Sculpt your own boyfriend.

This weekend one of my best friends gave me a delightful Christmas present. See below.

Available at Urban Outfitters!!

Yes not only did she highlight my single status but finally I have been given the opportunity to create my perfect man. Sadly he is only in clay form! At some stage this week I will take to creating him so standby as I will post the final creation.

Senna - The Movie

This is a truly remarkable film. I have always been a fan of F1 but due to the time of Senna’s fame I was unaware of his story. The film is in fact a documentary but with an added cinematic Hollywood approach. I was under the impression the film would also feature a fair amount of reconstructive filming to enhance the story line. What was staggering is they used none. Despite this the footage used from start to finish told the story – there weren’t any awkward moments between shots, it genuinely flowed throughout.

What staggered me most about the film was the politics within F1 - Senna was unfairly treated on a number of occasions and as a result his passion came through even more. You felt how much he wanted it and what it meant not only to him but also his huge fan following in Brazil.

As well as the politics there was the extreme rivalry between Senna and Prost. It added another dimension to the story and heightened the passion.

Following his death the scenes in Brazil are nothing but emotional. Senna was genuinely seen as a Saint – not only did he inspire many, but his success also brought joy and hope. That success was also donated to many worthy causes.

I can honestly say this is a film worth watching.

In search of some carbs.

We most certainly can’t deny the fact we all have those days when all we crave is one carb loaded meal. Last Saturday this was the case for myself and a bunch of my closest girlfriends. The previous night we’d all been out celebrating one of our birthdays. Unfortunately we’d left our lunch destination to the birthday girl and well this is what we were welcomed with. Read it and your probably think its some menu from back in time.

All in rather fragile hungover states this was all too much. The reactions went from all round laughter to wanting to cry to just simply wanting to do was leave. This wasn’t an option (or at least the bday girl conscience wouldn’t let us) so we attempted to pull through.

Suddenly there was hope…..Chicken Kiev and mash potatoes was on the specials board. Done lets have that….oh wait there is only one left so that doesn’t exactly work. Two of us desperately tried to decide who should have it and decided that to make it fair neither of us would – big regret!

The order made consisted of 2 antipasto dishes and 4 pea and ham soups….and well lets just say unsurprisingly this proved a let down. For those of you who don’t like chunky and I mean chunky soups that’s exactly what arrived, in my opinion it should really have been named pea and ham broth. Then there was the rather over priced antipasto and for some reason every item was extremely salty.

One thing was for sure though it certainly made us laugh and Charlie Chaplin once said “a day without laughter is a day wasted” and well our day was certainly not wasted. The laughter didn’t seem to stop. Aside from this one time (any St Georges lacrosse girls reading this you must remember) in New York at the Hard Rock Café I genuinely don’t think I have ever laughed so much. At one stage I honestly brought on a sweat and breath loss trying to hold in the laughter…it then resulted in me bursting into unstoppable laughter and tears. All I can say it everyone needs a weekend with their best girlfriends, despite tears, headaches, voice loss it leaves you feeling in high spirits and so thankful to have such wonderful friends. 

A day out in London.

There is something about London that just makes me smile. I love it. I have never lived in London but I have plenty of friends who do and whenever I return from a visit I seem to miss it.

A couple weeks ago my father offered me his tickets for the Masters tennis at the Royal Albert Hall. I had an initial panic as having booked my hair appointment 8 weeks ago I now had a clash – considering I am currently unemployed, clashes rarely happen in my diary. I didn’t know what to do! I simply LOVE tennis but then at the same time I wouldn’t be able to see my hairdresser till after Christmas, he’s annoyingly popular so you have to be outrageously organised booking appointments. For example I can tell you already that my next visit to the hairdressers is on the 4^th February. Anyways I suddenly realised I can’t not go to the tennis – next problem who was I going to go with? Fear not I called a fellow unemployed graduate and off we went.

