For centuries, the rite of the tarantula was the only cure for those 'bitten' or 'possessed' by the mythic Apulian spider. Its victims had to dance to the local tarantella or 'pizzica' for days on end. Today, the pizzica has returned to the limelight, bringing to the forefront issues of performance, gender, identity & well-being. ...

On Brian Wilson's solo 1200-mile voyage around the coast of Irel&, his little kayak is lashed by the tail-wind of Hurricane Gusta, bombarded by the incontinent gannets of the Skelligs, & almost run down by a ghost galleon off Mizen Head. This is a sea-kayacking adventure & travelogue around the Irish coast. ...

In the year 1864, Lieutenant John Dunbar (Kevin Costner) requests an assignment to a remote outpost in the American West. Spending a lot of time by himself, Dunbar falls in love with the frontier, & becomes firm friends with the local Lakota Indians. Before long he finds himself contravening direct orders when he helps his new friends in their battle against the Pawnee. This revisionist western won seven Oscars, including one for Best Picture & one for Costner's direction. ...

A new play from Brian Friel whose previous works include " Philadelphia, Here I Come". Set over two days in a house just outside the Irish village of Ballybeg, the play tells the story of the five Mundy sisters, their brother Jack who is a priest & the illegitimate son of the younger sister. ...

In the summer of 1936 the five Mundy sisters encounter problems which threaten to tear them apart forever. The opening of a new knitting factory destroys the livelihoods of Agnes (Brid Brennan) & Rose (Sophie Thompson); travelling salesman Gerry (Rhys Ifans), the father of Christina's (Catherine Mc Cormack) son, announces that he is off to fight the fascists in Spain; & brother Jack (Michael Gambon), a missionary priest who has been away in Africa, returns home a broken, senile man. As the festival of Lughnasa approaches, the tensions between the sisters come to a head. Also stars Meryl Streep & Kathy Burke. ...

Suitable for medical professionals, victims of chronic illnesses, & their loved ones, this memoir traces the growth of their friendship over the years. By exploring the bond between caregiver & sufferer, it evokes the constant day to day frustrations & emotional toll suffered by the chronically ill. ...