December 30th 2017 – My Name is Prince exhibition, O2 London
‘Yeah I’ve dressed for comfort’

December 31st 2018 – BBC Offices, Swindon
‘Yeah, if I seem a bit over-dressed it’s because I’m going to a New Year’s Eve party later’

For the twelve months of 2018 I did something I hadn’t done for about two decades: I didn’t wear jeans to work. For the whole working year.

There are people reading this who’ve never seen me without blue legs and had probably laboured under the illusion I’m half Smurf, because like the love child of Status Quo and B*Witched I’ve worn denim with an unwavering commitment. Continue reading →

Love is an act of endless forgiveness – Peter Ustinov

Ten years ago I met my husband for the first time. We’d agreed to meet outside Borders the bookstore in North Swindon, and drank coffee in the Starbucks above. Continue reading →

Dear Diary

I suppose you want me to say something fresh and exciting about Bridget; a hot take on singletons, fuckwits, smug marrieds, novelty jumpers, turkey curry buffets, or at the very least big pants.

Come the fuck on, Roo – anything?

Nope.

2016 has taken away a lot of loved figures, and it is finally giving me someone back. This is about the simple joy of seeing an old friend after a long time. I sat for the first few minutes of the film with tears in my eyes at hearing that familiar voice and reconnecting with that world. Continue reading →

Clifford: The fact is, Mrs O, my life seems completely grey, bleak and pointless
Mrs Overall: Yes well, sometimes that’s God’s way of making you enjoy ‘Gardener’s World’

Victoria Wood

On a couple of consecutive days last month I lost two major influences in my life. I never knew either of them and yet that didn’t lessen the impact of their passing.

The death of the famous is a weird one. For every person who understands your sadness, there’s another who thinks you should just man up because they were strangers. If you’re in the latter camp, you should move along now and look at some cat GIFs. Continue reading →

Excitement levels are at TEN, as I’ve had my first piece published on the comedian Sarah Millican’s website: Standard Issue. Continue reading →

We’re just a week into 2016 and I’ve probably seen enough new year, new you features to last me the rest of the year. Continue reading →

I love social media. Some of the funniest people I know inhabit Facebook and Twitter on a regular basis and my life is the better for it. Continue reading →

Apologies to anyone who tried to get a coherent conversation out of me during November – it was such a busy month, I’ve practically crawled into December. In my mental fog, I forgot to buy an Advent calendar, which in hindsight is a good thing, as I’ve not got the strength to open the doors without the help of two burly men.

I spent the thirty days writing fifty thousand words for National Novel Writing Month, known affectionately as NaNoWriMo. Continue reading →