The finale of the open air theatre season at Lytham Hall will bring both joy and a tinge of sadness to visiting company Illyria this Sunday afternoon.
Illyria will be giving their penultimate performance of the Roald Dahl children’s favourite Danny the Champion of the World which has been playing to substantial family audiences at venues all over the United Kingdom.
Their 95-day tour has included a week at Cornwall’s famous Minack Theatre as well as shows at Fulham Palace, Hartland Abbey, Chepstow Castle and Tatton Park.
Illyria’s artistic director Oliver Gray who travelled from his base in Cornwall for his first visit to Lytham Hall in July feels that his cast of six are relishing the chance to return to one of their favourite venues at the end of their marathon tour.
“They simply love the calmness of the beautiful parkland at Lytham Hall and always find that the Lytham audience in August, many of them children, is always one of the most responsive on the tour. I was delighted to see Lytham Hall for myself and found it a most impressive setting for open air theatre,” he said.
Illyria stalwart Ffion Glyn who plays the pram-pushing vicar’s wife Mrs Clipstone pays tribute to the quality of Road Dahl’s writing.
“There is sadness and tension in Danny the Champion the World, as well as much humour, and that has surprised and appealed to our audiences all over England, Scotland and Wales this summer. We will be a little sad too giving the penultimate performance of memorable tour. It’s an eye-catching show and I think the families at Lytham Hall are in for a Bank Holiday treat.”
Open air theatre organiser Julian Wilde believes that Illyria will bring the season to a happy conclusion with one of Roald Dahl’s most appealing works.
“I am sure Illyria will do us proud once again. We have already sold a large number of tickets and I do advise everyone to book in advance as we are heading for a full house. ”
Gates which will be open from 2pm for picnickers, with the play starting at 4pm, and the audience should bring their own folding chairs or rugs. An area in front of the stage will be reserved for small children.
Tickets are £13, with concessions of £10, £6.50 and £3.
Book on-line on Illyria’s website at www.illyria.uk.com


The finale of the open air theatre season at Lytham Hall will bring both joy and a tinge of sadness to visiting company Illyria this Sunday afternoon.


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Both sides started a little tentatively but it was Town who began to dominate. Having played some fine passing football, the opening goal was route one with Lee Dovey’s clearance headed on by Brad Car


AD/DC, Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Oasis, Fleetwood Mac. What do all these bands have in common?
They’ve all played Reading Festival and now a young Blackpool band are going to be added to that list of legendary musicians this weekend.
Fans at the main stage at Leeds Festival
For a lot of bands, playing Reading (and now the twinned Leeds) Festival is the pinnacle of their career but for Fighting Caravans, this achievement has come in the group’s infant stages.
An alternative rock quintet, who describe their sound as “A tacky disco meets a last-mile wake”, Fighting Caravans won the annual Futuresound competition to get their slot at the festival. Josh Hogan, the band’s 21-year-old drummer, from South Shore, spoke about the band’s excitement.
He said: “It was nuts, it took a long time to actually sink in but its a great feeling, definitely a bucket-list level achievement.
“I’ve been a few times and to now be playing on one of those stages is just amazing,
It was nuts, it took a long time to actually sink in but its a great feeling, definitely a bucket-list level achievement
“Its come around so quickly and we are very excited, we can’t wait!”
Josh also talked about the competition and thanked everyone who voted for the band, adding: “We entered the Futuresound competition and were fortunate enough to get chosen to participate in the live heats along side 39 other bands, so to come out on top was just crazy.
“We are extremely grateful, firstly to Futuresound for the opportunity, but mainly to everyone who bought a ticket, came down, partied and voted for us, we wouldn’t be in the position without those guys!”
Joining Josh in the band are singer Daniel Clark, 28, guitarists Ross Day and Alex Fletcher, 22 and 20, and bassist Simeon Lees, 22.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The festival appearance marks a meteoric rise for the band, who have only been touring with their current line-up since July last year.
They’re influenced mainly by American Blues but also by contemporary rock music likening their sound to Queens of the Stone Age, Nick Cave and Radiohead, with subtle country, jazz and psychedelic overtones.
In 2015, Fighting Caravans released their debut EP, Beasts Of England and during September will be embarking on a tour of the UK and the rest of Europe with dates in The Netherlands, Germany and Czech Republic.
Speaking about the European tour, Josh said: “Having the chance to play our music in different countries is second to none.
“We went out to Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands last October and that was amazing, everyone was so welcoming and the hospitality we were shown was ace.”
Reading Festival is the oldest music festival still in existence and it’s best known for booking rock, indie, metal and punk bands. Since 1999, it has also run parallel in Leeds.
This year’s event will be headlined by Foals, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Biffy Clyro.


AD/DC, Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Oasis, Fleetwood Mac. What do all these bands have in common?


It is never a good start for any performance when ‘technical difficulties’ delay the start, particularly for half an hour in a particularly humid, packed theatre on an August Bank holiday Monday night.
And it was clear when curtains finally came up just after 8pm, that the enforced delays had left several of the cast as well the audience a tad discombobulated.
Sister Act. Directed and Choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood
Nerves were apparent in the opening scenes but as the the cast got into their stride the audience went along for the ride, making for a memorable performance by a truly talented cast.
Alexandra Burke of X Factor fame was perfectly cast as the outrageous singer on the run Deloris van Cartier, making the role made famous by Whoopi Goldberg her own, and once again proving she has the vocal chops to shine on stage following her extremely successful run in the Bodyguard.
There is no doubt that she and the other nuns are the stars of this piece, juggling Craig Revel-Horwood’s (of Strictly fame’s) witty choreography, with some roof-raising and memorable numbers.
Sarah Goggin’s performance as Sister Mary Robert constantly drew the eye and raised the roof with her remarkable voice..
Sister Act. Directed and Choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood
But set pieces and solos by the male cast members, gave the production a depth and context that set up the exhilarating ensemble numbers.
Under Revel-Horwood’s direction, the comic acting and singing by Aaron Lee Lambert, Ricky Rojas, Sandy Grigelis, Jon Robyns andSamuel Morgan-Grahame has the audience sniggering and laughing out loud.
All the music was produced live by the cast and small band, meaning some characters were singing, dancing, acting and playing a variety of wind and string instruments. There was so much going on it was difficult to know where to look on stage ( in a good way).
If I was being super critical I would say this approach left a slight disconnect between some of the scenes, possibly due to the multi-role playing and hard-working cast being tasked with moving scenery and performing simultaneously.
But like all good productions the niggles seem to melt away as the performance progressed.
The audience were on their feet for a well-deserved standing ovation at the end as the production ended on an extremely enjoyable high note.
Sister Act is on at Manchester Palace Theatre until September 3.

REVIEW: Sister Act at Manchester Palace Theatre


It is never a good start for any performance when ‘technical difficulties’ delay the start, particularly for half an hour in a particularly humid, packed theatre on an August Bank holiday Monday night.


American rapper RZA elegantly sums up the fleeting nature of fame during his cameo appearance in Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone’s musical mockumentary.
“The higher you get, the harder you fall. Ask any coconut,” sermonizes the hip-hop superstar.
These words of wisdom are aimed at sweet, yet corruptible, Conner Friel (Andy Samberg), who sells out his childhood pals to land a solo record deal and secure his moment in the social media spotlight.
Part cautionary tale, part buddy comedy, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping gleefully lampoons music documentaries, including Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, by offering a fly-on-the-wall glimpse into the life of an icon as he prepares to launch his second album.
Schaffer and Taccone festoon their tongue-in-cheek expose with real-life music industry figures, plus colourful supporting performances including Justin Timberlake as a singing chef, who juliennes carrots with pride.
Thus Simon Cowell offers his glowing assessment of Conner - “I think he’s incredible. He’s the real deal!” - and the likes of Mariah Carey, Usher, Carrie Underwood and 50 Cent wax lyrical about his impact on their careers.
Andy Samberg as Conner4Real
For the first 40 minutes, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is hysterical, but then like the preened and polished subject, the film loses its way.
Conner and childhood buddies Lawrence Dunn (Schaffer) and Owen Bouchard (Taccone) achieved considerable success as the trio The Style Boyz.
However, it was clear to everyone in the cutthroat music business that Conner was the glittering star in the firmament.
He went solo and The Style Boyz disbanded.
Lawrence turned his back on celebrity to settle on a farm in Big Timber, Colorado, while Owen remained in the background as Conner’s DJ.
Following the rousing success of Conner’s debut LP entitled Thriller, Also, a documentary film crew shadows the pop icon in the days leading up to the release of the follow-up album, ConnQuest.
Flanked by an entourage including his manager Harry Duggins (Tim Meadows), acid-tongued publicist Paula Klein (Sarah Silverman) and “a guy who kicks him in the nuts so he remembers where he came from”, Conner feebly shoulders the mounting pressure flanked by actress girlfriend, Ashley Wednesday (Imogen Poots).
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is half of one of the best comedies of the year.
Opening scenes are a hoot.
“It’s like a tricycle. When you take away one of the wheels, what have you got?” scoffs Lawrence when someone suggests The Style Boyz could fracture.
Note-perfect music videos include Equal Rights featuring P!nk, which promotes same sex relationships, while Conner punctuates each line of the chorus with a defiant, “I’m not gay”.
Sadly, the filmmakers run out of ideas for a lacklustre second half and introduce outlandish new characters to sustain our interest.
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American rapper RZA elegantly sums up the fleeting nature of fame during his cameo appearance in Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone’s musical mockumentary.


Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping - Half of one of the best comedies of the year


If your tastes are a bit more blue (or Brown) then you’ll want to check out legendary comic Roy ‘Chubby’ at Viva Blackpool on Friday.
The Yorkshire comic is known for his x-rated style and has attracted plenty of controversy over a career spanning five decades.
Nobody splits opinion quite like the larger than life 71-year-old, with critics often describing his style as outdated but with one academic describing him as “The most important comedian of the past 25 years”.
Starting out as an entertainer in working men’s clubs, Brown got his first real break in the 1970s, coming second on show New Faces to a country and western band.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t so lucky when he applied for Opportunity Knocks, failing an audition due to swearing.
Since then, he’s become very famous on the comedy circuit for his unique stage costume, as well as his offensive shows, filled with back and forth heckling with the audience.
This year marks Roy ‘Chubby’ Brown’s third successive season in Blackpool and he’ll be performing a series of Friday night shows over the next few months.
He has been deemed “too rude for TV” so if you want to see him in action, this is your chance.
Although, probably best to make sure you don’t swear at him. Back in 2003, he was fined £200 in Blackpool for assaulting a fan who had sworn at him. At the time Brown said: “I have traditional values and I wanted the man to stop swearing in front of women and children who were on the pier.”
Tickets are available from https://www.vivablackpool.com/event/roy-chubby-brown and are priced between £17 and £22,
The show is strictly over 18 and those easily offended are advised to stay away.


If your tastes are a bit more blue (or Brown) then you’ll want to check out legendary comic Roy ‘Chubby’ at Viva Blackpool on Friday.


A county folk band has suffered its own Olympic disqualification.
As well as dealing with doping scandals and worry over Paralympic funding, the International Olympics Committee (IOC) has been scrutinising the 2008 song The Beer Olympics, by The Lancashire Hotpots.
Members of the band say they have been issued a ‘cease and desist’ notice by the IOC, claiming they have infringed copyright on the Olympic name.
A statement released on the band’s website said: “It’s nice to see them finally catch up with a song that we first released in 2008, I’m guessing the Olympic breakfast at the Little Chef is next, get one while you can.
“So, not wishing to get into any massive legal trouble (we can’t pay for that and the ale) we have decided to re-title the song to see if that gets the legal bigwigs off our backs.”
The new title has been announced as The Beer International Non-Profit Non-Governmental Sporting Quad Yearly Event.
“It’s a strange thing that they’re coming after an entity as small and daft as ours,” said Dickie Ticker the percussionist who wrote the song.
“Under something called Article 40, it seems that you can’t use the word Olympics in any business capacity. People would probably use a lot of words to describe our band, but business wouldn’t be one of them.”
He added: “The re-titling has made the song funnier than it was and I hope it’s enough to put them off.
“But we still sing the word in the song, so are we going to have to change that too? We’re testing the waters to see if that pleases the Olympic Gods, but if not, we’ll have to erase it from our catalogues.”
The IOC issued a statement saying it was the exclusive owner of the rights to the Olympic Games and associated symbols and emblems.
It said: “The IOC is particularly attentive to the protection of its intellectual properties rights and assets. As such, the IOC asks that all non-authorized uses of the Olympic Properties, in particular, for commercial purposes, be ceased accordingly.”
In 2012, The British Sugarcraft Guild was told it could face court proceedings if Olympic logos were reproduced on cakes at a show.

Have Hotpots fallen foul of the Olympic bosses?


A county folk band has suffered its own Olympic disqualification.


A band nominated for Best Group at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards are the special guests at St Annes Folk Club on Saturday.
Jaywalkers are a three-piece consisting from Lancashire, who play guitar, double bass and violin and who have been described as the rising stars of the folk world.
Regular performers at the Cambridge Folk Festival and Sidmouth Folk Week, they have released three successful albums and are heading to St Annes after a summer spent touring the UK.
“It’s pretty exciting to have a band of this calibre coming to play St Annes,” said Steve Canavan, who runs the folk club and is also a Gazette columnist.
“They are a really talented group who have become pretty successful in the last few years.
“I like them because not only are they great musicians and sound terrific – I defy anyone not to tap their feet along to the tunes – but they stay true to their Lancashire roots and a lot of their songs are about the north west.
“It should be a really good night.”
The folk club takes place at the Pavilion Café in Ashton Gardens, St Annes, and tickets for the concert are £7 – available by emailing lsafolkclub@hotmail.com or by buying direct from the venue.
Doors open at 7.15pm on Saturday September 3, the music starts at 8pm.

You’ll want to cross the road to watch this folk band


A band nominated for Best Group at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards are the special guests at St Annes Folk Club on Saturday.


Do you think it’s okay to allow children to drink some alcohol at home?
A study has found that half of parents with children under the age of 14 allow them to drink alcohol at home.
And, perhaps more worryingly, one in ten respondents to the Churchill Home Insurance survey allow children between the ages of five and seven to drink alcohol.
While it is not illegal for a child between the age of five and 16 to drink alcohol on private premises, it flies in the face of advice from the Chief Medical Officer whose official advice warns: “Children and their parents or carers are advised that an alcohol-free childhood is the healthiest and best option. However, if children drink alcohol underage, it should not be until at least the age of 15 years.
“Parents and young people should be aware that drinking, even at age 15 or older, can be hazardous to health and that not drinking is the healthiest option for young people.”
The UK Chief Medical Officer highlights that “drinking, even at age 15 or older, can be hazardous to health and that not drinking is the healthiest option for young people.”


Do you think it’s okay to allow children to drink some alcohol at home?


Here is a list of five popular bookshops in the county
Ebb & Flo, Chorley
Broadhurst's in Southport
Ebb & Flo bookshop is an independent bookshop in Gillibrand Street, Chorley.
Alongside more recognisable titles, its book selection offers something quirky to customers. With a children’s den area, there are activities and sessions for young learners.
The store stocks a wide range of French Djeco crafts, as well as handmade crafts by Darcey Fleur.
The shop also boasts an upstairs gallery, where local artists and photographers can exhibit their work. Prints and artwork are often for sale. The room is also available for hire.
Broadhurst’s Bookshop, Southport
Broadhurst’s Bookshop in Market Street, Southport has four floors of hidden treasures.
The ground floor houses the new bookshop, with fiction and non-fiction. Other floors include an extensive new children’s book department, two rare book rooms specialising in 19th and 20th century literature, modern first editions, private press books and a wide and interesting selection of antiquarian titles. There is also eight second-hand book rooms containing upwards of 50,000 titles on all subjects and a varied selection of 18th, 19th and 20th century prints and maps.
Halewood and Sons, Preston
Halewood and Sons is a family business established in 1867 by William Halewood. It has a vast stock of rare, interesting and collectable books, maps and prints in all subject areas.
Located in 37 Friargate, there is ample choice to browse around for the perfect second hand and antiquarian book. The five-generational store is particularly strong in travel, exploration, local history, Arthur Conan Doyle, and natural history.
For more information and a book search, email dhalewood@aol.com
Book, Bean and Ice Cream, Kirkham
Book, Bean and Ice Cream, run by Elaine Silverwood, is at the site of the former SilverDell bookshop, in Poulton Street, Kirkham. The shop relaunched with a new name, linking with Silverwood Events, to provide cultural and literary activities in a cafe and book shop setting.
Carnforth Bookshop, Carnforth
Carnforth Bookshop, in Market Street, is an independent, family run bookshop, established in 1977.
Situated over three floors, it stocks a wide variety of products, including new, second hand and antiquarian books, as well as a large selection of maps, gifts, cards, toys, stationery and art materials.


Here is a list of five popular bookshops in the county


In the final, chaotic months of the Second World War, a young German soldier pits himself against the remnants of the brutal SS in a bid to save the woman he loves.
But it’s a race against time as the merciless Soviet army is closing in with only one single-minded aim… to wreak revenge on their despised German enemy.
Irish-born William Ryan, author of a string of crime novels set in 1930s Stalinist Russia, moves out of what has become his ‘home’ territory and into the dying days of the Second World War in a thrilling, beautifully written and breathtakingly powerful story of evil, inhumanity, love, hope and redemption.
One man’s crusade to right the wrongs of his countrymen and repay a haunting personal debt becomes a gripping battle for survival in an Upper Silesian village in central Europe where he grew up.
In 1944, Paul Brandt, a soldier in the German army, returns wounded and consumed with guilt from the bloody chaos of the Eastern front to his village home in Silesia, annexed from Poland by the Germans.
Brandt’s face is badly disfigured by a Soviet explosion during the retreat from Russia and he has lost both an arm and his enthusiasm for life. But, deeply ashamed of his enforced military service with the Wehrmacht and haunted by an event at the start of the war, he is determined to make amends.
Much has changed in his village where the residents live in the dark shadow of an SS rest hut, a luxurious retreat for the Nazis who manage the nearby concentration camps. Modelled to look like a pre-war holiday camp, the rest accommodation is run by a small group of female prisoners who, against all odds, have so far survived the war.
When, by chance, Brandt glimpses one of these prisoners, he realises that she is a face from his guilty past and he knows he must find a way to access the hut. His fate has been tied to Agneta Gruber since their arrest five years before and now he must do all he can to protect her.
As a wounded German hero, Brandt secures a job as the rest hut’s steward but, with the Russian offensive moving ever closer, the days of the Nazi ‘holiday camp’ and its SS inhabitants are numbered.
And while hope for Brandt and the female prisoners grows tantalisingly close, the danger is also now greater than ever. Because in a forest just to the east, a young female Soviet tank driver awaits her orders to advance…
Ryan moves up a gear in this brilliant, emotionally-charged story which combines a poignant romance with an edge-of-the-seat thriller. But what impresses most is the author’s powerful writing which blends taut action sequences with passages of soaring literary beauty.
Inspired to write the novel by photographs of some of the worst perpetrators of the Holocaust relaxing and enjoying themselves at the real-life Silesian rest hut at a time when Auschwitz was at its most lethal, Ryan wrote this story from the heart.
And Brandt’s one-man mission, set amidst the terror, uncertainty and turmoil of the disintegrating Nazi machine, is certainly portrayed with mesmerising atmosphere and shocking veracity.
The dark and ever present threat of the ruthless SS masters and the approaching menace of the Soviet army are thrown into stark relief by the quiet power and unquenchable flame of enduring love.
A modern classic from a master storyteller…
(Mantle, hardback, £16.99)

Book reviews: The Constant Soldier by William Ryan


In the final, chaotic months of the Second World War, a young German soldier pits himself against the remnants of the brutal SS in a bid to save the woman he loves.


