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Colin Davies

33 Posts
The Half Earth
25 Jul

The Half Earth

Colin Davies0 CommentsMusic & Gigs
I think it's fair to say that Blackpool is enjoying some very good music at the moment. The venues for playing live may have taken a bit of hit recently however, the evidence presented at the Moth Open Mic nights at the Queens in Layton, hosted by Karima Francis, proves that the musical talent in this part of the world is flourishing quite nicely indeed. The latest in a long line of tuneful brilliance is from the Fylde. Though many who know the sound would say The Half Earth are from Sheffield , those who know Conor Stephenson know where…
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James and the Giant Peach – Grand Theatre at Stanley Park
18 Jul

James and the Giant Peach – Grand Theatre at Stanley Park

Colin Davies1 CommentLocal News
In 1961 the master craftsman of the children's tale, Roald Dahl, published the ever endearing James and the Giant Peach. It's a wonderful story about a 7 year old boy who climbs aboard a gigantic peach to get away from his horrid life. This is classic children's story time stuff. Firstly, James became an orphan after his parents were eaten by a rhino on a London street. He has to live with his cruel and hideous aunts, Spiker and Sponge. A concerned stranger gives him a potion, made by mixing glowing-green crocodile tongues with water, and he escapes by floating…
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Tubular Bells for Two
26 Jun

Tubular Bells for Two

Colin Davies0 CommentsMusic & Gigs
When I wrote the preview to the this show all I had to go on was the other reviews, the press release and my own knowledge of the music. I had no idea how good it was going to be. To satisfy musically, they had to be very competent and in time. I couldn't imagine how they were going to pull off what they had promised. Taking my seat in this magnificent theatre and looking at the number of instruments set up on the stage I was even less convinced that they could do this. The slightly apprehensive applause as…
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The Regent Project
26 Jun

The Regent Project

Colin Davies0 CommentsLocal News
I attended one of the open days at the old Regent Cinema over the weekend. Apart from the wonderful time scurrying around the decaying building, their was a lot of chat about the future of the place. Stephen Brennan, the driving force behind the project, spoke about bringing it back to former glories and getting it up and running as a 'Picture House' again. This was wonderful to hear, not just because it means saving an important part of our history, the Regent was one of the first purpose-built cinemas in the country, but also because this project is about…
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18 Jun

Tubular Bells ‘For Two’ at Blackpool Grand Theatre

Colin Davies0 CommentsMusic & Gigs, Theatre, Dance & Performance
In 1973 Mike Oldfield produced an album that affected the lives of many people around the world. Richard Branson started Virgin records just to release it and William Friedkin shoe-horned it into his 1973 film, The Exorcist, with such an effect that people actually think it’s the theme tune to this horror classic. The truth is, he liked it so much that he wanted it in there and used it over a small sequence of Regan’s mother walking home from the doctors having been given more bad news about her daughter. What it boils down to is that Tubular Bells…
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Karima Francis and The Clever at Blitz, Preston
14 Jun

Karima Francis and The Clever at Blitz, Preston

Colin Davies0 CommentsMusic & Gigs
A short while back I gave you readers a review of Karima Francis as she moved on from small piece acoustic artist to working with a full band. This sneak preview at the Beach House was part of their warm up, their rehearsals, trying out what they had put together in the practice rooms on an audience. As I reported back then, this experiment was a resounding success. Now they are setting up for real. Saturday 22 June at Blitz, live venue and night club, on Great Shaw Street in Preston is going to be a very special night indeed.…
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Poulton Gala
30 May

Poulton Gala

Colin Davies1 CommentLocal News
This Saturday, 1 June 2013, is Poulton Gala. It's an event that has been happening on the Fylde for over 200 years. The theme is 'vintage', with everyone dressing up in costumes to reflect a variety of decades from the twentieth century. The main event takes place around the town centre with the historic St. Chad's parish church as an impressive backdrop to a full day of family entertainment. The fun starts in the Market Place from 10am and continues until about 6pm. Live on stage will be the amazing Poulton People's Choir, Poco Loco Samba Band, Singleton Cloggers, Tom…
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Ricky Tomlinson’s Royle Variety Show
25 May

Ricky Tomlinson’s Royle Variety Show

Colin Davies0 CommentsTheatre, Dance & Performance
There are times in our lives when we realise we have moved further away from our childhoods. This happened last night, 24 May 2013, at the Grand Theatre Blackpool. Having watched many a show here, this great old theatre is right up there with the best in the country. Last night's Ricky Tomlinson's Royle Variety Show was a true step back in time, to the many wonderful variety shows that played their part in the deep, rich history of this building. And that's  the problem. The audience loved the show. Each act came and went to loud applause, even the…
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A picture tells a thousand words
18 May

A picture tells a thousand words

Colin Davies0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitions
It is impossible to go anywhere these days without someone having a camera in their pocket. Every mobile phone has one, and as a recent TV advert for Apple’s iPhone shows, people are not shy in using them. So with this many pictures being taken, where is the market for professional photographers? The answer is, quality. Just because folks can push a button and apply an Instagram filter, this does not make them a good photographer. It doesn’t help them capture character, emotion, style and mood. All the toys in the world can not help you capture to beauty of…
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Holloways of Poulton
08 May

Holloways of Poulton

Colin Davies1 CommentLocal News
There was a lot of excitement last week in Poulton. The delight on Tithebarn Street was audible, faces wore smiles and the fruits of a lot of hard work came to fruition. I'm not talking about the removal of the barricades that have blocked the busy street for weeks as work has been carried out on the bridge, I'm talking about the installation of the sign for Holloways of Poulton, the new vintage-inspired clothing shop upstairs at 52 Tithebarn Street. If you frequent the vintage markets held at various locations around the Fylde you will have, most probably, bumped into Suzzie and Jenny. The…
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Secret Link