28/11/12 - Boux Avenue, the stuff dreams are made of

I am a huge fan of underwear.  It's something everyone needs and will always need, so I don't see why you wouldn't make sure you have invested in a nice matching set for every occasion...and in every colour.  Knowing that you're wearing a pretty pair of knickers or a really good bra can make your day even when everything else is going wrong.  However, I hate shopping for underwear.  Sizes can be different everywhere you go, and unhelpful sales assistants are able to make something that is quite a difficult thing already one hundred times worse.  And so much of the affordable underwear on the high street today is just hideously tacky.  But never fear!  The answer to your underwear woes is here, and I was invited to the press preview before the opening of my local branch this Tuesday.  I recommend you all visit your nearest Boux Avenue.

My lovely friend Laura pointed me in the direction of another lovely Laura from Fluorescent PR who enabled Emma and I to pop along to the brand new Boux Avenue store in the St Stephens shopping centre in Hull for the opening.  It is probably the most beautiful shop I've ever been in - really stunning with the lingerie displayed above labelled drawers holding all the stock.  The nightwear is absolutely adorable, and the beauty and home fragrance products are gorgeous.

But the real pièce de résistance is the changing rooms.  Not only are they decadently decorated, they have an intercom system which allows you to speak to a sales assistant without leaving the cubicle and three lighting options (day, dusk and night) so you can see how your new underwear will look in all situations.  This is so much better than most shops; no more clutching your top across your chest as you stick your head out of the door, desperately searching for someone to help you, before sobbing in a corner at how hideous the unforgiving lighting makes you look.

After a free fitting from a really lovely woman called Billie who very helpfully explained all the elements that goes into finding the right bra (something that will definitely come in handy for future reference), I was tempted into making a couple of very minor purchases.  It was a bit of a treat, but with the 10% student discount and other in-store deals, it didn't come out as expensive as it could have done.

We were also given really lovely gift-bags containing; white chiffon hand cream, rose petal lip balm, white chiffon drawer sachet, powdered tissues, USB stick and a £10 gift card!

All in all, it was an absolutely wonderful experience and I'm really glad we got in there early before the official opening...once Theo Paphitis opened the doors properly at 1pm, it was apparently absolutely heaving!  

If there's a branch near you, I recommend you go as soon as you can!  Where is your favourite place to by underwear?

24/11/12 - Theatre review: 'London' by Simon Stephens

This Thursday, I took myself off to Manchester for the second time in a week.  This time, I was flying solo and really enjoyed wandering the city.  Browsing in Selfridges and Harvey Nichols, lusting over things that cost more than my rubbish laptop is worth, sampling my first ever Taco Bell - it was a lovely day.  And then at half past two, I took myself over to the Royal Exchange Theatre for the reason that I was here in the first place; Simon Stephens' 'London' in the intimate Studio theatre.

I am a huge fan of Simon Stephens and the way he writes, so when I saw this performance come up on the theatre's website, I booked the ticket without a second thought.  I didn't mind going to the theatre on my own as I was just so excited about the prospect of seeing this production.  I missed the screening of his adaptation of Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time for the National Theatre, so it was nice to actually get to see some of his work onstage.

'London' is made up of two monologues, roughly thirty minutes each, and the whole thing runs at almost an hour in length with no interval.  The first half, T5, requires the audience to wear headphones which take you inside the head of the woman (Abby Ford) who begins lying on a bed.  As the audience settle in their seats, we listen to the sound of her breathing and as the performance begins properly, a mixture of live and recorded sound make for an interesting experience.  Both pieces deal with the ideas of love and loss in very different ways, as well as the experience of modern London life; in T5, it is something stifling to be escaped.

Between the two monologues, the setting of an airport hotel room is deconstructed and the house lights brought up, stripping back the stage to allow Cary Crankson to take us on the journey of his character, Alex.  The illumination of the audience along with the informal, chatty delivery really draws you into the story.

