Esiotrot

I am a huge SATC fan and went to see the film the other night - LOVED IT!! I wont reveal anything but I laughted & cried at several scenes, they have got it spot on. Disappointed at the ending not what I would have written but its well worth seeing. I want to go again! Kx

Glad you enjoyed The Apprentice Jules, I read The Surgeon and enjoyed it so have managed to get the rest of the series from RISI. Although I would usually choose the genre I really enjoyed TG's style of writing. Just need to find time to read them now! Kx

Hi Hi Nice to read you Kx

Hi Hi Nice to read you KX

27. The Last to Know by Melissa Hill ~ 8 Synopsis Eve knows what she wants. After nine good years and two kids together, it's about time Liam made an honest woman of her. Eve's sister Sam knows more than she should. Sam's always thought Eve was too good for Liam. Then she learns the truth about his business trips to Australia, and her suspicions are confirmed. And Brooke, safe on the other side of the world; knows nothing. Until a mysterious delivery arrives for her and promises to change her life forever. It seems someone doesn't want Brooke to be the last to know ... I quickly skimmed the blurb and chose this book to fulfil a 2 for £7 deal but am really glad I did. A great plot, which is very cleverly written with well thought out characters - highly recommended. I am off to see what else the author has written, as I want more!

26. Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson ~ 5 Synopsis This title, the winner of the 1985 Whitbread Award for a First Novel, chronicles the struggles of a young girl against a domineering mother and the strictures of religion. The novel takes a look at religious excess and human obsession. This book is featured on the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die List and after reading a few rave reviews I picked it up. Unfortunatley I just couldnt get into it at all - it just didnt catch my interest and I had to force myself to finish it and even then I was skimming good chunks. I feel like I missed something. Others obviously loved it and its considered a modern classic so maybe its just me?

25. The Stepmother by Simon Tolkien ~ 6 Synopsis It is the trial - and scandal - of the decade: Greta Grahame, the beautiful young wife of Sir Peter Robinson MP, is accused of conspiring to murder her predecessor, Peter's first wife Lady Anne. The prosecution depends heavily on one witness - Greta's 16-year-old stepson Thomas. Impulse bargain buy - cost 1p! - which for me was a good read but predictable - I so wanted a twist in the tale. I the character of Sir Peter - spineless git! Piece of usless info - The author is the grandson of J.R.Tolkein.

24. The World According to Clarkson by Jeremy Clarkson ~ 7 Synopsis The world is an exciting and confusing place for Jeremy Clarkson - a man who can find the overgrown schoolboy in us all. In "The World According to Clarkson", one of the country's funniest comic writers has free reign to expose absurdity, celebrate eccentricity and entertain richly in the process. And the net is cast wide: from the chronic unsuitablity of men to look after children for long periods or as operators of 'white goods', Nimbyism, cricket and PlayStations, to astronomy, David Beckham, 70's rock, the demise of Concorde, the burden of an Eton education and the shocking failure of Tom Clancy to make it on to the Booker shortlist, "The World According to Clarkson" is a hilarious snapshot of the life in the 21st century that will have readers wincing with embarrassed recognition and crying with laughter. It's not about the cars! Reprints of Jeremy Clarkson's columns from The Times, which made this a very easy book to read as each article is less than 3 pages long. Had me in tears with laughter a few times but some of the articles have obviously dated since it was written. I cant really explain why I love JC but I do - he struts the fine line between arrogance and confidence which is an attractive quality. He is very masculine and very opinionated and although I dont agree with a lot of what he says I respect him for standing up and being counted.

23. Karma by Holly A Harvey ~ 7 Synopsis "Karma" is a light-hearted, comical story about Paige, a 28 year-old northern woman whose life revolves around sleep, caffeine and VH-1 rather than sex, drugs and rock n roll. She has money problems to rival the national debt, more people walking over her than a 'Welcome' mat and the requisite ex-boyfriend from hell. Paige has always lived by the belief that "what goes around comes around," but after a betrayal by a friend at work and unhappy memories aroused by an invitation to a school reunion, she decides to give fate a helping hand. I really enjoyed this book, Paige is a great character and the story was well thought out - its real life believable chick-lit. I would definitely recommend this book and will be on the look out for the next one. This book is still available on Bookring here so if your interested please sign up.

I am gutted!! The last episode is the day after I go on holiday to Spain. The same thing happened last year and I was determined to stay away from the newspapers so I could watch it on Sky Plus when I got home. Unfortunatly the day after the final I couldnt help but notice the huge pictures on the front of the paper. I read in the Daily Mail about a Lady who downloaded an episode of The Apprentice on iplayer while abroad and it cost her almost £5000, so wont be trying that LOL!

