Deon Meyer’s SKORPIO dominant at the top in South Africa after claiming the Christmas #1

Deon Meyer’s SKORPIO – his latest Afrikaans-language thriller following Detectives Benny Griessel and Vaughn Cupido – extended its reign at the top of the South African bestseller lists, scooping the coveted Christmas #1 slot as part of a 9-week run that stretched back to its November debut. The book has now achieved the feat of exceeding 24,000 copies in its Afrikaans first-edition, and continues to reign at the top of the each of the Fiction, Afrikaans-language and South African-writers bestseller lists in South Africa.

SKORPIO was published by Human & Rousseau, an imprint of Jonathan Ball, on 31 October 2025; English-language editions (translated by K.L. Seegers) are forthcoming from Pan Macmillan in the UK, Grove Atlantic in the US and Canada, as well as translations in Germany (Aufbau), and the Netherlands (A.W. Bruna).

In SKORPIO, as an international security forum convenes in the picturesque town of Stellenbosch, detectives Benny Griessel and Vaughn Cupido race against time to uncover a plot that could shake international foundations. With the threat looming over the prestigious gathering of global leaders, the stakes couldn’t be higher.

Congratulations, Deon!

About Deon Meyer

Deon Meyer lives in Stellenbosch. His books are sold in more than 40 countries worldwide, and have been awarded many prizes around the world: the Deutsche Krimi Prize in Germany, the ATKV Prize in South Africa, the Martin Beck Award in Sweden and Le Grand Prix de Littérature Policière and Le Prix Mystère de la Critique in France. COBRA was shortlisted for the 2015 CWA International Dagger, THIRTEEN HOURS was shortlisted for the 2010 CWA International Dagger, and HEART OF THE HUNTER, was longlisted for the 2005 IMPAC Prize and selected as one of Chicago Tribune’s ‘10 best mysteries and thrillers of 2004’. THE DARK FLOOD was longlisted for the 2023 CWA Dagger for Crime Fiction in Translation, and LEO enjoyed ten weeks at the top of the South African bestseller lists, Number One in all categories, before going on to win Best Adult Fiction and Book of the Year at the 2024 SA Book Awards, and the ATKV-Woordveertjies Prize for best Afrikaans Thriller.

Adaptations of Deon’s novels have recently had great success on screen: in April 2024, HEART OF THE HUNTER topped the global Netflix film charts, becoming the first African film to do so, with over 11 million views in its first two days alone. DEVIL’S PEAK was also adapted for a miniseries by Lookout Point and Expanded Media Productions, premiering on M-Net in South Africa in 2023 before reaching international audiences. In 2020, TRACKERS, produced by Three River Fiction and Scene 23, aired on Sky Atlantic in the UK and HBO in the USA, as well as Australia and New Zealand, and across the Nordic countries and Europe. His latest adaptation, THE INVISIBLE (from the novel BLOOD SAFARI), starring Abbie Cornish and Dougray Scott is currently in production through M-Net, Scene23, Berkeley Media Group (BMG), and ITV Studios.

Praise for SKORPIO

‘It’s the characters, the humanity and the humour that keeps me devouring Deon Meyer’s novels.’ – Deborah Steinmair, Netwerk24

Praise for Deon Meyer

‘He’s up there with the best in the world.’ – Marcel Berlins, The Times

‘I love Deon Meyer novels. It’s global storytelling at its best, with the undeniable hallmarks of gritty realism and deep character building.’ – Michael Connelly

‘Deon Meyer's name on the cover is a guarantee of crime writing at its best.’ – Tess Gerritsen

‘Deon Meyer is one of the giants of crime fiction.’ – El Mundo

‘One of the best crime writers on the planet.’ – Mail on Sunday

Visit Deon’s website

Follow Deon on Twitter

Romalyn Ante receives Royal Society of Literature’s 2025 Literature Matters Award for work-in-progress novel TANKER BOYS

Romalyn Ante – the Poetry London Prize and Manchester Poetry Prize-winning author of AGIMAT and upcoming debut novel THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD – has been granted the Royal Society of Literature’s Literature Matters Award for her work-in-progress novel TANKER BOYS: A Voyage of Memory and Masculinity. Rewarding and enabling literary excellence and innovation, the Literature Matters Award supports writers and organisations developing new writing or literary projects by offering grants totalling £20,000 to a select number of awardees each year.