Police in Lancashire have issued a fresh safety alert after the county was named as the worst in England and Wales for crimes related to the gaming craze Pokemon Go.
Lancashire Constabulary dealt with 39 reports of Pokemon-related crimes during July - the highest of 29 forces in England and Wales.
And the figures have prompted senior officers to warn gamers out hunting Pokemon characters about the dangers they could be facing.
“People should avoid potentially dangerous locations that could make you vulnerable to injury, or become a victim of crime,” said a spokesman at the Constabulary’s headquarters in Hutton.
The game, which is played on mobile phones using satellite navigation, was only officially launched in the UK in July. Yet in its first month it was involved in at least 290 police incidents including robbery, assault, trespass and motoring offences.
Of the 29 police forces who responded to a Freedom of Information request, Lancashire had the highest number of crimes.
No details were released of of offences committed or arrests made. But police across the country say Pokemon Go players have not only been victims, but also perpetrators of crime or anti-social behaviour.
In Surrey police say they were called out to a brawl involving 30 people on a Pokemon hunt. In North Wales a man was reported for inviting children into his home saying he had “lots of Pokemons” in the house.
In London and Greater Manchester robbers set up traps to lure players into an area to rob them of their phones. Drivers in various parts of the country have been caught playing the game at the wheel, while British Transport Police reported at least two cases of children trespassing on the railway looking for Pokemons.
The Lancashire Police spokesman advised players not to trespass or put themselves in any risk while using the game.
“Never enter any water. Pokemon do not appear beyond the safety of the shoreline. And don’t enter derelict structures, unlit footpaths or alleyways. Please remember to be safe and alert at all times, don’t drive and play and respect the locations you visit.”

Pokemon Go gamers make Lancashire hot spot on crime


Police in Lancashire have issued a fresh safety alert after the county was named as the worst in England and Wales for crimes related to the gaming craze Pokemon Go.


The critically acclaimed Russian State Opera will be bringing ‘Carmen’ to the Blackpool Grand Theatre on Sunday, September 18.
Georges Bizets’ Carmen, described as “The most powerful and enjoyable opera”, features a live orchestra with more than 30 musicians. The songs are in French but there will also be English subtitles available for those, like myself, whose French vocabulary stretches as far as ‘bonjour’ and ‘au revoir’.
Set in 19th century Seville, It tells the story of the downfall of Don José, a naïve soldier who is seduced by Carmen, free-spirited femme fatale. José abandons his childhood sweetheart and deserts from his military duties, yet loses Carmen’s love to the glamorous toreador Escamillo.
The music from the opera, which was first performed in 1875, is widely acclaimed and the ‘Toreador Song’ is among the best known of all operatic arias.
Producer Alexej Ignatow, of Amande Concerts Ltd, who has co-ordinated the UK tour, said: “We are constantly on the lookout for new challenges, to ensure that our opera and ballet audiences get a chance to experience a wide spectrum of various classic pieces.
“With extensive national tours that get our productions seen the length and breadth of the country, we are able to offer national audiences in various theatres an unforgettable experience at a fraction of the price, all without sacrificing quality. So, it is very close to my heart to continue working with theatres all over the UK to deliver top quality productions every year and make new converts wherever we go.
“No experience is needed to enjoy these classics. Our sets and costume designs, as well as the informative programmes make the productions very accessible and most of all, enjoyable. For opera, English surtitles make it easy to follow the story as you listen to the performance sung in its original language.”
If you’ve never been to an opera before but have always been interested, then this might be the perfect opportunity. With exciting themes such as love, treachery, passion and betrayal, as well as the English subtitles, this might just be the perfect way in.
Tickets are priced between £18.50 and £35.50. A special discounted price of £12.50 is available to under 26’s, subject to availability. Call 01253 290 190.


The critically acclaimed Russian State Opera will be bringing ‘Carmen’ to the Blackpool Grand Theatre on Sunday, September 18.


REVIEW: Danny the Chamion of the World, Lytham Hall
A full house of 600 at Lytham Hall enjoyed the very best that open air theatre can offer in this accomplished performance from Illyria.
Roald Dahl’s story has considerable poignancy. Tom Myles and Peter Swales, wonderfully contrasting in their heights, are first class as Danny and his dad, both coming to terms in their own way with the death of mum. They fall foul of obnoxious local landowner Victor Hazell, played in a superbly over-the-top style by Nick Taylor who quickly and deliberately provoked the ranks of children at the front to storms of booing with his every appearance.
Illyria’s artistic director Oliver Gray, celebrating 25 years on the road, knows every trick of the trade - fourfold set, complete with an elevated forest of blue trees, delightful mechanical hens, comical toy cars and evocative music.
David Sayers was all Hello Hello Hello as the affable Sergeant Samways, Jennifer Shakesby a forthright Dr. Spencer and the experienced Ffion Glyn produced an excitable and wickedly Welsh vicar’s wife Mrs. Clipstone, her pram much more than it seems.
The littluns just shrieked as pheasants rained down on them in a high-octane second half, but Tom Myles had the skill to quieten the audience as in the finale he put across the strong moral point which characterises each of Dahl’s works. Glorious sunshine and a gloriously effective performance.
TOBY STIRLING

A show that proved just Champion to end season


REVIEW: Danny the Chamion of the World, Lytham Hall


Sobering political reality trumps blood-saturated fiction in the third instalment of James DeMonaco’s horror series, set in a dystopian America which has legalised murder for 12 hours every March to sate the population’s bloodlust and reduce crime levels for the rest of the year.
The original film, released in 2013, was a guilty pleasure fusing nail-biting tension with explosions of shocking violence.
A gruesome follow-up, The Purge Anarchy, fell short of expectations and now The Purge: Election Year polls a similarly lukewarm response by attempting to skewer the American political establishment.
Unfortunately, the real-life horror show of the 2016 race for the White House - a contest dripping with bile and intolerance - is far more disturbing than anything writer-director DeMonaco can conjure on screen for his beleaguered characters as they attempt to survive another night of wanton slaughter.
A potentially delicious subplot - the influx of murder tourists, who travel to America on Purge night to commit unspeakable crimes that are forbidden in their own countries - is undernourished and goes nowhere.
Eighteen years after her entire family was slaughtered on Purge night, Senator Charlie Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) is poised to narrowly win the 2022 Presidential election by campaigning on a promise to end the annual cull.
Her rival, Minister Edwidge Owens (Kyle Secor), is a firm believer in the Purge and has the full backing of the New Founding Fathers (NFF), the shadowy political hierarchy led by Caleb Warrens (Raymond J Barry).
These men and women in tailored suits are distressed by the possibility of Roan winning over the electorate and they plot to eliminate her.
“We are going to use this year’s Purge to do some spring cleaning gentlemen!” snarls Warrens, who masterminds a scheme to undermine the security measures put in place by the Senator’s trusted bodyguard and protector, Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo).
Meanwhile, as the 7pm siren to signal the start of the Purge approaches, hard-working shop owner Joe Dickson (Mykelti Williamson) and his assistant Marcos (Joseph Julian Soria) have an ill-fated run-in with two thieving schoolgirls (Brittany Mirabile, Juani Feliz) that they might regret when the blood-letting begins in earnest.
The Purge: Election Year is one hack ‘n’ slash too far for DeMonaco’s neat premise.
Plotting is flimsy and characters are thinly sketched, so we don’t have a strong emotional attachment to them.
Williamson provides comic relief to dissipate tension, almost putting a bullet in the head of one friend, who creeps up on him.
“Good Lord! It’s Purge night. You don’t sneak up on black people!” he shrieks.
Fans of earlier films will get their kicks from the gory set pieces but the lack of new ideas and directorial verve is palpable.
It’s time for a complete reshuffle behind the cameras.
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Sobering political reality trumps blood-saturated fiction in the third instalment of James DeMonaco’s horror series, set in a dystopian America which has legalised murder for 12 hours every March to sate the population’s bloodlust and reduce crime levels for the rest of the year.


The Purge: Election Year - One hack ‘n’ slash too far


It was only appropriate that I rocked up to Manchester’s Opera House on a classic English sunny afternoon, the city almost horizontal in the longed-for heat.
Within sight of the theatre was mayhem as theatre-goers and a smattering of celebrities packed into the press night showing of multiple Olivier award-winning Sunny Afternoon, the latest musical to land in the city and one with a buzz we haven’t seen in a while.
This is a very British musical, but is much more than a showcase for 60s legends The Kinks and a celebration of Britishness, it is a reminder of how stupendous their musical, societal and political legacy actually is - and what’s more it’s a great night out.
If you think you are not really a fan of the Kinks, you probably are really.
The band’s raw, powerful and riotous sounds and lyrics are the backdrop to more than one generation and though germinated in the 60s moved across the 70s, 80s, 90s and are just as resonant now.
This genius of this production, already a hit in London and now on tour, is that Kinks frontman Ray Davies and his team, who created the story, have sought out some extraordinarily talented musicians to recreate that authentic Kinks sounds and tell the tale of the band’s explosion on to the music scene.
The cast play and sing their own music with remarkable power, with only a few supporting musicians on stage.
Hits such as ‘You’ve really got me’, ‘Dedicated follower of fashion’, ‘Waterloo Sunset’ and the eponymous ‘Sunny Afternoon’ are belted out by the remarkable former Jethro Tull band member Ryan O’Donnell (as Ray Davies) Mark Newnham (Dave Davies), Garmon Rhys (bassist Pete Quaife) and Andrew Gall (as drummer Mick Avory), with the support of a small powerful cast with a special mention for talented Lisa Wright, as Ray’s wife Rasa.
It’s also easy to forget Davies penned tunes for other artists and elements of this discography are included in this show, namely ‘Stop your sobbing’ and ‘I go to sleep’ which were both recorded by Davies’ one time squeeze Chrissie Hynde (of Pretenders fame).
Also on the playlist is my favourite ‘Lola’ which has been recorded since by multiple artists - it is also a little known fact that Davies had to alter the song from Coca Cola to Cherry Cola in the British version of the song to appease the staid BBC re a commercial reference.
The scene where the band stab holes in their amplifiers to crate their unique sounds, explains why it is quite so loud.
Signs stuck to theatre walls to warn of this fact in advance.
But the show starts low-key as it introduces the Davies brothers and their family and the early development of The Kinks, the storylines focusing on emotional highs and lows with the constant battle between artists and management.
More importantly it chronicles the socialist-leaning Kinks v. the system, their battles with the taxman and the rude and unfair realities of the music business and 60s exploitative business in general.
It was also fantastic to see the man himself Ray Davies not just in attendance on this special night but making an appearance on stage with his guitar at the age of 72. A real honour to be there.
A fantastic and entertaining night exploring the euphoric highs and lows of a band and of Britain in the grip of rapid change. It resonates and not just amongst the Kinks’ most loyal fan base.
As I made my way out of the historic theatre, I could hear a deep choral bass emanating from the confines of the men’s bathroom, which was quickly accompanied by a sing along from the queue.
I will now be humming it ‘All day and all of the night’..
*Runs until August 27

