Cultured. On Sunday 12.04.26
Our weekend edition for longer reads and cultural recommendations
After a little Easter pause, we’re back - and straight into a particularly packed edition of Cultured. On Sunday.
There’s a rare chance to hear from Jimmy Nail as he prepares for his first tour in 25 years, with dates across the North East (and demand already high enough to add a fifth night at The Glasshouse International Centre for Music).
Elsewhere, Dave Whetstone catches up with Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen about a new push to revive one of her best-loved bodies of work, and reports back from a major new exhibition at Laing Art Gallery.
We also hear from the North East family behind a short film making serious waves on the festival circuit, take a trip back to the region’s 18th century headlines with Tony Henderson and open the album of photographer Simone Rudolphi as she shares a selection of images from her archive.
There’s a space-inspired bookshelf courtesy of Collected Books, a TV binge recommendation promising plenty of laughs, and a sweet Sunday Plate from Pink Lane Bakery.
And - if you’re quick - a bonus prize draw for a family ticket to Unfolding Theatre’s Here Be Dragons at Northern Stage.
Tuck in!
Founded by Emma Hamlett, Collected Books is an independent bookshop in Durham, with two floors of books to browse as well as coffee, wine, and cake to enjoy. They specialise in writing by women but stock all genres of fiction and non-fiction as well as books for kids, YA titles, poetry, and classics.
Emma says: Our book recommendation this week is for everyone who has found themselves totally gripped by all the coverage of the Artemis II mission and the crew’s incredible flyby of the far side of the moon.
Celestial Lights by Cecile Pin, whose debut novel Wandering Souls was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2023, is an absorbing, atmospheric, and compelling novel about love and sacrifice, ambition and loyalty, centred on a 10-year mission to Europa - one of Jupiter’s moons - and back.
It’s totally exceptional. A gripping, moving, and challenging read in all the best ways. The central question in this wonderful novel is what we owe our loved ones and what we owe ourselves when our ambitions and our loyalties conflict - but writ very large. Homer’s Odyssey for the 21st century - and in space! Complex, sad, and very, very hard to put down.
Oliver Ines is born in a small English village in January, 1986. At the same time, moments after launch, the Challenger shuttle falls from the sky.
Ollie spends his childhood in a bedroom covered in glow-in-the-dark wallpaper, bearing the planets and stars. One summer he meets Philly and a friendship forms that will rekindle as love when they meet again years later. After school, university, and a career in the Navy, Ollie becomes one of the most renowned astronauts of his time. When an enterprising billionaire approaches him to lead the landmark, 10-year mission to Europa, Ollie cannot resist the call of history.
As the mission advances deeper into uncharted territory, Ollie finds himself retreating into the past: his childhood and youth, relationships found and lost, becoming a husband and father. But will the world he remembers still be waiting for him when he returns?
Celestial Lights is an arresting and impressive blend of heart and head, a novel full of warmth and love as well as great acuity and insight on the power – and potential destructiveness – of ambition. A wonderful, and timely, read.
We’ve been asking asking North East-based photographers to open up their archives and select two handfuls of images which encapsulate life as they’ve captured it
Simone Jimena Rudolphi grew up in Germany - her primary school years spent “on a hill overlooking Mayen, roaming the forests of the volcanic Eifel area”. Rheinhessen, the largest of Germany’s wine regions, was home during her adolescence, offering job opportunities during the grape harvest.
Now in her mid-50s, she has spent more than 30 years in the North East, but says she feels “the migrant element of my identity more and more every day” - blaming post-Brexit political policy.
It was the old black and white photos in the bottom drawers of her grandparents’ oak ‘Schrankwand’ which first piqued a young Simone’s interest in photography.
“Sadly, much of this archive has dispersed and cleared out over the years, but I used to be fascinated by handling the small serrated-edge prints and looking at negatives,” she says.
“Once I had my own simple cheap camera I loved documenting family moments first as a daughter, later as a mother. My eldest daughter has five albums documenting her joys and sorrows of the first two years of her life.”
Every week, Michael Telfer – aka Mike TV – recommends a box set to crack open. This week’s choice is a laugh a minute, for the viewers rather than the contestants.
Recently there has been a spate of documentaries uncovering the darker side of some of the biggest TV reality series of the 90s and noughties. Contestants from shows like America’s Next top Model or The Biggest Loser talk hauntingly about how they were bullied into dental surgery they didn’t want, or nearly killed by over-enthusiastic personal trainers in the name of light entertainment.
