Something For The Weekend: Cat Burns, The High Life, Jim Jarmusch and more
Check the state of your weekend. Disgraceful. But that's why SFTW exists, to inundate you with cultural recommendations. In this edition, we're living The High Life with Alan Cumming, indulging our pop side with Cat Burns, revelling in riso prints, and much more
AROUND TOWN
Following a sold-out run at the Fringe, comedian Peter Flanagan is returning to Scotland with his debut show Fresh Prince Of Kildare, where he reminisces about bad dates, booze and meditation. Blackfriars, Glasgow, Thursday 9 April; Monkey Barrel Comedy, Edinburgh, Friday 10 April.
Queer Folks Tales (Friday 10 April) is back for the fifth year running. Hosts Turan Ali, Michael Johnson, Lake Montgomery, and Conor O’Dwyer will share stories from LGBTQ+ lives, past, present and future at the Scottish Storytelling Centre in Edinburgh.
The Edinburgh International Harp Festival runs at George Watson College from Friday 10–Tuesday 14 April. Rooted in Scotland’s clarsach tradition, the festival offers concerts, workshops, and drop-in harp taster sessions for anyone who’s curious.
MUSIC
Blending soul, blues, and folk with emotional lyricism, Olive Jones has made a splash with her first three singles. Since 2023 she has accumulated more than one million monthly listeners and received support from the BBC. She will be playing at SWG3, Glasgow on Thursday 9 April.
Singer-songwriter Cat Burns plays O2 Academy Glasgow this Sunday 12 April. Her music, which first gained popularity on TikTok during lockdown, draws on a mix of pop and gospel and is influenced by artists like Ed Sheeran and India Arie.
Post-punk duo Black Doldrums (Friday 10 April) are stopping off at The Old Hairdresser’s in Glasgow on their Cruel Spring tour. Variously described as dark psych and shoegaze, the group’s music has its roots in the 80s goth scene.
STAGE
A decade after the release of Ken Loach’s film about an injured carpenter and a single mother wrestling with the benefits system, I, Daniel Blake (until Saturday 11 April) heads to Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, in a stage adaptation from the film’s original star, Dave Johns.
Another adaptation, Legally Blonde: The Musical, can also be seen in Glasgow until Saturday 11 April, this time at the King’s Theatre. The show follows sorority girl turned lawyer Elle Woods as she heads to Harvard to win her boyfriend back.
Cult comedy series The High Life (until Saturday 11 April) returns, only this time as a musical. The show, playing at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh, features all four original cast members: Alan Cumming, Forbes Masson, Siobhan Redmond and Patrick Ryecart.
SCREEN
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Winner of the Golden Lion Best Film prize at the Venice Film Festival and the recipient of four stars from us, Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother explores the intricate dynamics of three families. In cinemas from Friday 10 April.
François Ozon’s The Stranger, an adaptation of Albert Camus’ classic of French existentialism, premiered at London Film Festival last year and now makes its way to cinemas across the UK on Friday 10 April.
Wes Anderson films can look good enough to eat sometimes, and now you can. The next Screen & Scran screening at The Mother Superior in Edinburgh will be The Grand Budapest Hotel (Sunday 12 April), where guests will receive afternoon tea themed around the pastel beauty of the film.
PODCAST
Single Ladies In Your Area sees single comedians Amy Gledhill and Harriet Kemsley navigate the dating scene. Speaking to a variety of guests from experts to friends, they break down past dates and share dating horror stories for your listening pleasure.
Film critics Mark Kermode and Ellen E Jones return for another season of Screenshot. The cinephilic duo explore a different theme each week, from fishing on film to Jane Austen adaptations, discussing with guests from across the film industry.
Hosted by historian Greg Jenner, You’re Dead To Me brings the past to life using humour, pairing an expert historian with a comedian every episode. See it live this Sunday at The Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh.
VISUAL ART
Featuring 400 postcards from artists around the world as well as artist-led workshops, Riso Club 100 (Saturday 11–Sunday 19 April) celebrates 100 issues of designer Gabriella Marcella’s postcard project at The Glue Factory in Glasgow.
Combining her love of mountainous landscapes with the words of John Ruskin, Edinburgh-based artist Susie Leiper’s latest exhibition at Open Eye Gallery in Edinburgh, An Infinite Unknown (until Saturday 25 April), mixes calligraphy and painting to represent the spiritual depth of mountains.
Extraction (Saturday 11 April–Sunday 26 July), a new exhibition at Jupiter Artland, brings together works from artists such as Carol Rhodes and John Gerrard to explore how energy systems shape our land and culture. The exhibition is placed in conversation with Jupiter Artland’s own landscape, which has been shaped by the shale gas industry.
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