The Squeee

Wow. Someone's seriously talented to have written, sung, acted and put together this parody of "Hello" from hit musical The Book of Mormon , which is currently pulling crowds on Broadway. For that matter, tessaROXX , the woman behind this parody, is definitely worth checking out!

It's called Disqus. You can comment using Twitter, Facebook, Google and all sorts. Like a pimped version of the old system. And it's easier to reply and there's a "Like" button and everything, including on the comments themselves. Enjoy! :) Ohh, and also, there's now a Review Policy . Have seen plenty of blogs with one of them, and figured I should have one too, realistically, dabbling in reviewing as I am and all. Just didn't quite know how to word it. Waking up at 4am and not being able to fall back asleep for a couple of hours or so made me think about a lot of things, so when I got up, I know how to write it. :) Oh, and if you like to know what's coming beforehand, I tend to post about upcoming reviews on Facebook, or even just quick notes as to what's recently been seen (and will therefore be popping up here as reviews in the future). "Like" below to tune in!

Stalking the TV channel Yesterday's website in order to find out if/when they're going to show The Glass Virgin . They always seem to be showing Catherine Cookson adaptations, after all. (Wondering why you should see it? Brendan Coyle à la 1995. "OMG" doesn't quite cover it.) Also, I see now that he played Michael Collins in a 2001 miniseries called Rebel Heart . Brendan Coyle with an Irish accent playing Michael Collins - this is almost too good to be true! And it is, sort of. The bloody thing isn't available on DVD! HOW RUDE!! (You can get a used VHS from £25 but that's a bit much.) Ohh, although it's on YouTube. Hooray! That's my evening sorted! :D Erm, anyway, before I digressed, I came across a test: Who's your ideal literary hero? Can't resist a challenge like that!

We went to Staffordshire today, and happened to drive a bit off-satnav to see where we'd end up. The Squeeze spotted a garden centre and turned in, because he thought I might like to have a look there. It was Doveleys Garden Centre, just outside Rocester. (Hands up everyone who wants to add a "H" to that name!) Peculiar tree stump that looks like some kind of sculpture - looked even more amazing IRL! It also has a manor house, and you could walk the grounds, said the sign. Ach, a manor house. Can't pass by something like that! As the building itself says, it was built in 1875, so it's Victorian, and MAN is it gloomy! I couldn't help but think of Borley Rectory , actually. Then again, a lot of Victorian buildings would probably make me think of Borley, seeing as how it's a place I find particularly intriguing, and love to read about.

The Fast Show is back, online, on Thursday 10 November at 1pm , courtesy of Foster's Funny . That is all. Not like I'm counting down the days or anything. Not at all. ... I'll get me coat.

Some films are excellent, others ... well, they lose our attention so bad we can't help but to fall asleep. Here is my top list of films that have made Mr. Sandman pop round for an extra trip simply because I've struggled to stay awake while watching them and simply haven't been able to. The seven films are sorted according to the length of snoozing and the supposed "worthiness" of the film in question. And yes, there are a few on there that are so critically acclaimed they've made the IMDb Top 250 list . Two are in the top 60, one clocks in at 110 ... So, ranging from a score of 3.2/10 to 8.6/10, here goes:

Just found out there's a preview screening of Wuthering Heights '11 in Nottingham this Friday, at Broadway in town (19:30/7:30pm start, tickets are £7 + £1.50 booking fee). Not just that, it's followed by an "extended discussion", or rather, Q&A with the director Andrea Arnold afterwards. Here's the dilemma: It's a Brontë adaptation! :D See the film a week before the official premiere ftw! Be able to ask the director questions! BUT:

It's November, and the annual (inter)National Novel Writing Month has begun. The challenge is to write a 50 000-word novel in 30 days, meaning you need to average at least 1667 words every day. Sounds daunting? It's perfectly doable, actually. I've made it twice, in 2007 and 2008. Last year, I tried writing a modern day Jane Eyre , but got stuck after about 17k and decided to give up. If you want to read the first draft of that story, it's called Moorland Hall (even though the estate in the novel is actually called Moorland House - well done there!) and is on display at Wattpad . We'll see how this year goes. It's a different story, one I've been mulling over in my head for a while now, so let's see what happens. If anyone wants to add me as a writing buddy, the name's TraXy (go fig!). Are you participating? Have you participated in the past? How's the writing going? :)