The Culture Desk
Culture
Film, books, music, and the ideas at the centre of the conversation.
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Taylor Swift, Beyoncé and the Go-Go's Enter the National Recording Registry
The Library of Congress this year inducted twenty-five recordings spanning eight decades — from Spike Jones in 1944 to Swift's '1989' — into the National Recording Registry. The list, as always, is an argument as much as a catalogue.
Culture
The 79th Cannes Opens With a Speech, Not a Spectacle
French actress Eye Haïdara opened the 79th Festival de Cannes with a direct address: 'To all of you who are trying to resist, here and elsewhere.' The line, more than the films, set the tone for the festival.
Culture
The Summer Books List, and What It Says About 2026
May brings new titles from Douglas Stuart, Kathryn Stockett, Ali Smith and David Sedaris. The list, taken together, suggests a publishing industry returning to long, ambitious literary fiction after years of caution.
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