Monthly Archives: September 2011

BBC Children in Need Announce POP Goes The Musical

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BBC Children in Need has announced the launch of ‘BBC Children in Need POP Goes the Musical 2011’.

Working with the best of West End Theatre and a star-studded line up, this unique charity project is giving renowned celebrities from the music sphere the chance to perform a hit song from a top show, to take place in September to help raise vital funds for children and young people here in the UK.

The show-stopping celebrities involved in a series of unique curtain calls are the gorgeous Peter Andre performing GHOST the Musical’s spectacular number ‘Unchained Melody’, the loveable Stacey Solomon for WICKED to sing ‘For Good’, chart-toppers Sugababes will take on ‘Dancing Queen’ in MAMMA MIA! And the legendary Melanie C will sing the highly charged ‘We Are The Champions’ and ‘We Will Rock You’ in the Queen musical WE WILL ROCK YOU.

Don’t miss out on what’s set to be a week of nights to remember and your chance to experience a series of pop-tastic performances.

Bookings can be made immediately for the following dates at:

10th September 2011 – WICKED – ‘popping up’ is Stacey Solomon (Matinee Performance)

13th September 2011 – WE WILL ROCK YOU – ‘popping up’ is Melanie C

14th September 2011 – GHOST the Musical – ‘popping up’ is Peter Andre

15th September 2011 – MAMMA MIA! – ‘popping up’ is Sugababes

Tickets for ‘BBC Children in Need POP Goes the Musical 2011’ are available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/pudsey/. Prices start from £25 with all proceeds going to BBC Children in Need.

“I’m so excited to be a part of the musical WICKED. I went to see the show and was completely blown away by the costumes and performances. It’s going to be scary to get up on a West End stage but I’m so happy to take on the challenge and get involved in BBC Children in Need POP Goes the Musical.” – Stacey Solomon

“I am so excited to be taking part in ‘Pop Goes The Musical’ for this year’s BBC Children In Need, especially as I will be performing with the cast of the incredible show, We Will Rock You. I have always been a huge Queen fan and standing on the stage of the Dominion Theatre to sing one of the band’s anthems is an absolute honour and a great way raise money for such a fantastic charity.” – Melanie C

“I was so impressed when I went to see GHOST the Musical. It was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. So when I was approached by BBC Children In Need to get involved, I jumped at the chance and just hope that I can do it justice! The cast are great so it’ll be so much fun working with them and raising money for an amazing cause all at the same time.” – Peter Andre

“We’re so excited to be part of BBC Children In Need this year. It’s such a great cause and helps so many people and to be able to join the cast of MAMMA MIA!, one of the West End’s most famous musicals, is a real honour for us.” – Sugababes

BBC Children in Need changes the lives of some of the most disadvantaged children and young people right here in the UK. The charity supports children in the UK facing a range of disadvantages including poverty and deprivation, young people with disabilities and children who have been the victims of abuse or neglect.

Due to the incredible generosity of the public in 2010, BBC Children in Need has awarded £40 million to change young lives r and this year we need your help to beat this total!

For more information on the charity please visit www.bbc.co.uk/pudsey/

Interview: Iwan Thomas MBE

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As an athlete, Iwan Thomas MBE has been there, done it, and got the medals to prove it, including a gold from the 1997 World Championships. When it comes to track and field, he knows his onions, which is why he’s landed a plum job as commentator for Channel 4’s coverage of the World Athletics Championships from Daegu in South Korea. Here, we take the opportunity to pick his brain regarding Britain’s best medal hopefuls, as well as Usain Bolt, Oscar Pistorius and much more.

The World Championships are almost upon us. Are you excited?
I am, actually. It’ll be a bit strange going to a World Championships and not being a competitor, being on the other side of the fence, but I’m really looking forward to the experience. I’m a bit worried about the food – you see people on Twitter [Iwan tweets as @Iwanrunner], showing pictures of people eating live octopus and things like that. It’ll be interesting. Maybe I’ll lose some weight over the two weeks. But I’m really looking forward to it.

Who do you see as Great Britain’s outstanding medal prospects this time around?
You’ve obviously got Jessica Ennis and Phillips Idowu – they’re both reigning World Champions and will be trying to defend their titles. Then you’ve got other athletes who have had a massive breakthrough in the last couple of years, like Dai Greene, and also Jenny Meadows in the 800m, she’s running really well this year. I’d never say anyone was a banker, because athletics is a pretty strange sport, but you’d be looking at those guys to get medals. You’ve also got people like Chris Tomlinson and Greg Rutherford, both in the long jump. At the recent Diamond League meeting at Crystal Palace, they came second and third, and Chris has got a British record this year, so he’s in tremendous form. I think in major championships it’s all about the underdogs coming through and doing well, so you never know. As a whole, the British team is in a pretty good place.

