Tuesday 31 December 2013

Favourite Twitter-ers of 2013

After reading this list of the 40 funniest tweets of the year I thought I'd list a few of my favourite Twitter accounts.

Funny
Fake Showbiz News

Faces In Things
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Jeremy Vine - tweets funny local news stories
Jamie Jones - nutter

Local
Winsford News
Local news.
Salt Fair
Not just news of the local Salt Fair, but from a gentleman who genuinely cares about the town.
North West Motorway
Funny and informative with a serious message.

Education
Lee Parkinson
Inspirational ways to use iPads
Primary Ideas
Lots of good ideas for the classroom
Ian Addison
Seems like an interesting bloke
Mrs P Teach
A dedicated teacher who tweets interesting stuff.
The Primary Head
Interesting views and opinions
Michael Tidd
Great ideas and views on primary education

Music
Official Charts
Official news from the UK charts

Well Being
Andy Cope
Inspirational stuff


Monday 30 December 2013

TV Programmes of 2013

For most of the year our Sky+ box has been below 10% as I've tried to watch a backlog of episodes of shows. Now that Cheers and Seinfeld have finished I want to try to clear up some more space. Here are some of the programmes I've enjoyed in 2013:

The Wrong Mans
One of the best shows of the year.

Cheers
Since October 2012 I've watched Cheers from the very beginning. It was great!

Seinfeld
Since early 2012 I've watched Seinfeld from the beginning. This was a programme I should have watched when I was younger. Fifteen years later I've caught up.

Homeland
Although slow to get going, Homeland continued to be one of the best programmes on TV.

Boardwalk Empire
Another great Boardwalk Series.

8 Out Of Ten Cats Does Countdown
Well funny!

Derek
This programme made me laugh and cry. Just beautiful.

The Great British Bake Off
I got drawn into this and I loved it!

Educating Yorkshire
An honest insight into high school education. Excellent and inspiring!

Fresh Meat
A great third series with more of a serious tone than in previous series.

The Blacklist
Recommended by a friend and I loved it!

The Big Bang Theory
This just keeps getting better. Always worth watching as you're guaranteed a smile!

Sunday 29 December 2013

My favourite tunes of 2013

There have been a lot of great tunes released in 2013. I've managed to whittle my massive shortlist down to just 24 (I couldn't get any fewer).

Daft Punk - Get Lucky
From the first listen it was clear that this song would become a classic. It is, quite simply, brilliant.

Duke Dumont featuring A*M*E* - Need U (100%)
Overshadowed to a degree on its release by a stupid chart campaign after the death of a former Prime Minister, this Nineties throwback tune is fantastic.

Avicii - Wake Me Up
I've been a fan of Avicii's for a year or two. But this song is absolutely brilliant. Everything about it is cool. There are lots of acoustic cover versions buzzing around too which are worth a listen. Here is my favourite by Gavin Mikhail.

Armin van Buuren featuring Trevor Guthrie This Is What It Feels Like
Simple incredible vocals over an amazing dance track. This is a pop-crossover at its best. It deserves to be a bigger hit. Again, there are some great acoustic versions around, including this one by Jasmine Thompson.

Chris Malinchak - So Good To Me
Chilled out dance. This is close to being a perfect tune. Then the Steve Smart & WestFunk Remix takes it all the way.

The 1975 - Chocolate
A great rock tune which deserved to be a bigger hit.

Naughty Boy featuring Sam Smith - La La La
This just gets better each time I hear it. Amazing vocals and an annoyingly catchy tune.

Charlie Brown - On My Way
A great pop tune. One of the more underrated ones of the year.

Zach Sobiech - Clouds
This song brings me close to tears. It was released at the end of 2012 and is all about the singer's battle with cancer. The words are just beautiful.

John Newman - Love Me Again
Boy this guy can sing. Love Me Again bowled me over on its release and it continues to do so each time I hear it. Simply brilliant.

Gabz - Lighters (The One)
Ultimately Lighters (The One) will be dismissed as a cheap cash in from Britain's Got Talent. But it deserves more respect. It's a great song and she performs it with cool style, despite the onesie.

Ellie Goulding - Burn (Alienator Remix)
A great bassy remix of an excellent tune. I wasn't sure about Ellie Goulding at first, but time and time again she releases some brilliant songs. This one is a classic.

Pink featuring Nate Ruess - Just Give Me Reason
Wow - this is a brilliant duet. Their voices compliment each other perfectly. It gets better with every listen.

Avicii - Hey Brother
Clearly one of the stand out tracks on the True album, Avicii has produced another smash.

OneRepublic - Counting Stars
I love this song. The words are endearing and the tune is incredibly catchy. A deserved smash hit.

Jake Bugg - Broken
An excellent tune from a growing talent.

Lorde - Royals
Who'd have thought this would be the smash hit that it was? Such a simple tune proved to be one of the best songs of the Autumn. Excellent.

John Newman - Cheating (Freemasons Mix)
Another great vocal from John Newman, but this is hear for the Freemasons. They are finally producing new material, and this is their best remix of the year.

Eminem featuring Rihanna - The Monster
They've done it again. Immediately catchy, but a tune with depth so that you discover more each time youy listen.

Justin Timberlake - Mirrors
A great tune from Timberlake. I was glad to finally get a radio edit - 8 minutes was way too long.

Rizzle Kicks - Skip To The Good Bit
Too cool for their own good. This song has 90s throwbacks and is a grower.

Luminites - It Hurts So Good
Frustratingly ignored by the masses, I loved this when I heard it on Britain's Got Talent. I never normally watch the programme but was drawn into the final by my wife.

Imagine Dragons - Radioactive
The best rock song of the year by far.

Rudimental featuring Ella Eyre - Waiting All Night
Are Rudimental the British dance act of the year? This is brilliant.


Disclosure featuring AlunaGeorge - White Noise
If Rudimental are the dance act of the year, then Disclosure are a close second. This is my favourite from their album.