The second half, Sea Wall, is one of my favourite pieces of drama.  The half hour monologue, which was originally written for performance at the Bush Theatre in 2008, has been adapted into a short film starring BAFTA nominated Andrew Scott (best known as Moriarty in the BBC's ground-breaking Sherlock) which I had seen previous to this stage production and was the thing that inspired me to get the ticket.  I seriously recommend everyone go and check it out here, particularly if you won't get chance to see this touring production.  It is absolutely breath-taking - I won't spoil the plot for you, as I found watching it knowing what was going to happen was a very different experience than having the story unfurl before you.

In my opinion, Simon Stephens' writing has a way of perfectly capturing the inner workings of the human mind - the use of flashback and the disconnected thought processes can be initially confusing, but the stories slowly piece themselves together in the most wonderful way.  His use of language is always stunning and it's so easy to get totally lost within the mind of the characters on stage.  The way he writes is so impressive and I know a lot of people have found Sea Wall to be one of the most moving pieces of writing they've come across.  As someone who has always toyed with the idea of being a professional writer, it would be my dream for my writing to effect even one person in the way Simon Stephens has inspired so many.

Did any of you get to see this recent production?  If so, let me know in the comments!

18/11/12 - The year was 1847...

So this Saturday just gone, despite the mounds of work I have to do and all the deadlines I have creeping up on me, I spent a wonderful day in Manchester seeing my parents and my brother.  It's been far too long since I've seen them other than on a Skype screen so I was super excited to have some quality family time.  Also, my brother and I had booked theatre tickets way back in January, so we'd been waiting for this weekend for rather a long time.

I hopped off the train at Manchester Piccadilly, a station I feel like I've spent an awful lot of time in over the past year or so, to be whisked straight away to my favourite place in the city to eat - 1847.

This little vegetarian bistro (so named as it was the year in which the Vegetarian Society was established in the UK) is located on Mosley Street, a stone's throw away from the train station and the main shopping centre.  The best word I can use for this place is...select.  It has a fairly small dining area, so I would recommend booking if you intend on visiting at a weekend or in an evening - it's always best to know you're guaranteed a table!  

The menu isn't massive, but it changes seasonally and all the ingredients are locally sourced. The food is always beautifully presented, full of flavour and a lot of the time, really interesting combinations of ingredients.  If I could have the chef from this bistro come and cook at my house every day, I would be a very happy (and very fat!) girl.  Although the portions don't look huge - as is to be expected from a sixteen-year-old boy, my younger brother polished them off very quickly, practically licking the plate - the three courses I ate filled me right up.  And being full of good food is so much more pleasant than being full of rubbish junk food.

Sorry for the awful quality of my iPod camera!

To start, I had roasted balsamic sprouts with honey and toasted almond flakes which was served on a bed of some form of pea puree with a honey vinaigrette dressing (I'm afraid I can't remember the exact description)  and rocket salad.  I'm not a massive fan of sprouts - for years, I've had an agreement with my parents that I will eat one a year on Christmas Day and that is all I can manage - so I don't really know what enticed me to this starter, but I really enjoyed it.  Maybe I'm maturing.

Next, I ordered battered tofu with hand-cut chips and fresh peas.  Last time I visited 1847, I had the same thing but with halloumi and I have to say, there wasn't much to choose - both dishes were very tasty.  The tofu was moist, the batter light and crispy and the chips...oh, the chips.  I can be very easily sold on a place if they do good chips and 1847 didn't disappoint.

As a big fan of trying lots of different kinds of food, a trait I share with the rest of my family, meals with us can turn everything into a taster menu, with fork- and spoonfuls of various dishes being passed backwards and forwards.  By not duplicating orders, we managed to cover most of the menu.  I will say that after tasting four different meals, I would recommend the wild mushroom and spinach strudel that my dad had - absolutely delicious.  And even Josh, who admitted that mushrooms and spinach are "two of his three least favourite vegetables", enjoyed it.

Time for dessert.  I had chestnut and chocolate torte with a reduced mulled wine sauce and it was divine.  The chocolate was rich, but offset by the chestnuts, it wasn't too sickly or overwhelming, and the mulled wine sauce was to die for.  Indulgent, decadent and festive, what more could anyone want?

