Front Row - 22/09/2009

Louis de Bernières, the bestselling author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, has written a new book set in the fictional Surrey village of Notwithstanding. His latest offering takes the form of a series of linked episodes in the lives of the Notwithstanding villagers, and draws heavily on memories of his own Surrey upbringing. The artist Anish Kapoor has a major new retrospective opening at the Royal Academy in London, showcasing a number of new and previously unseen works. Architect Amanda Levete reviews the exhibition by the 1991 Turner Prize winner. The American actor and musician Harry Shearer is best known for his role as bassist Derek Smalls in the mockumentary This is Spinal Tap, and for providing the voices for many of the characters in The Simpsons, most notably the evil Mr Burns. Shearer looks back on his career which began aged seven, acting alongside Richard Burton in Hollywood. Paul Bettany stars in Creation, a new biopic of Charles Darwin which explores the impact of his revolutionary ideas on his wife, religion, an English village and an orangutan. Novelist Tracy Chevalier reviews.