Scottish. Gay man. Living in Manchester. Gamer, downloader, gadget junkie. Live vicariously through me by visiting every day and discovering what it's like to be someone that isn't you. Shall we scroll on...?
Today, for about 10 minutes, I directed Doctor Who. Well, kind of. Well actually, not at all, but it felt good to say it.
In reality, I was at the press launch for a new Doctor Who Exhibition which opens at The Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester at the end of March. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as it turns out), I was a little bit late. So, for 10 minutes I had two Cybermen all to myself. Actual REAL Cybermen from off the telly. It feels very peculiar telling a Cyberman where to stand and where to walk. But I enjoyed every minute of it. Not that you can tell from that miserable picture.
What you are looking at in that picture is not a 38 year old man, but a 10 year old little boy.
Just this second finished the cover for the next issue of outnorthwest. It’s one for the Doctor Who fans. Which we all are, let’s face it.
It marks the return of the programme to TV at the end of March, and the opening of a large Doctor Who exhibition here in Manchester at The Museum of Science & Industry. The media launch is tomorrow, and we’re promised Cybermen! Expect a picture tomorrow :-)
This cover is completely open to change, as always. There’s even the chance we might not even use it, but I thought you’d like to see it anyway. Me? I’d put Doctor Who on the cover every month...
Yeah. I know. It's been far too long since I put anything on the blog. But I'm back now after a lovely two weeks in Miami (check out the pictures by clicking on the Flickr button on the right there), and I'm raring to go.
So today, an old friend asked me if I'd met Mika yet. I had no idea who he was talking about. Turns out he's only the first truly fabulous pop star of 2007! Grace Kelly sounds like the first single from the love child of Freddie Mercury and Jake Shears. Which, in a sense, it is. And it's pure gold. It's also the most downloaded track on iTunes as we speak.
Check out the video above.
Not only that readers. Not. Only. That. Mika's album Life In Cartoon Motion is a work of total and utter genius and you should really not waste another minute and get yourself to iTunes and download it immediately. Every single track has a huge smile on it's face. You'll love it.
Hello. It just occurred to me I haven't wished you a Happy New Year. So... Happy New Year. Anyway, down to business. Kylie Minogue starts her tour in Manchester tonight. It runs for six nights and by law every gay person in Manchester must attend.
Bizarrely enough I was invited on to Terry Christian's programme on BBC Radio Manchester this morning to talk about why Kylie Minogue is such a "gay icon". You can hear what I had to say about it by clicking the play button below. Count how many times I say "exactly" or "sensibilities"
Brian: Can I borrow your video recorder? Daisy: What you going to do? Stick it to a canvas as a piece depicting a nation of cathode junkies, selling their imaginations for quick-fix media hits from the Blockbuster syringe? Brian: No, I want to tape Ready Steady Cook.
A casual conversation at work the other day about the TV comedy Spaced has had me digging out the DVD's to watch this fantastic series all over again. Shown on Channel 4 in 1999, Spaced followed the lives of flatmates Tim Bisley and Daisy Steiner. Tim is a sci-fi geek with aspirations to be a comic book artist. Daisy is an aspiring journalist/writer, with absolutely no talent whatsoever. The subsidiary characters, such as Tim's best friend, the army-obsessed Mike; or Brian, the struggling artist who lives in the basement; and Marsha the leering landlady, are all just as well rounded and crafted as Tim and Daisy. All these characters are played to perfection.
There has been nothing like it since on British TV, and although the stars of the show (Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Jessica Stevenson) have gone on to bigger things, we can only hope that one day in the future they'll get together and do another batch of episodes. Or a one-off special at the very least.
At its best, Spaced was complete genius. Every episode was packed with pop culture references, observational humour and fantastic performances. The show celebrated it's geekiness gloriously, and rewards you on repeated viewing as you get more and more of the references. It's not aged at all, and deserves a repeat showing on E4.
