What’s new for January 2021
- 01st Jan 21
Lots of newness to get 2021 off to a good start. From books to films to TV shows, there’s plenty to keep you entertained over the winter months.
TV Shows
The Coronavirus has caused an unexpected hitch in schedule but there are still plenty of new TV shows to enjoy.
Conversations With Friends
So this is a bit of a cheat to start with because there has been no release date yet. However, the hype surrounding this show is huge because it is a book adaptation from Irish author Sally Rooney who was also behind the phenomenal hit Normal People. Conversations With Friends follows two college students, Frances and Bobbi, in Dublin as they forge a strange and unexpected connection with married couple Melissa and Nick. Normal People director Lenny Abrahamson and writer Alice Birch will once again be part of the show’s creative team to guarantee another monster hit.
WandaVision
Marvel and Disney+ have got the perfect remedy for January blues with the Marvel Cinematic Universe spin-off set to hit the streaming platform on January 15. Wanda Maximoff played by Elizabeth Olsen and Vision played by Paul Bettany are two super-powered beings living their ideal suburban lives but begin to suspect that everything is not as it seems.
A Discovery of Witches
This returning supernatural romance starring Matthew Goode and Teresa Palmer was Sky One’s most popular drama of 2018. Based on Deborah Harkness’s All Souls literary trilogy, it is set in a world where witches, vampires and daemons secretly live and work alongside humans. There are different timelines throughout with stories centred on London in the Elizabethan era. The fantasy drama will officially return on Friday 8th January 2021.
Line of Duty
Season 6 filming has wrapped and we even have the first glimpse of a new character. Brilliant writers, an excellent cast and a gripping plot will give us something to look forward to when it hits our screens in March. The next guest series lead is Kelly Macdonald who plays detective chief inspector Joanne Davidson, the senior investigating officer on an unsolved murder case whose unconventional conduct attracts the attention of AC-12.
Films
Although some cinemas have been opened this year, many distributors have delayed releasing new films. On the plus side, 2021 is set to be a year of hit after hit of movies with lots of Oscar-worthy contenders in the mix.
Promising Young Woman
Written by Killing Eve writer Emerald Fennell, produced by Margot Robbie and staring Carey Mulligan, this is a tale of revenge that hits the cinemas on February 12th. Mulligan plays Cassie, a college student who leaves ‘under unusual circumstances’ but when she returns to confront her past and the people in it, she also embarks on a mission of revenge.
The French Dispatch
The Wes Anderson film is set in France and is described as a “love letter to journalists” that revolves around a New Yorker-style periodical. The cast includes an all-star ensemble line up with Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Lyna Khoudri, Jeffrey Wright, Mathieu Amalric, Steve Park, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, and many of the director's other regular favorites. It is due to be released on January 28th.
Everyone’s Talking About Jamie
Inspired by the musical, which was originally inspired by the BBC documentary about a boy who wanted to go to his prom in a dress, this feature film will be out in February. The musical about the teenager from Sheffield who wants to be a drag queen will star Sarah Lancashire, Sharon Horgan, Richard E. Grant and Max Harwood as Jamie.
Festivals
Who knows what summer 2021 is going to look like but festival organisers across the UK are busy preparing for what they hope will be a bumper year.
Camp Bestival
Traditionally a festival that is a firm favourite with families with little kids, this year, they have introduced The Palace: a festival within a festival for teenagers. There will be a whole area dedicated to teenagers with car boot sales, career chats with special guests, tie-dye workshops plus DJ and music lessons. Elsewhere, you can find the very best in street food with Fred Sirieix from Channel 4's First Dates, as the New Foodie Ambassador. There will be a comedy area, new dance tent plus a new eco-friendly camping experience.
Reading and Leeds
Firmly on the British festival-goers map, these dual-running festivals with two main stages will host six headliners from the worlds of rock, rap, pop and beyond. Some of the line-up has already been announced and includes Stormzy, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Disclosure and Liam Gallagher. The festival will take place on August 27 to August 29.
Hampton Court Palace Festival
Set within the beautiful grounds of Hampton Court Palace, you can enjoy some live music from various dates in June. The Richmond-upon-Thames location already has a few big names in the mix including: Tom Jones, Bastille Reorchestrated, Rick Astley, Lionel Richie, George Benson and Björn Again.
Latitude
Set in the idyllic Suffolk countryside, Latitude is more than just a music festival with everything from stand-up to poetry and paddleboarding. Set in Henham Park, this year’s line-up includes Lewis Capaldi, Snow Patrol and Bastille as well as indie folk sisters Johanna and Klara who make up First Aid Kit. From July 22 to July 25.
Books
Many people found that they lost their reading mojo in 2020. To get back on track, there are lots of great books that are set to be released early in the New Year.
Ones’ by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite
When teen activist Kezi Smith is killed after attending a social justice rally, her family is left to wonder what it actually means to be "one of the good ones."
The Push by Ashley Audrain
A psychological drama about motherhood, which takes readers inside the mind of the main character Blythe who questions her relationship with her new born daughter, forcing her to eventually confront some truths about herself.
The Girls I've Been' by Tess Sharpe
The story revolves around Nora, the daughter of a con woman, who is caught in a bank heist and determined to get herself, her girlfriend, and her ex/best friend out safely...nomatter what it takes. There’s a lot of hype already because it is to be turned into a Netflix film starring Millie Bobby Brown.
Podcasts
With travel and filming restrictions firmly in place for much of 2020, the nation’s presenters and entertainers have turned to the podcast format, the one thing that can be easily created from home. 2020 saw a whole host of new podcasts from heavy weights such as Louis Theroux and Claudia Winkleman and 2021 is already shaping up to be pretty exciting in the podcast world.
Batman Unburied
Debuting on the Spotify streaming service, this is an original story about Batman’s alter-ego Bruce Wayne. Warner Bros is bringing the DC Comics superheroes to the world of narrative podcasts and will explore “the darker aspects of Bruce Wayne’s psychology,” according to a statement from Spotify and Warner Bros.
Unsolved Mysteries
The Netflix documentary is getting a podcast spin-off exploring cold cases in the hope that some light can be shed on them. The series first aired in 1987 and was cancelled ten years ago but thanks to Netflix, it is now a hit all over again. The upcoming podcast spin-off will follow a similar format to the main series, featuring the original theme music, a narrator and interviews with the people involved in each case. Some of the cases include the heart-wrenching episode called Stolen Kids, as well as Tsunami Spirits, which focuses on reported ghost sightings in Japan.