This is one of the few albums that I listened to multiple times when it came out. I’m slightly obsessed with Alicia: such a good voice, amazing piano talent and just a wonderful presence, so it’s lovely to dip back into this familiar selection of R&B/pop goodness.

Was always under the impression that Legend was a bit whiney, you know, soppy laid back music, but I hadn’t realised Love Me Now was him. After being educated by Carpool Karaoke, I gave his album a go, but did find it to be a bit underwhelming. Love Me Now is a stand out track, the rest far less memorable.

There was a lot of pressure on this film’s shoulders, as we’d endured two out of the last three movies being absolute train wrecks. Precious time and money wasted on silly movies, so instead we put our faith in Tony Scott and Denzel Washington - a fantastic pairing that should never be doubted.

Like many people, I love Nadiya of Bake Off and now her own TV show fame. I’ve been watching her British Food Adventure with a sort of vague interest - experimenting in the kitchen is not high on my agenda at the moment. But, then I saw the third episode and realised I should pay more attention to this lady - she talks sense. Me too, Nadiya, me too.

Ooof, not good at all. I sort of thought this would be better, given the great cast, but it wasn’t enjoyable for me. Naturally, the gang of boys were childish and offensive to women whenever they were together, but that’s not really what got my goat. I didn’t like the message that this guy was a virgin because of his personality and lifestyle. The guys spent most of the movie trying to change him, when the reality is it was because he stopped trying.

This was a lovely film to watch, particularly after the horrors of Kong, it was a nice feel-good film with a relaxing feel to it. I’m not sure the story itself was particularly strong, but it was held up by the wonderful presence of Caine and Freeman, with Arkin shoring up the trio. It was funny in places, but not hugely comedic, it was more a drama than anything, and there were plenty of sentimental and family moments to give you all the feels.

I was planning on publishing another update to my Adventures in Netflix series, but was waiting until I’d watched one more series of something. Unfortunately, any Netflix watching I had planned has been delayed as I’ve become totally obsessed with Red Rock – an Irish police drama that airs on the BBC during the daytime, the iPlayer whenever you want, and I believe on Amazon Video as well. It’s no secret that we’re big fans of Dublin in our household, so the concept of a soap based in the Dublin area was quickly my favourite thing. At first, I was just enamoured by the scenery and the accents, but I soon became caught up in the story as well. A few inter-twining plots make up this soap, with your traditional Romeo and Juliet love story, alongside a particularly creepy grooming storyline as well as cops going bad, family loyalties and plenty more.

So, without an original idea to work with, they went all out on the CGI - it was some incredible work, but as Mr C quite rightly said: ‘Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.’ There was some really graphic and gross things in there that I wasn’t prepared for, and really never want to think about ever again but can’t stop visualising. It had that Prometheus effect.

The third of Lincoln Rhyme’s adventures takes place away from home, in a story that feels like when your favourite TV show moves to a different location for a special episode. It feels uncomfortable from the start, and there are bits of it that I don’t totally get on board with - I feel like Amelia was acting out of character for a good portion of the book, and there were so many twists towards the end I couldn’t quite keep up with who was who.

This was a real surprise. I’ve had it on a ’to watch’ list for absolutely ages, and decided to finally get round to watching it. I thought, given that it’s Mr Bateman, that it was going to be more of an all-out comedy, but it was more subtle than that. I saw a review saying he was like Bill Murray, with that grumpy acerbic dialogue that makes you laugh despite generally having all the hallmarks of an evil person. That’s exactly what this was and Jason did an incredible job with it.

Love Will Smith. Inspired to listen to this after his Carpool Karaoke, and really enjoyed it. The pop-rap style is totally up my street, great rhythm in rapping but slightly more palatable subjects than more hardcore rappers. Plus I know all the words to Men in Black, so can end the album in style.

I was keen to listen to this one, heard good things, but this isn’t really my sort of thing. Bit heavy, ethereal, quite like Florence and the Machine. Lead singer has a great voice but there isn’t much else to it, and I found it a bit of a slog to get through the whole album.