Review: Sunny Afternoon at Manchester Opera House


It was only appropriate that I rocked up to Manchester’s Opera House on a classic English sunny afternoon, the city almost horizontal in the longed-for heat.


Not many pubs can attract number one charting recording artists to perform but that’s exactly what The Duke of York have done, with 2013 X Factor winner Sam Bailey coming to perform at their reopening on Thursday.
Bailey, whose debut single ‘Skyscraper’ and album ‘The Power of Love’ both hit the top of the charts, is headlining a special gala reopening night alongside Miss Rory and the Liverbirds.
The free, invite-only party is to mark the reopening of the pub, on Dickson Road, following a £50,000 investment.
Matthew Armstrong, who runs the pub alongside the designer Kevin Barnard said: “It’s fabulous. The customers love it - people can’t believe it’s the same pub.
“Inside has a contemporary feel, with modern light fittings and vibrant colours so it looks much airier. It was only right to relaunch in style, so we’ve got a great night planned.”
This is the latest show of a busy schedule for X Factor winner, Sam Bailey, who has just finished playing Mama Morton in a UK tour of the musical ‘Chicago’, she said: “I’m now doing a Butlins tour, I’ve got a single that’s just come out two weeks ago and an album which is coming out on the 16th September.”
Bailey says that her new album ‘Sing My Heart Out’, recorded in LA with Steve Dorff, and being released on her own label Tiger Drum is very personal: “I’ve put my heart and soul into it.
“It was written about experiences that I’ve learnt and every single song has some sort of story behind it.
Bailey’s looking forward to performing in Blackpool after her enjoying first visit with the resort “open” earlier this year, and despite the lower profile these days, the singer says it’s not too different from when she was on the X Factor three years ago. She added: “The pop tour’s great, I’m top of the bill and there’s sometimes 5,000 people there to see me so it’s great. It’s like being on the X Factor again.
“I’m always excited to do new things and perform and it’s always good to be part of something great and I thought that this was a great opportunity for me.”
The show starts at 9pm on Thursday. It’s a free event. For more information or invites, call into the pub.

Sam gives refurbished pub the X Factor magic


Not many pubs can attract number one charting recording artists to perform but that’s exactly what The Duke of York have done, with 2013 X Factor winner Sam Bailey coming to perform at their reopening on Thursday.


Here is a list of fun events coming up this weekend.
FREE AND PAID: Blackpool Illuminations Switch On and Slimefest, September 2 to 4
Dame Barbara Windsor will switch the lights on at the Tower Festival Headland on Friday, following a party led by Ashley Banjo, and dance group Diversity. Other stars include The Vamps, Fleur East, Fatman Scoop and Club MTV. Free entry by wristband only. Celebrations continue across the weekend, as Jordan Banjo and Perri Kiely host Nickelodeon’s first UK Slimfest at the Empress Ballroom. Tickets, at £27.50, available from http://www.visitblackpool.com/slime. Slimfest also features a free outdoor experience including character appearances and family activities on the Tower Festival Headland.
PAID: Survival Skills and Crafty Creative, Preston, September 2 to 4
As part of Brockholes Nature Reserve’s Wild Families series, it hosts Survival Skills on Friday September 2, from 2pm until 4pm. Participants will camouflage up before heading out to follow a tracking trail and have a go at shelter building, fire lighting and cooking. Tickets are from £5. Family ticket is £18. On Saturday and Sunday, there are drop-in craft sessions from 10am until 4pm. Entry is £3.Located off M6, junction 31.
FREE AND PAID: Morecambe Vintage By the Sea Festival, September 3 and 4
A celebration of 20th century design, fashion, vehicles and entertainment on the Prom, with a flypast by a Lancaster Bomber; a Spitfire; and a Hurricane as part of an RAF Battle of Britain Memorial. There will be a Routemaster Bus Bar and vintage car show, a Vintage Roadshow, live music, wandering street performance, and workshops. Visit http://www.vintagefestival.co.uk.
FREE AND PAID: Tractor Road Run, Chipping, Sunday September 4
Families are invited to gather around Chipping to watch as an entourage of tractors drive around the village.
Tractors will set off from Green Lane Showground at 10am.
It costs £15 to enter a tractor, including a two-course lunch.
Spectators can stand and watch for free.
All money raised will go towards Rosemere Cancer Foundation.
PAID: Blackburn and East Lancs Model Railway Exhibition, September 3 and 4
A Model Railway Exhibition will be held at Hyndburn Leisure Centre, Henry Street, Accrington, from 10am until 5pm.
There will be layouts in various scales, specialist traders and demonstrators from across the UK and refreshments are available. Adult entry is £7, with children free. Parking is also free. The exhibition is organised by Blackburn and East Lancs Model Railway Society.
FREE AND PAID: Wigan 10k, September 4
Wigan’s annual 10k race, organised by charity Joining Jack, starts at 10am at the town centre. There will be live entertainment, a European Market, and a fun fair. Starsailor frontman James Walsh will close the music festival. Meanwhile, the day before, there is a Fun Run for children at Robin Park, from 11am until 5pm. Free entry. For registration times visit http://www.wiganeventsguide.com/event/wigan-fun-runs/
PAID: Proms in the Park, Wigan, Saturday September 3
Families are invited to bring a picnic and something to sit on whilst enjoying an evening with music at Mesnes Park, Wigan.
Gates open at 6pm and the musical concert starts at 7.45pm.
The event ends at 10pm.
Tickets are £10 for adults, £7 for children and concessions.
A family ticket is £28.
PAID: HAPPA Grand Open Day, Saturday September 3
Families are invited to Horse and Pony Protection Association’s annual open day extravaganza at Shores Hey Farm, off Halifax Road, Briercliffe, Burnley, from noon until 4pm.
There will be stalls, games, cake, scarecrow and produce competitions, horse riding displays and live music. There will also be handling sessions from Cooper’s Critters. Admission is £1 per person.
FREE: Parbold Street Festival, September 3 to 4
A total of 14 venues throughout the village offer a showcase in arts, education, entertainment and music, from noon on Saturday. There will be music from local bands and singers on the Big Stage by the Railway pub; a market place with more than 40 stalls; barges dressed in lights for the Festival of Light; a duck race; theatre; fairground; Kids Zone; workshops; horse demonstrations; and family fun.
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Here is a list of fun events coming up this weekend.


Top 10 things to do in Lancashire at the weekend


A Blackpool woman is preparing to premier her first short film having made the stop from in front of to behind the camera.
And Lindsay Bennett has chosen her home town to provide the backdrop and talent for short film Lions, Tigers and Bears which is set to feature as part of the Other World’s Festival later this year.
Scenes from Lions, Tigers and Bears, by Lindsay Bennett
Actor Lindsay sunk her own cash into the production, which is up for consideration to be screened at 55 other festivals around the world.
The drama short about the fear of being forgotten and the consequences of wanting to be remembered and follows Alfie, a successful but ageing rock star and his manager Juliette who has dedicated her life and career to his success. When Alfie explains that he wants to quit while people still know who he is, Juliette has a bigger plan to make sure his name will always be remembered.
The film was shot at Berlin Studios in Bispham and at Bootleg Social in Topping Street.
And Linsday, 36, a former Greenlands High School Pupil, was keen to get local talent involved.
It’s my first film so I’ve financed it myself which was a big step given I’m due to get married
Blackpool band Sound of Superstring provided the soundtrack with Paul Horrocks from the band taking the role of Alfie.
Lindsay said: “I’d written a couple of solo theatre shows, it seemed a logical progression from acting.
“I’ve been involved in a few independent films and I wanted to see if I could make the jump from in front of to behind the camera.
“It’s my first film so I’ve financed it myself which was a big step given I’m due to get married.
“But I wanted to do it and I had a very clear vision.
“I knew I wanted Paul Horrocks for the part.
“We wanted to use local talent.”
A production company from Bolton, which Lindsay had worked with previously as an actor, shot the film with the first-time director adamant everybody should be paid industry rates.
“It was a big undertaking,” said Lindsay.
“But I’m glad we did it.
“It’s a film which deals with some quite serious themes.
“I hope it will be well received.” Executive producer on the film was Rick Thompson, the man behind Blackpool’s Other World’s Festival.
And he was keen to have Linsday’s film screened as part of the event.
Lions, Tigers and Bears will be shown at the Regal Cinema in Church Street during the festival which runs from October 13 to October 16.
Lindsay, who also co-stars in the short, is hoping her work will be seen in wider circles to.
She said: “It’s been submitted for 55 festivals around the world.
“You never know with those but hopefully we’ll be able to show off what Blackpool has to offer on some international screens.”