Neither of us had been to the Royal Albert Hall so that was exciting in itself. Secondly we’re both big tennis fan so watching tennis in such a stunning building was just incredible. 

Thirdly we were watching Mark Philippoussis and it didn’t take long for us both to realise how good looking he was. We almost became obsessed.

This all started when at the end of his match tennis balls were hit into the crowd at this stage we weren’t fussed about catching a tennis ball. Well we weren’t until…Andrew Castle announced if you caught one you would be meeting Mark Philippoussis. Suddenly we both sprung to our feet and were shouting “Mark, Mark” but no balls were hit our way. I just have to put it down to the fact he didn’t see us. If he genuinely is single and the average age of the audience was 50+ (it was the masters tennis after all) then why did he not throw it our way? Even the ladies in front commented on the situation in shock – highlighting the age of a member of the audience who had caught one. Anyways we weren’t put off by the lack of a ball we went to the meeting point and followed those who did have balls to the special room. Upon entering the room people were handing over their balls and sadly we had to bail last minute. We were genuinely devasted.

We didn’t stop there though, we took to twitter. Couldn’t find Mark Philippoussis so tweeted to the masters tennis twitter account. The tweet read as follows: "@masters_tennis loving the tennis but sad to have missed out on the meet and greet with #markphilippoussis - feel free to put in a good word." Sadly we failed.

It took a while but we moved on from Mark Philippoussis and onto the V & A museum. I cant think when/if I have previously been, if I have it would have been on a rather uninspiring school trip, which would have consisted of filling out question sheets. You wouldn’t really take in any of the beauty just simply answer the questions as quickly as possible so you could go to the shop and/or café. I love being at an age where I actually enjoy visiting museums. I think it’s also the addition of my SLR as I love being able to snap away especially at the architecture. A couple pictures from the V & A are below.

We didn’t stop there. Oh no, on we continued to Harrods and yes after looking at the jewellery and handbags we did make our way to Santas grotto. Now our initial plan was just to see it – we tried peering round the corner only to be greeted by this….

Now this lovely pink elf (if that’s what she was) informed us Santa’s Grotto was in fact FREE. Now as most of you know nothing comes free but it actually was. So with our new pink elf friend we made our way to the queue. 

This is when we suddenly realized it is actually a little bit weird that at 22 years old we were queuing to see Santa – this was emphasized by the average age of 6 surrounding us. At this stage we looked at each other and the role play began. Oh yes we pretended to be American.  Of course this is the kind of thing American tourists would have loved. The good thing was at this stage we were only chatting amongst ourselves and bizarrely enough we speak in American accents on a regular basis.

A little something to keep you smiling in the queue to Santa.

The issue only came when we were situated at the front of the queue. At this point we had an elf chatting directly too us and it was for a good 7 minutes whilst the kid ahead of us had their moment with Santa. All I can say is this felt like a life time, but imagine the embarrassment if half way through we slipped into English. I could see my friends face beginning to panic but we made it through and this had to be the highlight of the day. As we left Santa’s Grotto we just burst into laughter but it certainly was worth it. Fingers crossed Santa makes our wishes come true. For those of you reading “we would like boyfriends and jobs” Please contact me if you can offer either. 

Coworth Park Hotel

Part of the famous Dorchester Collection, Coworth Park is a stunning contemporary country home – right on my doorstep. Despite its contemporary style it remains quintessentially British.

Coworth Park Manor House

With a passion for interior design I sat in the stunning conservatory in awe of my surroundings. My friend (another interior design lover) and I sat there discussing every style choice and how much we loved them - both wishing one day we’d be sitting in a conservatory of our own with such exquisite finishes.

Despite living so close to Coworth Park, this was my first visit.  Over our customary visit to Fegos Café in Ascot my friend assured me that it was definitely worth a lunch trip. She managed to persuade me as I had simply presumed prices would be high but in fact they were comparable.

