This week marks the beginning of May, and hopefully plenty of sunshine to follow.
But while the great outdoors and May Day celebrations beckon, there’s also lots to keep you entertained indoors.
Brilliant birds and their influence on art and culture are being celebrated at the Netherlands’ Mauritshuis, while Vienna’s Albertina Modern is exploring how comic books have inspired art through an exhibition dedicated to street artist KAWS.
Meanwhile, the small screen brings high-tension through two new Netflix series, Man on Fire and Lord of the Flies – while Meryl Streep brings back pure poisonous sass as fashion editor Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada sequel (here’s hoping it’s better than last week’s Michael).
Grab your diaries and let’s get into it, shall we?
Exhibitions
BIRDS
Carel Fabritius, The Goldfinch, 1654. – Mauritshuis, The Hague
When: Until 7 June 2026
Where: Mauritshuis (The Hague, Netherlands)
Maya Angelou once said that **”**a bird does not sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.” Perhaps it this sense of freedom that keeps us captivated by birds, their unique colours and expressions a fleeting connection to the joys of nature.
While sometimes kept in cages, and other times seen as symbols of love and beauty, this fun exhibition soars through our enduring relationship with the creatures – focusing on their influences in art. Curated by The Goldfinch & Simon Schama, it features works by both contemporary artists and masters, including Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Pablo Picasso and Tracey Emin.
KAWS: Art & Comix
KAWS | TIME OFF, 2021 | Private collection © KAWS – Photo: courtesy KAWS Studio
When: Until 27 September 2026
Where: Albertina Modern (Vienna, Austria)
American artist KAWS’ melancholic muppet-like creatures have become an iconic fixture within the contemporary pop art/ street art scene. His works, which commentate on consumerism and commercialisation, are also part of a broader trend where artists take inspiration from the colourful caricatures and subversive messaging within comic books. The Albertina Modern dives deeper into this – and the questions it raises about what constitutes as low and high art – by putting KAWS’ works in dialogue with other comic-inspired artists like Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg, H.C. Westermann and Keith Haring. Find out more here.
Bonus highlight: Nobody captured the smoky sensuality of vintage Paris like Hungarian photographer Brassaï, whose alluring images are on display at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm until 4 October 2026.
Related
Events
May Day
May Day celebrations, 2019 – AP/Chattanooga Times Free Press
When: 1 May
Where: Across Europe
Grab your ribbons and flower crowns – May Day celebrations are almost here. An ancient ritual to mark the arrival of summer and new life, celebrations take place across most of the continent and involve gathering for dancing, singing and raising maypoles. while the nuances differ depending on location (with Germans and Finns celebrating the night before typically), it’s an opportunity to collectively have fun and optimistically embrace a new season.
Related
Movies
The Devil Wears Prada 2
Where: Cinemas
When: 1 May 2026
A Devil Wears Prada sequel? For spring? Groundbreaking.
Indeed, Hollywood continues to milk millennial nostalgia for all its worth with a follow-up to the 2006 hit movie about a tyrannical fashion magazine editor (Meryl Streep) and her pressurised personal assistant (Anne Hathaway). Twenty years on (which makes us feel a bit sick to type), Andrea (Hathaway) is now a successful publisher who’s hired back at Runway to edit features and help rescue the magazine. However, her past tensions with the acerbic-tongued Miranda (Streep) and staff rival Emily (Emily Blunt) remain heated. Gird your loins!
Bonus highlights: Supernatural horror Hokum is out at select cinemas now. It follows a novelist staying at a haunted Inn in Ireland, and is directed by Damian Mc Carthy (who made one of our favourite horrors of 2024, Oddity).
TV series
Man on Fire
Where: Netflix
When: 30 April
Following the popularity of Prime Video’s Jack Reacher, Netflix is launching a competing action thriller series that’s all high-stakes tension and baddie takedowns. Based on A.J. Quinnell’s 1980 novel of the same name, Man on Fire follows a covert Special Forces Mercenary named John Creasy (Abdul-Mateen) who’s attempting to keep a teenage girl alive in Brazil while battling enemies – and his own personal demons. If you’re a fan of the story and haven’t seen Tony Scott’s 2004 movie adaptation, we recommend that as a follow up!
Bonus highlight: A new TV adaptation of Lord of the Flies by acclaimed screenwriter Jack Thorne (Enola Holmes, Adolescence) streams on Netflix from 4 May.
Related
Music
Melanie C: SWEAT
When: 1 May
Former Spice Girl Melanie C is releasing her ninth studio album, which she’s claimed is her “most euphoric record to date.” The singer first embarked on a solo career in the late 90s, producing UK pop staples like ‘Never Be the Same Again’ and ‘I Turn To You’. ‘Sweat’ is a callback to the frothy energy and dance pop tracks of that era – a rallying cry to let loose, have fun, and embrace your inner Sporty Spice.
Bonus highlights: It’s a jam-packed week for new music releases, with other highlights including Tori Amos’ ‘In Times of Dragons’, Kneecap’s ‘Fenian’ and ‘Peaches!’ by The Black Keys. All out on the 1 May.
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