Lindsay creates a film sure to be remembered


A Blackpool woman is preparing to premier her first short film having made the stop from in front of to behind the camera.


Rose-Marie, the Irish singer, who now lives in Blackpool, has been presented with a platinum disc for sales of her new album My Gift of Love For You.
Sapphire Records gave the prestigious award to her for selling over 500,000 discs.
I’m absolutely delighted and thrilled to bits
The 60-year-old songstress performs on the last Friday of every month at Viva Blackpool and of the disc she said: “I’m absolutely delighted and thrilled to bits.
“I spent nearly eight months making that album and it is quite different from anything else I have attempted. It’s really up to date and there’s a Sam Smith track on there as well as an Adele song.”
Rose-Marie’s next performance at Viva Blackpool will be on Friday, September 30 and she’ll be joined by producer Andy Mudd, the first time she’s linked up with him on stage.
She added: “Andy is a life long friend and knows how to get the best out of me, it’s a marriage made in heaven.”


Rose-Marie, the Irish singer, who now lives in Blackpool, has been presented with a platinum disc for sales of her new album My Gift of Love For You.


This year marks the 25th anniversary of the death of legendary novellist Graham Greene and stage adaptation one of his most entertaining works ‘Travels with My Aunt’ will be coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre on Tuesday, September 20.
Described as “one very ordinary man’s extraordinary journey of self-discovery”, the story follows Henry Pulling, who leads a quiet bachelor life until his Aunt Augusta persuades him to travel with her initially to Brigton but eventually as far flung as Istanbul, meeting all sorts of weird and wonderful people along the way.
The plot mirrors Green’s own obsession with travelling and just four actors play the roles of over 20 characters.
The show has been adapted by Creative Cow, and the company’s co-founder Katherin Senior said: “We love the way Travels with my Aunt traces two voyages in parallel – one a physical cross-continental journey by plane, train and boat and the other a mind-blowing, eye-opening journey of self-discovery. Henry couldn’t be more different from Greene himself, who was adventurous, risk-loving and unconventional - but can we perhaps see some similarities by the end? It’s a great pleasure to be touring this work by one of our favourite authors in this anniversary year.”
Tickets are priced from £12.50 and are available by calling 01253 290 190.


This year marks the 25th anniversary of the death of legendary novellist Graham Greene and stage adaptation one of his most entertaining works ‘Travels with My Aunt’ will be coming to Blackpool Grand Theatre on Tuesday, September 20.


A new online tool has been launched to help report power cuts in Lancashire.
The region’s network operator, Electricity North West, has launched a log a fault’ tool on its website. The information provided will automatically log the fault and engineers will be dispatched to site to restore the power as quickly as possible.
Stephanie Trubshaw of Electricity North West, said: “Our aim is to make it as easy as possible for our five million customers across the North West to contact us if they experience a power outage in their home or business.
“Thankfully for most people power cuts are very rare, but they can have a big impact. We invest millions in upgrading and maintaining the power network to prevent any unexpected outages, but it’s important for our customers to be able to easily contact us if they do experience any issues and the new online tool will help make that possible.”
Visit: www.enwl.co.uk/contact/log-a-fault or search for any faults in your area here. Alternatively call on 0800 195 4141.
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A new online tool has been launched to help report power cuts in Lancashire.


Vue Cleveleys has been chosen as one of 150 cinemas across UK and Ireland showing new film, One More Time With Feeling, for one night only to help promote a new Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds album.
Despite flirting with acting, appearing in films such as ‘Ghosts...of the Civil Dead’ and ‘Johnny Suede’, Nick Cave is predominantly known for his music, in a career spanning more than four decades.
In that time, he’s released 21 albums with three different bands and his latest offering ‘Skeleton Tree’ will become number 22 when it’s released on Friday, September 9.
The first chance to hear any music from the album will be in the film ‘One More Time With Feeling’ with the songs acting as the movie’s soundtrack.
The film is the latest offering of Andrew Dominik, director of ‘Chopper’, ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’ and ‘Killing Them Softly’.
Interwoven throughout the Bad Seeds’ filmed performance of the new album are interviews and footage shot by Dominik, accompanied by Cave’s intermittent narration and improvised rumination.
Filmed in black-and-white and colour, in both 3D and 2D, the result is described as “stark, fragile and raw”.
Director Andrew Dominik said that the story is of how the film came about actually quite tragic, saying: “I’d been seeing quite a lot of him as we rallied around him and his family at the time of his son’s death.
“Nick told me that he had some things he needed to say, but he didn’t know who to say them to.
“I took the record away and listened to it trying to work out a way into the whole thing. In the end I agreed to do it if I could shoot it in black-and-white and 3D.
“No one has ever seen a 3D black-and-white non-animated feature film in modern times - for as far as I know, no such thing exists. It is both modern and from a distant age – much like the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ new record, Skeleton Tree, actually.”
The film’s only showing at Vue Cleveleys is at 9pm, on Thursday, September 8. The showing is in 3D and tickets are available from http://www.onemoretimewithfeeling.film/

Cave’s the top Seed for musical showcase


Vue Cleveleys has been chosen as one of 150 cinemas across UK and Ireland showing new film, One More Time With Feeling, for one night only to help promote a new Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds album.


ABSENT, Winter Gardens, Blackpool
Blackpool once prospered by blurring reality and fantasy.
In its 1950s heyday it managed to perform such seaside magic in tiny promenade sideshows along the Golden Mile.
Taking its lead from that period, and expanding the format to fill vast areas of the resort’s Winter Gardens complex, this intriguing and charming production/installation/artwork – or even fairground attraction – invites ‘guests’ to check into an imaginary hotel and immerse themselves in the story of one of its most colourful residents.
Maggie Morgan was a Premium Bond winner who checked in back in 1957. Fast forward to the future and she’s reluctant to check out now that the owners are intent on converting the building into the purple-clad interior of a more contemporary, and eerily-familiar establishment.
It helps if you’ve read the special edition of The Gazette, available in the foyer and detailing her fall from grace, before you begin your walking tour of the bedrooms, corridors and public spaces.
There’s a voyeuristic glimpse of Maggie through a two-way mirror, before you head on into an Alice Through A Digital Looking Glass world – and via a Narnian wardrobe door – into a realm of diminishing images, intricate model designs, and beautifully-crafted optical and perspective illusions.
You can even smell the perfume of the woman, as you relax in the hotel’s grand lounge area.
Children will love it, while older imaginations will unravel their own fragments of story. The final ‘ballroom blitz’ is a visual showstopper, even if you think you’ve seen all the Winter Gardens has to offer.
Production company dreamthinkspeak have effectively re-modelled a ‘show’ they created in London last year, but which based its story on the indisputably larger-than- life Duchess of Argyll. But in its seaside setting this Absent perhaps becomes an elegant and elegiac homage to another dowager from a golden age – Blackpool itself?
It’s performed here until August 25, then w/c September 12 and September 25.
DAVID UPTON

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Which of these TV game shows would you most like to see return?


The Crystal Maze is set to return to our TV screens and that got us thinking - which other game show would you like to see back on TV?


Police are appealing for information regarding the whereabouts of a vulnerable young man who went missing over the Bank Holiday Weekend.
Ashley Ferguson was last seen at 2 pm on Saturday, August 27th, on Mitton Road in Whalley, where he walked off from his care worker.
He is known to visit Clitheroe and Preston. A police spokesman said they were appealing for any information which will lead to the whereabouts of Ashley.
If you know Ashley or have spotted him anywhere, please call Clitheroe Police on 101 or the free and confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555111.
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Police are appealing for information regarding the whereabouts of a vulnerable young man who went missing over the Bank Holiday Weekend.


Based on an article in Rolling Stone magazine and a subsequent book, War Dogs heavily dramatizes the true story of two enterprising twentysomethings, who became multi-millionaires as arms dealers to the US military.
Director Todd Phillips, mastermind of The Hangover films, and co-writer Jason Smilovic don’t let the truth get in the way of spinning an entertaining yarn.
They embellish the jaw-dropping rags-to-riches narrative with a hare-brained chase through the notorious Triangle of Death to the south of Baghdad, and some fizzing one-liners, which are used as chapter headings to bookmark each stage of the journey.
Miles Teller and Jonah Hill, who garnered numerous awards for their eye-catching work in Whiplash and The Wolf Of Wall Street respectively, are an incendiary double-act.
They clamber over various obstacles thrown in their characters’ paths and brazenly wisecrack in the face of death.
Phillips’ film opens with TV news footage from the war in Iraq in 2008.
Miles Teller as David Packouz
“I see 17,000 dollars,” explains massage therapist David Packouz (Teller). “That’s what it costs to outfit an American soldier.”
Narrating his own extraordinary story, David introduces us to his wife Iz (Ana de Armas), with whom he hopes to raise a family by selling bed sheets to local care homes.
His get-rich-quick scheme flops and David is reluctant to tell his spouse that the boxes of bedding cluttering up their apartment are not their golden ticket to a brighter future.
At this low ebb, David meets his friend Efraim Diveroli (Hill), who has discovered a website which lists contracts that the US military needs to be fulfilled.
Jonah Hill as Efraim Diveroli
“When life kicked me, I stayed down. But Efraim? He kicked back,” gushes David, who agrees to become a partner in this shadowy yet highly lucrative business.
The buddies tender for a massive munitions contract with the help of infamous dealer Henry Girard (Bradley Cooper) and underbid by 53 million dollars.
David travels to Albania to fulfil the contract, aided by his driver Bashkim (JB Blanc), who knows which palms to grease.
When David questions the morality of the business, which he keeps secret from Iz, Efraim immediately hits back.
“This isn’t about being pro-war,” he counsels David. “It’s about being pro-money.”
Bolstered by strong performances from the two leads, War Dogs is an engrossing and frequently uproarious comedy of errors.
Phillips and Smilovic’s script short changes the supporting characters: Iz exists solely to prick David’s conscience with her fleeting words of wisdom.
However, they do they craft some big laughs like when the buddies visit a weapons expo in Las Vegas and David pithily describes the event as “Comic-Con with grenades”.
War - what is it good for?
It’s very good for lining the pockets of the greedy and the enterprising.
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Based on an article in Rolling Stone magazine and a subsequent book, War Dogs heavily dramatizes the true story of two enterprising twentysomethings, who became multi-millionaires as arms dealers to the US military.