When it was first announced that Miranda Hart would be taking the role of Miss Hannigan in the West End production of Annie, I knew I’d have to go and see it. Annie isn’t one of my favourite musicals – children and animals and all that jazz – but the chance to see Miranda in her first stage musical role was too good to pass up. Thus, I rocked up to the Picadilly Theatre one Saturday to see how it all went down.

I had a memory of watching the first half of this film and absolutely hating it, just as I didn’t really get on well with the book either. Why is this woman obsessed with not having been proposed to after only six or eight weeks? It makes no sense to me. And the fact that she gets herself into situations like the skiing thing really boggles my mind. Surely it’s more adorable to be a bit nervous than to be all brazen but rubbish?

Great film this, I had no idea of the story behind one of the world’s biggest brands, and this was an enlightening if ultimately very depressing glimpse at what it takes to make millions. I was left with an overwhelming feeling of sadness, because although the message about persistence and embracing change is a good one, clearly this guy took it too far in screwing over pretty much everyone he came into contact with.

The overwhelming thought throughout the whole of this film was simply: wtf? Who came up with the idea and how on earth did they make a whole film out of it? It was completely crazy, but also quite fun. I laughed a lot at several moments, and thought Alec Baldwin did a great job with the voice of a baby in a suit - not quite sure how you manage to capture that, but he did.

The trailer made this look kinda funny but also kinda rubbish, so that’s what I was expecting and that’s exactly what it was. It’s clearly just a vanity project for Shepard, wrote it, directed it, starred in it, did all his own motorcycle stunts, and I think it suffers a little from that. It’s uneven throughout, the pacing and the shoe-horned in jokes that don’t quite fit.

This was a really lovely film, from start to finish. The group of outcasts were lovely, all of them, and all had their own quirky story to tell - mostly quite sad but with occasional glimpses of happiness along the way. Once I got over my revulsion of the whole wedding thing, I was totally invested and wanted to know how it all worked out.

I hadn’t realised Graham Norton had turned his hand to writing, but was glad to pick up the book and indulge in the mysteries of a quiet Irish village for a change. Following the story of an overweight sergeant in the depths of the countryside who finally has a crime to investigate, the book is by turns deeply involved and also sort of hands off.

Excellent album, it’s very eighties, so maybe hasn’t aged as well as it might have done, but the songs are all still great – the singles stand out, naturally, but love it all. Some of the tracks remind me of Madonna, but the combination of the two voices gives it a slightly different vibe.

This was recommended to me by Jeremy, and I’d not heard of the band before. It’s proper country, not pop country that I usually indulge in, but it wasn’t as hoky as I’d thought it might be. The first half of the album is quite relaxing, and it’s all got a nice rhythm to it.

Really interesting book this one. It’s sits in a unique halfway house of crime fiction, in that it doesn’t get too bogged down in the details of the crime (although we are following an active investigation), instead there is more focus on the police staff going about their business and trying to deal with their lives. It’s more of a drama, with relationships starting and ending, inter-office politics going on, and plenty of self-loathing.

I listened to the audiobook of this, and really enjoyed it, although it’s definitely a book of two halves. The first half, with Bond being bored at his desk talking through the minutiae of the reports he has to read, and then heading into a card game to try and catch a cheater… well, that bit wasn’t exactly riveting. I’m rubbish at following card games anyway, let alone ones that I don’t really know the rules for. Still, it’s written and read very well so that you can at least feel the tension even if you don’t quite know what it’s for.

There are quite a few things to like about this book. It’s no-nonsense, straight to the story, and as fast-paced as it’s possible to be. There’s not a lot of time for character development, except a brief paragraph of backstory for the main two. Everything else you learn along the way.

I’ve heard people rave about this book before and have kept it sitting on my Kindle bookshelf for a long while before dipping in. I’m not really in fiction writing mode at the moment, although I do have some ideas bouncing around my head. I’ve got too many hobbies as it is and I’d want to give writing a good portion of my attention.

