February Round-Up!

As always, January never seemed to end and then...did February even happen? I seem to have sneezed and missed it. That being said, it was absolutely jam-packed full of lovely, juicy bits and bobs! Let's take a look!

February 4th: INTERNET!

My BT home hub finally arrived through my letter box and I got a WIFI connection after a month of using every last shred of data I was possibly allowed on my phone. I felt like a caveman discovering fire when it lit up that glorious shade of blue! I sound like such a typical "millennial" but...I don't care! What a feeling!

February 8th: Heathers

Jamie Muscato and I got to jump back into the world of croquet and Slurpees to film videos for Seventeen and I Say No that were released prior to the Heathers Album coming out! I hadn't seen Jamie since our final day of Heathers on November 24th 2018 so it was fun to catch up for a couple of hours! You can watch both videos here!

February 12th: The Girl On The Train

A little Addams Family reunion formed at Richmond Theatre to watch the wonderful Samantha Womack be brilliant in The Girl On The Train. She was absolutely phenomenal and as someone who hasn't read the book or seen the film, I was on the edge of my seat for the entire performance. Oliver was working so wasn't able to attend which meant the seat next to me was empty for the first act. However, my lovely Heathers friend, John Lumsden, was in Panto with Sam and was also invited so took Oliver's seat for the second act. We even went for a post-show McDonalds!

February 13th: The Other Palace's 2nd Birthday!

Paul Taylor-Mills, producer extraordinaire, created a musical theatre festival at The Other Palace, specifically for musicals that have never been put on in the UK. It gives them a chance to workshop for twelve hours and then share the results in front of a small audience. Oliver, amongst many other friends, were workshopping a show called Nerds based on the story of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs and their rise to nerdy fame. It was hilarious and heartwarming and I truly hope it has a future! Straight afterwards, Oli joined me in the main theatre at TOP to watch Showstopper! It's a completely improvised musical every night based on things the audience choose. The night we watched, it was TOP's 2nd birthday and so many of the themes were based on shows that had been performed on the same stage. This meant, we watched them improvise a musical based in an airport in Canada with songs that were inspired by Eugenius and Heathers! I highly recommend seeing it for anyone that likes to feel involved in the creation of a musical that actually ends up being pretty slick! I'm still humming the finale number! 

February 16th - 24th: But I'm A Cheerleader

I was also involved in a workshop of a musical for MT Fest called But I'm A Cheerleader based on the 90's cult movie. The show revolves around a group of kids in a conversion therapy camp who have all been put there by parents who think that being anything but straight is something that can be reversed. Despite it's quite dark undertones, the show is hilarious and features some seriously brilliant songs! I was honoured to have been a part of it. Like Nerds, I truly hope it has a longer life, with or without me! It deserves it! 

February 21st: Brunch Date

Despite having watched Zoe Sugg's videos for a long time and attended many of the same events, Zoe and I had never actually properly met. I spoke to Alfie Deyes at Summer In The City back in 2012 and Zoe was stood within the circle of chatting friends but there was never an official introduction. So, I was chuffed to have been invited to the launch of her collaboration with Colourpop Cosmetics. Upon arrival, I met Emily Coxhead, creator of The Happy Newspaper, someone else who I follow and who follows me that I've never met. It was lovely to chat to her and together we realised we didn't actually really know anyone else there. So, like awkward teens at a school disco, we stuck together and clung to the walls. However, it was a ridiculously lovely morning spent drinking cocktails far too early, chatting to Zoe face to face instead of over Instagram DM's and having The Bumbys give me a "fair and honest appraisal of my appearance"!

February 23rd: Sharpe Academy

I am patron of Sharpe Academy, a musical theatre academy for students between 3-25 and last month they put on their first big musical of the year which just so happened to be The Addams Family! My parents and I went to watch and I had a lovely time reliving lots of my own memories whilst watching the wonderful cast of youngsters create their own. There was talent up on that stage that will no doubt be in the spotlights of the West End in the coming years. I couldn't have been more proud of them all! Their next musical is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and I'm very much looking forward to it!

February 25th: In The Time We Lost

I handed in the full first draft of my next novel which is out in October. I'm currently awaiting notes which should be with me on Wednesday and I'm so excited because editing is without a doubt my favourite part of the process. It's thrilling and terrifying having someone else read your work for the first time. It's no longer your secret and you get to step away and let fresh eyes at your words. I very much enjoy having my editor ask questions and make suggestions which cause me to think about my story in new ways. Sometimes it's hard to make cuts and "kill your darlings" but it's always exciting to elaborate on certain moments, too. I think the novel I'm currently working on will always be my favourite but I'm especially excited about In The Time We Lost! October can't come fast enough!

February 26th: The Play That Goes Wrong

I was absolutely chuffed to be invited to the opening night of The Play That Goes Wrong. I knew nothing about the show before entering the theatre and I can't believe it had taken me that long to see it. Oliver had already seen it once before and spent a lot of the night laughing at me laughing. There were moments that made me squeal with terrified delight and others that made me howl so much my eyes watered. I didn't expect to love it as much as I did and now I just want to see every branch of the franchise (A Comedy About A Bank Robbery and Groan Ups)! I'm sure I'll love them just as much but for those of you that love a good belly laugh, I highly recommend The Play That Goes Wrong! (I wasn't sponsored or paid but I was #gifted the tickets!)

February 27th: Dinner With Louise 

Finally, the month ended on dinner with my gorgeous friend, Louise Jones. I met her back in 2012, I believe and we've had a real bumpy ride of a friendship. We lost touch for a year or so but ever since we've been reunited, our friendship has been stronger than ever. She's a brilliant, strong, hilarious woman who I couldn't be more proud to call my friend. Every few months or so, we make a point of heading to one of London's many branches of The Slug and Lettuce for a cheap dinner and drinks and we always end up talking for hours. This time, our evening took a slightly unexpected turn as we went to Doughnut Time for dessert to pick up treats for us and our  other halves...aren't we thoughtful! We sat on a bench  by the river at almost 10PM, tipsily scoffing an obscene amount of dough and frosting. What a night!

February was a lovely little treat of a month and made me feel like 2019 is really hitting it's stride. I do fear, though, that it's stride is more of a gallop and I might not be able to keep up...let's see!