Ben East

This year the Arab British Centre Award For Culture expanded to include individuals for their work in changing how Arab culture is perceived. Here are the six individuals made the shortlist.

A sparkling new version of the Qatar Museums Authority’s Pearls exhibition will soon arrive in London. What lies behind the phenomenon of this much sought-after gemstone?

Captivated by footage of Mahmoud Al Mabhouh’s killing by suspected Mossad agents in Dubai in 2010, the Turner Prize-nominated artists Jane and Louise Wilson have used the 27-minute film as the starting point for a new exhibition in London.

Tash Aw’s new novel Five Star Billionaire, set in Shanghai, was recently longlisted for the Booker Prize. As he awaits the shortlist announcement next week, he tells us why migration is the story of the decade.

The Nobel Prize-winning Irish poet has left the kind of literary void that might be impossible to fill.

As a lavish new edition of Travels In Arabia Deserta is published, Ben East finds out why it should be in the libraries of anyone interested in Arab history.

The multimillionaire music mogul, who's just been announced as the Friday-night headliner at this year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after-race concerts in November, has found success everywhere that he has laid his hat, writes Ben East.

Jay Varma has finally followed in the footsteps of his famous Indian family by becoming a full-time artist. He explains to us why it was now or never.

Abida Parveen is widely regarded as one of the best ghazal singers of recent times.

The Manchester International Festival: Painting a picture of colonialism and the cotton trade - over 65 hours.

What you want to read this summer, from Margaret Atwood to the late Iain Banks.

Abu Dhabi-based Mustafa Alrawi's debut novel is a measured study of heartbreak. He talks to Ben East about a love story with its roots in a post 9/11 world. 

This season, Jockey International matched the colours of artists' impressions of the Louvre and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and put the new shades in its current line.

When British novelist William Sutcliffe went to the West Bank, he was profoundly affected by what he saw. The result is The Wall, a new political fable with just as much relevance for children as adults. He explains his coming of age adventure story to Ben East.