Romalyn was awarded £3,000 for her proposal for TANKER BOYS, a novel exploring drift, distance, and the quiet burdens migrant men bear at sea. Through conversations with seafaring and Filipino communities – listening and exchanging stories – Romalyn will gather the textures that shape the narrative, using the grant to fund her research and travel, and enabling her to immerse herself in costal port communities.

‘I’m honoured to receive the RSL Literature Matters award for my novel-in-progress, TANKER BOYS’, wrote Romalyn in response to the news. ‘This recognition provides the vital space to complete the novel’s very first draft. The story seeks to give voice to the migrant men who form the backbone of the maritime workforce – an idea born from watching my younger brother carry on with the work of a seafarer, rarely speaking of its hardships. I’m excited to explore a world that I have only ever known from a distance.’

The judges for the 2025 prize were playwright Hannah Khalil, publisher and activist Kristen Vida Alfaro, and Royal Literary Fund Director of Education Steve Cook. Also recognised this year were Claire Abji, Bebe Ashley, Melissa Fry and Steve Tuffin, The New Common Sense, Jess Smith, Emma Warren and Jemilea Wisdom-Baako.

Romalyn’s debut novel, THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD, following the stories of Neneng, a spirited girl growing up in the Philippines and her mother, Rosa, who leaves their country to work as a nurse overseas, will be published in the UK by Chatto & Windus on 13 August 2026.

Photo: Jeremiah Doles

About Romalyn Ante

Romalyn Ante is a Filipino-British writer born and bred in Lipa, Philippines. She was 16 years old when her mother – a nurse in the National Health Service – brought the family to the United Kingdom. She now lives in the West Midlands where, as well as writing and editing, she works as a registered NHS nurse and psychotherapist, specialising in the mental healthcare of young people.

Her debut poetry collection, ANTIEMETIC FOR HOMESICKNESS, is published by Chatto & Windus and was an Irish Times Best Poetry Book of 2020, an Observer Poetry Book of the Month and a Poetry School Poetry Book of the Year 2020. It was also a National Poetry Day UK Recommended Read and was shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize and longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. Chatto published her second collection AGIMAT in 2023, which was longlisted for the 2025 Jhalak Prize for Poetry.

She is co-founding editor of harana poetry, a magazine for poets who write in English as a second or parallel language, and the founder of Tsaá with Roma, an online interview series with poets and other creatives. She was awarded the Jerwood Compton Poetry Fellowship and she currently sits as an editorial board member for Poetry London magazine.  She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and the first East-Asian writer to win the Poetry London Prize (2018) and the Manchester Poetry Prize (2017). She also won the Creative Future Literary Award 2017.

Joseph O’Connor’s MY FATHER’S HOUSE and THE GHOSTS OF ROME in Irish Top Five

The first two novels in Joseph O’Connor’s acclaimed Escape Line trilogy, MY FATHER’S HOUSE and THE GHOSTS OF ROME, are both in the Top Five in the Irish bestseller charts following THE GHOSTS OF ROME being awarded the prestigious overall An Post Irish Book of the Year Award 2025 last week.

THE GHOSTS OF ROME is No.5 in the Original Fiction and No.4 in the paperback charts, while MY FATHER’S HOUSE is No.4 in the paperback charts.

MY FATHER’S HOUSE, the first novel in the trilogy, was first published to great acclaim in the UK and Ireland by Harvill Secker in January 2023 and in the US by Europa Editions in April 2023. It was an Irish Number One bestseller and has now sold more than 150,000 copies in English. It was shortlisted for the 2024 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction and the Eason An Post Irish Novel of the year 2023, and also longlisted for the 2024 Dublin Literary Award. Film rights are optioned and translation rights are also sold in Albania, Brazil, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Poland, Spain and Sweden.

