Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from 2016

Mary Poppins Review The Wales Millennium Centre

Dazzling, spellbinding and simply quite magical, Mary Poppins has landed in Cardiff. This Christmas treat yourself to a trip down Cherry Tree Lane and experience that magic of Mary Poppins. Everyone's favourite Nanny is back at The Wales Millennium Centre for the festive season enchanting audiences of all ages. The props and special effects are superb, you'll be amazed as the sets manoeuvre and change before your very eyes. The cast is exceptional especially the children playing Jane and Michael Banks, both deliver fantastic performances. Zizi Strallen steps into the iconic role of Mary and puts on a performance that could only be described as practically perfect in every way. This production is slightly darker than the film which makes an old story seem quite new. The big numbers are sang brilliantly and personal highlight had to be 'Feed The Birds', pure perfection. Mary Poppins is a story that will never tire, it will simply enchant and remind you of the magic y

Into The Ark Interview

Dane Lloyd and Taylor Jones also known as Into The Ark have signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell and Paolo Nutini's management team will be looking after the guys. Into The Ark play Clwb Ifor Bach on December 13th and marks the groups return to the capital.  Hi guys, how're you? We're good thanks! First of all well done on all the success so far! Are you excited to be back in Cardiff & playing Clwb Ifor Bach  on Tuesday 13th ? Yes! We haven’t played home in a while, these gigs always get a bit messy (in a good way…) It's quite a big stage compared to busking on the streets, do you treat it the same? Do you get nervous? Yeah I think it's good if you're still getting a bit nervous but we treat all shows the same, even if there's one person in the crowd. Fingers crossed there will be a few more than that though.  Tell us a little about the new single ''My Ghost'... My Ghost was our first single that we released on our own

Kiln.Secured Review

Tonight is your last chance to catch ‘Secured’, a comedic look into life at a Security Surveillance Office. Performing tonight at AJ’s Coffee House, City Road at 7pm, tickets are only £5. “Two men staring at a set of CCTV monitors doesn't sound like the most auspicious of settings for a comedy but the opening of Secured belies what is to come. Performed by James Sarson, Aaron Price and the walkie-talkie-fied Melanie Stevens, Unsecured is a bright, funny play with some surprisingly touching elements that really do make you connect with the characters. Packing in a gag-per-minute ratio that would make many comedy scriptwriters envious, Secured contrasts two men attempting to bond across generations and makes for compelling watching. This is a show I truly hope returns to the stage in the near future to give more people a chance to catch it and is a solid turn for debut writer Tobias Weatherburn and director Becca Lidstone. I look forward to seeing what they have planned next.”

Only Men Aloud at St David's Hall

Wales favourite Man Band returned to St David's Hall on Saturday night as part of their Christmas tour. In a festive extravaganza the guys kickstarted the Christmas season giving all the Yuletide classics the Only Men Aloud makeover. Stunning renditions of Whams 'Last Christmas' and 'Silent Night' were definite highlights from the show, also there was incredible, unique renditions of well known hits such as 'I Think We're Alone Now' and 'Macarthur Park'. Special guests Only Kids Aloud performed songs from Matilda & Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and concluded their performance with a duet with Only Men Aloud. The slickly choreographed show concluded with a spine tingling performance of Christmas classic O' Holy Night. It was clear to see the guys were enjoying the show as much as the audience and even stayed behind to meet their fans afterwards.

Stifyn Parri SHUT YOUR MOUTH at The Wales Millennium Centre

It's Saturday night, Wales are playing to a packed Principality Stadium and just a mile down the road Rhosllannerchrugogs most famous son has packed a full house at The Wales Millennium Centre. Venues which have both been very important in the career of Stifyn Parri. For it was he that orchestrated the Ryder Cup Concert that brought icons like Bassey and Zeta Jones to the Stadium to celebrate the prestigious golfing tournament and it was he that also put on the Millennium Centres opening Extravaganza. I doubt many were surprised by the success of Stifyn Parri least of all himself. When he recalls stories from his childhood and his early performances it's clear the boy was meant to be seen and most certainly heard. 'Shut Your Mouth' is a hilarious and sometimes touching journey through the life of Stifyn Parri, filled with anecdotes from a man whose rubbed shoulders with everyone from Bonnie Tyler to The Prince Of Wales. Packed with gossip but told with fondness

The Full Monty | The Wales Millennium Centre

Looking for some Hot Stuff? I know where you'll find it! Simon Beaufoy's stage adaptation of the hit film takes you on an emotional rollercoaster as you experience the highs and lows of six redundant steel workers during Margret Thatchers time in power. Set in Sheffield where the community is plagued by recession we follow the guys as they battle personal and financial troubles. Inspired by the Chippendales the guys decide to form a dance/strip routine that can earn them a quick buck, just like the film all kinds of hysterics follow as they put together a strip routine for 'Bums of Steel'. Gary Lucy leads the cast as the hopeless Gaz who struggles between fatherhood and unemployment. Lucy is as loveable as the character originally played by Robert Carlyle and the banter between him and Kai Owen (Dave) is comedy gold. Chris Fountain brings the buff and a whole lot more to the show playing Guy, you remember the line in the film 'the lunchbox has landed'? Wel