After enjoying the truly sensational food, we couldn’t resist a walk. The sun was shinning and it all looked so tempting. I have included a few photos from my phone below.

For anyone wanted a country escape that isn’t that far out of London I can definitely recommend a trip to Coworth Park  - and I can only imagine with Christmas coming it will be even more magical. http://www.coworthpark.com/

Something about Federer

In Federer's recent ATP World Tour semi-final match against Ferrer, Ferrer was only 2 points away from winning the opening set. Despite this at 5-4 down and an 8 minute game you can hear the elation of the crowd when Federer brings it back to 5-5. What is it about Federer that truly captivates his audience? I am one of them and have always been a huge fan. For starters he is guaranteed to always display true sportsmanship skills but furthermore he is a joy to watch.

I was extremely jealous that earlier in the week my parents had prime seats at the O2 Arena to watch the much raved about Federer vs Nadal game. Unfortunately I didn’t watch the match but this little clip on YouTube shows the quality of the match and why the BBC’s headline read; “Roger Federer masterclass stuns Rafael Nadal in Tour Finals”

Go to 2.03 for a truly exceptional rally.

Sunday afternoon and we’re all sat at home gripped by another Federer final. I must admit I did have a temporary switch of allegiance and in the 2^nd set found myself supporting Tsonga. This was simply because I love that Federer comeback and he definitely displayed the best tennis in the third and final set. According to the BBC Roger Federer said this latest win is "one of his greatest accomplishments". You can understand why Federer is describing it as such a great achievement because it did it fact mark the 100th final of his career and a record breaking 6 wins at the ATP world tour finals.

Well done Federer on another win – fingers crossed for a 17^th grand slam victory in 2012.

Children’s Videos.

What is it exactly that captivates us with the comical videos online of children. They seem to amuse literally all generations. This was highlighted to me at the weekend when my grandparents asked me if I’d seen the “funny video charlie bit me” – of course I had but at least a couple years ago. The same thing happened but this time with the opposite end of the age scale. I was babysitting family friends aged 7 and 5 years old when they pretended to act it out, before asking “have you seen that video?”

 What fascinates me is the incredible number of YouTube hits these clips receive but also how some have been turned into money makers.

John Lewis Christmas Advert 2011

In the build up to Christmas it is hard to deny that both the M & S and Coca-Cola adverts holding a distinctive place on our TV’s. I didn’t think I’d find one to compete but …I have. I absolutely adore the delightful new John Lewis commercial. 

You truly feel the little boys pain at having to wait till Christmas day. Furthermore you can actually remember that agonizing wait till you can open your presents. Despite that assumption the adorable little kid has been so restless throughout purely from the excitement of giving his parents their gift, its just adorable and I love it. 

M & S Christmas Commercial.

One of my best friends is known for getting overly excited about Christmas very prematurely. But with the high street shops now stocking Christmas decorations, the numerous celebrities seen all over the UK switching on Christmas lights and Coffee Shops changing to their Christmas themed cups, I can’t dismiss the fact Christmas is coming.

But the pinnacle for me has got to be seeing the latest M & S Christmas commercial. With excitable youngsters, merry parents and sleeping grandparents, the joy of Christmas is evident throughout, with the commercial highlighting the excitement and happiness it brings.

What I find interesting is the use of the current X Factor contestant's who are singing “When You Wish Upon A Star”. The commercial concludes with the written words 'may all your Christmas dreams come true’. It is not only targeting their audience’s dreams but also playing on the idea that for these contestants their Christmas dream is without a doubt to be X factor winner and have the Christmas No.1 single.

I really enjoyed the clip and of course M & S have produced another brilliant Christmas commercial. I can now accept Christmas is nearing. 

Nokia Lumia Commercial

The opening of the commercial asks, “who says the everyday has to be so everyday?” following which the commercial shows a number of unique clips - the compilation of clips all with their own distinctive story or act is brilliant. There is also a sense of bringing everyday people together illustrated throughout the commercial. 

