An update...

So.. these past few months have been pretty darn busy for me, to say the least. I finished my degree and got my results in early June. After three years of blood, sweat and a whole lotta books, I got, wait for it...

A FIRST!

In that moment, boy, was I happy. So happy that I gave my cat, Dee-Dee, the biggest hug possible (after my dad, of course). I think she was pleased for me, although I couldn't really tell because she had that face of a cat which is like: WTF/CBA.  My cat went for the former expression. Actually, thinking about it, I may have cut off her ability to breathe for a few seconds, she wasn't cool with that. Or maybe she was just really confused because she is, after all, an animal.

But yes, anyway, I got what I worked very hard for and it was such a wonderful feeling. I graduated in July and it was a lovely day. Scorching hot, but one that I'll remember despite that because it was such a great celebration of everybody's achievement.

Went to Glasgow for a week's holiday to visit my sister. Really enjoyed myself.

And now? Well, I'm gearing up to start my NCTJ Diploma in Journalism, which I'm looking forward to and which I start next week. Recently, I've been thinking that my blog needs a bit of a shake up, a change of direction, if you will. So, I've decided that while I still want to write about entertainment, I'd also like to blog about my experience on my NCTJ course. This is going to be an intense 18 weeks and who better than to share it with you? I want to give you a taste of what doing one is really like. Also, I hope that I can help people who are thinking about this as a potential path to get into the field, make a decision as to whether it is sutiable for them.  Alternatively, if you are on a course like this (or something similar) you can hopefully be assured by reading my blog that there are other trainee journalists who are going through what you are. I'll be there, to praise, to comfort you, as a shoulder to cry on etc.

Of course, my humour will be here. Healthy doses of that. To make it is more bearable for both you and me. And talk of my disability, will feature when I think it'll be necessary, really. I'll give you my insight into how I'm progressing with my course and how I hope to develop myself as a journalist whilst also taking the whole 'wheelie woman' thing into account.

And the best thing about all of this? It will be weekly. HOORAH.

Oh, and if you have been rather perceptive whilst reading, you'll see that I've added a function that allows you to subscribe to this blog, so that you will get updates. HOORAH x 2.  Don't forget, if you have anything to say about my posts, drop me a comment or even an email!

S.

Katy Perry: 'Roar' (Single review)

Katy Perry's new pop offering 'Roar' has dropped. This is the first single from her third album Prism due for release in October. She has given fans clips that have hinted the track would mark a new era, one seemingly more mature and darker than the candy coated days of Teenage Dream (As we saw her lay down her TD persona to rest in its own funeral). Now that its offically out, does the song live up to the hype and expectation?

Sort of.

'Roar' does signal a change in musical direction for Perry, someone who previously released 'California Gurls'.  I mean, really? She was trying to be 'edgy' by being all grammatically incorrect on us. And then 'Last Friday Night (TGIF)' which was song about getting shitfaced and having threesomes. So, yes, this song is indeed one which shows growth. Perry sings about finding a strength in who she is after being submissive for a long time. A self- empowerment anthem, one could say.

I got the eye of the tiger/ The fire/ Dancing through the fire/Cos I am a champion/ You're gonna hear me roar

She goes on to proclaim that she's louder than a lion. She's thunder and she's gonna shake the earth beneath your feet.

Perry's trying to be fierce, she's taking a stand, she ain't accepting any crap. Is she really louder than a lion, though? That's up for debate, isn't it? A very interesting debate that would be.

It's everything a Katy Perry song should be. Catchy, poppy and one that's sure to do well in the charts. But the fact that is such a trademark KP song, might just be the problem.

Perry has teased us with the darkness of her new material. But it doesn't seem to come across in this song much at all. From the clips, it looked like there would be more of a deviation from her usual sound, but by being too different she could have risked alienating her current demographic. And, Perry, doesn't really want to be doing that, I'm sure. Maybe the change in direction is something to expect as we get more offerings from the album.

Verdict: 7/10.

Listen to 'Roar' here: http://www.vibe.com/article/katy-perry-roar

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa- Film review

Alan Partridge is back in the hotly anticipated Alpha Papa. Steve Coogan is on top form as Partridge, a man who, most would say, has had a colourful life.  He fronted his own TV show,  had a nervous breakdown was gripped by chocolate addiction and attempted a comeback with his autobiography ‘Bouncing Back’ which was subsequently pulped. Here we meet Alan as a local radio broadcaster for North Norfolk Digital, a station which has undergone a revamp as ‘Shape’.  As part of this new image, bosses require one of the older DJs to be sacked. To save himself, Alan suggests late night DJ Pat Farrell (Colm Meaney). Farrell loses his job and takes revenge by holding the station at gunpoint.

Alan works well on the big screen helped by the action heavy plot (with a sprinkle of romance) and a script that is written by Coogan, Armando Iannucci and brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons who collaborated to produce Mid-Morning Matters. For fans, this is textbook Alan. Laughs come by the minute with one-liners you can add to your Alan repertoire (‘Tonight we’ll be asking have you ever met a genuinely clever bus driver?’) and the welcome return of old favourites: PA Lynn (Felicity Montagu), Geordie friend Michael (Simon Greenall) and radio nemesis Dave Clifton (Phil Cornwell). If that is not enough then the film has plenty of slapstick humour with Alan awkwardly finding himself inside a portaloo and getting caught by the police with his trousers down.   

However, this does work for those who have not seen Partridge before. Coogan emphasises the ego-centric and desperate nature of Alan as he uses the siege as an opportunity to relaunch his own career. This film is a testament to how well Coogan and the team have developed him over the years.  We can laugh at Alan and his exploits but we cannot help feeling sorry for him, as after all, he is just trying to make it, like the rest of us. And it seems that by the end, he does get a happy ending, as he drives off into the sunset with his hostage love interest and her two children.‘ Spiceworld’.  

All in all, this film is worth the watch for fans and newcomers alike, Alpha Papa is ‘Back of the net!’

Click below to view the trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yecg8vrvZ8