I have taught English and Film for years, writing in my own time. Not only do I write for In Common, where I mainly discuss anything bookish and personal experiences, but I also write fiction. I have diverse reading tastes, willing to give everything a chance. Some of my...
The Stranglers announced as latest Summer Sessions headliners in Southampton
Today, Live Nation leading live music and event promoter Cuffe & Taylor have announced legendary British band The Stranglers as a headliner for TK Maxx Presents Southampton Summer Sessions, taking over Guildhall Square on Saturday, 14 June. Joining them as main support will be the seminal punk rock band...
The Darkness come to Portsmouth next spring
Legends of rock, The Darkness, have returned to bedazzle and amaze once more as they serve up their eighth studio album Dreams On Toast via Cooking Vinyl in March 2025. Not only will Dreams On Toast feature arguably their best collection of songs yet, but The Darkness will also be hitting the road...
Mabel Wellman – writer
I am a call centre agent who lives in Aldermoor. I have lived in Southampton my whole life, first in Northam Estate and spent most of my childhood and teen years in Bitterne. I am an avid fan of the outdoors and love walking around Southampton and Hampshire. My...
Charity’s service users help with medical research feedback
A Southampton charity working with the elderly and vulnerable is helping the University of Southampton with a community engagement project about the findings it has made in medical research. Communicare is collaborating with the University and Southampton Voluntary Services so service users and volunteers can participate in a series of community research sessions...
Review – Wunderhorse, The 1865, Southampton
By Vicky Greer. Wunderhorse are a force to be reckoned with. Rising through the ranks with their debut album Cub back in 2022, they’ve swiftly become one of the most celebrated, thrilling voices in alternative music. On Monday hundreds of fans were crammed into The 1865 to see their...
Vicky Greer – music writer
I’m a music journalist originally from Northern Ireland. I moved to Southampton for university in 2018 and decided to stick around for the music scene here. I have a degree in French and Spanish and spent a year living in Toulouse where I studied multilingualism in the local alternative...
Review – The Mountaintop, MAST Mayflower Studios, Southampton
By Graham Hiley. The Mountaintop scaled new heights at MAST Mayflower Studios. Katori Hall’s re-imagining of Dr Martin Luther King’s final night on earth is utterly captivating and deeply thought-provoking – and superbly performed by two actors at the peak of their powers. Ray Strasser-King is completely convincing as...
Review – The Pirates of Penzance, Theatre Royal Winchester
By Charlotte Ndupuechi Sasha Regan’s all-male cast of The Pirates of Penzance returned to Theatre Royal Winchester, with a modern and playful twist on Gilbert and Sullivan’s timeless operetta (8/10/2024). The Pirates of Penzance is about a young man Frederic (Cameron McAllister) who is mistakenly apprenticed to a band of...
Review – War Horse, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
By Graham Hiley. I had always resisted every entreaty to go and see War Horse. I didn’t think it was my sort of thing. After being persuaded to see it at Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre, I can honestly say it is everybody’s sort of thing – or at least it...