If you've never experienced Spaced, now is the perfect time as the series has been re-released as a Collectors Edition DVD packed with extra material. It's an essential buy. Check out the condensed episode above for just a fleeting glimpse into the comedy genius of Spaced.
Electronic pop music is not dead. It never has been. It just doesn't tend to get in the charts anymore.
The exception at the moment is Girls Aloud, who (whatever you think of them) have been churning out commercial synth pop - and pretty good it is too - since they started. And of course, my favourites, Pet Shop Boys released a career high album (Fundamental) earlier this year that made very little commercial impact but is as good a collection of PSB material as you're likely to find.
So it IS out there. You just have to look.
Luckily, a new compilation CD, Robopop: The Return, has collected together some of the best electronic pop of the last few months, as well as giving us a chance to hear some upcoming acts. If you have any interest at all in synthpop - or even dance music - you're going to love this collection.
It collects the familiar - Goldfrapp, Lorraine and Tiga - with the less familiar. Ping Pong Bitches anyone? But the over-riding impression is of a music genre which is only improving with age and deserves a wider audience.
Highlights include Tokyo Girls by Matinee Club. Matinee Club used to be called The Modern. They flirted the charts last year with two fantastic tracks, Jane Falls Down, and Industry, but fell foul of the chart regulations and were quickly disqualified from the Top 40. It's a shame, as their output is highly commercial, and could easily fill the dancefloor of every gay club the length and breadth of the country. I also love State of Play by Formatic - a track that was recently heard in the Channel 4 drama Sugar Rush. It's a poppers-rush of a track with an aggressive beat. SuperJupiter's Got To Get Some also stands out as a track that could easily reach the high end of the Top 40 if it were given a wider audience.
There really isn't a duff track on this compilation, and as an added bonus the CD release also contains a second disc of remixes. You can download the album now from iTunes, but at the moment they unfortunately are not offering the remix CD.
If you want dance music with a bit of melody and edge, or if you're looking to find something to fill the gap between PSB or Depeche Mode albums, you could do a lot worse than download or buy this CD.
This morning in Risa, I woke up to a beautiful blanket of snow covering the buildings, the trees and ground. Christmas has officially begun.
I just had to share that with you.
If you own Animal Crossing: Wild World on the Nintendo DS, this post will make perfect sense, and I'm sure you'll share my over-enthusiasm. And while you're at it, feel free to add me to your Friends Roster.
Prepare yourself. This is going to be gushing. The best game I ever played, and the only game that has ever made me cry was The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on the Nintendo 64. From December 1998 until May 1999, I played it - engrossed - every spare minute I could. I even had friends who would come round just to watch me play it because they too were so engrossed by the storytelling and pure magic that Zelda portrayed.
Ever since then I've been searching for the game that could match it. Majora's Mask got half way there before its complicated time mechanics confused me and I walked away disappointed. I seemed to be the only person who thought that Wind Waker's cel-shaded graphics were beautiful, but alas I walked away from that title too, annoyed and frustrated with the endless sea-bound missions.
Almost ten years later, Twilight Princess on the Nintendo Wii has satiated my thirst for that pure, thrilling, magical gaming experience I had in 1997. And I say that with confidence having only played it for six short hours. Ironically, I'm finding myself playing in small chunks in order to extend the life of the game; even though I know it's the biggest (by far) Zelda title yet and will probably keep me going until at least June next year.
So what is it about this game that makes it so special? I couldn't hope to answer that succinctly. Zelda is all about the detail. It's about the characters and the world they live in, and investing in them. It's about tragedy, heroism, good versus evil and about experiencing a living, breathing life in this beautiful land that has been created for us to play in. The first few hours of Twilight Princess will see you find your place in society. You'll find yourself engaging with local residents, helping them out. You've got a job as a ranch-hand that can't be neglected. Herding goats, fishing and talking to cute little fairy-folk in a forest village may all seem pretty mundane. But look deeper, and you'll see that Nintendo are ever-so subtley integrating you into your new life. After the first 3 hours, you know in your heart you're going to miss this simple life, and these simple people when you are battling evil on a grand scale further down the line. But more than that you're going to WANT to fight to save them. Genius.
