Ben Elton, Danny Boyle on regional theatre cuts, computer art

Published: Nov. 15, 2012, 7:55 p.m.

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With John Wilson

Ben Elton began his career as a stand-up comedian, and went on to write TV comedies, musicals and novels including Popcorn. His latest novel is Two Brothers, inspired by his family history about adopted brothers who go on to fight on opposite sides of the second world war. He reveals why this is a story he'd always wanted to tell.

Danny Boyle - film-maker and impresario behind the London Olympics Opening Ceremony - joins regional theatre directors from across the UK who are meeting at the National Theatre to raise concerns about their funding and the potential cuts they may soon face.

Creating art on a computer is commonplace now, but in the early days of computing, it was quite unexpected. As new solo shows of work by pioneering computer artists Ernest Edmonds and Manfred Mohr open this week, Catherine Mason, author of A Computer in the Art Room, discusses how they created a new area of art in the 1960s and changed the way that computers are viewed.

As Silver Linings Playbook is released in cinemas next week, critic Jane Graham considers other film titles which may seem baffling or too long and considers whether a bad title can affect a movie's box-office takings

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

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