Library Search: Acting: News, Reviews & Industry

News & Reviews

It's important to stay up to date with current practice and industry developments.

The Library also recommends these web resources on specialist collections and professional topics.

Professional Development

These resources will enable you to keep informed with industry developments and the chance to develop other skills to enhance your employability.

BAFTA Guru
BAFTA Guru includes interviews with directors and film practitioners, and lectures and masterclasses from industry professionals.
Theatre Voice
The leading audio resources for British theatre.

LinkedIn Learning This link opens in a new window
LinkedIn Learning offers training videos that cover a wide range of software, business and creative skills. Content is added on a weekly basis so that the videos covering the latest version of the software are available. You can choose to watch short videos to provide a quick solution or follow an entire course. Tutorials are presented by top professionals with an ability to share their knowledge and industry experience.

The Stage

The Stage provides news and services for the UK theatre, entertainment and performing arts industry,

In the Library you'll find the weekly newspaper edition, together with holdings of the previous 2 year's issues.

Theatre Record

Theatre Record This link opens in a new window
Established in 1981, Theatre Record reprints in full all the national drama critics' reviews of productions in and out of London, with full casts and credits. It also carries early information on plans for shows all over the country.

Useful Web Resources

Black Plays Archive
A National Theatre initiative, this is an online catalogue for the first professional production of every African, Caribbean and Black British play produced in Britain.
IMDb
A popular source for movie and TV facts and celebrity content.
National Theatre
NT Discover provides links to videos, podcasts and online exhibitions.
Royal Shakespeare Company
Information about Shakespeare and the RSC, including educational material and links to RSC YouTube.
Scenesaver
Scenesaver provides access to recordings of a wide range of live performances, including fringe theatre, dance, children's theatre, puppetry and audio plays.
Shakespeare's Globe
Shakespeare's Globe is a unique resource dedicated to the exploration of Shakespeare's work and the playhouse for which he wrote through the connected means of performance and education. The Discovery Place includes interviews and other educational resources.
TED Talks
TED is a non-profit organisation whose agenda is to 'make great ideas accessible and spark conversation'.
Unfinished Business
Records the history of Alternative Theatre in the 1960s, 70s and 80s through interviews and the collecting of archive material.
V&A Museum
All areas of the live performing arts are represented in the Theatre and Performance collection, documenting both current practice and the history of the performing arts in the UK.

Newspapers

Newspapers are a crucial source of reviews, interviews and industry trends.

The sources below can help you find contemporary and historic information:

Gale OneFile: News This link opens in a new window
This provides full-text access to national and local newspapers and allows you to search for articles by title, headline, date and newspaper section.
Times Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
The Times Digital Archive is an online, full-text facsimile of more than 200 years of The Times. With over 12 million articles available, dating back to 1785, the archive supports research across multiple disciplines and areas of interest, including business, humanities, political science, and philosophy.

Data & Statistics Sources

Data from companies or websites can sometimes be biased and misleading. Reliable statistics are generally produced by government agencies, dedicated statistical departments and other official organisations:

Office for National Statistics
UK's largest independent producer of official statistics, including business, employment, population, health and environmental data.

Government Departments & Agencies
UK government information, data and reports on matters such as immigration, tobacco, social housing, sport, gambling, the environment, etc.

London Datastore
Free and open data-sharing portal where anyone can access data relating to the capital.

Eurostat
Statistics from the European Union. Includes data on health, education, food and packaging, tourism, population, climate change and more.

Data.gov
USA Government's open data. Information on retail, trade, climate, health, education and other sectors, at a federal, state, and local level.