Family comedy sequel featuring a blend of CGI animation and live action and based on the iconic characters created by Peyo for the 1980s television series. When the dastardly Gargamel (Hank Azaria) kidnaps Smurfette (voice of Katy Perry) and steals her away to Paris, the rest of the Smurf gang team up with their human friends Patrick (Neil Patrick Harris) and Grace (Jayma Mays) to try and retrieve her from his clutches. However, with Smurfette the key to Gargamel's plans to transform his latest minions, the Naughties (voiced by Christina Ricci and J.B. Smoove), into Smurfs, this will be no simple task - not least because Smurfette seems rather taken by the Naughties...

Based on the characters created by Peyo for the 1980s television series, this family comedy is a mix of CGI animation and live action. After being chased by dark wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria) the Smurfs find themselves transported from their village in the Middle Ages to modern-day New York. There they seek shelter in the home of Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) and his wife, Grace (Jayma Mays), but with Gargamel on the loose, the Smurfs are running out of time to get back to their village. The film features the voice talents of Jonathan Winters, Katy Perry, Alan Cumming, George Lopez and Paul Reubens.

Kate Gallagher has returned to Hogarth only to learn terrible news: as he was leading a secret expedition south, her estranged friend Hawklight was murdered by unknown assassins. Driven by guilt because she created the rift in their friendship, Kate vows to avenge his death. But as she begins to sift through the facts about his mysterious mission, she uncovers a diabolical plot that threatens to resurrect the spectre of Varak in the form of a new overlord of Bexus. Time is running out as Kate and her friends embark on a perilous adventure to prevent the unthinkable from happening. Unfortunately, others are constantly a step ahead in the race, and throughout the quest Kate and her companions are ruthlessly pursued in an attempt to prevent them from succeeding. Kate's destiny is inextricably entwined in this twisted power struggle, as she alone possesses the capability to prevent another tyrant from enslaving the planet. But she has yet to discover that there is a steep price to pay as an old nemesis seeks to settle a score.

She stopped and raised the torch. Kate looked. Alone on the wall was the figure of a girl with ice blue eyes and skin that glowed with a pure golden aura, standing out like an island in a dark black lagoon. ... There was no mistaking the identity of the tiny figure. Kate was staring at her own image burned into the wall. Bexus is another world, a hostile world of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, and there's only one way to get there-die. Neither heaven nor hell, Bexus is a world where the souls of the dead get a second chance. When Kate Gallagher awakens in Bexus after she is killed in a train wreck, she finds that her soul has retained a powerful memory of her earthly form. She also finds she bears a very dangerous mark-a golden aura that indicates purity and possibly the fulfilment of a prophecy. Kate finds herself chosen and suddenly thrust into the middle of a conflict she cannot hope to survive. With nowhere to turn and an entire world counting on her, Kate has no choice but to set out to fulfil her destiny. But Kate and her new friends are not the only ones who know of the prophecy that foretold her arrival. Varak, the tyrant lord of Bexus, is well aware of what her coming could mean for him. He's determined to capture and kill Kate before she can fulfil her destiny and return peace to Bexus.

"Kareem cradled her close to him, tucking her between his arm and his body, trying to keep her head above the thrashing, pounding waves, but Kate fought against him and slipped from his grasp. Moments later, she resurfaced beside him, and as he reached for her once more, she gripped his head between her two hands and screamed into his face. "Hawklight Find Hawklight He can't swim Leave me I can make it back to the boat " He opened his mouth to argue, but she yelled him down. "Don't you understand? Find Hawklight " A flash of lightning lit her face. Her eyes were wide, fearful, and pleading." The world of Bexus, a hostile place of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, is once again in peril, and only Kate Gallagher can help. The Hornshurst Talisman, also known as the Toki-Moai, has been stolen, and the citizens of Hornshurst want it back-at any cost. Because of the theft, the city-states of Hornshurst and Cherath have led Bexus to the brink of another crippling war. The Council of Hogarth orders Kate to intervene and wield the power of the crystal that she wrested from Varak only months ago, but Kate has discarded the stone. Once this fact becomes known, she must agree to track down the thief and return the talisman to its rightful owners to avert the war. But Kate and her companion, Hawklight, are not the only ones seeking the Toki-Moai. Fate has played its hand, and Kate cannot begin to comprehend all that she may lose in order for the quest to succeed.

