FILM: THE FIRST MOVIE
Duke Of York’s Sun 3rd
Where kids in Hanover spend their yoghurt-enriched days dreaming of Harry Potter, kids in Iraq probably have their imagination sources less readily supplied. Mark Cousins went to one village to find out, giving his protégés cameras to record their lives. It’s followed by a questions and answers session with the director and, like most venues this month, is only one highlight of a packed programme at everyone’s favourite picturehouse. (BM)

FILM: MR NICE
Duke Of York’s Fri 8th-Thurs 14th
That Welsh drug dealer Howard Marks became a superstar in the mid 90s was odd to say the least. His ubiquitous autobiography really wasn’t much cop – try Robert Sabbag’s ‘Snowblind’ for a better smuggling book – but undoubtedly he’s lived a fascinating life that freed from the writing ought to be a riot onscreen. Rhys Ifans seems perfect to play the laconic, anti-violence dealer, especially in the comedic set up, though the film calmy deals with the issues towards the end of the film. (JK)

THEATRE: SEX IDIOT
The Basement Fri 15th
The Guardian’s unimpressed description of Bryony Kimmings’s attempt to fashion a moustache out of pubic hair contributed by her audience was probably as entertaining as her Edinburgh performance, forming an appropriate critical reception for a woman possessed by insanity and the clutches of chlamydia. This breezy traipse through a 29-year-old’s sexual past is not one for the faint of heart but, even in a top-notch month, its singularity is assured. (BM)

COMEDY: LATE NIGHT GIMP FIGHT
Upstairs at Three & Ten Fri 15th and Sat 16th
Having sold out their run up in Scotland, the gimps promise to leave you “feeling violated, but in a good way” as they head south on a wave of euphoria following their Edinburgh Fringe award nomination. It marks the first show of the Brighton Comedy Fringe, which launches at the Three and Ten the previous night before scattering a gawpingly brilliant line-up across the rest of the month. (BM)

COMEDY: I.O.U COMEDY
Coalition Mon 18th
Lets face it: it’s mid-October, it’s a Monday, it’s probably raining, and you’re probably miserable. If you fancy doing something other than crying into your soup over Coronation Street, you could always try getting yourself to Coalition for a stellar comedy line-up. This night features mainstream comedians such as Zoe Lyons as well as very promising newcomers such as Romesh Ranganathan and Ian Smith, who have too many accolades to list, so if you don’t enjoy yourself, you probably don’t actually like comedy nights. (JMM)

COMEDY: DEATH DRIVE
The Basement Fri 22nd
Tim Clare is a sweating rogue of a kitchen sink performer, too funny not to come under comedy but dramatic enough to provide swathes of pure theatre. His teenage suicide pact with his father is one starting point for a show which ventures into the realms of ukulele odes and confessional poetry, created by a writer whose spiritedly doomed attempt to win a book deal was a 3 Minute Wonder on Channel 4, no less. (BM)

FILM: LEGACY FILM FESTIVAL
Lighthouse Sat 23rd
The programme around Brighton for Black History Month is well worth investigating, exemplified by this trio of short films. Paradise Lost explores life for gay Trinidadians outside of the carnival season, Homecoming follows a photographer returning to his native Huddersfield for an exhibition of his work on sexual and cultural identity, and Legacy looks at maternal relationships in Afro-Caribbean culture. Discussions with the directors follow the screenings. (BM)

FILM: EXIT TO BEACH •
Duke of York’s Sun 24th
It’s impossible to live in Brighton without being aware of its seedier, darker sides, and this moving feature-length documentary follows the shadowy secret lives of Brighton’s homeless community. Dramatically shot and raw enough to maintain a gritty, real edge, Exit To Beach is a modern film that will capture the hearts of anyone familiar with Brighton’s side streets and park benches. Created by impressively talented Sussex students and using local musicians for the soundtrack, all proceeds of this viewing go directly to charity, improving the chances of Brighton’s homeless. (JMM)

THEATRE: IF THAT’S ALL THERE IS
Pavilion Theatre Wed 27th – Fri 29th
Inspector Sands are a young company heading off to New York and Beijing after this run of outings in smaller UK venues, which gives you the chance to point and laugh at all the suckers who’ll probably be paying fortunes to see them when they get back. A hopeless wedding day and a cast of powerfully-played characters teetering on the edge of madness make for a tragicomic whirlwind to savour. (BM)

DANCE: AMRAM KHAN COMPANY
Dome Thurs 28th
The centrifugal force of this performance, Vertical Road, is likely to leave dance fans in a boggle-eyed spin well into November. National Ballet of China collaborator Akram Khan puts his choreographic wizardry to use on performers from Asia, Europe and the Middle East for work based around universal myths of angels and the road between the earthly and the spiritual, throwing in a specially-commissioned Nitin Sawhney score for good measure. (BM)

EVENT: BEACH OF THE DEAD
Brighton Station Sat 30th
Sometimes, just sometimes, Brighton deserves its label as a plain weird place. October 30th will demonstrate this nicely, as over 1,000 citizens plan to awkwardly drag their white-painted faces and bloodied limbs towards the sea in a city-stopping celebration of zombified solidarity. Anyone is welcome to participate, the rules are listed on the Facebook page (our favourite is “don’t touch anyone!”) and with the town centre at a standstill, your safest bet is to join the rank ranks of the undead. (JMM)

WORDS BY JESSICA MARSHALL McHATTIE, BEN MILLER