War Dogs: An engrossing and frequently uproarious comedy of errors


Twenty libraries and children’s centres across East Lancashire are set to face the axe.
The bombshell recommendation was made by Lancashire County Council officials shortly before 8 pm on the Friday before a Bank Holiday Weekend.
Libraries set to close include Rosegrove, Briercliffe, Barrowford, Trawden, Oswaldtwistle, Rishton, Whalley and Read.
The move has been slammed by campaigners who submitted petitions and fought for months to keep the crucial services open.
Mr Neil Martin, a spokesman for the Save Whalley Library campaign, said: “This is very disappointing news, and a great blow to the community, along with the other cuts the residents of the Ribble Valley have experienced such as bus services. I feel that the process of the consultation has not been fairly carried out and I feel our voices over saving our community asset has been left unheard officially.”
Ribble Valley resident and campaigner, Mr Ged Mirfin, was equally disappointed. He said: “Despite the tremendous/valiant efforts of our enthusiastic team of volunteers, Lancashire County Council’s officers very late on Friday night took the decision to recommend the closure of Whalley Library and Spring Wood Children’s Centre - a decision that will be ratified at Cabinet on Tuesday, September 6th - the day after children go back to school.
“Be under no illusion that this is a political decision which was taken some time in advance. Concerns raised about rural isolation, service centre provision, the impact on elderly residents and the need to service the demand created by new housing have simply been ignored.”
Under the plans, Brierfield Library has been saved from closure.

Several libraries in East Lancs set to close


Twenty libraries and children’s centres across East Lancashire are set to face the axe.


Trapped in a marriage to an abusive, violent police officer, battered wife Joanna West has no one to turn to… until a stranger offering help walks into her life.
For the first time in years, Joanna and her young daughter have the chance to flee, but can you ever really escape from a brutal, vengeful husband?
Moved and inspired by the testaments of abused wives, former journalist Tamara Dietrich tackles the scourge of domestic violence head on in a highly original and powerfully imagined debut novel which melds menace with paranormal magic.
The Hummingbird’s Cage, a hard-hitting, page-turning thriller with an intriguingly soft middle, almost defies genre as Dietrich weaves seamlessly between gut-wrenching cruelty and spiritual sublimity in a tale of hope, despair and redemption.
Everyone in Wheeler, New Mexico, thinks that Joanna West leads the perfect life. She is married to Jim, the dashing deputy sheriff of McGill County, and has a beautiful seven-year-old daughter, Laurel.
But the truth is that Joanna is married to a monster who regularly beats her, subjects her to verbal and mental abuse and has isolated her from the people who live around her. Once upon a time she would have challenged him but now every time Joanna cries, ‘more of me washes away.’
Ten years ago, Joanna was swept off her feet by handsome Jim, her head turned by his uniform and ‘bad-boy grin’ but now she is trapped in a violent marriage and, with a young child to care for, escape seems impossible.
But then Bernadette, Jim’s feisty biker chick ex-girlfriend, turns up with an escape route. On the run, Joanna and Laurel stumble upon Morro, a charming and magical village that seems to exist out of time and place.
Farmer Olin Farnsworth and his wife Jessie offer her sanctuary and soon, between the comfort of her new home and blossoming friendships, Joanna’s soul begins to heal, easing the wounds of a decade of abuse.
But her past – and her husband – aren’t so easy to escape. Unwilling to live in fear any longer, Joanna must summon a strength she never knew she had to fight back and forge a new life for her daughter and herself....
Dietrich delivers a clever and compelling first novel, conjuring up a mysterious but idyllic town suspended somewhere between reality and fantasy, and juxtaposing this haven of peace with the terrifying threats that lie behind and beyond.
To read The Hummingbird’s Cage is to experience high emotion and high drama and to understand the visceral realities of domestic violence, but there is also the opportunity to marvel at the power of love and hope, and to rejoice at the human capacity to reach out and find redemption.
A heartbreaking tale written with insight, beauty and honesty…
(Orion, paperback, £7.99)

Book review: The Hummingbird’s Cage by Tamara Dietrich


Trapped in a marriage to an abusive, violent police officer, battered wife Joanna West has no one to turn to… until a stranger offering help walks into her life.


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Holden struck 119 in helping his side post a target which was always too great for a Longridge team which was 133 all out in the 36th over chasing Freckleton’s 206-7. After putting Freckleton into bat


Moore and Smalley Palace Shield Premier Division


From poet John Keats to Prince Charles, and from life-changing scientists to prize-winning authors, some of the world’s most famous people have relied on ‘bedders’ to see them through their toughest student days at Cambridge.
In her fascinating account of just some of the hundreds of working-class women who have looked after the students of Cambridge University, Catherine Seymour, whose grandmother and great-grandmother were bedders, reveals their secret lives, heartaches and joy.
For centuries, the university’s bedders – the equivalent at Oxford is a ‘scout’ – have cleaned, tidied, made beds, dispensed advice and physical aid, and offered a reassuring maternal presence to generations of nervous, lonely students.
Bedders still look after today’s Cambridge students but the work they do, and the young people they care for, have changed over the last decades.
Until the 1980s, bedders carried buckets of coal up the stairs to light fires in the rooms of the fellows as well as dusting, tidying, taking away rubbish and, in some colleges, making the students’ breakfasts.
It was hard work but it came with privileges and offered an experience unlike other jobs available to working-class women. Some of the bedders had previously worked in shops or as waitresses, cleaners, factory hands and other low-paid manual jobs.
The college offered them family-friendly hours, starting work early but allowing them to get home in time for lunch and to make an evening meal for their children. Often bedders would pay neighbours to look after their pre-school youngsters.
In the first half of the 20th century, some of the upper class (male) students saw their bedders as simply servants but for many others, these women who instructed them on everything from dressing properly to combing their hair, were the only warm, motherly presence in an otherwise cold, paternalistic environment.
In turn, many bedders enjoyed their glimpse into a world they knew little about and during her research Seymour discovered that the women appreciated the genuine return of affection from students who often left gifts for them at Christmas, term ends and after graduation.
And for some of the bedders who got to know their students well, graduation was almost like watching their own children leave home.
In these unique, vivid and often moving stories, inspired by the accounts of bedders from the 1920s to the 1960s, we meet women who endured the Second World War and then had to contend with poverty, ill health and bereavement.
For 16-year-old Joyce, who lived in one of the poorest streets in Cambridge, the college building where she was about to start work represented privilege, wealth, a life she would never live. What she never expected was to find herself mothering, chastising and sometimes even covering up for ‘her boys.’
These hard-working women loved, lost and loved again. But their friendships gave them strength, and their work gave them happiness, and even a lasting connection with their charges, some of whom would go on to run the country.
As much a social history as the individual stories of the bedders, The Staircase Girls is a memorable and eye-opening glimpse into the remarkable lives of a very special group of women.
(Pan, paperback, £7.99)

Book review: The Staircase Girls by Catherine Seymour


From poet John Keats to Prince Charles, and from life-changing scientists to prize-winning authors, some of the world’s most famous people have relied on ‘bedders’ to see them through their toughest student days at Cambridge.


The English Beat - starring original songwriter and lead-singer of The Beat, Dave Wakeling - have announced their UK tour heading to 53 Degrees in Preston on Thursday September 22nd.
Dave Wakeling – the songwriter and lead-singer of The Beat - returns to the UK this September for a full UK tour, where he will be showcasing new material due for release in 2017.
The singer, songwriter and guitarist behind the biggest 1980’s 2-Tone Band, The Beat, known in the US as The English Beat, Dave Wakeling is the consummate showman, touring the world with an all-star line-up, performing all the hits of The Beat, General Public and a host of new songs.
The English Beat will play an extensive run of UK dates including shows in Liverpool, Newcastle, Cardiff, and London, and Dave’s hometown and the birthplace of many Beat lyrics and classics, Birmingham.
The band has been busy in the studio working on their first new album in 30 years, due for release in February 2017, titled ‘Here We Go Love’.
With a unique energy, pure melody, passion and politics, it’s impossible to forget the genius of UK Top 10 singles, ‘Mirror in the Bathroom’, ‘Hands Off She’s Mine’ and ‘Too Nice To Talk To’, before The Beat disbanded in 1983.
“I am very excited to be coming back to the UK to play shows and to get to introduce the songs from our upcoming new album. We have been in summer training, with shows with ub40, b52’s, culture club and train, and the band is in tip top form and ready to rock, steady!” Dave Wakeling.
SEPTEMBER TOUR DATES:
Friday 16th September – Concorde 2, Brighton
Saturday 17th September – Skabour Festival, Folkstone
Sunday 18th September – The Forum, Tunbridge Wells www.twforum.co.uk
Tuesday 20th September – Fibbers, York
Wednesday 21st September – The Magnet, Liverpool
Thursday 22nd September – 53 Degrees, Preston
Friday 23rd September – Robin 2, Wolverhampton
Saturday 24th September – The Windsor, Fife
Sunday 25th September – Volunteer Hall, Galashiels
Tuesday 27th September – Think Tank, Newcastle
Wednesday 28th September – Trades Club, Hebden Bridge http://thetradesclub.com
Thursday 29th September – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
Friday 30th September – Crauford Arms, Milton Keynes
OCTOBER TOUR DATES:
Saturday 1st October – Birmingham O2 Institute, Birmingham
Monday 3rd October – Ruby Lounge, Manchester
Tuesday 4th October – Komedia, Bath
Wednesday 5th October – Rescue Room, Nottingham
Friday 7th October – The Zone Night Club, Redruth http://broadbeat.co.uk
Saturday 8th October – The Garage, London

Dave Wakeling’s The English Beat skanking their way to 53 Degrees


The English Beat - starring original songwriter and lead-singer of The Beat, Dave Wakeling - have announced their UK tour heading to 53 Degrees in Preston on Thursday September 22nd.


