Christopher Owens has a backstory so unusual that it’s amazing his nakedly honest, lovesick songs are so relatable. You could write a book about his personal history, but the short version is that the Miami-born musician spent his childhood in the controversial Children of God cult, isolated from popular culture and performing church songs in the streets of Asia and Europe for spare change. (The group didn’t believe in “work.”)

The Ontario government has a new theory about the cause of the global recession.

David Miller was elected in 2003 on the promise to clean up City Hall, memorably waving a broom in the air and attaching the image to his campaign signs.

This week, almost seven years into his tenure and a year before he steps down, the mayor pulled out a vacuum cleaner.

Liquor, emotional addiction and drugs fuel Polly Stenham’s powerful family drama That Face. Too bad the Nightwood/Canadian Stage production only realizes the show’s intensity late in the evening.

Jon Ronson spends a lot of time immersed in strange cultures.

George Clooney’s long-time filmmaking partner, Grant Heslov, makes his directorial debut with this wobbly comedy.

Imagine being an under-the-radar singer/songwriter with five solo albums to your name when suddenly you’re asked to join one of the hottest indie rock bands on the planet. As a drummer, no less.

Who says a store has to keep regular 9-to-5 hours? Coal Miner’s Daughter owners Janine Cockburn-Haller and Krysten Caddy are closed weekdays but open after 5 pm to catch Mirvish Village’s evening buzz.

Toronto doesn’t have a folk art museum, but the Gardiner partly fills the gap, not only with Staffordshire figurine makers and Mexican Day of the Dead artisans, but also with idiosyncratic contemporary sculptors operating outside prevalent art trends.