The Kate Middleton trickle-down effect

Thanks to Kate Middleton are the women of this nation becoming classier in their clothes choices? The stats show that Kate's engagement dress from Reiss sold out rapidly after the television announcement, as have a number of her other outfits, including another dress she wore when she met the Obamas.

No doubt, Middleton has become a style icon with clothes from the higher end of the high street. She wears pieces that are simple, elegant and most importantly affordable. Her style is tangible and within the reaches of us mere mortals. From the high end of the high street to the lower end, Middleton's style has left its mark and it's apparent from the shops which are currently awash with blazers and pretty dresses that ooze class.

She has inspired a generation of women to want to dress like princesses with her knee length dresses and well cut coats. Classy outfits where more is more is catching on. Perhaps part of the charm lies in the fact that although we can't all marry princes, we can at least feel as graceful as princesses. Will we finally become a nation of chic females to rival Paris or New York? I certainly hope so and continue to look forward to Kate's next outfit.

Review of 'A Separation'

Title: A Separation

Certificate: PG

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Time: 120 mins

DVD/Blu-ray

Rating: 3 stars

Set in modern-day Iran, thisgripping human drama follows the story of Nader (Peyman Moaadi) who is accused of causing his maid, Razieh (Sareh Bayat) to suffer a miscarriage after he throws her out for locking up his elderly father (Ali-Asghar Shahbazi) and stealing money. It is then up to Nader’s estranged wife Simin (Leila Hatami) to discover the truth.

Despite its title, this is film is more than just about the end of a marriage, it is the classic tale of one person’s word against another. The focus is upon characters rather than politics and presents a different side to Iranian society that is not seen in news reports.

Review of ‘A Doll’s House’ at the Arcola Theatre

Set in the 19th century, ‘A Doll’s House’ focuses on the seemingly idyllic marriage of Nora Helmer and her husband Torvald. With Christmas just a few days away and Torvald soon to start his new job as a bank manager come the New Year, things could not be more perfect for the couple. However, the superficial exterior soon begins to crack with the arrival of Nora’s school friend Kristine Linde and the appearance of Nils Krogstad who threatens to reveal Nora’s most closely-guarded secret which could change her life forever.

Henrik Ibsen’s play examines the powerlessness faced by women in this period, particularly in relation to money. The themes were controversial in their own time yet will still captivate contemporary audiences given gender equality is still an issue in today’s society. The play also touches upon materialism, something which will strike a chord with many given the current economic climate and the need to be thrifty.

In terms of acting, each member of the cast is superb, each giving a powerful and well-rounded performance. Gina Abolins who plays Nora gives a good turn as the kept wife, essentially the “doll” who inhabits the house of the title. Abolins captures Nora’s immaturity and her awareness of the power of her sexuality. She is girly with a flirtatious edge. The trio of eerie spectres are brilliant, they represent Nora’s past, present and future, and create an underlying sense of tension that is never broken even as the house lights fade to black.

This production is taking place in the recently-moved Arcola Theatre and the rustic feel of the theatre adds to the atmosphere. The design of the set places the audience inside the doll house that Nora lives in and also the heart of her internal conflict. The lack of space augments the claustrophobia of living inside the doll’s house. Despite the simplicity, the childish feel of the doll’s house is conveyed through the pastel fabrics draped on the walls and hanging from the ceiling. While the chintzy lampshades add to the bygone era in which the play is set and reinforces the traditional image of a doll’s house. An assortment of picture frames, tea cups, baubles, spoons, cupcakes and ice cream hang on the main wall adding to the slightly surreal nature of the play.

This is a wonderful production of an Ibsen classic with each member of the cast holding their own which should not be missed.

