EDITOR’S CHOICE As well as one of our favourite books ever, Harper Lee’s magnificent To Kill a Mockingbird was made into a film in 1962. Starring Gregory Peck as protagonist Atticus Finch, the film was critically acclaimed on its release and was a box office success. It ranks no 25 in the American Film … Continue readings →

  Musician Charlotte Church’s controversial speech on the status and representation of women in the music industry, October 2013. The third John Peel Lecture 2013.    

  It’s probably obvious that we are unabashed Hitchcock fans. He’s just brilliant! Flawed, but brilliant. This movie, based on Stephen Rebello’s book Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, focusses on the 18 months surrounding Hitchcock’s acquiring of the rights of Robert Bloch’s gothic horror novel and the development of it into the cult movie … Continue readings →

  The mass nodding by staff in a meeting, when the boss says something that no one understands. Mmm … familiar.          

  A word of several meanings (love those kind of words): a. a male goose (‘what’s good for the goose…’) – no b. a ‘ninny’ – also love this word as it’s affectionate condescension at its best, but … no c. town in Newfoundland, Canada – spent six months in NL and … NO! In … Continue readings →

  To stride around looking busy, when in fact you are doing nothing. Also: (n) a niggardly or miserly fellow.   As the internet is a wonderful thing, TLS also stumbled across this alternative definition: ‘Snudge: 
 The inner glow that heterosexual men feel toward each other after a carton of beer. Touching is optional.
 … Continue readings →

  The fear of being tickled by feathers. Also known as ‘feather ticking phobia’ Why?
’ … the fear of being tickled with feathers may not actually be a fear of feathers, but the experience they represent. The sight of the feather can transport you to a time and place where you felt you had no … Continue readings →

  Believe it or not, ‘petrichor’ is a word for that gorgeous sweet smell that occurs as the first rains hit parched earth. How lovely is that?          

  A particularly noisy or heated argument, brawl or fracas. A scene of uproar and disorder; a riotous or uproarious meeting.   Derivation: 
 In 1204, King John granted Donnybrook, a district of Dublin (today in Ireland), the right to hold a public fair. Usually held from 26 August for about 15 days, the fair … Continue readings →