Weekend Review: Janet Brown

You may have noticed we've not been very active bloggers recently - sometimes "real life" gets a little too hectic to reflect online. But now we're back - and what better way to return than with a Weekend Review from one of our favourite bloggers (and now RL friend) Janet...

What do you do for work?

I’m a Book Selections Manager for The Willoughby Book Club, which basically means I pick books for people as a job! I also manage all their digital marketing and social media. The WBC is a Leicestershire business set up in 2012 by husband and wife team Adam & Chloe Pollard and they’ve since grown to be the foremost book subscription company in the UK.

In summer 2015 I was a very stressed secondary English teacher, when I saw an advert for book experts to join their team: I applied, and the rest is history. Now, instead of working 70+ hours a week, I spend my days looking at, talking about, taking photographs of and choosing books.

How do you go about choosing a book for a complete stranger?

99% of our customers give us information when buying a subscription – whether it’s for themselves or as a gift – so I have to hand a list of authors, genres and/or books that each customer loves, and sometimes extra information like a Goodreads page or blog. From there, it’s a mixture of extreme book geek-ness, research, and luck!

For example, if a customer has told us they enjoy reading YA romances, Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novels, and the Tales Of The City series, I might pick one More Than This by Patrick Ness – combing, as it does, elements of LGBT romance and dystopia in a literary YA adventure. It helps that I read – a lot – and that I enjoy immersing myself in researching titles.

What advice do you have to someone considering a change in career?

It’s something I’ve done twice now: first, applying for a PGCE after spending a couple of years as a legal secretary, and then leaving teaching for WBC, and both times I felt instinctively that I was doing the right thing. I’m not a risk-taker by nature, but in both cases I leapt first, looked later.

So my advice would be to trust your gut and your heart, and don’t let fear talk you out of something you know is right. Ultimately, if things don’t work out, you can always go back to the career you left with some new experiences under your belt and on your CV.

What's been your proudest career moment so far?

Even though I left the profession, so many moments in teaching made me proud: it’s a great job in many ways – those lessons when a student finally gets ‘it’, or when a class throw themselves into a text and enjoy it as much as I do. I don’t miss the stress of teaching but I do miss the students themselves.

And your biggest achievement outside of work?

Being accepted onto an MA in Gender Studies at Leeds University, which I’ll begin in September.

When is your weekend? 

I’m very lucky to only work four days a week, so my weekend runs from Thursday evening until Sunday. Friday tends to be my ‘get things done’ day, leaving me with two days to properly relax.

How did you spend this weekend? 

It was a pretty typical weekend for me and my partner; as neither of us have family near (Thomas is from Glasgow and I’m a Yorkshire girl) there weren’t any family meals or gatherings to attend. We started Saturday the usual way: a lie-in punctuated only by our cat, Missy, shouting at us to get up.

Thomas is a huge foodie – he loves to eat and will try anything (provided it’s vegan!) so our weekends often revolve around our meals, both at home and out and about. Saturday was no exception; we started the day with Huey on 6 Music while we made breakfast – vegan croissants with fresh strawberries and strawberry jam – before heading out, first to Market Harborough for a mooch around the charity shops, then into Leicester for a late lunch at Oscar & Rosie’s, which has just opened and serves some of the best pizza in the Midlands.

Sunday was a lazy day at home. I started the day curled up with a cuppa and a stack of magazines, then worked on zines for an hour or two. I had a stack of my previous zines to send out to people, as well as needing to edit some submissions for a zine Laura and I are currently working on. It’s called Mixtape and is all about 90s (i.e. the best decade!) nostalgia: we’re still looking for contributions in whatever form you like, so give me a shout for more information or to submit.

We had vegan ‘fish’ finger sandwiches for lunch, then went for a long walk on Aylestone Meadows. We’re so lucky to live in a city but with nature close by – within minutes of leaving home we’d seen a heron idly watching the river, a robin darting around collecting twigs for a nest, and a rabbit escaping into the hedgerow. Then home, with a cup of tea and a book (current read - The Lauras by Sara Taylor), before I made vegan lasagna for dinner, accompanied by 6 Music on the radio once again.

Which bits of your weekend do you usually edit out of your blog posts?

The inordinate amount of time I spend in my pyjamas! I’m a total homebody and can happily spend a whole weekend just pottering around the house, reading, and hanging out with my cat. All very enjoyable, but it doesn’t make for very interesting blog posts!

Your ideal Sunday menu... 

Breakfast: A large mug of tea and pain au chocolat fresh from the bakery, eaten with Thomas on the balcony of the Paris Airbnb that we stayed in on our first trip together.