‘A Doll’s House’ is running at the Arcola Theatre from now until 30th July 2011. For more information visit www.arcolatheatre.com

Picture: Bjarte Rettedal

A journalistic observation on the unfolding of Norway

On the afternoon of Friday 22nd July, I along with journalists in newsrooms across the world watched as the mayhem in Norway unfolded. Following the blasts at government buildings, the Twittersphere exploded in response to the events. People tweeted about what they had seen and heard, re-tweeting others. There were news organsiations and journalists tweeting every few moments as well. I watched as my timeline update while the hashtags and trending topics changed to 'Norway', 'Oslo' and 'NRK', the largest Norwegian news broadcaster, whose footage was being shown by BBC News.

As BBC News showed the devastation, I noticed a new trending topic on Twitter: 'Utøya', clicking on it I found a flood of tweets mentioning a shooting taking place on the nearby island of Utøya, the shooter was a man dressed as a policeman. At that point many news organisations had yet to pick up on it and I felt if my duty to re-tweet something of the shooting however, when re-tweeting there is a question of reliability. Which sources could be trusted and which could not.

The journalists around me only took information that had been tweeted by two different organisations in order to ensure reliability. I followed their example, carefully looking out for trusted organisations and journalists' tweets about Utøya and then re-tweeting the information. Sometimes it is easy to become caught up in a news story and it is important to stay focused and try to make sure the facts are as accurate as possible. Verification of the facts is so important, get them wrong at your peril, which is why even re-tweets should be as reliable as they can be. If the facts are wrong, it reflects poorly upon the person who has re-tweeted them and reliability is part of the strong bond between the media and the people.

The news eventually appeared on the television but as is now always the case, Twitter got there first. The people tweeted and the news media responded. Individuals who knew teenagers on the island tweeted warnings about not contacting loved ones in case they were hiding. If Twitter had existed during the Columbine massacre I have no doubt it would have been the same: young people using social media to tweet to the world about what was going on.

I suppose with Twitter and the internet as a whole there will always be a question of reliability.

Piece for Radio Northwick Park's 2011 magazine: Arthur

For over 40 years Radio Northwick Park has brought patient broadcasting entertainment to thousands of people at Northwick Park Hospital. However, the radio station provides more than just music, it is also a patient-visiting service.

Our volunteers go to the wards not only to take song requests from patients but to speak to them. Luckily, most patients see their family or friends during the visiting hours in the evening, even if they have little contact during the day. Unfortunately, for Arthur Aplin, his family were scattered all over the globe with relatives in France and Canada.

When he suffered a stroke his daughter-in-law contacted Radio Northwick Park to ask if our volunteers could visit him once in a while and bring him a newspaper to read. We sent volunteers to visit him almost every night to speak to him and give him some company. He was even interviewed by one of our presenters.

Arthur has since recovered and left the hospital. Here is some of his interview where he wanted to raise awareness about suffering from a stroke and the help he was given.

“I’m doing pretty well. I’m impatient to make progress and getting out the people supporting me here, the nurses and the guys working on my rehabilitation. My voice needs training as well but it’s little by little, day by day.”

On the issue of regaining movement down the side of his body that was affected he said: “Try and do it yourself and try again and again, if you’re not making much progress then perhaps get a bit of help. If you can make some progress yourself if helps personally and it shows something…well, I’m stubborn.”

Arthur was unsure about whether he had had a stroke. It was only after speaking to his daughter that he called an ambulance and was told what had happened. He urges others who may be feeling uncertain may have suddenly developed limited use down one side of their body to go to hospital and get checked.

He also reflected on his stay at Northwick Park and the help he got: “It’s appreciated, the friendship and support I have received is helping me towards recovery and getting back onto a normal basis and I hope for full physical ability in my body and your support from the radio staff that have come to see me time and time again. Some people might think you’re a pest but you’re not. I have had good support and encouragement and somehow I feel that there’s going to be a lot of positive coming out of this.”

“It works against me sometimes but in the situation I think it’s in my favour that a bit of stubbornness and to think: ‘Well, I’m not going to let this beat me’”.

For more information about Radio Northwick Park visit: www.radionorthwickpark.org

Self-help can work

Earlier this week I read Johann Hari’s piece “Thatcherite chicken soup for the soul” which recounted the evils of Paul McKenna’s latest self-help offering: ‘I Can Make You Happy’.

