We bring you our guide to living well in the world’s capitals, from exhibitions to cinema, food, drink, fashion, music and beyond. Just call it culture and take it, it’s yours.

LONDON, SATURDAY 29th MARCH – SUNDAY 30th MARCH 2014

Let it all go, baby, it’s in the past
Following its original French release last year, The Past (or, Le passé) picked up a string of awards at every festival from Cannes to Palm Springs. So to say that its full release this week has been hotly anticipated is an understatement.

Having left his wife and daughters four years earlier, an Iranian man comes to Paris to finalise the divorce and finds his ex-wife in a relationship with another man. Cue tangled web of anger and regret. At base, the film tells an arresting story of failed efforts and frustration with the cement-like nature of what has come and passed. Time is a killer, and this relatable story is cuts painfully close to any home.

The Past, at cinemas now

Attack from inner space
There’s something inexplicable that hits you upon entering a well-designed space, a bizarre sense of gravitas for the structure surrounding you. And suddenly you’re standing, open-mouthed, in the middle of a room of people. You can do all that on a mammoth level at the Royal Academy of Arts right now, and it’s got nothing to do with the historic architecture of the building itself (FYI: it was founded in 1768).

Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined sees some of the most creative architectural minds from around the world come to the RA with the intention of providing a perspective on architecture. The resulting installations are breathtaking in both sheer size and aesthetic form. The exhibition’s run is coming to an end shortly so get down to Piccadilly before the room (figuratively) closes in for good.

Sensing Spaces: Architecture Reimagined, Royal Academy of Arts, until 6th April
Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1J 0BD

Gettin’ Cosey
Richard Clouston’s Cosey Club, christened after Cosey Fanni Tutti, returns on Saturday night with an exclusive set from one of the world’s greatest DJs, Ivan Smagghe. A rare opportunity to hear him in such an intimate setting, Cosey has been one of London’s finest underground parties since 2002, with an excellent crowd and an inimitable sound mixing industrial, post punk, hi nrg, electronic body music and anything they see fit. Trust us, we’ve been to loads of ’em, waiting for that moment we can make idiots of ourselves to Flowers of Romance (instrumental).

Like a lot of good things, there’s a password at the door. Use your initiative and you won’t have to go all Inspector Gadget to work it out. *Cough – click the link.*

Cosey Club, Saturday 29th March, 22:00-04:00
The Waiting Room, 175 Stoke Newington High Street, London, N16 0LH

Creatures of the deep blue sea… in Hackney
Small plates are big news. Mayfields, a cosy restaurant in the thick of a residential street in Hackney is thriving. Don’t be alarmed, for despite its intimate size this is a relatively laid back affair with a down to earth focus on freshly sourced produce translating to a seasonal menu. Seafood makes a full appearance in the likes of eel, potato soup and parsley sitting alongside brill, hops, white sprouting broccoli, grapefruit and curd. Oh and there’s real meat too – think duck ham (really) and the most tender of pork.

Mayfields, 52 Wilton Way, London E8 1BG