Challenge The Live Music Industry, Turn the Lights Off: Pitchblack
Stood in the darkness, with only the occasional sighting of a silhouette or a small stream of light through the cardboard covering the windows, I found it hard to believe that I was in a room filled...
View ArticleSpooks (The Greater Good) The Review
The fact I yawned my way through half of this big screen version of the hit BBC thriller series from a few years ago is not because Spooks (The Greater Good) is a bad movie, more the fact I was jet...
View ArticleThe Return Of Poverty Porn: Benefitting Who Exactly?
If the Tories want to get more people off benefits and return them to work, thereby helping to save the odd £12 billion, then Benefits Street seems as good a place as any to start. After all, if series...
View ArticleAlfie Boe Talks New Classic Quadrophenia Dates
Recently, I have been listening to the upcoming orchestral version of Pete Townshend's Quadrophenia in the run up to the album release in June. It sounds fabulous, especially the vocals which sound as...
View ArticleA Letter to John Whittingdale
Dear Mr Whittingdale, Congratulations on your appointment as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Forgive me for writing at what I am sure is a busy time, but I wanted to express my...
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Tubby Hayes: When Fans Remember a British Jazz Legend
Take a trip through the secondhand record shops of Soho and if you're very lucky you'll stumble across one of the rarest musical commodities: a Tubby Hayes record. Tubby would have been 80 this year if...
View ArticleMad Men: Has TV Advertising Really Changed in the Last 50 Years?
Only one episode left before Don Draper and his band of merry madmen head off to that great pitch deck in the sky. Self-loathing cheat, serial lady-killer, fraud, alcoholic, ad man - I love Don Draper....
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The First Two Weeks of Brighton Fringe 2015
[The Biggest Marionette Circus in the World - Credit: Peter Williams] We're halfway there, so there are still two weeks left to take in England's largest arts festival. But what a two weeks we've just...
View ArticleLove and Rakets
Melding big riffs, discordant rhythms and romance, Raketkanon are probably not the sound you'd expect to come out of Belgium. I chat to, guitarist, Jef Verbeeck to see what makes them tick. Belgium,...
View ArticlePalmyra
The news that Isis is possibly about to over-run Palmyra in Syria hit me especially hard. It feels strange to be so affected by the plight of a ruined town so far away, especially when you equate it to...
View ArticleWhy Mindfulness Is the 'It' Girl
I've heard the jungle drums that some people think Mindfulness is another trend and will soon go the way of the Jane Fonda aerobics regime (forgotten for most of us). There's my retort. Mindfulness...
View ArticleWe Should All Be Doing Our Part to Ensure Our Younger Generation Is a Happy...
I have been extremely fortunate in life, and for that I am eternally grateful. I had a happy and stable upbringing and knew that I would always have the unwavering support from my family. I was the...
View ArticleSwipe Right for Hilary Duff
Last month, Hilary Duff astounded the world by revealing that she was on the popular internet dating app Tinder. The story, which emerged after a Reddit user uploaded a screenshot of Duff's profile,...
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Film Reviews : Mad Max:Fury Road - The Tribe - Clouds of Sils Maria - Lambert...
George Miller's Mad Max : Fury Road is a 5-star V-8 supercharged majestically surreal extravaganza that burns the screen with noise and colour - The Tribe, Winner Critics' Week Grand Prix at Cannes...
View ArticleBritain's Got Talent 2015 Audition Show Six
It's week six of BGT and by now most of you will already have your favourites. With just two audition shows left, time is running out for the talented people of Britain to show us what they can do....
View ArticleRichard E Grant: Hi, Jack!
There's never a good time for a son to tell his parents that he wants to be an actor, so when Richard E Grant informed his mother and father, they were "understandably worried". This was because he...
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Horizontalism - A Love Story
What do bands do when they're not doing anything? Often you hear their lead singers say in a kind of faux-weary manner (usually while brushing back a lock of greasy hair) "Yeah, man, we're getting back...
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Eurovision 2015: Ones to Watch
We're waltzing off to Vienna this week for the 60th annual Eurovision Song Contest. Austria is hosting thanks to last year's winner, the bearded Conchita Wurst, who crashed through barriers (garnering...
View Article'Big Brother: Timebomb' - Week One Review
In the 16 years Big Brother has run, last year was the first launch night I missed. As a result of being a housemate this time last year, I missed the pleasure of sitting back and enjoying the show...
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Film Review: Taking Stock
Taking Stock is a new comedy-drama film by award-winning filmmaker Maeve Murphy. I attended its pre-release screening. This independent film, shot in London, is aesthetically appealing and beautifully...
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