Lunch: A salmon cesear salad with a glass of sparkling wine, on the outdoor terrace of Montebello (in the southern suburbs of Cape Town) with my mum, cousins, aunt and uncle.

Dinner: I’d dine solo, with just a book for company, on veggie nachos at Lola Rosa in Montreal accompanied by a pint of local Quebec cider.

What's in your fridge?

My fridge has a split personality; although I tend not to eat or cook meat at home, my shelves usually have at least three kinds of cheese as well as butter and eggs for baking, while Thomas’s are stuffed with an array of vegan staples such as hummus, vegan mayo, and Violife cheese. Plus, of course, stacks of fresh veggies and usually at least three lots of leftovers (currently languishing in Tupperware -  some homemade guacamole and leftover chilli, and a tofu Thai red curry).

QUICK FIRE - without too much thought, name your absolute favourite...

Book: Impossible to name just one! But three off the top of my head are Persuasion by Jane Austen, anything by Poppy Z Brite, and Simon Vs The Homosapien Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Film: Dazed & Confused

Fashion brand: ASOS

Holiday destination: Cape Town

Museum: The National Media Museum in my hometown of Bradford.

How can people follow what you do and get in contact?

I’m @jbistheinitial on Twitter and Instagram and my blog is jbistheinitial.blogspot.co.uk

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Weekend Review: Dimple Patel

Had a good weekend? It was a busy one for today's reviewer, Dimple Patel - who is currently preparing to launch an exciting radio project in her home city... (which isn't New York!)

What do you do for work?

I'm a freelance radio producer, I make radio programmes, develop radio projects and train people in audio storytelling.

What has inspired your current radio project?

My current radio project is establishing and running a refugee arts station called Sanctuary Radio. It's a pop-up internet radio station from 18th August to 11th September, with programmes produced and presented by refugees and asylum seekers in Leicester. My inspiration came from events that I'd been to showcasing refugee arts and I remember seeing some fascinating work by artists, filmmakers and musicians, and thinking people should know about this.

What's been your proudest career moment so far?

Probably last year when one of my radio projects was part of an exhibition called Adopting Britain at Southbank Centre in London. The project was a collection of migrant stories of people who had moved to Leicester and the exhibition curators designed a special listening post with my audio stories. I was invited to the launch and I was able to take some of the wonderful people I had the privilege to interview to the exhibition too, including a 93 year old WW2 refugee. She first went to the Royal Festival Hall when it opened as part of The Festival of Britain in 1951, as a 'Tonic to the Nation' after the devastation of WW2, and so to go back again over 60 years later to see people listening to her life story in there was quite special. I felt proud that day. 

And your biggest achievement outside of work?

Having managed to buy a home feels like a big achievement!

When is your weekend?

For the past seven years, in my last job, I worked four days a week and had Fridays off - so I've got used to a three day weekend! It's great because you have one day to wind down and then you still have Saturday and Sunday. I still like to stick to the three day weekend as much as I can.

How did you spend this weekend?

On Saturday I went to Leicester Caribbean Carnival. I was working at a stall with Radio2Funky - which is an online urban music radio station. Luckily my work doesn't often feel like work. The weather was hot, I saw friends, ate some good Caribbean food - tried curried goat for the first time.

On Sunday I went to Crawley in Sussex to see my brother, sister-in-law, nephews and niece as they are visiting from Singapore where they live now. We spent four hours in motorway traffic, so it took twice as long as it should have! But I had a lovely day once I got there. It was the twins' birthday so I bought them Leicester City football shirts, and of course one for their older brother too. They were following the Leicester City story out in Singapore, so the shirts went down well.

I also had the chance to tie a rakhi on my brother's wrists as a sister's blessing for a Hindu festival called Raksha Bandan. It's actually not until next week and normally I'd have to post it, but as my brother was here we did it early. I got a nice gift from my brother too, which is also part of the tradition!

How typical was it for you?

Not very typical - it just happened to be a busy one. 

What's your ideal Sunday menu - with no restrictions?

Breakfast: Eggs royale and a cappuccino - al fresco in a warm climate.

Lunch: Roast dinner - a late lunch - made by Jamie Oliver.

Dinner: I wouldn't be that hungry after a late roast dinner, but I'd have a dessert featuring chocolate and then a savoury midnight snack!

I'd be with loved ones for all the meals.

What's in your fridge?

Not a lot today - broccoli, spring onions, spinach, tomatoes, cheese (feta, cheddar, parmesan), watermelon, raspberries, garlic bread, various chutneys, half a bottle of wine... I need to go food shopping.

