Job vs travelling

Having had the travelling bug since I completed a two-month trip to Thailand and Australia a coupla years back, I wanted to globetrot this year.

But it seems that my career, journalism, is something of a lifestyle choice, so I have been working pretty much since I graduated from university.

Don’t get me wrong – I love journalism and want to continue to pursue it as a career, but sometimes I wish there were more hours in the day, or that you could stop time, pop across to another country or two and then continue with work.

If you fancy travelling to Ireland at any time in the near future, be sure to check out Dublin airport car hire service sixt.ie.

Just Passed

That much sought after pink jewel belongs to me… it is mine, all mine.

The driving licence that is…

Throughout university, I was in the minority of people who thrusted my green provisional at the bouncer to get into a club, whilst all my pals had the pink licence which signifies driving prowess.

Meanwhile, all my school friends passed before we got our A Levels.

Talking of which, I found learning how to drive harder than my A Levels. Maybe not History… but give me an Economics paper or English Literature essay to write over doing that test again any day!

I feel Relieved with a capital R.

While we're on driving, why not check out Dublin car rental sevice sixt.ie next time you're in Ireland?

5 things I like and perhaps shouldn't

A Greggs veggie pasty - so fine dining doesn’t spring to mind when you think of Greggs, but their veggie pasties are simply divine and I won’t have a bad word said against them.

Reality TV – if you don’t watch a reality TV series, you won’t give two hoots about it and will probably feel superior to those who do. But if you do start watching a series, it’s compulsive viewing. Sad times for me who is HOOKED to Junior Apprentice and Over The Rainbow.

Miley Cyrus’s Party In The USA – her voice is rather good admittedly, but she is Hannah Montana. And Hannah Montana is not for 22-year-olds like myself.

Love handles – I think it’s ’cause I’m a shapeless stick that I think these fatty bits on the waist look lovely and feminine.

Celebrity gossip – you’ve never met these celebrities so who cares what they’re up to? Me, that’s who.

On an entirely different note, check out Dublin car rental services if you're heading to Ireland anytime soon.

Shameless adoration for Sex And The City

Although I concede that the Sex And The City ladies live the most frivolous, shallow and self-absorbed lives, I just love the series and first film.

And now I’m busting with excitement as I am going to a screening of the second movie next week, which means amazing unaffordable outfits and more glamour than you can shake a stick at.

I wonder if there will be a third film - I can’t see female viewers getting bored of Carrie&Co. for the foreseeable future.

Then again, I would have loved a third series of The Office but Ricky Gervais decided against that.

To make like the Sex And The City ladies and ooze fashion fabulousness, check out summer dresses at awear.com.

Summer lovin'

I may be speaking/writing to soon, but if the beaming sun outside my window is anything to go by, SUMMER IS HERE! Bring on the barbecues, beach trips and that much anticipated summer holiday!

We British apparently love to chit chat about the weather, so why not dedicate a blog post to this subject?

I’m actually sick of the constant cold that has plagued my life since about this time last year until today. If I migrate, the UK weather may be the deciding factor.

If you’re thinking of going to Ireland over the summer and want Dublin airport car hire services, head to sixt.ie.

My new addiction

Nail varnish. I love the stuff. I suppose it’s better to be addicted to nail varnish than smoking (unless you’re sniffing it). Recently, my nails change colour on a weekly basis. Last week they were pink. This week they’re black which led to kiddies at my little cousin’s birthday party today deciding I was a witch and making plasticine spider rings for me.

Working for a lifestyle magazine means I get to buy some products on the cheap which may be partly responsible for my new nail polish craze.

I wish I could get clothes on the cheap. I really need a new dress.

I think I’m going to check out dresses online at awear.com now.

Long weekend elation

Since having started working 9-5, I have become one of those people who gets deliriously happy when a long weekend, such as this one, comes around.

It seems strange to think that almost a year ago, I was lolling about my much-loved, dilapidated student house, not even knowing when a Bank Holiday was on the horizon.

Those were the days!

The strange thing is that I love my job, but I must enjoy doing absolutely nothing more. We are just animals after all, meant to eat, laze around and make merry.