My favourite clip is undoubtedly the “Ironing Gangster” – this also appears to be the general consensus. All of the clips are available to watch separately but the Ironing Gangster has the most You Tube hits. I love the fact they invited him from The Bahamas to LA in order for them to film the clip. 

Frozen Planet "A World Beyond Imagination"

Upon hearing David Attenborough’s voice I am immediately captivated and know it will be something worth watching. Along with my family I was a huge fan of the Planet Earth series and watching it became a Sunday night ritual. As a result I was excited to see the BBC’s latest documentary, Frozen Planet.

Even in the 1-minute trailer (seen below) for Frozen Planet it is clear the BBC have created another masterpiece. The clip below briefly introduces you to the wonderful cinematography. I can’t wait to see this Wednesday’s show.

Finally whilst captivating their audience’s attention the BBC are also providing us with an educational documentary which is highlighting the importance of climate change. My favourite part of the show has to be the conclusion, which shows us how the footage was captured in such extreme conditions.

Coldplay

What an honour for those students at the University of East Anglia to have Coldplay performing live as part of Radio One’s Student Tour. For starters I am jealous they are all still students and not dealing the rather demoralizing job hunt but secondly they are watching Coldplay live and NOTHING BEATS THAT.

Fearne Cotton with Coldplay in Norwich. JEALOUS!

My father and I (diehard Coldplay fans) are currently trying to pretend we are there by having the surround sound blaring out in as many rooms as possible – I must admit its getting me in the vibe and I can picture everyone jumping up and down around me.

Having seen Coldplay at Wembley I have witnessed the elation they bring to an audience. The emotions run wild, from happiness to those unstoppable tears brought on by their most touching songs.

One confession I must admit is that I am still waiting to go purchase their latest album. I have of course bought some tracks on itunes but when it comes to Coldplay the CD has to purchased and added to the infamous CD collection.

For those of you who didn’t get listen live on radio one, check out the videos on their website. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/studenttour/2011/

Müller’s Latest Commercial “Wünderful Stuff"

Another great commercial on TV at the moment is the latest one by Müller. With its combination of cartoon characters and brilliant story telling it has all the key ingredients. It is of course combined with a brilliant and dramatic soundtrack; casually put together by a 67 piece orchestra at Abbey Road Studios.

Question is were you able to spot all the different characters? (Knight Rider, Yogi Bear, Mr Men and of course Muttley). In the most grown up of manners I may have been getting excited seeing them all pop up.

Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty

There is something fascinating about Alexander McQueen – not only did he create a HUGE name for himself through his creations but also the fashion shows in which he launched them in. McQueen is said to have remarked “I don’t want to do a cocktail party, I’d rather people left my shows and vomited. I prefer extreme reactions”. Extreme reactions are certainly what he received for his spring/summer 2001 collection Voss.

A video of this was shown in the “Romantic Exoticism” section of his Savage Beauty Collection at the Metropolitan Museum in New York – funnily enough it was a room my mother was keen for us to move on from. He wanted the shock factor and he got it.

Then in total contrast to the impact that video had on us we didn’t want to leave the room (Romantic Nationalism) which contained the stunning hologram of Kate Moss, which was used in his Widows of Culloden Collection, autumn/winter 2006–7. 

In a white floating dress Kate Moss’s hologram is representative of a ghost like spirit. The music accompanying it is fitting for the piece and adds to its elegance.

Below are some of my favourite pieces taken from the Savage Beauty Exhibition Catalogue. I was given the book, containing all of the work shown in the exhibition, at the end of my trip in New York and will most certainly cherish it for years to come. 

More images and videos on the exhibition can be found here:http://blog.metmuseum.org/alexandermcqueen/

Twinings Latest Advert

Unless it’s in the superb form of Pixar I am not usually the greatest fan of animation but, yes there is a but, for some reason I love the new “Twinings Gets You Back to You” advert.