I like to imagine contestants from Last One Laughing telling similar stories on Netflix documentaries 20 years from now.
Harriet Kemsley will describe trying (and failing) to keep a straight face while Richard Ayoade, Rob Beckett and Lou Sanders took turns butchering the chorus from Minnie Riperton’s Lovin’ You. Gbemisola Ikumelo will recount being in tears trying not to laugh at Diane Morgan reciting Dylan Thomas’ Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night and poignantly breaking wind between lines. The internal scars will last a long time.
The Sunday Plate sees chefs from kitchens across the North East share a recipe for you to try at home - a snapshot of the region’s food scene, one dish/treat at a time.
This week’s recipe comes from Pink Lane Bakery, the much-loved Newcastle institution which has been baking since 2012 and steadily growing its footprint across the region, from its original city centre base to sites in Gosforth, Jesmond, Morpeth and a partnership with Fenwick.
Recently named one of Britain’s best bakeries by Felicity Cloake in The Times and awarded the Best Bakery in the North East at the National Bakery Awards, it’s a place known for being at the top of its game.
Here, head pastry chef Lindsey Quinn shares a recipe for one of their most popular bakes - the friand. Introduced to the bakery by Melbourne-born director Abe Chirgwin, these almond-rich little cakes - lightly crisp on the outside, soft at the centre and often studded with fruit or chocolate - are a well-trodden treat in Australia.
The description supplied says they “taste like someone distilled the best parts of a buttery sponge and a macaron into one neat little oval… It’s the kind of thing you can eat with zero ceremony and still feel like you’ve treated yourself.”
We need no more details to get baking.
Blueberry & Almond Friand
This will make approximately 10 friands (depending on mould size)
Recommended moulds: 20mm (H) x 53mm (W) x 33mm (D) non-stick oval silicone moulds
Ingredients
200g egg whites
180g icing sugar
300g ground almonds
200g unsalted butter, browned (caramelised)
Approximately 150g blueberries (fresh or frozen) (Free free to swap out for raspberries or a blackberries)
100g flaked almonds
Honey, for finishing
Method
Preheat the oven to 185°C (fan 175°C) / Gas Mark 3–4.
Lightly grease the moulds using a non-stick spray or a small amount of butter. Place onto a baking tray for stability.
In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until it begins to foam, then continue cooking until it turns a golden brown colour and develops a nutty aroma. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks, ideally using an electric whisk for efficiency.
In a separate bowl, combine the icing sugar and ground almonds.
Fold half of the almond and icing sugar mixture into the whipped egg whites using a spatula or wooden spoon.
Gradually drizzle in half of the melted butter, ensuring it is just warm to the touch (not hot), and gently fold to combine.
Repeat with the remaining almond mixture, followed by the remaining butter, folding carefully until the batter is smooth and fully incorporated.
Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared moulds.
Press 3 whole blueberries into each friand and sprinkle with flaked almonds (approximately 10 flakes per friand, or as desired).
Bake for 18–20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown
Remove from the oven and, while still warm, drizzle generously with honey.
Allow to cool slightly in the moulds before turning out. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Welcome to our bonus weekend newsletter prize draw - offering our subscribers an extra (and still exclusive) opportunity to win tickets to see or do something great.
This time, we’ve got four tickets to Unfolding Theatre’s latest famliy show, Here Be Dragons which is at Northern Stage on April 14 and 15 this week (performances at 11.30am and 1pm on Tuesday and Wednesday).
Written by Lindsay Rodden, it follows Em – 10 (and three quarters) and sceptical about anything mythical – as an unexpected encounter near the River Wear nudges her towards something more magical.
Blending music, storytelling and a sense of local adventure, the piece is performed by Bridget Marumo, Hannabiell Sanders and Tim Dalling.
Designed for ages 6–11, it sounds like. perfect way to spend an afternoon in the Easter holidays.
The prize (four tickets) is available for any of the four performances at Northern Stage on April 14 and 15.
HOW TO ENTER:
To be in with a chance of winning, simply email MePlease@culturednortheast.co.uk using the subject line: It’s Dragon Time! by 10am tomorrow (Monday, April 13, 2026).
The winner, who will be selected at random, will be notified within 12 hours of the entry deadline.
Terms and conditions: Only subscribers to the Cultured. North East newsletter are eligible to enter the Newsletter Prize Draw competition. Prizes are as stated - subject to availability - and non-transferable. No cash alternatives will be offered. You must be over 18 years of age to enter. The Editor’s decision is final.