“life is like a room with doors – don’t be afraid to push them open”

In 1974, Mike Oldfield defied the critics and hit the top of the UK charts with Hergest Ridge, the ambitious follow-up to his unexpectedly successful debut Tubular Bells . To coincide with the release of the 50th-anniversary edition, the musician, his siblings and collaborators recount the story of an album created by an overwhelmed 21-year-old taking refuge near the Welsh borders.

Norman Lebrecht on Music HE WORKED SO ...

NOBODY MAKES CINEMA LIKE JAMES CAMERON. AND TO PROVE IT, HE INVITES EMPIRE T O SHADOW HIM FOR 48 HOURS AS HE COMPLETES HIS MOST AMBITIOUS MOVIE YET: AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH . HOLD ON TO YOUR IKRAN…

OVER THE LAST 40 YEARS, ELLE HAS CELEBRATED CREATIVITY OF ALL KINDS. HERE, A RANGE OF TODAY’S LEADING ARTISTS, WRITERS, PHOTOGRAPHERS AND DIRECTORS SHARE THE RITUALS, ROUTINES AND REALITIES BEHIND THEIR GREATEST WORKS, FROM MIND-BLOWING EXCEL SHEETS TO THE MAGIC OF THE DARK ROOM

THIS IS THE THIRD OF A THREE-PART SERIES MARKING THE SILVER JUBILEE OF THE 2000 SYDNEY OLYMPICS

Forty years ago this September, Kate Bush released Hounds Of Love . Her fifth studio record reinstated her position as one of the most innovative and creative artists of all time and yielded the (future) chart-topper Running Up That Hill . But its creation wasn’t always smooth. Here’s the story behind one of Bush’s best-loved albums.