Arts

Larry Lamb was a man who, along with bearing a plethora of other scars from a life on Fleet Street, had a prominent mark on his forehead that for years was a source of great speculation within London’s notorious publishing district. His reputation often proceeded him and the rumours were that his fierce temper and unwavering stubbornness had landed him in fights with the Krays who had repeatedly bludgeoned him before tiring of his stern resilience. The truth of the...

Review by Isolde Walters, follow at @isoldewrites  I have always been bookish. When I was a child, my father nicknamed me 'bookmark', partly because I was slight but mainly because my nose was forever in a novel. One summer I read George Eliot's Middlemarch in five heady days - that's over 700 pages of heavy Victorian prose, long meandering sentences with clauses and sub-clauses and semi-colons galore. But I fell in love with the characters and their stories and was...

An art-loving couple have taken these stunning photos of themselves travelling across Europe. The striking pictures prove less is more as the creative couple use their love for geometry and buildings with spectacular results. Daniel Rueda, 26, and Anna Devis' training in architecture inspired them to make the foreground and the buildings in the background of their shots as important as each other. Mr Rueda said: "We were always taking pictures but very organically we started to appear in each...

A talented watercolour artist has learnt to paint stunning landscapes - despite being blind. John Mitchell, 58, developed a love for landscapes and geometric shapes in his 30s but was forced to put his canvas down when he developed a mystery illness. But almost 20 years later, when he was diagnosed with complete tunnel vision, that left him with a tiny amount of sight. When he was recovering from at home on the sofa when he was inspired to brush...

The only remaining travelling horse-drawn theatre troupe in the UK may stop touring after losing crucial Arts Council funding. Sabotage Theatre tour original plays to isolated and rural communities in Kent and Sussex, walking up to 14 miles a day, living outside and cooking with fires. The stage and set are pulled in a cart by two Piebald Cobs. There are several in the US, Canada and Europe, but Sabotage is the only horse-drawn theatre troupe left in the United...

When the weather reaches over 30 degrees, all plays should have to incorporate an air conditioning unit into their set by law. Fortunately, HIR has come prepared, and sitting in the auditorium of the Bush Theatre is a sweet, blessed relief after the persistent heat wave raging outside. In the middle of the auditorium is a kitchen, with the audience sitting along each of the two long sides. Both edges of the stage are littered with laundry. Chairs are stacked...

Reviewing theatre in the summer is a fool’s game. Unless you’re in Edinburgh, or anywhere outside with your head in a bucket of Pimms, you’re an idiot. The notable exception this year is These Trees Are Made of Blood, a cabaret set in Argentina currently showing at the Arcola Theatre; fortunately the show perfectly suits the muggy, still heat of an unventilated brick building in the middle of a heat wave. It is dark, loud and hot. Half naked men...

A photographer has released a book featuring pictures he took of more than 100 naked woman in his local area - to try and improve their body image. Snapper Jojo found 108 females willing to shed their clothes for his project. He has now published all the images in his third book: Naked Truth: Plymouth Unveiled accompanied by the women's thoughts on their own bodies. Jojo, 52, who lives in Plymouth, Devon, said all the women involved are from his...

As it turns out, the starving artist stereotype is not too far off. According to the 2011 National Household Survey and Labor Force Survey, the average income among Canadian artists is $27,600. Compared with an average of $45,400 for the overall labour force, this is a difference of 39%, a significant departure.   Fortunately, for the majority of artists who are unable to land stable positions, the internet offers some hope. With the universal availability of the internet and the...