Here is a list of highly rated coffee shops in the county.
Dahlia's Kitchen, Blackpool
Woodchats
Dahlia’s Kitchen, in Cropper Road, is a coffee shop, ice cream parlour, licenced restaurant and farm shop all rolled into one.
It has a big range of home made cakes, snacks and local produce. It also provides outside catering for weddings, birthdays and corporate events.
Dahlia’s is renowned for its themed entertainment evenings, where diners can enjoy a three-course meal.
There is outdoor seating and a small play area for the children.
Open seven days a week.
Woodchats Coffee Shop, Chorley
Located in Clifford Street, Woodchats Coffee Shop is a popular haunt, with a large selection of home made cakes, soups, sandwiches and snacks.
It also sells unique home made gifts and provides outside catering for parties and events.
Exchange Coffee Company, Clitheroe and Blackburn
Exchange Coffee Company is a coffee roaster and tea merchant, with branches in Clitheroe and Blackburn, in Lancashire, as well as Skipton and Todmorden in Yorkshire.
It has a wholesale roasting warehouse in Blackburn, supplying coffees, teas and all associated products across the country.
The coffee shops also have a daily specials menu, serving hot and cold food. Other drinks on offer include milkshakes and juices.
The company also sells homewares and quirky gifts.
The View, Morecambe
The View, in Marine Road Central, is a cafe with a musical twist. It has a cult following for music enthusiasts, as diners can enjoy a cup of coffee and snacks, whilst browsing through its eclectic range of vintage records, CDs and vinyls.
It also stocks a variety of memorabilia, including clothes, retro gifts and souvenirs.
Not forgetting its status as a cafe and coffee shop, it also has a changing daily specials menu, as well as hot drinks and soft beverages.
How The Other Half Live, Preston
Moved from its original location in Blackpool Road to Winckley Street, Preston, How the Other Half Live is a small coffee shop with a boutique gift store.
The shop has a small selection of coffee and cakes on offer whilst customers browse around the shop.


Here is a list of highly rated coffee shops in the county.


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Can you match these stars to the year they switched on the Blackpool Illuminations?


Showbiz royalty Dame Barbara Windsor has been announced as this year’s guest of honour at the Illuminations Switch-On ceremony.


Hardship in the fells of 1930s County Durham and intrigue at a Second World War munitions factory are just two compelling new books from Quercus this September.
Nobody’s Child by Elizabeth Gill
Two traveller sisters from the wild countryside of County Durham face hardship, hunger and an uncertain future when they lose their parents and their home.
Consumed with grief and surrounded by hostility, can the teenagers survive the tough times ahead in 1930s England and hold tight to the family ties that bind them together?
Elizabeth Gill, author of over 30 books set in and around her native Tyneside, works her storytelling magic in a moving and gritty family saga of adversity and hope and love and loyalty that will delight her army of devoted fans.
On Christmas Day in 1930, Kath and Ella Watson are living with their parents in an empty house close to Castle Bank Colliery on snow-covered Durham Fell tops. They have been forced to take shelter there from their travellers’ wagon because their mother is gravely ill.
Kath is seventeen and her father believes she should have married long ago, particularly as she has been courted by the likes of rich traveller Will Hern. But Kath has seen the chaotic life of traveller women with babies, forced to raise their youngsters inside a cramped wagon.
Their mother Rose wants a better life for her two daughters but when she dies on Christmas Day morning, their father is overcome by grief and sets fire to the family’s wooden wagon, reducing it to a heap of ashes.
When the police arrive to tell them that not only has their father died in an accident after riding off on his horse but also that they must leave the house where they have been sheltering, the two sisters are left bereft and virtually penniless.
With winter closing in around them, and facing the hostility of locals who are suspicious of Gypsies, the girls strike out to find their way in a harsh landscape which sets them on a collision course with the wealthy Banks family of nearby Golden Hill Hall, local farmer Jake Sutherland and Will Hern, the man who would still have Kath as his wife.
Using her trademark warmth, experience and wisdom, Gill captures the essence of the hardy folk of the north-east in a story brimming with drama, romance, rich period detail and vivid characters.
Written from the heart and with a seductive sense of time and place, Nobody’s Child is the perfect read for autumn nights…
(Quercus, hardback, £19.99)
The Factory Girls by Rosie Archer
Friends in need, flying bombs and explosive revelations… it’s time to head back to the adventures and misadventures of Gosport’s ‘canary girls.’
The real-life munitions workers at Priddy’s Hard, the Royal Navy Armament Depot in Hampshire, who helped to arm the Allies’ D-Day invasion fleet, are the inspiration behind this compelling series from Gosport author Rosie Archer.
In the follow-up to The Munitions Girls and The Canary Girls, Archer sweeps us away again to England in 1944 and into the hearts and minds of the women who packed shells and bullets with sulphurous chemicals that made their skin and hair turn yellow.
Archer pays tribute to the dangerous and dirty work undertaken by the 2,500 women at the factory during the Second World War in stories that prove no matter how hard the times, despite bombing, short rations, cruel men and unwanted pregnancy, friendship will pull you through.
In autumn of 1944, V-1 flying bombs, known as doodlebugs, are the latest threat to war-battered Gosport. And at Priddy’s Hard munitions factory, Em Earle is about to suffer a threat to her livelihood that comes from much nearer home.
Meanwhile, local crook and black marketeer Samuel Golden is back and up to his old tricks as he tries to find ways to exploit the hardships of local people for his own gain.
As well as Samuel’s unwanted attentions, Em has to deal with some huge revelations from within her own family. Her daughter Lizzie is pregnant, and a strange woman has turned up on Em’s doorstep claiming to be her sister.
Em is excited but cannot help feeling wary. Could this woman be too good to be true? Once again it will be up to the girls from the bomb factory to rally round and support one of their own.
The triumphs and disasters of this entertaining, close-knit group of friends spring to life in a nostalgic story packed with drama, tension, passion and the grim realities of life in wartime England.
Archer has her finger firmly on the pulse of the munitions workers… their hardships, their struggles and the determination to win wars in both their personal lives and on the bigger stage.
Romance with a gritty edge…
(Quercus, paperback, £6.99)

Book reviews: Cosy up with two family sagas from Quercus Books


Hardship in the fells of 1930s County Durham and intrigue at a Second World War munitions factory are just two compelling new books from Quercus this September.


Pier Jam will make its long awaited return to North Pier this Saturday, just so long as the weather stays calm.
Part two of the four-part series was called off on Saturday, August 20 due to “unprecedented weather”, in line with advice from the Authorities, Local Licensing & Pier Safety Officers.
Duke Dumont, Tchami, Philip George and Son of 8 had been due to perform at the house music event but the adverse weather conditions made this impossible.
However ticket holders for Pier Jam 2 were offered a refund or the chance to transfer their ticket over to this weekend’s event.
Part three on Saturday is headlined by Hannah Wants, with performances from Shadowchild, Shiba San, Tough Love and Monki also scheduled.
Hannah Wants headlines the event on the back of being voted Best Bass DJ at the Pacha Music Awards and Best DJ at the BMA’s in 2015.
Over the last few years her hard-hitting style has made her world-renowned and a must for any festival organisers.
Shadowchild is the alias of Simon Neale, somewhat of a veteran of the electronic music scene.
Also joining them is WMC Award winner Shiba San, BBC Radio 1’s Monki and Tough Love, best known for their top 20 single ‘So Freakin’ Tight’.
Tickets are on sale from £20 and are available at http://www.pierjam.com/tickets.


Pier Jam will make its long awaited return to North Pier this Saturday, just so long as the weather stays calm.


