From Lulu to comedy, tennis to Elbow and Robbie Williams, here’s our pick of the week’s best things to do. Enjoy a different Romeo and Juliette The Rotterdam Philharmonic presents a spectacular show which uses classical music to tell a love story, incorporating dance, singing, aerial acrobatics, magic, costumes and sets. The show is directed by Guy Caron (photo), formerly of Cirque du Soleil. Among the music being played is Prokofiev’s Romeo and Julia suites 1 and 2. The conductor... More >

If you ever wander along the Dutch coast, you may have come across partly hidden concrete structures – the remains of the network of bunkers built during World War II. Usually closed to the public, this Saturday (June 6) you have the chance to poke around inside because it is National Bunker Day. Here are some key facts. The Atlantic Wall The Dutch bunkers form part of the Atlantic Wall, a series of coastal fortifications stretching from the Franco-Spanish border... More >

The Dutch Metropole Orchestra is the biggest jazz and pop orchestra in the world and has performed with greats such as Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Getz. This June the orchestra marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of its founder Dolf van der Linden. In November, it celebrates its 70th anniversary. Here are ten things you might like to know. 1 The idea of forming an orchestra was first mooted in early 1945, when Queen Wilhelmina and her... More >

Summer officially starts this week and the forecasters say the weather is set to heat up by next weekend. From beach volleyball to opera, from Pharrell to prize-winning photography, here’s a list of 10 great things to do in the coming weeks. Hang out at the Holland Festival The annual cultural festival is broadening its scope this year, with more venues such as Podium Mozaiek in Amsterdam West and the Museumplein, and more disciplines such as street projections and a... More >

The last time the Netherlands won the Eurovision Song Contest was 40 years ago,  when Teach-In took the honours with the infamous ‘Ding-a-dong’. Singer Getty Kaspers talks to DutchNews.nl about Eurovision then and now. ‘Ding-a-dong every hour, when you pick a flower, even when your lover is gone, gone, gone.’ So goes the kitschy but catchy chorus of Ding-A-Dong, the song that, 40 years ago, made Teach-In Eurovision champions. The song – in stark contrast to the quieter ballads put... More >

From speaking 14 languages in the 17th century to exploring the Sahara; from taking the Olympics by storm to defying the German occupiers – here is a list of inspirational Dutch women who’ve made it into the history books for reasons other than their appearance. In no particular order. Anna Maria van Schurman Born in Cologne in 1607, this well educated 17th century woman spent most of her life in the Netherlands where she was permitted an education. She spoke... More >

After having us cycle along starry night bike paths, Dutch artist and innovator Daan Roosegaarde has now turned his attention to the power of water. Just over one quarter of the Netherlands is below sea level and the sea is kept at bay by a network of dykes, dams and other water defences. But what would happen if they weren’t there? ‘Waterlicht is the dream landscape about the power and poetry of water,’ Roosegaarde says on Studio Roosengaarde website. ‘Innovation... More >

The Eurovision Song Contest is 60 years old this year and the Dutch have been there right from the beginning. Despite this, they have only won four times. Last year, they almost made it and this year, hopes are pinned on Walk Along, sung by Trijntje Oosterhuis. The very first song at the international finals of the very first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956 was the Dutch entry – one of the Dutch entries in fact. Only seven countries took... More >