In MY FATHER’S HOUSE, an Irish priest, Hugh O’Flaherty, dedicates himself to helping those escaping from the Nazis. His home is Vatican City, a neutral, independent country within Rome where the occupiers hold no sway. He gathers a team to set up an Escape Line.

But SS officer Paul Hauptmann’s net begins closing in and the need for a terrifyingly audacious mission grows critical. By Christmas, it’s too late to turn back.

Based on a true story, MY FATHER’S HOUSE is a powerful thriller from a master of historical fiction. It is an unforgettable novel of love, sacrifice and what it means to be human in the most extreme circumstances.

THE GHOSTS OF ROME, the second novel in the trilogy, was first published in the UK by Harvill Secker in January 2025 and in the US by Europa Editions in February 2025. Like the first book in the trilogy before it, THE GHOSTS OF ROME went straight to Number One in the Irish bestseller chart after only 3 days on sale, remaining in the overall Irish Top Ten for five weeks, and in the Irish Paperback Top 10 for sixteen weeks. It hit the Top 20 in the UK charts.

In THE GHOSTS OF ROME, Contessa Giovanna Landini is a member of the band of Escape Line activists known as ‘The Choir’ in the beleaguered city of Rome. Their mission is to smuggle refugees to safety and help Allied soldiers, all under the nose of Gestapo boss Paul Hauptmann.

During a ferocious air raid a mysterious parachutist lands in Rome and disappears into the backstreets. Is he an ally or an imposter? His fate will come to put the whole Escape Line at risk.

Meanwhile, Hauptmann’s attention has landed on the Contessa. As his fascination grows, she is pulled into a dangerous game with him – one where the consequences could be lethal.

Joseph is currently working on the next novel in the trilogy, to be published in the UK and the US in early 2027.

 

About Joseph O’Connor

Joseph O’Connor was born in Dublin, where he still lives. THE GHOSTS OF ROME is his eleventh novel: he is also the author of film scripts, radio and stage plays, two collections of short stories, and several bestselling works of non-fiction.

2022 was the 20th anniversary of Joseph O’Connor’s novel STAR OF THE SEA which was an international bestseller, selling more than a million copies in the UK alone and being published in 38 languages. It won France’s Prix Millepages, Italy’s Premio Acerbi, the Irish Post Award for Fiction, the Nielsen Bookscan Golden Book Award, an American Library Association Award, the Hennessy/Sunday Tribune Hall of Fame Award, and the Prix Litteraire Zepter for European Novel of the Year.

His novel GHOST LIGHT was chosen as Dublin’s One City Book novel for 2011. Published in 2019, SHADOWPLAY, has won him extraordinary praise, was shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize, The Dalkey Novel Prize, the Costa Novel Prize, among others, and won him Novel of the Year at the An Post Irish Book Awards. The French edition was shortlisted for the Jean Monnet Prize and the Vintage paperback was a Richard and Judy Winter 2020 pick.

He holds an honorary Doctorate in Literature from University College Dublin and received the Irish PEN Award for Outstanding Contribution to Irish Literature in 2012. He is the Inaugural Frank McCourt Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick.

 

Praise for MY FATHER’S HOUSE and THE GHOSTS OF ROME

‘Joseph O’Connor’s historical novel MY FATHER’S HOUSE manages to be at once a ripping yarn and a profound exploration of moral choices in the worst of times… With lyrical evocation of time and place, scabrous humour and heart-stopping tension, it combines the pleasures of the ideal holiday read with those of a literary masterpiece.’ – Fintan O’Toole, The Irish Times, ‘The Best Books of 2023 so far’