QUICK FIRE - without much thought, name your absolute favourite...

Book: 84, Charing Cross Road - by Helene Hanff

Film: 2 Days in New York - it makes me laugh.

Holiday destination: NYC... but also Vietnam

Museum: MIA (The Museum of Islamic Art) in Doha, for the building itself

Exercise: Yoga

How can people follow what you do and get in contact?

You can find me on Twitter @_dimplepatel

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Making it happen: Great Central

If you've ever read this blog, you'll know how much we love bigging up our home city of Leicester and indulging in the cultural happenings it offers up. So we were very intrigued when we heard word of a new magazine with a similar mindset. John Helps is the man with the plan, and has been kind enough to jot down his thoughts on the matter for us...

Leicester is wicked. It took me a very long time to come to this conclusion – passing variously through stages of absolute hatred, resignation and overwhelming disappointment at various points over the last decade – but we’ve reconciled our differences and it’s finally feeling like home.

I think it helps that the stars have aligned to make this one of the greatest periods in living memory for Leicester – between Richard III and the football there isn’t much to complain about in terms of national profile and local enthusiasm.

It wasn’t always this way - we all remember – and if we’re not careful we’re in danger of slipping back in to a post-premiership-champions malaise.

I came to a bit of a realisation pretty early on in my time here. Sitting around complaining that nothing happens in your city is pointless.

Nothing happens unless somebody makes it happen, and if you want what YOU want for your city, then that person almost always has to be you – if not directly then by persuading others to get involved. Apathy is the absolute killer.

The Robot Needs Home Collective has become the banner under which my friends and I try to create awesome things. That’s basically the remit. We started White Noise Festival, then Handmade Festival. We persuaded The Cathedral, The Guildhall, and a handful of churches, galleries and other weird and wonderful spaces to let us put on some of our most memorable shows of the last ten years. We’ve managed to get Leicester bands and festivals on to the national stage, and we’ll keep doing that for as long as people keep listening.

Thankfully there are a tonne of others with exactly that attitude in the city at the moment. I don’t remember a better time for happenings of all shapes and sizes – there are gigs, festivals, comedy, art and performance and more restaurants and coffee shops than there has been for ages and it feels like there’s a real buzz in the air…

But Leicester still has the power to disappoint. For every sold out show, there will be an empty room. For every bustling coffee shop, there is an empty restaurant. It’s always been hard to tell people about what’s going on, primarily because there just isn’t the infrastructure to do it.

As good a job as the fine people at Leicester Mercury and BBC Leicester do, it feels like an uphill battle. These aren’t the target markets for most of us, and although we came painfully close to convincing the city council to provide better provision for us to spread the word it was snatched away at the final hurdle - ironically seemingly forgotten once Richard III and premiership success reared their heads.

So, in the spirit of “being the change we want to see in the city”, a swift Facebook post and a couple of emails to people who I thought would be good at this sort of thing and we have an “alternative” newspaper on the verge of being birthed in to the world.

She’s called Great Central and she’ll be out quarterly (to start with) focusing on arts, culture and entertainment. Previewing rather than reviewing and bringing peoples hard work in to the public consciousness. It’s a long battle, but I’ve already been astonished by the amount of positive feedback and support we’ve had, and it just keeps growing.

It really feels like this is something the city needs and has been crying out for. Hopefully with a little time we can be a small part of the solution to that problem. 

Follow and support the progress of Great Central on the website. Slideshow images of cultural happenings in Leicester kindly provided by  photographer David Wilson Clarke.

Working With (Your Own) Children

Today's guest blogger, Kenton Hall is no stranger to juggling work - switching regularly between actor, writer, filmmaker and musician. But how did he get on mixing the roles of director and dad...?

When the Weekend Collective asked me to write about the making of "A Dozen Summers" I was thrilled. Then I was a bit sleepy. Then hungry for a bit. Then I had a nap and some vegetarian sausages and went back to being thrilled again. 

This movie - made in Leicester - was a labour of love. Which is probably for the best, as labours of ambivalence only tend to lead to further Transformers sequels and nobody wants that. 

So, for those of you who don't know, "A Dozen Summers" is a micro-budget indie family comedy about two 12-year-olds (played by my daughters Scarlet Hall and Hero Hall) who hijack a traditional children's film and decide to tell their own story instead. 

It was written because I had become aware - for the second time - how difficult it is to be 12. Not yet an adult, no longer a child - with little control over your own life and with no one taking you terribly seriously. 

