Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens ★★★★ National Portrait Gallery | Jun 20 - Sep 8, 2024


Who really were these famous women and what do we actually know about them? This exhibition starts with the perceptions and iconography that have grown up around the consorts of one of England's most notorious kings, and then looks back at the six individuals who became the stuff of myth. The exhibition opens with an imposing picture of Henry VIII, and then works backwards, first considering the afterlife of the six women whom he married. Our initial encounter with them is the sumptuous black and white images created by Hiroshi Sugimoto from the wax work depictions made for Madame Tussaud's. Their afterlife is then presented as they have been shown in operas, plays, books and even knick-knacks. We then delve into the influences moulding both the king's and his wives' self-perceptions. The final six galleries reveal how these women sought to present themselves and how they were seen by others. The focus is now on the individual queens and significant artifacts associated with them. They are presented in the chronological order of their reigns: dutiful and determined Katherine of Aragon, coy and cultivated Anne Boleyn, sweet and submissive Jane Seymour, plain and pragmatic Anne of Cleves, effervescent and almost erased Katherine Howard and resourceful and resilient Katherine Parr. The religious and political characters that surround the queens also come to the fore and the women's own behaviours in both fields is considered. This is a show that is being complemented with a series of lectures, tours and workshops, and in July, there will be a very special late event when the cast of the hit musical Six perform as part of a Tudor extravaganza. Whether you're a history buff, or simply remember the old mnemonic "divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived" you won't want to miss this exhibition that brilliantly deconstructs the narratives of these fascinating women.

Rated: ★★★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Image: Anne of Cleves (1539) by Hans Holbein the Younger © Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

When, Where, Getting there:
Map & Location: St. Martin's Pl, London WC2H 0HE, UK

Most Popular

Orphans ★★★★ Jermyn Street Theatre | January 5 - 24, 2026

Image
Phillip is an emotionally immature, developmentally challenged recluse, protected and controlled by his impulsive and potentially violent older brother Treat who supports them both by stealing. Together they inhabit a sealed world of rituals, games, and shared fantasy. However, when Treat kidnaps Harold, an apparently wealthy criminal on the run, this act proves far from the solution he expects. Instead, the power dynamic shifts as Harold, himself an orphan, assumes an almost parental role, exposing the brothers to an alternative way of living beyond their self-made confinement. In just two weeks, he becomes a conduit to the outside world and offers the boys a new vision of themselves. Harold’s repeated rendition of “The Prisoner’s Song” underscores the play’s central metaphor of entrapment. Phillip is paralysed by his fear of leaving the apartment, Treat by his reliance on violence and control, and Harold by his desperate attempt to outrun the past. While Lyle Kessler’s dark vision e...
Full Details »

St. Martin in-the-fields: Lunchtime Concerts ★★★★ FREE

Image
Maybe the best musical value in London. The lunchtime concerts at St. Martin's are always a wonderful way to escape the hustle and bustle that is London and the sensory overload that is Trafalgar Square. This is a beautiful setting with great acoustics, and a church pew hard enough to make sure you don't nod off. Reviewed by J.C.  Our score:    ☆☆☆☆  WHEN, WHERE, GETTING THERE: Mon & Fri: 1 pm - 1:45 pm ( occasionally Tues & Thurs)  St. Martin in-the-fields, Trafalgar Square Nearest tube: Charing Cross https://www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org/whats-on
Full Details »

Hawaiʻi: a kingdom crossing oceans ★★★★ The British Museum | Jan 15 - May 25, 2026

Image
This small yet thoughtful exhibition explores the long-standing connections between two island nations. The relationship between Britain and Hawaiʻi dates back to Captain James Cook’s third voyage in 1778. He became the first European to document contact with the Pacific archipelago and that connection still resonates today, most visibly in the Hawaiian state flag (Ka Hae Hawaiʻi), which continues to display the Union Jack in its top-left corner. This display at the British Museum draws primarily on the museum’s own extensive collections, complemented by judicious loans from other institutions, including the Bishop Museum in Hawaiʻi. It is organised into three main sections: Laying a foundation, Allying kingdoms , and Reshaping relationships . The first section introduces visitors to Hawaiʻi's distinctive art, history, and cultural traditions. The second focuses on the 1824 visit of King Kamehameha II (also known as Liholiho) and Queen Kamāmalu to London, and on their tragic deaths...
Full Details »

Paranormal Activity ★★★ Ambassadors Theatre | Until April 25, 2026

Image
The Paranormal franchise has a proven following, and horror fans are likely to enjoy this new stage incarnation. When James and Lou relocate from Chicago to London in search of a fresh start, it soon becomes clear that leaving their problems behind will not be so easy. He has a new job and she can work remotely, yet, as the programme hints, hauntings are not always tied to places. Sometimes they attach themselves to people. James must contend with his prying, Bible-quoting mother via a laptop screen, while Lou quickly realises that her grandchild- obsessed mother-in-law is the least of her concerns. Darkness, sudden loud noises and the occasional effective illusion are used to draw the audience into their increasingly unstable world. While this production recalls the successful 2:22 A Ghost Story and the long running The Woman in Black, it lacks the technical ingenuity of a show like Stranger Things: The First Shadow . Fly Davis’s set is a meticulously detailed two storey house, but ...
Full Details »

