Curated Culture 04.11.25
Our weekly recommendations round up from North East stages and cultural venues
Hello and welcome to this week’s Curated Culture - your start-of-the-week round-up of some of the best theatre, music, film, exhibitions and events happening across the North East.
Each week we explore the listings so you don’t have to, pulling together a handpicked mix of what’s fresh, what’s unmissable, and what’s worth booking ahead – all in one easy scroll stroll.
If you’re new to the Tuesday newsletter, here’s what to expect:
🗓️ Top Picks – highlights from the next couple of weeks
📌 Still Showing – listings from Curated Cultures gone by which you can still catch
📅 Now Booking – upcoming stuff to plan for early
🎁 Subscriber Prize Draw – this week, FOUR tickets for Skating at Life, Newcastle. Details at the end.
But before you slip and slide down there though, take 10 minutes to have a once around this week’s recommendations.
Thanks for reading, sharing and keeping Curated Culture buzzing – we couldn’t do it without you.
Sam (Wonfor) & Dave (Whetstone)
Like Chas and Dave, but with less hair and better accents
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THEATRE: Dear England
Where: Newcastle Theatre Royal
When: November 11-15
Bookings and info: theatreroyal.co.uk
The National Theatre’s Olivier Award-winning hit Dear England kicks off on Tyneside as part of its eagerly awaited UK tour.
Written by James Graham (Sherwood) and directed by Rupert Goold, this gripping and uplifting drama follows Gareth Southgate’s mission to transform English football - and a nation’s mindset - after years of heartbreak.
With David Sturzaker as Southgate and Samantha Womack as team psychologist Pippa Grange, Dear England is about far more than football: it’s a story of hope, courage and change that’s winning over fans and non-fans alike.
Ooh and Newcastle actor, Jake Ashton-Nelson is playing Jordan Henderson. Howay the lad!
MUSIC: O’Hooley & Tidow - So Long for Now
Where: Gosforth Civic Theatre
When: November 6
Bookings and info: gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk
After 15 years, eight albums and hundreds of gigs across the UK and Europe, much-loved Yorkshire folk duo O’Hooley & Tidow are taking a break.
The pair behind Gentleman Jack, the theme for the BBC/HBO drama, have announced a farewell-for-now tour revisiting their favourite venues and audiences.
Known for their sharp, poetic songwriting, exquisite harmonies and down-to-earth northern wit, Belinda and Heidi have become one of folk’s most distinctive voices.
This final (for now) run promises an evening of reflection, warmth and unforgettable music from two artists whose partnership has defined a chapter in contemporary British folk.
LITERATURE: Meet the Booker Prize Winner 2025
Where: Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle
When: Thursday, November 16, 6pm
Bookings and info: tynesidecinema.co.uk
When Claire Malcolm sits down to hear the 2025 winner of the Booker Prize announced in London on November 10, she will be more than mildly curious.
Because a few days later, in Newcastle, she is due to interview the winner on stage at the Tyneside Cinema.
Apparently, such an interview takes place annually in one venue outside London. For the first time, Newcastle was chosen, the organisers alerted to lots of literary stuff happening in the North East, much of it thanks to New Writing North, of which Claire is chief executive.
So who will it be? The bookies have been taking bets and bookshop managers will be wondering which title they must clear window space for. The Booker carries a £50,000 prize but also generates sales.
Shortlisted are: The Rest of Our Lives by Ben Markovits (published by Faber); Audition by Katie Kitamura (Fern Press); Flesh by David Szalay (Jonathan Cape); The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller (Sceptre); Flashlight by Susan Choi (Jonathan Cape); and The Loneliness of Sonia and Sammy by Kiran Desai (Hamish Hamilton).
One of the six authors Claire has met before. David Szalay was the winner of the Gordon Burn Prize, run by New Writing North, in 2016. A good omen?
COMEDY: Ardal O’Hanlon - Not Himself
Where: Tyne Theatre and Opera House
When: November 7
Bookings and info: tynetheatreandoperahouse.uk
Ardal O’Hanlon’s new show, Not Himself, finds the much-loved comedian doing what he does best - unpicking the daftness of modern life with a mix of wit, wordplay and mild bewilderment.
