Try to squeeze the love out of something and you’ll find its essence vanishes. So it is with Free Kitten’s latest pirouette, Inherit, a decade apart from its closest sibling.

Malcolm Middleton has been a very busy man. With the release of 2007’s A Brighter Beat, Malcolm has developed a new era for “happy music for sad people.”

In summer 2008, Rushes Soho Shorts Festival brought the best in short film by celebrating the genre over ten days. 2008 marked their ten year anniversary.

The Escapist is the spectacular feature film debut from co-writer and director, Rupert Wyatt. The film examines prisons, harsh and unforgiving places.

When two strangers’ lives cross they ultimately changed forever. Take explores the complex feelings of forgiveness, chance and the death penalty.

Want to See More of Me? confronts current debates over diversity in the entertainment business and opportunities for ethnic minorities.

In 2008, Korean artist Gwon Osang made his UK debut with Deodorant Type, a thought-provoking exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery.

Housed in Brick Lane’s Old Truman Brewery in London, Free Range 2008 is a showcase dedicated to the best in UK student talent.

Shirazeh Houshiary’s current exhibition at the Lisson Gallery will be her sixth solo show with Lisson and her first project in their new exhibition space.

Art and fashion are intrinsically linked. This attraction and repulsion of the pursuit of commodity, glamour and icons envelops our daily existence.

The Room of Lost Things was inspired by Duffy’s surroundings. “Faisal, our local dry cleaner said, ‘You should write about a dry cleaner. We know people’s secrets’.”

Sean’s latest collection, The Drowned Book continues his critical success, winning both the prestigious Forward and T S Eliot Prizes in 2007.

Imagine if your latest performance could subject you to violence and oppression from the state? This is the reality for all involved with the Belarus Free Theatre.

Surrounded is back with a second album, Nautilus Years. The songs made by these talented musicians are simultaneously haunting and beautiful.

Aaron Mullan exudes equal parts maturity and enthusiasm for the creative environment that has culminated in Tall Firs’ second release Too Old to Die Young.

Jamie Lidell’s funk and soul are energetic and exhilarating. His classic influences are fused with songwriting, meticulous production and a powerful voice.

Running for five days, Glimmer: The Hull International Short Film Festival screens around 300 films, including an eclectic and energetic mix from all over the world.

XXY is the assured and stunning debut from Lucía Puenzo, tackling intersexuality, a topic not often explored in creative art forms, or even spoken about in society.

My Brother Is An Only Child is the spectacular new film from writer-director Daniele Luchetti, who was discovered at Cannes in 1991 with his film, The Yes Man.

The Jerwood Contemporary Painters Exhibition highlights 20 emerging artists in one vibrant collection. Each artist exhibits one work, which is concerned with the debate of what painting is.

Nigel Hall has redefined his work to articulate a sophisticated understanding of space, and how sculptural object and viewer may occupy it.

The Design Awards 2008 offers a means for understanding the contemporary world, and demonstrates a huge field of creativity and diversity.

Double Agent is a group exhibition featuring seven artists who use other people as a medium, raising questions of performance and authorship.

Project Space Leeds hosts this unique exhibition by photographers, Eric Jaquier and Peter Mitchell. Their work illustrates how Leeds has changed since the 1960s.

In winter 2008, Iniva presented one of the year’s most exciting exhibitions: States of Exchange, looking at the reliability of history in an age of global communication.

Gordon Cheung’s show at the Chinese Arts Centre in Manchester, Death By A Thousand Cuts, highlighted hybrid cultures and the rise of a new superpower.

Against Nature continues the Henry Moore Institute’s ethos to promote the appreciation of sculpture as a pertinent art form with a rich and varied history.

Saturated was the inaugural solo show by Sølve Sundsbø, the first in a new cross-cultural programme at Spring Projects, a new gallery space at at Spring Studios.

The 2008 SONY World Photography Awards in Cannes, France, showcases over 330 images, and includes the work of some of the greats of photography.

Sarah Waters has brought the genre of lesbian historical fiction into the mainstream. In 2003, she was named one of Granta’s Best Young British Writers

The words of Daljit Nagra illuminate his emotional perception. “Poetry allows you to be intense, because to some degree people expect it.”

Vicky Jewson’s first foray into feature-length film is a modern re-imagining of the Lady Godiva legend, re-written as a quirky romantic comedy.

The Independent Cinema Office (ICO) has launched a new programme that supports artists’ filmmaking, and brings new works and classics back to the public domain.

With a voice as sweet as cherry pie, Thao Nguyen lilts and sighs her way through songs in a way that makes you instantly fall in love with her.

Armed with just one guitar between them, Rosa “Rex” Slade and Katy “Klaw” Young’s songs exude the passion and mischievous vibrancy of such self-confessional music.

The song writing process for a band which transcends the label “folktronica” can be daunting. Tunng are not your standard band with vocals, guitar, bass and drums.

Ant Macari has a benevolent philosophy tow­ards his work. Neither possessive nor exalted in his approach, he places emphasis on the response of his audience.

Often described as a “furniture sculptor,” Philippe Anthonioz’s work appeared in a dual exhibition at Galerie Tino Zervudachi in Paris and at Lefevre Fine Art in London.

Tuck’s paintings speak to us about sex and celebrity, hyper femininity and neutered masculinity. He manipulates and teases his subjects and the language of paint.

Diana Scheunemann’s photography is alive with sensuality and emotion. She spent a decade travelling and capturing scenes with provocative honesty.

Chris Meigh-Andrews re-imagines some of the earliest examples of photography for the modern world, thanks to digital editing, video, and the addition of sound.

Elms Lester Painting Rooms has been at the centre of a revolutionary concept; bringing street art into the gallery space, by showcasing international street artists.

Carol Birch found instant success as a writer with her first novel, Life in the Palace, going on to win the David Higham Award for the Best First Novel of the Year.

Veronica is Gaitskill’s second novel, combining the decadence and debauchery of the 1980s, where Alison and Veronica, collide against the backdrop of New York.

This year Jack Mapanje was nominated for The Forward Prize for Best Collection for his latest and highly acclaimed collection, Beasts of Nalunga (2007).

Phil Grabsky’s critically acclaimed and multi-award winning documentaries capture an array of subjects from Mozart to Afghan­istan and Chernobyl.

Nick Broomfield is somewhat of an enigma, favouring the participatory approach to documentary filmmaking, thus making a profound mark on his films.

Fresh from 2007’s NME Freshers tour and the MTV2 Gonzo tour, Operator Please is a rabble of pop punk teens hailing from Australia’s Gold Coast.

Although The Pigeon Detective’s look is very much the London indie-boy uniform of scruffy shoes and scruffier hair, their sound is undeniably that of Yorkshire.

With their cowboy swagger and deep-south drawl, you’d be forgiven for thinking Alabama 3 are a straightforward American blues band.