Hats off to the BBC who pulled a fast one with their penguin fantasy - apparently a few people were bamboozled by this amazing discovery by writer and film maker Terry Jones. Brilliant.

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I bet none of you have ever had this much fun at a gym.

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Spoiled by careless storyline…must try harder!

Last weekend, I decided to go with my friend to watch St Trinian’s. We mainly chose this because it was the only film showing at a reasonable time after we had eaten out.

I have never walked out in the middle of a film before in a cinema, but believe me I would have followed the couple that bravely did, had I not been with my friend. St Trinian’s has a wonderful cast but this, combined with a slow and predictable storyline, does not make it into a good film. This movie even makes Colin Firth seem unattractive, which I did not realise was possible until now!

The film felt like it had the wrong certificate and could have probably pulled itself off as an amusing “family film” had it toned down a bit to achieve a PG rating.

From what I could remember of the parts were I was not dozing off, the story line is based around saving the school, St Trinian’s from going bankrupt. To do this the girls decide to steal ‘The girl with the Pearl earring’ painting from the National gallery. Obviously they manage to do all this by crawling through the sewers of London on a busy day in central, without causing a terrorist alert.

I couldn’t possibly tell you the outcome from fear of spoiling the ending, however it does finish with a school party where Girls Aloud perform. Unfortunately for them, this is the part where everyone traditionally grabs their coats and pours out the cinema as soon as so much as the first hint of a credit shows on screen, so I am not sure it was worth them being in the movie at all, let alone the producer’s re-making of this classic.

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I have a confession to make… I am a geek. Even worse than that, I love being a geek, I positively revel in it! Now, I know everyone thought I was pretty cool, and I’m not going to shatter those illusions (I carry it off well), but the question is, “How is someone working in the trendy world of fashion to get the requisite geek fix?” Day-by-day I am bombarded in cutting edge styles, fabrics, trends… but panic not, I have found the best place to geek it up, and even the non-geeks might enjoy it - The Wellcome Collection on Euston Road, London.

Upon walking into the atrium you are confronted with an upside down Anthony Gormley sculpture (you know, the cast of bodies recently dotted throughout London’s South Bank). The museum is set over several floors and houses both permanent and seasonal exhibitions. The upper floor had an exhibition on obesity, malaria, and medicine today. Highlights of this included a wall devoted volumes of books with the entire human genetic code in really small font – what was even more interesting was seeing the proportion of coding DNA (i.e. DNA that we actually use to make proteins – about 3%), and a display case of forceps through the ages (note to self: be “too posh to push”!).

The downstairs exhibition was about sleeping and dreaming and was absolutely fascinating. It offered lots of information about dreaming – percentage devoted to different types, the differences between men and women, sex in dreams and so on. There was a really interesting section about sleep deprivation and its consequences, including pretty harrowing footage of a sufferer of Fatal Familial Insomnia (a very rare condition where the sufferer cannot sleep and eventually dies from this 3-6 months after the onset, even coma inducing amounts of barbiturates can’t rouse the patient).

So, after a couple of hours of science presented in a really accessible way, it was with a heavy heart that I was kicked out of the exhibition (it was closing). I would definitely take visitors to London to see this and will be back to see new exhibitions, it was a thoroughly pleasant and educational way to spend an afternoon. For your viewing pleasure I have attached an image of my face averaged over the past 100 visitors to the museum – check out the eyebrows, were the previous visitors from a star trek convention?

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So X Factor 07 has again come to a close. Who cares - I hear you ask? well it’s good to keep atop any sneaky chart potentials - which X Factor and the £1million recording contract lend itself to.

Watching the finals on Saturday evening, I had overcome my initial revoltion of Whelsh singer Rhydian, and appreciated that he did in fact have talent - and, along with half the nation watching who clearly also left voting up to the teens, assumed him to be the winner.

I was relieved to see the bunny boiler and her *cough incest* brother came third – Simon’s been telling them all through the series they were the weakest singers. Extremely comfortable on stage and if I were planning a panto I’d snap them up in a second.

Then it came to the sing off and Leon and Rhydian performed their version of ‘When you believe’ and nerves were a-rattle as Dermot read out the winner of X Factor 2008. And to everyone’s surprise - from their faces even Rhydian and Leon were perplexed - 19 year old Leon was crowned king of pop and that was that.

He’d been called the ‘dark horse’ and the ‘Ace up Danni’s sleeve’, but at the end of the day I believe they booted out the proper singers earlier in the show. So who should have won, if what we believe the X Factor is all about? Or is it important to remember that it is all a game, and at the end of it, the greater audience picks the person they’d most like to listen to?

Will Leon Jackson top the charts? Will he cry either way? We can only imagine. On the up side, seeing the loose approach to talent I’ve decided to enter into next year’s competition. Get your autographs now.