From supermarket epiphanies to A.I., chair yoga and the indignities of ageing, a gently surreal look at the world through Ardal’s ever-curious lens is on the cards.
Known for Father Ted, Death in Paradise and Taskmaster, he brings the same dry humour and sharp observation to the stage. He might not have the answers, but he’s very good at laughing at the questions.
Ardal will be back in the region in 2026 for a date at Gala Durham on March 25.
DANCE: Poppy, Eliot Smith Dance
Where: Alnwick Playhouse
When: Sunday, November 9, 5.30pm
Bookings and info: alnwickplayhouse.co.uk
Remembrance Sunday sees the premiere performance of the new production from Eliot Smith Dance, billed as “a powerful reflection on war, conflict and sacrifice”.
It’s actually a much re-worked revival of an earlier work of the same title, but so much changed that the two bear little resemblance. There’s even new music composed by Adam Johnson.
It was inspired by the 80th anniversary of VE Day (that’s Victory in Europe) and by the sad reality that many people’s lives are still shaped and blighted by war all these years later.
Five dancers will take to the stage to perform six sections with a narrative thread focusing on a young married couple and how the Second World War affected them.
The professional performers will be joined at one point by the youngsters of Alnwick Dance Academy.
Eliot Smith Dance is the company that enjoyed great popular success with Pitman, its tribute to the miners and the pitman painters of the Ashington Group, which toured in 2024 and early this year.
Poppy is also to tour the region next February.
EXHIBITION: Miniature Worlds - Little Landscapes from Thomas Bewick to Beatrix Potter
Where: Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle
When: Until February 28, 2026
Bookings and info: northeastmuseums.org.uk
The Laing Art Gallery turns its focus to the small but spectacular in its latest ticketed exhibition.
Exploring the art of detail in over 130 works – from Bewick’s intricate engravings and Turner’s luminous watercolours to Beatrix Potter’s beloved storybook scenes, visitors can expect tiny yet richly imagined worlds across painting, print, drawing and sculpture.
Other pieces on display include works by JMW Turner, WIlliam Blake, John Martin, Kate Greenaway, Sir John Tenniel, Eric Ravilious, Agnes Miller Parker and more.
With loans from the Tate, V&A, British Museum and more, this is a celebration of precision, imagination and scale.
MUSIC: The Real People plus Brother and Wolfred
Where: Newgate Social, Newcastle
When: November 7 from 7.30pm
Bookings and info: skiddle.com
The Britpop pioneers who set Oasis on the road to stardom return to Newcastle more than 30 years after regular stops off at favourite city haunt The Riverside.
The Real People - featuring founder members Chris and Tony Griffiths - produced the original Oasis demo after getting to know a young Noel Gallagher on tour with The Inspiral Carpets.
Best mates with Ocean Colour Scene and The La’s, the band even recorded in the next door London studio to Blur as Damon Alburn and co. were putting the finishing touches to the iconic Modern Life Is Rubbish.
Bona fide Britpop royalty and one of the best live bands to come out of late 80s Liverpool, The Real People are still keeping it real with a bulging back catalogue of authentic indie bangers.
EXHIBITION: Listening to the Voices of the Rivers
Where: Newcastle Contemporary Art (NCA), 31-39 High Bridge
When: Until November 22
Bookings and info: visitnca.com
Coinciding with COP 30 (the 30th United Nations climate change conference) in Brazil, the exhibition looks at the vital role rivers play in sustaining communities and ecosystems.
It features the work of artists from Brazil and Peru and includes paintings, videos, drawings and photographs.
Meanwhile Zoe Walker & Neil Bromwich, an art duo based in Glasgow, are working with school groups on a participatory project exploring the ‘ghost rivers’ hidden under Newcastle’s streets.
The exhibition was conceived to foster a deeper understanding of the climate crisis and to inspire people of all ages to reflect on their role in shaping a sustainable future.
The Amazon, the Tyne and the Ouseburn are presented as starting points for action and understanding.
