Chortle for Charity

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This is such a great idea – a new collection of comedy writing created entirely through Twitter and all the proceeds go directly to Comic Relief. Twitter Titters was the brainchild of journalist and author Linda Jones who decided to do something different for...

Dreams Die Hard

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It’s been a testing few days. First, I blog about my admiration for the inestimable Gail Trimble, captain of the winning Corpus Christi team on University Challenge. Within days the team are disqualified on what seems a rather nitpicking technicality. Then news...

You Go Gail

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So Gail Trimble, captain of the Corpus Christi College team that won University Challenge last night, has attracted the attentions of the tabloid bullies for being just so damn clever. The Sun is patting itself on the back for having caught her out in a series of pub...

Paradise Not

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It’s been a week for bannings. First there was the furore about Geraldine Bedell’s book, The Gulf Between Us, apparently being banned from the inaugural Dubai Literary Festival except that it turns out that it wasn’t really banned after all. In the...

Mythbusting

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I’m still hunkered down writing my top secret new series (and loving it) but thought I would emerge long enough to shout out about the fab new book Ecologic, written by Brian Clegg. Researching my new book has involved a lot of mythbusting on my part –...

Litopia After Dark

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I was the special guest on the first Litopia After Dark of 2009, the publishing podcast that is swiftly becoming an internet phenomenon. Not only did we cover everything from spike heels to literary seduction techniques but I was also crowned Litopian of the Week....