Hari’s piece spent a great deal of focusing on a few choice phrases from the book. On top of that he suggested that McKenna is telling readers to abandon friends who are suffering from depression because they are detrimental to your own happiness. This assertion was out of context and rather ridiculous. As someone who has met McKenna and benefitted from his self-help techniques, it only seems right to present another view.

A few years ago I went along to one of McKenna’s seminars entitled ‘Change your life’. I was sceptical. However, during those three days I learned numerous exercises that helped me think more positively and become more aware about negative thinking.

McKenna’s work uses Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) which is about re-programming the way we think and emotionally react to situations. It’s basically about getting in touch with your internal dialogue and changing what that little voice inside your head tells you.

One of McKenna’s techniques is imagining an unpleasant situation that you may have had in the past. In your mind’s eye it may initially be a big and vivid image but what McKenna suggests is to gradually visualise it getting smaller and fading until there is nothing left. The final step is to repeat this process as many times as you need to.

For example, I found I would beat myself up if I made a mistake or said something wrong at work or in a social setting. I would keep re-visiting the situation in my head and feeling bad despite the fact that I could not change it. This exercise helped me move on from that and essentially let it go. It all goes back to the core of NLP and re-programming how we think.

At the end of that course I felt a lot better about myself and more equipped to deal with the obstacles life threw at me. Whether it’s changed my life completely I can’t say. My existence is certainly not a paragon of bliss and I don’t walk around with rose-tinted spectacles on. But I now realise when I am over-thinking and amplifying negative thoughts. This level of self-awareness is useful and it helps me to focus on the positive things in my life.

As to cutting friends out of my life who “bring me down”, I have friends who suffer from depression and I am always here for them. Like most of McKenna’s readers, I would never discard a friend because they were not the life and soul of a party and I would help them.

The majority of people who seek self-help are not sociopaths hell-bent on achieving happiness at any price. Instead they may feel lost and these books can offer them a form of support that they do not have. McKenna books and NLP have helped so many people and it seems wrong to be so dismissive of it. In the end it’s simple, commonsense advice and for some people it works and for others it doesn’t. I suppose in the end it is the view with which you approach it.

My favourite covering letter

As a journalist one must be tenacious and apply to anything and everything. In my pursuit of journalistic glory I have written a covering letter or two in my time but here is the one I enjoyed writing the most. It was an internship for a television and films listing website which I applied to last year. Needless to say I didn't get the placement but the key is to keep at it.

Dear Sir/Madam,
I am applying for an internship with your website and attach my CV and some of my work for your perusal and consideration.

The application called for individuals who “idolise Charlie Brooker to a level of God-smiteable proportions.” I fall into this category. My commitment to Charlie’s columns, articles and TV shows has formed the most significant and meaningful relationship I have ever had.

My need for a daily dose of Brooker is comparable to a coke addict. Be it an episode of ‘Screenwipe’ or ‘You Have Been Watching’, or a ‘Screen Burn’, I can’t get through the day without a little bit of Charlie.

Apart from being a Brookerite, I have the relevant skills and experience for this role. I was part of the editorial team at LondonCareers.Net, a weekly magazine published by the Independent. My responsibilities included writing film and album reviews as well as sub-editing, laying out and proofreading pages.

While I was studying for my undergraduate degree I was Deputy Film Editor and Film Editor, respectively for the student newspaper, inQuire. In these positions I brainstormed feature ideas, wrote and edited articles, liaised with PR companies for film screenings and DVDs. More recently, I was a film reviewer for www.6degreesfilm.com which involved attending screenings and writing features.

Despite my dalliances into financial journalism my passion will always be in film and television journalism. I am available from 1st August – 30th September.

Examples of work:

Review for ‘500 Days of Summer’
Review for ‘Superhero Movie’
Film festival feature
Blog post on ‘Secret Diary of a Call Girl’ – Series 3

Thank you for your attention.

Yours faithfully

N. Debnath
Neelanjona Debnath

Enclo. CV