I’ve laminated my Dorit Kemsley fan club badge

I can't pretend The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills is my favourite show from the long-running, mega-successful franchise. My heart belongs to New York. However, I watch most of the various different shows in the Real Housewives umbrella. Beverly Hills is often regarded and referred to as 'lifestyle porn' because it presents the cast in…

Books I love you might not know but should know because I love these books

I feel like a hunter when I'm in a book shop. I get the same feeling when I'm in a record shop. I want something. I must have something. It's there somewhere, hiding, so I've got to find it. That means exploring the surroundings. When I get a book or a record/CD that I didn't…

Do you feel the need for tweed?

There we were, laughing and chatting, when suddenly we realised we weren't alone. This isn't unusual in a public building, in our case the local library. I'd been put on a shift with Andrea and we were enjoying ourselves. I'd always found it easy to chat with Andrea, whose sense of silliness matched my own.…

Mr. Magic gets on his bike

I'd heard stories about The Cumbernauld Flasher from friends but none of us really believed he existed. He was an urban legend, constantly shifting shape and location, a threat we didn't actually take too seriously. And then one day I did. Nearly a decade ago while working in Abronhill Library, close to the school where…

Boomania by Betty Boo

Every kid deserves their own pop star, that one superstar they can adore from a distance. As a child, I wasn't short of icons to admire. There was The Doctor and Ace, who saved the universe from evil monsters each week on BBC1. Agent Dale Cooper was there for me even though he preferred coffee…

He who lives by the sword, also lives across the street

The night my neighbour pulled a sword on me started off quietly enough, or about as quietly as it could living in a flat in a rundown part of town. There were always varying levels of noise. Arguments heard through thin walls were accepted and endured with all the grace I could manage. Boyracers tearing…

The New Abnormal

I haven’t been able to update my blog in a while for a few reasons. Chiefly, my beloved dog passed away. I knew it was coming, but that doesn’t make it easier, does it? I’m fine, but the world feels very strange. It feels strange anyway, with the Lockdown happening around me, but little moments…

When authors disappoint: a personal story

Last year I was at a launch of a new book when I had a conversation with a blogger, someone I like quite well. We were chatting about books we read when we were kids. If the early nineties belonged to Point Horror, then the late eighties were owned by Roald Dahl. However, as soon…

Fatale by Jean-Patrick Manchette

Truth be told, I've been wanting to talk about this book for a long time. It's one of those rare reviews I didn't enjoy writing, because I love this book so much that I don't think I can really do it justice. Of course, being my blog, I'm going to try to do it as…

Chemistry by Girls Aloud

One of my favourite hobbies in the early years of 2000 was trolling the pages of Channel 4's Planet Sound music page on Teletext. Every week I'd write in and upset people with my eloquent displays of bitchy brilliance. Oh yes, I enjoyed it. My favourite technique was to write really long letters praising Girls…