Being Human | The Crown Dual | London Podcast Festival | Sex Power Money | London Wing Fest...
What does it mean to be human? How are sex, power and money inextricably linked? And how spicy do you like your chicken wings? These are just some of the important questions we tackle in this week's finger-licking good edition of The Week in Colour.
VISIT Being Human, a new permanent exhibition at the Wellcome Collection that explores what it means to be human in the 21st Century, through art. The free exhibition will bring together 50 artworks and objects that take on themes of trust, hope, fear, identity and health – perfectly illustrated through the centrepiece of a Refugee Astronaut by Yinka Shonibare. The exhibition is divided into four sections; Genetics, Minds & Bodies, Infection and Environmental Breakdown, all of which ask different questions about our existence in the current world. The displays are designed to ‘reflect our hopes and fears about new forms of medical knowledge and our changing relationships with ourselves, each other and the world.’ The display by artist Heather Dewey-Hagborg in the genetics section is a great example of the coming together of science and art, and the concept is pretty clever. By extracting DNA from cigarette butts, hair and chewing gum found on the streets of New York, Heather uses the genetic information to analyse and create speculative portraits with a 3D printer! A thought-provoking and eye-opening exhibition, it’s no surprise its a permanent fixture.
Being Human opens at Wellcome Collection on 5 September. For more information, visit: https://wellcomecollection.org/ and follow @explorewellcome on twitter for updates.
WATCH The Crown Dual at Wilton’s Music Hall. Following its sell-out runs at the King’s Head Theatre and Edinburgh fringe, this thoroughly majestic comedy follows two actors reimagining the story of how the young Elizabeth Windsor became Queen. Having been cruelly overlooked for her dream role as HRH in blockbuster series The Crown, budding actress Beth brings her own take on the epic story of the Royal Family to the stage instead… with her agent Stanley coerced into playing (almost) all the other roles – from Prince Philip to Princess Margaret, and all the commoners in between. Written by parodic mastermind Daniel Clarkson, co-creator of Olivier Award-nominated hit shows Potted Potter and Potted Panto, this brilliant 70-minute play is a new crowning glory of British comedy.
The Crown Dual runs from 3-14 September. For more information about tickets and prices visit http://wiltons.org.uk/.
LISTEN to one of the many live podcast events at this year’s London Podcast Festival in Kings Place. Launched in 2016 and attracting over 18,000 visitors, this year’s star-studded festival programme features some of the most talented and popular podcasters on the planet. During the course of the next two weekends, visitors to the festival will get a unique chance to enjoy live, interactive and in-the-flesh versions of some of the podcasts which have made daily commutes more bearable, sitting at their desks more entertaining and going to the gym less tedious. Packed full of gems across all genres - from comedy to educational, culture to politics - the programme includes spoken-word superstar George the Poet’s Have you Heard George’s Podcast, comedian Adam Buxton’s The Adam Buxton Podcast and BBC film critic Mark Kermode’s Kermode on Film Live! Among other highlights are comedian Deborah Frances-White’s The Guilty Feminist, Friends-themed show Friends with Friends and LGBTQ favourite A Gay and a Non-Gay.
The London Podcast Festival runs on 6-8 September and 13-15 September. For more information on the programme and to purchase tickets, please visit https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/london-podcast-festival/. Check out @LondonPodFest on Twitter for updates.
READ Sex Power Money by Sarah Pascoe. Following her hit book Animal, award-winning comedian Sara Pascoe now turns her brilliant, observant and unmistakeable style to the age-old controversial alignment of sex, power and money. Asking important questions about desire, porn, exploitation and taboo, she brings together anecdotes, research and history, combined with her explosive humour, to shine her unique insight onto ‘the penis in our mind’, the conundrum of heterosexuality, love as addiction and ‘sex and chickens’. With wit, irreverence and incisive intelligence, this book lays bare our porn-obsessed age and brings a fresh new perspective to ethical and social issues that stretch far back into human history. There will also be a chance to hear Sara in conversation with Deborah Frances-White at the South Bank Centre on Sunday 8th September.
For more information about tickets go to https://southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/137644-sara-pascoe-sex-power-money-2019. Sex Power Money by Sara Pascoe is published by Faber in hardback at £14.99. Follow @faberbooks and @southbankcentre on Twitter for updates.
DINE at London Wing Fest, the ultimate chicken wing festival, and apparently the biggest of its kind in Europe, which takes place 7-8 September at London Stadium in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The aim of the game is to find the King of the Wing as 35 traders will be battling against each other to impress visitors with the best buffalo wing (deep-fried) and the best wild wing (anything goes). It’s a quid a wing and you can vote for your favourite via the Wing Fest app. If you want to compete yourself, you are invited to take part in Frank’s Red-Hot Wing Eating Competition or Dr Sweetsmoke’s deadly Lava Wing challenge on either day. In addition to all the wings, there will be cooking demonstrations, fairground attractions, axe-throwing, chainsaw carving and DJ’s playing tunes throughout the day. Sounds like a cluckin’ good time but don’t just wing it – get your tickets in advance to claim your Wing Fest signature trucker hat, Frank's RedHot sauce & access to Wing Fest app!
For more information, visit https://www.wingfest.co.uk and follow @wingfestuk on Twitter and Instagram.
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