‘Joseph O’Connor’s SHADOWPLAY won novel of the year at the 2019 Irish book awards and was shortlisted for the Costa Novel award. He also writes stage and screenplays, short stories, nonfiction and radio diaries. This formidable talent for writing across genres is reflected in his masterly 10th novel, which should reap similar plaudits… This is a literary thriller of the highest order. The incarnation of O’Flaherty, the Irish Oskar Schindler, is sublime. What often elevates a writer is compassion, and O’Connor has it in spades – paying tribute to the courage of those who resist tyranny. Beautifully crafted, his razor-sharp dialogue is to be savoured, and he employs dark humour to great effect. The plot twists keep on coming until the novel’s coda, where a final joyful conceit is revealed.’ – Lucy Popescu, The Observer

‘MY FATHER’S HOUSE is a masterwork. No writer in the world can tell a story the way Joseph O’Connor does. He can, without seeming effort, be all things to all readers, taking us by the hand and guiding us into the very heart of a story, his narrative techniques deployed with such unearthly skill that we're hardly aware that this was written at all, it feels so real, so urgent, so incredibly alive. This novel is a searing and beautiful example of storytelling’s infinite importance, to our humanness, to our chances of learning from our most terrible and our most transcendent moments, and all our moments in between, to hold all life sacred, to see each other as brothers and sisters, to love and protect each other. No wonder he is so cherished and loved by his countless devotees across the earth. He is a national and international treasure, the most generous and noble of writers, a true master of the art.’ – Donal Ryan

‘THE GHOSTS OF ROME, Joseph O’Connor’s second novel in his projected trilogy about Rome under Nazi occupation, blazes with the imaginative flair and narrative energy that won its predecessor, MY FATHER’S HOUSE, high acclaim… There’s no slackening of tension, though, in the gripping account of wartime heroism, risk and resourcefulness this book continues. Jeopardy quivers through it… . The ugly stratum of Nazi oppression O’Connor’s novel graphically resurrects is packed with sensuously evoked reminders of Rome's rich past in this haunted and haunting novel.’ – Peter Kemp, The Sunday Times

‘The Choir’s attempts to rescue a grievously wounded Polish airman right under the nose of Gestapo commander Paul Hauptmann, who has been warned of the Fuhrer’s “intense displeasure” at his failure to eradicate the Escape Line, have a nail-bitingly tense “real time” feel to them. BBC interviews from the 1960s with former Choir members and fragments of an unpublished memoir give historical perspective and added pathos to this vivid and moving story, with O’Connor seamlessly combining real characters with imagined ones.’ – Laura Wilson, The Guardian, ‘The best recent crime and thrillers’

‘O’Connor has often been likened to the great Irish modernists for the lyricism of his voice-driven novels. But THE GHOSTS OF ROME also situates him within a broader European tradition of memory and moral reckoning, one that returns again and again to World War II. O’Connor embraces this legacy while transcending its cliches. His Rome is not merely a setting but a crucible, a city where the sacred and the profane collide, where resilience is forged in the shadow of ruins. By crafting a chorus of voices, he ensures that no single narrative dominates, reflecting the messy, multifaceted truths of history – the way it is lived and how it is constructed in retrospect. What emerges is not just a wartime thriller, though it is that, but a meditation on how we remember, how we resist and how, even in the darkest times, humanity endures.’ – Alex Preston, The New York Times

 

Visit Joseph O’Connor’s website

Blake Friedmann's Cultural Highlights 2025

Trim the tree, sing a song and build a snowman – it’s time again for our annual Blake Friedmann Cultural Highlights, where the team share the books, films, TV programs, plays, places and pleasures we’ve enjoyed away from our desks this year. Check out previous years’ highlights here.

Look out in the new year for more BFLA news, including the round-up of Best of the Year picks featuring our authors and Ones to Watch in 2026 – and in the meantime, season’s greetings one and all!

Kate Burke

Book: THE GOD OF THE WOODS by Liz Moore

So many people had recommended this to me and, while I was intrigued by its US success in the charts, I wasn't racing to read it as it's about a missing child (my no-go area) but I really loved it. Liz Moore's writing is fantastic and this slow, literary slice of suspense deftly handles multiple characters and different timelines. Very atmospheric – would definitely read more of her work! 

