Front Row: Archive 2012 - Madonna's W.E. reviewed; Ian Rankin's unpublished novel

Madonna's W.E. reviewed; Ian Rankin's unpublished novel

Download Madonna's W.E. reviewed; Ian Rankin's unpublished novel

With Mark Lawson.

Madonna makes her feature film debut as director and co-screenwriter of W.E. The film intercuts the love story of Wallis Simpson and King Edward VIII with a modern-day tale of a woman obsessed by Wallis. A N Wilson reviews.

Chad Harbach discusses his debut novel The Art of Fielding, which took him 10 years to write and has been garlanded with praise by some of America's best-known writers.

It has been reported that some cinema goers have asked for refunds on finding that the award-winning film The Artist is silent. Lawyer Duncan Lamont discusses the rights of a dissatisfied arts consumer in this and other cases.

Crime writer Ian Rankin will give a reading from his first unpublished novel this weekend at the First Fictions festival, organised by Sussex University. He and crime writer Frances Fyfield, who also wrote an unpublished first book, look back on their early efforts, and how their styles have changed.

Producer Claire Bartleet.


Published on Wednesday, 18th January 2012.

Available Podcasts from Front Row: Archive 2012

Subscribe to Front Row: Archive 2012

We are not the BBC, we only list available podcasts. To find out more about the programme including episodes available on BBC iPlayer, go to the Front Row: Archive 2012 webpage.