CLASSICAL: Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24
Where: The Glasshouse (Sage One), Gateshead
When: Sunday, November 9, 3pm
Bookings and info: theglasshouseicm.org
Live fast, die young… that could certainly be said of Mozart, sadly.
This concerto for keyboard was completed just three weeks after he had finished his previous one… and just before the premiere of his opera The Marriage of Figaro.
It was premiered in Vienna in 1786 and was admired by Beethoven and Brahms. Many a music scholar has deemed it Mozart’s greatest and audiences have loved it too.
It is to be performed on Sunday by German pianist Martin Helmchen with the Royal Northern Sinfonia directed by Maria Włoszczowska, a Glasshouse Artistic Partner.
Also to be given an airing is Mozart’s Symphony No. 5, the ‘Haffner’, while pieces by Prokofiev (Symphony No. 1, the ‘Classical’) and Stravinsky (the Pulcinella Suite) complete what promises to be a sparkling programme.
THEATRE: Sunny Afternoon
Where: Sunderland Empire
When: Until November 8
Bookings and info: atgtickets.com
The multi-Olivier Award-winning musical inspired by the life and music of The Kinks is looking to really get Wearside going this week.
Set against the backdrop of Britain on the brink of the swinging sixties, it tells the story of the Davies brothers and their bandmates as they stumble from North London beginnings to global fame, soundtracked by hits such as You Really Got Me, Lola and All Day and All of the Night.
The 2025/26 touring production has Danny Horn returning as Ray Davies, joined by Oliver Hoare as Dave, Harry Curley as Peter Quaife and Zakarie Stokes as Mick Avory.
Directed by Edward Hall with music and lyrics by Ray Davies and a book by Joe Penhall, the show mixes joy, chaos and heartache in a portrait of a band that defined an era.
MUSIC: Field Music - Twenty Years of Field Music
Where: The Fire Station, Sunderland
When: November 14
Bookings and info: thefirestation.org.uk
Full disclosure, this is sold out, but it’s got to be worth have a crack at getting a returned ticket, right?
Field Music have been marking 20 years since their self-titled debut with an expanded two-disc reissue, a Bandcamp listening party and celebratory smattering of dates including this stomping ground show at The Fire Station.
Formed by brothers Peter and David Brewis - originally with keyboard player Andrew Moore - Field Music have been a defining force in Sunderland’s music scene since making their entrance in the early 2000s.
Since their debut, another 20+ albums have followed. They’ve earned a Mercury Prize nomination (in 2012 for Plumb), written a film soundtrack; launched side projects like School of Language and The Week That Was and most recently started a crowd-pulling tribute band, The Fire Doors.
If you can’t get a ticket for this gig, there are still tickets for The Fire Doors at The Cluny, Newcastle on June 12, 2026!
STILL SHOWING
Exhibition: Shipyard Faces and Intriguing Spaces, Old Low Light Heritage Centre, North Shields, until Dec 1
Theatre: Mr Blackpool’s Seaside Spectacular, Northern Stage, Newcastle, Nov 6
Opera: La bohème, Opera North, Theatre Royal, Newcastle, Nov 5, 6 and 8
Dance: Suitcases, Queen’s Hall Arts Centre, Hexham, Nov 6
Exhibition: Baltic preview - For All At Last Return and first major UK exhibition by filmmaker and artist Saodat Ismailova, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, Nov 7, 6-8pm
Theatre: ROBBED, Laurels Theatre, Whitley Bay, Nov 4-8
Exhibition: The Light of Days Past, Granary Gallery, Berwick, until Feb 22, 2006
Theatre: Private Lives, Northern Stage, Newcastle, Nov 4-8
Visual Art: Gaia, Hexham Abbey, until Nov 16
Theatre: The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde + The Body Snatcher, various venues, touring until Nov 1
Theatre: Shore Lines from the Border Readers, various venues all over the North East until Dec 4
Dance: Se Gaest/The Guest, Dance City, Newcastle (Dec 11) Read our review
Exhibition: Three Artists: Zac Weinberg, Joanna Manousis, and Anthony Amoako-Attah, National Glass Centre, Sunderland, until Jan 10, 2026
Screen: I Fought The Law, on ITVX, available to stream now. Read our report from the screening at the Gala Theatre with Sheridan Smith and Ann Ming.
