Recent Articles

BYO Wallace and Gromit Rocket (in: Games & toys)
Jun 20, 2023

Fancy building your own rocket from Aardman's first film, A Grand Day Out, and flying to the moon for cheese? Now you can with this cracking cardboard BYO Wallace and Gromit Rocket kit. Lee Cooper-Muir and son, Mason, review.

Get Your Feet Summer Ready (in: Healthy parents)
Jun 15, 2023

Podiatrist Dr Paul Chadwick and advisor to Excilor – makers of the much loved and trusted medicated footcare product range gives his top seven tips to get our feet summer ready.

How Nutrition Can Help Our Eyes (in: Healthy parents)
Jun 14, 2023

Good nutrition goes hand-in-hand with overall health and wellbeing, but certain nutrients play a specific role in the eye. Dr Emma Darbyshire advisor to MacuShield – makers one of the UK’s leading eye health supplement ranges – gives her tips and advice. 

GO Air POP – Wireless Earbuds (in: Products & equipment)
Jun 8, 2023

JLab, a leading tech company in the US, has changed the look and feel of Bluetooth true wireless earbuds with its brand new colour for its GO Air Pop – a pink version. Featuring JLab's most unobtrusive fit to date, the GO Air POP is 15 per cent smaller and 40 per cent lighter than the ground breaking JLab GO Air that set a new benchmark for the category in 2020.  Anne Coates  put them to the test.

Mona Lisa and the others* by Alice Harman and Sir Quentin Blake (in: Books: children & YA)
May 30, 2023

The Mona Lisa is not the only star at the Louvre with a story to tell ... In this humours walk through the Louvre in Paris, you’ll meet the subjects of 30 iconic artworks whose stories are equally as intriguing as the Mona Lisa’s. Text by Alice Harman and illustrated by Sir Quentin Blake. Review by Lee Cooper-Muir.

Spring Clean You Medicine Cabinet (in: Healthy parents)
May 23, 2023

Having a medicine cabinet or first aid box that is woefully understocked is the equivalent of opening the fridge when you are starving and finding nothing but a row of out-of-date sauces and a wilting lettuce leaf. So, what’s the secret to the very best medicine cabinet? What’s worth keeping, chucking, and buying? Pharmacist, Sultan Dajani, adviser to GoldenEye®, the experts behind the range of pharmacy recommended drops and ointments to treat conjunctivitis, styes and blepharitis, shares his guidance and top tips for the very best medicine cabinet.

The Frog’s Kiss by James Mayhew and Toto (in: Books: children & YA)
May 22, 2023

Lesley Lodge reviews The Frog’s Kiss by James Mayhew and Toto.

A Clock of Stars: The Greatest Kingdom (in: Books: children & YA)
May 15, 2023

A Clock of Stars: The Greatest Kingdom by Francesca Gibbons and illustrated by Chris Riddle completes the trilogy which began with The Shadow Moth. Review by Anne Coates.

Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical (in: Cinema/theatre/TV)
May 10, 2023

After five sold-out development runs at the New Diorama Theatre in 2019 and Southwark Playhouse in 2020, 2021 and 2022, plus an extended Riverside Studios run last summer, Operation Mincemeat is back – now at the Fortune Theatre until 19 August, 2023. Anne Coates reviews.

Creative Thinking Tips For Your Child (and You) (in: Personal development)
May 1, 2023

Chris Thomason, author of Freaky Thinking; Thinking that delivers a dazzling difference outlines his top tips to promote creative thinking for us and our children.

Bing: Ready to Play? (in: Books: children & YA)
Apr 28, 2023

Bing: Ready to Play? A Push, Pull and Spin Book for toddlers and young children, reviewed by Anne Coates.

Time to Renew Your Tax Credits (in: Money matters)
Apr 26, 2023

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will issue 1.5 million annual tax credits renewal packs for the 2023 to 2024 tax year to customers between 2 May and 15 June 2023. Once customers receive their annual renewal pack they will have until 31 July 2023 to check the information is correct and notify HMRC of any changes to their circumstances which may affect their claim.