Broken Chanter - Catastrophe Hits 5/5 David MacGregor is on the money with the title of his newest album. It does feel as if catastrophe is hitting from all sides just now, environmental collapse, the side into unpayable debt, the sheer downright fuckery that is Brexit and its many toxic gifts, the rise in homophobia, racism, transphobia so what the fuck can we do about it? Well, we may take some solace in the fact that ‘Catastrophe Hits’ leans more towards hits rather than catastrophe. The second venture under the Broken Chanter name is a much more boisterous affair compared to the laid back melancholia of the previous album.  Edging closer to the bubbly indie pop of Scottish darlings Kid Canaveral but still sounding unique in itself, MacGregor has crafted an album of energetic existential dread. Always one to turn a finely crafted tune, David has not let us down, these ten songs are some of the best in his career. Upping the galic content this time around there’s two songs...

Pearl Mackie is notable for her work in television, theatre and film and is best known for her work in the long-running BBC series, Doctor Who, where she played the role of the Doctor’s companion, Bill Potts, opposite Peter Capaldi. Here she talks about her work on ITV new gripping four-part event drama, The Long Call.   Catch up with it now BritBox or ITV player Who is DS Jen Rafferty?   “Jen is a really interesting woman. She has so much drive, gumption and strength of character. She’s escaped a brutal marriage and come to North Devon with her two teenage children to make a fresh start. Essentially, she wants to give them a better life and show them that they deserve to exist without the constant threat of violence in the home. She’s an urban Londoner and, so, quite a fish out of water in rural Devon. But she’s also an adaptable person and a very intuitive detective. She lives for two things, her children and her work.”   In what way does her past influence the kin...

October Issue

Shanaze Reade takes part in the new series of Celebrity SAS:Who Dares Wins now on Channel 4 Sundays 9pm. Why did you sign up for this show? As soon as I saw the show was on the TV years ago, I was like, "That's a bit of me!” It's obviously mentally challenging, physically, and emotionally. I was like, "If I ever got the opportunity, I'd grab it with both hands because I want to be tested away from sport and arena, to step out of my comfort zone." It was just the perfect show to do. Did you do any preparation before going onto the course? I did maybe a week, but I didn't have any boots or anything like that. I liked that because I didn't want to go in fully primed. I wanted to go in and go for the unexpected, just to totally immerse myself within the show. How would you rate your mental strength? I think mentally I was probably in the best position I'd ever been in my life because when I retired I went down a dark path. Before I got onto the show I...

  The Cleaner Comedy with Greg Davies. Wicky is a crime scene cleaner - after CSI has finished, he mops up any grizzly remains. And you’d be amazed who you can run into at the scene of a crime… We chatted to Layton Williams about his role in this new BBC comed. Tell us a bit about your character in The Cleaner - what attracted you to the role? My amazing, beautiful, talented lol character ‘Home Alone Hosea’ is an influencer and is social media obsessed. He got left by his parents in a big house all by himself when he was younger and he became an internet sensation. But with that of course comes a lot of tougher moments because he didn’t get to see or do much in the real world. This is why I think the relationship between Hosea and Wicky is so amazing, because they are two very unlikely friends, people you wouldn’t think would get along but they do. But Hosea has a really good heart and by the end of the episode you feel for him and realise he is a good kid. He thinks he is doing th...

  Victoria Scone 27, Cardiff Preferred pronouns: In drag: She/her Out of drag: She/her Tell us about yourself... My name is Victoria Scone and I am a camp, Cardiff, cabaret, disco diva, with a lot of spunk… How long have you lived in Cardiff? I am a Pompey girl originally but I moved to Cardiff, which was where I fully established my drag career. So Victoria is very much a Cardiff girl. How long have you been doing drag? About three years… It feels like so much longer! Who or what inspires you? I am very much inspired by traditional drag, pantomime, and the older Welsh queens. People like Ceri Dupree have really inspired me. I like to mix my traditional drag with fashion and blur the lines of panto, fashion and costume. How does it feel to be the first cis-female on the show? It feels right! I definitely didn't invent the art of drag for women. I am not the first and I certainly won’t be the last. But I feel very capable and proud to have made it through the application process and...

  Vanity Milan 29, South London Preferred pronouns: In drag: She/her Out of drag: He/him Tell us about Vanity? I’m sophisticated, sexy and savage. I’m not a diva. I’m not a hun. I’m serving unapologetic blackness. Vanity is REAL. I am REAL. I grew up in Mitcham, South London where it’s very REAL. I’ve lived in London 29 years, born and bred - South ‘til the death!  And my drag is very South London. The recipe to be Vanity Milan is sugar, spice and everything nice. She is just a humble, performing drag queen serving high octane performances with extra spicy flavour.  Vanity loves the art of drag and everybody that loves it. That’s Vanity Milan! How long have you been doing drag? I have been doing drag for a year - but I have gone from 0 to 100 real quick. Like, really quick! In 2019 I took part in a competition called The Crown - it was actually hosted by Kitty Scott-Claus! Every week we had to compete and someone would be sent home. But I won! So I’m used to a bit of comp...