Nicola's TV Reviews

Until recently, TV has been dominated by Big Brother (boo! how many more series can they possibly make??) but finally, Ugly Betty has filled the void left by Desperate Housewives. The 1st episode was amazing, the same great, sparkling writing, crazy colours and awful-but-cool costumes by Patricia Field. I was dubious at first about Daniel being kicked out of Mode but they've actually managed to make it work really well, and I can't wait to see what happens with DJ and with Wilhemina's evil plotting!
Gossip Girl is getting better every week too - I loved Serena at first but now I think Blair's my favourite, she's a lot more easy to relate to as the series goes on, and I want the entire cast's wardrobe!
I wonder when I should get excited about X Factor, I know its starting in August and the fashion wars between Dannii and Cheryl have already begun, but it's just not quite as good as Britain's Got Talent! On the plus side, there is plenty of ridiculous drama over nothing on X Factor, Cheryl Cole's awesome hair, and the girls' gorgeous dresses to admire

Nicola's Cool List

Since I've been neglecting the blog (full-time work is such a distraction!) I thought I'd add my own cool list:
bows
blue topaz
lollipops
orchids
polka dots
Paris
Wonder Woman
berets
Marilyn Monroe
European accents
pillarbox red
boys who play bass
anything nautical
Starburst (although they were cooler when they were Opal Fruits)

Random thoughts - cool?

I caught the end of Big Brother (unfortunately) the other day and something one of the 'housemates' said made me think. He was blithering on about how cool he thinks he is and it set me off. You can't just declare yourself cool, that isn't how it works. Plus if you are truly cool you neither know nor care how cool you are. Anyway, my point is it got me thinking about things that I think are cool. Now by this I mean not just things i like but things that really make me sit back and say "wow." Things that impress me for entirely random reasons. Things that are extraordinarily awesome. Now there are far too many to list but here is a short selection of things that I think are cool:
cowboy boots
the word 'stonking'
Pat Rice
Jorge's 'Lorenzo Land' flag
lollipops
Valentino. All the time
sonnets
accents
xbox 360
cowbells
tambourines
Perry Farrell
hands
John Frusciante's guitar skills
the teachings of Professeur Arsene Wenger
the word 'elbogen' (german for elbow)
berets
vocal layering
accordions
Dani Guiza
Gunnersaurus (the arsenal mascot)
noodles
turnstiles
Bacary Sagna
tennis volleys that involve jumping
clay courts

and last but not least the word 'Spazibo'
Ruth

WAG Training- One step closer.

I am delighted to announce that my WAG Training has advanced. Oh yes. Now I'm not just a random weirdo in velour pants, I'm on the road. The road to Wagdom. hell yes.

I have officially been in the presence of a genuine footballer on an occasion that wasn't a football match.

I have shared a swimming pool and steam room with a real life footballer. Marvin Emnes of Middlesbrough FC. My mum is a member of the leisure club at the parkmore hotel and as luck would have so apparently is Marvin. So I trotted off on wednesday for a relaxing swim and who should be next to me in the pool but Marvin. My mum said "alright" to him as we passed and apparently he acknowleged her. We also sat in the steam room with him and looked at him in quiet (and subtle obviously) awe and appreciation. We then watched him leave and he is one stylish and swaggering dutch boy I assure you. In case anyone was wondering THIS (left) is Marvin Emnes.

So Spazibo Marv. I truly mean that.

Ruth.

Ruth's Sports Desk- STONKING

Wow. Just wow.

I had a day full of sports on sunday and it was wonderful. It started out in the best way possible with the best Moto GP race I've ever seen. Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi were a point apart in the championship standings and the race promised to be competitive. And boy did it deliver. Valentino took the lead early then was overtaken by Jorge and stuck close to him for a few laps seemingly studying him and planning his move. You could feel the tension building and as the last few laps approached things really got interesting. They swapped the lead several times, with several amazingly close passes. Both riders were flat out and did everything but knock each other off. Then on the final lap Jorge passes Valentino on the straight going into the pit lane in the process it seemed like he had the race won but Valentino being the legend that he is (seriously I think he has magic powers) passed Jorge on the final corner by the tiniest of margins then flew over the line for an emotional victory(his 99th). He dedicated it to Jerry Burgess his crew chief (a lovely man) saying 'a big kiss for jerry without you I wouldn't have survived to 99 victories' which was so wonderful. He also said 'mamma mia' confirming my suspicions that he's moonlighting as the Dolmio man. Little Dani managed to recuperate enough in time to race and came sixth after a decent battle with Loris Capirossi who apparently 'you can't kill with a stick' (thank you BBC man) I was so pleased for him considering how much pain he must have been in. He's an absolute hero.

I then watched Andy Murray become the first British Champion at Queen's since Bunny Austin in 1938. Which was great. Fab news for British tennis. I'm really looking forward to Wimbledon I think its going to be very very close this year.

