It was 50 years ago this June 1st when The Beatles’ John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr ushered in the Summer of Love with Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, a groundbreaking masterwork that became popular music’s most universally acclaimed album. To salute the occasion, The Beatles will release a suite of lavishly presented ‘Sgt. Pepper’ Anniversary Edition packages on May 26 (Apple Corps Ltd./Universal Music). The album is newly mixed by Giles Martin and Sam Okell in stereo and 5.1 surround audio and expanded with early takes from the studio...

By Leslie Byron Pitt While Stanley Kubrick’s methodical work ethic produced a low volume of high-quality work, it’s easy to forget that the productivity of a prolific filmmaker can bear equally rewarding fruits. In the space of ten years, Chilean director Pablo Larraín has produced seven features and has only just reached the age of 40. The works of Larraín which the writer has seen, have been impactful ones, with each of them leaving a distinct mark as much as...

Of the five upcoming billion dollar industries unveiled by Syed Irfan Ajmal in Business.com at the start of the year - virtual reality, big data, online retail, IOT and the sharing economy - one seemed to mysteriously slip his mind - Sperm. The global sperm bank market is expected to reach a value of USD 4.96 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research. Although the market is largely confined to North America due to the large...

Have you ever robbed a casino? No, nor have I. But after visiting the Heliot Steakhouse at The Hippodrome, I found the outstanding value enough to make most anyone feel like a member of the Rat Pack in Oceans 11. Quite honestly, I had my doubts about the restaurant before visiting. Although having heard nothing but praise, my partisan preconceptions of the place included an unsavoury concoction of Leicester Square, men in polyester suits vaunting their wealth while supping dry...

By Tom Moore Racists up and down the UK are today unsure what to think as the reality of ‘being free to negotiate deals with nations around the world’ becomes apparent. There was an assumption amongst the racists that ‘other nations’ meant the US and Canada and possibly one or two South American countries, but the whiter ones like Argentina. Theresa May has been spending time in Saudi Arabia and Qatar recently with the intention of securing partnerships and trade...

By Wyndham Hacket Pain Controversial and often divisive, Rainer Werner Fassbinder directed 40 films in 14 years before his death from a drug overdose aged 37 in 1982. He was so prolific during his lifetime that even today audiences and critics are still catching up with his work that in some cases have only received limited DVD releases. The current retrospective at the BFI then represents a chance to re-evaluate a director whose work is as intriguing and important as...

Liverpool has been ranked as the number one city to find a job this spring, with Brighton, Birmingham and Sheffield following close by. The number of vacancies increased by an impressive 20 per cent on the Mersey, suggesting that business confidence is strong in the North West. London also ranked in the top ten, with vacancies increasing by 12 per cent in the last month. The top 10 locations where job numbers are rapidly rising: Liverpool (19.9%) Brighton (18.8%) Birmingham (14.8%)...

The World's first crowdfunded hospital will open tomorrow in Aleppo. Hope Hospital, which was funded by 4,800 single donations from people all over the world, will open to treat the children of Aleppo sending a  strong message of solidarity to the Syrian doctors (the Independent Doctors Association) who were rebuilding this children’s hospital for the seventh time after the six previous buildings had been bombed out of action. The convoy departed from Chelsea & Westminster Hospital in London on December...

By Linda Marric I Am Not Your Negro, five simple words which carry with them 400 years of American history. In this moving documentary drama, Raoul Peck gives legendary civil rights hero and award winning writer James Baldwin, a voice from beyond the grave almost thirty years after his passing. Credited in the film as writer, James Baldwin’s words can be heard through the masterfully solemn narration by Samuel L Jackson and tell a story from the frontline of the...