Life and Art from FT Weekend

We're back! First up: we talk to Lucian Msamati, star of the National Theatre's Amadeus, and journalist Peter Aspden about the nature of genius. Is Kanye West today's Mozart? And in an age obsessed with self-improvement, is mediocrity underrated? Later, we catch up with actor Clarke Peters about life after The Wire — and his new movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everything Else is back on February 10! First up, we debate the nature of genius from Mozart to Kanye West — and we meet Clarke Peters, star of The Wire and the Oscar-tipped film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. In the coming weeks, we've got interviews with Peter Carey, Yaa Gyasi, Simon McBurney, Leila Slimani and many more. Don't miss out — subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Acast, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a festive special episode, the actor Olivia Williams reads 'I Heard it on Classic FN', a new short story by Ali Smith, author of the novels How To Be Both, Autumn and Winter. The story was commissioned by FT Weekend; you can read it at ft.com/books. Everything Else returns in January."Maybe because they could hear the Beach Boys greatest hits playlist. We were playing it because Bel had insisted. It's not winter. It's summer.  It was winter, obviously. But all through Christmas she'd been playing the new game she'd invented, which she called Classic FN. (The F and the N stood for the words fake and news.) You played this game simply by claiming that something that was true wasn't true. You said the false thing as if it was true, then you added the words I heard it on Classic FN, or just said Classic FN at the end of whatever your statement was, like that fashion that people had of adding the word not after something they'd said. I'm so looking forward to spending all of Christmas with you. Not." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In our season finale we reveal our favourite films of the year, from The Florida Project to Call Me By Your Name. And as Hollywood's sex scandals dominate headlines - can we separate the art from the artist? Later, we catch up with actor Hayley Atwell, star of a new adaptation of Howards End. We'll be back next year. Until then, happy holidays! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chef and TV star Ravinder Bhogal describes how women cook differently to men. We explore London’s Borough Market, asking stallholders what makes Christmas Christmas for them. And is tipping on the way out? A quarrel about the bill with food writer and restaurateur Tim Hayward. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Comrades! 100 years since the October Revolution we examine the Russian soul and speak to Pussy Riot's Masha Alyokhina. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the genre as compelling as ever? Or is it biting the dust? We discuss hit podcast Dirty John and Netflix spoof American Vandal. Later, Al talks to comedian Roisin Conaty about the deathtrap of the perfect heckle. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special episode, Lionel Shriver, the American writer best known for her novel We Need to Talk About Kevin, reads a new short story inspired by the news of 2017. She wrote it for the Word Factory and New Writing North for 'Citizen: The New Story, London's first festival exploring Citizenship', which takes place on November 10-12. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is sleep the answer to health and happiness? Or is the future sleepless? We talk to neuroscientist Matthew Walker about his new book Why We Sleep. Gris is quizzed on famous sleepers. And later, she meets Chris Kraus author of cult feminist novel I Love Dick. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we compare a London comedy (Sally Potter's The Party) with a New York one (Noah Baumbach's The Meyerowitz Stories). Gris is conflicted about #MeTo, the social media campaign highlighting the prevalence of sexual harassment. And Al speaks to the poet and playwright Inua Ellams. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.