On My Culture Radar: The Best of 2025
WORDS BY CHARLIE GLADSTONEEvery January I wonder if the new year can possibly bring as much good stuff as the previous one. I mean books, records, and other marvels.
And every year I find new delights. This has been another really good year, so I thought that I might share them.
In no particular order, these are all brilliant.
Almost all first appeared this year.
Non-Fiction Books
Craft Land. James Fox.
A luminous eulogy for disappearing British craft.
Paul Weller. Dancing Through Fire. Dan Jennings.
A wonderful oral history of one of our greatest ever musicians.
Your Table Is Ready. Michael Cecchi-Azzolina.
Hair-raising tales from the front of house at Manhattan’s best restaurants.
Homework. Geoff Dyer.
Possibly the best book here. A young life recalled, from one of our finest writers.
Toy Fights. Don Patterson.
The great poet’s life; music, Dundee, friends and family.
I Regret Almost Everything. Keith McNally.
A smash hit from the fabled restaurateur; exceptional writing, tall tales and self-loathing.
The Siege. Ben Macintyre.
The full story of London’s Iranian Embassy siege told by a brilliant narrator.
Kevin Rowland. Bless My Father.
The life, chaos and wild times of the criminally underrated genius behind Dexys Midnight Runners.
A Very Short History of The Israel-Palestine Conflict. Ilan Pappé.
Short, precise, informative and very readable.
Around the Table. Diana Henry.
52 lovely essays on food and life.
The Secret Painter. Joe Tucker.
A family mounts an exhibition of a late uncle’s paintings with remarkable results.
A Voyage Around the Queen. Craig Brown.
An exceptional biography that views its subject through the lenses of others.
Fiction Books
Flesh. David Szalay.
Harsh, emotionless, super engaging and unique. (The Booker Prize winner.)
The Land in Winter. Andrew Miller.
The lives of two couples intertwine in a remote and wintery West Country landscape. (A Booker shortlist book).
Intermezzo. Sally Rooney.
Possibly her best book yet, and a definite return to form.
33 Brugmann Place. Alice Austen.
Set in Brussels as the Nazis invade Belgium, this is an eloquent and complex story of the inhabitants of one large apartment building.
Lazarus Man. Richard Price.
The human aftermath of the collapse of a NYC tenement building.
Three Days in June. Anne Tyler.
An exceptional book which follows the lives of a family as they reconvene for a wedding.
Seascraper. Benjamin Wood.
A young English shrimp fisherman’s life is changed by the arrival of a mysterious film producer. (A Booker longlist book).
Benbecula. Graeme Macrae Burnet.
A short and elegant novel, with strong roots in truth, about murder on the Western Isles.
The Rest of Our Lives. Ben Markovits.
A wonderful tale of a mid-life crisis, love, and family all set against the backdrop of a road trip. (A Booker shortlist book).
Gabriele. Anne Berest, Claire Berest.
Two sisters piece together their great grandmother’s remarkable life at the core of the early 1900’s Avante Garde movement.
The Wedding People. Alison Espach.
A wise, funny, engaging romp. Clever, profound and memorable, but never hard work.
Buckeye. Patrick Ryan.
A long, generation-spanning book, populated by characters that exist in a sort of Edward Hopperish dystopia.
Music
Pink Elephant. Arcade Fire.
Largely ignored, this was their first commercial flop. It requires effort, but it is as good as anything else they’ve produced.
Get Sunk. Matt Berninger.
The National’s singer takes a break from his day job on a solo album that sounds just like The National.
Comic Trip. Sylvie Kreusch.
Almost completely ignored in the UK, this is a terrific and intelligent pop record.
The Universe Smiles on You ii. Khruangbin.
An excellent remake of their seminal first album.
SABLE, fABLE. Bon Iver.
Part melancholy, part sunny and joyous, this may be his best album yet.
Essex Honey. Blood Orange.
Complex, bitty, melancholy, sun-drenched. A real grower.
Temporary. Everything Is Recorded.
Choc-full of incredible songs and myriad collaborations, this is a stand-out album by a fearless music mogul.
Heavy Winter. Cameron Winter.
Winter is the singer of this year’s breakout indie band, Geese. This solo record is more approachable than his band’s, and has been a deserved smash.
Blue Moon Safari. Air/Vegyn.
Vegyn remixes the French band’s seminal album to stunning effect.
The 3 EPs. The Beta Band.
An anniversary rerelease of this astonishing record reminded me what an innovative and hugely influential band these guys are.
These Were The Earlies. The Earlies.
Another anniversary rerelease, this time for a record that was largely ignored but remains a beacon of extraordinary alternative psych folk.
And Other Things That I Very Highly Recommend You Discover in 2026
Turner & Constable. Rivals & Originals. Tate Britain. Until 12 April 2026.
A fresh look at two seminal artists, born a year apart, and their friendship and rivalry. Around 170 magnificent works.
Bard Scotland.
A shop and gallery in Edinburgh that I have long supported but recently visited for the first time.
Wes Anderson: The Archives. Design Museum. Until 26 July.
I had slightly fallen out of love with Anderson’s work, but this thorough and immersive show rekindled the fire.
Strong Water Company, Ballater.
The best independent booze shop in Scotland opens a brand new branch. Passion, knowledge and the warmest welcome.
All Her Fault. Sky Atlantic.
A terrific eight parter. Part whodunnit, part family saga. Stylish and hard to turn off.
Choosing Keeping.
A great place for stationery and original bits and bobs in London, WC2.
Cecil Beaton’s Fashionable World. National Portrait Gallery. Until 11 January.
A large and thorough investigation into Beaton’s work for Vogue.
Metrecandles.com
Very long candles in confident colours. A great and original idea, well executed.
Ardfern.
A newish café, bar and bottle shop, of the highest quality, in Edinburgh.
The Fish Shop, Ballater.
Possibly my favourite lunch of 2025 was eaten in this brilliant Hauser and Wirth restaurant.
David Nash. Nature Wisdom. Ruthin Craft Centre. Until 11 January.
An important retrospective that brings together sixty years of work; sculpture, film, prints and more.
Maray Chester.
From branches in Liverpool and Manchester springs an excellent new outpost of this small chain of restaurants. Great food, great service.
Blackthorn Salt.
Scotland’s finest salt, made with passion, immense hard work and real skill.
I now realise that I could go on and on. But, well, enough. A very happy Christmas and 2026 to you and, sincerely, thank you for your support in 2025.
