Le Journal

‘The Woody’ was crammed and chaotic, and nobody could be rushed. There was always time for another pint and conversationI felt eyes on me the second I stepped into the pub. It was as though we were interlopers in a sacred space – everyone turned to look. Self-consciously, I walked to a door labelled “BAR” and pushed it open, and was met by further stares at me and my female companion. Only once we had got our pints and sat down did we notice the “GENTS ONLY” sign on the wall. Continue reading...

The Number of the Beast lights up an unforgettable scene in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple thanks to director Nia DaCosta expertly blending ‘craziness and romance’There were laughs of surprise around me in screen three of the Everyman in Muswell Hill, north London, as 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple drew to its conclusion. Without giving too much away for those who haven’t seen it, Ralph Fiennes dancing semi-naked among piles of human bones to Iron Maiden’s The Number of the Beast is not how you expect one of our greatest thespians to deport himself on screen.“Alex Garland chose that song,” says the film’s director, Nia DaCosta. “He wrote it into the script. And you can’t get better than that in a film about satanists.” Continue reading...

In a country plagued by underdog status and a sport fraught with a history of racism, misogyny and homophobia, this adaptation has reimagined what’s possible I grew up in a hockey town where there was no escaping Canada’s beloved sport. Our suburban streets doubled as rinks; the choppy slap of tennis balls reverberating against hockey sticks a constant sound. As pre-teens, my friends and I would put on lip gloss and tight jeans to hang out at the Friday night junior hockey games. I still find comfort in the sound of skate blades slicing across ice and that sweaty, chemical odour of public arenas.My experiences are not unique in a country with a 95-year-old broadcast institution called Hockey Night in Canada. Rachel Reid, the Nova Scotian author of the queer hockey romance Heated Rivalry, grew up a hockey fanatic, more interested in playing the game than ogling boys. Jacob Tierney, who wrote and directed the TV adaptation of Reid’s 2019 bestseller, was raised in Montreal, where the Canadiens (or the Habs, as the team is affectionately known) are considered sacred.Sue Carter is a Toronto-based freelance writer and arts workerDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

From charity workers to synchronised swimmers via a young lad having tea with his nan, these people all inspired award-winning photographs Continue reading...