June- David Beckham

So my celeb of the month for June is British football legend and sweetheart David Beckham. This beautiful man needs no introduction but is one of the biggest icons in the world today. Unlike some celebs, David is humble, a promoter of British culture, demonstrated with his involvement in the Olympics and pledge to host the World Cup but most of all Becks embodies the classic tale everybody loves, the story of a young boy who's life is transformed as he goes from rags to riches with plenty of hard work.

It's a well known fact that Becks is fantastic all year round, however this month he has stood out on a number of occasions. Since turning the big 40 in May, our British icon has extended his position as a UNICEF GoodWill Ambassador which he has held for the past ten years and this month headed off to Cambodia to meet and greet children who had been endured physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Earlier this year Becks also launched his very own UNICEF charity '7': The David Beckham UNICEF fund which helps to protect children worldwide who have been subject to such monstrosities.

This month David has also become better acquainted with Her Majesty The Queen as he visited Buckingham Palace for the Queen's Young Leaders event in which he sat beside Her Majesty in a photo not too dissimilar from his football squad shots. 

Mr Beckham is also renowned for his role as a 'family man' and this was proved only in the last few days when Becks showed off his new tat of a minion nominated by his daughter by Harper (don't worry its only a fake!). Beckham was also spotted in Cambridge recently punting with his family. As David frequently reiterates he thanks his family for his continued success, and now the Beckhams themselves are all very successful. Victoria as we know a former Spice Girl now has numerous fashion lines and Romeo has become the new face of Burberry. I think what makes David so special is the close relationship he holds with his wife and children. People love that he holds family values and high morals close to his heart. Beckham himself is also style icon, often modelling for H and M and Burberry. 

Watching David Beckham grow in the last ten years from England football legend to a family man and international icon makes me feel proud that he is British. We are very lucky to have such a fabulous human being. Maybe he continue to be brilliant. Thank you Becks. 

Motivation to get fit- This Girl Can

I'm officially on my campaign to reach that desired 'summer body' which is so heavily publicised in the build up to the summer holidays. As a student, my summer holidays are very loooonnnggg but great as they are filled with chilling with friends in the sun, trips out on bike rides and walks, and of course flying off aboard to see some more guaranteed sunshine.

So, why am I blogging about fitness? I feel women are pressured to 'look good' physically. I agree men also experience this pressure however all over Twitter, Instagram and in the press are images which show the 'ideal' women's body, basically an image of an athletic woman complete with six pack. Moreover in magazines, frequently across the front pages show women of the celeb world who have 'put on weight' or 'lost their shape'. I'm no fitness fanatic, but with all the fitness promotions appearing in the media in the run up to summer I have been inspired to partake in more physical activity, including spending half a dozen hours a week in the gym. I don't believe everyone needs to be going to the gym every day, but I do think partaking in some form of physical activity once a week has no end of benefits. Women especially are being targeted in these campaigns as surveys demonstrate that so many more men exercise on a weekly basis than women. Recently we witnessed the release of the Sport England's 'This Girl Can' campaign which was aimed at everyday women, who work full time, are single parents or simply want to go and get fitter to exercise. It shows women playing sport, on runs, in the gym; they are all simply participating in exercise.

The recent release of the Nike advert also perfectly summarises the plea for ordinary women to get fit, with each individual participating in activity that is not necessarily intense, but is right for them. The group of women are endeavouring to 'get fitter' although they are no gym addicts themselves. The slogan and message emphasised by the video is 'Better For It' which promotes the idea that no matter what exercise you do, you will feel the benefit.

So what are the benefits of exercise on a regular basis?

1. Sense of achievement
2. Reduces heart disease
3. Reduces risk of cancer
4. Helps you to to set goals
5. Reduces the risk of dementia 
6. Reduces the risk of osteoporosis 
7. Reduces likeliness of depression, stress and anxiety
8. Enhances mental perfomance 
9. Improves you skin
10. Prevents muscle decay 

So go on, get out and there and get fit. Even if your playing tennis once a week, going swimming on the occasion or going for regular jogs. Trust me- you will feel 'better for it'. 

Top five albums to have on loop this summer

So summer is approaching which means plenty of time chilling in the garden, on the beach or on holiday somewhere plugged in listening to your favourite tunes. Are you wondering what to add to your playlist next? Look no further, as these albums by this collection of incredible artists are definitely worth a listen over the summer break.

1. Sam Smith- In The Lonely Hour 

I'm sure you've heard his name everywhere! In the charts and on the TV, Sam Smith has dominated the music industry for the last 6 months and has been labelled the male version of Adele for his big voice and his rapid rise to fame. He has had several best-selling singles from this album including Stay With Me, I'm Not The Only One and Like I Can. Sam has also won 4 Grammys, 2 Brit Awards and more recently 3 Billboard Music Awards. I don't think there is one song on this album that I'm not so keen on, they are all brilliant. 

