Podcaster. Comms expert. Also a pretty inept equestrian.
I resisted reading anything by Thomas Hardy as a teenager because I was a lazy oik that made a snap judgement his works would be tediously moral because of when it was written. (I liked my literature either full of classical gore or American 20th century languidness.) Read More
Forget Christian Grey and his cable ties – my latest adventure in the quest for true love involved a whistle… And before your filthy minds think “wooaaah, what kind of shit is she into…” said whistle was just used to encourage men and women to meet at a speed dating event. Read More
For the first 15 minutes of this play based on PG Wodehouse’s beloved characters Jeeves and Wooster, I was worried it wouldn’t work. Stephen Mangan seemed to hamming up the character of Bertie Wooster, too much and I envisioned this would result in a slapstick disaster. However, just as in the books, everything came through in the end, in part helped by a terrific performance from Jeeves (Matthew MacFayden). Read More
We’ve all been there – there’s only one more day before Christmas and you’re still recovering from the office party hangover/shame/food coma/all three so present shopping just hasn’t happened yet. Amongst the hordes bugging you for presents is an animal lover, and even worse, a London-based one. Their lack of exposure to the countryside means the fluffy adorability of most animals has not faded in the face of their habit of destroying things you love, and then thoughtfully returning it to you, via a trip through their bowels.
Puppies are obviously for life and not just for Christmas, so an off-the-cuff trip to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home is out for moral reasons. However, fear not, there are still ways for you to help you get them an animal fix in a way that is safe (for all parties concerned in case it seems unclear to you who would be most damaged by the experience) and you can just book online or over the phone asap. Read More
With historical neighbours such as the civil-war strewn Stuart period and the long, action-filled reign of Queen Victoria to contend with, the Georgian era runs the risk of paling in comparison.
The British Library is keen to dispel that image though, with its ‘Georgians revealed’ exhibition to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the accession of King George I in 1714. And indeed, any era that could invent a sport such as ‘cock throwing’ – in which people threw things at a cockerel tied to a stake – could not have entirely been without some creativity. Read More
Bored of going to the gym and staring at the same piece of wall as you try to avoid looking at the well oiled work-out buffs leering at you? Avoiding all the vicious mastiffs when jogging around your local dodgy London park getting a bit too life threatening? Well, as you would expect of somewhere as diverse as London there are plenty of clubs offering slightly off the beaten track activities for you to get that regular endorphin rush. As someone incapable of taking up a normal hobby, I have tried out a far few in London, here are some of the more extreme, if you are foolhardy enough… Read More
Part of the beauty of Harper Lee’s classic work, ‘To kill a mockingbird’, is the narration by the lead character Scout, a feisty young girl. And, thankfully none of that was lost in the stage production of it at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. The various non-principle characters took up the role of narrator for parts of the play where Scout’s inner thoughts and observations carry the story and bring humour and a child’s non-prejudiced insight. Read More
My review of ‘Fallen in Love’ by Joanna Carrick, published on TheLondonWord.com
The story of the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn is one that has been retold countless times. No doubt, because it has all the ingredients for a salacious tale – royalty, romance, betrayal, political machinations and let us not forget the seedier mutterings of incest. This notoriety means it is key, though, for an author to find a new angle, so that their rendition of the story stands out. Read More
After Helen Mirren’s star turn as her majesty in The Queen which was excellently scripted by Peter Morgan, a play about the Queen written by Morgan and starring Mirren sounded like a great idea. Read More
Bored of your traditional restaurant, all made out of bricks and mortar? Well you are in luck! Head down to Southbank and you can enjoy delicious Mexican food in a restaurant made out of shipping crates. Yes that’s right, some wag, decided to put together eight shipping crates on two overhanging levels and call it a restaurant. And, it works! Read More
Ploy Radford 