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Claire Hamill - Rock 'n' Roll Survivor
Tucked away among the legends of Island Records in the 1970s was a songwriting teenager from Teeside called Claire Hamill. Thrust into the spotlight at a tender age, she may not have set the singles...
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What is the Definition of a Circus?
Zippos Circus (Photo: Piet-Hein Out, courtesy Zippos) A recent article of mine on whether contemporary circus needs a new name to separate it from traditional circuses has sparked a fair bit of...
View ArticleWhere Do We Go to Now?
I'm a 'Dark Tourist' and I love to visit places that might possibly be considered a bit tricky, even a bit dodgy for holiday purposes. In my time I've been skiing in Iran, week-ended in Chernobyl,...
View ArticleScream MTV Series: A UK Fans View
Ask anyone that really knows me and they will tell you, aside from my work on Reality TV shows like the X Factor & The Voice, my other love is The Scream franchise. (and of course my family) 2nd...
View ArticleWhy I'm Celebrating 'Independents Day' This 4th July
This Fourth of July, as our friends across the pond celebrate Independence Day I've decided to honour a different kind of independents... Independent Record Labels. As our musical landscape becomes...
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You Should Be Stronger Than Me: Amy Winehouse and I
My friend Chris' mum is a huge T-Rex fan. Every year she goes to the site where Marc Bolan crashed his car and lays flowers, shares memories with other fans and reminds herself how much she loved him....
View ArticleCarpet Fitter to Model and Award-winning Actor at 50
I wasn't particularly looking for a career change, although something less physical and strenuous than fitting carpets for a living had crossed my mind from time to time, especially after 30 years in...
View ArticleI Don't Find Writing a Woman as Comfortable as Writing a Man - I Actively...
The book is called The 3rd Woman, but its heroine is very much my second woman. Don't get me wrong. I don't mean she's the other woman in my life - though my wife might say there were times when it...
View ArticleI'm a Cross Between the Milk Tray Man and Gandhi
When the disability charity Scope asked me to play the Milk Tray Man in their online spoof of the cheesy Cadbury's Milk Tray ads, I had to go online and research them all. Being Australian I had no...
View ArticleThinking About Gender And Festival Bookings
The current debates around gender bias in live music (specifically festival lineups) are important but people are focused too closely on the big names and headliners. I think we learn more looking at...
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The Motherf**ker With the Hat is a Motherf**king Powerful Play
Hats off to the The Motherf**ker with the Hat, a motherfu**king powerful play that's well worth catching during its London premiere run this month and next at the National Theatre. American playwright...
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Going To A Music Festival: An Impossible Dream If You're Deaf or Disabled?
With Glastonbury, The Isle of Wight Festival and Download over for another year and Latitude, V Festival, Reading and Leeds around the corner it's safe to say that the UK festival season is in full...
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'As Is' at London's Trafalgar Studios
When William M. Hoffman's play 'As Is' was first performed in New York 30 years ago, it was hailed by critics as being the most powerful play of the year, and the first of it's kind. Using humour and...
View ArticlePartial Recall - Terminator Genisys The Review
Thirty years ago, a nervous 16 year old bought a ticket for the 18 certificate The Terminator. In an age before he was able to worship the God of VHS, this was a major event. Writer/director James...
View Article"Why Does It Take So long for Your Book to Come Out if You've Already Written...
Coming from an online publishing background ("Never wrong for long..." "The client wants their advertorial up yesterday..." "Copy and paste! Copy and paste!" and so on) sometimes the pace of book...
View ArticleLive Fast, Die Young and Leave a Beautiful Documentary
To anyone who bought Cheek to Cheek, Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's 2014 award winning collection of jazz standards, the recent cinematic release of Amy will come as a timely and rather sad reminder of...
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Rory Kinnear Stars in a Bizarre Adaptation of 'The Trial', Young Vic Theatre
It really pains me to say that, despite the best efforts of the magnificent Rory Kinnear, The Trial at the Young Vic is not one to remember. Kafka's classic novel on guilt, authority and injustice has...
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Clapham Calling - How the Hives Stole the Show From Noel Gallagher
Just for the record, I must state that there is no bigger fan of Noel Gallagher than myself. Indeed, my unhealthy idolization of the man's prolific songwriting drew me to the Calling Festival itself....
View ArticleTriumphant Premiere of Classic Quadrophenia
Since I first heard Alfie Boe sing two Classic Quadrophenia songs on his UK Winter Tour, I have been keenly anticipating hearing the whole album live on stage. The album is tremendous, made more so by...
View ArticleIn Defence of Pop Music
I'm told I have a shameful secret. When people find out, I'm informed never to speak of my disgraceful desires in public again due to the indignity that may follow. 'What you do in your house is your...
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