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GREAT story from the opening of John Kirby's The Living and the Dead exhibition, which I've reviewed for the first issue of Post Culture.

The show includes the painting Virgin of Sorrows (1991), which depicts a naked male figure whose face has been covered by a blanket or shroud. As with many of Kirby's works it is both interesting and disconcerting.

Apparently Madonna saw the picture and loved it so much that she bought it. Unable to fit it through the doorway of her home, she had the canvas professionally removed from its frame and reconstructed in her bedroom.

A few days later she returned it to the artist, saying she couldn't sleep with it in her room. This is great for us of course as it means we can see the painting ourselves at the Walker Art Gallery. Kirby has many high profile collectors there is also a painting (Forever Clinging) lent to the exhibition by David Hockney.

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I went to the press day of Swallows and Amazons in the West End last week to interview some of the cast, the writer (Liverpool-born Helen Blakeman) and The Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, who composed the score.

The interviews will be published in future editions of the Liverpool Post and I'll be reviewing the show when it comes to the Playhouse in March, but for now I'll just say that I enjoyed it a lot and if you have children I'd would definitely recommend taking them to see it. It would be a good introduction to theatre and what can be created on stage without sacrificing the audience's imagination.

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AND finally...

Liverpool artist Leo Fitzmaurice will tonight find out if he has won the Northern Art Prize. I'm going along to the ceremony so will post the result here.