Film: THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND

I just loved this quiet, contemplative, poignant film. Great acting, a funny and sad script, a lovely setting and some really great original music (I didn't know Carey Mulligan could sing!). It's just a perfect little indie film, done on a budget and packing a real emotional punch. 

TV: BRIDESHEAD REVISITED

After finding some 2025 TV shows a bit disappointing (series two of THE LAST OF US was so patchy, HOSTAGE was ludicrous, PLURIBUS is still warming up for me, SLOW HORSES series five was underwhelming on every level), I decided to re-watch this classic. My parents had this series on VHS so I probably watched it when I was ten or so but don't really remember it. It does feel dated in terms of the way in which it was filmed (steady cams, long, drawn-out shots, very slow in terms of pace) but it's a brilliant adaptation of a great novel. Incredible costumes, impeccable acting and such a beautiful setting (Castle Howard standing in for Brideshead). 

Finlay Charlesworth

Books: THE BENEFACTORS by Wendy Erskine and GUNK by Saba Sams

Cheating with a pair of books – but both of the books I said I was looking forward in last year’s cultural highlights delivered on my anticipation and then some: each author bringing the best elements of their short stories and a whole lot more into their debut novels; brilliantly specific to their respective settings of Belfast and Brighton, and also able to reach far beyond with their humanity and humour.

Theatre: THE WINTER’S TALE (Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon)

My first trip to Stratford-Upon-Avon to see the birthplace of Shakespeare and the famed home of the RSC did not disappoint, crowned by a stunning production of THE WINTER’S TALE, directed by Yaël Farber (following her KING LEAR at The Almeida in 2024). Using vanishings and explosions of colour, music, and an incredible cast, the so-called ‘problem play’ became a Healing play, where heartbreaking tragedy is fought and eventually conquered by hope, joy and time. Given lukewarm reviews (that, to me, felt like they judged expectations more than this production), I don’t expect it will get a chance to come to London, but I hold on to hope that I’ll get another chance to see it.

Travel: Amsterdam

This was the best year of travel I’ve enjoyed so far, taking in wee trips to Gdańsk, South-West Scotland, Stratford-upon-Avon, Venice and the Dolomite mountains and, arguably best of all, Amsterdam. I spent four beautiful spring days there in the Spring, enjoying the canals, cafes, windmills, canals, stroopwafels, parks, canals and more. A couple of good books, some lovely company, and a chance to relax in one of the friendliest and sunniest cities I’ve been – and just a four-hour train away? Outstanding, incredible, thank you very much.

Isobel Dixon

FILM: CONCLAVE

Ralph Fiennes is one of my favourite actors – in 2021 his one-man show of FOUR QUARTETS was a highlight in a stricken time. I’ve watched far too few films this year, but the first, in January’s dark depths, was CONCLAVE. Though I haven’t read Robert Harris’s novel and try not to read reviews of films I want to watch, the buzz made me wary of inflated expectations. I needn’t have been. I loved it and not just because of Fiennes – though superbly acted by him along with a great ensemble, it’s an elegant adaptation that cracks along beautifully, with humanity and humour embedded in the bigger ideas and impressive settings.

TRAVEL: MEXICO

What can I say – my mind blown by place, history, art, people. I went for the D.H. Lawrence conference and to see friends I’d met at university in Edinburgh in the 1990s. Every day a revelation – at the conference on UNAM’s huge, fascinating campus, visiting the incredible National Museum of Anthropology and wandering through Frida Kahlo’s ‘Blue House’, Casa Azul, in Mexico City. Further afield, clambering (part-way) up the Pyramid of the Moon at the vast site of Teotihuacán and a more contemplative experience in the ruins of Monte Albán in the Valley of Oaxaca. I need our imminent winter break to properly contemplate an extraordinary summer journey.