The Rocky Horror Show | New Theatre Cardiff

Men in basques and ladies in frilly maids outfits, not your average Monday night in Cardiff and The New Theatre is home to The Rocky Horror Show for the next week so these are scenes your bound to witness  while walking through our capital. The Rocky Horror Show has and always will be the most fabulous, sexy, fun packed romp that ever graced a theatre stage. This production is an absolute thrill with a great cast which delivers wit, song & sass as good as any other production I've seen of this cult classic. Wonderful performances from all especially the narrator Philip Franks whose interaction with the audience kept the laughs coming. Frank N Furter is once again played by Liam Tamne and he is outstanding, the boy can sing dance and strut in the tallest heels I've ever seen. Other great performances from Will Knights as Riff Raff and Dominic Anderson as Rocky whose body is worthy of a BAFTA if not his acting. Rocky Horror is one of those shows you just want

Only Men Aloud | Interview with Craig Yates

Wales favourite man band are back at St David's Hall on December 3rd. Only Men Aloud bring their winter tour to the capital just in time for Christmas and if last years spectacular was anything to go by then you'd be mad to miss it.  We caught up with Craig Yates ahead of their winter gigs. What can we expect when you perform at St David's Hall? We always have a fantastic night at St David’s Hall, and this year will be extra special. As well as lots of Only Men Aloud hits, and all of your Christmas favourites, we are going to be joined by the brilliant Only Kids Aloud Chorus. They are a group of 9-13 year olds, from all over Wales who are all incredible singers. We can’t wait to hear them sing with us! We have also got some brand new routines and songs, which we are really looking forward to performing. You've played some amazing venues over the years, which has been your favourite? The two that really stand out for me is the

Rebecca Ferguson Interview

Rebecca Ferguson is back with an amazing new album and a UK Tour. Despite coming runner up in the hit talent show X Factor she's carved out a successful career, she's toured America and is releasing her second album. Rebecca plays St David's Hall on November 14th and we caught up with her to talk about the new album, being a touring mum and life after X Factor. W&W: Hi Rebecca how are you? R: I'm good, busy promoting my new album. W&W: Tell us all about it.. R: Its called Superwoman and is a very positive album, it was very emotional to make. It's about relationship break ups and building yourself back up. For me it was empowering because it's about building yourself up again and saying I'm going to get through this. Theres a few songs on the album which are really emotional but overall I'd say it's very uplifting. W&W: How much input did you have in the writing of this album? R: I wrote all the songs apart from one song. The s

Anastacia Interview | Wyburn and Wayne Cardiff Times

Anastacia Interview Having recently exploded back on to our screens as a contestant on BBC Strictly Come Dancing, we chat to the Chicago born vocal powerhouse Anastacia, about the show, her upcoming UK Ultimate Collection tour and her new records! W&W - Hi Anastacia how're you today? A - I'm great thank you, it's a lovely sunny day here! W&W - Yes here in Cardiff too! It's Nathan Wyburn speaking, we've met before with the sushi art and I've also done the gold glitter... A - OMG you're the artist, I can't believe you're interviewing me right now! W&W - I know it's crazy for me too, I also write for Cardiff times so this is an honour for me! A - I literally just retweeted your glitter artwork because I'm so thankful you're doing that, thank you! This is hillair! W&W - Thank you! So.. Ultimate collection tour, the next leg is due to start in May, how excited are you? A - I'm really excited! It was

Grey at The Hilton Cardiff

Hotel restaurants often lack personality and quite frankly good food but to say we were pleasantly surprised with Grey at The Hilton is a major understatement. It's manager Pasquale Manganiello has achieved something quite unique with Grey, it has all the loveliness of a family run Bistro with friendly staff and food that can only be described as amazing. The menu is varied and there is something for everyone. It covers all tastes including great vegetarian options. There's a fantastic selection of seafood dishes too and the portion sizes will please those with a big appetite. When food is this good size does matter. The daily 'Specials' included lamb Cawl, always a dodgy option because nobody makes Cawl like your mum right? Well this Cawl was the best I've ever had (don't tell my mum). I recommend anyone visiting Wales to visit Grey to try this famous Welsh dish, you won't be disappointed. For main courses we ordered Sausages and Mash and Lamb Shank.

Alison Wheeler (The South) Interview

Singer Alison Wheeler has been with the Beautiful South and now the remaining band members The South since 2002, the band continue to play sold out gigs all over Europe and are back in Wales for what is sure to be a great night out. We caught up with Alison just before their gig at The Globe Cardiff. W&W: Hi Alison, welcome back to Cardiff! Alison: It's great to be back, always a great crowd at The Globe, always s great reception in Cardiff. W&W: And The Globe is always a great party when you guys perform. Alison: It is, the warmth off the people there, it's  always lovely. W&W: You've been with the band since 2002, such a fun band and never a dull moment with these guys. Alison: Haha.. yes and we've nicknamed this tour the Never A Dull Moment Tour, even yesterday Hammy was struck down with illness and had s bucket at the side of the stage. He kept going! W&W: Why do you think the band are still so popular? Alison: I think

Great Taste Wales Celebrations

It's always great to attend the Great Taste Wales Celebrations and this years event at St David's Hotel showcased the finest Welsh food and drink and also gave us an opportunity to chat to the people behind the tastiest produce coming out of Wales. On a personal level it was great to catch up with Wern Ganol who we had the pleasure of meeting many years ago at The Great Roath Bake Off, his win at that Bake Off pushed him into taking his baking skills to another level. Seriously great cake! His fruit cake is as good as it gets and it pleases me to see that he's now showcasing his work at such events as Great Taste Wales. Other familiar businesses such as Penylan Preserves were there displaying their array of delicious produce. Again their preserves are some of the best you'll ever taste and the chilli jam was out of this world! Meeting people like these and hearing them speak passionately about their work gives you a sense of pride knowing that such great quality food