At this time of the year I almost forget I have a garden. In the summer, while the sun still shines, I’ll happily potter about when I get home from work. But in the winter, when it’s pitch black outside and usually raining or freezing cold, it’s not quite as appealing. I’m also never sure […]
This weekend we took my little nephew to the Winter Wonderland fair in Hyde Park for his first experience on a merry-go-round. This was followed by an electric Reindeer ride, video footage of which will no doubt be replayed incessantly to family members over Christmas – what with me looking ecstatic on the back of […]
I’ve been wanting to do this for a while now but last week I finally ordered my first organic food and veg box. There are a few companies to pick from but I opted for Woodfield Organics and their standard Fruit & Veg Mix. I stepped out to work yesterday morning and there it was […]
Over the past few days my ears have been picking up bizarro news stories left, right and centre, but the one that has really stuck in my mind made me picture homes and work places across Ireland becoming neglected and bedraggled-looking soon. Y’see, following a certain (dirty, stinking, cheating…) incident involving Thierry Henry, apparently scores […]
I saw this gem on a website ostensibly giving Christmas gift ideas for hapless husbands, boyfriends and brothers. Soon to be ex-husbands, ex-boyfriends and ex-siblings. Apparently Twittering your weight is all the rage at the moment – having your weekly weigh-in broadcast worldwide is the ideal way to keep the winter wobbles at bay. And […]
I’ve been reading The Man from Saigon, by Marti Leimbach (and if you followed the Currently We are Reading section last week, you’ll know I’m throughly enjoying it) and noticed that on Amazon the cover appears as pictured here – featuring a man wearing a Vietnamese hat. However, on the actual printed version of the […]
Come and meet actress Susan Wooldridge who will be talking about her debut novel “The Hidden Dance” at Hornsey Library, tonight Tuesday 8th December.
Our talented Art Editor, Christina Griffiths, has had her photography reviewed by The Guardian. Never one to toot her own horn, she did not broadcast the news (I only found out today), so I feel compelled and delighted to do the tooting for her. Her ‘portofilio of environmental portraiture’ is described as ‘stylishly executed’. The photos are praised for being ‘wonderfully […]
Thursday 10th December, 7pm WATERSTONE’S, ABERDEEN Maggie Craig will be signing copies of her latest book One Sweet Moment, together with fellow Scots Diane Morgan and Paul Smith, at Waterstone’s 3-7 Union Bridge, Aberdeen. For more info call the shop on 01224 592440.
After a mini-panic last week I have begun my Christmas shopping in earnest, seizing upon ideas with the same desperation that usually strikes this time of year. I came across the usual ‘top 10 toys for Christmas’ list the other week, and it made me wish I was buying for more kids than grown-ups. So […]
Be thankful your boss doesn’t make you do this! I doubt whether even David Brent would have come up with anything this mortifying! Staff in a Microsoft store have been asked/persuaded/forced/blackmailed (slightly regaining respect as we go on) to take part in this little party trick. In a routine that would make Billy Ray Cyrus […]
Last night, I had dinner with my mum, and our conversation veered onto my late American grandmother – her life and upbringing. Of all the titbits of information I learned, I was astounded to hear that my great grandmother had packed them up (my gran and her siblings) and taken them to Europe for a […]
Crime author Zoë Sharp will be signing copies of her books at London Olympia’s Collectormania event this weekend 28th – 29th November
Friday 4 December, 7.00pm CHESTER LIBRARY Join popular crime-writer Martin Edwards for an inter-active Victorian mystery evening at Chester Library, Northgate Street, Chester. Listen to the clues and see if you can find out who killed George Hargrave – there are prizes for the best solutions! Tickets £5 (including refreshments). For more information call the […]
Tuesday 8th December, 2.30-3.45pm KINROSS Author Maggie Craig will be talking about her work and new book One Sweet Moment at the new Loch Leven Community Campus Library in Kinross. Free tickets are available from the new library and the AK Bell Library in Perth. Call 01738 477016 for more information.
Last night I attended a private sale of a new collection of jewellery and accessories by a young designer, Maria-Xuan. We were invited through some old friends and it was an absolute delight to be privy to this girl’s talent. I can’t add cut and paste any of the pictures of her designs on this […]
Stieg Larsson never had the chance to see his books achieve their phenomenal success. He was the second bestselling author of 2008, beaten only by Khaled Hosseini and according to The Times (this came as a welcome surprise to me) he has now ‘outsold the whole Dan Brown oeuvre in paperback in Britain’. But would […]
Call me insular, but I love books about, well, books. Which is why I loved Nick Hornby’s The Complete Polysyllabic Spree – witty entries about the wonderfully diverse books he was reading – and why I’ll be adding Susan Hill’s Howards End is on the Landing – an epic journey through her plentifully stocked bookshelves […]
The new Twilight film New Moon premiered last week which saw screaming fans flock to Battersea Evolution – most of them, no doubt, there to catch a glimpse of heart-throb Robert Pattison (or R-Pat to use the current teen lingo…) The movie hits cinemas across the country this Friday 20 November – and so yes, […]
Here is something that’s bound to bring a little ounce of joy on a Monday morning, when we could all use an extra boost. I came across this video over the weekend, which took me down memory lane. I’ve been a Fred Astaire fan since I was little. I used to record his films on […]
I´ve been thinking lately about creative marketing – the kind that gets people talking or forwarding on the message or video or whatever to everyone they know, without it being an obvious sell of the product. I loved, for example, Honda´s “Hate Something, Change Something” advert – and I couldn´t stop singing that tune for the rest of […]