If you’re stuck for ideas over the next long weekend that comes around, head to Dublin and hire a car.

Happy shopper

There was a distinct lack of chocolate eggs in my life this Easter weekend, but an abundance of shoes.

Walking past Covent Garden's amazing shoe boutiques on my way to work for two months has become too much for me to bear. Consequently, I have had shoes on the brain for the last week, and now I've got a brand spanking new pair on my feet. Pictured below is one of my new worker boots.


Indeed, I parted with £65 of my hard-earned cash to invest in these bad boys earlier today.

I'm not really a fashion victim, but these boots are all the rage at the moment.

I might be spending more money that I don't have tomorrow as I've got my eye on these fabulous 70s style multicoloured high-heels.

And then my lovely mummy bought me a pair of purple shoes for no reason, but we'll call them an Easter present seeing as I got no choccie eggs from her.

What I could really do with now is a whole bunch of summer dresses. I might have to check out ladies summer dresses at awear.com.

Attending press events for Closer Online

I was absolutely lovin' being a fly-on-the-wall at two press events I recently attended for Closer Online.

I hit up a party launching new international Walker's crisps flavours with a dear friend by the name of Emma Petela. We nattered away to Tara Palmer Tomkinson in the ladies' loos, and had a chinwag with a rather sun-kissed Gary Lineker about crisps and football, before cornering other celebs to get the latest from them.

I was absolutely shattered after the event, but being the keen bean I am, I attended the Channel 4 Comedy Gala press event the next night to get the lowdown from some of the nation's favourite comedians.



Alan Carr and Michael McIntyre were predictably hilarious, whilst Noel Fielding's gentle sense of humour and original fashion sense were a pleasure to encounter in real life. Channel 4’s Comedy Gala will air on Monday 5th April on Channel 4 at 9pm.

To read my detailed accounts, head to the Closer Online blog and check out entries dated for March 30th and March 31st.

And if you're upset that the long weekend is almost up, book a holiday! Why not check out Dublin car rental services and go for a weekend to Ireland?!

Bad (online) news I'm afraid

The Daily Mail's Mail Online got the most hits in February out of all the newspaper websites, while The Guardian saw its browsers fall over the same month. If you're insistent on reading tabloids' websites, why would you go for Mail Online? Let's forget its association with xenophobia and other 'phobias' for a minute. If you're going to read a tabloid, do it for the catchy headlines... Mail Online doesn't do 'em nearly as well as The Sun or The Mirror.

A day after I read the article on Mail Online's popularity, more bad news broke with Rupert Murdoch's plans to charge people to read the Times Online. I understand the reasoning behind online publications charging, but I don't want to payyyy!!!

Talking of websites, if you want a website for fab women's dresses, head to www.awear.com.

Some of my published work

Below are links to some of my published pieces.

FOR WWW.INTHENEWS.CO.UK:

Pre-Budget report 2009: What the papers say

Interview with Matt Damon

A news story on Lloyd's Banking Group

FOR WWW.CLOSERONLINE.CO.UK:

An article on Alex Reid's news and views (Reid is Jordan's hubby for those not in the know)

An article about Cheryl Cole's first interview since her husband Ashley's alleged cheating

A feature on St Patrick's Day

A feature on fighting the workout blues

FOR WWW.DIGITALSPY.CO.UK:

Story on reality TV star Kerry Katona being caught snorting cocaine

Story on musical legend Michael Jackson about his personal life

Today's top stories

What do Gordon Brown, Cheryl Cole (Tweedy?) and Jordan all have in common? They all wake up to see their faces splashed all over the papers of course!

Whilst I imagine that Gordon detested the bullying headlines and Cheryl winces when she sees speculation about her marriage, Jordan has admitted to loving the drama!

As a journalist (ha, feels weird saying that but for now I am employed woohooo), I sometimes wonder whether I’d enjoy reading headlines about myself.

Probably if the news stories centred on how amazing I was... everyone loves their ego to be flattered.

But I reckon I’ll stick to dishing the dirt on others and relaying current affairs information to the world!

