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Killer Joe
William Friedkin/2012/USA/ 103 min Showing @Festival Theatre, Wed 20 June, 21:30 4 Stars William Friedkin’s long-awaited Killer Joe, adapted by the Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright, Tracy Letts from...
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Trash and The Libel Case Or, How to Piss Off a Theatre Critic
I updated this blog for the first time in nearly three months last week, but I couldn’t update again without discussing the tale of my recent experience of dealing with a very difficult company at the...
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Of Pen Names and Pseudonyms
In the age of new media, how do we value anonymity? Does using a pen name devalue journalism? The recent publication of a review written by a critic using a pen name ignited a debate between critics...
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Trash Interviews James Isherwood
Until last week, I hadn’t heard of the food blogger, James Isherwood. But after he published an average review of Claude Bosi’s restaurant Hibiscus, he fell foul of a number of chefs on Twitter. Bosi,...
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Critics and the Theatre Industry
The thing about being a theatre critic, or a critic of any art form, is that you can often feel like you’re standing in front of a locked door, trying to find a way to get in. For example, you may...
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Why Your EdFringe PR Campaign Sucks
If you’re a performer or part of a theatre company that’s handling your own PR campaign at the Edinburgh Fringe this year, perhaps for the first time, there are three things that form the basis of any...
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Shit EdFringe Critics Say
1. Why did I decide to review six shows today? 2. Why did I book a show that starts before 10am? 3. Let’s meet for coffee. 4. (During a press night) I will try to see your show. 5. Where is the press...
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Shit EdFringe Critics Never Say
1. That company sent me 5 different versions of the same PR! How helpful. 2. I will absolutely be at your show. 3. I just love the sound of the phone ringing. Constantly ringing. 4. Look at all the...
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So, You Got a Bad Review…
“I don’t care what is written about me so long as it isn’t true.” - Dorothy Parker The human animal is a fallible beast; we are hypocritical, egotistical, emotional and vulnerable. We don’t like being...
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Life After Libel
If you’re a regular reader of this blog, then you’ll probably be very familiar with my Edinburgh Fringe Festival tale of terror from last year, where I was threatened with libel by an entertainment...
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My Failed New Year’s Resolutions
I love New Year. I love the fireworks, the celebrations and the sense of optimism that comes with the dawning of each new calendar year. But I absolutely suck at sticking to my New Year’s resolutions....
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Seven Terrible Things People Have Asked Me About Arts Journalism
“Ah, ha! You’re unemployed then?” What I Said Then: “No, I have a job, and I do this in my free time to build up my portfolio.” What I Say Now: “No, this is my job.” “So, you go to a show and write...
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How To Get Reviewed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Hold on to your hats, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is nigh! After months of anticipation, the long-awaited official launch of the Fringe takes place today in Scotland’s rather dreich capital city. For...
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In the absence of criticism
What does a critic do when they’re not reviewing? Does the clock stop for a critic when the house lights go up and the review is written and filed? I used to imagine that a critic’s downtime consisted...
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Writer, Critic, Reviewer, Spy
It started, as these things so often do, with an email. “I’ve had an email from a solicitor about you…” chirped my editor. The walls started closing in. “Oh God no!” screamed a voice in my head,...
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