Don't Give Up Until You're Dead

 This is my only resolution this year. To "get shit done." It's all-encompassing. Basically, I will be making a list of things and getting them done. If I don't think I can realistically do the thing, then it won't make the list, but the idea is that everything is doable if you believe you can do it (and you're not being ridiculously impractical or living in fantasyland) hence all things should go on the list and all things SHOULD GET DONE. Number one on my list is change the name of this blog.  (In case it has changed by the time you read this, it used to be called yourinnernerdisshowing.) I do like the name and I am a nerd - or am I geek? Apparently I don't know the difference - but it's not exactly the catchiest of names is it? So, in honour of my new "getting shit done" attitude, and in honour of something my 96 year old (at the time, now sadly passed away) aunt once said which was put slightly more succinctly by Billy Connolly: ...

 Ah, The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. If you haven't heard of it, you've been living somewhere without WiFi for the last month. When I did mine, I had only heard a little bit about the "ice water challenge" and I woke up to a nomination and wasn't aware of who I was supposed to donate to or that I was  actually supposed to have ice in the bucket! I used extremely cold tap water and donated my money to Macmillan Cancer Support, which was who the UK seemed to be giving to. Then I started looking up other challenges and seeing that it was actually the "ALS Challenge." I had no idea what ALS was. I had heard of Lou Gehrig's disease, but again didn't have a clue what it was, so it was time to do  some research . It was then I discovered that ALS is actually a form of MND (Motor Neurone Disease)  - or vice versa - which I  had heard of, and had known people who had suffered from it. In fact, you probably  all know someone who has a form of it - a ve...

 If someone asks me years from now, "What's the best piece of advice you've been given?", I will definitely have an answer for them. Up until six months ago, I'd always heard things that are useful, or seen people I admire in interviews say things that can be noted down, but nobody had every said anything directly to me that had impacted me or my life to any degree. However, last October, after one of 16 nights of a run of a city play, I was sitting in a pub with some of my cast members having a fairly angry (text) argument with someone. Obviously I couldn't see it, but I expect my face looked like a wet weekend and one of my cast mates leaned over and asked me what was wrong. I explained and he offered me these words of wisdom: "Don't waste time caring about people who don't care about you." At which point I put my phone down and haven't spoken to that person since. I don't think I can express how much healthier things have be...

  "Shameless" episode 404 "Strangers on a Train" Photos .

 January 1st saw the VERY highly anticipated return of BBC original drama series Sherlock . Now before we start, for those of you who don't watch/haven't watched/are considering watching  Sherlock,  let me tell you a few things about it. Each of the three seasons contains only three episodes, but the episodes are all 90 minutes. Each one is loosely based on an original Conan Doyle/Sherlock Holmes story, but set in the present decade, i.e. use of mobile phones, t'internet etc. The series is co-created by Steven Moffat (of Doctor Who writing fame) and Mark Gatiss (who has also written a few Doctor Who episodes, but is also a very great actor and co-creator of The League of Gentlemen ) who also stars as Sherlock's older brother, Mycroft. They are both terrible because they make us wait a loooooooong time between seasons, so if you start watching now, you're lucky because you can watch all three seasons back to back - no waiting! Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) w...

 SPOILER WARNING: A rant. I live in the UK, so with a great number of movies/TV shows etc... the release dates over here are a long way behind those in the USA, but sometimes even when we are just a week behind with a show, I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a spoiler warning on a review or when someone is about to start live-tweeting about something so people like me who don't want to see spoilers (I know some don't mind being spoiled) at least have the  option  to look away. I have only just seen a spoiler for a show that I watch less than 24 hours after it has been aired. And not just a little scene, but a HUGE character development. And with absolutely no spoiler warning whatsoever. And before all you social network people say "you should have muted the tags" - it wasn't tagged, so that wasn't possible. Also, web twitter doesn't allow you to do that does it? (If it does without an unofficial add-on that would be GREAT) I co-run a fan-...