If shopping is more your thing than news journalism, be sure to check out awear.com’s amazing evening dresses.

Celebrity Big Brother is celeb ex central

The Celebrity Big Brother house is stuffed to the brim with celebrities' exes this year.

These contestants may have gained some recognition in their own right, but the fact remains that they are in the house because of their former relationships, or in Alex Reid's case, his on/off partner.

Do these people have no shame in thriving off someone else's glory? No, no they don't.

Glamour model Jordan's ex Dane Bowers and on/off boyf Alex Reid are both in the house because of their association with her. People thought there might be friction between the twosome, but they actually get on quite well.

At least Bowers and Reid have personalities, unlike Ekaterina Ivanova who famously broke up Ronnie Wood's marriage after stealing him from Jo Wood. She's so boring she makes pairing socks seem interesting. I'm glad she has been voted out.

Ivana Trump is the final ex in the house. Despite having wed again since her marriage to Donald Trump, she has retained his surname. For her kids? Possibly. For the money and fame this surname signifies? Probably.

The rest of this year's housemates are: nice but dim WAG Nicola T, Sisqo of the Thong Song fame, Bible bashing Baldwin brother Stephen, posh actress Stephanie Beacham, Hollywood hardman Vinnie Jones, Hollywood Madam Heidi Fleiss (VOTED OUT), rapper Lady Sovereign (VOTED OUT) and horny dance DJ Basshunter. Who do I want to win? Who cares!

Nevertheless, CBB is my guilty pleasure - don't judge me.

Book a ski holiday instead!

Vivienne Westwood does hobo chic

If you were a top fashion designer, what would inspire you? Homeless people by any chance?

Vivienne Westwood added glamour to homelessness in a menswear show she staged in Milan last week.

The "roving vagrant", quoted from the press release, inspired Ms Westwood's range after her husband proposed that she opt for this theme.

Westwood confessed that she has never experienced homelessness, saying: "The nearest I have come to it is going home and finding I don’t have my door key."

During her show, one model emerged from a cardboard box carrying a sleeping bag. Another sported crazy headgear and wore a T-shirt advocating for climate change.

The Times suggested that a model donning an orange boiler suit alluded to the appearance of an inmate at notorious prison Guantánamo Bay.

The audience apparently enjoyed the show very much.

What do you think? Is Viv's homeless theme radical or contoversial?

If skiwear is more your thing than hobo chic, book your next skiing holiday by clicking on the link.

Slumdog Millionaire: Keepin' It Real

So I’ve met a couple of people who didn’t enjoy Slumdog Millionaire.

People have criticised it for not being ‘real’ enough. The idea of a ‘chai wallah’ or tea boy from the slums knowing all the answers to those questions is simply inconceivable, say the sceptics.

However, it must be remembered that the film is based on a work of fiction. Therefore, at no point does it claim to be anything except fiction. Yet, it retains an intrinsic link with reality.

Having Jamal (Dev Patel) become a millionaire by answering all the questions correct on a game show is idealistic/heartwarming (depending on how much of a cynic you are), but it is not Slumdog Millionaire’s most important feature. It is the fact that every question prompts a flashback in our hero’s mind which ensures the book/film is rooted in reality. Through the flashbacks then, the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire game simply becomes a plot device, an ingenius one that also brings a lot of entertainment to the tale, which allows the reader/viewer to experience the simultaneous colour and poverty that characterises India.

Danny Boyle’s adaptation of Slumdog Millionaire has already had some impact on the world. Interest in Indian culture and providing aid for the slums in Bombay has soared. There was a documentary on Channel 4 today about a millionaire investigating the Bombay slums and deciding how to help people there. It was called Slumdog Secret Millionaire, a pun and marketing ploy that would ensure more people would watch it.

The documentary was thus titled because most of us love Slumdog Millionaire. It showcases fantastic acting by Indians and Brits alike, great cinematography and a country that enthralls and horrifies.

And the esteemed Academy Awards agree so there. :p


Do you know what else is real? How bloomin' freezing it is. Womenfolk, stay warm in these ladies' coats.