Lifescouts #2

 

So more badges have now been posted and I thought I'd share my stories with you!

If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out my last post on Lifescouts!

 

Big Ben Badge

One of my favourite stories and memories! In April 2012, I set off to London with Hannah and Lauren for our third instalment of our Mcfly boys on their Keep Calm and Play Louder tour. We booked a long weekend down in London so we could go and see Mcfly play at the Hammersmith apollo and have a day or two out in London. One of the things we saw was Big Ben and it was also my first time seeing it. That weekend was one of the best ever! Was so nice, and such a laugh, to get away on a little 'holiday' with my best friends, while meeting some new ones along the way!

 

 

Fishing Badge

When I was younger my Dad used to go fishing all the time and sometimes when I wasn't at school I would go with him. I remember going to Middleton Park, in Leeds, which has a huge fishing lake next to a park. So while my Dad was fishing I would go and play in the park. I remember he used to make us ham and cucumber sandwiches for lunch too!

 

Colour Unlimited Nail Shots

 

 

Superdrug, £4.99

 

As my Mum knows me too well, she bought me these as a little Christmas stocking filler. I love glittery nail polishes and I think that all these colours are fab! My favourite is probably the middle colour (sorry I don't know what they are called!).

They're really cute little bottles but they don't fail! The brushes are a perfect size so you don't get polish all over your fingers (which I always do) and the polish dries fairly quickly.

I'm not sure if they still sell these in Superdrug as they were a Christmas 'thing' but if you can get your hands on some, it's worth the money!

Lifescouts #1

If you haven't heard, Alex Day has set up a new project on Tumblr called 'Lifescouts'. Every now and then, a new badge gets added to the website and if you think you have that badge, you reblog it and tell your story.

Since I don't use Tumblr anymore, I thought I'd post them on here instead! So here are the badges which I currently have and my stories behind them:

 

Guitar Badge

Well this is an obvious one! I play guitar! I got my first ever guitar just before my 15th birthday so I've been playing for around four years now. Doesn't seem like two minutes ago since I couldn't play any chords and now it's second nature! Learning how to play guitar has changed my life. If I hadn't got that first guitar, I wouldn't have started singing and would be a totally different person! It's my only ever hobby that I've really stuck to. I wanted to learn so that I could play all of Mcfly's songs, not going to lie to you, and I don't even know that many by heart now (oops.) I love playing guitar and I don't know what I'd do without being able to pick up my guitar! It cheers me up when I'm feeling down and it's an amazing way to express yourself!

 

Swimming Badge

I started learning to swim when I was four/five and got my dolphin one (oh the days of getting your dolphin badges!) then never really learnt properly again until I was about eight or nine and I got up to my dolphin 6. I'm not a strong, confident swimmer, but I can manage to stop myself from drowning (most of the time) and I'm not really a sporty person anyway.

 

Picnic Badge

Every now and again in the summer, my Mum, little brother, Auntie Shaz, cousin Kirsty and myself (along with the dogs) have a day out somewhere and have a little picnic! We usually go to some park or we went to Yorkshire Sculpture Park last time. It's nice to get out and do something different to what we usually do!

 

Mountain-Climbing Badge

When I was 11, in my last year of primary school, I went on a residential trip to Ingleborough in Yorkshire. One of the days was taken up by climbing Ingleborough which is one of the Yorkshire three peaks, except I was in the group that didn't go up Ingleborough because we were too slow at walking and went up a smaller mountain instead! I loved that weekend, as terrified as I got from the ghost walk that was a tradition on that trip.

 

French Language Badge

Probably the most boring story, but I basically learnt French while I was at school! One of the things I was most excited about when starting high school was learning a new language and I loved it! I was usually pretty good at it too, which helped!

 

 Driving Badge

Just after I turned 18 I started learning how to drive! It lasted a couple of months and then stuff happened and I couldn't afford to pay for it anymore! I wasn't too bothered because I couldn't afford to have a car anyway! I can drive a car around, I just don't have a licence to prove I can do it safely!

 

CPR Badge

Again, another thing I learnt in school! I can't remember which lesson it was in but we all had to learn first aid and do that embarrassing thing of practising CPR on a plastic dummy in front of the class. I've never had to use it in reality though... I think I'd be too scared to!

 

So there you have it! The badges which are currently released and I feel I deserve! Expect another post when more are released!

If you want to check out all the badges head over to the website where you can also buy actual real life badges too! It's awesome!

FIlm Review: Les Miserables (2013)

Directed by Tom Hooper

 

In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after he breaks parole, agrees to care for factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette. The fateful decision changes their lives forever. - IMDB

 

Let me start by saying that I was ridiculously excited to see this and it didn't let me down. I've never actually seen the musical, only the 25th Anniversary concert so I think it added to the excitement that I'd get to see it properly, and not just as a concert (as proper as a musical can be on film). I wasn't let down anyway. It was AMAZING! By the end, I was crying my eyes out. Although, musicals are my weakness!

 

I thought that the casting was brilliant! I generally don't like Amanda Seyfried but she was really good, I'll give her this one. Hugh Jackman also filled his role as Jean Valjean well although when he sang Bring Him Home, I think that let him down a bit. But up until that point, he played a perfect part. I was so pleased when I found out that Samantha Barks was playing Eponine. She was fabulous in the concert version. Such a beautiful voice! Anne Hathaway (Fantine) was also a stand out role. She was amazing! Definitely deserves that Oscar!

 

Musicals are always really different to the stage shows, as my Grandma kept pointing out, but I think they did a good job. Like I said, I've never seen the actual stage show, so I can't really say how good it was compared to it, but my Grandma has seen it seven times on stage, again which she kept saying, and she really enjoyed it. The film told the story well and I was hooked all the way through. If you don't know the story, it's very complicated! Usually in films, things always get left out, and I don't think that left anything out, and if they did it was minor! I guess it helped in understanding the plot too. I think that if the writers had left a piece of the story out, then it would be very hard to understand! The songs were muddled around a bit though. I noticed that On My Own was earlier than it should have been and it was probably in the wrong place in the film. I can imagine that I'd have been a mess if it was in it's proper place.

The visuals were also amazing. The set design was brilliant and the cinematography was faultless. These helped to make the film as good as it was!

 

What really impressed me was the live singing. Usually in a film, the actors/actresses pre record the soundtrack and then mine to it on camera, but instead they were all singing live, which was a very nice touch and made it feel more like a musical rather than a film. The cast achieved this well and to be honest I was doubting the success of this technique, but it worked well.

 

One of the things that I didn't really like about the film was the casting/direction of Thénardier and Madame Thénadier (Sacha Baron Cohen & Helena Bonham Carter). I was looking forward to seeing Helena Bonham Carter play the role but she really disappointed me. Definitely not her best work, although her singing was really good. I didn't like they way Sacha Baron Cohen played Thénardier as after watching Matt Lucas play the same role in the concert, Cohen wasn't as big of a character as what I imagine Thénardier to be like. Lucas played the character perfectly and I think that his portrayal was better than Cohen's. I thought that would have both been two of the best casting of the film, but I personally think they were one of the worst. I don't know whether it was the director's fault as he wanted them to be that way, but I think that they are both incredible actors/actresses and they could have played it a bit better.

 

I have a lot to say about this film, but I just don't know how to say it! It was amazing! I plan to go and see it again at some point (anyone need a friend to go with, you know where I am!). If you love musicals then definitely go an see it, if not, just go an see it! The fact that it's all singing kind of makes you forget that it's all singing (if anyone knows what I mean, you're a genius) as it merges into the story.

Once again, if you want to know anything else about the film, feel free to ask me!