Front Row

Annette Bening discusses her role as Oscar-winning actress Gloria Grahame in Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool, the story of the real-life romance between Grahame and a struggling young actor from Liverpool. As the Music Managers Forum celebrates 25 years with its annual Artist and Manager Awards tomorrow, John looks at what makes a good music manager and how the role has changed since the '60s - with Ed Sheeran's manager Stuart Camp, Regine Moylett and Niamh Byrne who look after Gorillaz and Blur, and Wham!'s manager Simon Napier-Bell. We also hear from musicians Emeli Sandé and Sir Paul McCartney. Tracks is an award-winning podcast from Radio 4 drama. Pete Naughton reviews the second series of the conspiracy thriller and considers the wider landscape of drama and readings podcasts. Presenter John Wilson Producer Jerome Weatherald.

Sheridan Smith is a comic actor (The Royle Family, Gavin and Stacey), a serious dramatic actor (Flare Path, The Moorside, Dustin Hoffman's film Quartet) and a star of musical theatre, from Bugsy Malone when she was 16 to Funny Girl. Now she has released her first solo album. She talks about the songs she has chosen and her career so far.The acclaimed actor Maxine Peake has written a play for Hull Truck and Hull City of Culture celebrating the life of a woman who dramatically fought for conditions for Hull fishermen to improve as trawler after trawler was lost. The Last Testament Of Lillian Bilocca is an immersive piece of theatre staged in the city's Guildhall with a cast partly drawn from the community. Paul Allen reviews. UNESCO's Creative Cities Network has expanded from 116 cities worldwide to 180, and Bristol has just become the UK's second UNESCO City of Film following Bradford's 2009 designation. David Wilson, Director of Bradford UNESCO City of Film, and Charles Landry, author of The Creative City: A Toolkit for Urban Innovators, discuss the benefits and disadvantages of being part of the network.Fifty years ago Newcastle University bestowed an honorary doctorate on Martin Luther King - the only UK university to honour him. In his acceptance address he called for justice and brotherhood to roll down like a mighty stream. 'The Might Stream' is the title of a new book of poems written in of celebration Martin Luther King by a huge range of writers. Fred D'Aguiar speaks about the inspiration of King to him as a poet.Presenter: Stig Abell Producer: Sarah Johnson.

Hollywood star Christian Slater and director Sam Yates discuss David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross, in which Slater is currently starring.Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is a film based on the true story of William Moulton Marston, his wife and his mistress who created Wonder Woman. It explores the creation of the female super hero as well as their poly-amorous relationship which saw them shunned by society. Film critic Karen Krisanovich reviews.As more allegations are made of sexual assault towards young men, it has been announced that all Kevin Spacey's scenes in new film All the Money in the World are to be reshot with a different actor. We find out from special effects director Jonathan Fawkner how to practically go about reshooting scenes, and ask if this sets a precedent for actors who fall from grace in Hollywood.Ivor Wood was the animator behind much-loved classic children's TV series including The Magic Roundabout, The Herbs, The Wombles and Postman Pat. Ahead of the Manchester Animation Festival, Ivor Wood's widow Josiane and animator Joseph Wallace discuss Ivor Wood's legacy and the stories behind Dougal, Parsley the Lion and Sage the Owl. Presenter: John Wilson Producer: Edwina Pitman.

Hugh Grant, famed for his charming roles, shares insights into playing the quirky villain Phoenix Buchanan in Paddington 2, reflecting on his theatrical roots. Stephen Fry, a celebrated actor and writer, discusses his latest work Mythos, bringing beloved Greek myths to life and highlighting their enduring allure. They dive into Hollywood's casting controversies, particularly how straight actors often play gay roles, and explore the deeper societal implications behind this trend. Their conversation mingles humor with serious themes, making for a riveting dialogue.

Toby Jones, Mackenzie Crook, the Louvre in Abu Dhabi plus film director Yorgos Lanthimos

Kenneth Lonergan, who recently won an Oscar for the screenplay to his film Manchester By the Sea, talks to Kirsty Lang about adapting E.M. Forster's Howards End for television. Hannah McGill discusses the acclaimed film The Florida Project, in which a young mother struggles to provide for her daughter while staying at a motel near Disney World.As two exhibitions curated by artists open in Belfast and York, Front Row brought together Jill Constantine, curator and Head of the Art Council Collection, and artist John Walter to discuss what artists can bring to the curation of a show.Presenter: Kirsty Lang Producer: Timothy Prosser.

Novelists Joanne Harris and Jonathan Coe discuss their latest books which are both fairytales. Coe's The Broken Mirror is a modern fable with a political message while Harris' A Pocketful of Crows is based on traditional folklore. Director Luca Guadagnino talks about his acclaimed film Call Me By Your Name, a gay love story set in the Italian sun in the 1980s, starring Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer.As Catalonia's independence dispute with Spain shows no sign of resolution we look at Catalan art. Academic Maria Delgado and actress Montserrat Roig de Puig discuss the historical role that the arts have played in developing Catalan identity and how the arts can contribute to developing a dialogue about Catalonia's future relationship to Spain. Presenter: Kirsty Lang Producer: Edwina Pitman.

The actor and comedian Josie Lawrence is currently tackling Bertolt Brecht in a production of Mother Courage and her Children at Southwark Playhouse in London. She discusses the morality of Mother Courage with Samira and explains why the part was at the top of her theatrical bucket list.In the wake of Prue Leith revealing the Bake Off winner, TV Times journalist Emma Bullimore looks at the lengths TV programmes go to in order to keep their reveals under wraps.As A Bad Moms Christmas and Daddy's Home 2 hit cinemas, we discuss how parents are portrayed in mainstream comedy films and consider if the old stereotypes are changing.Kenneth Branagh discusses directing Murder on the Orient Express, in which he also plays the Belgian sleuth, Hercule Poirot.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Rebecca Armstrong.

To coincide with the publication of a book which collects all her artwork from the past decade, Tracey Emin comes into the Front Row studio to look back at that prolific period which saw her represent Britain at the Venice Biennial.Twenty-five years after publishing The Ice House, the first of her many highly successful crime novels, Minette Walters discusses her historical fiction debut, The Last Hours, set in a medieval Dorsetshire village during the start of the Black Death. Paul Gauguin's two years in Tahiti saw the French painter create some of his most celebrated artworks. But his time in French Polynesia is also seen as controversial due to alleged relationships with young girls while there. A new French-language biopic starring Vincent Cassel comes out this week about Gauguin's time on Tahiti, art critic Waldemar Januszczak gives his verdict on the film. For National Novel Writing Month we hear from three people hoping to complete a novel this November.

As she makes her debut at the Royal Opera House in Lucia di Lammermoor, Lisette Oropesa talks about combining a career as one of the world's top sopranos with a passion for running marathons.Richard Flanagan won the 2014 Man Booker Prize for The Narrow Road to the Deep North. He talks to Shahidha Bari about his follow-up novel, First Person, based on his own experience of ghost-writing a notorious criminal's memoir when he was a penniless and unknown author.Kate MccGwire makes elaborate sculptures from the feathers of crows and doves to jays and magpies. Shahidha visits the artist in her studio - a Dutch barge - where she creates her works surrounded by Thames wildlife.Presenter Shahidha Bari Producer Jerome Weatherald.