The Arts Hour

Nikki Bedi speaks to Swiss-born Australian direct Simon Stone about super yachts, working with Keira Knightley and the words of advice Guillermo del Toro gave him on new film Woman in Cabin 10.

Also, Taylor Swift on her new album, The Life of a Show Girl.

Oscar-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins reveals the painters who have inspired him.

Poet Catherine-Esther Cowie discusses drawing on the history and language of St Lucia for her collection Heirloom.

Hollywood star Matthew McConaughey talks about driving a school bus for his latest role.

Producer: Ciaran Bermingham

(Credit: Photography by Dave Bennett for Netflix)

Nikki Bedi talks to American-South African actor, writer and now director Embeth Davidtz about her film, Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight and is joined by cultural critic Leila Latif.

Oscar winning Hollywood star Leonardo Di Caprio and filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson discuss One Battle After Another.

Trinidadian writer Claire Adam talks about her Booker-longlisted novel Love Forms.

US artist Kerry James Marshall reveals his childhood inspiration.

Scottish singer songwriter Annie Lennox reflects on some of her iconic looks.

Main image: Embeth Davidtz

Nikki Bedi talks to Belgian filmmaker Tim Mielants about his film Steve, starring Cillian Murphy, and is joined by cultural critic, Hanna Flint, to discuss cultural highlights of the week.

Australian actor-producer and Hollywood star Margot Robbie and Irish actor Colin Farrell talk about their magical road trip movie, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey.

Irish-Indian poet and Instagram sensation Nikita Gill discusses Greek myths.

Tony award winning American actor Sean Hayes, star of Will and Grace, talks about the physical demands of his latest stage role.

Actors Cillian Murphy and Little Simz and director Tim Mielants share their experience of making ‘Steve’, a film about a boys’ reform school in the 1990s.

And Roberto Barreto from Brazilian music collective Baiana System describes the appeal of Carnival.

Main image: Tracey Ullman and Cillian Murphy in Steve

Nikki Bedi talks to German director Jan-Ole Gerster about his film, Islands and is joined by critic and broadcaster Zing Tsjeng.

Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin discusses adapting To Kill a Mockingbird for the stage.

Chinese author Jung Chang explains why she’s chosen to write a sequel to her best-selling novel Wild Swans.

New Zealand born director Samuel van Grinsven talks about the rural setting for his supernatural thriller Went Up a Hill.

Oscar-winning American actor Susan Sarandon talks about sharing the same character with four other actors on stage.

And French musician Rahim Redcar reveals his love of legendary choreographer Bob Fosse.

Main image: Sam Riley in Islands

Hollywood star Robin Wright on combining acting and directing in the hotly-discussed new television series The Girlfriend.

Pioneering musician William Barton on the significance of the yidaki in Aboriginal Australian culture.

Swedish big screen actor Alicia Vikander on being a child actor and performing in a musical written by the ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson.

American director Jay Roach discusses working with Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch in new divorce comedy, The Roses.

And there’s music from Arooj Aftab, the Pakistani-American singer who recently performed at the BBC Proms.

Plus, Nikki talks to music powerhouse Nabil Ayers about his book My Life in the Sunshine and podcast Identified, along with critic Larushka Ivan-Zadeh.

Main image: Nabil Ayers

Nikki Bedi talks to US writer and comedian Bill Posley about his one-man show, The Day I Accidentally Went To War and is joined by cultural critic, Anil Sinanan.

Hollywood star Orlando Bloom reveals how he prepared for his latest role as a boxer in The Cut.

Brazilian performer Edgar Jacques talks about his immersive theatre show, Another Sight.

Oscar winning British filmmaker Christopher Nolan reflects on why some of the best directors have an advertising background.

And the multi-talented Australian star Tim Minchin on his new album.

Main image: Bill Posley

Nikki Bedi and Leila Latif discuss cultural highlights of the week.

Actors Karen Gillan, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Tom Hiddleston on The Life of Chuck, the latest film adaptation from a Stephen King story.

Bestselling author of Yellowface, Rebecca F. Kuang on her latest novel Katabasis, which is set in hell.

US rapper Danny Brown reveals a surprising childhood influence on his wordsmithery.

Swiss American director Jasmin Gordon talks about the depiction of a rebellious woman in her debut feature film The Courageous.

Actor and writer Meera Syal enters the debate about a shift in cultural criticism.

Main image: Jasmin Gordon

Nikki Bedi and cultural critic Katie Puckrik discuss cultural highlights of the week.

American actors and real-life couple, Dave Franco and Alison Brie, on their feelgood body horror movie Together.

Russian mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina on her early music influences.

Bestselling British author Lee Child and his brother Andrew, on writing Jack Reacher crime thrillers together.

Actor Naomi Watts confesses her love of dogs and discusses her role in the film The Friend.

British Tanzanian actor Lucian Msamati, who was Salladhor Saan in Game of Thrones and Cardinal Adeyemi in the movie Conclave, joins Nikki to talk about his role in the new Netflix series Hostage.

International musician, producer and tech innovator Imogen Heap explains how she is embracing AI.

Main image: Lucian Msamati in Hostage

Nikki Bedi speaks to Celine Song, the South Korean-born Canadian director and writer behind Past Lives, about her latest movie Materialists, starring Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pedro Pascal. In this extended interview, Song discusses drawing on her own experience working as a matchmaker and making playlists for her characters.

She also speaks to Emmy-nominated Salvadoran-American comedian, writer and film maker Julio Torres about his new stand up show Color Theory which he has brought to London’s Soho Theatre.

Plus critic and podcaster Murtada Elfadl joins to give his take on the week’s cultural talking points, from Jamie Lee Curtis in Freakier Friday to why the British original of The Office is superior to the American version of the sitcom.

Producer: Ciaran Bermingham

Nikki Bedi and cultural critic Bidisha discuss cultural highlights of the week.

Oscar winning actor and singer Barbra Streisand on finally working with Bob Dylan, for her latest album of collaborations.

Gurnaik Johal reveals how a mythical Indian river inspired his novel Saraswati.

Grammy award winning performer Ute Lemper remembers meeting fellow German megastar, Marlene Dietrich.

Film director Elizabeth Lo takes Nikki through the making of Mistress Dispeller, her documentary about ending love triangles in China.

And Fargo showrunner and author Noah Hawley explains how is now turning Alien into a new TV series format.

Main image: Elizabeth Lo