Meet a witch on a dangerous mission, a fabulous fantasy queen and a cast of colourful picture book stars in a glittering array of new titles from Macmillan Children’s Books.
Age 9 plus:
Fire Witch by Matt Ralphs
English history, thrilling adventure and a bewitching heroine…
Matt Ralphs is back with Fire Witch, the red-hot sequel to Fire Girl, and our fiery, fearless witch Hazel must gather her wits and steel her nerves to join her enemies and try to save her mother.
Packed with intrigue, danger, nail-biting tension and flashes of rib-tickling humour, these page-turning stories featuring an extraordinary girl are addictive reading for young fans of fantasy, drama and… witches!
The Civil War in England is over, Oliver Cromwell rules the land and a new battle is raging… between the people and the witches. Twelve-year-old HazelHooper is no ordinary girl. She is a Fire Witch, she can wield and manipulate flame and she is getting stronger all the time. But she is also angry because her mother Hecate had to sacrifice herself to the demon world in order to stop a demonic invasion. Hazel must fight on alone and she is determined to get her back, whatever the cost.
Her only chance to find Hecate is to seek advice from brilliant demonologist Nicolas Murrell, the Order of Witch Hunters’ most prized prisoner, and the man who summoned the demon responsible for Hecate’s fate. With only Bramley, her grumpy dormouse familiar for company, Hazel must disguise herself as a boy and infiltrate the black heart of the Order of Witch Hunters to speak to Murrell before he is executed. But can he be trusted? Will Murrell reveal to his captors that their newest apprentice is actually… a witch?
Ralphs has always been fascinated by witches, ghosts and anything that sends a shiver down his spine and this magical series is the perfect creation of his high-flying, super scary imagination.
A world of supernatural in the midst of terrifying real history…
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 10 plus:
The Hunting of the Princes by Peter F. Hamilton
Also dabbling in the wondrous world of fantasy is Peter F.Hamilton, the UK’s bestselling adult science fiction author, who was inspired to write for a younger audience by his own two children.
The Hunting of the Princes is the second book in his original and gripping Queen of Dreams trilogy which began with The Secret Throne and has all the hallmarks of a memorable modern classic.
Sprinkled with atmospheric black and white illustrations by Rohan Eason, this gorgeous fantasy series is a vivid, magical adventure featuring amazing kingdoms, daring quests and deadly menace.
Taggie Paganuzzi has had a busy year in the beautiful old market town of Stamford in Lincolnshire. Her mum was a Third Realm sorceress and now Taggie has inherited her family’s magical powers. From finding out she is the queen-to-be of a magical realm to learning to use her magic skills and discovering that the King of Night wants her dead, there have been a lot of ‘firsts.’
Assassins have been targeting royal heirs throughout the magical realms and now someone has tried to kill Taggie whilst she was cycling back to her home. Everyone thinks the King of Night’s army, the Karrak invaders, are responsible and that war is inevitable. But Taggie has found out two very interesting facts. Firstly, that the Karraks come from a cold, dark universe and cannot abide warmth and light. And secondly, that there was once a gate to this universe, now lost in the mists of time. If Taggie and her friends can find the gate, perhaps they can also stop the war? But to do that, they need to find a Karrak willing to take their side…
Hamilton conjures up a thrilling alternative world in which good must overcome evil, children are pitted against powerful enemies and a fantastic cast of amazing animal characters add to all the fun and fantasy. Don’t miss it!
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 3 plus:
Flying Lemurs by Zehra Hicks
This funny, reassuring story about overcoming fears and discovering hidden talents is the latest inspirational book from Macmillan’s new imprint for young children, Two Hoots.
A zingy, zany tale bursting with high-octane energy and an adorable cast of high-flying animals, this gorgeous circus-themed odyssey comes from talented author and illustrator Zehra Hicks whose speciality is telling stories through pictures.
Everyone in the lemur family is good at jumping, a talent which comes in handy as they are all circus performers. Mum is a brilliant trapeze artist, Dad’s trampoline routine is absolutely huge and Grandma’s speciality is being shot from a cannon.
Unfortunately little Lemur is not so good at jumping… in fact, he’s not even a fan of heights. He just can’t jump, no matter how hard he tries. But there are other things that Lemur is good at – throwing custard pies, skateboarding and playing the tambourine – so maybe with a bit of practice, he can become the best circus performer of them all!
Hicks ramps up the visual and verbal drama of this fun and warm-hearted story with her multi-textured illustrations, painted here by using bamboo and a bold palette of colours. Having fun, accepting life’s triumphs and disasters, and discovering the importance of family love all come under the spotlight in a sparkling and inspirational picture book.
(Two Hoots, paperback, £6.99)
Age 3 plus:
More People to Love Me by Mo O’Hara and Ada Grey
Modern families come in all shapes and sizes… and sometimes they are extra super-sized!
Mo O’Hara, author of the popular My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish series, delivers the perfect picture book for the step family generation in this moving story about a little girl with so many branches to her family tree that she runs out of space to draw them all.
Asked by her teacher to draw her family tree, the little girl just doesn’t know where to start. She’s got her mum and dad, her sister Cee Cee, her stepdad David and her stepmum Sharon. And then there are her mum’s new baby twins, her step brother Michael and no one must forget about Happy the tortoise. But the tree is starting to get rather crowded because there are all the grandparents to fit in as well. There’s only one thing for it, the family tree is going to have to grow!O’Hara was inspired to write by her own children’s positive experiences of being part of an extended family and felt that this was
rarely depicted in picture books. The result is a warm and moving tale about one little girl and her family that keeps on growing.
The gentle, reassuring and playful story is complemented by Ada Grey’s charming illustrations, reinforcing the message that every family is different and the bigger the family, the more people there are to love… and to love you back!
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 3 plus:
The Hippopandamouse by Jools Bentley
Nobody’s perfect… and sometimes being imperfectly different makes you special!
Author and illustrator Jools Bentley plays with traditional expectations in this cute and clever story about a little princess who falls for the only toy in the shop that doesn’t have a name.
Princess Flo has pocket money to spend so she heads off to Fluffley’s Fine Toys, the best toy shop in town. Everybody there has been working very hard to prepare for her visit – so hard, in fact, that one of the cuddly toys has ended up as a strange mix of a hippo, panda and mouse. The shop’s owner Miss Fluffey is eager to show Princess Flo the cuddly teddies, cute kittens and perky penguins, all perfect for a royal princess. But to everyone’s horror, Princess Flo spots the strange looking toy. The part hippo, part panda and part mouse is a total and utter mistake! But Flo loves this toy being different, seeing something unique and special in the strange animal. All he needs now is a name… Hippopandamouse!
Wise, witty and wonderfully warm-hearted, the tale of The Hippopandamouse is a beautiful, big-hearted story, gorgeously illustrated and simply perfect for little princesses everywhere.
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 3 plus:
Prince Ribbit by Jonathan Emmett and Poly Bernatene
Hop, skip and jump into this brilliant new picture book from top team Jonathan Emmett and Poly Bernatene.
Well-loved fairy tale, The Frog Prince, gets a dashing, daring makeover as ever popular author Emmett and talented illustrator Bernatene put a devilishly clever twist in the not-so-handsome frog’s tail.
One day, Princess Martha and her sisters, Princess Lucinda and Princess Arabella, are listening to the story of The Frog Prince. Lucinda and Arabella love romantic tales and their happily-ever-after endings, but Martha isn’t so sure. She prefers facts to fairy tales, and likes real frogs more than enchanted ones, and besides, clever Martha knows that not everything written in books is true.
Unknown to the sisters, a clever little frog is listening to the story and it sparks a bright idea. If he can convince the gullible princesses that he is actually a prince, perhaps he could start getting some royal treatment of his own. So is Prince Ribbit really a handsome prince, or just a plain, ordinary frog?
There’s only one way to find out… pucker up princesses, it’s time for true love’s kiss!
Emmett works his own brand of fairy tale magic as he transforms a classic tale into a feast of smiles and smoochy surprises while Bernatene’s stunning and superbly detailed illustrations provide a feast of colour and fun.
A picture book that all the family can enjoy…
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 3 plus:
Dear Zoo Drawing and Colouring Book by Rod Campbell
Rod Campbell, creator of the classic, much-loved Dear Zoo books, has been a trusted name in early learning for over 30 years and he’s back with this inspirational first drawing and colouring book.
Dear Zoo, an ingeniously simple, lift-the-flap book with touches of gentle humour, introduces pre-school children to the wonder and variety of wild animals, and now a new generation can join in all the fun and draw their very own zoo full of amazing creatures.
There are 32 pages of drawing, colouring and doodling featuring all the animals from the original story. At the top of each page, little ones are told what to draw and given a helping hand with many of the pictures already started.
Packed full of simple activities that are perfectly pitched for pre-schoolers, the book’s large, square, extra thick pages can be peeled off the pad, stuck to walls at home or even put in a frame if they are special mini-masterpieces.
Draw bananas for the naughty monkey, give the fierce lion big sharp teeth, design a bowl for a frisky puppy or give a camel a big smile. The Dear ZooDrawing and Colouring Book is the ideal first lesson for budding young artists and dedicated toddler doodlers.
(Macmillan, paperback, £5.99)

Book reviews: History, fantasy and animal magic with Macmillan


Meet a witch on a dangerous mission, a fabulous fantasy queen and a cast of colourful picture book stars in a glittering array of new titles from Macmillan Children’s Books.


An exotic island lying in the glittering Arabian Sea, spotless white beaches and acres of lush coconut groves…
Sounds like the perfect place for a getaway, but gorgeous Lace Island is awash with dark secrets and lies that bind together two women from two generations, destined to meet on a dramatic and emotional collision course.
Make room in your holiday luggage this summer for Joanna Rees’ sizzling tale of romance, adventure, intrigue and betrayal inspired by a family holiday to Kerala, a state on India’s tropical Malabar Coast, famed for its stunning palm-lined beaches and abundant wildlife.
Brimming with glitz, glamour and some hard-hitting grit, The Girl from Lace Island sweeps readers away to some of the world’s most seductive locations whilst delivering a captivating story about two lives mysteriously linked to a faraway island.
In 1989, fun-loving fourteen-year-old Leila could not be happier. She has grown up on Lace Island, an exotic location which was inherited by her mother Bibi. Leila lives in the old plantation house with her mother and stepfather Chan, and spends her days in the company of local boy Rasa.
Near the beach are Bibi’s luxury bungalows where super-rich, and often famous, guests fly in to spend relaxing, private holidays away from intrusive camera lenses and where no behaviour or demand is deemed too outrageous.
But Leila’s idyllic life comes to an abrupt end when her mother is persuaded by one of her guests to send her daughter away for an education at a cold English boarding school. The teenager feels friendless, bullied and too foreign to ever fit in and soon she’s desperate to get back to her family and her beloved island.
But in her absence, Leila’s paradise has changed beyond all recognition and the life she once adored is now just a memory. Worse still, everyone and everything she loves is in terrible danger.
In 2016, Jess has spent her childhood in orphanages and lives in a depressing tower block in south London. She does kickboxing to channel her inner anger and dreams of far-off places, of white sandy beaches and warm tropical seas.
When Jess gets her longed-for job as airline cabin crew, all those dreams suddenly appear to be coming true, especially when she is swept off her feet by the handsome and charismatic millionaire Blaise who is a first class passenger on a long-haul flight to Miami.
But Jess has a troubled past, and her present is about to become complicated and dangerous when Blaise asks her to marry him.
These two women, both of their lives scarred by disaster and betrayal, will set out on a mission to discover the truth about Lace Island, but will their search for paradise be a price too high to pay?
Rees, a bestselling author who teaches creative writing in schools and libraries, works her trademark escapist magic in this addictive, fast-paced story which is perfectly formed and carefully crafted for sun loungers everywhere.
Sit back and enjoy…
(Pan, paperback, £7.99)

Book review: The Girl from Lace Island by Joanna Rees


An exotic island lying in the glittering Arabian Sea, spotless white beaches and acres of lush coconut groves…