The Royal Exchange’s Christmas show deserves all the praise it's getting

An unexpected music hall-inspired treat, starring Maxine Peake

Dear members — we sent our culture writer Sophie Atkinson to review the latest production at the Royal Exchange: Betty! A Sort of Musical. It’s based on the life of the first female speaker of the House of Commons, Betty Boothroyd. Sophie wasn’t particularly eager to see the show, but afterwards she couldn’t avoid the consensus drawn by other reviewers across the country: it’s a triumph. More on that below.

A very warm welcome to the 15 of you who joined up yesterday, a little glut of new members perhaps egged on by the last chance (almost, the last chance is Thursday morning) to get a free copy of North Country: An anthology of landscape and nature (worth £14.99) and a card from the team. If you’re an existing member and you’d love to have a book and a card from us, fear not — there is a way. Just buy a friend an annual gift subscription now, and you shall receive your book and card before Christmas (hopefully). We’re having a big day of book wrapping and card writing on Thursday in t…