You’ve got athletes like Christine Ohuruogu, who’s always been a big event runner, but she’s not had a good year this year, has she?
No. She’s had a few injuries. I’d be very surprised if she became World Champion again. Don’t forget she’s a world champion and Olympic champion, though, so you can never count her out. She’s a performer. But if you look at current form, she’s had these injuries, and she’s struggling this year. It’d be fantastic to see her run well, and it would also be really good for the women’s 4×400 relay squad as well- they’re all doing well at the moment. You’ve got Christine, the likes of Jenny Meadows who can come down to 4×400, and you’ve got Perri Shakes-Drayton, who’s another emerging talent this year in the 400m hurdles. She’s someone to look out for, she’s an outside chance for a medal as well.

Talking of athletes who have really broken through in the last couple of years, Mo Farah must be up there as well.
Oh yeah, 100%. I don’t want to put the kiss of death on him, but Mo is in the best form of his life. He’s beautiful to watch, he’s not scared of the big athletes, he’s beaten everybody. It’ll be interesting to see whether he tries to do the double [run both 5000m and 10,000m] but without a doubt, Mo is someone I can’t wait to watch. Without putting the medal round his neck and putting pressure on him, I’d be very surprised if he didn’t become world champion.

What sort of shape do you think British athletics is in as a whole at the moment?
I think it’s pretty good. Three or four years ago it was going through a bit of a transitional phase – a lot of good athletes had retired, a lot of guaranteed medallists – the likes of Jonathan Edwards, Steve Backley, Colin Jackson, Denise Lewis and so on. Everybody retired, and it left a bit of a hole. But over the last two or three years, we’ve got the new stars coming through. It’s exciting times, it really is.

Away from team GB, who are you looking forward to watching?
Obviously any athlete in the 100m final. That’s the blue riband event, I can’t wait to watch that. It’s going to be interesting to see Usain Bolt, because although he’s not been beaten this year, he’s not running as convincingly as he has in the past. He’s going to be under a little bit of pressure. I think he’s going to win the 200m, but the 100m is by no means a foregone conclusion. If his countryman, Asafa Powell, can get himself together -he’s had a few injuries – who knows? I don’t think Usain Bolt will be in a position to celebrate ten metres before the line this time, he’ll be pushed all the way.

What else are you looking forward to?
I always enjoy my old event, the 400m. It’s close to my heart. To be honest, I’m just a massive athletics fan, so all the events. I’m looking forward to watching Goldie Sayers in the javelin as well – she’s had a good year this year. I’m so excited about the whole thing. I think a lot of events will be really close. As a neutral, that has to make for a really exciting spectacle.

You mentioned the 400m. One of the stories of the championships is going to be Oscar Pistorius, isn’t it? What do you think about his presence there? [Pistorius is a double amputee who runs on special carbon fibre artificial limbs]
I think it’s great for the sport, and great for Paralympic sport. I know there’s a lot of controversy behind it. I’m probably a little bit biased, because I’m friends with Oscar and I’ve trained with him, but he’s worked very hard to get where he has done, and I think you’ve got to take your hat off to him. Long may it continue. The bottom line is he’s been cleared to run by the governing body, so let him run. It’ll put a few people’s noses out of joint, because he’s going to beat a lot of able-bodied athletes, but I think it’s fantastic for him and the sport.

How far do you think he can go in the competition?
A good lane draw is vital. If he’s drawn in lane 1 and it’s raining, it’s not good for him – he doesn’t like running in rain. But if he gets a good lane, then I think he could definitely make the semi-finals, and when you make the semis of a world championships, anything can happen on the day. He’ll have to run near his best to get through the heats, but I think he’ll do that.

Channel 4 is covering the event for the first time this year. What can we expect from their coverage?
I hope we do the sport justice. You’ll have a lot of people who are used to having watched it on the BBC for years, but I think we’ll do it slightly different. I think we could make it very modern, and appeal to the masses. There will be different audiences watching it – you’ve got your die-hard athletics fans who know everything, and also hopefully newcomers to the sport who won’t understand all the technicalities behind the events,. So it’s our job to try and portray that without being patronising. I think, hopefully, we’ll do a good job, and people will come away and enjoy the coverage.

Are you looking forward to working with Michael Johnson?
Definitely. I can’t wait to work with Michael. I had a long career against him, and I’ve got a lot of respect for him as an athlete. I also respect him as a pundit as well. I think he’s very good at his job, he tells it how it is, and I’m looking forward to sitting next to him on a sofa and hopefully forming a nice little double act together.

