My Ideal Author Dinner Party

If you had the choice, which writers would you invite to your ideal dinner party? There are six places at my table, room for me and five authors. Your choice might be made because you love their writing, their sparkling wit, or just because you’ve always wanted to ask them, “What were you thinking ending your last book like that?!”  I decided on an all-female evening, because it’s my party and I can do what I like. Ready? Let’s lay the table and get going… Continue reading » “My Ideal Author Dinner Party”

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London Cocktail Week 2014

cocktail-montage

This week is London Cocktail Week 2014, seven days of merriment all around the capital, with bars serving signature cocktails at £4 a pop. All you need to buy one is a London Cocktail Week wristband, the appropriate four shiny pound coins and be upright enough to drink. What could be simpler? Pick your route, pick your cocktails and away you go. And that’s exactly what we did… Continue reading » “London Cocktail Week 2014”

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Great British Bake Off 2014

GBBO-2014

So here we are again, back in the tent, back watching people staring frantically into ovens. Yes, the Great British Bake Off is currently mid-run on our screens and after last week’s bingate scandal, things are only going to get hotter under the collar tonight. Because later, it’s time to join Paul & Mary and Mel & Sue for pies and tarts week. So many puns, so little time… Continue reading » “Great British Bake Off 2014”

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Nespresso vs Carte Noire

carte-noir

Regular readers of this blog will know that there are certain things I’m passionate about in life. In no particular order they are: writing, Spurs, music, beer & coffee. And maybe my family & friends might sneak in there at a push. And perhaps my smartphone. My coffee world exploded last year (not literally, that would be messy) when I got a Nespresso machine. Now, not only could I drink coffee, I could drink it from cute little shiny pods. Joy abounded. But now that you can buy capsules from other companies too and not just Nespresso, do they taste as good? I’ve already put Big Cup Little Cup to the test, now it’s the turn of Carte Noire… Continue reading » “Nespresso vs Carte Noire”

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The Burger Revolution

posh-burger

When I was growing up, burgers were reliably terrible. You bought them from your local Wimpy/McDonald’s/Burger King/white van in layby and they all looked and tasted like salty shoes: sad slabs of greasy meat perched in a limp bun. Fast-forward to 2014 and it’s a different story – the burger is now food royalty, with top-notch encased patties being sold for over £20 a pop. How did this happen? Continue reading » “The Burger Revolution”

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The Reluctant Whisky Convert

whisky-convert

Whisky has always been a spiky word for me: the face-contorting substance my mum used to cure toothache, the smell that made my stomach churn. But over the past 12 months something’s happened: I took my first sip of Scotch without wincing, then drank a glass without complaining and finally requested a top-up without a gun to my head. This pattern repeated until one day I woke up and realised I was a reluctant whisky convert… Continue reading » “The Reluctant Whisky Convert”

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Christmas Adverts 2013: Hit Or Miss?

ms-xmas-ad

Here’s a shock: Christmas is happening again this year. How do I know? Well, apart from the fact that my local Co-Op is selling Snow Bites again (yeeees!), my TV screen is also twinkling with Christmas adverts promising me all manner of snow-flecked offerings. But do the Christmas ads make you want to buy their products and leave you tingling with Christmas anticipation? Let’s take a closer look…

Continue reading » “Christmas Adverts 2013: Hit Or Miss?”

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Great British Bake Off: Who Will Win?

gbbo-final

Flour, eggs, sugar, lard? Check. Two giddy presenters, one Dame Of Cakes and one Berk Of Bread? Check. Three nimble-fingered contestants? Check, checkety check! We’ve been counting down for weeks and now the moment has arrived: the final of the Great British Bake Off is happening today and I for one am beside myself with creamy, puffy excitement. Will Frances create an alternate universe from blueberry & liquorice icing for her showstopper? Will Kimberley pipe with ice-cool precision to scoop the prize? And will Ruby hold the saffron & make it to the end without cracking up and dissolving into a pool of gloop? I’d say all three are possible…

Continue reading » “Great British Bake Off: Who Will Win?”

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