Issue 1319

Marlene on the wall
Amanda Lee Koe lied to her counsellor when asked if she had a role model. But who could blame her, when she was growing up a lesbian in repressive Singapore and the undisclosed role model was the loud and lewd degenerate Marlene Dietrich.

The Way I Work: Kim Denton
If you’re going to push a tube down someone’s throat within minutes of meeting them, you need to be good at building trust and rapport, says the nursing endoscopist. Interview: Steve Lee.

Before the curtain rises
In the 30 minutes before they go on stage, some of the actors shot by Simon Annand are in character, and some aren’t. Antonia Charlesworth speaks to the photographer who’s captured intimate glimpses of everyone from Phoebe Waller-Bridge to Cate Blanchett and Anthony Hopkins.

Plus
News, arts and entertainment, actor Wendell Pierce’s letter to his younger self, columnist Saskia Murphy’s new year resolutions, crossword, Sudoku and more.