For food like this, you would expect a very hefty price-tag.  Now, it can work out a little pricey and I definitely couldn't afford it on a student budget, much as I would like to.  However, as a treat, it's 100% worth it, and they do all kind of deals (£10 for a main course and a glass of wine, and the £15 taster menu in an evening which I would seriously recommend) and their Christmas bookings seem very reasonably priced.  You can find their website here and I would highly recommend trying it if you get chance, whether you're vegetarian or not.

Have you been to 1847?  If so, what did you think?  Feel free to leave any other restaurant recommendations in the comments, regardless of where you are in the country!

10/11/12 - Ed Sheeran "strums on my heart-strings like he was a Grade 8"

I am an absolute sucker for singer-songwriters and boys with guitars, which explains my love for Ed Sheeran.  His music is beautiful, his lyrics equally heart-wrenching and hilarious, and his talent seems to know no bounds.  Armed only with his acoustic guitar, a couple of microphones and a loop pedal, he takes every venue by storm.  Wednesday was the second time I've had the pleasure to be in one of his audiences and I have to say, I loved it just as much as the first time. 

It wasn't surprising to see that the average age of the crowd was probably about 16 and the queue was huge - I even heard some kids discussing how their friends had taken the day off school to stake out good places early on.  I can see why Ed's music appeals to the teenage demographic - his romantic lyrics are enough to melt any girl in her tracks.  However, it may have come as a bit of a surprise for some of the girls, and definitely for the parents who accompanied them, to listen to some of Ed's other songs.  While it's easy to write him off as your typical singer-songwriter for doe-eyed girls, many of his songs have more mature content concerning drinking, drug abuse, miscarriage and heartbreak.  Personally, I think it's part of why he's so popular.  With his easy combination of acoustic soul, pop, reggae and hip-hop, his songs may speak straight to the hearts of every idealistic girl out there but they're also gritty, realistic and down-to-earth portrayals of modern life.  

Ed is honestly one of the best and most charismatic performers I've seen live.  He has such an amazing energy and develops a rapport with the audience almost from the moment he walks on stage.  Between songs, he chats easily and makes little jokes without them ever seeming awkward or overdone.  One thing I will say is; don't go to an Ed Sheeran gig if you're not big on audience participation.  There is a lot of singing (which I wholeheartedly approve of) and throughout the course of his set, we were Ed's 'gospel choir', and he even had the two halves of the audience harmonising with each other.

Some might find it hard to imagine his acoustic album translating into a live spectacular, but that's the only word I can use for it.  Particularly his huge hit, 'You Need Me Man, I Don't Need You', which he performed as the first song of his encore was totally mental.  Like, totally.  The rapid-fire lyrics, the insane looped backing track and the energy of the crowd all added up to an incredible experience.  Everyone was dancing and trying to rap along with the song and just generally loving life.  

Other highlights -for me, at least - were my absolute favourite song from Ed's album, 'Goldrush', a cover of Nina Simone's 'Be My Husband' (with a lot of audience singing and clapping) and the wonderful 'Wayfaring Stranger'.  For those who don't know it, it's a gorgeous folk song and Ed somehow managed to get the whole huge room so quiet that he was able to sing the end of the song acapella and with no mic.  I don't know about the people nearer the back, but I could still hear perfectly and it was a magical moment.

I am not ashamed to say that I may have shed a tear or two throughout the evening; there are certain of Ed's songs then really mean a lot to me for various reasons and lyrics that get me choked up every time I hear them.  There's always one.

Unfortunately, I'm unable to embed the video I wanted to, but if you're interested in seeing snippets of the actual concert that I was at, click on THIS LINK.  I highly recommend you do.

If you're an Ed Sheeran fan, then you probably know that the music video for his new single 'Give Me Love' went live on last night.  If not, I'll embed the video below or go to this link.  Personally, I think it's stunning.  Let me know what you think in the comments!

Ed's just got back from supporting Snow Patrol around some of their US tour dates and will be opening for Taylor Swift on her 2013 tour of the States.  If anyone would like to provide me with tickets for that, plus flights and somewhere to stay, I would be most grateful!