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Aries 20 March – 20 April
You may (quite probably) experience a chill in the air from now until around end of March, but don’t let this dampen your fierce spirit. Your stubbornness will say ‘wear less’ but layering could definitely be your next best friend. As could a chocolate fondant. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Taurus 21 April -20 May
Beware of people called Samuel. And look out for a flow of gifts toward the end of this month. You deserve them. You really do. But don’t get a big head about it and remember to use your loyalty to bring joy to the friends you cherish.

Gemini 21 May – 20 June
Rush out and buy a lottery ticket – today’s your lucky day. Well it was worth a try. But a little thrill or risk here and there really doesn’t hurt – make sure that while you’re busying yourself to finish all end of year tasks that you’re also giving yourself enough time to enjoy it – it is the ‘festive’ season after all…

Cancer 21 June – 21 July
In a need to brighten your offering, go on the hunt for New Year’s resolutions – whether its the common gym or the more exuberant salsa lessons, cookery classes or the like, don’t be afraid to find out what’s new and give it a whirl. Most of these classes offer a cheap or free first lesson and there’s no harm in shopping around – and having a bit of fun. 2008 is the year for you!

Leo 22 July – 22 August
In your element, you’re clearly loving the limelight of the party season – and I hope you’re dressing accordingly. See Gabrielle’s Girl Talk post earlier this week for a tip or two of what will make your moment THE moment. Then carpe diem.

Virgo 22 August – 21 September
Someone with an S will contact you today and may change your life. Or may not. But don’t hang around waiting – get out there. You may well be surprised. This week is yours to shine so grab it with both hands and make it count.

Libra 20 – Sept – 21 Oct
With all the hard work and dedication you’ve been doing, it’s time to treat yourself Librans – to maintain your inner balance. A day at the spa? A duvet day – or a sexy new bag or killer heels. I know just the place… (how cheeky is that?):

Scorpio 22 October – 21 November
Your eyes twinkling more than usual, don’t let money concerns bring you down – you’ve worked your little behind off this year, a bonus is no doubt in order and family time is indeed priceless. So wind down the work, wind up the cheesy carols and sip mulled wine as Christmas approaches.

Sagittarius 21 November – 21 December
You’ve already had your Birthday and now you’re expecting more presents?? Of course you deserve them, but you are perfect candidates for learning the art of regifting – just don’t forget who gave you what and it should be smooth sailing for your Christmas shopping.

Capricorn 21 December – 20 January
As your Birthday falls very near to Christmas, don’t be shy to remind friends and family that everyone else has a Birthday and a Christmas during the year, so don’t be a scrooge and combine yours! On the other hand your festive season is extra merry, so have a good time but make sure you get enough sleep - the only good bags are handbags!

Aquarius 21 January – 19 February
Your fun-loving side is definitely out in force at the moment – and so it should be. Don’t feel guilty about having a good time as its everyone for themselves this festive season. Except for the presents of course. Remember karma is a great thing, so make sure you do little things this Christmas that make others feel good – which will make you feel good too.

Pisces 19 February – 20 March
If you look around and think everyone’s having a better time than you, you’re probably right. I know it’s harsh but looking at where Jupiter and Mars are right now (in the sky, maybe) and the wobbling of Venus and razzle dazzle of Saturn, your opportunities are there for the taking. Some relationships might seem a tad volatile but you have time now to sit back and decide what you really want. And accompany with Baileys on ice or something to help clear the mind.

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How much did we want them back for good? That was the question on everyone’s lips. And I can fairly much say, we wanted them back a lot, seriously… As a tender nine year old when they were first around, I had a lot of childhood memories of them, mainly my friend trying to teach me (unsuccessfully) what each of them were called based on her Smash Hits stickers on her pencil case. Back then, I didn’t really see the hype, to me they were just another boy group. Now, however, things have changed… I don’t know what exactly is was; maybe the nostalgia, maybe I didn’t mind screaming my lungs out, or maybe I wasn’t embarrassed about loving the pure poptasticness of the whole affair.

The venue was the Millennium (O2) Dome in London, and what a venue it is. I must admit that I haven’t actually been in there before, but I was suitably impressed by the space-age feel to the place, full of really futuristic colours and architecture. After a few drinks in the over-priced O2 lounge, we headed into the hall to be greeted by Sophie-Ellis Bextor belting out her numbers. As a warm-up act, this was amazing, I got the impression that about half the audience would have been happy just to have seen this performance, but the best was yet to come.

