Sort of Nothing Like A Book Club: Issue 22

This weeks' editor:
Kate

Hello,

Welcome to Sort of Nothing Like A Book Club, the newsletter from Creative CoLab (formerly CAGED Arts).

This week it is UK Parliament Week. This annual event engages people across the UK with the UK Parliament, and encourages them to get involved.

Politics has dominated the news recently. Whether it is about the pandemic, Brexit or the NHS there is a constant stream of news and information coming from the Houses of Parliament. And lets not forget the important US election that is happening today.

It's so important that our voices are heard, so we've put together some resources and information that I hope will allow you to feel more engaged and involved in politics.

Read on to find out what we have discovered.

UK Parliament Week
by Heidi Murphy

Over on the blog Heidi has been looking at our political system and highlights ways that you can get involved and make your voice heard.

Simple Politics (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)
Simple politics work to help you understand UK politics. On their social media they post daily updates on issue debated in parliament, important pandemic updates and explain (without the jargon) what is actually going on.

Theatre: the nation's debating chamber
This piece written in 2015 looks at the close relationship between the House of Commons and theatre. It considers that events in the debating chamber are performances. This allows the artform of theatre to regularly scrutinise the political world. It looks at the historic relationship between theatre and politics and also highlights recent UK plays and productions that focus on politics or make political statements.

Eleven political comedies and dramas you should watch right now
This piece lists TV shows that are centred around politics. Featuring both US and UK based shows, I hope there is something on here that you can enjoy.

Is art for pleasure or politics?
Highlighting key works from history, this article looks at the connection between visual art and politics. It looks at how art is not made in a vacuum, artists are always a citizen of somewhere and their political opinions are reflected in their artwork.

Can propaganda be great art?
This piece considers that there is a great misconception that art with a political agenda is inferior. Much of the ancient art that we value today is a form of propaganda, from Ancient Greek statues to the mask of Tutankhamun. Examining both ancient and 20th century examples this piece questions the reputation of propaganda.

50 years since the end of theatre censorship: how the lord Chamberlain was given the boot
This article looks at the government sanctioned theatre censorship that had been in place for 230 years. Abolished in 1968, the censorship controlled the content of performances including expletives, sexual references, references to God, or anything that might threaten the status quo.

And Lastly...

It can be easy when looking at political events in the UK and around the world to feel overwhelmed. It's so important to look after your mental health during this turbulent time and remember to practice self care.

All this week on our social media channels we will be answering some common questions about our political system and sharing more resources and we'd love to hear your thoughts!

If you have any thoughts you'd like to share about anything we've touched upon in this issue we'd love for you to get in touch.

Bye!