Broken Spine #11

Recommended reading this week comes in the form of the harrowing We Need to Talk About Kevin, a book which should please readers of both sexes. There’s also links to free books and ones to make your life more profitable! Recommended Reading #10: We Need to Talk About Kevin School massacres are contentious topics, but they seem to be something that won’t go away. Every few months, there’s a horrific news story from America or Europe where some disenchanted teen goes into a rampage and kills some of his former classmates and teachers. It’s also a brutal crime which often has no clear motive. Innocents are always killed in what the killer sees as revenge, as locals wonder “how could we let this happen?” Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk About Kevin attempts to address some of these questions by approaching the subject from the perspective of the killer’s mother … There’s more

Free eBook downloads from Paulo Coelho

It’s Paulo Coelho‘s birthday today. Author of so many great books, including The Alchemist, The Pilgrimage and Eleven Minutes, he’s one of those few people whose writing can be said to be “life-affirming”. To celebrate, he’s just made some eBooks available for download for free. He says he doesn’t “intend to sell the rights for publishing houses in the next two years.” The books include The Way of the Bow, Stories for Parents, Children and Grandchildren volumes 1 and 2 and Warrior of the Light volumes 1 and 2. You can download the books over on : http://paulocoelhoblog.com/internet-books/ You can wish Paulo a happy birthday on twitter by finding him here: http://twitter.com/paulocoelho

Bring back The Rocky Horror Picture Show

You’re possibly too young to remember a time when The Rocky Horror Picture Show was shown in the Classic cinema in Harold’s Cross, Dublin of a Friday night. In fact it broke all Irish cinema records by running for over 21 years, until the retiring of Albert Kelly in 2003. The Friday evening showings gained a cult following, with many in the audience singing and joining in the fun. Now new kids on the block, Swan Cinemas in Rathmines want to bring it back by screening it in digital and are asking for your signature on a petition to help them do so. They need over 300 to be noticed. …despite our best efforts, 20th Century Fox are opposed to creating a digital copy of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. There are costs associated in creating a digital print so we have set up an online petition to BRING BACK … There’s more

Next winner of X-Factor?

I’ll admit I did not watch X-Factor on Saturday (or Sunday either) but since Saturday I have heard rumbles and rumours about how great this guy Danyl Johnson was. So I searched for him on YouTube…Wow! This guy has an amazing voice and such stage presence, such confidence! The cynic in me is saying it looks like he had a fair bit of rehearsal on that stage but sure what do I know?! Listen and enjoy anyway, he’s incredible! You can watch other auditions from Saturday night on the X-Factor’s YouTube channel.

Web Scams

The recent AIB email scam, where you get an email from “AIB” asking you to confirm your details which brings you to this page with the distinct paypal address, reminded me of this genius money scamming site that deserves to make a profit it’s so funny and blatant. Check out http://www.giveusallyourmoney.com/ It’s a a dull grey site with only space for you to fill in your credit card details and a disclaimer that reads: “disclaimer: by submitting this form, you, the cardholder, agree to give us all your money.“ Genius.

Ukulele Hooley 2009

Last Sunday, 16th August, I had the pleasure of attending Dublin’s first ever Ukulele Hooley in Temple Bar. The lineup featured some of the best ukulele performers around such as Ukulelezaza, The Uke Box, Peter Delaney, Gus & Fin, Winin Boys, Vertigo Smyth, Steven Sproat, Andrew Robinson and The Ukuhooleys. Phew. The guys got some great media footage in the lead up to the event which resulted in an almost capacity crowd for the whole day. The festival had kicked off on Saturday with intermediate and advanced workshops followed by a mass busk around the city. The event had a genuine great vibe to it and was unique in both audience (alluded to by Gareth in the video below) and the variety of acts performing. I’d like to thank Gareth, Nora and the whole Ukulele Hooley organizing committee for a top day. I’m already looking forward to next year.

All About Eve

Two years ago, I watched Whatever Happened to Baby Jane for the first time and I loved it. Bette Davis showed what a true movie great could do, twisting the character she portrayed in real life into a deranged and sad fading starlet on screen. Since seeing it I have many times returned to her back catalogue and last year I got hold of All About Eve, a tense tale about an up-and-coming ingénue who befriends Davis’s aging Broadway star and slowly climbs her way to the top. Tonight, Screen Cinema in Dolier Street continues it’s season of classic films with this 1950 gem. Feel free to join us at 8pm in the lobby before the film, which starts at 8.30pm. All About Eve will also play on Wednesday at 6.30pm. The young woman of the title, who ingratiates herself into the celebrity lives of Margo Channing (Bette Davis) and … There’s more