So this week sees Valentine’s Day come around, the most romantic day of the year, when men go all out and buy that beautiful bouquet of flowers from the petrol station to show their other half how special they are.
When loved up couples block paths along streets with loving embraces and whispers of sweet nothings as singletons curse them as they head home for a ready meal.
Fear not, there’s plenty to see, hear and do over the next seven days that is Valentine’s free and hopefully doesn’t involve any sickening public displays of affection. Here’s The Weekly EDIT.
The Luna Cinema Valentine’s Day Screenings (14th – 16th)
Sitting under the 25-metre skeleton of a Blue Whale in the Natural History Museum may not be the first venue you might think of for watching a romantic movie, but thanks to The Luna Cinema from Valentine’s Day all through the weekend that’s exactly what you can do.
Romantic comedies Pretty Woman and Love Actually will be showing, along with recent smash A Star Is Born. And for those feeling sick at all the love going around you can take in Kill Bill Vol 1. and the ultimate chicks road flick Thelma and Louise.
The Best You at Olympia (15th – 16th)
Motivation and inspiration will be two of the key watchwords this weekend at London’s Olympia.
The Best You Expo is the UK’s largest Personal Development event bringing people together over two days to listen and learn from leaders in the field and see the life-changing movements and innovations going on.
It should be the perfect event for anyone searching for a bit of meaning in the crazy world we live in.
London Classic Car Show (14th – 17th)
For anyone into their classic motors, London’s ExCel is the place to head to from Thursday. This car show will have some of the finest examples of prestigious vintage and one-off models in the world.
You can watch them roaring into action at The Grand Avenue and see them up close and personal on display around the venue. This year there’s the chance to see an exhibit of the last surviving Mini’s from The Italian Job to mark the film’s 50th anniversary.
London Anime & Gaming Convention (15th -17th)
This year London’s Metropolitan University will play host to hordes of cosplay, comics and gaming fans. Big name guests attending include Tia Ballard and Felecia Angelle, who’ve voiced over 100 anime and video games.
There will be live music from the likes of Lele, Re: Make and Jollyboat, over 50 merch stalls, gaming tournaments for cash prizes and cosplay contests with even more dough at stake.
Harald Sohlberg: Painting Norway at Dulwich Picture Gallery (13th till June 2nd)
The works of one of the greatest landscape painters Norway has ever produced is celebrated at Dulwich Picture Gallery this month with Harald Sohlberg’s (1869 – 1935) first major UK show.
The symbolist artist drew inspiration for his art from the intense stories and mythologies of the Norwegian land. Sohlberg’s paintings depict the wilderness of the Nordic landscape, the soft beauty of the flower fields and the harsh cold of the winter.
The exhibition include’s Sohlberg’s iconic landscape, Winter Night in the Mountains, regarded as the ‘National Painting of Norway’ (above).
Gig
Neneh Cherry (various)
In the highly politicised world we inhabit it’s good to know we can still rely on some music artists to deliver their own powerful messages. Nenah Cherry has been doing just that for decades.
The Buffalo Stance singer is out on tour following the success of last year’s Broken Politics album which took on weighty topics such as the refugee crisis, gun violence and fascism. Catch her in Leeds, Manchester and London this week.
Eats & Drinks
The Gin Society Festival Manchester (14th – 16th)
If you fancy trying some top gin tipples in the salubrious surroundings of Manchester Cathedral then the Gin Society has just the festival for you. Three exclusive gin bars – will be serving world, British and fruit gins.
The ticket price includes your first G&T free along with a Copa Glass to take home. Masterclasses from distillers and industry experts will keep you informed and some live tunes will keep you entertained, with street food to soak up the booze.
That’s the spirit!
BBQ Dreamz at MEATliquor Kings Cross (17th)
Any avid fans off BBC’s My Million Pound Menu will be familiar with Filipino barbecue concept BBQ Dreamz.
The street food traders are popping up in King’s Cross taking over the kitchen at MEATliquor Kings Cross on Sunday to serve an eleven-course tasting menu.
The feast will include crispy pork belly, zingy papaya noodle salads, tender chicken in a soy, garlic and many more mouthwatering delights.
App of the Week
Eaten (ios, Android, Free)
Foodies will love this app that helps you find and share the worlds most appetising dishes. It’s a bit like Google Maps for food but with detailed info and pics about the meals themselves rather than just their location.
You can also add your own reviews and earn points on a leaderboard where if you rate enough recipes you might find yourself named as an expert. Which is nice.