2. James Bay- Choas and Calm 

A newcomer to the music industry, James Bay stormed up the charts with the single Hold Back the River, which when it was first released, I was obsessed with. His album shot up to the number one best seller in the UK and reached fifteen in the US charts, a remarkable achievement for a guy of 24. I love this album, I think James is a true genius, his songs are both emotive and individually fantastic. This album has great originality and his acoustic sound is perfect to listen to throughout the summer with a cider in hand. My favourite tunes include; Scars, If You Ever Want To Be In Love and When We Were On Fire. He is definitely next on my list to see live. 

3. George Ezra- Wanted On Voyage 

I first heard this album last year, it became our holiday soundtrack when I was down in Salcombe, Devon with family and friends. It is truly great. Ezra has such a unique voice he's almost addictive to listen to. His voice, I believe, is a great one for summer as its so chilled and helps you relax. George, only 21, was nominated for 4 Brit Awards and his album reached number 3 in the UK charts. His most popular songs are Budapest, Blame it On Me and Cassy O', however my favourite is Barcelona.

4. Taylor Swift- 1989

Now I know I have already discussed Taylor in my previous post, nominating her as my inspirational icon of the month, but I have to reiterate how brilliant her album. The title derives from the year of her birth and Taylor has claimed that many of the songs have been inspired by hits of the late eighties such as Madonna's Like a Prayer. This album is a lot more 'poppy' than her previous albums such as Red and establishes Swift's transgression as a country singer to a pop icon. My favourite tracks from the album include Blank Space, Wildest Dreams and How To Get The Girl. Following Swift's success with this release, definitely check this one out.

5. Years and Years- Y & Y EP 

I have quickly become a big fan of Years and Years, even before they hit the charts. Since the release of their single King, which reached number 1 on the UK charts the band have had a sequence of success with hits such as Desire and Take Shelter. Their new release Shine is also worth checking out.
You may recognise the lead, Olly Alexander, from films such as Great Expectations in which he played Herbet Pocket alongside Jeremy Irvine who played Pip. He has also starred in the Riot Club, Skins and more recently has appeared in the TV series Penny Dreadful. I think this band are yet to achieve big things; they have mountains of success coming their way. Their unique sound brings something new to the music industry and all their songs are very catchy with great backing tracks.

The Imitation Game

After missing the release of The Imitation Game at the cinema, I sat down a couple of nights ago and watched it and it did not fail to live up to my expectations; it was fantastic. I was both astounded and saddened to know the final fate of Alan Turing, the inspiration behind the film. The film focuses on the cracking of the Nazi enigma code in the Second World War led by Alan, the breaking of this code effectively won the war for the Allies. Real emphasis is placed on Alan's invention 'Christopher', the enigma code translator, which has now been regarded as the first computer ever built. Despite his efforts, Mr Turing was dismissed as a 'hero' of the war and his achievements were previously overlooked due to the discovery that he was a homosexual, an illegal offence at the time. He underwent horrific chemical treatments to try and 'cure' him of this 'disease'. In recent times, Alan's triumph has been recognised as one of the biggest achievements in British history and he has been pardoned by the Queen, however only recently in December 2014 for his 'scandalous' behaviour. Alan maintained the phrase that 'Sometimes it's the people no one imagined anything of do things which no one ever imagined', which perfectly summaries his achievement. He is now regarded as the pioneer of our modern day computers, which we cannot live without and with his 'Christopher' it is said he shortened the war by over two years. I think this quote by Alan is always something we should remember. If your ever feeling like you can't reach your dreams, are being overlooked, or are having a bad day, don't forget that if you persist hard enough you can accomplish anything you want to.

Additionally, Benedict Cumberbatch (oo I love his name) portrayed Alan's trials and tribulations perfectly, I think this is possibly Cumberbatch's best performance yet. Cumberbatch, who is renowned as Sherlock Holmes on the BBC series Sherlock, Starter for Ten and Atonement, I felt deserved a Bafta for his performance in this film, however his rival Eddie Redmayne playing Professor Stephen Hawking also delivered an excellent performance in The Theory of Everything (also worth a watch). So I recommend an evening in watching The Imitation Game, maybe get some popcorn to add to the cinematic experience, you don't want to miss it.

Alan Turing 1912-1954

Below is the trailer of The Imitation Game- so check it out!

May- Taylor Swift

Celebs are everywhere; all over Twitter, Instagram, in magazines and on TV, however how much do we really know about them? A relatively new idea of mine is to post each month about a celeb who has appeared in the media recently due to success or are inspirational individuals. So starting off this trend is Miss Taylor Swift, who I am sure you are all familiar with. So why Taylor?