I have Small Island in Mount TBR and keep reading good things about it going to move it up the pile a bit so I get to it sooner.

Hi Hi ~ Nice to read you ! Kx

I dont know why but 'Watching' popped into my head when I saw your thread header. Not the one your looking for but I loved Brenda and Malcolm!

Kelly ~ I have that too - its horrible! I just cant get into anything at the moment Kx

I am always subconsciously thinking ahead and often figure out the ending of a book before I reach halfway, although this sometimes leaves me feeling disappointed. I actually enjoy the book more when the author dupes me and it goes a different direction - makes my brain work. This is the reason I have only re-read a handful of books, I love the discovery. Kx

I think both Michael and Raef should have went - WHY is Michael still there? Mia, I agree to a certain extent about the advert, but the difference between the 3 ads you mention and Raef/Michaels ad is that they are unique, big budget, captivating ads that were made to encourage discussion. All 3 ads are for established big brand names, which to be honest will sell their products regardless, not for a new brand name trying to introduce a new product. Although the Atishu ad was awful they did get the point across - especially the anti-bacterial element which Raef's team didnt mention at all.

Still loving the breadmaker! Make a loaf most days, also been making homemade Pizza's ~ which have convinced OH I am a domestic Goddess LOL!

I agree Mia, Raef woudl have been fired if he had been on the losing team. I watched Your Fired on BBC2 after last nights episode and Lucinda was shown saying 'I have no idea what the F*** Raef does?'

Sara deserved to go but I think Michael should have got the boot as well, why did Sir Alan let the slimy git off the hook again? Watching Sara and Michaels attempts to sell those cakes were cringe worth - they were so pushy! In my opinion the criticism of Helene was a bit unfair - Michael suggested that they split the supplier visits geographically (remember him saying 'North London is near Central London etc...) rather than by product type. Helene's product choices ~ The choice of dresses was in fact the better choice as they sold more and had a wider appeal because they were able to sell as bridesmaid/evening wear as well. She thought about the type of people visiting the NEC and the amount they were likely to spend. Did anyone else notice the dresses Helene's team had to sell on the day didn't look as nice as the ones they saw when visiting the supplier? They lost out on the rhinestone accessories due to the choice of dress designer which meant they were lumbered with those expensive cakes, which you could tell wouldn't sell at the NEC. I might be wrong but there didn't appear to be another choice in the accessories? Lee did a great job selling the 'Fongs' and his underestimation of the ladies sizes was genius! My opinions of both Claire and Lucinda are changing slightly - they both did well in this task. EDIT ~ I saw JR on Friday night - Sir Alan came across really well and I agree Jonny Vegas is an attention seeking idiot with absolutely no manners!

I got a magazine the other day, looks good I have still to find time to have a proper read through. Thanks for the heads up about the card Kx

I am 29 so just made it into the 21-30 bracket!

I loved it - not as good as it was all those years ago but good fun. I cant believe how the years have flown in since this was on Saturday Tea Time, makes me feel old! There have been a few changes - smaller arena, smaller lycra costumes, bigger chests on both male and female Gladiators . Loving the big pool instead of crash mats. All in all great family viewing for a Sunday night at times its pure pantomime, we will be watching next week.

I seem to be having good months and bad months this year, read 26 books so far and my aim is 70 - Jan 08 ~ 5 Feb 08 ~ 2 Mar 08 ~ 8 Apr 08 ~ 9 May 08 ~ 2 to date At the moment I just cant get into reading. I think Mount TBR is overwhelming me, I keep picking up books but cant make a decision on reading any of them. I had a bit of a sort out and listed a load of books I decided I would never read on RISI but the result is I now have loads of books I actually do want to read. I seem to be finding other things to fill my time and no reading space left He ho, I am sure my reading mojo will recover before my hols. Highlights The Kite Runner by Khaled Hossini The Book Thief by Markus Zusak The Vanishing of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell x

Thanks for the replies folks The models mentioned are the ones with the best reviews on the net - Panasonic is highly recommended. The Morphy Richards Fastbake also gets good reviews and is quite a bit cheaper, so will need to figure out which to go for. Can the Panasonic machines make Jam? I am sure I read somewhere they cant and this was the reason that folk were buying the MR one? The one I have borrowed from MIL is a Russell Hobbs, seems good but models isnt available anymore. I went shopping today and bought loads of ingredients so my kitchen now resembles a bakery LOL! Really enjoying the process - tonight I made a big white loaf and just put a carrot cake in. Not good for the diet though LOL! Kx