One Big Laugh

This was one of those 'charity comedy nights' you hear so much about.  We mainly went because we wanted to see the comics, but the charity thing was nice too.  However, having one of the comics pass his artificial leg around the audience as part of his act was a bit weird.

Seth Lakeman

We'd seen Seth almost a year previously, at the tiny Borderline. This was a bigger venue for his bigger status, but he didn't fail to impress. I was knackered from a hellish time at work, but despite me just nodding to most of the songs rather than all-out jigging about I still had a great time. It was also great to have Alice's mum with us - she's now an enormous Seth fan too :)

The Pipettes

I guess this was a bit of a gamble. We'd heard of the Pipettes by getting their album, and liked what was there. So we went to see them live - I think it's the first time in a while that we were actually going to see somebody we weren't already a "fan" of. But with their 60s-esque sound and polka-dot pop, this was a gig of the highest order. A short set, admittedly, but very much worth it. Plus we had the opportunity to visit our friends Mark and Angela who lived nearby. Excellent :)

Sziget Festival 2006

O-ho! Sziget! This was our first time at the mother-of-all festivals (which takes place on an island in the middle of the Danube near Budapest in Hungary). We took a bit of a risk - we fancied a break and gambled that this would be good - and boy, was it worth it! A whole week of music from every genre you can possibly imagine. And all for less than a weekend festival in the UK. Bring it on.

Market Boy

This was an outstanding piece of drama at the National. We were in the second row, with veery little legroom, but as a result were in the cheapest £10 but within spitting distance (literally, at points) of the actors. Brilliant.

Guilfest Festival 2006

Guilfest, it must be said, was a bit of a disappointment. I guess I've been spoiled with the festivals and music things I've gone to, and so a couple of stages in a field with no "interesting" stuff going on was actually a bit dull. I can't sympathise with people who take their comfy chairs and picnic baskets and sit at the main stage all day who complain that they don't like who's on. In that case, go to see a different band! However, one highlight of this weekend was that my dad came along - I don't get to see him often and so it was really nice to be able to wander around the tents and slag all the bands off with him :-D

Take That

Alice's Christmas present was tickets to see Take That at Wembley. Unfortunately, though, the Australian builders hadn't finished it in time so instead we trekked up to Milton Keynes Bowl with Tabs and Kerry. I was feeling really ill this day, but managed to make it through what was a superb concert. I was off ill for the following week though :( It was clearly a bad reaction to Take That.