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The Book Thief; Joseph Rykwert; Isy Suttie; Monologues for black actors

Arts news, interviews and reviews with John Wilson, including The Book Thief reviewed, architecture critic Joseph Rykwert, performer Isy Suttie, and monologues for black actors.

With John Wilson.

Based on the bestselling novel by Markus Zusak, the film of The Book Thief - starring Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson - tells the story of a spirited young girl Liesel in World War II Germany. Liesel finds solace from the war by stealing books and sharing them with others. Novelist Meg Rosoff reviews.

Professor Joseph Rykwert is one of the few critics to win the prestigious Royal Gold Medal for architecture for a body of work that includes the ground-breaking book The Idea Of a Town. Written in 1963, it warned of the problems of traffic congestion in cities and the rise of the high-rise building. He tells John if anything has improved over the last 50 years.

The comedian and actress Isy Suttie, from the TV series Peep Show, discusses her new stage role in a 'musical fable' The A-Z of Mrs P, about Phyllis Pearsall, the woman who set out to map an entire city in 1936, resulting in the classic A-Z map of London.

Two books of monologues for black actors have been published to provide young performers with a diverse range of speeches to use at auditions. The monologues are taken from the Black Play Archive and have been compiled by theatre producer Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway. She and actor Jimmy Akingbola explain why these books are needed and discuss whether there is a glass ceiling for black British actors.

Producer : Dymphna Flynn.

Available now

30 minutes

Chapters

  • The Book Thief

    Novelist Meg Rosoff reviews The Book Thief

    Duration: 06:02

  • The A-Z of Mrs P

    Isy Suttie discusses her new stage role in a 'musical fable' The A-Z of Mrs P

    Duration: 07:31

  • Joseph Rykwert

    RIBA Royal Gold Medal winner Joseph Rykwert discusses congestion in cities

    Duration: 04:59

  • Monologue books for black actors

    Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway and actor Jimmy Akingbola explain why these books are needed

    Duration: 09:15

Monologues for Black Actors

Monologues for Black Actors
The Oberon Book of Monologues for Black Actors: Classical and Contemporary Speeches from Black British Plays. Volume One: Monologues for Women and accompanying book Monologues for Men is听published by Oberon Books.

The A-Z of Mrs P

The A-Z of Mrs P

Isy Suttie stars in on at the Southwark Playhouse, London until Saturday 29 March 2014.

Image: The A-Z of Mrs P -听Su Blackwell sculpture

Photo credit: Jane Hobson

The Book Thief

is released in UK cinemas on Wednesday 26 February 2014, certificate 12A.

RIBA: Royal Gold Medal

To learn more about the RIBA Royal Gold Medal visit .

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter John Wilson
Interviewed Guest Meg Rosoff
Interviewed Guest Joseph Rykwert
Interviewed Guest Isy Suttie
Interviewed Guest Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway
Interviewed Guest Jimmy Akingbola
Producer Dymphna Flynn

Broadcast

  • Mon 24 Feb 2014 19:15

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