Bowie and Blackstar
Part of David Bowie in Time

January also marks ten years since David Bowie’s magisterial final artistic statement, Blackstar. In a session introduced by Jehnny Beth we are joined by its musical director, bandleader and saxophonist Donny McCaslin and Director of the Visconti Studios at Kingston University, the musician, producer and author of Blackstar Theory, Dr Leah Kardos, as well as long-time Bowie collaborator, Blackstar album designer, Jonathan Barnbrook. They talk to the BBC’s Nemone about this thrilling last record.

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Upcoming Events

Presencia & Resistencia

Monday 26 January, 19:00

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Presencia & Resistencia

Monday 26 January, 19:00

A vibrant evening of readings, performance, and conversation celebrating British Latinx voices and Wasafiri 124, guest co-edited by Karina Lickorish Quinn and Leo Boix. Marking a landmark moment in the rise of Latinx literature in the UK, this event honours a movement reshaping the nation’s cultural landscape. Featuring Juana Adcock, Yara Rodrigues Fowler and more.
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This Ain’t Rock ‘n’ Roll

Thursday 29 January, 19:00

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This Ain’t Rock ‘n’ Roll

Thursday 29 January, 19:00

Some of rock 'n' roll's most celebrated figureheads have flirted with the imagery and theatre of the Third Reich. Whether shock factor, stupidity, or crass attempt at subversion, rock 'n' roll has indulged these associations in a way not accepted by any other artform. In his new book, This Ain't Rock 'n' Roll, Daniel Rachel considers why so many have been drawn to the imagery of a movement responsible for the twentieth century's worst atrocities. He is joined in conversation by Pauline Black and Jon Savage.
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The Beatles at Stowe School

Saturday 04 April, 14:30

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The Beatles at Stowe School

Saturday 04 April, 14:30

On 4 April 1963, The Beatles played a unique live concert at Stowe school in Buckinghamshire, having accepted a booking by one of the pupils. Present on the day was 17-year-old John Bloomfield, with his new reel-to-reel tape recorder. The recording he made is the earliest known of The Beatles playing a live concert in the UK, just at the point they were becoming the biggest band in the nation. It features a mix of twenty-two tracks, drawn from their brand new album at the time, Please Please Me, and their tightly honed repertoire of R&B favourites, as well as banter with the crowd. This event features a special playback of the recording, now part of the British Library’s sound collection. John Bloomfield himself talks to broadcaster and writer Samira Ahmed about the day of the concert and the making of the recording, and we are joined by official photographer David Magnus who documented the moment. And Beatles’ expert Mark Lewisohn places the event in the story of the band’s extraordinary journey.
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