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We Strictly aren't worthy of the fabulous Johannes Radebe

We Strictly aren’t worthy of the fabulous Johannes Radebe

Kelvin Fletcher’s heavenly hips may be giving Shirley Ballas hot flushes and Karim Zeroual’s flawless footwork might be propelling him to the top of the leaderboard but if there’s one man who has Strictly Come Dancing viewers screaming with delight every Saturday night it’s the fierce and fabulous Johannes Radebe.

The South African professional dancer officially joined the Strictly line-up in…

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Derry Girls delivers a vital history lesson that we all need to heed

Derry Girls delivers a vital history lesson that we all need to heed

When the first series of Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls ended with a quite literally explosive bomb blast, it was difficult NOT to feel a lump form in your throat.

And as the credits rolled on season two’s penultimate episode many viewers found themselves in tears once again.

Joe and Gerry find common ground in the series 1 finale (Channel 4)

The Cranberries’ Zombie rang out as Ma Mary, Gerry, Aunt…

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Joe Sugg deserves a spot in the Strictly Come Dancing Final

Joe Sugg deserves a spot in the Strictly Come Dancing Final

“Who even is he?”the British public cried when Joe Sugg was first announced for Strictly Come Dancing 2018.

To the vast majority the term YouTube meant little more than someone who sat in their bedroom and made money by talking to a camera. And in order to explain who he was, Sugg was often introduced as the younger brother of his ever so slightly more mainstream-famous YouTuber sister, Zoella.

1…

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Did you miss me?

Did you miss me?

How do you revive a blog when you’ve neglected it for more than 12 months?

That’s a question I’ve been asking myself this summer while trying to justify paying a direct debit for a domain I’ve left dormant since 2017.

There once was a time when I’d happily take to the internet to wax lyrical about issues I was furious about, or things that had inspired me and deserved to be celebrated. Then I…

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Work In Progress

It’s Strawberry Blonde has nipped out for a mini makeover. Abnormal service will resume soon.

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How to move to London without really trying

How to move to London without really trying

This time last year I was sitting in Dublin airport with a caramel latté and a copies of Empire and SFX, being the very definition of “notions” because I was on a two week jaunt over to London to do a bit of work experience and had next to nothing to lose. A disheartened and depressed 25 year old film and TV journalist who was still reeling from a bad break-up stepped onto an aeroplane and…

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Why being a quitter makes me mentally fitter

Why being a quitter makes me mentally fitter

From a very young age I have struggled with my weight, in particular the “thunder thighs” I grew to despise. Those who know me now tend to balk when I mention those body image issues: “But sure you’re the size of nothing” they cry, eyeing my 9-10 stone frame. “There’s not a pick on you.” And yet every time I try to squeeze my legs into a pair of jeans the panic starts. Shops just don’t make…

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Where can I watch The Late Late Toy Show if I live in London?

Where can I watch The Late Late Toy Show if I live in London?

If there’s one thing that always signals the start of Christmas for many Irish children it’s The Late Late Toy Show. And as an adult, no matter whether you’ve failed to get on it, or failed to get tickets to it, you’ll end up watching it year on year – you might even end up writing about it, like I have, year after year. This year, I’m living in London when it’s due to air, but that doesn’t mean…

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Daniel O'Donnell didn't need a glitterball to win Strictly Come Dancing

Daniel O’Donnell didn’t need a glitterball to win Strictly Come Dancing

When the news that Daniel O’Donnell was to take to the Strictly dance floor broke, Ireland went into instant meltdown. From Cork to his own stronghold in Donegal, the jokes about O’Donnell’s Strictly hopes came on thick and fast, with one drive time radio host struggling to comprehend what he’d just heard on his station’s news bulletin. Wee Daniel? On Strictly? Surely they were having a laugh.…

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One Direction OTRA Dublin: Niall Horan's Perfect homecoming

One Direction OTRA Dublin: Niall Horan’s Perfect homecoming

“HOW COULD THEY DO THAT TO US?” screams a little girl in a One Direction t-shirt as the 3Arena’s screens fade back to black after an ad for the band’s upcoming Made In The AM brings the house down. “Calm down now” her mother urges. “I can’t calm down”, she replies matter of factly. And neither can the crowd who’ve gathered for the first of three sold out One Direction gigs at the venue formerly…

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World Mental Health Day | No dignity, no doubt

World Mental Health Day | No dignity, no doubt

Hey oh… no, don’t worry. I won’t push the pun any further. Today marks yet another World Mental Health Day and I’d initially planned to write some needlessly long blog post about how important it is for us to talk and mind our minds, but I think that message is well and truly echoed around the world as is. So, instead, I want to talk about dignity, which just so happens to be the theme of this…

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Better #RepealThe8th than pregnant

Better #RepealThe8th than pregnant

It’s not often that we celebrate the sight of blood but ask a 22 year old cowering in a bathroom cubicle in UCD of a Thursday morning after a sleepless night and panicked purchase of a pregnancy test and she’ll tell you there’s no sweeter visual. Ask anyone who’s had a pregnancy scare and they’ll tell you the same thing. They’ll recount a similar tale of how mild panic turned to joy when they…

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Shake me up when September ends

Shake me up when September ends

“Life is a rollercoaster, you’ve just gotta ride it”: Ronan Keating “schaid” it best while saying pretty much nothing at all, and it’s never been more clear to me than it is now. I won’t bore you with my characteristic “if you’d told me a year ago” blog opener, but I will say that looking back on the past 12 months, I’ve come to realise just how quickly life can change, both for the better and…

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Give up the Ghosting

Give up the Ghosting

Log on to Twitter or any form of social media this week and you’ll see the term ‘Ghosting” being thrown around a lot. It’s being touted as the latest break-up fad, with Charlize Theron pushed into the ‘poster girl’ position thanks to her apparent decision to ‘ghost’ Sean Penn. But ghosting, my friends, as DailyEdge.ie rightly pointed out, is nothing new. And it’s far from a ‘trend’ or a process…

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An Irish redhead in London: June know what I mean?

An Irish redhead in London: June know what I mean?

It’s been a while since last I posted a “Redhead in London” blog – two months or so, to be vague – and, well, it’s fair to say a lot has happened since last we spoke. This Thursday marks five whole months since I stepped on a seemingly insignificant flight to London in the hopes of discovering whether or not TV and entertainment journalism were still for me. And what a five months it has been. In…

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Hashtags or cash bags?

Hashtags or cash bags?

“Let’s Go Mental” comes the rallying cry, not from a bunch of lads about to head out on a so-called ‘mad one”, but from the Irish Government as gets behind another mental health hashtag campaign on Twitter. You might have spotted one or two of them around before, back in the days when Enda Kenny’s #littlethings caused quite the storm on Twitter. “We need to talk about mental health” they say, but…

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Come what May

In less than 24 hours Ireland will go to the polls for one of the most important votes in the country’s history and I’m completely and utterly terrified.

It’s widely known that the Marriage Equality Referendum will ask the people to decide if same-sex marriage should be given the same legal recognition as heterosexual marriage, and support for the Yes vote appears to be widespread.

And yet, if…