And, yet, my daughters and their friends were clever, funny, strange, opinionated, bewildered by the adult world and full of ideas on how it could be fixed, sharpish. 

They deserved to tell their own story. 

My role was to try and understand that story well enough to put it on-screen. Without much in the way of resources, other than the time, talent and support of dozens of extremely talented, generous people and organisations, of course. 

The experience has exceeded all of my expectations - just from the proximity to so many amazing people. And now it's coming out on DVD (which, apparently, is like a VHS tape, but flat and shiny) and we want as many people as possible to see it. 

Also, to buy it, because bills. 

TWC, in their wisdom, have give me a few questions to answer. I, in my lack of wisdom, have chosen to answer them below. 

Is working with children really that difficult?

They say "never work with children and animals". But, to be fair, grown actors are far more idiosyncratic than either group, so I'm not sure why they get singled out. Children just need looking after on a set, both protecting but also inspiring them to do what they still remember how to do and we, as so-called "grown-ups", have forgotten - which is to play.

When young people are enthusiastic about something, it's a joy to be around. I think, in all honesty, we avoid working with children because they can remind us how jaded we have become and how tired we look before our 17th cup of coffee. So, no is my answer. It's a lot of responsibility, but it's a treat. 

Did you know you wanted the twins to be part of it from the start?

It was based on them, and their friends obviously, but I didn't know if a) they wanted to, b) they were ready for it and c) whether it would too much pressure to ask them to carry a film. So, they auditioned. They read with other children.

It became clear that this could be something we did together, that it would add something to the movie and that they weren't about to give up the roles to anyone else willingly. And I'm a father, I know when I'm beaten. 

How much are their characters in the film based on their real personalities, and your real relationship with them?

There's a lot of them in there, sometimes direct quotes, but I also wanted to give them something to play. Ironically, perhaps by playing the characters, there is much more delineation between Maisie and Daisy, and Scarlet and Hero now, then there was when we started. But all the good bits comes from them.

Henry, my character, is the father I'd like to be. I'd never claim it's the father I always manage to be. In fact, Jacqueline, Sarah Warren's character, is much more drawn from my feelings about myself - trying hard, but easily distracted by shiny things and not always knowing what to do for the best. So much so, that Sarah, consummate pro that she is, started nicking my tics and mannerisms and working them into her performance. So, that's me. But Henry - I'll keep trying to be Henry. 

How did you find switching between being writer, director, actor and father? Is it difficult to be objective?

In reality, the objectivity I faced was knowing that if the film ended up as something that might embarrass them, or hurt them, or wasn't something of which they were proud - that the Dad side of me, my dominant side, would steal the files and dump them in a lake. The director side of me knew this and kept his fingers tightly crossed. Thankfully, it just brought us closer and we got to go to work together for a while. And they won a Best Actress Award (jointly, thank goodness, for the sake of sibling harmony) at a festival in Spain, for their FIRST film - so mostly I just had to balance intense pride and professional envy.

What ambitions do the twins have? Are you hoping filmmaking will become a regular family pastime?

Scarlet really wants to continue performing. Hero, I think, is gravitating towards the other side of the camera. She wants be in charge of the whole story. I'm all for that, as she can employ me when my career hits the skids. She'd better, anyway. Someone who has thrown up on you as often as one's offspring... they owe you a gig. But then they also both want careers in caring professions: doctors, social workers. Hard not to be even more proud of that. I'll support them in whatever they are passionate about, because, a) that's the job and b) they've always done the same for me. Plus, I want to go to a GOOD home when I'm old. 

We talk about doing something else together. I think I probably have to make at least one without them, to prove I'm not riding on their coattails, but we do have an idea for something very different we can do together in the future. 

Watch this space. 

A Dozen Summers is released on DVD in the UK (from Ballpark Film Distributors and Screenbound Pictures), US and Canada (from Stacks Entertainment) on August 15th, 2016

A Dozen Summers is released on DVD in the UK, US and Canada on 15th August 2016, but available for pre-order now. Find out more about the film on the website.

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Why We Love... Kasabian

We've talked plenty in recent weeks, on and off-line, about our Leicester pride. Our home city has been buzzing since the football win and celebrations continue this weekend with a couple of hastily organised gigs at the LCFC stadium, headlined by locals Kasabian.

Tonight's gig is a big deal for the band. Yes, they've done Glastonbury - but this is the first time they'll be performing at the home of the club they've supported all their lives. No jumping on the bandwagon here.

I think it's fair to say we're both big fans. I've seen them perform live a fair few times now, three (soon four!) dancing alongside Elle.