Twilight Princess looks and sounds beautiful. You only have to check the video at the top there to see that. It's cinematic. It's more cinematic than a great many movies out there this Christmas. This is Lord Of The Rings - all three movies - rolled into one awe-inspiring game. The revolutionary Wii control methods work fantastically well. Take fishing, for example. Use your Wiimote like you would a fishing rod. Cast your line out and pull the Wiimote back when you've got a bite. Total immersion. On the occasions when the game throws you a seemingly impossible puzzle, all you have to do is stop, find a lake and go fishing. There's no shortage of things to do here. Oh, and that's just one of many innovative uses for the Wiimote during this game.
As launch titles go, the Nintendo Wii couldn't wish for a better start. This game is hands-down reason enough to splash out £180 on a Wii. As a 38 year old gay man, it's very hard to find stimulating, genuinely escapist games out there. Twilight Princess is that game and I can't recommend it highly enough. Let's hope we don't have to wait as long for the next in the series.
Nintendo, once again have made me proud to be a gamer. I can't wait to see where this game has yet to take me...
I've got a cold. A horrible, throaty, chesty, PAINFUL cold; and I need a hug.
It didn't stop me going to London this weekend to finally see Wicked, though. It was a fantastic birthday surprise from Barry. What an amazing show it was. I was a proper gay. I got very emotional at all the sad songs, "ooh-ed" and "aah-ed" at the pretty sets and dresses, and went back to the hotel on a cloud. I love it when things move you. And I'll never watch The Wizard of Oz in quite the same light.
All of this conspires though to the crux of this post - my apologies for a lack of Vegetable Soup Podcast 6. Fret not! It's all scripted and ready to go, and once I get rid of this bloody cold I'll get down to recording it. With any luck, it should be available by the weekend. It's a good one too - full of Wii goodness and exciting geeky news. The usual. There's also a possibility of joining The Magic Geek network at some point too, which I'm very excited about. I'll let you know more when I do.
They're selling on Ebay for £ridiculous amounts, high street stores sold out in under an hour, and many won't see one until well into the New Year... but I have one sitting proudly beside my telly.
Nintendo Wii is in the Robertson household and is everything it's been cracked up to be. And probably more. Forgive the air of gloating, but these moments really do have to be savoured. Nintendo, more than any other games console manufacturer, know how magical an experience gaming can be. Not for them the bangs, crashes and body counts associated with Sony and Microsoft's consoles (and don't get me wrong, I love my Xbox360); instead we have a machine that, the minute you turn the thing on, just CRAVES your undying attention.
The new controller - the Wiimote - works surprisingly well. Within minutes you'll be poking and prodding the air creating your first Mii, or playing Tennis with the pre-bundled Wii Sports. Everything works perfectly, and just as it should. Everything is just so clean, and white and it makes beautiful little noises. Even the Wiimote - which can give you the willies the first time it happens.
But nothing - nothing - can prepare you for the journey you'll take when you slip The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess into your drive. Anyone with even a passing interest in gaming will know of the Zelda franchise. Each title pushes the boundaries of how a game can feel more than the last. This game delivers hour after hour of pitch perfect gaming. It deserves a post all of its own. Which is what it shall get.
In the meantime, if you're having the same Nintendo sugar rush that I'm having and you want to share, here is my Wii Code - enter it into your Wii, and we can start sharing the love...
8048 3319 8177 0588
JUNK CULTURE
Listening:Wicked - SOUNDTRACK Downloading:The Magic Geek - PODCAST Watching:Torchwood - BBC THREE Playing:The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - NINTENDO WII Reading:You're Him Aren't You? - PAUL DARROW
Today is World AIDS Day and across the world it is being marked by friends, lovers and families. So many beautiful people have been taken from us by this cruel, relentless virus; and today we remember them more than ever.
