Arena: if you liked Rocky, you’ll love Rocky with monsters

There are two questions you need to ask before deciding to watch the 1989 sci-fi action film Arena. One: did you enjoy Rocky? And two: what if Rocky fought a giant space armadillo? Because Arena is for those of us who saw Sylvester Stallone’s tale of a pugilist underdog and liked it well enough – but felt it needed more monsters.Two people who definitely thought this were the director, Peter Manoogian, and the B-movie impresario Charles Band, whose Empire International Pictures made a raft of other terrific horror and sci-fi throughout the 80s including Re-Animator, From Beyond and the underrated Trancers.Like all good sports movies, Arena’s story is one of a protagonist up against the odds. In this case: Steve Armstrong (Paul Satterfield), a diner chef aboard an intergalactic space station with a knack for fisticuffs and strong sense of social justice

From ‘convict stain’ to badge of honour: Tasmania’s early criminals inspire celebrated musical

In 1802 Martha Hayes was transported from England to what was then called Van Diemen’s Land, accompanying her convict mother. The teenager was the first white female to set foot in the new colony and, having become pregnant on the voyage, she gave birth to the first white child – a baby girl – on the island we now call Lutruwita/Tasmania.While that child had a convict grandmother, her father was Lt John Bowen, a colonial administrator who led the first white settlement at Risdon Cove.Martha’s story is symbolic of so many Tasmanian family trees post-colonisation: part-convict, part-free settler or colonial master. It’s one of 17 brought to life in the musical theatre show Vandemonian Lags, co-written by the musician Mick Thomas of Weddings, Parties, Anything fame and his film-maker brother Steve

‘We wanted Torvill and Dean skating in the video!’ How we made Godley & Creme’s Cry

‘Machines were revolutionising recording. We were told to lay down a 20-second backing track, a guide vocal – then go and play table tennis’Lol Creme and I left 10cc at the height of the success because we felt things were starting to become repetitive. We came from an art school background and we were thinking visually. Even at that stage, there were two film-makers waiting to come out.We made a short video to promote our single An Englishman in New York, and thought the medium was brilliant

Margaret Atwood’s 10 best books – ranked!

After more than 30 years, Atwood caved to pleas to write a sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale. Not since Harry Potter had a publication caused such a sensation: computers were hacked in search of the manuscript and advance copies were kept under lock and key. With classic Atwood timing, the novel coincided with the phenomenal success of the TV adaptation of the original – not to mention the arrival of Trump at the White House. The Testaments won Atwood her second Booker prize, shared (controversially) with Bernardine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other.A world ravaged by a deadly global pandemic? Atwood got there first in her dystopian MaddAddam trilogy, which also includes The Year of the Flood (2009) and MaddAddam (2013)

I’m addicted to watching brides dance to Beyoncé. They’ve taught me the true meaning of love

On 6 October 2016, the Canadian pop singer and reality star Melissa Molinaro posted her video “MELISSA MOLINARO WEDDING PERFORMANCE” and shifted the course of my life for ever.The video, which has been viewed 33m times, opens with Molinaro strutting into a wedding venue straight out of a Selling Sunset finale. Her brand new husband perches on a single chair, like a king awaiting his (sexy) jester. The dance starts sensually, with two backup dancers adorned in peach leotards. All three vow their commitment to one husband through hair flicks and quick snaps

My cultural awakening: a Pulp song made me realise I was in love with my best friend

The first time Gordon and I kissed I thought we’d made a terrible mistake. It was 1995, we were both 20 years old, and we were drinking at our university bar in Leicester. We had formed a friendship over the previous three years, but I had never considered Gordon in a romantic light. He was a goth at the time, which I thought was very cool, and he had this fruity, posh voice – whereas I was a timid girl from south London with a terrible perm. I remember Gordon leaning in to give me this very innocent, tentative kiss, but it caught me off guard