If you were to put David Sedaris and Glenn O'Brien in a blender and add a dash of New York and Hollywood gossip, you would wind up with Alan Cumming. Described by Time magazine as one of the most fun people in show business, Cumming is a genuine triple-threat as a successful stage, television, and film star whose real-life vivacity, sophisticated wit, and charm tend to match that of his onstage personalities. In his third book, You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams, he has composed a collection of true-life adventures-or rather, misadventures-that is sure to make the reader laugh out loud. This volume recounts the hysterical and sometimes embarrassing encounters that only Cumming could experience, from awkwardly enter- taining Elizabeth Taylor at Carrie Fisher's birthday party to being on a movie set with Helen Mirren and being mocked for wearing Croc sandals to making a friend's day by chasing down Oprah at a glitzy gala for a prized photograph with her. These forty-five stories are humorous novellas, each featuring memo- rable photographs-many simply snapshots taken by Cumming-that document or illustrate the tale told.

From the creation myth of Izanagi and Izanami designed to explain the origins of the island of Japan, to the hundreds of kami (gods or spirits) and monsters populating the tales, Japanese legends tell the story of the land, the nation, the people and the divine heritage of the emperors of Japan. Often bloody and fantastic, the tales are a powerful, rewarding read, gathered together in the gorgeous, deluxe hardcover binding of the Flame Tree Epic Tales series. The latest title in Flame Tree's beautiful, comprehensive series of Gothic Fantasy titles, concentrates on the ancient, epic origins of modern fantasy.

DISCOVER THE NEW MEMOIR FROM ALAN CUMMING. BAGGAGE: TALES FROM A FULLY PACKED LIFE PUBLISHES 28 OCT '21 'One of the most memorable, heart-stopping autobiographies I have ever read' STEPHEN FRY WINNER OF THE SLIGHTLY FOXED BEST FIRST BIOGRAPHY PRIZE 2015 THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ATTITUDE MAGAZINE'S BOOK OF THE YEAR A beloved star of stage and screen, Alan Cumming's life and career have been shaped by a complex and dark family past - full of troubled memories, kept buried away. But then an unexpected phone call from his long-estranged father brought the pain of the past hurtling back into the present, and unravelled everything he thought he knew about himself. Not My Father's Son is the story of his journey of discovery, both a memoir of his childhood in Scotland, and an investigation into his family history which would change him forever. 'Equal parts memoir, whodunnit and manual for living . . . beautifully written, honest . . . I was completely sucked in' NEIL GAIMAN

X-Men
Born into a world filled with prejudice are children who possess extraordinary and dangerous powers the result of unique genetic mutations. But under the tutelage of Professor Xavier, these and other outcasts learn to harness their powers for the good of mankind. Now they must protect those who fear them as the nefarious Magneto, who believes humans and mutants can never co-exist, unveils his sinister plan for the future!

X-Men 2
Hatred and distrust brew between human and mutantkind. An unprovoked mutant attack on the President gives General William Stryker his long-awaited opportunity to wage all-out war against the mutants. A war that would leave only one race victorious. The X-Men must unite with their old adversary Magneto to prevent a devastating confrontation that could destroy everyone on the planet.

X-Men 3
Experience the awesome power of the X-Men's epic, final battle as it is time to take a stand. After a controversial "cure" is discovered, mutants can choose to retain their superhuman abilities or give up their unique gifts and become "normal". When peaceful mutant leader Charles Xavier clashes with his militant counterpart, Magneto, the battle lines are drawn for the war to end all wars.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Leading up to the events of the first X-Men movie, X-Men Origins: Wolverine tells the story of Wolverine's epically violent and romantic past, his complex relationship with Victor Creed, and the ominous Weapon X program. Along the way, Wolverine encounters many mutants, both familiar and new, including surprise appearances by several legends of the X-Men universe whose appearances in the film series have long been anticipated.

X-Men: First Class
Before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Before they were arch-enemies, they were closest of friends, working together, with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop the greatest threat the world has ever known. In the process, a rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto's Brotherhood and Professor X's X-Men.

The Wolverine
In modern day Japan, Wolverine is out of his depth in an unknown world as he faces his ultimate nemesis in a life-or-death battle that will leave him forever changed. Vulnerable for the first time and pushed to his physical and emotional limits, he confronts not only lethal samurai steel but also his inner struggle against his own immortality, emerging more powerful than we have ever seen him before.

X-Men: Days Of Future Past
The ultimate X-Men ensemble fights a war for the survival of the species across two time periods in the critically-acclaimed blockbuster smash hit X-Men: Days of Future Past. The characters from the original X-Men film trilogy join forces with their younger selves from X-Men: First Class in an epic battle that must change the past - to save our future.

