Movie
The extremely entertaining New York fashionista romcom The Satan Wears Prada was one thing about which I used to be regrettably snooty when it first appeared. How improper I used to be. It’s a gem, with nice performances from Meryl Streep because the terrifying journal editor; Stanley Tucci as her long-suffering artwork director; Emily Blunt because the icy couture fanatic; and Anne Hathaway as Andy, the guileless PA. However greater than this, it’s a nice film for singledom, maybe the film for singledom. As a result of the purpose is, regardless of dalliances with super-hot guys, Hathaway’s character winds up single and completely completely satisfied. Her relationship is along with her profession as a journalist, which might be the place the romantic power has been all alongside. She has outgrown her boyfriend, the poisonous schemer Nate, and she or he is pleased with herself. That is singledom nirvana. Peter Bradshaw
Music
“You’re pretty / Nevertheless it’s not for certain / That I gained’t ever change … ” One of many quirkier hits of the 00s, Nelly Furtado’s breakout single I’m Like a Hen has aged spectacularly properly within the recent millennial context of prioritising oneself. Much less outright ghosting, extra well mannered “no, thanks”, Furtado’s hen by no means bumbles, floating throughout lush meadows in her refusal to be tied right down to a relationship that doesn’t totally swimsuit. A sceptic may diagnose her with a foul case of grass-is-greener syndrome, however regardless of Furtado’s well mannered remorse, there’s something inspiring about her want to attempt for one thing extra, embracing independence with open wings. Jenessa Williams
Artwork
Lisa Brice seemed to Caribbean tradition to create After Ophelia, a badass redux of Millais’ portray of the drowned Ophelia as a supine martyr to a damaged coronary heart – the one which the mannequin Lizzie Siddal posed for, notoriously practically freezing to dying in a shower. As a substitute of a watery grave, Brice’s girl emerges from an affordable plastic ribbon curtain. No unhappy wilted bouquet for this girl: she has a joint in a single hand and, within the different, a Stag beer, a so-called “man’s drink” in Trinidad. Her pores and skin is the blue of carnival devils and the cat is extra witch’s acquainted than pet. Just like the decidedly undomestic-looking feline, you are feeling this single girl is a predator not a sufferer. Skye Sherwin
E book
It’s greater than 100 years since Hermann Hesse wrote Siddartha, and 72 since Hilda Rosner’s English translation, which caught the eye of the hippies who turned it right into a countercultural traditional. Hesse’s idealised tackle Indian spiritualism can now really feel clumsy, however it’s arduous to think about a newer novel that has sung so eloquently of the thrill of being alone. That’s partly as a result of it’s arduous to search out books in regards to the attraction of the only life. Nevertheless it’s additionally as a result of this story nonetheless has its personal poetry and energy. There’s one thing beguiling about the best way the titular hero finds enlightenment in riverside solitude. Spending time with it would provide help to perceive why it impressed so many boomers to concentrate on themselves. Sam Jordison
Tv
The display screen adaptation of Dolly Alderton’s bestselling memoir Every little thing I Know About Love is an exploration of the tensions that new romantic alternatives could cause in lifelong friendships. The breakdown of Maggie and Birdy’s relationship, as Birdy devotes extra time to her boyfriend, makes for devastatingly resonant viewing in regards to the pains of shedding your finest good friend to their lover. It tackles the query of how we prioritise our totally different social relationships as we get older, and home and romantic ambitions supplant the need for nights out with mates. Anybody who has ever endured the indignity of being the final single good friend, with the anxious sense of social abandonment it will possibly trigger, will see themselves in Maggie – whether or not they’re eager on that reflection or not. Jason Okundaye