I’ve seen it on TV at least 3 times now and have loved it on each occasion.  Without being theatrical I find it a really beautiful piece of animation, which is greatly enhanced by the stunning soundtrack. I am clearly not the only person who thinks this; the song “Wherever You Will Go by Charlene Soraia” is currently sat at number 3 in the iTunes chart. 

I find amazing how commercial music branding is so apparent nowadays. Increasingly we see commercial soundtracks hitting the charts as a result of featuring in the latest commercials and this clearly reinforces that.

Downtown Abbey

Finally I have begun watching Downtown Abbey and after the one episode I can see what all the hype is about. I have been out of the loop in many Downtown Abbey discussions but having now bought series one I can see myself catching up very soon. There is certainly something fascinating about a truly British period drama – the costumes, the homes and the superb cast. Plus the whole show has a truly authentic feel.

Uniting a Nation through Sport.

Another thing we noticed in Morocco was how sport truly brings them together. During our visit we were able to see the insane build up prior to their Africa Cup of Nations match against Tanzania. The streets were literally heaving full of excitable Moroccan’s giving us the impression they had already won. It wasn’t until later on we discovered the match was taking place late Sunday; at which stage we’d be flying home.


I felt this sense of people coming together through sport in the new Cadbury Dairy Milk advert “The Final Countdown”.  

Once again this is an advert based around the 2012 Olympic Games. The campaign encourages us to get involved and get singing all in order to “KEEP TEAM GB PUMPED”.  It is clear in the advert that people’s singing ability is not an issue as there are definitely some rather off notes.

They plan to make 6 adverts and in each one “Team GB need your voice”. The website link is also given at the end of the video and a snapshot of it can be seen below.

They have made it a fun, interactive website and are encouraging you to sing for their next clip.

I really enjoy this sense of bringing people together and creating an advert using everyday people – similar to the Talk Talk adverts we see during the X Factor. Next thing to do is actually record a clip of my own – I think we may be waiting a while for that!!

Marvellous Marrakech.

Two weeks back I made a last minute decision with friends that a long weekend away was in order. Their main criterion was for some sunshine (of course I couldn’t argue with that) but I was also keen to experience another culture and traditions.

Marrakech ticked all of our boxes and is a city full of hidden jems. Every time we arrived at a destination we were uncertain of what we’d find inside. Despite our initial reservations we were overwhelmed by the elegant and stylish interiors at each venue. Our meals were exceptional and we certainly had a Moroccan feast or two - Dar Zellij and Le Foundouk were two of our favourites.

Of course Morocco was full of fantastic photo opportunities but there were many incidents where people would either beg for money or it just didn’t seem appropriate to take their photo. Despite this I have uploaded a few of my favourites from the trip. They were all taken in the chaotic Souks and I just love the combination of colours. For anyone looking to take a few days break I can thoroughly recommend Morocco as a destination.

London Fashion Week

There is certainly something exciting about London when London Fashion Week arrives. There is a general buzz about town and the streets become full of young fashionista’s. I was lucky enough to attend the Daks Fashion Show, even receiving one of their fabulous little goody bags, which consisted of a striped leather pouch, postcards and pick a mix – although the 9am start meant I wasn’t quite in the mood for sweets.

You can see the show below. I was loving their music choices.

British Airways Latest Advert

BA’s latest commercial finally competes with Virgin Atlantic.

Lasting 1 minute 30 seconds it’s a bit longer than most commercials. There is a great choice of music which keeps you captivated and their concluding moto “to fly, to serve” gives you a great sense of patriotism – similar to those adverts appealing to people to sign up with the army. The whole commercial really speaks of a great production.

Unlike Virgin’s rather sexualized commercials, BA have given us a trip through time starting with planes no longer in service to their latest collection. BA have of course included a glimpse of state of the art terminal 5 their dedicated Terminal!