Song of the Week
The Chemical Brothers – Got to Keep On
Despite The Chemical Brothers having been around for what feels like a hundred years, the duo continues to be relevant and able, squeezing out great tunes at a scary level of consistency.
Got to Keep On is a disco-tinged number to get your groove on to if we’ve ever heard one. Check out the dancetastic Michel Gondry directed video for the song – above.
New Music
Ladytron – Ladytron
Liverpool electro group Ladytron are back with their first album in over seven years. We’re very pleased to report this new self-titled record marks a very welcome return. With powerful lyrics, beautifully layered harmonies and relentless synths it’s like they’ve never been away.
Tracks like ‘The Island’ drop you straight into a John Carpenter sci-fi film whereas the throbbing beats of ‘Deadzone’ leave you stuck in the corner of an industrial warehouse at 3am.
With the world in the turbulent state it’s currently in, Ladytron provides the perfect soundtrack to the oncoming rise of AI and impending apocalypse. It’s always good to have something to look forward to.
New TV
Dirty John (Netflix, Thurs)
This dramatisation of the hit true crime podcast sees Eric Bana star as (Dirty) John Meehan, a con man who poses as an anaesthetist to seduce businesswoman Debra Newell after the pair met online.
The couple wed after a whirlwind two months, but as you’d expect, things aren’t as they seem. The podcast was pretty great so we’re expecting decent things from this.
The Umbrella Academy (NETFLIX, 15th)
The award-winning graphic novel by former My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way and artist Gabriel Bá, gets a NETFLIX series adaptation.
It follows an eccentric, wealthy man who adopts six superpowered children and raises them to save the world. When he dies 17-years later, they’re faced with trying to stop an impending apocalypse but have plenty of people standing in their way looking for them to fail.
Looks like a fun, quirky take on the done to death superhero narrative, so should be worth a watch.
Lorena (Amazon Prime, 14th)
It may be released on Valentines Day, but this probably isn’t one you want to cosy down on the couch with your other half to, if you’re looking for a romantic watch that is.
Exec produced by Get Out director Jordan Peele this new documentary series explores the 1993 court case involving John and Lorena Bobbitt, the woman who cut off her husband’s penis with a kitchen knife after enduring years of domestic abuse.
New Movies
A Private War (In cinemas 15th)
A Private War looks at the life of the celebrated, late American war correspondent Marie Colvin. The film explores her fearless spirit on the very frontline of journalism, covering global conflicts across the globe, testing limits of bravery and indeed bravado.
Rosamund Pike stars as Colvin, while 50 Shades star Jamie Dornan plays war photographer Paul Conroy, who was out on assignment with the former Sunday Times journalist during the Siege of the Syrian city of Homs in 2012 where she lost her life.
Climax (Blu-Ray/DVD, 11th)
Gaspar Noé isn’t a director known for toning things down. He’s previously taken us on trippy (Enter the Void) and sometimes deeply disturbing (Irreversible) journies with his films and his latest, Climax, only goes further in pummelling our senses.
Here a troupe of young dancers gather in a remote school building for a rehearsal which descends into a nightmarish party after the dancers discover the sangria they’ve been necking is laced with LSD.
Visually stunning and completely mental, this may be Noé’s Citizen Kane.
Competition Time
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We have 3x Active Man Boxes to give away courtesy of the sports nutrition experts at Bio-Synergy.
All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning one of these great prizes is head over to The MALESTROM HQ on Facebook, ‘LIKE’ The MALESTROM HQ & ‘SHARE’ the competition post.
Since 1997 Bio-Synergy has been committed to developing innovative, high-quality sports supplements that are produced in the UK to the highest standards to ensure that they are effective and taste great.
Each Active Man Box contains Whey Better protein to fuel muscles, Thermogen (120 Caps) to reduce body fat, Creatine Plus Strength (125 Capsules) to boost performance and a Dual Shaker so you won’t confuse your pre-workout with your post workout drink.
Best of luck!
And don’t forget today (Monday) is the last day to enter our Valentine’s comp to win 100 red roses courtesy of Appleyard London.
All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning this most romantic of prizes is head over to The MALESTROM HQ on Facebook, ‘LIKE’ The MALESTROM HQ & ‘SHARE’ the competition post.
Appleyard London are also giving MALESTROM readers an exclusive 20% off all their lovely bouquets.
To receive your discount simply head to the Appleyard website via THIS LINK and enter your exclusive voucher code MALESTROM20 when checking out.
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