Don't you watch videos of Taylor now and think how grown up she has become? Far gone are those days as a sweet young country singer in music videos such as Love Story and Teardrops on My Guitar. I picked Taylor this month due to her latest release Bad Blood, which echoes the amount of success she has and how 'bad ass' she has become in more recent years. Starring big time celebs such as Cara Devevingne, Ellie Goulding and Selena Gomez, the video emphasises 'girl power' (no men feature in this video!) and shows Taylor to be sophisticated, sexy and most importantly authoritative which perfectly resembles the figure she has become. She has just been named the number 1 on Maxim Hot List for 2015 and doesn't she deserve it? She has also become a style icon, especially with her trademark 'red lips' which has encouraged many young girls to copy this trait. Her haircut which was most prominently showcased in her video Blank Space, inspired me to go shorter over Christmas to achieve a more 'grown up' look which I think Taylor carries off so well. Additionally Miss Swift racked an income of 64 million in 2014 after the obvious first big selling female artist, Beyonce. But her success doesn't end there...

Bad Blood

Taylor's new album 1989 is truly great! I've uploaded it to my phone thanks to a friend of mine and every song is really good, not like some albums where you pick your favourites to listen to and discard the rest. However I do have my favourites, including: Blank Space, Style, Wildest Dreams and How to Get the Girl. What I like about Taylor and particularly this album is you can listen to her when in any mood and when anywhere, she has a song to suit that journey home on the bus, in your bed at night or good tunes for a party. So I highly encourage all you readers to go and have a listen!

Unfortunately nothing is ever perfect, a message Taylor frequently reiterates herself, as Taylor's mum was diagnosed with cancer in December 2014. Despite this Taylor has stated that the last twelve months have been the best months of her life so far. She became a tourist ambassador for New York, has produced an album she has always wanted to make and has won various awards. She won several Billboard Awards including Top Female Artist 2015, was nominated for 3 grammys, won Favourite Female Artist in the People's Choice Awards and International Female Solo Artist at this years Brit Awards. Although she has been very successful in the music industry, Miss Swift has been renound to be not so good on the dating scene. Past boyfriends include; Joe Jonas, Lucas Till, Cory Monteith, John Mayer, Taylor Launtner, Jake Gyllenhaal, Conor Kennedy, and the most remembered, cheeky boy Harry Styles. However, with her new man by her side Mr Calvin Harris, has Taylor found her 'Love Story' after all?

Top Female Artist- Billboard Awards 17.05.2015

Taylor's humblness and wise words surrounding relationships and her approach to the conflict surrounding women over being labelled 'attractive' based on certain physical features has elevated her respectability even more amongst the public. Lets commence Taylor for her success, she works very hard and has therefore come along way from those days singing about Romeo and Juliet and other fairytale romances. That transition from country singer to chart topping pop artist is evident in her music now. Today Taylor sings about power, finding yourself, and loving who you are which is especially reflected in her new album in songs such as Welcome to New York, Shake it Off and Blank Space. So well done Taylor, keep it up, I'm sure there are more awards, success and number 1's on the horizon.

Love Story- Back in 2008 when Miss Swift was just starting out! I'm sure you all remember that one.













Blank Space- Produced in 2014 this video demonstrates how Taylor's style has developed and rocks and damn good and sassy attitude. How she has matured.


Taylor, in a recent interview has shed light on why she believes feminism to be 'vital' to society in reaching equality between sexes. Check out Buzzfeed for more information on this!

Taylor Swift on Double Standards And The Importance Of Feminism
http://www.buzzfeed.com/kristinharris/taylor-swift-perfectly-explains-the-importance-of-feminism#.mpmOJjk66g

The Election- how did do the young voters do?

Now we know the result, it is interesting to consider how many young people went out and voted in the election. Many people who were very apprehensive over what proportion of 18-24 year olds were to actually turn up to the polling stations. A survey conducted by CosRes suggested that 1 in 4 young people did not vote. I think this is rather true. For example, out of my 6 flatmates, only 3 of us voted and interestingly they are all girls. Since 1992 the turn out from young voters in Britain has dramatically declined, but why is this? It is possibly due to the fact that now young voters must register individually on the electoral register rather than by household.

So how did we do in 2015? According to Sky News, and with thanks to the British Electoral Study, 6 out of 10 young people voted in the election. Thats more than half! This is an improvement on the last two elections, as the turn out this year was 58% compared with the 52% in 2010 and 38% in 2005. Issues such as the state of the NHS, immigration and tuition fees have all grasped the attention of young voters, however I believe its the increase of use of social media by political parties and by politicians that has really captivated the young people of Britain. For example, on May the 7th, Facebook had a automated status you could post declaring that you had taken part in the election. The continuous flow of the caption 'so and so has voted in the 2015 general election' on newsfeeds across the country may have encouraged young voters who had registered to go and submit their polling card. Also Twitter was highly active throughout the build up to the election with various politicians tweeting their manifestos which may have also enticed young people to go out and vote. Something I noticed was the emphasis placed on young women to go out and vote, with many twitter campaigns sharing images of the suffragettes furiously campaigning for the vote back in 1918 which was possibly initiated as we are nearing the one hundred year anniversary of gaining that right.

