Theatre, film & music

The 12 party games of Christmas

The Twelve Days of Christmas land you with 12 days of enforced revelry. That’s 12 sub-sets of step-relations, 12 afternoons and evenings, 12 tailbacks on the M25. Kit Hesketh-Harvey suggests 12 games to keep you sane.

Our six favourite nannies, in fiction and film

Whether they invoke fond or fearful memories in real life, the nannies of fiction are kind – even magical – creatures, says Annunciata Elwes, who rounds up her favourites.

The Greatest Snowman: Immersive theatre meets overwhelming cuisine

A railway arch in the East End is the home of a new set in a 1930s railway dining car - accompanied by a meal which transforms the experience. Emily Anderson went along.

The truth about Christmas carols

The composer and tenor Andrew Gant reveals the curious truth about some of our most beloved carols.

The best places in Britain to go and hear Christmas choir services over the festive period

Katy Birchall takes a look at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s College, Cambridge, and picks out some more of the best Christmas choir services across the country.

Curious Questions: Why is the pantomime dame always played by a man?

Every year, millions of people across Britain will chuckle their way through a pantomime featuring a man playing the main female role, and usually a girl playing the lead male role. How it came to be so is a fascinating tale.

In Focus: The trench cello which brought the joy of music to the First World War

The men who spent years in the trenches of France and Belgium found all manner of ways to bring a touch of joy and culture into their lives – not least with the portable, collapsible cello which 2nd lieutenant Harold Triggs of the Royal Sussex took into battle in 1914. The instrument works beautifully today, as Claire Jackson reports.

The luthier: 'You don’t know if you’ve been successful until you put the strings on. That’s the moment when it comes alive'

Tom Sands brought the lessons he learnt from the California king of guitar-making back to Britain, where he makes stunning, personalised instruments for his clients. Tessa Waugh reports, photographs by Richard Cannon.

Amazing grace: St Petersburg Ballet Theatre’s Swan Lake at the London Coliseum

Annunciata Elwes is captivated by this quintessential production of a classic Russian ballet.

The Oxford of Inspector Morse: Dreaming spires, dead bodies... and lots and lots of pubs

The Oxford of Inspector Morse: Dreaming spires, dead bodies... and lots and lots of pubs.

In Focus: The hand-drawn maps from which JRR Tolkien launched Middle-earth

'I wisely started with a map and made the story fit,' JRR Tolkien once wrote. A new exhibition in Oxford – the writer's home for so many years – shows just how true that is, and offers a treasure trove for fans. Michael Murray-Fennell reports.

The Scyther: ‘We were up in arms about Poldark – his swing was all wrong’

Scything was almost forgotten until Aidan Turner’s turn in Poldark, but Nigel Adams says there’s still a place for it. He spoke to Tessa Waugh; portraits by Richard Cannon.

Kiss me, Kate at the London Coliseum: Not 'better' than Shakespeare – but certainly more enjoyable to watch

Life after Downton Abbey: How Highclere Castle is moving on

Highclere Castle was made famous across the world as Downton Abbey – and the money that it generated saved this beautiful country home for future generations. But they're still moving onwards in a post-Downton world, as Octavia Pollock explains.

Learning the ropes: The new breed of church bell ringers

Far from being the preserve of older devotees, church bell-ringing is increasingly popular with youngsters. Vicky Liddell meets the teenagers for whom the bell tolls.

Nursery rhymes: How murder, theft and fake news found their way into the tales we tell our children

Murder, animal cruelty and dishonesty aren’t generally considered child-friendly topics, yet they’re the basis of many much-loved nursery rhymes. Flora Watkins explains.

Jason Goodwin: The upside of life in a harem, and modern-day slavery on the King's Road

Our columnist Jason Goodwin considers the realities of everyday existence for the women kept in 18th century Ottoman harems.

15 fascinating things about animal actors, from dogs and cockroaches to the penguin who was fired out of a cannon

Animal ‘actors’ are often remembered long after their human co-stars. Flora Watkins meets people who’ve worked with ravens, stags, dogs, horses–and cockroaches.