I then watched the Confederations cup. Spain won 5-0 against New Zealand which was cracking. The two Davids (Villa and Silva) were fantastic, Cesc put in a solid display and Fernando Torres tried to disprove my theory that he can't play when he isn't the best player in the team by scoring a hat-trick. I'm still not convinced about him though. I watched Italy-USA yesterday which was quite good. USA had a man sent off and it ended 3-1 to Italy. With the goals scored by- get this- Rossi and De Rossi. Weird or what.

Oh and more gold from the BBC Moto GP man- "All the gear and no idea." Fabulous.

Spazibo everyone.

Film Review - Let the Right One In.

I went to see 'Let the Right One in' last week as a belated treat for my birthday. Its a Swedish film about two children and the friendship that grows between them, the twist being that one of them is a vampire. It was a wonderful film, lovingly made and utterly charming. The two leads were totally fantastic and the snowy, dark setting of rural Sweden totally fitted the atmospheric, measured pacing. In contrast to normal vampire movies, the story unfurled slowly and much of the vampire related things were suggested rather than shown and when they were it was messy and realistic rather than slick and hollywoodized. It was a thoroughly engaging film and once again I urge everybody to check it out before Hollywood remakes it and ruins it. It was a beautiful piece of film making and a breath of fresh air with its old fashioned feel and attention to storytelling.

Ruth

Films review cluster

Well I've seen a few movies lately. I saw Star Trek which I really didn't expect to like then ended up really enjoying, I particularly enjoyed John Cho as Mr Sulu and Chekhov's accent. Plus they said "set phasers to STUN" which was amazing. It was a very well done film with a solid cast.
I saw a movie called Il Divo which is Italian and about politics which was quite simply one of the most amazing movies I've ever seen. The plot was a little confusing but thoroughly absorbing and it had THE most arresting visuals ever. Every shot was perfectly staged and looked like a work of art, it was absolutely beautiful. Also it had the most fabulous soundtrack with such a wonderful mix of eclectic, fantastic music.
I saw Angels and Demons which I enjoyed. I thought it was more exciting than Da Vinci Code and was very fast paced and involving. I didn't see it coming at all and I absolutely LOVED Ewan McGregor and Pierfrancesco Favino in it.
I saw Coraline in 3D which was wonderful. I love 3D its so impressive and the film had some real set pieces like the tunnel between the two worlds, the garden scenes, a scene with a spider web and the circus mice which were really breathtaking in 3D. The animation was really well done and the story was very very interesting.
Also on a 'classics day' at my local cinema I saw Bicycle Thieves (Ladri de Bicyclettes) and loved it. It was so charming and you could feel the love that had gone in to making it, they had taken such care with everything. It was a great story even with the sad ending and the child actor in it was an absolute genius. I truly love black and white films and urge and implore everyone out there to take time out to watch old films and appreciate the artistry and craft that they represent.
Spazibo and good night. Ruth

Ruth's Sports Desk - A void in my life.

The football season is over. Done. Finished. There is a massive gap in my life where it should be. sigh. Transfer madness has descended and I'm attempting to ignore the crazy rumours linking almost literally every player under the sun to a move elsewhere. I tend to just bury my head and sing 'lalalala' very loudly. I'm getting by watching world cup qualifiers which is ok.

The French Open has gone completely wrong the final is Federer v Soderling. Something which I believe is called a 'no win situation.' roll on wimbledon.

The Mugello GP was a disaster with Casey Stoner winning and ending Valentino Rossi's seven year victory run. Poor Dani Pedrosa injured himself on the saturday practice then crashed in the actual race and was stretchered off the track which was just awful. The only thing that saved it was Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo ending up on the podium. Poor Dani has cracked his thigh bone but is attempting to be fit for Catalunya, I was very very worried for him but I have faith he can do it. Get well soon Speedy.

Spazibo.

Nicola's Rant of the Week: Get Well Soon Susan

The thing that has really been getting to me over the past couple of weeks is the way the media have been treating Susan Boyle! It's no surprise she's in rehab, I think anybody under that amount of pressure and criticism would be, learning difficulties or not. I think it's disgusting that she could be treated that way - to blatantly bully somebody like that, especially someone with learning difficulties who has been bullied her whole life and lived such a sheltered existence.
When SuBo came second on BGT - which is still really great by the way - she could not have been more gracious and humble. It's no surprise that all the antagonising has led her to become miserable and angry. She has done nothing wrong and has nothing to apologise for - it is ridiculous to say she is arrogant, even if she did expect to win, it's only because of all the media attention, and who would enter a show like that if they thought they didn't have a chance of winning??? And you just have to look at her reaction to the judges putting her through to the semi-final and final - there was no arrogance there at all, she could not have been more shocked. She is just a humble, sweet, extremely talented woman. And if she's a little eccentric, so what? The most interesting people always are.
Although Diversity were really great, Susan will still have way more success than them, she's apparently meant to make £8 million, which is way more than the vast majority of reality stars. She's already cracked America, which is really difficult for any Brit to do.
Get well soon Susan, and just ignore them - they're either jealous of your amazing talent, or think it's their right to slag you off now that you're a celebrity.