David Parkinson

Toronto

Deputy Head of Newsroom Development at The Globe and Mail

David Parkinson, Deputy Head of Newsroom Development, The Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper

Articles

10 great films about popes

1 week ago | bfi.org.uk | David Parkinson |Josh Slater-Williams |Chloe Walker |Rory Doherty

The papacy and cinema go back a long way. Leo XIII became the first moving picture pope in July 1896, with successor Pius X being filmed in 1907. He would become the first cine-saint when he was canonised in 1954, two years after Henri Vidon had played him in The Secret Conclave (1952), which was the first feature to recreate a papal election. Pius actually disapproved of moving images and forbade their exhibition in churches in 1909.
Rod Steiger: 10 essential films

1 month ago | bfi.org.uk | Chloe Walker |Sam Wigley |David Parkinson |Chloe Walker Lists

One hundred years after he was born, we salute the fury and intensity of Rod Steiger’s presence on screen, from On the Waterfront to In the Heat of the Night. 14 April 2025Whether in a supporting role or as the lead, Rod Steiger was best known for his fevered intensity. He specialised in playing explosive men. Nevertheless, he was just as powerful when reigning in his propensity for going big, whether as villains who were eerily still, or as ordinary men fighting lonely battles within themselves.
Twice upon a time in Hollywood: how history repeats itself for ageing directors

1 month ago | bfi.org.uk | Maha Albadrawi |David Parkinson |Adam Nayman |Andy Medhurst

Martin Scorsese occupies a rarefied position on the internet these days: part elder statesman of film (on Letterboxd), part TikTok dad (to Francesca), and always good for an 8 to 12 minute YouTube sit-down. But in 2019, he found himself on the wrong side of internet ire when he compared Marvel films to theme parks. It was a throwaway comment in a longread about his career and upcoming film, The Irishman (2019).
5 things to watch this weekend - 4 to 6 April

1 month ago | bfi.org.uk | Sam Wigley |David Parkinson |Alex Ramon

Irish tragicomedy, a story of sex and publishing, and a Hitchcock classic on TV. What are you watching this weekend? 4 April 2025Where’s it on? Cinemas nationwideBy a quirk of scheduling, two films about budding gay novelists and the publishing world open in cinemas this week.
Richard Chamberlain obituary: dashing star of Dr. Kildare, Shōgun and The Three Musketeers

1 month ago | bfi.org.uk | David Parkinson Obituaries |David Parkinson |Adam Nayman |Andy Medhurst

A combination of good looks and impeccable control meant that Richard Chamberlain, who died two days before his 91st birthday, was never quite afforded his due as an actor. The son of an alcoholic shop fittings salesman, he was born in Beverly Hills (“the wrong side of Wilshire Boulevard”) on 31 March 1934. Having hidden the fact he was gay to serve in the US military in post-war Korea, he later returned to Los Angeles to study with blacklisted actor Jeff Corey.
10 great films about The Beatles

1 month ago | bfi.org.uk | David Parkinson |Sam Wigley |Alex Ramon

Poor old Ringo Starr. George Harrison was commemorated by Martin Scorsese, while Paul McCartney is about to be profiled by Morgan Neville, and Kevin Macdonald’s One to One: John & Yoko and Alan G. Parker’s Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade are the latest in a long line of tributes to John Lennon –in the last year alone, these included Daytime Revolution, Revival 69, and the three-part John Lennon: Murder Without a Trial.
The U.S. waged a trade war against Canada before. Here’s how it ended - The Globe and Mail

1 month ago | theglobeandmail.com | David Parkinson

The McKinley Tariff Act of 1890 delivered tariffs of up to 50 per cent on Canadian exports to the U.S. But it didn’t dissuade Canadian trade – it rerouted it
Increase in AI means we should re-assess what we teach in schools

Feb 12, 2025 | countypress.co.uk | David Parkinson |Totland Bay

Whiteboard in a school classroom (Image: Pixabay) David Parkinson, Totland Bay: Hans Bromwich suggests in his prescient letter (CP 07-01-25) that the rapid development of AI may mean large numbers of people no longer need to work. This is not some far off fantasy. Finland recognised this change and in 2018 piloted a form of universal basic income to see how this would affect its citizens.
10 great films that cover huge spans of time

Jan 16, 2025 | bfi.org.uk | Matthew Thrift |Anton Bitel |Pamela Hutchinson |David Parkinson

There’s no separating the past from the present in Robert Zemeckis’s extraordinary Here (2024). One of the most adventurously experimental studio pictures to emerge this century, the film retains the unique formal gambit of its source material, a 2014 graphic novel by Richard McGuire. As on the page, a fixed perspective surveys millions of years of history, from the primordial era all the way through to the creation of a suburban home.
10 great Mexican horror films

Jan 8, 2025 | bfi.org.uk | Anton Bitel |Pamela Hutchinson |David Parkinson

Guillermo del Toro was born, grew up, and studied in Guadalajara, Jalisco in western Mexico. In 1986 he co-founded the Guadalajara International Film Festival, expressly intended to raise the profile of Mexican cinema. The first edition included his own short Doña Lupe.