The Week in Light & Sound
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Something for the Weekend - With Glastonbury taking a year off in 2018, there's already one new festival hoping to fill the mud-and-music gap. The BBC has announced plans to host The Biggest Weekend while Glasto has its traditional fallow year. The four-day festival will take place in May across four sites in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Biggest Weekend is scheduled for the late May bank holiday weekend (25-28 May) - earlier than when Glastonbury normally is. More than 175,000 tickets will be made available, which is more than the number sold for Glasto, but this one is across four locations.The BBC said it will bring "the biggest artists in the world" to the event - but headliners won't be announced for some time yet. Radio 1, Radio 2, Radio 3 and 6 Music will all broadcast live sets from the weekend, while BBC Two and BBC Four will lead the TV coverage.
Rolling On - Keith Richards has revealed that The Rolling Stones are to cut some original material for the first time since 2005’s A Bigger Bang. Their last album Blue & Lonesome, which came out last December, comprised purely of classic blues covers.Now, guitarist Keef, has revealed in a video interview for his own website, that the band will be back in the recording studio together "very, very shortly".
Global Role - Actor and writer Michelle Terry has been appointed artistic director of Shakespeare's Globe. She replaces Emma Rice in the role, who leaves officially in April 2018 following a row over her use of artificial sound and lighting. Terry will take over as artistic director designate from 2 October this year, assuming the role full time in April 2018.
As an actor, Terry has performed on the Globe's stage in As You Like It in 2015, A Misdummer Night's Dream in 2013 and Love's Labour’s Lost in 2007. Her most recent stage credits including Becoming: Part One at the Donmar Warehouse – which she created to explore the role of parenthood in theatre – and a gender-swapped production of Henry V at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, in which she played the title role. She also directed three short films as part of the Globe's Complete Walk in 2016, marking 400 years since Shakespeare's Death.
Tax Efficient - Almost 2,000 theatre productions in the UK have benefited from theatre tax relief since its introduction in 2014, saving a total of £60m. Over the past three years, 560 touring productions and 1,185 non-touring shows have claimed relief, according to the first official figures released by HM Revenue and Customs.
The tax policy was introduced in September 2014 and follows similar schemes for other media such as film, television and video games. Touring shows can claim back 25% relief on eligible costs, and other productions can claim 20%. HMRC has previously published estimates for each year. However, the most recent data confirms that productions received £14.3m in the first year of the scheme, rising sharply to a total of £46m paid out in 2016-17.
On His Bike - Justin Bieber has apologised to his fans after cancelling the remaining dates of his Purpose World Tour because of "unforeseen circumstances". The move affects 14 dates in Asia and North America which were coming up over the next three months. Bieber told celebrity news website TMZ.com: "I'm sorry for anybody who feels disappointed or betrayed."
The singer has performed more than 150 shows on the tour, promoting his 2015 album Purpose, since March 2016. The tour grossed $93.2m (£71.5m) in the first half of 2017, with an average of almost 40,000 ticket sales per date. Bieber added: "I have been on tour for two years. I'm looking forward to just resting, getting some relaxation and we're going to ride some bikes."
Farewell - Linkin Park have released their first official statement after the death of frontman Chester Bennington last week. "Our hearts are broken. The shock waves of grief and denial are still sweeping through our family as we come to grips with what has happened," it read. "You touched so many lives, maybe even more than you realised," it continued. Bennington's body was found at a private home in Los Angeles on Thursday. The LA County Coroner said he apparently hanged himself.
(Jim Evans)
25 July 2017