BOOK: STEPPING STONES: Interviews with Seamus Heaney by Dennis O’Driscoll

Seamus Heaney has been a touchstone writer for me since DEATH OF A NATURALIST came into startling focus in a first-year tutorial, a mind-meld of his Irish and my South African worlds leading to deeper exploration of his work in my later studies. I treasure the memory of a kind letter he wrote me as a postgraduate student, and a brief but generous London meeting. Over several autumn months, I read his inspiring conversations with Dennis O’Driscoll – empathetically drawn out and beautifully assembled in what Anne Enright aptly described as ‘a deeply nourishing book’. I had already been nourished by Dennis O’Driscoll’s glorious THE OUTNUMBERED POET: CRITICAL AND AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAYS (Gallery Books) and am so sad that both these fine people are no longer with us – though grateful they have passed on their works, ongoing treasures. Now I look forward to exploring Heaney’s COLLECTED POEMS, an exploration of the familiar and discovery of the new. 

In other anticipations, I look forward to Cambridge Folk Festival 2026, after a year’s hiatus. So much-missed in 2025!

Sian Ellis-Martin

Game: THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: BREATH OF THE WILD

I borrowed a Nintendo Switch for a lazy holiday this year and bought myself BREATH OF THE WILD. I’m not a gamer by any stretch so I don’t have much to compare it to, but BREATH OF THE WILD is a beautifully made game (and story!) that had me in awe of the skill of the game makers. The kingdom of Hyrule is completely open to you while you play as Link, a once renowned soldier now awake after 100 years of slumber. The ultimate goal is to defeat Calamity Ganon, reclaim Hyrule, and save Princess Zelda, but there are many challenges and quests to keep you occupied along the way.

TV: ALL HER FAULT

I was hooked on this show within the first five minutes! Marissa, played by Sarah Snook, arrives to pick up her son Milo from a playdate. But he’s not at the address she’s been given and was never invited on a play date at all. He’s been kidnapped. The ‘who’ is just as intriguing as the ‘why’ here, and there were loads of twists and turns I didn’t see coming. I loved the camaraderie between Marissa and Jenny (Dakota Fanning). While the show is a crime thriller through and through, it also very cleverly shines a light on parenthood and privilege too.

Book: THE WAGER by David Grann

THE WAGER was my most surprising highlight of 2025. It’s the story of the Wager, a ship that sailed on a secret mission for England but ended up wrecked on a barren island in South America. It’s a tale of shipwreck, mutiny and murder as the subtitle suggests, but it’s also a story about perseverance, about the inherent human will to survive. Some of the events are so shocking that I forgot it was a true story; David Grann expertly demonstrates how fact can be even more enthralling than fiction.

Nicole Etherington

Travel: New Cities

2025 was the year of European city breaks, and I was lucky enough to spend time in Helsinki, Tallinn, Marseilles, Madrid and Badalona. Highlights from my trips included a Tove Janson exhibition, the Helsinki-Tallinn ferry, Enn Põldroos exhibition at KUMU, Estonian taprooms, Fotografiska Tallinn, tiny wine bars down French side streets, Cours Julien, seeing Chappell Roan at Primavera, the fast train from Barcelona to Madrid, Mercado de San Miguel and many more!

Literature: Translated Fiction

I’ve really enjoyed the translated fiction I’ve read this year – in particular ON THE CALCULATION OF VOLUME Volumes 1 & 2 by Solvej Balle, WAIST DEEP by Linea Maja Ernst, THE TRIO by Johanna Hedma, and HEAVEN & EARTH by Paolo Giordano.

TV: STRANGER THINGS

My STRANGER THINGS obsession was recently reactivated, thanks to the release of part one of the fifth and final season in November. I re-watched the entire series in the span of about three weeks and I’m now anxiously awaiting the next episode drop. It’s the perfect blend of 80s nostalgia, right down to the gravity defying hairstyles and blue eyeshadow, and arguably wins the award for best use of a Kate Bush song in a TV show and best fictional babysitter (I’m looking at you Steve Harrington).