Most recently we were lucky to see their surprise set at the Premier League victory parade (see video below), where we full-on sprinted across Victoria Park towards the stage as the band launched unannounced into their first song.

But it also includes that one time we pretty much on a whim - after watching them headline their own festival five minutes from my house - bought tickets to see them in Amsterdam. It turned out we weren't the only LE-postcoders who'd made the journey.

So why do we love them? Well, as I'm now getting a bit too excited to write in full paragraphs, here's a short list...

• Their music is great and very much "them" - it's instantly recognisable and instantly makes me feel upbeat and want to jump around the room
• Despite this, I can't honestly claim the band are on my "most-listened-to" list - BUT they are in my "most-seen-live" list, because they just put on such a brilliant show. I will always see Kasabian, Elbow and Laura Marling on tour.
• In fact, one of these instances probably tops my "best-gigs-ever" list, when I saw them in a hollowed out Boeing 747 - I genuinely had fears for the strength of the plane floor!
• They love Leicester as much as we do - they could've moved anywhere in the world, yet it's not uncommon to bump into any one of them in the street. Lead-singer Tom once literally ran into me at my local Sainsburys
• Not only this, but they share the local accent with the rest of the world - we will both be pulling onour Serge inspired Les-tah tshirts tonight (okay, I'm already wearing it)
• Finally - their track Fire is the best accompaniment I can ever imagine to the end credits to one of my favourite documentary films - TT3D: Closer to the Edge (don't be put off by the motorbikes if you Google it - you don't need to be a fan, I'm not)

If you're going, have an amazing time and let us know how you find it - if we don't see you there!

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Weekend Review: Richard III

Before football success sparked the interest of the world's media, Leicester was put on the map by the discovery of Richard III in a car park. Since being thrown (or should that be 'throne' - bad pun) into the spotlight, @richard_third has impressively adapted to 21st century living - picking up thousands of Twitter followers. And now he's our Weekend Reviewer... 

Where do you call home?

Plot 1A (just to the left of the prayer book shelves)
Chapel of Christ the King
Leicester Cathedral
Peacock Lane
Leicester

What do you do for work?

I was the King of England until someone rudely stole my horse. I've recently changed careers to work in tourism. It's proving successful, though my employers are reluctant to share their new found financial gains with me...

What's been your proudest Twitter moment so far?

My work can be found in the New York Times, The Melbourne Age, the BBC News website, The Sunday Times, and I'm followed by Colette Mann, star of well know Australian television soap, Neighbours.

And your biggest achievement outside of work?

It was me and me alone who kick-started the decision to move to Leicester. I set the trend. And now everyone will follow me!

When is your weekend?

Ah, I never really get a weekend off, living in a cathedral means God's house is always open. And sleep on a Saturday night can be a problem due to party-goers and my city centre location. Sunday mornings are quite nice though, I get to hear evensong every Sunday evening.

How did you spend the last weekend?

Well, being buried in a 21st century designed tomb means I'm unable to leave to see much these days. BUT, it was designed with all mod cons, and this I have fibre optic broadband... so I can watch LCFC from the comfort of my bed. And I get a lot of emails from young history undergraduates, trying to get me to write their essays for them.

How typical was it for you?

Sadly the days are a little predictable when entombed. Now I'm formally buried I'm applying for training at Spook School, in the hope of surprisingly a few people...

Your ideal Sunday menu...

Breakfast: I don't need to eat so much these days. But I can smell Maryland Chicken from where I lie. I won't lie to you, it smells fantastic.

Lunch: See previous answer.

Dinner: See previous but one answer.

QUICK FIRE: name your absolute favourite...

Book: Professor Pollard's 'Richard III and the Princes in the Tower' appears to detail my innocence in the entire affairs. And so it's my current favourite.

Film: Richard III of course - any version!

Album: It's a single rather than an album, but Richard III by Supergrass.

Sport: Football! Leicester City til I die of course. Oh... erm... anyhow... I inspire them it seems. I take full credit for the league success.

Museum: My own of course! The fabulous newly opened Richard III Visitor Centre in Leicester. See me as an inspiration for a storm trooper, and visit my previous home under space D19 of a car park!

Member of the royal family: They are not the royal family, they are imposters. I was kicked off my own throne you know. So ME (well, I am the king).

What would you swap your kingdom for these days?

Hmm, good question...

How can people follow what you do and get in contact?

I'm available for visits during Leicester Catheral opening hours, and I'm on Twitter! Messages of love and offers of marriage can be sent to me at @richard_third

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