I found The Poke’s list of funniest tweets of 2019 a brilliant read. Give yourself a few minutes today to take this all in!
I might create my own list for 2020!
A collection of random thoughts and ideas
I found The Poke’s list of funniest tweets of 2019 a brilliant read. Give yourself a few minutes today to take this all in!
I might create my own list for 2020!
The 2010s has been a decade of two halves. It began with some unbelievable music which seemed to become popular organically – because people liked it and chose to buy it. Later in the decade the whole chart scene changed because people didn’t need to choose what to buy as it was streamed instead. People began to simply subscribe to a playlist which chose the music for you. So for large amounts of the year the chart has been slow paced and full of tuneless dirge.
But there have been some fantastic tunes:
Avicii – Wake Me Up (2013)
Sigma – Nobody To Love (2014)
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams – Get Lucky (2013)
Rudimental featuring John Newman – Feel The Love (2012)
Route 94 featuring Jess Glynee – My Love (2014)
Disclosure featuring Sam Smith – Latch (2012)
Coldplay – Sky Full Of Stars (2014)
Florence + The Machine – Spectrum (Say My Name) (Calvin Harris Remix) (2012)
Neiked featuring Dyo – Sexual (2016)
Pharrell Williams – Happy (2013)
David Guetta featuring Sia – Titanium (2011)
Armin Van Buuren featuring Trevor Guthrie – This Is What It Feels Like (2013)
Ed Sheeran – Thinking Out Loud (2014)
Justin Timberlake – Can’t Stop The Feeling! (2016)
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars – Uptown Funk (2014)
DJ Fresh featuring Rita Ora – Hot Right Now (2012)
Alan Walker – Faded (2015)
Swedish House Mafia featuring John Martin – Don’t You Worry Child (2012)
OneRepublic – Counting Stars (2013)
Carly Rae Jepson – Call Me Maybe (2011)
Rihanna & Calvin Harris – We Found Love (2011)
Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynee – Rather Be (2014)
George Ezra – Shotgun (2018)
Walk The Moon – Shut Up And Dance (2014)
Pitbull & Ke$ha – Timber (2013)
Gary Barlow – Let Me Go (2013)
Alesso featuring Tove Lo – Heroes (we could be) (2014)
McFly featuring Taio Cruz – Shine A Light (2010)
Omi – Cheerleader (Felix Jaehn Remix) (2015)
Matoma featuring Ja Rule and The Notorious B.I.G. – Old Thing Back (2015)
Ellie Goulding – Burn (2013)
Naugty Boy featuring Beyonce & Arrow Benjamin – Runnin’ (Lose It All) (2015)
Ed Sheeran – Castle On The Hill (2017)
Ed Sheeran – Sing (2014)
Pink and Nate Ruess – Just Give Me A Reason (2012)
The Script – If You Could See Me Now (2013)
SecondCity – I Wanna Feel (2014)
The 1975 – Chocolate (2013)
Bruno Mars – Just The Way You Are (Amazing) (2010)
fun. featuring Janelle Monae – We Are Young (2011)
Keala Settle & The Greatest Showman – This Is Me (2018)
Kygo featuring Conrad Sewell – Firestone (2014)
Adele – Rolling In The Deep (2011)
Passenger – Let Her Go (2014)
Plan B – She Said (2010)
Tinie Tempah featuring Eric Turner – Written In The Stars (2010)
Imany – Don’t Be So Shy (Filatov & Karas Remix) (2016)
Sigala – Easy Love (2015)
Ed Sheeran – Perfect (2017)
The Chainsmokers & Coldpay – Something Just Like This (2017)
Christina Perri – A Thousand Years (2011)
Disturbed – Sound Of Silence (2015)
Imagine Dragons – Radioactive (2013)
Maroon 5 featuring SZA – What Loves Do (2017)
Ella Henderson – Ghost (2014)
I’ve just finished reading Stuffocation by James Wallman. If I’m honest, I found it really hard going. Ironically, the book itself is now just ‘stuff’ that I’ve got left in the house that I don’t need.
It’s not that that I didn’t like the idea of the book. Living more with less is a powerful message that has really resonated with me. It’s more that this message could have been written in about two pages and not the 358 that this takes up.
The key message in the book is that stuff doesn’t bring happiness – experiences bring happiness. And there’s an important environmental message accompanying this too. These principles have really hit home with me and I’m going to do my best to follow them in future.
The most useful part of the book is the appendix: The 7 habits of Highly Effective Experientials. Here is my interpretation of these seven habits:
Back in 2010 one of my favourite comedies ever ended with the perfect ending. The news that it would be back for a 2019 Christmas special made me nervous – could it ever be as good as it was?
I was a bit late getting into Gavin & Stacey. Season Two was in full swing by the time we decided to take the plunge. As soon as we watched it we were hooked. It was such a natural comedy with such likeable and relatable characters.
Every episode was of the highest quality and there wasn’t a weak episode. It ended on New Year’s Day 2010 with what I thought was the perfect ending – just enough insight to satisfy your imagination and just enough lingering questions to make you wonder what if.
