Entertainment | Just Five Really Good Albums

Those who know me in real life probably think of me as that-one-friend-who-really-likes-musical-theatre. Whilst this is definitely true, as you may have gathered from certain posts of mine, I am also a big lover of "regular music", particularly alternative and indie bands. With this post I've tried to go for albums that aren't hugely well-known because, as much as I love Favourite Worst Nightmare by Arctic Monkeys, for example, I hope you can instead come away from this post with new music recommendations, rather than just nodding through me gushing over albums that you've known about for years. I'm also going to recommend three songs from each album that I feel best give you the overall feel of what that album sounds like - a taster, if you will. Enjoy!

Entertainment | TV Review: BBC Sherlock - Series 4 (with spoilers!)

The recent series of BBC Sherlock left me very much inclined to disagree with the popular saying "no sh*t, Sherlock" because there was, quite frankly, a fair bit of sh*t. This post will probably end up focusing most on The Final Problem as that's freshest in my memory as I write, and is the episode where many of my issues with this series lie. Sadly, it seems, gone are the days of grippingly mysterious cases and the cleverly faked suicide that kept the nation guessing for 2 years - as Sherlock has declined into a bit of a mess.

History | Odd Things That Happened in History

Hello all! I realised recently that, although I'm a History student and History is one of my favourite things, it's never really made much of an appearance on my blog, a place where I aim to write about "whatever interests me". I was a little unsure about how popular a History-themed post might be on my blog, but after I aired my concerns on Twitter and many of you encouraged it I thought I'd go for it! This post contains only a few little anecdotal tales as I wanted to test the water, as it were. But if you'd like to see more posts on History, please let me know as I had lots of fun writing it!

Money | Better Alternatives to Spending Bans

January. It's the calm after the financial storm of Christmas and the Boxing Day sales, and the month where many of us, often inspired by new year's resolutions, put ourselves on spending bans. I personally have never liked the idea of a spending ban. It's - simply put - not fun, and it creates a feeling of punishment, which isn't a particularly positive vibe to be surrounding yourself with. So what are some good alternatives?

Entertainment | Why Good Girls Revolt Deserves a Second Season

I recently finished watching the first season of a show called Good Girls Revolt on Amazon Prime. The show is set in USA and loosely based on the true story of a group of women researchers who sued Newsweek in 1970 for denying equal opportunities to their female staff. After I'd marathoned the ten episodes available, I was saddened to learn that Amazon Prime had cancelled the series and whether it gets a second season depends entirely on whether another network picks it up. Whilst there's nothing I can do about this, I have nonetheless decided to do what we bloggers usually do with our opinions, and write a blog post.

Entertainment | Immersive Theatre Review: The Great Gatsby by The Guild of Misrule at Theatre Deli, Sheffield

It's the roaring 1920s - an era of bootleg liquor, red hot jazz and some of the most swinging parties in town. Created across Theatre Deli's labyrinthine building on The Moor, step into a heart-racing adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's seminal jazz-age story.The cocktails will be flowing, the music will be loud, one of Jay Gatsby's infamous parties is in full swing.The Guild and Theatre Deli have created a night out like no other. Over two and a half hours you will dance, chase and infiltrate your way through one of the greatest stories of the twentieth century. Come and join the party.

Entertainment | Book Review: 'On the Other Side' by Carrie Hope Fletcher (spoiler-free)

This novel follows the story of Evie Snow who, upon entering the afterlife in her old age, finds that her soul is too heavy to pass from the afterlife's 'waiting room' into her own personal heaven. Her journey to unburden her soul takes the reader through several flashbacks to reveal the story of Evie's life of love and sacrifice.

Entertainment | Book Review: 'The Butterfly Garden' by Dot Hutchison

Trigger warning: mentions of rape and other sexual violence, general violence, murder and death in general

A concept not for the faint-hearted, this novel follows a girl kidnapped to live in a 'Butterfly Garden', a secret greenhouse, owned by a wealthy man who calls himself The Gardener. Once there, he tattoos his new butterfly's back with wings and keeps them as his own. The novel has its downfalls, but is still quite the page-turner.

Entertainment | Book Review: 'After Auschwitz' by Eva Schloss

After Auschwitz details the life of Eva Schloss (whose mother, widowed by the Holocaust, later married Otto Frank, the widowed father of Anne Frank) throughout her time before, during and after her imprisonment at Auschwitz. The book covers topics of trauma, family life and hope, whilst also engaging in several discussions of historical legacies and public memories of Anne Frank, the Holocaust and the Second World War more broadly.