Double bill of children's features that mix CGI animation and live action to follow the adventures of the Smurfs. In 'The Smurfs' (2011) after being chased by dark wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria), the Smurfs find themselves transported from their village in the Middle Ages to modern-day New York. There they seek shelter in the home of Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) and his wife, Grace (Jayma Mays), but with Gargamel on the loose, the Smurfs are running out of time to get back to their village. In 'The Smurfs 2' (2013) when Gargamel kidnaps Smurfette (voice of Katy Perry) and steals her away to Paris, the rest of the Smurf gang team up with their human friends Patrick and Grace to try and retrieve her from his clutches. However, with Smurfette the key to Gargamel's plans to transform his latest minions, the Naughties (voiced by Christina Ricci and J.B. Smoove), into Smurfs, this will be no simple task - not least because Smurfette seems rather taken by the Naughties...

Baggage is the story of Alan Cumming's life in Hollywood, taking us through the highs and lows of his career, from his struggle with mental health and failed relationships to encounters with legends (Liza! X Men! Gore Vidal! Kubrick! Spice Girls!). Cumming shows how every experience - each bad decision or moment of sensual joy - has shaped who he is today: a happy, flawed, vulnerable, fearless middle-aged man, with a lot of baggage. Startlingly honest, both poignant and joyous, Baggage shines a light on how to embrace the complicated messiness of life.

'No one ever fully recovers from their past. There is no cure for it. You just learn to manage and prioritise it. I believe the second you feel you have triumphed or overcome something, anything - an abuse, an injury to the body or the mind, an addiction, a character flaw, a habit, a person - you have merely decided to stop being vigilant and embraced denial as your modus operandi. And that is what this book is about, and for: to remind you not to buy in to the Hollywood ending.' Baggage chronicles the actor's life in Hollywood and the ways in which work has repeatedly whisked him away from personal calamities to sets and stages around the world. Taking us through the highs and lows of his career, his struggle with mental health, each failed relationship or encounter with a legend (Liza! X-Men! Gore Vidal! Kubrick! Spice Girls!), every bad decision or moment of sensual joy, Cumming shows how every experience - good or bad - has shaped who he is today: a happy, flawed, vulnerable, fearless middle-aged man, with a lot of baggage. Startlingly honest, both poignant and joyous, Baggage shines a light on how to embrace the complicated messiness of life.

Haiku poems about the natural world and the seasons are well known, but many poets have used the genre to capture the evocations of love. Combining elegant and restrained haiku with lively senryu poems, all aspects of romantic love are explored here with humour, satire, wit and compassion. Poems by both men and women from the 1600s to the present day are beautifully illustrated with images from the unrivalled collection of Japanese paintings and prints in the British Museum. From the tender and the melanch oly to the witty and the ribald, the poems and images in Haiku: Love comment on the most universal of human emotions.

Love in a Cold Climate is the wickedly funny sequel to Nancy Mitford's The Pursuit of Love which is now a major BBC series and Prime Video series directed by Emily Mortimer starring Lily James, Andrew Scott and Dominic West 'How lovely - green velvet and silver. I call that a dream, so soft and delicious, too.' She rubbed a fold of the skirt against her cheek. 'Mine's silver lame, it smells like a bird cage when it gets hot but I do love it. Aren't you thankful evening skirts are long again?' Ah, the dresses! But oh, the monotony of the Season, with its endless run of glittering balls. Even fabulously fashionable Polly Hampton - with her startling good looks and excellent social connections - is beginning to wilt under the glare. Groomed for the perfect marriage by her mother, fearsome Lady Montdore, Polly instead scandalises society by declaring her love for her uncle 'Boy' Dougdale, the Lecherous Lecturer, and promptly eloping to France. But the consequences of this union no one could quite expect . . . NANCY MITFORD'S WICKEDLY FUNNY SERIES CONTINUES IN DON'T TELL ALFRED. ***** 'Peerless' Zoe Heller 'Entirely original, inimitable and irresistible' Philip Hensher, Spectator 'A comic genius' Independent on Sunday

Pierce Brosnan makes his 007 debut, replacing Timothy Dalton as Britain's most celebrated secret agent. On his first post-Cold War mission, Bond is sent to blow up a Soviet chemical weapons factory with agent 006 (Sean Bean). Nine years later, Bond becomes involved in the break-up of the Soviet Union, and soon finds himself involved with a blitzkrieg of stolen helicopters, beautiful female assassins, Russian Mafiosi and the race for a vital piece of weaponry - the credit-card sized 'GoldenEye'.

