By Jovian Wendy Haines asks why writers have such a problem with characters of the opposite sex, and gives some well-deserved points to George R.R. Martin… A few years ago I had the pleasure of attending a Q&A with comedic writer Graham Linehan. As a loyal fan of Father Ted, Black Books and The IT Crowd, the prospect of potentially speaking to him in person led me near to incontinence. I could now tell a Read more
Hello. It’s Woody again, so grab your most scholarly hat and get ready to learn a few more things in this the fourth part in my series on “misusing” myth! I’m excited about this part of the series because I get to talk about the master of the art of appropriating stories entirely to suit one’s own purposes: Publius Ovidius Naso – Ovid to you and me. Ovid is excellent. His father sent him to Read more
Is the struggle for equal rights about more than just liberation? Is it a matter of cultural imposition? By Jove Artistic Director David Bullen takes a look… The past few months have been a series of bitter blows and overwhelming victories for those following the on-going struggle over global LGBT rights. Last week came the news – joyous to some, abhorrent to others – that the USA’s Defence of Marriage Act (DOMA) has been Read more
By Jove! associate Rob Wallis attempts an exploration of the etymology of the English language’s most popular swear words and how they reflect on contemporary society… Is there anything as indicative of a society’s attitudes as how they swear? Swearing can be cathartic, a pre-programmed response to a stress situation: burning one’s hand on a hot stove may result in a reflexive “Jesus Christ!” or “shit!”, regardless of one’s religious beliefs and/or need to Read more
In this third part of his ongoing series on the historical uses and abuses of myth, Alexander Woodward, one of our in-house classicists, here addresses the Golden Age of Latin Poetry. Hello. It’s Woody again, so we’re returning to the series on uses of Myth (you can have another look at part one and part two, if you want a refresher course). This time I’ll be chatting about certain examples from the Golden Age of Read more
In response to the ever-revolving media circus on politics this week, our artistic director has a quick message for those concerned by the claims of Gerald Howarth and co… Hysteria is a word derived from the ancient Greek term for the womb. They believed that it wandered the body and that once a month it latched on to a woman’s brain and produced all kinds of dangerously irrational behaviour. This bizarre medical belief was Read more
By Jove Artistic Director David Bullen takes on one of the big myths of homophobia and asks, ‘is being gay really so unnatural?’ And, if it is…is that such a bad thing? One of the fall-back arguments you often hear in a homophobe’s arsenal is that being gay is “unnatural”. As LGB individuals have become more accepted by Western society, the argument crops up less and less – thankfully falling under the umbrella of Read more
In the second part of his on-going series on the uses of myth throughout history, By Jovian Alexander Woodward takes us back to where it all began… Hello, I’m Woody – welcome back to my mini-series on some of the great re-uses of myth throughout the ages. This is the blog for a theatre company so the first bit was on ancient theatre to whet your appetite. That done, we’re now going back in time Read more
Today’s all but state funeral for Margaret Thatcher (hopefully) brings some closure on furious public debate as to her legacy. By Jove Artistic Director David Bullen takes a look at some of the various iterations of Thatcher that have appeared over the years… Margaret Thatcher has successfully managed to be as controversial in death as she was in life. Since she passed away, anyone on social media will be aware of the fire-storm of conflicting opinions that are Read more
This week, By Jove researcher and performer Nicole Savin takes a look at a modern day British legend that is currently the hot topic in London’s West End… John Logan’s new play, Peter and Alice opened two weeks ago and although I have yet to see it, I thought it was worth discussing, not only because it stars the legendary Judi Dench and Skyfall’s Ben Whishaw (well, technically, Skyfall‘s Judi Dench as well), but Read more