High Noon ★★★ Harold Pinter Theatre | Until March 6, 2026

Image
When it was first written, the 1952 film High Noon drew much of its force from the then political context and from Gary Cooper’s Oscar-winning performance. Created during the era of McCarthyism by Carl Foreman while he was under scrutiny from the House Un-American Activities Committee, the film’s moral urgency, combined with Cooper’s quiet integrity, helped secure its status as a classic. The tale of a small-town marshal who confronts an anarchic threat to the rule of law struck a deep chord with audiences. In this allegory, Will Kane stands isolated as he faces an approaching tyranny that leaves his fellow citizens paralysed by fear. Set against their timidity and willingness to submit to intimidation or to flee, his resolve appears all the more heroic. Kane’s ordeal is further complicated by the two opposing forces that inform his personal life and underscore his symbolic role as the law. His Quaker wife embodies noble but impractical ideals, grounded in a faith that rejects violenc...
Full Details »

ABBA Voyage ★★★★★ ABBA Arena, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park | Extended Run

Image
When great music from the past meets mind boggling technology from the future, the result is ABBA Voyage . This is a concert like no other. In a purpose built arena designed specifically for the show, massive high resolution LED screens, advanced lighting, and surround sound are used to create a fully immersive ABBA concert experience. Although the group’s last appearance in London was at Wembley Arena in 1979, they return technologically in this extraordinary production. These are not holograms or AI generated performances. This is a meticulously animated concert based on real performances by the band themselves. To achieve this effect, the group came together and re-performed their music using motion capture technology. They partnered with top visual effects experts to digitally recreate their younger selves. While the show includes a live band and backup singers, the Agnetha, Björn, Benny, and Anni-Frid seen on stage appear every bit as real as their original counterparts. One quick...
Full Details »

The Rivals ★★★ Orange Tree Theatre | Until January 24, 2026

Image
This latest version of The Rivals is one part Richard Brinsley Sheridan and his eighteenth-century social satire, one part P. G. Wodehouse and the Roaring Twenties, plus a dash of topical humour such as references to the television series Survivor . It is not a mocktail that will be to everyone's taste, but it is clearly a labour of love for director Tom Littler. This attempt to reimagine Sheridan’s comedy of manners and modernise its references frequently succeeds, yet it also produces some awkward moments. Elements such as the anachronism of a duel set in the 1920s or the unnecessary aside about nudity in a bathroom scene are jarring and forced. Indeed, too often, the drive to provoke laughter at any cost appears to dominate the production, resulting in moments that feel strained and tonally uneven. This approach undermines the original and intelligent concept of relocating Sheridan’s play to a period whose literature was often similarly dismissed as superficial but which was al...
Full Details »

Gerry & Sewell ★★ Aldwych Theatre | January 13 - 24, 2026

Image
Gerry & Sewell presents itself as a theatrical pot o’ scouse. The traditional Tyneside dish, made from whatever meat, bones, or leftovers can be found in the cupboards, is a hearty working-class meal that reflects both Geordie ingenuity and endurance. The play clearly intends to offer a similar tribute to its roots. However, in the production, the disparate elements fail to cohere. The main storyline of the two eponymous protagonists and their shared dream of securing season tickets to their beloved football club is obscured rather than enriched by histories of Gerry’s two sisters, his abusive father, and his suicidal mother. While this material provides background about inheritance, damage, and class survival, it feels simultaneously excessive and underdeveloped. Tonally, the show is also jarring. It shifts rapidly between social realism and broad comedy, with these alternations feeling less like deliberate contrasts and more like unresolved collisions. Dance routines, rapping, a...
Full Details »

Woman in Mind ★★★★★ Duke of York's Theatre | Until February 28, 2026

Image
Alan Ayckbourn’s 1985 dark comedy Woman in Mind dissects the illusions we cling to in order to make life bearable. Trapped in a sexless, emotionally barren marriage, Susan retreats into fantasy, inventing an ideal family in which she is cherished and admired. Around her, others nurse their own comforting fictions: her husband, a vicar, takes refuge in Christian certainty; her sister-in-law embraces spiritualism; her son disappears into a cult; and her doctor cultivates a wilful obtuseness that allows him to ignore his wife’s blatant affair. Each illusion functions as a psychological prop, easing acceptance of relationships and realities that fall short of fulfilment. Ayckbourn’s question is a chilling one: what happens when illusion hardens into delusion, and fantasy supplants the ability to live in the real world? The play lays bare the cost of surrendering to make-believe when escape becomes entrapment. Michael Longhurst’s revival captures the bleak humour of Ayckbourn’s vision with...
Full Details »

A Ghost In Your Ear ★★★★ Hampstead Theatre | Dec 6, 2025 - Feb 14, 2026

Image
Who doesn’t love a good ghost story? In this case, out-of-work voiceover actor George is hired to narrate a chilling tale, only to gradually realise that he may also be living one. Soon, the audience understands that they too are being drawn into the haunting. Jamie Armitage’s clever new work is a smart addition to one of theatre’s oldest genres, and it works quite brilliantly. As George is pulled from the comfort of central London into the desolate sound studio, the audience wearing binaural headphones is similarly drawn into his growing unease. The supernatural story being narrated and the one unfolding around him gradually merge, becoming our own lived experience. It is a neat trick, expertly handled by writer and director Armitage. George’s fear is contagious, and his trauma becomes collective. George Blagden, playing his tormented namesake, holds the audience in thrall with remarkable control. Using only his voice, he conjures both the character’s emotional unravelling and the eer...
Full Details »

The City Life Magazine | Reviews & Ratings