I’m still making my way through the Fleming Bond books, but had a quick detour into this prequel about a Young Bond. It’s quite a lot of fun to see Bond in a completely different light - a young boy who is nothing particularly special except full of grit and determination, morals and a wanderlust instilled by a mixed up childhood.

Another good story from Kerry Wilkinson, this is the first in a spin-off from the Jessica Daniel books, following the adventures of private investigator Andrew Hunter. I liked the characters in this one, particularly the fearless and emotionless assistant, but I’m not totally sure the story unfolded as well as it might have. I’m still not clear on how Andrew figured out what he did, and the actual dastardly plot still remains a bit muddy in my mind.

I hadn’t realised quite how pop Taylor had already gone before she even got to 1989. This album’s first half is pure pop before reverting to the more familiar country sound. It’s longer than a lot of albums too and stacked with hits, plus a couple of good collaborations to boot.

Nice and relaxing this one, I don’t know much about The Charlatans but this album has a pretty chilled out vibe that works for me. I quite like the interludes as well, not too intrusive and add rather than take away from the work as a whole.

As if I wasn’t obsessed with Haim enough at the moment, they’ve only gone and covered Shania Twain for a radio segment in Australia. Turns out they’re pretty fond of the country/pop sensation, and they do a fab job of covering That Don’t Impress Me Much. Okay, so you’ve got a car! As an aside, I can’t figure if the segment title ‘Like a Version’ is genius or not. It’s a good pun, but does it work in this context? Undecided.

Rather than the ’this is my job, read all about it’ memoirs, this book takes more of an explorative look at the world of being a top notch surgeon. It embraces the fact that medicine is a subject for which there is no end - that we are always learning and growing and developing as a society, and that we shouldn’t blame doctors for not always having the right answer.

Wasn’t too sure where this book was going to start with but I was soon captivated, as I travelled along with Gavin to Gardenia. It’s so unusual to have a utopian fiction novel rather than the more disturbing dystopian premises that actually, in its own way, it was still rather creepy.

Hard to think I can add anything to the world about this band, quintessential hard rock, with a couple of fantastic anthems on there – Sweet Child O’ Mine particularly stands out. But it’s an album full of good tracks, quite intense in places but overall a solid listen.

Not my usual style of music but actually quite liked it. It scared me off a little at the start – the first track being almost entirely jazzy, but moved into more comfortable territory. I like the songs with added brass instruments, and it’s got a cool vibe. Not all my cup of tea but still a good album.

This podcast first came to my attention as one of the episodes featured the rather marvellous Simona de Silvestro - race car driver and generally all round good egg. Once I listened to that episode, I very quickly downloaded all the preceding shows and subscribed so I wouldn’t miss any future publications either. In Her Court comes out of Australia and features sports journalist Sam Squiers interviewing a variety of sporting names regarding all things “women in sport”. Topics have included overcoming difficult events, changing sports mid-career, getting a leg up, fighting for equality with men, and sporting injuries. The focus of the most recent episode, which actually ended the first season of the show, was about whether women are more susceptible to injuries than their male counterparts, and delving deeper into that taboo topic of menstruation.

There isn’t too much to say about this film really, it’s exactly what it says on the tin. Charlie Day prancing around trying to avoid a fight with the ever-stern Ice Cube. It’s not smart and it doesn’t try to be clever, and in thus admitting its limitations, it’s flipping brilliant.

Back to the diary format that works so well with Adrian Mole’s thoughts, I enjoyed this book more than the third in the series. With Adrian older now, the subject matter also grows up, so we are talking about adult relationships, trying and failing to get a job, and going on various holidays and trips with or without your significant other.

Interesting book, this one. You really have to buckle yourself up for a bucket load of cynicism. Spread across your life, it’s probably a healthy amount of questioning the world around you and not just falling for every claim put in your path. Bundled together in a book like this, well, it does read a little grumpy and frustrated with the way the world’s going.

