Entertainment

By Antony Percy, author of Misdefending the Realm ‘The Communist Threat’? Weren’t the Russians our allies in the Second World War? That might be a common reaction to the idea that the UK faced the challenge of countering Soviet spies and subversives when war was declared on Nazi Germany in September 1939. It is, however, frequently forgotten that, shortly before Hitler invaded Poland, he and Stalin had signed a non-aggression pact named after their Foreign Office Ministers, Ribbentrop and Molotov....

Misdefending the Realm by historian Antony Percy is an eye-opening account of the Soviet Union’s infiltration of the British government during World War Two, and the shocking failing of MI5 in dealing with the threat effectively. Having thoroughly researched MI5’s activities during the critical era of the Nazi-Soviet Pact (1939 – 41) for a PhD, Percy is arguably the UK’s leading expert on Russian espionage within and without the Security Service during the early War years. Calling upon a wide...

26.10.17 Shepherd's Bush Empire, London Support: Slothrust Atlanta indie rockers Manchester Orchestra played Shepherd's Bush Empire last night, and TLE were there to capture the action. Opening with choice cuts from latest album A Black Mile to the Surface, Andy Hull and co put on an intense performance. Check out our gallery of the night below. Photos: Grant Bailey

An early John Constable painting incorrectly attributed to two other artists is set to sell for £3 million after emerging for the first time in decades. ‘Dedham Vale with the River Stour in Flood’ has been described as “without question one of the most exciting and important” Constable paintings to be rediscovered in half-a-century. The landscape, painted from the grounds of Old Hall, East Bergholt, Suffolk, shows a herd of cows grazing in front of the flooded countryside. But it...

A budding artist is creating masterpieces on the muddy surfaces of white VANS up and down the country. Ricky Minns, 42, who goes by the name of Ruddy Muddy, spruces up vans in need of a wash by drawing works of art with his fingers. His most recognisable designs are those of Prince Harry, Leonardo Di Vinci's Mona Lisa, Prime Minster Teresa May, and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. Ricky said: "My little one told me that I'd never be a...

I've deliberately left the first two names you'd think of off this list. Spinal Tap and The Blues Brothers are, of course, the gold standard of movie bands, but they seemed such obvious picks that I wanted to use those two slots for other bands. Josie and the Pussycats: Josie and the Pussycats Josie and the Pussycats have had several different incarnations, in comics, animation and now on Netflix's Riverdale, but it's the version from the criminally underrated 2001 film...

Frankie Muniz: Real TV Films/Carole Lowe Photography Remember that brilliant noughties show Malcolm in the Middle? People over 30 probably remember Malcolm well, and also remember the brilliant comedy actor who played Malcolm's dad (hint: he doesn't make crystal meth in a caravan). Well, even if you remember the hit US sitcom staring Frankie Muniz as Malcolm, the actor has revealed how concussions and strokes have led to memory loss. In fact, he revealed that he hardly remembers appearing in the...

The 12th century story of King Arthur and his gallant knights is complex, frustrating, and fraught with contradictions and impossibilities. Very few of the names and events recorded in these chronicles exist in the historical record, and so the text represents a huge historical crossword puzzle that is almost impossible to crack. But how can we derive an answer for two-down in this puzzle, if we have not discovered the solution for five-across? Arthurian history is traditionally set in the...

17.10.17 Village Underground, London Support: Klein Liverpool's Forest Swords swung through the capital last week to deliver an atmospheric wave of experimental electronic. The caverns of the Village Underground were illuminated by Matthew Barnes' searing projections, as two planes of light cut through the gloom, silhouetting the figures on stage. Visually moody and sonically jarring, Barnes' work on 2017's Compassion twinkles particularly brightly tonight.   Photos: Grant Bailey