Kae Tempest review – a brave, intimate set where the personal is political

Village Underground, LondonThe laser-focused spoken-word performer returns to the musical stage with new tracks focusing on their identity – but wider concerns are never far away“This has been a performance piece about how technology is going to be the death of us all,” jokes rapper, poet, author and playwright Kae Tempest as a keyboard player and a technician wrestle with malfunctioning equipment. We’re just two tracks in; Tempest assures us that if the electronics are not back up soon, they’ll do the whole show a cappella.They could, too. The teenage Tempest cut their teeth battle-rapping in south London, turning to slam poetry when more direct avenues into hip-hop refused to open easily to a young, blond slip of a thing. You suspect they have never wasted the opportunity when handed a mic

Sara Pascoe: ‘I still identify as an infertile, childless woman’

The standup used to joke about not having kids, but then she had IVF and found herself an ‘eroded’ mother of two. Now she’s back with a show about motherhood in her 40s – but don’t expect any cute parenting storiesMy favourite Sara Pascoe joke is her imaginary riposte to people asking if she’s going to have kids. They mean well, these prying parents – they just don’t want her to miss out on a life-enhancing experience. The thing is, the comedian has had some life-enhancing experiences of her own. “But I have never, ever said to anybody: ‘Oh, have you been on QI? Ahhh, you should go on QI!’” she insists, settling into her archly patronising pep talk

Send in the clowns: Bristol congress to explore role of comedy in tricky times

The world may be a pretty unfunny place at the moment and global leaders don’t seem to have the answers. But this weekend a different sort of talking shop will take place when a “clown congress” convenes in Bristol to discuss the role of the funny people in troubling times.One of the leaders, Holly Stoppit, a clown therapist, teacher and facilitator, summed it up succinctly: “Do you know what? I think there is no accident that the world is going to shit and who do they call? It’s the clowns.”A group of clowns will be taking over the University of Bristol’s drama department for two days to discuss, play, dream and grapple with the crucial question: what is the future of clowning?On the agenda will be issues such as how clowning can be used to build community, empowerment and resilience, and how it can be made more relevant, accessible and inclusive.Stoppit said: “Everything is a game to a clown, right? So we can play with absolutely everything

‘My father’s death saved my life’: director Steve McQueen on grief, gratitude and getting cancer

After his dad died at 67, the 12 Years a Slave film-maker knew it was only a matter of time before he would get prostate cancer, too. The disease kills 12,000 men a year in the UK – a disproportionate number of them black. Now, in a bid to save lives, he is speaking out about his own diagnosis, alongside the doctors who successfully treated himSteve McQueen felt relieved when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He had no symptoms, was perfectly fit, at the peak of his game. Yet the Oscar-winning film-maker and artist believed it was inevitable

From A Minecraft Movie to Black Mirror: a complete guide to this week’s entertainment

A Minecraft MovieOut now You know how it is – you’re hanging out minding your own business when you’re pulled through a random portal into a three-dimensional world made up of voxels. That’s the fate that befalls Jason Momoa, Sebastian Hansen, Emma Myers and Danielle Brooks, where they meet Jack Black in this adaptation of the popular game.SebastianOut now Twentysomething Max works at a literary magazine in London while side-hustling as sex worker Sebastian to get inspiration for his debut novel, but soon finds his double life leading to a new understanding of his own identity, in this acclaimed first film from Mikko Mäkelä.Death of a UnicornOut now Accidentally hitting an animal is any driver’s nightmare. But it’s worse when said animal is an honest-to-god unicorn

Noel Clarke allegations had ‘high public interest’, Guardian editor tells court

The editor-in-chief of the Guardian, Katharine Viner, has told the high court there was a “very high public interest” in reporting allegations made against Noel Clarke after he received a special Bafta award.In a witness statement, Viner said she believed it was conceivable that the actor’s endorsement by the British academy film awards could lead to an escalation of his allegedly abusive behaviour towards women.Clarke, who is suing Guardian News and Media (GNM), the publisher of the Guardian, for libel over seven articles and a podcast published between April 2021 and March 2022, was given an honorary Bafta award in 2021, which was later suspended.Viner, who has held the position of editor-in-chief at the Guardian since 2015, said that Clarke’s alleged sexual misconduct appeared to be “something of an open secret in the UK film and TV industry”.She was made aware of the intention to follow up on leads about Clarke’s behaviour in April 2021 by the Guardian’s head of investigations, Paul Lewis