Author Archives: deansdiva

One for your watch list

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Heading into week six as a self-isolating single, June had pretty much run out of box sets to watch.

Until yesterday evening that is, when she stumbled across the first episode of Mediterranean with Simon Reeve on BBC2.

One hour later she was hooked and, rather than wait for episode two next weekend, headed straight over to BBC iPlayer to binge watch the the rest of the series…

Originally broadcast in October 2018, it follows Simon as he embarks on an extraordinary four-part journey around the Mediterranean, uncovering the wild extremes that lie behind the tourist veneer.

From stunning scenery to terrifying tales of deprivation and despair, the stories he shares are both heartbreaking and heartwarming – if you’re looking for something that’s entertaining and enlightening in equal measure, this is definitely worth adding to your watch list.

The bad news is there are just four episodes in this particular series but there’s good news too…

Fourteen more multi-episode series featuring Simon’s epic journeys are still available over on iPlayer – no surprises for guessing how June will be passing the time as lockdown continues!

Bringing artists into view

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Their studios may be closed to the public right now but artists across Nottinghamshire will still be welcoming ‘visitors’ throughout May and June, thanks to a special initiative designed to bring Open Studios 2020 to the county ‘virtually’.

“Of course it is no longer possible to run Open Studios in its usual format this year,” said Michael Trueman, co-ordinator of the initiative. “However, the creative community is the best at keeping morale high when times are rough, not only for the wider public but for ourselves too.

“Hence we have decided to use the online and digital opportunities available to continue to fulfil our mission of ‘bringing artists into view’.”

OS Notts will be sharing virtual studio tours and videos of artists’ work in progress on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and on a dedicated YouTube channel. There will also be opportunities to meet participating artists on social media and a new Meet the Artist section on the OS website.

Linked photographic exhibitions showing artists and makers at work that would normally be held in libraries across the county courtesy of  Inspire: Culture, Learning and Libraries will also take place online.

Links to the exhibition, which launches on Friday 24 April, will be posted on social media and on the OS website. For the third year running, the photographs have been taken by Neil Pledger and curated by Lucianna Gallucci.

And don’t forget to keep an eye on the Girls Around Town social media feeds for regular updates about this year’s Open Studios…

Photographs by Neil Pledger

Are you ready to brave the shave?

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As promised ladies and gentlemen – how to tidy up your husband’s/partner’s hair, courtesy of Marshalls Hair in Newark…

With the help of his lovely wife Karen, Michael takes  you step by step through the process which, as you’ll see from the recap at the end, in their case included several quick breaks for a sip or two from the whiskey coke, fizz and glass of wine they had close at hand!

Of course if your experience of shaving someone’s hair is limited, you just might want to hold off on the drinks till you’ve finished the final stage…