Best of 2014
20,000 Days on Earth
Film:
20,000 Days on Earth
Selma
Boyhood
The Theory of Everything
Male Lead:
Eddie Redmayne – The Theory of Everything
David Oyelowo – Selma
Nicholas Cage – Joe
Tom Hardy – Locke
Benedict Cumberbtach – The Imitation Game
Ralph Fiennes – Grand Hotel Budapest
Female Lead:
Felicity Jones – The Theory of Everything
Rosamund Pike – Gone Girl
Male Support:
Tim Roth – Selma
Steve Carell – Foxcatcher
Ethan Hawke – Boyhood
Tom Wilkinson – Selma
Female Support:
Patricia Arquette – Boyhood
Sienna Miller – American Sniper
Director:
Richard Linklater – Boyhood
Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard – 20,000 Days on Earth
Christopher Nolan – Interstellar
Pawel Pawlikoski – Ida
Paul King – Paddington
Yann Demange- ’71
Writer:
Paul Webb – Selma
Paul King – Paddington
Wes Anderson – Grand Hotel Budapest
Anthony McCarten – The Theory of Everything
Production Design:
Grand Hotel Budapest
Visual FX:
Interstellar
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Michael Franti & dancer
Single:
(John Newman – Love Me Again)
Album:
Morning Phase – Beck
Tribute – John Newman
With The Artists – Rhythm & Sound
Liquid Spirit – Gregory Porter
(WomanChild -Cecile McLorin Salvant)
Gig:
Van Morrison on launch night of Nell’s Jazz & Blues Club
Michael Franti & Spearhead – Islington Assembly Hall (with D)
John Newman – Empire Shepherd’s Bush
ABC – Lexicon of Love – Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Peter Gabriel – So – Wembley Arena
Play:
A Taste of Honey – Shelagh Delaney – National Theatre, Lyttleton
Fiesta – adapted & directed by Alex Helfrecht – Trafalgar Studios
Oh What a Lovely War – Joan Littlewood & the Theatre Workshop – Theatre Royal Stratford East (Joan Littlewood centenary – with D)
Fings Ain’t Wot They Used to Be – Frank Norman – Theatre Royal Stratford East
Art Exhibition:
Egon Schiele drawings: The Radical Nude – Courtauld
John Craxton – Fitzwilliam, Cambridge
Richard Hamilton – Tate Modern
Abram Games: designing the 20th Century – Jewish Museum, Camden Town
MALBA – Buenos Aires
Museum der bildenden Kunste – Leipzig (with N)
Book: (that I read this year)
Rabbit at Rest – John Updike
Sport:
Germany crushing Brazil at the World Cup (7-1 semi-final)
Jonny May’s try for England against the All Blacks at Twickenham
Event:
Philae probe from European spacecraft Rosetta landing on a comet
Dearly departed:
Joe Cocker
Jack Bruce
Tommy Ramone
Egon Schiele – The Radical Nude
Simple Pleasures part 4 
Music/albums – (limiting myself to 5 albums) – Donato Dozzy: K, Beck: Morning Phase, Damian Jurado: Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Sun, Todd Terje: It’s Album Time, Mac DeMarco: Salad Days.
Music/singles – Gil DeRay/FeedbacK Jack: All Out To Get You, Little Barrie: Eyes Were Young.
Music/live – Little Barrie: Southampton, June.
Music/classics I only heard for the first time this year – Aaron Neville: Tell it Like it is, The Ronettes: Do I Love You
Film – Boyhood
Book – Yuval Noah Harari: Sapiens
Sport/games – James Wade and Robert Thornton producing ‘double in’ 9-dart finishes in the same match.
Passing – Bobby Womack, Kenny Wheeler and Joe Cocker for that one moment.
Country visited – Kyrgyzstan
Great list as always, food for thought and follow-up. Have added a Book and Passing section to match.
I am convinced that you will like Damian Jurado. His last two albums (on this and last year’s best of lists) are outstanding and I think your thing.
I started with Silver Timothy – not sure… What’s best album to start with?
Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Sun and Maraqopa. Both outstanding,
I would like to add the Hozier album to this list. I came to it late but ‘Take Me To Church’ (especially), From Eden and Work Song are superb.
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