The UK may have a thriving art scene, endless museums, and a monarchy that makes most of us cringe (but draws in the tourists), but when it comes to theatre we’re wofeully behind the USA in terms of output and creativity. We recently acquired the Legally Blonde Musical- a show which has been playing in Broadway for years, and unsurprisingly it was a resounding success. But why did we have to wait so long fro this import? Whyyyyy? I don’t have the answer, but I can share with you some other equally exciting shows that we will be getting.. well, some time this century.
The Addams family Musical
This sounds amazing.. I can just imagine Fester’s rumbling tones as he watches the kids do a ghoulish dance, and watching Wednesday rhyme words with boiled heads in song should truly be something. Currently on Broadway now, with no UK date set.
Shrek the Musical
The jolly green Ogre is coming to our shores, with the pallid faced Amanda Holden taking upon the role of his lovely Princess Fiona. Richard Blackwood will be playing Donkey and this fantastical event is scheduled for May 2011. I’m counting down the days… Read more…
Sorry for overwhelming you with information, but there hasn’t seemed a right time to publish my latest literary forays. Seeing as it’s now July, I better just go ahead and publish what I’ve read for the months of March-June, which explains why there is so much to wade through. This is really a record for me, I totally understand if you just look at the pictures and skip away to something more entertaining like a dog on a surfboard.
Before I launch into my latest selection of mini reviews let me also draw your attention to an amazing offer from Transworld. Called ‘The Summer Reading Challenge’, the offer gives keen readers a whopping four books FREE, and all you have to do in return is write a review of each book on your blog or Amazon. That’s all, nothing else needed whatsoever, and to get your free books you simply leave a comment on Between the Lines HERE and they’ll get in touch with you. There’s a choice of ten to pick from, and I promise you that Dan Brown is the bottom of the pile (in my opinion). Now for the reviews (please take a deep breath). Read more…
There are many things in life that are boring but necessary. These include taking out the garbage, having a cleaning rota if you share a house, and making sure you see the dentist once or twice a year. To go with those lovely mundane chores I have a selection of yawn inducing websites for you to peruse, that will nonetheless prove invaluable should you need any of their services. Entertainment definitely not included, but service is free.
It’s 10.50pm on a Saturday, you’re starving for a pizza, yet reluctant to pay an over inflated price for a grease ridden delivery. You know there’s a Tesco just round the corner, but will it be open? After ten minutes of debating it ‘Maybe’ ‘Maybe not’ ‘Umm’ you decide to search for it online. Once you’ve navigated through the Tesco website, narrowed you locale down by town and borough and then edited out the metro versions, whaddya know? It’s 12.01 and it’s most definitely shut.
Opening Times lists the various local businesses in your area and will give you a definite yes/no and till what time for anywhere you should choose to go. You’d be surprised how useful this is when nipping out for some emergency ice cream/toilet roll, but it most definitely comes under ‘boring’ in terms of websites. Read more…
I’ve been sitting on this post for a while for fear of offending any of my friends in the beauty PR world* but a recent rise in particularly impressive events has lead me to believe that a post like this could only be viewed as constructive. I’ve worked online for many years now in a variety of sectors, and whilst ‘meetups’ in other areas such as technology have been widely accepted for years now (probably due to the face that the web is a technological phenomenon) other sectors have been less than ready to accept the blogosphere as a reputable form of journalism. To ease confusion I will say that by blogs I encapsulate EVERYTHING from company run websites such as Cosmopolitan.com and Handbag.com to smaller sites such as www.Cultbeauty.co.uk, www.Kissandmakeup.tv and people who blog personally- every bit as professional, but not necessarily full time, such as British Beauty Blogger or Lipglossiping. To an extent one could even argue that those who blog personally are less restricted by advertising demands and the requirements of their companies, and are therefore either more honest or more in depth (due to no time constraints but that’s a whole other post.
Suffice to say, PR companies are now getting on board with bloggers and are hosting more and more events tailored specifically to this domain. I can’t applaud this more, it shows creativity, innovation and suggest that companies are embracing rather than being scared of new media. Just because you have an idea though, doesn’t always mean it’s implemented right, no matter how good the intention may have been. Here is my short guide on the things that companies are doing right and a couple of points on what they could do better.
