Vegetarianism may now almost be part of the norm but I still get meat eaters asking me “what do you eat?”. It’s a question that always surprises me. I never think to myself, “I want to eat, I don’t eat meat, oh no what shall I eat?”. Maybe I should just send a link to this Macca D track en masse to everyone I know.

But when it came to the bbq I needed ideas.. Sure enough I came across an article titled “BBQ’s Do Not Need to Mean Meat!”. The recipe uses a product I have just discovered –  Fry’s…

It was with real intrigue that I tried Fry’s vegetarian food for the first time just a few weeks ago. Fry’s essentially create alternatives for animal based products. Missing your steaks? Never fear Fry’s makes pepper non-steak style pies are here. Do you get nostalgic for grandmas’s cottage pie? Fry’s hearty cottage pie uses veggie mince and is stuffed full of vegetables plus onion gravy to boot. The range is pretty vast and I made it my mission to try as much of it as I could. Hot dogs, nuggets, burgers, sausage rolls, it was almost like going back in time and quite strange I must admit because most of the products taste just like the real thing – or at least what I remember they tasted like.

But why would you want to taste meat when you don’t eat meat anymore? Well, that’s the exactly point. This isn’t meat, therefore all I was doing as adding a whole load of new and amazing flavours to my dining repertoire.

As KD Lang once said, “If you knew how meat was made, you’d probably lose your lunch.” Fry’s food is free of meat, fish, eggs, dairy, hydrogenated fat, cholesterol, GM, artificial colours and preservatives – there’s no chance of not knowing what you’re getting.

Sent a text and got the playlists sorted. Now I just need the weather to hold up and I’ll be chucking some veggie shrimps on the barbeque.

Firstly we met Verity Geere, who is the co-host with Neil Fox on Magic FM’s Breakfast show, and who gave us some great advice about how to get the most out of interviews. We then went into Magic’s live Breakfast show and met Gary Vincent. He said he’d been in radio for 35 years, but he didn’t look that old! He showed us the studio and after a quick scramble to switch off mobile phones, he let us watch him do a live travel update and announce a competition winner on air – to 2 million people!

Trafalgar Square

For an iconic photo of London during the festive season, you should head straight to Trafalgar Square. Here you can truly rock around the Christmas tree, as every year a giant Norwegian Christmas tree arrives as a gift from the city of Oslo and is decorated from top to toe with twinkly fairy lights. For a special seasonal photo, head down there between 5pm and 9pm when the daily carol service takes place around the tree.

Hyde Park winter wonderland

For action shots full of energy and excitement, Hyde Park should be your next port of call. Part amusement park, part Bavarian market, there is myriad things to see and photograph as you walk in this winter wonderland – including a giant wheel, old fashioned helter-skelter and an ice-rink in the middle of the park. There’s free entry and you can go during the day or at night depending on the style of photos you want to take, so grab some mulled wine and have a wander round.

St Christopher’s Place

From Hyde Park, head up to Oxford Street and check out St Christopher’s Place. A good place to avoid the crowds, this quaint passage and courtyard is tucked away just off the main street which means that you won’t get accosted by shoppers whilst you take your shot. They have some fantastic futuristic Christmas lights this year created by James Glancy Design, to the delight of many a photographer.

Fortnum and Mason’s

Fortnum and Mason’s window displays provide a great opportunity to take some high-quality photos. Full of rich vibrant colours and fabrics, their theme of ‘Showtime’ this year gives them extra razzle dazzle. Inspired by the music video for the Pet Shop Boys’ 80’s hit What have I done to deserve this?, each window in the historic building displays a different backstage scene from a burlesque theatre. It may not be a totally traditional (and if you’re thinking of using your photos as Christmas cards – maybe don’t send this one to your granny) but if you’re suffering from Tinselitis or Klaustrophobia, this may just be the photo opportunity for you!

Oxford Street

Some of the best places to take photos are on the main shopping streets such as Oxford Street, which becomes an attraction in itself during the festive period. Spectacular images of colour and light illuminate the street, whilst some impressive decorations on the sides of the department stores are great to photograph too. If you’re not fazed by pavements heaving with jostling hoards of impatient shoppers, then you can get some joyful shots around here and on Regent Street.

