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Simon Russell Beale; Costa Book Awards shortlists; Guy Garvey

Simon Russell Beale on playing Scrooge twice; Costa Book Awards shortlists announced and assessed; Guy Garvey on the impact upon artists of music streaming.

We exclusively reveal and analyse the 2020 Costa Book Prize shortlists. Critics Alex Clark and Jade Cuttle discuss the books chosen in the five categories: Novel, First Novel, Poetry, Biography and Children's fiction. Category winners will appear on the programme in January and Front Row will announce the overall prize-winner on 26 January 2021.

Guy Garvey from Elbow reports on what he said to MPs earlier today during the DCMS inquiry into the rise of music streaming services and the effect on musicians themselves. Are artists being fairly re-numerated or does the business model of streaming need an urgent overhaul?

Simon Russell Beale, always a busy actor, gives his voice to Scrooge in a new dance-film version of A Christmas Carol directed by Jacqui and David Morris and will be giving his voice, and the rest of him, playing the epitome of meanness in Nicholas Hytner’s new production – with just three actors – at the Bridge Theatre. He talks to Irenosen about performing the role in the film and in the theatre, navigating the arc from misanthropy to philanthropy – and how to say ‘Bah, humbug’ as if no one has ever said that before.

Presenter: Irenosen Okojie
Producer: Jerome Weatherald

Available now

28 minutes

Simon Russell Beale

Simon Russell Beale stars in A Christmas Carol at the from 11 - 29 Dec

Main image: Simon Russell Beale

Costa Book Awards shortlists

Novels:
Piranesi
 by Susanna Clarke
Peace Talks by Tim Finch
The Less Dead by Denise Mina
The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey

First Novel:
Big Girl, Small Town by Michelle Gallan
The Family Tree by Sairish Hussain
Love After Love by Ingrid Persaud
All the Water in the World by Karen Raney

Biography:
The Man in the Red Coat by Julian Barnes
Dear Life by Rachel Clarke
The Louder I Will Sing by Lee Lawrence
Ghost Town by Jeff Young

Poetry:
The Air Year by Caroline Bird
The Historians by Eavan Boland
My Darling from the Lions by Rachel Long
Citadel by Martha Sprackland

Children's:
The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates by Jenny Pearson
Voyage of the Sparrow Hawk by Natasha Farrant
Wranglestone by Darren Charlton
The Great Godden by Meg Rosoff

Broadcast

  • Tue 24 Nov 2020 19:15

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