Who will win Succession?

The Independent’s entertainment newsletter [SUBSCRIBE]( [SUBSCRIBE]( May 27, 2023 [View in browser](   Will Cousin Greg take all? On Monday, we will find out. The last ever episode of Succession is set to air in a few days, and we will finally find out how it’s all going to end up. Here at Indy Towers, [we attempted to get into the minds of the genius scriptwriters]( (which, let me tell you, is as difficult as you’d expect) and posit our theories for what’s going to happen in the feature-length finale. Personally, [I’m putting my money on Roman imploding](, especially when you find out what happened in the ancient myth of Romulus and his brother Remus… Deep thinkers, this one’s for you: this weekend, the HowTheLightGetsIn Festival takes place in lovely Hay-on-Wye. We’re partnering with the festival, so readers can bag discounted tickets for the brilliant talks and events at the world’s largest arts and philosophy festival. [Roisin O’Connor spoke to singer and author Billy Bragg]( about his appearance at the festival, and Louis Chilton has[rounded up the weekend’s highlights](. The players fighting for power in ‘Succession’ (HBO/Getty) Elsewhere this week, Helen Brown had a [fantastic conversation](with the playful and profound author of Women Talking, Miriam Toews. The Little Mermaid’s live-action remake is, sadly, [not something Clarisse Loughrey thinks should be part of our world](. Tate Britain, one of my top two fave London galleries, has rehung its permanent collection; [Eloise Hendy found out about the thinking behind the reshuffle](, and [Mark Hudson went down to check it out](. (My other top fave gallery, by the way, is reopening very soon. We’ll have more on the National Portrait Gallery’s £35m revamp in the coming weeks.) And we lost two legends in the space of seven days: Martin Chilton [paid tribute to the “Mick Jagger of the literary world”](, Martin Amis, while Helen Brown wrote about [the irreplaceable Tina Turner](. Jessie [@jessiecath](   What to do this weekend Film | [Mad About the Boy]( If anyone wants to take a mesmerising journey into matchless wit and style, watch Barnaby Thompson’s Mad About The Boy, his documentary on Noel Coward, aka The Master. Coward dominated the arts world for decades with 60 plays, more than a dozen films, and then with all those songs, 500 of them. He knew he epitomised style with a capital S, as a dancer, singer, composer, actor, playwright, director and national treasure. This endearing film portrait buzzes with a toe-tappingly fast and infectious beat, released in more than 200 cinemas this week. It will put the master where he likes to be: in the spotlight. Geordie Greig | Editor-in-chief [@geordie_greig](   Theatre | [Aspects of Love]( This is the first major West End revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical about love in all of its forms, and, in a neat twist, Michael Ball is returning to the show three decades on from its premiere production. He played the lead role of Alex when the show first opened, and now plays Alex's uncle George. Jessie Thompson | Arts editor [@jessiecath](   Film | [Hypnotic]( Dubbed “Inception for dummies” by people who don’t recognise a brilliant piece of low-budget pulp when they see one, Robert Rodriguez’s Hypnotic is absolutely the coolest movie you rented at Blockbuster in 2002. Ben Affleck plays a Texas detective still haunted by the disappearance of his seven-year-old daughter, whose abduction may have something to do with a bank-robbing hypnotist involved in a global conspiracy. In cinemas now Adam White | Film editor [@__adamwhite](   TV | [Succession]( Has anyone ever been under as much pressure to produce a perfect piece of television as Jesse Armstrong is with the last ever episode of Succession? The fourth and final season of his blistering satire on wealth, the media, capitalism and modern America has had us on tenterhooks for almost ten weeks, and it’s about to come crashing to a close. Let’s all say a prayer for the Wambsgstans out there - there’s going to be a big Matthew Macfadyen-shaped hole in our lives. Out on Sky Atlantic and NOW on Monday Ellie Harrison | TV editor [@Ellie_Harrison](   Books | [Is This OK? by Harriet Gibsone]( One for all of the MSN natives out there: journalist Harriet Gibsone has written a funny, moving, frank and intimate memoir about growing up online, exploring everything from parasocial relationships to googling your exes. Jessie Thompson | Arts editor [@jessiecath](     [The Saturday Interview – Arlo Parks]( [Oscars image]( Arlo Parks is returning to the limelight Mercury Prize winner Arlo Parks is back with her second album, "My Soft Machine". [She talks to Helen Brown](about making new music, her love of Phoebe Bridgers, and working out her boundaries since being catapulted to fame. Joan Washington and Richard E Grant pictured at the Jameson Empire Awards in 2016 (Getty) Read an extract from our Saturday Interview below… Still identifying more as a fan than an artist, Parks admits that her rapid rise to fame has been a little disorienting. “I never expected this many people to be listening to what I have to say, so I feel very humbled by the attention. I’m not the kind of person who ‘always knew this was gonna happen’, y’know?” Backstage at festivals she initially found it “difficult being surrounded by people who inspired me. It’s difficult to feel yourself as being deserving of being among them. Especially people you’ve listened to for a long time. I’ve been listening to Phoebe Bridgers since I was 16.” [Read the full interview here](   Weekend Shelf-Care Weekend Shelf-Care Caleb Azumah Nelson Open Water, the debut novel from Caleb Azumah Nelson, was a lyrical love story that won the Costa First Novel Award in 2021. His much anticipated follow-up, Small Worlds, a father and son story set across continents, is published this month. A book I recently read and loved is… A book I recently read and loved is Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang, it’s incredibly sensual and explored intimacies with both the self and others beautifully. My three fantasy literary dinner party guests would be… Toni Morrison, James {NAME} and Zadie Smith - think that would be a lot of fun. Not finishing books: my stance is… Sometimes you have to put the book down! My writing routine is… I’m up quite early, by 6am. After exercise and some breakfast, I try to write from 7am to midday and then I’m done for the day. I’ll usually take the afternoon to catch up with friends, head to the cinema or a gallery, or just take a nap and refuel for the next day. 'Small Worlds' is out now £99 £20 for 1 year ✓ Full access to Premium news analysis ✓ Advert-free reading across web and app ✓ The Independent Daily Edition newspaper ✓ Puzzles, virtual event tickets and more [SUBSCRIBE NOW](   [INDYBEST]( / [BEST BUYS]( [9 best deck chairs for reclining in the sunshine]( Nothing beats relaxing al fresco with a book, so make sure you’ve got your perfect pew sorted with our round up of the best deck chairs [Shop now](       OTHER NEWSLETTERS YOU MIGHT LIKE [Climate News]( Climate News Weekly Written by Louise Boyle [Join now]( [Simon Calder's Travel Week]( Simon Calder’s Travel Week Twice a week Written by Simon Calder [Join now]( [Climate News] Climate News Weekly Written by Louise Boyle [Join now]( [Simon Calder's Travel Week] Simon Calder's Travel Week Twice a week Written by Simon Calder [Join now](   The Independent proudly partners with [Refuge]( and the [National Domestic Abuse Helpline](: 0808 2000 247 If you can spare a minute we’d love your [feedback]( on our newsletters. 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