On my radar: Thea Gilmore’s cultural highlights

The singer-songwriter on the return of Blur, the loneliness in Edward Hopper’s paintings, BBC TV satire W1A and the inspirational environment of Liverpool

Singer-songwriter Thea Gilmore grew up in Oxford earlier than leaving house in her teenagers to work in a recording studio, where she was found by producer Nigel Stonier (whom she later married). She released her first album, Burning Dorothy, at 18 and broke into the album charts with Avalanche at 23. Gilmore performed in a Bob Dylan tribute live performance at the Royal Concert Corridor, Glasgow in 2011, that yr releasing her version of his John Wesley Harding album and Don’t Stop Singing – a set of songs utilizing lyrics written by the late Sandy Denny. Gilmore is at present touring the UK. Her new album, Ghosts & Graffiti, is out on 11 Might.