Brussels in English

An afterwork crowd of sad, albeit jovial Brits and sympathisers assembled in the Grand Place on the eve of the UK’s exit from the EU. Meanwhile, British ambassador to Belgium Martin Shearman had this practical message for Brits in Belgium, in a video posted on Facebook .

Whether you want to watch a Hollywood musical of the 1930s, a German silent movie of the 1920s, a gritty documentary of the 1970s or just about any period and style film in pristine conditions you’ll find it here. The Royal Cinémathèque of Belgium, known as Cinematek since 2009, was founded in 1938 and is the largest in Europe with a very broad reach across many different types of films, commercia...

We Love Brussels has spent two months searching for the best amateur photos of street life in the city. The photos will be on display at Where Nowhere art gallery in Ganshoren from Saturday 1 Februar y and the audience will select the winner. To tell us more about this event we spoke to photographer and blogger Aleksandra Rowicka.

The Sonian Forest is a big producer of timber - 20,000 cubic metres per year. To appreciate how much wood that is, it takes three full size lorries to transport just 100 cubic metres. Since about 10 years ago, 75% of this wood is exported to China where it is made into objects that may very well come back to Europe at great environmental cost.  A collective named the Sonian Wood Coop has been form...

The latest addition to Brussels' new 3,000m² food destination, Wolf, has opened with the inauguration of an organic supermarket. The Food Hub features fresh produce from more than 40 small and medium producers and co-ops, who are supplying vegetables, fruit, dairy products, baked goods, meat, dry foods and beverages. We hear from Food Hub founder Simon Clissold as well as two Spanish producers and...

What seemed to many to be a quixotic endeavour, the Magritte Awards for Belgian francophone cinema, are celebrating their 10th edition with verve. Co-founder Patrick Quinet tells us why he knew it was destined to succeed. https://www.lesmagritteducinema.com/startpage.php?lang=en?lang=fr

American artist/musician Charlemagne Palestine, a New York native, was an integral part of the contemporary music scene starting in the Sixties, composing music, creating kinetic light sculptures, sound and movement pieces, records, videos, sculptures, abstract expressionistic visual scores, teaching at Cal Arts and performing on the piano with his stuffed animals. Since the mid Nineties he has li...

A new 3,000m² food market looks set to be a major game-changer for central Brussels - including 17 restaurants, an organic supermarket, on-site microbrewery and bean to bar chocolate-maker. Wolf Food Market aims to seduce with a wide variety of fresh food, a historical building and imaginative design. We spoke with six people involved. https://wolf.brussels/

Making plans for the period between Christmas and New Year? Richard Harris shares some ideas.

This Christmas you can help more than 400 off the worst-off families in Brussels by donating mother and baby items to Nasci - a charity supporting parents in and young children in poverty. Nasci needs nappies, toys, clothes, pushchairs and toiletries - and removal service Dwump is on hand to pick up your donated items and deliver them free of charge to the charity. www.dwump.com

Built in 1531, the Antwerp Handelsbeurs was the first building built specifically as a stock exchange. The Royal Exchange in London, which built in 1565 was originally called the Bourse until Queen Elizabeth I changed the name, is based on it. The magnificent building has now been completely restored and will once again be a shortcut across the city as well as an event location. Bart Anthonissen,...

The punk, post-punk and new wave eras were about more than just music – as a fascinating, visually striking new show at Brussels design museum ADAM reveals. Punk Graphics: Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die takes a look at the totally original and extremely inventive visual language that came out of the era - a language that would deeply influence overall graphic design. www.adamuseum.be/punk-grap...

The ECC is bringing Beauty and the Beast back to the stage this winter, which has been written and directed by Chris Jones and Chris Goddard. See it from 17-19 January at Auderghem Cultural Centre. https://thelittleboxoffice.com/ECC/

During this year commemorating the 450th anniversary of Bruegel’s death we have had the pleasure of discovering different facets of the painter and his work through a number of different exhibitions and this continues into the autumn. The show at the Atomium is titled Bruegel:  A Poetic Experience. An innovative World and Mind. Director Arnaud Bozzini tells us what to expect (runs until September...

Schuman Lights Up is back, with a programme of festive events under a heated marquee next to the Berlaymont with Christmas trees and fairytale lighting. Various groups will be offering seasonal foods and activities. Marion Wolfers from organiser Schuman Square ASBL explains more. 29 November - 4 December

With just a few weeks left in the year it’s time for the publication of the Brussels Cultural Guide 2020. We caught up with Guy de Bellefroid, the director of the Fondation pour les Arts, to get the details on the new edition. http://www.fondationpourlesarts.be/

Much Ado About Nothing is the theatrical choice of the Brussels Shakespeare Society this winter - and director Marianne Farrar-Hockley assures us that “we will be taken on a holiday” and leave the theatre feeling rather warm. 

The ECC is bringing Beauty and the Beast back to the stage this winter, which has been written and directed by Chris Jones and Chris Goddard. True to pantomime tradition, ECC expect lots of audience participation as “we break the fourth wall a lot”, says Jones, who hopes that his jokes are as funny for the audience as they were for him when he wrote them.

Cole Porter’s wonderful score for Kiss Me Kate comes to bustling life as Brussels Light Opera Company performs the classic musical. Ex-spouses, a gambling addict and a couple of mobsters get mixed up onstage and behind the scenes as a theatre troupe puts on Shakespeare in 1950s Baltimore. 21-24 November, Auderghem Cultural Centre, Boulevard du Souverain 183

Super Heroes Never Die – Comics and Jewish Memories, the new show at the Jewish Museum of Belgium, is an updated version of a show created by the the Musée d’art et d’histoire du Judaïsme in Paris and the Joods Historisch Museum of Amsterdam which has travelled around the world. Co-curators Bruno Benvindo and Karim Tall have refreshed the exhibition which is divided into five chronological section...

#stilltogether #beyondbrexit is an unusual event at the Black Sheep near Flagey on Tuesday 19 November - an evening of comedy, live music and open floor debate that aims to encourage a more authentic level of engagement across the divisions and polarisation at the heart of the Brexit discussion. Organiser Andreea Petre-Goncalves explains more. https://www.facebook.com/events/704035823444284/

Brussels' newest brewery is La Source, opening in the historic Byrrh building next to Tour & Taxis. Co-owner Mathieu Huygens tells us about his fresh beer with local ingredients. www.lasourcebeer.be

The Manneken-Pis statue is 400 years old this year and the city is organizing a full bouquet of events to celebrate the birthday. In 1619 the Brussels city government ordered a new Manneken-Pis statue to replace the existing one. The city commissioned the new statue from one of the most prominent sculptors at that time, Jérôme Duquesnoy, which shows the importance the statue already had. We hear f...

Insecure & Dangereux have been running comedy gigs in English in Brussels for the past year - going from a 20-person audience once a month to a 100+ person weekly crowd. All gigs are free, with a street-theatre style “pass the hat” policy for the comedians. Venues include the Black Sheep, Sax and Drums at the Funky Monkey and the ViaVia Café. Two of the founders, Aili Voit and Sean O’Dubhghail...

PICTURE! Festival is the first festival in Brussels dedicated to the art of illustration. Over the ten days there will be: 50 illustrators, 40 venues, 33 exhibitions, nine masterclasses/meetings with artists, seven live drawing concerts and performances, seven film screenings, four workshops, a small press/printed image fair and a party. Festival director Marie Noble tells us all about it. www.pic...