I lost Dougie Cowen (aka Hazell) - a man I have so much to thank for - in 1995. I met Hazell by accident on a bulletin board, long before Gaydar or Eurowoof. The second I met him outside the Odeon in Edinburgh I knew my life was going to change. Loud, camp and dressed head to toe in a form fitting three piece suit, Hazell brought me kicking and screaming out of my closeted life. Within three months I'd moved to Edinburgh to share a flat with him. That was in 1992 - the year I discovered just how fantastic my sexuality could be. It was all thanks to him. He was a rogue though. He flirted with danger in so many areas of his life, but he always protected me from it. When Hazell told me he was HIV positive, I wanted to find out as much as I could about it. I became a volunteer at Milestone House, an Aids Hospice in Edinburgh. It set me on the career path I am on now. I wanted to help all these gay men who were being killed by this horrible disease. In 1997 I became a volunteer for Gay Men's Health and realised (finally) what I wanted to do with my life. In 1999 I moved to Manchester to work full time for Healthy Gay Manchester - now The Lesbian & Gay Foundation. It was the best thing I ever did in my life. I have never looked back.
Today I have never been happier in my professional and private life. It's all thanks to Hazell. If I hadn't met him that day in 1992, I might still be a quiet, closeted gay man living in a small town. Today I am a confident, proud gay man living in one of the best (and gay friendly) city's in the country.
While I'm working to get this issue designed and ready, updates here might be a bit thin on the ground. Back to normal in a week or two...
JUNK CULTURE
Listening:What Do I Have To Do? - KYLIE (of course) Downloading:The Magic Geek - PODCAST Watching:The Tomorrow People - DVD Playing:Strip Uno (*cough*)- XBOX 360 Reading:The Stars My Destination - ALFRED BESTER
They said it would never last. And they were nearly right. Against all the odds, Vegetable Soup Podcast 5 is now available to download. Celebrating my queer geekery, this Podcast is a far more structured affair than the last one. There's everything here - Doctor Who, ZX Spectrums and Girls Aloud. What more could you ask for? Nothing, that's what.
And don't forget to click on subscribe - that way every new Podcast will be thoughtfully downloaded automatically to your iTunes as soon as it's ready.
I know, I know. I have the attention span of a gnat.
I've neglected this blog of late, but all that is about to change. I've just finished the new Vegetable Soup podcast, so keep your ears peeled (ew!) for that. I've been gorging on games for the last few weeks too. Well, it's Winter, it's dark and cold and the best thing to keep me warm (in the absence of an oiled-up Vin Diesel waiting in my bed) is a good old session of Gears of War. Or Animal Crossing. Depending on what mood I'm in.
Work on outnorthwest is also getting exciting. We're working on the Christmas issue and we're going to town with it. This is really the only time of year where we can let our hair down and have a bit of fun with the mag. So prepare yourself for the outnorthwest Kylie Special! We've been given some EXCLUSIVE (and quite frankly beautiful) new publicity shots by her "people", and the shot we've chosen for the front cover will give all you Kylie fans out there goosebumps. I'll let you know more, and perhaps give you a preview of the cover in the next few days.
In the meantime, why not pick up the latest edition of outnorthwest? It's out best issue yet - you HAVE to read our main feature 'Living With HIV', it's amazing. It's available now throughout the north west of England, or you can download it from the website...
OK. Well, I'm just going to make the final touches to the new Podcast. Catch you soon!
JUNK CULTURE
Listening:Ocky Milk - MOMUS Downloading:The Magic Geek - PODCAST Watching:The Ellen Degeneres Show - FIVE LIFE Playing:Gears of War - XBOX 360 Reading:Edge Presents: File (The Best Features and Reviews from the first 12 issues of Edge) - MAGAZINE
Now listen, I did this one in an hour. A bloody hour! It's of absolutely no interest to you if you don't like the Pet Shop Boys, because I do go on about them quite a bit in this episode. But then, I love them, so... you know... whatever. It's also got some of my favourite people (Carol, Andrew, Annie and Simon - hello!) telling you why the Vegetable Soup podcast is the bees knees.
