls of Moordale, every character's life is getting shaken up and it's going to lead to plenty of laughs and probably just as many tears. We can't wait.
Spooky season is well and truly upon us and A Haunting in Venice is the perfect film to set the mood. Kenneth Branagh's latest turn as Hercule Poirot is a return to form following the dismal Death on the Nile. Once again, he is joined by a stellar cast which includes Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh, Tina Fey and our own Jamie Dornan. It is a very loose adaptation of Agatha Christie's Hallowe'en Party. The majority of the action takes place in a vast Italian palazzo where nothing is as it seems.
Journalist and musician John Robb is doing a talk on his new book, The Art of Darkness: The History of Goth. The book is an in-depth look at goth culture from its early beginnings in Roman times up until today. Goth is an oft-ridiculed subculture but its influence ripples right throughout pop culture. The book draws on Robb's own experiences and includes interviews with the likes of Nick Cave, The Cure and Adam Ant. This free Q&A is going to be interesting and is likely to book out fast.
Nine albums in and The National continue to be a band that consistently delivers without letting their sound get stale. Their fans are dedicated and will no doubt be perfectly content with what the band have in store for the Dublin date of the Frankenstein tour. The real draw, for me, is the special guest - Soccer Mommy. The 26-year-old has been steadily growing her fanbase over the past seven years and is the queen of what Variety called feel-bad pop.
International bestseller Naomi Klein returns with her attempt to make sense of what has been a wild and bizarre few years. Framing it around the journey of the woman she's often confused with, Naomi Wolf, author Klein delves right into the belly of the beast exploring conspiracy theories, anti-vaxxers, influencers, the rapidly growing far-right. Everything you have been afraid to do a real deep-dive into, Klein goes right in and what she comes up with is equally fascinating and terrifying. Fans of the author will be interested to know that she will be doing an event in Dublin's RDS later this month as part of the Kilkenomics festival.