Julian Friedmann

As the cold weather dropped on us and there was urgent gardening to be done, my Niwaki Winter gardening gloves triumphed and, work done a couple of hours later, my fingers remained toasty. Gardening is so much nicer when you’re warm. Niwaki also do great secateurs, all made by one family in Japan.

My second highlight of the year is poached pears. It was a side dish to roasted duck breasts, but my wife raved about the pears (she did also like the duck). Peel the pears, quarter them lengthways, put into an ovenproof disc with red wine, orange juice, fresh rosemary and thyme. Maybe a cinnamon stick and a couple of bay leaves. I’d include grated orange or lemon rind too. It you put the herbs and spices into a muslin bag then your guests won’t be picking bits of herbs from their teeth. Roast for maybe an hour on medium. You could cook on top of the stove too, or in a slow cooker. If you do the duck breasts, use the oven. Season and place on top of the pears for say 20 minutes, then uncovered until skin crisps (maybe 10-15 mins depending on how hot the oven is and how pink you want the duck). You can freeze the pears – they’re just as good weeks later. Nowadays I just get asked for the pears.

My final choice is the David Attenborough-narrated series KINGDOM. Shot over five years in Zambia, it does what I’ve rarely seen a wildlife documentary series do: it is about the relationships between four species of animals: a pride of lions, a pack of wild dogs, a hyena family and a leopard mother and cub. They’re crowded into a small area surrounded by rivers filled with crocodiles and hippos. Faced by bush fire and drought they all fight for supremacy: for the kingdom. Stunning photography and emotional highs and lows.

Leyla Hattabi

Travel: Fire Festival in the Kyoto region

On a family trip to Japan, we were lucky enough to take part in the mountains of Kurama’s Fire Festival. The ceremony celebrates the welcoming of the kami spirits to the village and everyone in the family takes part! Catching a glimpse of the procession is pure luck, and thanks to all our bad luck that evening, we managed to witness the lighting of the first fire after being stranded 20 minutes’ walk from the festival activities by our local bus.

Film: SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE

Biopics of music icons can be a mix of good, bad, or forgettable. A biopic on Bruce Springsteen’s inner turmoil and fight with depression could’ve gone either way. This film has managed to play with tone and atmosphere in a way that truly elevates the biopic genre. Big hats off to the creative team, DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE was one of the best movie theatre going experiences of the year for me, from the stellar acting to the daring cinematography.

THEATRE: 1536 (Almeida Theatre)

I went to see probably around 50-60 plays, musicals and theatre productions in 2025, and one that truly stayed with me was 1536 by Ava Pickett (directed by Lyndsey Turner) – a piece of new writing, playing at the Almeida, which has now transferred to the West End. This was a masterful gut-punching tragedy with clever rapid fire comedic dialogue and a message that’s incredibly relevant in an age where women’s rights are being taken away. I loved seeing Tanya Reynolds on stage again, who was also a cast member of THE SEAGULL, at the Barbican alongside Cate Blanchett, this year and which was another one of my favourites!

Juliet Pickering

Family: HORRIBLE HISTORIES (BBC iPlayer)

One of the most gratifying moments of parenthood has been my child's love of Horrible Histories. Finally a programme (essentially a sketch show) that we can both enjoy. I've learned so much, and laughed a lot. It's total genius! I even then read a giant C J Sansom novel with a glimmer of understanding of the historical context (thanks to Ailbhe Malone for the recommendation). I have been thinking for the last six months on which clip I'd want to share for these highlights, and it's an embarrassment of riches - Napoleon's life story, simpering Romantic poets, Shakespeare's battle rap ... I opted for the Magna Carta. Enjoy!

Activity: Two Tunnels, Bath

This summer was the summer I got on a bike again after 20 years of gladly avoiding the saddle. Two Tunnels are part of an old railway in Bath that was converted into a very scenic walking and cycle route (you can follow it all the way to Bristol), and is about the only flat path in a very hilly city. We spent a lot of time in the summer holidays cycling for 20 mins through the dank gloomy tunnels and emerging into beautiful sunny countryside. Those are some really special memories, and I'm so grateful to have this on my doorstep (and for this excellent pub where we paused for vital refreshment/chips).

