TVIf you only watch one, make it \u2026Our Girls: The Southport Families<\/p>\n
BBC iPlayer<\/p>\n
Summed up in a sentence A deeply moving documentary celebrating the lives of the three girls killed in an attack on their dance class last year \u2013 and following the powerful way their parents dealt with the tragedy.<\/p>\n
What our reviewer said \u201cNo children were exactly like these three, and it\u2019s a privilege to know them a little through home movies and their parents\u2019 words.\u201d Jack Seale<\/p>\n
Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading One Day in Southport review \u2013 a sombre portrait of how a tragedy was hijacked<\/a><\/p>\n Pick of the restSee No Evil<\/p>\n Channel 4<\/p>\n John Smyth. Photograph: Passion Pictures<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence An impeccably made documentary profiling the horrors of John Smyth, possibly the most prolific serial abuser ever associated with the Church of England.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cThe film gives all its participants\u2019 contributions time to breathe, and time for the viewer to reflect on the many delicate, intelligent insights offered.\u201d Lucy Mangan<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n You may have missed \u2026How I Made a Million in 90 Days<\/p>\n Channel 4<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence Lovable prankster-satirist Oobah Butler tries to get rich quick.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cButler has managed to strip the aspiration from extreme wealth, demonstrate the false promises of hustle culture, show how much of the crypto-CEO world is built on sand and hot air, and prove once again his appealing combination of wry bravado and scrappy relatability.\u201d Rachel Aroesti<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading A documentary-maker\u2019s wild attempt to strike it rich in 90 days<\/a><\/p>\n FilmIf you only watch one, make it \u2026Lurker<\/p>\n In cinemas now<\/p>\n Lurker. Photograph: MUBI<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence A Hollywood hanger-on thriller starring Th\u00e9odore Pellerin as a desperate wannabe who attaches himself to a singer on the rise.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cThere\u2019s something remarkably assured about Alex Russell\u2019s attention-demanding thriller, a buzzy Sundance debut that\u2019s made with an unusual amount of self-awareness.\u201d Benjamin Lee<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading Obsession, blackmail and Instagram: inside Lurker, the year\u2019s most compelling thriller<\/a><\/p>\n Pick of the restPreparation for the Next Life<\/p>\n In cinemas now<\/p>\n Sebiye Behtiyar and Fred Hechinger in Preparation for the Next Life. Photograph: Jaclyn Martinez<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence Bing Liu\u2019s film is an unflinching portrait of an undocumented Uyghur immigrant and a traumatised US veteran whose fragile connection is strained by their pasts.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cThe film shows how the two slip into a limbo, drifting and circling around each other. Perhaps Aishe isn\u2019t sure she wants to commit to the moody and boozy Skinner who can disappear for days at a time; Skinner isn\u2019t sure he really understands the abyss of cultural and historical sadness from which his new girlfriend has appeared.\u201d Peter Bradshaw<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n The Shining<\/p>\n In cinemas now<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence Jack Nicholson stars as an abusive father who is tipped over the edge in Stanley Kubrick\u2019s magnificently capacious spooker, rereleased this week for its 45th anniversary.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cNicholson\u2019s performance is a thrillingly scabrous, black-comic turn, and the final shot of his face in daylight is a masterstroke.\u201d Peter Bradshaw<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading \u2018Extreme heebie-jeebies\u2019: writers on their scariest movies of all time<\/a><\/p>\n Fackham Hall<\/p>\n In cinemas now<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence A period drama parody with some decent and often smart gags and a game cast including Damian Lewis and Thomasin McKenzie.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cThis enjoyable silver-spoon romp packs all of its 97 minutes with jokes and bits ranging from the puerile to the genuinely funny, proving that there may yet be more to wring from eat-the-rich satire.\u201d Adrian Horton<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Now streamingMerv<\/p>\n Prime Video<\/p>\n Zooey Deschanel) and Charlie Cox in Merv. Photograph: Wilson Webb\/Prime<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel co-parent a depressed dog in a by-the-book Christmas romcom to appeal to animal lovers.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cThough not given much to do besides \u2018be depressed\u2019, Gus the Dog flops on the floor and whines convincingly \u2013 he\u2019s no Messi in Anatomy of a Fall<\/a>, but still a very good boy.\u201d Adrian Horton<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n BooksIf you only read one, make it \u2026The Curious Case of Mike Lynch by Katie Prescott<\/p>\n Reviewed by Charlie English<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence A deeply researched account of the controversial businessman\u2019s rise and his shocking demise on board the Bayesian.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cAs Katie Prescott sets it out in this excellent biography, Lynch was a monstrous man in many ways, but a gifted one.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Pick of the restOn the Calculation of Volume III by Solvej Balle translated by Sophia Hersi Smith and Jennifer Russell<\/p>\n Reviewed by Clare Clark<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence The third volume in the hit Danish timeloop series.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cAs her focus widens, Balle introduces some welcome flashes of humour while sustaining the compulsively hypnotic effect of the first two books.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading \u2018How can one day be so voluminous?\u2019: the Danish author who has written her own version of Groundhog Day<\/a><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Burn Anyone at the Stake Today by Naomi Alderman<\/p>\n Reviewed by Sophie McBain<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence A guide to safely navigating the dehumanising world of social media.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cAlderman has a keen eye for the many subtle ways that digital media is changing us psychologically, and she is wise to note these shifts are often double-edged.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading Naomi Alderman: as AI floods our culture, here\u2019s why we must protect human storytelling in games<\/a><\/p>\n Ever Since We Small by Celeste Mohammed<\/p>\n Reviewed by Selma Dabbagh<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence A multilayered, magical realist tale of Trinidad and its people.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cEver Since We Small is deft, confident and big-hearted. Women curse, guide and heal, while love misleads, empowers and is satisfyingly capable of surmounting if not all, then at least a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n You may have missed \u2026Hamnet by Maggie O\u2019Farrell<\/p>\n Reviewed by Joanna Briscoe<\/p>\n Summed up in a sentence The novel behind the film out next month, starring Paul Mescal as Shakespeare and Jessie Buckley as his wife, Agnes, who suffer a family tragedy when the plague comes to Stratford.<\/p>\n What our reviewer said \u201cO\u2019Farrell is simply outstanding. Within pages, she can inhabit the mind of an owl, of a great playwright, of a dying boy. Immersive, at times shockingly intimate \u2026 Hamnet is, above all, a profound study of loss.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n Further reading Why Herefordshire was the perfect stand-in for Shakespeare\u2019s Stratford in the new film of Hamnet<\/a><\/p>\n Albums<\/p>\n For the year\u2019s outstanding releases, explore the Guardian\u2019s best of 2025 music coverage, including its ongoing countdown of the year\u2019s best rock and pop albums<\/a> and songs<\/a>, as well as the best classical recordings<\/a><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TVIf you only watch one, make it \u2026Our Girls: The Southport Families BBC iPlayer Summed up in a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314085,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[96,2839,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-314084","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-movies","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314084\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/314085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}