Adrian Searle encounters Richard Serra's giant steel sculpture Promenade at the Grand Palais in Paris.

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As part of the Observer's celebration of 1968, Tom Wolfe speaks to Tim Adams about his recollections of 1968, from flower power and religious cults, to Norman Mailer and the Hells Angels.

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Film editor Xan Brooks on the no-frills Golden Globes, reduced to a press conference instead of a ceremony because of the Hollywood writers' strike. (4min 6sec)

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Guardian Unlimited's arts editor Andrew Dickson in Liverpool explains why Mark Wallinger was a worthy winner of the 2007 Turner prize. Wallinger won the prize for his recreation of Brian Haw's anti-war protest in Westminster.

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Assistant editor of the Literary Review Philip Womack explains why Norman Mailer 'won' this year's award for bad sex writing. (3min 12sec)

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China's Terracotta Army is currently on display at the British Museum. The series of individually crafted life-size warrior figures buried with China's first emperor over 2000 years ago has been hailed as the exhibition of the year.

In association with the Guardian, the museum hosted a discussion about the legacy of China's first emperor in today's globalised world. On the panel: Jonathan Fenby, Sun Shuyun, Steve Tsang and Isaac Mao. In the chair: Jon Snow.

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Xan Brooks found Doris Lessing on great form when he interviewed her this summer at the Hay Literary festival.
She spoke about her work, including the Cleft her latest and the Golden Notebook, and explained why she can't stop writing.

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Susanna Clarke speaks about her new book, The Ladies of Grace Adieu, during an Observer Blackwells talk at the Bloomsbury theatre. (51min 9s)

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'He wanted nothing less than to rule the entire universe into eternity'

The First Emperor, the British Museum's biggest exhibition since Tutankhamen in the 1970s, opens tomorrow. Meet China's terracotta army with curator Jane Portal. (5min 03s)

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Ian Rankin tells the Edinburgh Book Festival on why his new Rebus book "feels like" the last one and why he decided on the title Exit Music.

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'McEwan's the only big name'

Michelle Pauli says why the Booker long list has created surprise and excitement in the literary world. (3min 07s)

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'It's a very restrained show ... at first glance'

Charlotte Higgins reports from the world's greatest arts festival, the Venice Biennale, where new work by Tracey Emin is being exhibited at the British pavilion. (3min 39s)

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'No one knows a damn thing'

Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly could scoop the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, ventures Xan Brooks - just don't quote him on it. Meanwhile, there's a 'star fandango' for the premiere of Ocean's 13. (2min 43s)

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Sarfraz Manzoor previews the Hay Festival with Claire Armitstead the Guardian's literary editor, Sarah Crown Guardian Unlimited's books editor and Clare Purcell from the Hay Festival office.

~ Hay Festival website
~ Hay Festival on Guardian Unlimited
~ Hay Festival highlights

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One of this autumn's most anticipated art exhibitions, a major retrospective of one of the world's greatest artists, Spanish 17th-century painter Diego Velázquez, is about to open at the National Gallery in London.

To mark the occasion, we sent Guardian art critic Jonathan Jones down to sneak a rare peek behind the scenes, in the company of chief curator Dawson Carr. Together they uncover the show's highlights, from the artist's first years in Seville to his major portraits as court artist to Philip IV.

Along the way they discuss Velázquez's breathtaking command of paint and trace how his style would influence artists for centuries to come. Despite the mad rush for tickets, Jonathan says, if you make just one art exhibition this autumn, make it this one.

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Ever wondered exactly what it is that a director does? Or just how an actor goes about the mysterious business of getting into character? This weekend, there's a chance to find out as the Open Rehearsal weekend sees arts organisations across London let the public into the usually private business of knocking their shows together.

Lindesay Irvine gained a sneak preview of the weekend by visiting Tara Arts theatre company at their south London headquarters, where they are busy refining their Anglo-Indian reading of Beamarchais' 18th century classic The Marriage of Figaro.

Listen to and download our unique guide to Leonardo da Vinci: Experience, Experiment, Design at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Follow Jonathan Jones, and leading Da Vinci expert and curator of the exhibition, Martin Kemp, as they discuss Da Vinci's notebooks, drawings, and design theories.

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Enough of all these performers and their egos. What about the audience, you people out there who make it all possible? For this week's Arts and Entertainment podcast we spoke to performers Lee Simpson, Lucy Porter and Stephen Grant about the people they face out there on the festival battlefield.

What can you tell about a room full of people when you walk out on stage? Hear the comics in action, and find out about lady hecklers, being upstaged by a false eye, and how it's always the quiet ones you've got to watch out for - not the guy in the clown outfit mixing his drinks.

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This week's arts & entertainment podcast is an Edinburgh special where we find out just what goes into taking a show to the Fringe. Pascal Wyse follows Perrier award-winner Will Adamsdale and Chris Branch as they prepare their show The Receipt for its debut at the Assembly Rooms. Hear them warm up, perform, soak up the laughs and muse on what it all means afterwards.