Take That burst onto the stage amid videos of planets (the whole concert had this as the theme), and tore straight into their hits. The crowd went wild as classic song after classic song was played, and it was fantastic to see that these men really were talented singers and musicians (although this is based on my karaoke efforts over the weekend). They played a delightful mix of songs from their most recent album and from their older stuff. The crowd was a mixed old bunch, about 5 girls to every guy, predominantly late-20s with the occasional new fan in there – bless their looks of confusion when the rest of the spectators sang all of the old songs word perfectly! The show was excellent; fast-moving, great lights/laser effects, brilliant use of the additional circular stage in the centre of the dome and great choreography – for late 30 year olds they sure can move (break-dancing and all!) The boys certainly showed that they have a place in the current pop scene.

After, what was for many in the audience, an emotionally draining two hour set, the show wound up with encores of new and old songs - “Shine” and “Pray”. If you have got tickets for one of their shows, you are very much in for a treat, and if you haven’t, maybe have a look around for some - I can’t recommend this highly enough as an excellent night’s entertainment.

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Since moving to London I have been trying to make the most of the various opportunities – one of these being learning to salsa. Cue the various traumas of attending classes, going backwards not forwards, weird, slightly creepy men holding you a bit too tightly and all the usual good stuff. As a result of a couple of months struggling to master salsa I would rate myself “OK to quite OK” – i.e. a good partner can make me look pretty decent, but otherwise I do mess up and bang into people.

The natural progression from having passable skills was clearly to showcase my talent at Floridita – a salsa style nightclub in Soho. This place is really funky! Sweeping stairs usher you down to the restaurant and club, where all the beautiful people are – it definitely has a feel of decadence; golden lighting and white décor abound. My salsa chums and I decided to make the most of this experience by going for the pre-dinner meal offer, £15 for 2 courses and a cocktail (thus sneakily avoiding the £10 entry fee). As always this ended up being £35 (with service, dessert, sides and drinks), which is still reasonable value given the saving on the entry. The food was fine, nothing to write home about, but then again, you are there for the music and dance… Whilst you eat, truly excellent musicians and dancers take to the dance-floor (now if I was reading this I would be imagining tackiness – like when you go on holiday to Greece and end up smashing plates in tourist restaurants), but no, this featured top-notch genuinely skilled people. And then, the best bit, you get to join in! If actually dancing isn’t your bag, panic not, you can just watch, or hang out like in any normal bar. There are several alternative areas to the club, seating away from the dance floor and a little private bar in another corner. All in all, to paraphrase an epic film “I’ve had the time of my life…”. Hang out in Floridita to get swept away by it all.

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Christmas has arrived at koodos in the form of snowflakes, gift lists and stocking fillers. After calling a brainstorm session for Christmas ideas, it was obvious we all still loved the Dickensian story of snow, kindness, love and lots of presents for the festive season.

Our snowflakes have a little bit of a twist to them – just click on either Womens, Handbags, Jewellery, or Mens tabs at the top of the site and you’ll see what I mean.

Roll credits:
Thanks to Carmel Café, Grays Inn Road, for a good brew and a Kit Kat (Emily and I came up with the smartest headlines whilst there)
Snowflake illustration Anne Sorenson http://www.theimagesurgery.com/
Web genius Dan Neame
The koodos team for throwing in ideas and putting up with my Christmas Carol YouTube addiction.

Take it away Nat.

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I spent a night with the Foo Fighters at the monstrous O2 on Saturday and could not have asked for better company.

Serj Tankian (System of a Down singer) was the opening act, dressed in top hat and coat and singing songs from his new album Elect the Dead in his normal neurotic manner.

After a swift stage set up, Dave Grohl and his band took to the stage with a burst of applause from the sold out arena, and with his usual charisma, got the audience beaming with a promise of a long show. ‘None of this one hour and 15 minutes crap’, he told us.

The show had a few things you don’t normally see – a full two hour set, a triangle player solo – oh and a feature with Brian May and Roger Taylor from Queen. Dave was a demon, belting out tracks from their first album to their most recent, feeding the audience with everything they’d come to see as the base reverberated in your throat.

At one point he ran out into the catwalk to the middle of the crowd, and a circular stage was lowered. His band joined him, including his triangle player and a violinist, and there they played - surrounded by fans on all sides - acoustic greats like Everlong.

The show ended with a camera following the team backstage as we awaited the inevitable encore, and we haggled with the members of the band for how many more songs they would do. As four became five with the compulsory send off with Best Of You, it was clear that this band enjoyed the concert as much as the audience did. And it got me thinking that maybe Foo Fighters is as big as Nirvana was, Dave Grohl being an essential component to both.

After attending other concerts where bands push their new stuff, moving away from the older, more popular tunes, I’ve felt a bit disgruntled at not seeing and hearing what I’d paid for. So a night out with the Foo Fighters was more than a pleasure. Dave Grohl said they’d be back soon – best get your tickets as soon as they go on sale.

Here’s a taste of the ambiance:

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