How have you taken to life in front of the camera? Are you enjoying it?
Yeah, I am actually. I think my career was cut short with bad injuries, and I never got back to running fast after the injuries, and don’t get me wrong, I’d rather be ten years younger and still competing, but if I can’t do that, the next best thing is trying to help others enjoy the sport that I love so much. I really enjoy TV work.

You’re still the British 400m record holder. Do you want to keep that, or would you like to see it broken, because that would mean the next great 400m runner was coming through?
If I’m honest, a bit of both. As a lover of the sport, I’m really surprised it’s still standing. You’d think with technology, and better understanding of nutrition and training, it would go. As a lover of the sport, I‘d definitely like to see my British record go. But it also indicates to me how good our generation was. In 1998 Roger Black came forth in our British trials, running 44.6. Someone running 44.6 would be number one in the world this year.

Was that one of the secrets of your success, that you, Roger, Jamie Baulch and so on were all pushing each other on?
Absolutely, 100 per cent. Domestic rivalry is crucial. If I hadn’t had to run 44.3 to be Britain’s best, perhaps I would have only run 44.8. I still would have trained as hard, but subconsciously I think you need to be pushed on. We’ve always had great 400m runners. Half of me is very proud to have the British record, but if I’m honest, I’d like to see it go.

Lastly, you alluded to this at the beginning, but how will you feel being out there trackside when the 400m final is going on?
I miss it every day. Whenever I’m out there and there’s a 400m race about to start, I get the jitters and want to start doing my stretches. I think to myself, “You know what? I could still do that.” But I can’t, I don’t train and I’m old. I miss the sport every day. You can guarantee, when the 400m is on, I’ll be on the edge of my seat, jumping around like a loon, because I’ll wish that I was still out there.

Athletics: IAAF World Championships 2011 starts Saturday 27 August. Iwan Thomas is part of Channel 4’s team of experts who will be bringing you extensive coverage from Deagu, with expert opinions, in depth interviews and live commentary of the entire Championships.

For the latest Athletics: IAAF World Championships 2011 News – http://athletics.channel4.com/index.html

By Benjie Goodhart

Thanks to Channel 4’s coverage of the IAAF World Championships 2011.

Drugs, Drink & Driving Set To Trigger Lethal Festival Cocktail

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Drug and drink driving, coupled with a lack of insurance were expected to cause a surge in the number of people arrested while attending the August Bank Holiday festivals last weekend.

With thousands of revellers hitting the roads for the hugely popular Creamfields, Reading and Leeds festivals, leading motoring solicitors were bracing themselves for a busy few days.

Matt Reynolds, a solicitor with Just Motor Law, said: “Festivals inevitably see a sharp rise in the use of illegal drugs and alcohol and we would expect to see a number of motoring arrests in relation to these.

“However, another growing area of concern is the amount of people being tempted to drive without insurance because they cannot afford the ever-increasing premiums.

“We would urge all people attending festivals being held this Bank Holiday Weekend to think through the consequences of being stopped for drink or drug driving or lack of insurance.”

Young men aged between 17 and 29 are believed to be the most likely to drive while on illegal drugs. Cannabis is known to distort a driver’s perception of time and distance, cocaine causes aggressive and risky driving, amphetamines such as speed impair coordination, while Ecstasy causes blurred vision and poor judgement. Looking for a drug rehab near me can help with overcoming the issue.

Police currently have no equivalent to an alcohol breathalyser to test for drugs and instead use a Field Impairment Test (FIT). Tests can include standing on one leg, touching your nose with the tip of your finger and closing your eyes and estimating when 30 seconds have elapsed.

Reynolds added: “People who are arrested on suspicion of any motoring offences while attending music festivals need to ensure they get the right support immediately. They have a right to be represented at a police station and, should it be required, to be defended in a court of law.”

Just Motor Law – www.justmotorlaw.co.uk – provides specialist legal advice on all motoring offences with a 24-hour hotline and online live chat facility. The company also specialises in providing clients with technical defences, challenging equipment used by police officers and highlighting any failure to conform with rules of evidence.

Bianca Jagger: “Why The Rainforest Is Critical For Our Survival”

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Bianca Jagger, founder and chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation, spoke at the B&Q Forest Friendly forest at Start@Kew, an initiative by HRH The Prince of Wales to inspire the public to take simple steps towards achieving a more sustainable lifestyle. The campaigner highlighted the plight of the world’s forests and the crucial role they play in mitigating climate change.

The festival was open to visitors of The Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew over the Bank Holiday weekend with lots of interactive exhibitions for families to learn about how to live a more sustainable way of life.

Bianca Jagger said: “We must realise that in order to prevent catastrophic climate change, we must protect our remaining forests and embrace a sustainable lifestyle.”