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This week film director Jonathan Hardwick, who's just put the finishing touches to the Arctic Monkeys' new promo, and cult musician and animator Akira the Don join us to discuss the future of the pop video. Plus we bring you - and even, I'm afraid, act out for you - the winning entries to our Funny Farm competition. Finally, of course, another chance to win a DVD in our joyous film competition.

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Farewell CJ, Josh, Donna, Mr President. My, will we miss you. This week Jonathan Freedland and Gareth McLean respectfully mourn the passing of the West Wing, whose final episode goes out on Friday. Alexis Petridis and Chris Salmon discuss how the Mercury music prize could ever be made more exciting; Gavin Pretor-Pinney hosts his annual meeting of the Cloud Appreciation Society at Port Eliot's Lit Fest; and Martin Kettle recalls hearing Beethoven's Eroica symphony for the first time. Plus our latest film competition

Comeback kid ... Sean Hughes (right) talking to Pascal Wyse. Photograph: Nathalie McDermott

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This week, Pascal Wyse talks to Sean Hughes about his return to stand-up comedy, how it feels to reach 40 when you're 11 in your head, and what really happened on Never Mind the Buzzcocks. Hear him try out some of his new material on Pascal and find out how you can enter our brand new comedy competition, the Funny Farm.

• Competition: How to get involved in the Funny Farm.

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What's wrong with being a fat singer? On this week's show arts correspondent Charlotte Higgins and literary editor Claire Armitstead get somewhat heated over whether opera singer Deborah Voigt was right to have her stomach stapled. Frieze publisher Matthew Slotover on whether Guggenheim is becoming the Tesco of the museum world. John Fordham remembers buying his first Miles Davis record. And will the scheme to save small bookshops really work? Plus win a DVD in our film script competition.

Listen to and download our unique guide to the Modigliani show at the Royal Academy, the first major show of his work to be held in Britain for over 40 years. Jonathan Jones tells how Modigliani has influenced the way we see and depict the naked female body in modern culture today, more than any other 20th century artists. Plus he talks to RA exhibitions secretary Norman Rosenthal and the show's curator Simonetta Fraquelli.

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• Watch a slideshow of the exhibition's highlights as you listen

© Extracts of Stravinsky's Symphonies of Wind Instruments from the Royal Academy of Music's Et Exspecto, conducted by Keith Bragg (ram.ac.uk/discs/). Extracts of Gymnopédie No 2 by Eric Satie, from The Best of Satie (Naxos), played by Klara Kormendi.

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On this week's show, as the winner of TV's The Play's the Thing steps onto the boards, we ask should reality TV and playwrighting ever mix? Director Tom Morris, literary editor Claire Armitstead and TV writer Gareth McLean join the debate.

Plus: how American art-rock group Eels, fresh from their appearance at the Wireless Festival, cope with being cheerful; is it wrong to rewrite Enid Blyton; and why film critic Peter Bradshaw was knocked out by Scorsese's Raging Bull. Plus the week's hot cultural tickets, from Nottingham to the National.

And make sure you catch the next instalment of our film competition, Guess the Script - identify the movie (it's utterly easy-peasy this week) and you could win a DVD ...

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This week Samuel Johnson prize-winning author James Shapiro talks to literary editor Claire Armitstead and online arts editor Andrew Dickson about Shakespeare and the future of biography, Michael Hann gets cosy with indie band the Essex Green, who perform for us live in the pod, and art critic Adrian Searle reveals the artist who changed his life.

And check out our film competition - guess the script and win a top DVD.

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On this week's show Brazilian bossa nova superstar Sergio Mendes comes over all hip-hop. Listen to his collaborations with Stevie Wonder and Justin Timberlake. Canongate's Jamie Byng and Guardian literary editor Claire Armitstead debate whether online novels are the future of publishing. Tom Service reveals the Mozart symphony that changed his life. And if you think you know your films, try our ever so artfully disguised script competition to win a DVD. Plus our guide to the best shows of the week

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In this week's edition of Arts & Entertainment, we're getting festival fever with Guardian rock critic Alexis Petridis and Orson's George Astasio - time to strap on your wellies and get set for summer. Presenter Pascal Wyse celebrates the art of the classic musical with Emma Brockes, and National Theatre director Nicholas Hytner debates with critic Michael Billington whether the West End should open for business on Sundays. And we round up the week's hottest tickets, from the 59th Aldeburgh Festival to a remake of horror classic The Omen, out - note the date - today.

Plus make sure you catch our new film competition, imaginatively entitled Guess the Script. Identify a few snippets of dialogue, email the answer to culture@guardian.co.uk, and you could walk away with a Walk the Line DVD.

And do tell us what you think of the show by leaving a comment below or emailing podcasts@guardian.co.uk.