Earlier this year it was announced that the show would return for a Christmas special in 2019. Could it ever be as good as it was? Would it undo all of the memories and nostalgia if the episode was a let down. Would the humour work ten years later?
Well, the show was brilliant! Absolutely fantastic in fact. The show managed to give you a glimpse into the lives of the characters. It managed to be nostalgic whilst bringing something new to the show.
Despite being named after Gavin and Stacey the best characters of the show are all of the others – particularly Smithy and Nessa. Pam and Mick are favourites too, along with Uncle Bryn. And the special didn’t disappoint, giving them all more classic moments.
The one complaint was the unsatisfying ending – not because it was bad, but purely because we want to know what happens next!
You can also buy the characters in Lego form here!
So, one of our Christmas traditions is that we watch Love Actually together. It’s the film that I love and hate at the same time, but Christmas wouldn’t be the same without watching it. Here are the best bits.
The wedding
When you watch this, bear this in mind.
When Hugh Grant stands to to the president
The stalker fastens up his turtle neck in dramatic fashion
Dancing Prime Minister
Mr Bean does his best to stop Snape having an affair
Carol Singing
All I Want For Christmas
Airport Chase
What’s your favourite moment?
I’m not sure that 2019 has been a vintage year for music, but there have been some crackers. Here are my favourites:
Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
Calvin Harris & Rag’n’Bone Man – Giant
Meduza featuring Goodboys – Piece Of Your Heart
Becky Hill & Weiss – I Could Get Used To This
Kygo & Whitney Houston – Higher Love
Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus – Old Town Road
Sam Feldt featuring Rani – Post Malone
Tones & I – Dance Monkey
Avicii – Heaven
Coldplay – Orphans
Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber – I Don’t Care
Galantis & Dolly Parton featuring Mr. Probz – Faith
Lizzo – Juice
What are your favourite songs of the year?
I’m not planning on letting my children read this – so don’t let yours.
I’m having a lot of doubt this year about the great lie that is Father Christmas. I think it’s because we are maybe at the last year that we will be able to convince our eldest that Father Christmas is real. She’s at the age where she’s becoming a bit savvy and asking a few questions about how the guy in the red suite actually manages to do his job. You know the sort – why does Father Christmas sometimes wear glasses? How does he get in to our house? How does he make it round the world in one night?
It’s got me thinking about the lies we are telling our children and made me wonder whether we should continue with it? Here are my worries:
And then there are the ever evolving and ever more extreme explanations for how St Nick manages to do his job.
It’s all lies – and we want our children to be honest!
This year our youngest told Santa what he wanted for Christmas but wants to keep it a secret from us!
The whole thing makes me uneasy and yet every year we do it all again.
Everyone likes the big ones – you know, the same ones we play every year. But here are the eight most underrated seasonal songs!
Gwen Stefani & Blake Shelton – You Make It Feel Like Christmas -An absolute belter – why don’t more people know this?
Bryan Adams – Christmas Time – a big sing along Christmas song that you never get to sing along to because no one ever plays it!
Kelly Clarkson – Underneath The Tree – surely this would get you up and dancing – if it was ever played!
Coldplay – Christmas Lights – Another Coldplay anthem. Well, it would be if it was played more.
Sheena Easton – Christmas All Over The World – A Christmas song from one of the best ever Christmas movies – Santa Clause: The Movie
Leona Lewis – One More Sleep – Ok, so this is finally picking up traction (peaking at Number 8 in 2018). But this deserves to be a classic and one of the most played on your Christmas playlist. Check out the awesome Cahill Remix!
Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine – So it’s perhaps a bit odd that a Christmas Number 1 is on this list. But M&W gets tarred with the same ‘Cliff Richard is not cool’ brush. And it’s not fair as this is a classic.
The Waterbabies – Under The Tree – Originally used in a Vodafone advert, this will make you feel Christmassy – if you ever get to hear it!
Over the last few months I have been trying to drink beers from as many countries around the world as possible. I managed to reach 21 different countries.
Belgium – Stella Artois
China – Tsingtao
Cyprus – Keo
Czech Republic – Pilsner Urquell
France – Champignuelle
Germany – Warsteiner
India – Cobra
Italy – Birra Moretti
Japan – Kirin Ichiban
Latvia – Cesu
Lithuania – Gintarinis
Mexico – Corona
The Netherland – Heinken
Norway – Ringnes
Poland – Tyskie
Russia – Baltika
Scotland – McEwans
Spain – Estrella
Thailand – Singha
Turkey – Efes
USA – Budweiser
Ok, so it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. But I couldn’t believe how much I enjoyed the second series of The Great Model Railway Challenge.
Similar to The Great British Bake Off, the show manages to produce tension and drama over something that doesn’t really matter in the scheme of things. It is total escapism TV – you can forget about the world and just worry about whether or not the scratch build challenge is done well or not.
The programme has lots of subtle humour, mainly thanks to the presenters, James and Tim.
The judges, Steve and Kathy offer intense soundbites that draw you into the builds.
The models are really impressive. Like REALLY impressive. The first series had great models. Every single design this year was incredible.
You can read more about the finale here.
If nothing else I have an ambition for my retirement.