IT STARTED out not as a play but as a book - a book David Yip decided he could not bring himself to write while his father was alive.

So he locked the old man's memories away in a chest in the back of his mind until it became time to tell them.

Now reincarnated into Gold Mountain, they are told through polarised forms of expression - the ancient art of storytelling combined with multimedia wizardry.

FANTASTIC to see that the Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse has been nominated for three Theatre Management Awards. And another three on the short-list are shows that toured to Liverpool, which shows the high quality of programming in the city at the moment.

At this rate we will have to devalue the Daily Post's star-rating system so we don't give out too many five stars!

The nominations are. . .

SOME interesting Biennial-related links for you. . .

2. Co-operative news and poetry by former Bluecoat poet in residence Nathan Jones on Mercy's Biennial podcast

IF YOU haven't already made it along to A Foundation to see Sachiko Abe then I would seriously recommend you doing so.

It's such a simple idea but the result is so beautiful. She sits there for hours each day snipping skinny strips from a sheet of plain white paper which pile up into a mountain of shreds.

You watch her from below - she sits on a sort of balcony within the Furnace space, dressed in white and surrounded by a candy floss of paper. The only sound is the snipping of scissors.

THE Turner Prize exhibition has opened at Tate Britain and instead of concentrating on the art, there's been a lot of furore about photographers.

According to the Press Association, photographers boycotted the show after being asked to sign a form which said journalists could not publish any images or words which would "result in any adverse publicity" for the Tate.

The resulting two-hour stand-off ended when the Tate allowed them to attend the launch without signing the form and said it would be reviewed before further events.

An intriguing turn of events, but what about the art?

HOW would you programme a concert aimed at showcasing Liverpool's musical talents to the world? Which bands would you include and, more difficult, which would you leave out?

It's an impossible task in a city like this one to encompass the depth and breath of its performers in a single evening's entertainment, but the Phil had a brave stab at it on Saturday night in a concert that will be repeated on "Liverpool Day" at the World Expo in Shanghai.

The result was a cornucopia of sounds and styles, with the RLPO as the glue binding them together in some sort of coherent whole.

I HAVE just got home after my first experience of Anthology at the Everyman and am buzzing with things to say about it. For now though, here is my review. After I've slept on it, and the rest of my thoughts have settled, I will write another blog post. Although, I might first check my diary to get another few Anthology stories booked in. . .

"EVERYTHING is going to be all right," comes the reassurance as you sit in the Everyman auditorium, headphones and battery pack around your neck, an as yet functionless prop in your hand.

It's the much anticipated Anthology - seven individual plays by seven different writers, six of them local, that take you out of the theatre and into your imaginations.

A FOUNDATION is hosting the Liverpool Artists' Book Fair this weekend for the second year running.

Aimed as a vibrant platform for stall-holders to present an extraordinary array of
artists' books, zines and other paper-based works, it gives visitors the chance to buy unique and limited edition and, meet artists, illustrators and small presses from across the UK.

Participants include Alan Williams, Carol Ramsey, Deletia, Doodlezine, Drawing Paper, Julie Dodd, Kate Bufton, Linny Venables, LJMU Graphic Arts, My Dance the Skull, No Compromise Publishing, Object of Dreams, Pittville Press, Permanent Gallery Bookshop, Sam Venables, Simon Goode, Unrealised Projects by Sam Ely & Lynn Harris.

WE'RE not the only city in the world to be currently holding a biennial. These images are from San Paulo's 29th - featuring the work of 159 artists from across the globe and based on the idea that you cannot separate art from politics.

The festival opened last weekend and runs until December 12, 2010, - just in case you happen to be heading that way.

Self Portrait IV- Killing Ahmadinejad by Brazilian artist Gil Vicente

Before you click the "continue reading" link, I should point out that one image contains nudity.

TOUCHED by the pen of Tim Firth, the everyday becomes something significant.

The Wirral-born playwright has a knack of drawing out what is unusual in people's lives, while at the same time reminding the audience of how much they have in common with what is happening on stage.

In a scene in Calendar Girls, the women take it in turns to read letters sent to them by others who have lost a loved one to cancer.

It's a poignant moment, not just because it highlights how one Women's Institute branch touched thousands of people across the world, but because every single person in the theatre was thinking about someone they know who has died of the disease, or has survived it, or who they would be devastated to see to develop it.