Festival: Northern Festival of Illustration 2025, various venues in Hartlepool, until Nov 1
Exhibition: Joséphine: A Woman of Taste and Fashion, Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until March 2026
Music: The Young’uns Big Boro Bash, Middlesbrough Town Hall, Nov 15
Family: Disney on Ice - Find Your Hero, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Nov 19-23
Exhibition: Guiding Entities, MIMA, Middlesbrough, until Nov 23
Exhibition: The Art of Conservation, South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Ocean Road, until Dec 6
Big screen: Expo Sunderland Pavilion, Keel Square, Sunderland, throughout 2025
Exhibition: Three artists, National Glass Centre, Sunderland, until January 10, 2026
Comedy: Cally Beaton - Namaste Mother F*ckers, Northern Stage (Feb 7); Alnwick Playhouse (Feb 17); Queen’s Hall, Hexham (Feb 19)
Exhibition: Works by Nathan Coley, Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until Mar 1, 2026
Exhibition: Pippa Hale: Pet Project, Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until March 1, 2026
NOW BOOKING
Music: Fat Boy Sim - Acid Ballroom, Middlesbrough Town Hall, Nov 21
Music and Comedy: Rob Brydon and His Fabulous Band - A Festive Night of Song and Laughter, Sage One, The Glasshouse, Dec 4
Comedy: Jesterval at Gosforth Civic Theatre, Dec 5
Theatre/Panto: The Wizard of Oz, People’s Theatre, Newcastle, Dec 13-21
Music: Martin Stephenson presents Frank & Jim - North East Legends, Sage Two, The Glasshouse, Dec 14
2026
Theatre: Horrible Histories - The Concert, Darlington Hippodrome, Jan 23-24
Comedy: Al Murray - All You Need is Guv, Stockton Globe (Jan 24); Darlington
Hippodrome (Mar 1); Middlesbrough Town Hall Sunderland Empire, Apr 23; Tyne Theatre and Opera House, Newcastle (Jun 5).
Comedy: Scummy Mummies - Hot Mess, Darlington Hippodrome, Jan 29
Theatre: Fawlty Towers - The Play, Sunderland Empire, Feb 3-7
Theatre: Inspector Morse - House of Ghosts, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Feb 3-7
Comedy: Sara Pascoe - I Am a Strange Gloop, Tyne Theatre and Opera House (Feb 5); Gala Durham (Mar 26)
Theatre: Hamlet (RSC), Newcastle Theatre Royal, Mar 31-Apr 4
Music: Royal Northern Sinfonia plays the Music of Star Wars, Sands Centre Carlisle, May 3
Theatre: Midsummer Murders, Darlington Hippodrome, May 19-23
Music: Otis Gibbs, Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle, May 22
Theatre: The Phantoms (starring Lee Mead), Tyne Theatre and Opera House,
Comedy: John Kearns, Gala Theatre, Oct 22
Sept 17
Note… We’re starting the Christmas shows build up next week!
COMPETITION TIME
Welcome to our latest newsletter prize draw, offering our subscribers an exclusive opportunity to win tickets to see or do something great.
This week, we’ve got FOUR tickets for Skating at Life the Life Science Centre for the seasonal ice rink’s opening weekend (November 8-9).
Back once again to bring festive sparkle - and some excellent opportunities for viral ‘fallover’ videos - to Newcastle’s Times Square, the much-loved open-air rink welcomes skaters of all ages and abilities to glide, twirl (or cautiously shuffle) into the season goodwill. And the occasional triple toe loop.
Made of real ice and set beside the Life Science Centre, the opening of the Christmastime landmark is being celebrated this weekend with a flurry of discounted tickets.
All tickets for November 8 and 9 are £10 - but numbers are limited, so early booking is essential. Click here for more information.
HOW TO ENTER:
To be in with a chance of winning, simply email MePlease@culturednortheast.co.uk using the subject line: Just call us Torvill and Dean by noon, (12pm) on Thursday, November 6, 2025.
The winner, who will be selected at random, will be notified within 48 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.