ISSUE 18: David Attenborough, Suede, Brian Wilson & are you in primetime midlife?
A 3 minute read that might just inspire midlifers to stop doomscrolling.
Hi,
Welcome to 2025 - issue 3!
What culture have you consumed this week? We’ve been to the West End to see the play Giant, been to the Barbican for ‘In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats’ and Peckham Rye for an improvised gig by the jazz collective Steamdown. A great week.
What will make it into your diary this week?
Hampstead, London, 11 – 13 July 2025
The Idler Festival is a weekend of philosophy and merriment, comedy, talks, music, workshops and salons in the bucolic surroundings of Fenton House near Hampstead Heath. It stars Michael Palin, Emma Thompson, Stewart Lee and former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams!
2 Our Story with David Attenborough
Natural History Museum from June 19th.
Immerse yourself in the epic tale of people and planet in this new 360° experience, presented by Sir David Attenborough. Watch as the walls and floor burst into life around you. Witness the birth of life on our planet and see it evolved over billions of years. Look on as a family of gorillas play in their lush forest home and follow the journey of a humpback whale beneath the waves.
Go see our human story from the earliest beginnings to the tipping point when we begin to influence the world around us!
3 Brian Wilson. RIP to a genius.
To many people, The Beach Boys are just a surfer harmony band, but behind that is pure 100% genius. Brian wrote all their songs (25+ top 40 hits) despite being regularly beaten by his abusive father, so much that he was almost 100% deaf in one ear. He began to hear voices in his head and stopped touring with the band so that he could get those down into music and make an album that would keep The Beatles looking to his songwriting as the influence for their own future - Pet Sounds influenced Sgt Pepper influenced Smile.
He suffered numerous nervous breakdowns, which led to him being 'controlled' 24/7 by psychologist Eugene Landy. He was eventually rescued (literally) by car saleswoman Melinda Leadbetter, who later became his wife, with five adopted children. Brian's life was captured brilliantly in the film 'Love and Mercy'. RIP.
Watch 'God Only Knows' from 1966
Danny Boyle’s post-apocalyptic horror film, written by Alex Garland. The third in the 28 Days Later film series, following 28 Days Later (2002) and 28 Weeks Later (2007), it stars Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes. It was shot back-to-back with its sequel 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, which is due to be released in January 2026, as part of a new trilogy.
5 New albums from former Britpop artists in 2025
Pulp and Suede are both iconic Britpop bands that emerged in the 1990s, but thirty years later they are both going strong and creatively still relevant. Pulp have this week released ‘More’, their first studio album in almost 24 years, whilst later in the month Suede release ‘Antidepressants’, the band's 10th studio record. PS - Coincidentally, Robbie Williams’ new album, out later in the year, is entitled ‘Britpop’!?
Next week (14-21 June) is the annual celebration of independent bookshops across the UK and Ireland. It aims to highlight the vital role independent stores play in their communities, and to encourage consumers to shop for their summer reads with their local independent.
To inspire you into your local book shop, here is this year’s Indie Book Awards Shortlist for non-fiction.
A Bookshop of One’s Own: How a group of women set out to change the world by Jane Cholmeley (Mudlark)
Dispersals: On Plants, Borders and Belonging by Jessica J. Lee (Transworld)
Ingrained: The making of a craftsman by Callum Robinson (Doubleday Books)
Reading Lessons: An English Teacher’s Love Letter to the Books that Shape Us by Carol Atherton (Fig Tree)
The Garden Against Time: In Search Of A Common Paradise by Olivia Laing (Picador)
Welcome to the Club: The Life and Lessons of a Black Woman DJ by DJ Paulette (Manchester University Press)
7 Do you know the same track has been number one in the pop charts for the last three months!?
Alex Warren, Californian singer-songwriter, secured an unprecedented 12th week at Number 1 last week, which confirmed him as the US artist with the most consecutive weeks at Number 1 in Official UK Singles Chart history. To put that in perspective, ‘Two Tribes’ by Frankie GTH was number one for just nine weeks. Warren’s run has been put to an end this week by the new single from Sabrina Carpenter.
Midlifer thought for the day
In midlife, if you are lucky... There is a period of time - for a few short years - when your children are old enough to look after themselves and your parents are young enough to look after themselves (and your body still works!)...
This time is potentially your absolute 'Primetime Midlife' opportunity to enjoy the best years of your life... It finishes when your parents become too old to look after themselves or your children have children who need help to be looked after...
Time to fill up that diary!
Cheers,
Chris
Let us know what culture you consume this week - and what you thought of it!? Plus, please share this issue and email us anything you think will benefit from being shared with Midlifer readers at chris@chrisward.cc
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