What an incredible 2025 it’s been in the world of prog. This year, we’ve taken a different approach to our Critics’ Choice and instead of printing our writers’ Top 20 lists, we’ve pooled them to create a definitive Top 50 with profile pieces on some of the key players. Did your favourite make the cut? We look forward to reading your thoughts on the results.

Audiences continued to defy the critics in 2025, with two widely panned films – A Minecraft Movie and the live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch – dominating the box office. Here are some of the films the critics did like, a few of which were also commercial hits

The unconventional instrumentation favoured by Tortoise is an indicator of how many different lineups have always jostled for space under the jazz umbrella. The national treasure that is The Pete Alle

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Rosalía: Lux The 33-year-old Catalan musician Rosalía was ...

Best books… Mark Kermode The film critic picks his ...