"Kareem cradled her close to him, tucking her between his arm and his body, trying to keep her head above the thrashing, pounding waves, but Kate fought against him and slipped from his grasp. Moments later, she resurfaced beside him, and as he reached for her once more, she gripped his head between her two hands and screamed into his face. "Hawklight Find Hawklight He can't swim Leave me I can make it back to the boat " He opened his mouth to argue, but she yelled him down. "Don't you understand? Find Hawklight " A flash of lightning lit her face. Her eyes were wide, fearful, and pleading." The world of Bexus, a hostile place of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, is once again in peril, and only Kate Gallagher can help. The Hornshurst Talisman, also known as the Toki-Moai, has been stolen, and the citizens of Hornshurst want it back-at any cost. Because of the theft, the city-states of Hornshurst and Cherath have led Bexus to the brink of another crippling war. The Council of Hogarth orders Kate to intervene and wield the power of the crystal that she wrested from Varak only months ago, but Kate has discarded the stone. Once this fact becomes known, she must agree to track down the thief and return the talisman to its rightful owners to avert the war. But Kate and her companion, Hawklight, are not the only ones seeking the Toki-Moai. Fate has played its hand, and Kate cannot begin to comprehend all that she may lose in order for the quest to succeed.

She stopped and raised the torch. Kate looked. Alone on the wall was the figure of a girl with ice blue eyes and skin that glowed with a pure golden aura, standing out like an island in a dark black lagoon. ... There was no mistaking the identity of the tiny figure. Kate was staring at her own image burned into the wall. Bexus is another world, a hostile world of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, and there's only one way to get there-die. Neither heaven nor hell, Bexus is a world where the souls of the dead get a second chance. When Kate Gallagher awakens in Bexus after she is killed in a train wreck, she finds that her soul has retained a powerful memory of her earthly form. She also finds she bears a very dangerous mark-a golden aura that indicates purity and possibly the fulfilment of a prophecy. Kate finds herself chosen and suddenly thrust into the middle of a conflict she cannot hope to survive. With nowhere to turn and an entire world counting on her, Kate has no choice but to set out to fulfil her destiny. But Kate and her new friends are not the only ones who know of the prophecy that foretold her arrival. Varak, the tyrant lord of Bexus, is well aware of what her coming could mean for him. He's determined to capture and kill Kate before she can fulfil her destiny and return peace to Bexus.

Kate Gallagher has returned to Hogarth only to learn terrible news: as he was leading a secret expedition south, her estranged friend Hawklight was murdered by unknown assassins. Driven by guilt because she created the rift in their friendship, Kate vows to avenge his death. But as she begins to sift through the facts about his mysterious mission, she uncovers a diabolical plot that threatens to resurrect the spectre of Varak in the form of a new overlord of Bexus. Time is running out as Kate and her friends embark on a perilous adventure to prevent the unthinkable from happening. Unfortunately, others are constantly a step ahead in the race, and throughout the quest Kate and her companions are ruthlessly pursued in an attempt to prevent them from succeeding. Kate's destiny is inextricably entwined in this twisted power struggle, as she alone possesses the capability to prevent another tyrant from enslaving the planet. But she has yet to discover that there is a steep price to pay as an old nemesis seeks to settle a score.

Toommy is twenty-nine, lives and loves in London, and has a morbid fear of the c word (commitment), the b word (boyfriend), and the f word (forgetting to call his drug dealer before the weekend). But when he begins to feel the urge to become a father, he starts to wonder if his chosen lifestyle can ever make him happy. Faced with the choice of maintaining his hedonistic, drugged-out, and admittedly fabulous existence or chucking it all in favor of a far more sensitive, fulfilling--and let's face it--sober lifestyle, Tommy finds himself in a true quandary. Through a series of adventures and misadventures that lead him from London nightspots to New York bedrooms and back, our boy Tommy manages to answer some of life's most pressing questions--and even some he never thought to ask.

Double bill of TV dramas adapted from the novels of crime writer Martina Cole. 'The Take' (2009) stars Tom Hardy as Freddie Jackson, an armed robber who is released from prison in 1984 having served a four-year sentence for his crimes. His wife Jackie (Kierston Wareing), who has been waiting for him on the outside in the mistaken belief that that he wants to go straight, soon finds herself disappointed. Freddie is in fact raring to get back into the game and has set his sights on becoming top dog in the East End underworld. Meanwhile his younger cousin Jimmy (Shaun Evans) is hot on his heels, and dreams of riding Freddie's coat-tails to rise through the ranks of the crime empire. 'The Runaway' (2010) follows the story of Cathy Connor (Joanna Vanderham) and Eamonn Docherty (Jack O'Connell), who form a strong bond growing up together in the East End of London but are later pulled apart due to difficult circumstances. Cathy is determined not to end up like her prostitute mother, Madge (Kierston Wareing), but when she is abused whilst in care, she is forced to run away and ends up living on the streets, where she meets transvestite Desrae (Alan Cumming). During this time, Eamonn is becoming more and more involved in criminal activity. When this leads to murder, Eammon journeys to New York where he quickly becomes a notorious villain.