Coronavirus

Unapproved Covid tests have been "widely" used in TV and film productions, a laboratories trade body claims.

The Laboratory and Testing Industry Organisation (LTIO) found two Covid tests – MFX Biotech and Virolens - are being marketed to the film production industry despite not being authorised under the Medical Devices (Coronavirus Test Device Approvals) Regulations 2021.

The LTIO wrote to the Department of Health and Social Care, who confirmed these tests are illegal to sell in the UK.

LTIO Executive Director Matt Cartmell says the association is concerned.

“It is completely unacceptable that Covid tests that are not legal are in use by businesses in the UK, especially in the TV and production industry. Rogue manufacturers should be held accountable for their actions.”

The city of Edinburgh will hold a competition to select a music-writer-in-residence.

The appointee will chronicle the recovery of the local live music scene on the webistes of Edinburgh Music Lovers and Forever Edinburgh, a £90,000 campaign by Visit Scotland.

Edinburgh Music Lovers founder Jim Byers he that "telling more people about music in Edinburgh is something I’m very passionate about ".

"Local venues and artists need support more than ever and a music writer in residence can help showcase Edinburgh to music fans around the UK and also showcase and develop their writing skills at the same time.”

The Government's pandemic insurance scheme for film and television is closing.

First unveiled in July 2020, The £500m Film and TV Production Restart Scheme was extended for six months in October.

DCMS says the scheme supported 95,000 jobs and led to a record £5.6bn production spend.

Its closure follows lobbying from film and TV groups who called for another extension.

Instead, insurance trade bodies will work with commercial firms to provide cover for the screen industries, the DCMS says.

Producers body Pact called the move “disappointing”.

“Pact members and the wider industry now face a very messy period where some productions will be able to get cover and others will not due to the limited number of insurance providers in the market.”

18-year-olds in Spain will receive €400 (£335) in culture vouchers to spend on the arts this year.

Approved by the Spanish government last week, The Youth Cultural Bonus can be spent on festivals, live events, books, vinyl and digital music.

Vouchers must be split across cultural mediums, with a €200 (£170) spending cap on live events and festivals, a €100 (£85) limit for physical products and a €100 limit for digital products.

The project aims to generate new habits of cultural consumption, create new audiences and reduce the negative impact caused by the pandemic on the country's cultural sector, according to a statement from the Spanish government website.

The initiative follows similar examples in France and Italy, where 18-year-olds receive €300 (£250) and €500 (£450) respectively to put towards cultural spending.

Advance booking patterns for performing arts shows last year were “very similar” to before the pandemic, according to analysis from TRG Arts and Purple Seven.

The organisations' ‘Two Years On’ survey found more than half of bookers last year were first time patrons. 

TRG Chief Executive Jill Robinson said the result is "heartening news" but is "not new behaviour in the post-Covid world".

Analysis of 288 UK theatres found the average age of ticket bookers has fallen to 56.4 from 57.4 years old.

Fewer bookings are coming from those born between the mid-1940s and 1960s (down 3%). The greatest increase has come from those born between 1965 and 1980.

The research found the pace of Covid recovery varies across the country, with the South West of England and Northern Ireland performing stronger than Wales, Yorkshire and the North East of England.

Fifteen plays will be commissioned under a new scheme to address a "devastating" decline in opportunities during the pandemic.

The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), HighTide Theatre, UK Theatre and the Independent Theatre Council have partnered on the New Play Commission Scheme, securing £50,000 in funding. There is a £5,000 award for the best play by an unpublished writer.

A survey of UK Theatre members revealed new commissions had declined by a third since 2019/20, while a poll of WGGB members indiciated three quarters of playwrights had lost income during Covid-19. Half believed they would not be working in theatre in two years' time.

HighTide Artistic Director Suba Das said the commissions not only offer "a lifeline to both writers and companies across the UK but helps ensure new writing forms part of how we all move forwards as citizens and communities".

The scheme will launch in April.