Good things to Do.
Number One: Think about the Timing of The Event- and the Location
A meetup is all well and good, and a really nice way for the PR’s to get to know bloggers, and bloggers to meet each other in person. However many bloggers do NOT work full time andscheduling an event in the middle of the day means you’re automatically ruling out a majority of attendees. It’s a lovely plan, but you have to think realistically, and if it’s the bedroom bloggers you want to reach, and evening, or dare I say it-weekend- would be much more ideal. How are you planning for people who live out of town? Whilst major media outlets may be primarily based in London, for an event you’ll be bringing together from all over the country, so be prepared to offer travel expenses, or miss out on some high profile attendees
Number Two: Give them Images..of EVERYTHING!
Bloggers and web editors have one major thing in common- we work online. C’mon, that should be simple enough to figure out! So help us help you- give us IMAGES in JPEGs, CD’s, USB drives, we don’t mind, just give them to us NOW and don’t fill our bags with paper releases. Don’t promise to send us emails later, and then forget, hand us a USB stick with all the pics we could ever need. Make sure everything you say is there is ACTUALLY there, and if it’s not tell us why. If a product is an exclusive to someone, tell us why we don’t have the image, don’t let us run all the way home and then be infuriated when we load up our computer. Read more…
I like shoes. Who doesn’t like shoes? I defy anyone to say they actively hate the things, as after all, they’re well shaped items of apparel that protect your feet from the cold, the ground, and all sorts of bugs. Loving shoes is another matter, entirely, and as someone who once spent her months rent on buying a beautiful pair of shoes that were THREE SIZES TO SMALL I can attest that love isn’t always logical or necessarily sane. However my love for footwear has grown, and equally my hatred of feet (as I’ve said- love is not a logical being).
I adore a sleek curved heel, I go gaga over colour block shoes and extra applique, and the right embellishments can literally can make me swoon. Due to a recent cull of old shoes, I’m now down to around 40. Whilst browsing for my shoe fix online I came across a large number of lovely shoe related products that would not suffer wear and tear like the casual stiletto and I’m now considering what kind of loan I’d need to purchase the below (Joke. Sort of.) After all, why should you celebrate shoes on the feet alone- the design works equally well for home furnishings or crockery! Enjoy the following ( I know I did).
Summer is looming ominously/excitingly near, and many people are wondering how their pasty flabby skin will cope with all the extra scrutiny. Exercise is key in making sure you feel confident stripping off, and I’ve rounded up a selection of weird and wonderful ways to get fit and have fun. I really enjoy novelty in my exercise regime (why else would I have a pole in my living room?) so I’m excited to share with you a variety of *very* different ways to get into shape this year.
Shock Tactics
Gymbox, one of my all time favorite gyms has just released news of their latest class. Remember, these are the people who have previously brought the fitness world the WAG workout (you wear sunglasses and bend it like Beckham’s behind you) the Rave workout (performed to hard dance on mini trampolines whilst waving glow sticks) and Cheerleading, so you know a new class from them is going to be something special. This one has a couple of shocks up its sleeve.. literally. It’s a new take on circuit training as it utilises electrified balls, which you carry with you as you perform a circuit class. Read more…
I’ve been so busy the last two months I’ve read a really low amount of books. Still, amongst the random ones I selected I did discover one or two amazing new authors, as well as some texts that felt like I was wasting my time-on purpose. Read my mini reviews below. (And yes, I’m aware that it’s not April- the combined March/April version will be out soon.)
Martians Go Home, Frederic Brown
An alien invasion commonly sums up visions of explosions, violence and misery. The idea that aliens might invade and simply annoy had not really ever been dealt with before this quirky book. Aliens have appeared on earth and seem bent on frustrating people to death by invading their space with their presence and foulness, rather than with any weapons. Martians have landed, and they’re little green men who are insubstantial as they just zip from place to place and cause chaos by being inappropriate. Ridiculously entertaining and a very novel concept- this book was an accidental purchase that I haven’t regretted for a second. Read more…