Hmm, didn’t enjoy this as much as the previous works as it’s clearly taking a different direction. It’s much more a random collection of thoughts, and not all of them from the always intriguing mind of Adrian Mole. I didn’t really get the Margaret stuff, but the Sue Townsend notes were okay - if still a little random.

Interesting collection of songs here, some massively stand out more than others but it also makes a complete work that has to be considered together. It’s good, and you can hear the craft in it, alongside Madonna’s excellent voice and musicality. Not sure it totally won me over but I appreciate the work.

Really liked this album. I sort of feel like I don’t know any Imagine Dragons songs but then hear them and love them and join the dots that they’re by this band. This album is a fab collection of pop-rock with some powerful rock anthems sitting comfortably side by side with more traditional pop blends. Love it.

It’s taken us a while to get round to watching this because, with the experience of the first LEGO movie still vivid in our head, we expected it to be bright and fast and exhausting. It was, but nowhere near as bad as the first. It actually felt like it had a somewhat slower pace, a more adult theme perhaps, and generally a better story overall.

For the past two weeks, the 2017 Wimbledon Championships have been underway, and they’ve provided lots of ups and downs, highlights and disappointments, the usual Grand Slam tournament soap opera. This year was different for me, though, because I was there on day one. I was one of those attendees in the grounds of the All-England Club. I never really thought I’d get to Wimbledon in person. It was a vague desire, but the complexity of getting tickets alongside the fact that coverage at home only ever gets more comprehensive and engaging meant I thought I’d be an armchair fan for the foreseeable future.

I’ve been catching up with BBC Two’s The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes – a programme hosted by Caroline Quentin and Piers Taylor that is kind of like Grand Designs, but the houses are already built and no one gets pregnant before the end of each episode. My dad first highlighted the show to me, because there was an entire programme dedicated to underground houses. The dynamic duo visit four locations in each episode, sometimes staying overnight to get a really good feel of the dramatic, the exotic, the downright crazy of each domicile. Piers gives the insight of the architect, whilst Caroline gives a wonderfully optimistic more down-to-earth opinion.

Usually when I watch sports, I am looking for a good game/match/race, and may have a favourite in the mix but as long as it’s a good battle or an impressive display, then I’m happy. Over the last six months or so, I’ve been investing myself into the WTA tournaments so that now I have a handful of favourites, for a variety of different reasons. Somehow, I’ve escaped without any of them meeting each other when it really matters, but now, on the second Tuesday of Wimbledon, the inevitable has happened.

It’s been a while since I re-read the first of these diaries, and the second was just as delightful as the first. I must have read this before, before the start of the book was quite familiar to me, but I’m not sure I’ve ever got to the end, because it certainly took a few twists and turns along the way.

This album has that pure early 2000s pop sound that I so loved. I’ve sort of grown out of it now but love it as a nostalgia trip. One of the songs was very Eurovision, and I do wonder if putting the same songs in various languages really counts, but otherwise it’s a great foot-tapping pop album.

Oof I love this album. I was eagerly anticipating it, and listened to it twice in quick succession before 8am on the day it came out. Love it so much. Every song has a unique something, it’s all quite angsty but these girls know how to layer their instruments and voices to create great sounds. Will listen many more times, I know.

At the end of this book, Dickie Arbiter says this was intended to be a professional memoir of a difficult period in the monarchy that he was on hand to witness, but gradually it became something more personal. That shines through during the whole book. It’s about his job in the press room of Buckingham Palace during some very difficult times - the death of Princess Diana in particular.

I was perusing the Goodreads site for a while early today when I noticed their stats page. I haven’t really delved into this side of things much, other than looking at the count of books I’ve read each year. What was I hyped up on in 2014 for goodness’ sake? Today I spotted this graph of books by publication date by read date. Forgive me for this self indulgence, but what an interesting way to view reading habits!