Social media is the perfect way for politicians to contact the young generation, as nearly everyone has Facebook or Twitter or some form of network that allows them to connect with people beyond the walls of their home. I therefore think in the next election of 2020, we will witness, I hope, an increase in young people actively taking part in the election because they are aware of its implications.

For me, and I know many of you out there will share this view, the vote is important for young people. I think we need to continue to turn out for the vote, don't think it doesn't concern you. Remember this government and Mr Cameron will be in power for the next 5 years. A lot can happen in this time. I will be finished university and looking for a job, which is when governmental policies will come in to play in my life. Also I agree that all you women out there should vote for all those women who gained you that right, gave up their lives and went to extreme measures. So if there is anything we can learn from this election, its keep updated on politics through social media, its more important than you may think!

The Liebster Awards 2015

Getting a nomination for a Liebster award is a privilege! As a newcomer to the blogging scene, only beginning my blog in May last year, I have been hooked posting things which have inspired me to share with you.

Thankyou very much to Listen Lauren for my nomination, you are a great friend of mine and your blog is truly awesome. Everyone should defiantly check out this blog, especially friday posts which for us women out there as it makes us think about the world we live in today.

As promised I will answer all the questions posed to me by Lauren, so here we go!

What place is #1 on your travel bucket list? 
Currently, that would have to be New York. I am desperate to see all the grand sites, experience Broadway and explore Central Park.  

Chocolate or cheese?
Oooo, chocolate every time. 

What is the next book you want to read?
Mrs. Dolloway by Virginia Woolf. I am going to be commencing my study on women in the early 1920's for my dissertation and this book seems to demonstrate perfectly the expectations, behaviour and the degree of freedom women experienced after the First World War. A good friend very kindly bought this for me recently and I look forward to reading it.  

Words of wisdom to pass on to your future child?
Don't worry what other people think of you too much. Stay true to yourself. Be kind, honest and have faith in yourself and you'll be okay. 

What is your dream job?
Be an actress like Keira Knightly, however I have a feeling that dream is slightly far fetched. Therefore I suppose a realistic dream is to be a journalist, to write and have people read my work and think yeah, this is good. 

Sunsets or sunrises? What is the story of your best experience of one?
Sunsets are my favourite, and my best one has to be sat on a beach with a cider in hand surrounded by friends quite content. I would like to do this more often! 

Netflix or YouTube?
Netflix, simply because I have recently signed up once again and I love exploring the variety of films they have on there, especially the oldies! 

Who is your favourite disney 'princess'? 
I think Cinderella. I think her humble character and hardworking personality makes her transformation from rags to riches even more brilliant. Of course, I also like the fact it gives the message that no matter where you come from, if you possess kindness and courage you can find your 'prince'. 

Are you answering these at night or in the day?
Night. I am much more of a night owl than an early bird. 

If you could master any skill, what would it be?
Hmm, probably to be a fantastic public speaker. I think this skill is crucial to the lives we lead, however I would love to 'master' that skill to its full potential.  

Do you believe in aliens?
Yes. Although they are not green with giant black eyes. I think its highly likely, out there in another solar system exists a planet very similar to Earth which has the optimum conditions to produce living organisms. 

Now, here is a set of my own questions!

1. Dogs or Cats? 
2. If you could play any character from a TV show, who would it be and why?
3. What is your favourite season?
4. What was the last picture taken on your phone? 
5. If you could wake up tomorrow in the body of someone else, who would it be?
6. What is the first thing you notice about someone?
7. What would be the perfect day?
8. What was the last film you watched?
9. London, Paris or New York?
10. Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
11. What are you most proud of in your life right now? 

So here is my list of nominees for an award. They are all deserving candidates and Im sure are all ones to watch for the future. So go take a look at their posts!

1. http://miscriant.blogspot.co.uk/
2. http://laurenjedwards.blogspot.co.uk/ 
3. http://ashliesmall.blogspot.com/ 
4. http://rachelbirchley.com/ 
5. http://craftyowl93.blogspot.ca/
6. http://philosophyandcake.blogspot.co.uk/
7. http://collectiontwenty.blogspot.co.uk
8. http://eleanorcos.blogspot.ie
9. http://gloriouschic.blogspot.co.uk
10. http://glassboxesblog.com