David Byrne, Little Simz, Jasmine.4.t and more: the best music of autumn 2025

For Byrne’s first album since his hugely acclaimed American Utopia tour – and the subsequent Spike Lee-directed film – he’s working with an orchestra, as well as St Vincent and Paramore singer Hayley Williams, among others. The two tracks released so far, She Explains Things To Me and Everybody Laughs, have proved to be sweetly sunny and driven by acoustic guitar. The accompanying tour – due to reach Europe next year – will apparently “blend visual art, storytelling and music into one compelling live performance”. Released 5 SeptemberSaint Etienne have been an endlessly fascinating fixture on the leftfield of pop for 25 years, spawning everything from Top 10 singles to documentaries about the Lea Valley and the South Bank. Their most recent albums I’ve Been Trying To Tell You and The Night have delved into concept-driven ambient experimental territory with hugely rewarding results, but International is to be their final release

Helen Mirren decries condescending attitudes towards couples in their 80s

It’s a sight that makes even the most hard-hearted millennial coo: an octogenarian couple expressing their affection towards one another.But Helen Mirren has railed against being so “insulting”, saying such condescension makes her want to tell people to “fuck off”.The actor said the hardest part of turning 80 last month was the “condescension” she was forced to endure when holding hands in public with her husband, Taylor Hackford.Speaking to the Times while promoting the release of her latest film, The Thursday Murder Club, she said: “It really annoys me.“If my husband and I are holding hands, someone might say: ‘Oh, look

Women’s groups hail Noel Clarke libel defeat as victory for victims and press freedom

Women’s groups have said a high court judgment dismissing a libel claim against the Guardian by actor Noel Clarke marks a victory not just for his victims, but for press freedom and public interest reporting as a whole.They said too often “wealthy and abusive men” have been able to use the courts to try to silence victims, hiding “behind injunctions, NDAs, [and] threats of defamation suits”.Clarke claimed the allegations published by the Guardian after an investigation were false and he had been the victim of an unlawful conspiracy.During the five-week civil case, 26 witnesses gave evidence against him, detailing allegations of bullying and professional and sexual misconduct.On Friday, Mrs Justice Steyn rejected Clarke’s claims, ruling the Guardian had proved both its defences: truth and public interest

‘New Noel Clarkes will surface’ without change in film and TV, say female witnesses

The culture of the television and film industries needs to change to protect women from the actions of sexual predators, women who gave evidence against Noel Clarke in his failed libel action have said.“Noel’s behaviour was an open secret, everyone knew,” said Penelope, a pseudonym for an actor who filmed a sex scene with Clarke. “He didn’t work alone. Those who enabled and protected him should be accountable.“He found a way to operate as he did because there is a culture across these industries of actors not being protected while at work and having no way of whistleblowing,” she told the Guardian after the court dismissed Clarke’s case on Friday

The Guide #205: In an age of streaming clutter, why not rediscover Britain’s rich documentary past?

The state of British TV documentary film-making is a little depressing at the moment. Open up the documentaries tab on iPlayer, Now, ITVX or Channel 4, and you’ll be assaulted by a rush of true crime docs, each with their own macabre/salacious title – Satan’s Au Pair, Catching the Frying Pan Killer, that sort of thing – and a little rectangular title card with said killer looking evil, preferably in a grainy black and white picture with a bloody thumbprint overlaid.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more

Eddington to Deftones: your complete entertainment guide to the week ahead

EddingtonOut now From Hereditary to Beau Is Afraid, Ari Aster’s films are always an event. They’re also an acquired taste, with this neo-western about a hotly contested mayoral election set during the pandemic in New Mexico dividing critics. It stars Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Austin Butler and Emma Stone.The Life of ChuckOut now Based on a Stephen King novella, this fantasy drama centres on Charles “Chuck” Krantz (played by different actors at different ages, including Tom Hiddleston in middle age), an accountant who loves to dance and whose image begins to appear on billboards and in adverts, as society experiences environmental and technological breakdowns.Sorry, BabyOut now Literature professor Agnes (Eva Victor, who also wrote and directed) works at a college in rural New England in this dark comedy