Eyes + ears - lockdown books, TV and music

January’s done. The month that normally thrills us with its perma-darkness, post-Christmas misery, depleted bank balances and all round general gloom excelled itself this year. Yep, January 2021 brought the added gift of a lockdown plus a rolling diet of some of the bleakest news going.

But as February beckons, the days get fractionally longer, green shoots appear in the many woodlands, parks and gardens we pass on our daily walks and runs. Best of all, the vaccine is progressing nicely.

In the meantime, thank goodness for our flourishing pop culture. While weather and pandemics shrink our worlds, TV, books and music can take us anywhere we want. This week, I’ve been to:

Glasgow. I’ve been transported to the Scottish city’s tenements and abandoned pit towns in reading 2020 Booker prize winner Shuggie Bain, the debut novel from Douglas Stuart. This is a story of poverty, abuse, alcoholism, family and love told through the eyes of the book’s title, young Shuggie (short for Hugh - handy fact-ette). If you’re looking for a book to raise your spirits through lockdown, then step away as this most definitely isn’t the one. This is a grim and uncomfortable read - given its subject matter, it can’t be anything other. It is however an utterly compelling, painfully, skilfully observed portrayal of a child’s unflinching devotion to an alcoholic parent, while dealing with his own myriad issues, not least the relentless bullying he endures as he tries and fails to find a place to fit in.

Support indie bookshops by buying Shuggie through Bookshop.org

Morecambe Bay. ITV’s serving up a real gripper of a thriller in police drama The Bay. Personal and private lives collide for Detective Lisa Armstrong, magnificently played by Morven Christie. Opening with a shocking doorstep murder, each episode brings twists and turns and introduces characters’ secrets and flaws. This series sees the return of single mum Lisa’s ex, Andy, stirring up old emotions and uprooting the worlds of her already troubled teenage kids. Lisa’s unfolding personal dramas run alongside the case of a solicitor taken out by a hitman, witnessed by his ten-year old son. The Bay cast are pretty much 100% recognisable from other brilliant TV - including ‘Enders cardi-wearing veteran Carol Jackson as Lisa’s mum. Although again not the cheeriest, it’ll have you hooked within minutes.

Catch The Bay on ITV's hub if you can tolerate the vortex of ads for Seat Ibizas.

On a magical mystery tour. Ending on a more uplifting note, beardy Belgian and master of the DJ decks The Magician has conjured up his 100th Magic Tape. Fans of funky house, nu-disco and other soulful audio pleasantry would do well to make this a walking or running soundtrack. The centenary edition of the expertly mixed and curated potion shows no sign of losing its magic despite running for more than ten years. As the man himself says in a recent interview with Billboard, to make it onto a magic tape, a song should be: “Something catchy with a cool production, some weirdness.” Fitting this bill rather neatly is my particular favourite, Classixx’s Big Rhythm - a melodic dose of summer and better times ahead. Tune in below.