8 Top tips for new school starters

Starting a new school or college can be a daunting experience for anybody. Throw in the added complications of the seemingly unrelenting global pandemic and those feelings of fear and apprehension may well multiply to preposterous levels of intensity. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Believe me. I may well be 40 years […]

Surviving lockdown 2.0

Lockdown is once again upon us here in England and just like before we’re faced with the prospect of a month spent mostly behind closed doors. For some the opportunity to spend more time at home can only be a good thing. While for others the prospect of being stuck inside with little to no […]

#TellYourStory: The television of my childhood

When Mark’s email first came through about the #TellYourStory campaign it instantly struck a chord with me. Especially the suggestion of revisiting my favourite childhood television shows! Unlike many of you, I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s. Of course, everybody thinks that their own particular era of children’s telly was the best. But […]

Common sense during the Covid crisis

“Unprecedented times.” “The new normal.” “Good old-fashioned common sense.” Just three of the infuriating soundbites that are wheeled out by every politician, journalist and broadcaster under the sun., and the less said about “Hands, face, space” the better. 2020 really isn’t the year any of us were expecting, (sorry!) but it really has changed my […]

#TellYourStory: 5 tips for supermarket shopping

Food shopping. It’s one of those mundane tasks that we all have to do. Yet go about it the wrong way and you could end up blowing your entirely monthly budget in one hit!

So to help you out here are five of my top tips for saving money on your supermarket shop.

Living with Emetophobia – #TellYourStory

We all have fears. Even the most confident and brazen people are afraid of something. I was thinking about my own fears while I was planning this piece. I’ve always had this deep-rooted fear of vomiting ever since I suffered from a persistent bout of travel sickness during a school trip. I was only 11 […]

The importance of being idle

One of the most important elements of keeping your mental health in good check is allowing yourself to enjoy some regular downtime. Some ‘Me time’ if you will. The problem is though, that more often than not we’re encouraged to “keep busy” or “stay active” in order to stop our minds from drifting back into […]

Winter gaming recommendations

Winter can be tough. Limited daylight, freezing temperatures and of course this year, the ongoing threat of Coronavirus. As important as it is to keep up to date with current events, sometimes it’s nice to grab a controller, fire up your console and escape into another world. Here then are my top five gaming recommendations […]

My alternative Christmas wish list

The festive season is almost upon us again and thanks to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic things are going to feel a little different. Work Christmas parties will be cancelled, traditional carol services will be restricted and those that love a big family gathering on the day itself will probably be disappointed. But Covid won’t stop […]

#TellYourStory: What age would I revisit?

The concept of time travel has always fascinated me. Movies such as the seminal Back to the future trilogy, the Bill & Ted series and the more recent About Time have always managed to capture my imagination. Likewise, television is no slouch when it comes to exploring time travel. The Canadian series Being Erica is […]

#TellYourStory: The lists of Christmas past

Remember Christmas morning as a kid? I used to be so excited that I would always wake up at 2.00am and be unable to drift off back to sleep again. Christmas day seemed to take forever to roll around back then. Even as early as September I would be eagerly scanning the hallowed pages of […]

I’ve started Christmas early. Here’s why.

When I was a kid we were never allowed to put the Christmas tree up before the 23rd December. I didn’t understand the reasoning for it then and I’m still baffled by it now. It always had to come down by January 1st too. The magic of Christmas only allowed a minimal stay in our […]

My new year resolution is to be more selfish. Here’s why.

The new year is fast approaching and many of us will be starting to think about our new years resolutions. For some it might be to join a gym and lose some weight. For others it might be to give up smoking or to reduce your alcohol intake. Or perhaps it’s something a little more […]

Learning to drive? Check out my top tips.

Learning to drive is exciting. But it can also be one of the most challenging and rewarding things that you do in your life. The ability to drive opens up a whole wealth of possibilities that might well have passed you by if you had remained a pedestrian. I learned to drive later than most, […]

Managing your mental health at Christmas

Christmas is almost upon us again and, as always, is depicted in the media as a happy, fun-filled time packed with presents, family and an obscene amount of food. This has always been the way the festive season has been painted in my lifetime and seemingly even the threat of the ongoing pandemic hasn’t made […]

Your mental health in the pandemic

Your mental health in the pandemic We’re living in strange times right now. Unless you come under the category of being a key or essential worker, chances are that you’re now stuck at home all day and every day for the foreseeable future. Your education and your social life have been put on hold as […]

#TellYourStory: The power of Twitter

I can remember a time before we had Twitter and other social media. It used to be that we all communicated via email or through one of the many online messaging services like MSN or AIM. Then there were chat rooms of course, something that has all but died out these days. A/S/L anyone? These […]

#TellYourStory: What makes you happy?

One person’s idea of Heaven could be another person’s idea of Hell. Somebody might relish the idea of spending the evening getting dressed up and heading out to watch a musical. Whereas I would be more than happy to curl up on the sofa with a glass of wine and spend the evening in front […]

It’s never too late to find your true vocation

Back when I was at secondary school I had a careers interview. It sounds exciting doesn’t it? An interview where a group of experts sit down with you and tell you all of the different career paths that you could take. A world renowned scientist! A leading brain surgeon! An astronaut! A spy! Any number […]

Tips for writing a good personal statement

Getting into university is something that many of us dream of, but there are many obstacles and challenges to overcome before we can finally accept a place. One of the biggest of these is writing your personal statement. Indeed, if you’re somebody who is currently completing an access to higher education course at college, chances […]

What happens when a friendship turns toxic?

Negativity comes in all manner of forms. Whether it’s the seemingly endless torrent of hate and bile that’s spewed onto various web platforms every day, the glossy celeb-obsessed magazines that take it upon themselves to openly criticize those who just happen to find themselves in the public eye or simply a throwaway comment made by […]

#Tellyourstory: Life beyond lockdown

It’s hard to believe that it has been a year since we first went into a national lockdown in England. But here we are, one year on and life as we once knew it feels like a distant memory. The shops remain largely closed. The pubs and restaurants have closed their doors. Any normal form […]

How a simple blood test changed my relationship with food

Trigger warning: This blog contains thoughts, opinions and advise about diet and weight loss. As a child I was always the skinny kid. The one boy in my class who had no real meat on the bone. Whereas most of my peers benefited from a bit of muscle to that gave them a fighting chance […]

Are we becoming a cashless society?

Are we becoming a cashless society? When was the last time you used cash to pay for something? The reason I ask is because it seems to me that these days we are increasingly moving towards becoming a cashless society. The continuing threat of Coronavirus has no doubt contributed in accelerating the demise of notes […]