So if you're inclined, why not click below and give it a listen? I would. But probably just because I did it.
Anyway, if you like it you can even subscribe so that the internet postman will deliver it to your iTunes everytime I do a new one. For bloody free! Go on... you know you want to...
There's no better feeling than finally sending the latest edition of your magazine to print, is there?
After a hectic week of design, editing and layout, outnorthwest issue 62 is finally on the presses, and will be available throughout the WORLD (electronically) from Monday. It's a good one this one; loads of stuff about Liverpool and a couple of really good interviews - including Rupert Everett. He's asked us to organise an event for him on Canal Street here in Manchester. It would be rude to turn him down, so we're working on it now...
Why not download a copy? I would if I were you. You can do it by clicking on the link of the right hand column there, or by clicking here instead - HERE!
If you live in the north west of England, you should nip into your favourite homosexual drinking establishment-slash-venue from Wednesday and pick one up.
Just to let you know; I'm working on the next podcast and it should be out in the next two to three days. At the moment it has a vague Halloween theme. But that will probably change as I slowly realise I can't really fill much time on the subject. Watch this, as they say, space...
JUNK CULTURE
Listening:The Seduction of Claude Debussy - ART OF NOISE Downloading:Battlestar Galactica Season 3 - TV DOWNLOAD Watching:Torchwood - BBC Three/Two Playing:Splinter Cell:Double Agent - XBOX 360 Reading:The Best of Smash Hits 80's - BOOK (Buy this book today!)
I finished it early. Clicking on the linky below will take you to the very latest Vegetable Soup Podcast!
Same warning applies: I do this for a laugh, so don't go expecting anything remotely professional. In this edition, lots about New York (I promise to shut up about New York soon). You'll also find previews of my current favourite telly show, and a sneak preview of the BEST track on Robbie William's new album. What are you waiting for?
So, off you go then, click below and listen to my podcast! And if you like it, why not subscribe? Then, everytime you open up your iTunes, and there's a new episode - it will be delivered to you personally! I LOVE THE INTERNET!
Just a quickie. Been back a week, and it's taken that long to get my feet back on the ground.
Working hard on the next issue of outnorthwest, which goes to the printers on Thursday, so that's keeping me from the fun stuff. I'm also half way done on my next podcast, so I'll let you know when that's done. Hopefully by tomorrow night.
In the meantime, there's plenty lovely stuff keeping me happy at the moment...
JUNK CULTURE
Listening:She's Madonna - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Downloading:Lost Season 3 - TV Watching:Heroes - TV DOWNLOAD (pic above) Playing:Magnetron - NINTENDO DS Reading:Pet Shop Boys, Catalogue - BOOK
The last post. Final visit to the Apple Store, and only six hours before we get on the plane back to rainy Manchester...
This has to be the best holiday I've ever had. New York is a wonderful place and after nine days, I still feel like we've only scratched the surface. The last couple of days has been taken up with sight seeing tours. The best was a two hour boat trip around the island. Got some magnificent pictures. Today has seen a leisurely stroll around Central Park, and it made me want live here even more. Sitting watching musicians, street theatre and sitting by the edge of a lake. You would never believe you were in the middle of one of the biggest cities in the world.
I'll keep this brief as there's just so much I want to say about this visit that it really needs a bit more thought behind it. At the moment, I'm tired and emotional. So the next couple of days at home will see at least a one more retrospective blogs about New York.
If you've never been to this city - you must. It's as simple as that. Whether you have positive or negative feelings towards the United States, a visit to New York will either change your mind or confirm your doubts.
Me? I love this place for it's diversity and its positive attitude. No word of a lie, in the last nine days I've not come across a nasty, unfriendly or unsmiling American. Back home, it would take me only nine minutes to meet at least one of each type.
Looking forward to getting back to Manchester though. It is home, after all.