TV: HERE WE GO

A brilliantly scripted TV comedy about the Jessop family. So cleverly plotted (especially the latest series) and acted, it's my latest comfort watch. I can't wait for the Christmas special!

James Pusey

TV: CELEBRITY TRAITORS

Pound for pound – and this is on the BBC, an institution we should cherish and preserve from the forces that want to see it dismantled – the most entertaining series of the year. Preposterous, unpredictable and chaotic, but also an antidote to the everyday, it really speaks to the times.

Art: TIRZAH GARWOOD: BEYOND RAVILIOUS (Dulwich Picture Gallery)

Whimsical but unsettling multi-media evocations of Innocence and Experience by the wife of the now just-a-little-less-more renowned Eric Ravilious.

Theatre: The Importance of Being Earnest (Noel Coward Theatre)

A joyful production in pastel tones that achieved its lift-off effortlessly. A trivial play for serious people. Stephen Fry could make me laugh on the scaffold.

Ane Reason

Books: Norwegian Crime Fiction

I spent the Easter break in Norway this year and was reminded of a tradition I used to love but had completely forgotten: Norway’s obsession with crime fiction at Easter. Each year, shortly before the holiday, shops in Norway are flooded with thrillers and police procedurals, which people stock up on and binge-read during the break. I haven’t taken part in this tradition for many years, but the trip rekindled memories of how oddly comforting it is to read a nail-biting thriller while being curled up on the sofa in a warm mountain cabin with the snow falling outside.

Art: FLOWERS – FLORA IN CONTEMPORARY ART & CULTURE (Saatchi Gallery)

I really enjoyed this exhibition of art, photography, fashion, archival objects, graphic design and installations exploring flowers in contemporary culture. My favourite work was Rebecca Louise Law’s La Fleur Morte, an entire room filled with more than 100,000 dried flowers that formed a breathtaking immersive landscape.

Food: Pastries

Wherever I’ve gone this year, I’ve made a point of seeking out some mouth-watering local pastries, such as traditional custard tarts in Portugal and cinnamon buns in Norway. A definite highlight was Cédric Grolet’s apple illusion cake at The Berkeley. I look forward to sampling some French-Japanese treats at Café Kitsuné in London next.

Tabitha Topping

Books: The Realm of the Elderlings by Robin Hobb

This has probably defined my reading year. For those that don’t know, The Realm of the Elderlings is a (not counting the various novellas and short stories that accompany it) sixteen-book fantasy series set in and around the fictional land of the Six Duchies. There are too many plot points to summarise in any meaningful way, so all I’ll say is that it begins with the illegitimate son of a prince being trained as an assassin and the books spin out from there. It’s been a joy to experience the various intricacies unfold and come together and I honestly don’t understand how the author has kept all the storylines coherent and exciting across sixteen books.

A confession: I still have one book left to read. I’ve been unable to bring myself to read it – not only do I not want the series to end, but I am desperately worried that our luckless protagonist will come to harm and have somehow convinced myself that if I don’t read it he will be fine. This logic is skewed, I know that – but I just want him to be okay (he’s been through so much!). Is that too much to ask?!

Activity: Swimming

Earlier this year I was advised to take up swimming after repeatedly injuring myself while running, and honestly I am loving it! There’s something blissfully mind-numbing about swimming lengths, despite the various, unforeseen politics of lane swimming and the horrendous things chlorine is doing to my hair.

Travel: Malta

Speaking of swimming, a real highlight this year was swimming in the Mediterranean on my birthday. My birthday being in March coupled with not enough money to go holidaying in warmer climes, means I had not yet done one of my favourite things on one of my favourite days. This year, I put my foot down and booked flights to Malta. Yes, it was still a little chilly but honestly so wonderful. It may become a yearly occurrence…