Covent garden

Lastly, visit Covent Garden where they pride themselves on an innovative and unique Christmas display. For some festive live-action shots, head to the Reindeer enclosure and if that’s not enough, check out their 15 foot topiary reindeer at the eastern end of the Piazza. There are also some pretty fantastic lights courtesy of United Visual Artists. These are unlike any Christmas lights you likely to find elsewhere, with interactive chandeliers and LED snow. Escape the bleak midwinter weather and take some creative indoor shots in one of the country’s most iconic locations.

So, if this has inspired you to go out and take some creative shots around London, why not try an Ignite Creative workshop where you can learn how to take great photographs every time? Discover composition and photography techniques to improve your skills and impress your friends and family. For more information about our Beginners and Specialist courses see here.

First, to ‘Alexander Armstrong’s Big Ask’ – a new quiz show on Dave. Imagine how much you’d have to pay to see comedy legends like Marcus Brigstocke, Graham Norton, Sandy Toksvig and Alexander Armstrong live on tour?  Well, we saw them for free in a nice warm studio at ITV. Even better are the hour long recordings – you get to enjoy twice as much entertainment (or witty banter as Dave would call it), plus you see the unbroadcastable bits – which are often much, much funnier.

The only downside is the queuing.  Lines of impatient people stretching the length of the ITV building greeted us, and this was 45 minutes before the doors even opened! But it’s a small price to pay though, (and in fact the only price) for a night of quality entertainment.

Radio 4’s ‘Wordaholics’, chaired by One Show reporter and hero to novelty jumper wearers everywhere – Gyles Brandreth was next on our agenda.

At Broadcasting House, once we’d queued outside and gone through airport-style security, we had to wait in what can only be described as luxury holding pens, until staff brought us through to the recording studio. This studio was more like a theatre, although surprisingly this didn’t seem to encourage decorum – an annoying number of sweet rustlers to be found. Note to readers; next time you listen to the radio and notice waves of interference – don’t be so quick to blame the aerial, it’s probably an unruly toffee scoffer in the audience.

The best material will undoubtedly be cut by the editors. For example when, in an unintentional nod to ‘Just a Minute’, the producer pulled up Gyles for deviation from the script, resulting in a sensational argument about the finer points of English grammar – which Gyles eventually won.

So, it seems that live audiences are integral to the success of comedy quiz shows. Firstly, for the viewers at home – no-one likes to hear canned laughter artificially edited into shows. Secondly, the comedians themselves love performing to a live audience. You could tell they loved to engage with the spectators and hear them laugh.

www.bbc.co.uk/tickets/
www.sroaudiences.com
www.applausestore.com

TV fame

Big things for London ‘s Charlie Bick who entered a Chilean X-factor style TV show whilst on his gap year and now has a job presenting  a music show on Chilean TV – where he enjoys Bieber-like fame.  About his new found celeb status, Charlie told newspapers “After a while it felt like it was the best of both worlds, to be well-known in a foreign place but be able to pop into a shop or grab a beer in your home town.”  Another great reason for studying foreign language at A-level – to find fame abroad!

And the Young Apprentice has returned with 12 new candidates hoping to impress Lord Sugar with their creative business acumen.   The Sugary one  has come out to defend the show against criticism of putting too much pressure on young business tycoons, saying that all the participants are well looked after on the show and are fully aware of the pressures of being in the public eye.  What do you think?

TV shame

The X-factor has been in trouble this week amidst claims that they are exploiting under 18s in the show. after Luke Lucas broke down after being sent home by Gary Barlow. X-factor judge Tulisa, who started her singing career aged 11, doesn’t see it as a problem saying “It depends how much you can handle. It benefited me. Some of the biggest artists in the world started at a really young age.”

Opinions seem divided-   obviously TV producers are aware that this makes great telly, but it can’t be easy having your dreams shattered quite so publicly.  It’s bad enough losing at Singstar in front of your friends!

