ANGUS REID, ANDY HEDGECOCK and MARIA DUARTE review On The Sea, A Useful Ghost, Brunello: The Gracious Visionary, and Pinocchio Unstrung
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He should have his name written all over it
KADEEM SIMMONDS argues the case for casting Idris Elba as the next James Bond and, for free, advises the franchise's producers how to go about it
Amazing: Idris Elba in The Wire
RON JACOBS enjoys a great tale, told by a US communist, of the lives of working-class New Yorkers
BRENT CUTLER searches a new history of contemporary Iran for an understanding of the Islamic Republic, finding both interesting detail and glaring omissions
MARIA DUARTE recommends the true story of the remarkable woman who sued Donald Trump for sexual assault not once, but twice
KENNY MacASKILL is disappointed by a polemical, rather than factual, account of the Lone Star State and its political path since the civil war
PAUL DONOVAN is fascinated by the lives of Charles and Mary Bagot, and the insight this biography shines on the morals of pre-Victorian society
GORDON PARSONS appreciates fine performances and a feel for ambiguity, but misses the music of the dialogue
WHAT springs to mind when you think of James Bond? Spy. 007. Aston Martin. Gadgets. Martini. Smart. Sophisticated. Suave. Tuxedo. I could go on. But at no point does “white” enter my brain.
So the continuing debate as to why Idris Elba cannot play a fictional character because of the colour of his skin seems senseless.
I first encountered Elba’s acting ability on the BBC’s detective show Luther. As DCI John Luther, he was brilliant — angry, savvy, athletic, vulnerable and with a wide emotional range that came across as authentic — everything you'd want out of a lead character.
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