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In this week's edition of Arts & Entertainment, we have exclusive highlights from PJ Harvey's fantastic gig at Hay last weekend, her only UK festival appearance. The Guardian's literary editor Claire Armitstead talks to us about what's provided the biggest buzz so far elsewhere at the festival, and Andrew Dickson catches a quick word with the painter Howard Hodgkin before getting the audience's take on his talk with Simon Schama.

Judith Mackrell reveals how her whole relationship with ballet changed after seeing her first Merce Cunningham performance in the 70s and Laura Barton is in the studio to report back on her efforts to learn the bass at Ladies' Rock Camp, the hot new summer activity in the US. Plus we've got arts editor Melisssa Denes picking out the best of what's going on in the arts world - from the reopening of the Roundhouse in London to the release of Paul Greengrass's new film about 9/11, United 93.

Tell us what you think of the show by leaving a comment below or emailing podcasts@guardian.co.uk.

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In this week's edition of Arts & Entertainment, Xan Brooks, our man in Cannes, brings us the latest news from the festival, Tom Morton reviews this year's Turner prize shortlist and architecture critic Jonathan Glancey reveals how Norman Foster first got him excited about buildings.

Sarah Crown and John Mullan are also in the pod, discussing what's coming up at the Hay festival, which opens this Friday, and Clare Margetson picks out this week's hot cultural happenings - from Willard White at the Royal Opera House to PJ Harvey in Hay. Plus we've got live music from American singer-songwriter Josh Ritter, who performs a track from his new album, The Animal Years.

Tell us what you think of the show by leaving a comment below or emailing podcasts@guardian.co.uk.

Welcome to our first weekly Arts & Entertainment podcast. Each week Pascal Wyse and the Guardian arts team will bring you the latest on arts, entertainment and culture, from top new bands and film previews to the latest gallery openings and books events - plus our regular critical round-up of what you should see and do each week.

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This week, Xan Brooks and Claire Armitstead offer a sneak preview of this week's Cannes film festival and discuss the movies making a splash, including The Da Vinci Code and Ken Loach's The Wind that Shakes the Barley. Theatre critic Michael Billington reveals why Look Back in Anger changed his life, and, as Hard-Fi play to a sold-out Brixton Academy, Michael Hann chats to drummer Steve Kemp about the gigs he loved when he was a teenager.

We also catch up with Billy Elliot stars Liam Mower, James Lomas and George McGuire as the West End musical toasts a gong-filled first year, and arts editor Melissa Denes picks the best of the week's cultural happenings, from Sam Taylor-Wood at Gateshead's Baltic and the RSC's Complete Shakespeare to Radiohead's ongoing UK tour.

Tell us what you think of the new show by leaving a comment below or emailing podcasts@guardian.co.uk.

Part one of our exclusive podcast with Duran Duran's Nick Rhodes and John Taylor went down a storm last week, as the pair discussed their new compilation album, Only after dark, and talked about their earliest influences.

This week Guardian Film and Music editor MIchael Hann quizzes them about becoming a teeny bopper band - and discovers it was "like a five-year long anxiety attack". Plus: music from Brian Eno, Roxy Music and Wire.

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Michael Hann, editor of the Guardian's Film and Music section, interviewed Duran Duran's Nick Rhodes and John Taylor for an exclusive two-part podcast. Here, he introduces the first episode.

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To be honest, I used to hate them, first time round. I was a pre-pubescent metaller and Nick Rhodes, Simon LeBon and the various Taylors - fancy hairstyles, eyeliner, shiny suits with sleeves pushed up - were the enemy. Unlike the voice of suburban authenticity who spoke to me, Duran Duran were clearly not a "serious" band. Like Iron Maiden and Marillion were serious.

I mellowed, naturally. Course I did. How can you not revel in the preposterous joy of Hungry Like The Wolf? You'd really have to have no joy in your soul to dislike those early 80s hits. And I took my wife to see them at Wembley a couple of years back, where they were miles better than some of the other reformed legends I've seen (I'm talking to you, Velvet Underground).

But, still, meeting Nick Rhodes and John Taylor? Chatting about an album of glam and postpunk they had compiled? Could this possibly be fun? Wouldn't they just be arrogant, addled rock stars?

No, actually. When they came in to the Guardian's Bekonscot-scaled studio to talk about the music on Nick Rhodes and John Taylor: Only After Dark, they proved to be charming, witty, self-deprecating and staggeringly knowledgeable about really quite esoteric music (Rhodes was clearly distraught he'd named Wire's I Am The Fly as coming from the 1977 album Pink Flag, rather than 1978's Chairs Missing). And the songs they played were, without exception, brilliant.

I'm one of those sad spods who enjoys nothing more than hours of trainspotterish conversation about obscure album tracks. So, it seems, are they. Though, I'd be the first to admit, their memories of becoming the biggest band in the world on the back of listening to all that great music are a whole lot more interesting than mine of trying to convince Julia Nazarkewych, at the end of double French, that she ought to cast aside her copy of Rio and have a listen to Judas Priest's Screaming for Vengeance instead.

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