U G L Y

New figures have revealed the staggering levels of unemployed young people in the UK... with 991,000 unemployed 16-24 year olds. And with the rise in University fees it’s just going to get harder. Apprentice schemes are a good alternative although  apparently these are considered to be “uncool”.

Our advice – if you’re lucky enough to have already decided what you want to do – be it a doctor, film-maker or designer of ornamental loo-roll holders, start getting some quality experience now whilst you don’t have the pressure of having to find a job straight away.

Also come and do a workshop with us! You can win a free film workshop with us through Screen Thing all week.

London in particular is totally packed with half-term activities and the best way to find these is on the web.  kidsfunlondon.co.uk lists all the activities you could ever want to keep occupied, from after-school Pottery to Theatre workshops to Princess Tea Parties!

Radio 1’s Teen Awards are also on this weekend at Wembley arena, featuring headline acts from One Direction, Cher Lloyd and Jason Derulo (can we go?). What can you expect from an under 18s gig? Well, a few years ago Ignite were at Underage Festival, another music event for under 18s in Victoria Park. The energy and freshness of the event was amazing! In between seeing the action themselves, the Ignite teen film crew (trained in house) caught top acts like Dizee Rascal performing to the crowds. You can check out our videos on YouTube to see how it goes down at under 18 festivals.

Ignite is also getting involved in the half-term fun seeking with our own workshops. Wednesday 26^th October is the launch of our Under 18s Film Club workshop where budding Spielbergs and Camerons will be developing and shooting their own stories based on themes given by our expert tutor Will. It’s a hands-on day which is designed to keep everyone entertained whilst learning new skills and developing their creative side. You never know someone in the family might end up shooting for us one day!

Of course the important concern for the community and local authorities is to ensure that there are long-term benefits for Hackney residents long after the Olympic circus has packed up and moved on to Brazil.

Hackney Museum and Hackney Archives are recording the changes to local people’s lives – creating a lasting legacy for future generations to experience and understand. Their Mapping The Change project is a unique history project aimed at capturing the many voices of Hackney and East London’s hugely diverse communities by working with community groups, local artists and individuals to produce photographic, digital media, text, and audio based records of the changes and people’s responses to them. And this is where Ignite is playing a part!

Last week Ignite was awarded the contract to run a radio journalism project as part of Mapping The Change. They will be producing high quality podcasts, working with young people in the local community between the ages of 16-24. This is one of our favourite age groups to work with and we think it’s even more important after the events of recent weeks. The podcasts will be heard in a special exhibition in 2012 and will form a key part of Hackney’s Museum and Archive collections – a snapshot of a crucial period in history for Hackney and East London, as seen through the eyes of local people.

If you’re interested in taking part or know someone who might be – why not send us an email?

Winner of Best Picture Taken On The Day

Explaining why he chose this picture Chris said, “I’m always drawn to images where the viewer feels like they’re peering into somebody else’s private world and feel that we are sharing a moment away from the frantic nature of everyday life. I remember seeing Max’s photo on the day and being particularly impressed that he had shown me something completely fresh after several weeks of running the course. It’s a great example of the fact that capturing a quiet moment can be just as effective as a great action shot and technically it’s well shot in difficult lighting.”

You can find out more about Chris’ work on his website.
More info about Ignite courses.

The deal is only on for another 10 hours, so HURRY UP!

The course is split into seven week workshops: 
• 1. Overview
• 2. Scriptwriting
• 3. Producing
• 4. Directing
• 5. Cinematography
• 6. Production design
• 7. Editing

Find out more click here

The tutor Will Wright is highly qualified and experienced and has been teaching film and video production for over eight years at National Diploma, Undergraduate and Postgraduate level. He prides himself on providing no nonsense practical and artistic film tuition that incorporates not only his education, but also 20 years of filmmaking practice.

In other news – if you haven’t seen our short on hula hooper Merlin watch it here. It’s the second in a series of shorts about the cabaret and performance circuit. Watch out for our short feature on The Common field at Glastonbury and London night Rumpus coming soon.