City of Lights

There is certainly something about seeing a city at night time. I will never forget climbing Sydney Harbour Bridge at twlight and seeing the city lights begin to switch on. Sadly no cameras were allowed but it’s a memory which will stick with me. I guess nothing epitomises a city of lights better than Time Square in New York City. I find it astounding how despite it being pitch black elsewhere you enter Time Square and it feels like daylight again.

Here are some photos I’ve taken from various places which I think shows how stunning places appear at night time.  I hope you like them!

Sydney, Australia, 2009

Koh Samui, Thailand, 2010

Koh Samui, Thailand, 2010

New York, USA, 2011

Coca-Cola Future Flames Advert

More than most people I am outrageously excited about the London 2012 Olympics. Firstly because I seem to be one of the few people lucky enough to have not only received tickets, but tickets for one of the most sought after events - the men’s 4x100 relay final! I continued to get excited when I saw the latest Coca-Cola Future Flames advert, which can be found here: 

Firstly it highlights Coca-Colas involvement and sponsorship of the Olympics but it subsequently focuses on finding “extraordinary people with a burning passion” deserving enough to carry the Olympic torch. I sat there going “come on Emma think, you must know someone deserving enough to run with the Olympic torch”. I genuinely racked my brains hoping I could think of someone to nominate – and sadly I failed. But I think the campaigns initiative is brilliant.

Mother London is responsible for creating the ad and they describe the campaign aims as being “to identify passionate young people and give them a chance to carry the Olympic Torch”. I am positive they will be able to compile a fantastic group of youngsters and I look forward to seeing the campaign move forward.

My Steve McCurray Attempts

With a love for travelling I have been fortunate enough to go to some amazing places. A few years back I took part in a volunteer project based in South America. It was an incredible experience and one I ensured was captured on camera. Unfortunately at the time I was without my much loved SLR camera but with my trusty Olympus waterproof camera I still managed to come home with some touching photographs. The one below is I guess, the closest I got to recreating Steve McCurry’s Afghan girl image.

On a separate trip last summer to Cuba I took this next photo. Whilst walking down some side streets in Havana this little boy popped his head out of his doorway and I couldn’t resist taking a photo.

Photography

As a keen photographer I derive excitement from capturing the right shot but also joy looking back at photos as they trigger those memories. As much as I enjoy taking photos myself, I am equally fascinated by other people’s images.

One of the most amazing images has to be the Afghan girl taken by Steve Murray. When I was doing volunteer work in South America I was dying to capture a shot of such power, simply through the subject’s eyes he was able to capture the desperation of her world.  Steve McCurray states “I look for the unguarded moment, the essential soul peeking out, experience etched on a persons face. I try to convey what it is like to be that person”. If you would like to see more of his images they can be found on his website http://www.stevemccurry.com/main.php

A Little Bit About Me

Having graduated this summer from Oxford Brookes University with a 2:1 in Communication, Media and Culture – I am currently looking for a gap in the industry which is suited to me. My CV will also be uploaded onto my blog so if you are reading this and think you may have a role suited to me – PLEASE GET IN CONTACT.

I am greatly interested in the power of imagery to tell stories. Whether that is a motion picture or a still shot they are both capable of telling a story or portraying a message. This is why TV production is something that has grabbed my attention and interests me as much as it does. Having worked briefly with commercials I am amazed how a short clip can be such a powerful and vital advertising tool.

An Introduction to Miscellaneous Musings

With a passion for the media industry is has become increasingly clear to me that blogging is a vital part of mainstream media and I decided it was about time I created one.

I intend to use my blog to share stories, experiences and, more importantly, to feature aspects of the media which are of interest to me. Whether that is the latest TV commercial to have grabbed my attention, an impressive image or a story worth sharing I will use my blog to compile them.

I hope you find it interesting and worth a read. Please let me know your thoughts.