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Michael Fassbender, Love to Read, The Goldfinch, Artists who tour

Actor Michael Fassbender on The Light Between Oceans, Neel Mukherjee on Twain's Huckleberry Finn, and why Carel Fabritius' The Goldfinch inspired Donna Tartt's novel.

In his new film The Light Between Oceans, Michael Fassbender takes on the role of a man who becomes a lighthouse keeper in order to escape the atrocities he witnessed in World War One. He talks about playing a decent man struggling to overcome his past and what it was like to work on a remote location in New Zealand.

As part of the ±«Óãtv's celebration of reading, Love to Read, Front Row has challenged five authors to confess to a classic book they've never read - and then read it. Today Neel Mukherjee, best known for his Booker Prize-shortlisted The Lives of Others, reads Mark Twain's tale of a rebel boy and a runaway slave, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Comedian Nish Kumar, singer Sarah McQuaid and The Pitmen Poets discuss the tricky logistics of putting together a busy touring schedule, visiting every corner of the UK in just a few weeks. How do they choose where to appear, how many miles does it involve, and what happens when it doesn't go according to plan?

The Goldfinch, the 17th-century painting of a chained bird that inspired Donna Tartt's Pulitzer prize winning novel, is on display at the National Galleries of Scotland in Edinburgh from today. Art critic Charlotte Mullins and literary critic Alex Clark discuss how this painting and others have sparked writers' imaginations.

Presenter: Clemency Burton-Hill
Producer: Angie Nehring.

Available now

30 minutes

Chapters

  • Michael Fassbender

    Duration: 07:42

  • Charlotte Mullins and Alex Clark

    Duration: 06:19

  • Neel Mukherjee

    Duration: 05:34

  • Sarah McQuaid: Nish Kumar, Pitmen Poets

    Duration: 08:16

Michael Fassbender in studio with Clemency Burton-Hill

Michael Fassbender in studio with Clemency Burton-Hill
The Light Between Oceans is on general release
Main picture shows: Michael Fassbender in The Light Between Oceans

The Goldfinch

The Goldfinch
The Goldfinch is on display at the  until 18 December
The Goldfinch
, 1654
by Carel FABRITIUS (1622-54)
Oil on panel, 33.5 x 22.8 cm
Collection: Mauritshuis, The Hague

Neel Mukherjee - Classic I've Never Read

Neel Mukherjee - Classic I've Never Read
Neel Mukherjee's Classic I've Never Read is Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Nish Kumar

Nish Kumar
Nish Kumar is until Wednesday 1 February 2017

Sarah McQuaid

Sarah McQuaid
Sarah McQuaid is  across the UK until Thursday 1 December

The Pitmen Poets

The Pitmen Poets
Ìý²¹°ù±ð across the UK from Saturday 3 December

Credits

Role Contributor
Interviewed Guest Michael Fassbender
Interviewed Guest Neel Mukherjee
Interviewed Guest Nish Kumar
Interviewed Guest Sarah McQuaid
Interviewed Guest The Pitmen Poets
Interviewed Guest Charlotte Mullins
Interviewed Guest Alex Clark
Presenter Clemency Burton-Hill
Producer Angie Nehring

Broadcast

  • Fri 4 Nov 2016 19:15

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