FEEL GOOD FRIDAY!: Old People Fighting Back.

This actually made my week. I read about this on my phone in the quirky news section.
Then it appeared on Russell Howards Good News. :)

Yes my friends this is the story of 84 YEAR OLD!! Doris Theal who fought back against the intruder in her home. She is not the only granny fighting back though. Many stories are coming out now of old people fighting back those who try to harm them, who try to steal from them. You know what I say GOOD FOR THEM! too right.
In October 2010 when Liam Ingram picked a house to burgle, he picked compleatley the WRONG house for when 84 year old Doris and her 59 year old daughter found him in a back bedroom. they managed to get him in a headlock and beat him with a stick.
People who steal from the elderly, thinking they can get away with it, get all they deserve in my eyes, its dispicable, it's on a par with stealing from children. They prey on the vunerable who can't defend themselves so when something like this happens it really makes my week.

This is sweeping the nation as more and more elderly people are fighting back; another amazing example of this is one Gywneth Davies aged 86 who hit her burglar 4 times with a metal crutch and then proceeded to stand over him, not letting him move until police arrived. It's amazing.

I hope these stories have brought you as much Joy as they did me. It's nice to see people fighting back and getting justice for once in a while. if you want to find out more about these amazing women here are the links to the stories.

Doris' Story
Gywneth's Story

Ugly Duckling Out xx

30 Day Challenges: Day 11

30 Day Book Challenge: Day 11: Favourite Poetry: Voodoo Girl By Tim Burton

Her skin is white cloth,
and she's all sewn apart
and she has many colored pins
sticking out of her heart.

She has many different zombies
who are deeply in her trance.
She even has a zombie
who was originally from France.

But she knows she has a curse on her,
a curse she cannot win.
For if someone gets
too close to her,

the pins stick farther in.

I absolutley adore this poem because it isn't just about more then just a wierd creation. I love the Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and other stories book that he wrote to.

30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 11: Favourite Movie From Childhood.

This is such a brilliant film, it's got everything magic places, creepy villains, and one english lady defending England against a Nazi invasion with only a touch of magic and museum of old soldier uniforms from across the centuries.

The film itsself is about growing up- not only growing up but realising you don't have to stop believing just because your grown up. It's about sticking together to.

I love the underwater scene in the film when they win the trophy for the dancing and the football match the mixture of animation and live-action works really well and blend perfectly together. Not only does it have a pretty steller cast but it's got some of the best anc catchy songs from disney. I reccomend everyone sees it at least once :)

Ugly duckling Outxx

30 Day Challenges: Days 9 and 10

30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 9: A Movie You Know All The Script To: The Boat That Rocked.
Maybe Because I saw it at the cinema so many times. this film is billiant, it came to me at a point in my life when I needed a lift and the film gives off a certain energy that just leaves you feeling happy. Ecstatic.


30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 10: Your Favourite Director:Tim Burton.
The one thing that really annoys me, having Tim Burton as my favourite director is the fact that so many people will tell you he's their favourite director but they will only cite Nightmare Before Christmas and Beetlejuice as their favourite films. People tend to forget his other bouts of genius like Ed Wood, or James and The Giant Peach. His take on Batman.
His films are well known, it's like Marilyn Monroe people love her purely because it's the in thing to say, much is the same with Burton. I love his films don't get me wrong and his artwork but what I love more is him, is his quotes his interviews he really enjoys what he does. Much like with Pegg and Frost. Its more about a message then money. It's the same with Richard Curtis.
'I have a problem when people say something's real or not real, or normal or abnormal. The meaning of those words for me is very personal and subjective. I've always been confused and never had a clearcut understanding of the meaning of those kinds of words.
Tim Burton' This is one of the may reasons I love Tim Burton because I can relate to him so much.
I'll leave you with my favourite quote from him 'If you've ever had that feeling of loneliness, of being an outsider, it never quite leaves you. You can be happy or successful or whatever, but that thing still stays within you.'


30 Day Book Challenge: Day 9: Your Favourite Horror: Dracula.
What else could I put I mean really.


30 Day Book Challenge: Day 10: Your Favourite FairyTale: Beauty and The Beast.

I love the orignal version of Beauty and the beast as well as the new disney one. The thing with the older fairy tales is they are a lot darker, a lot darker then they are in the new ones.
This tale though really is beautiful and the disney version deviates from it a lot in that new characters are added and belle is forced to stay at the castle.

30 Day Challenges.

30 Day Book Challenge: Favourite Romance: Wuthering Heights.

Everyone knows the story of Cathy and Heathcliffe. Heathcliffe is adopted by Cathy's family and the two fall in love, Heathcliffe gets the wrong end of the stick and believes that Cathy can never love him due to his status so he leaves and Cathy marries someone else.
I know the book isn't amazingly and overly romantic but in a way it is. I love the relationship between Cathy and Heathcliffe and the idea that niether is truly happy without the other. To much happens for them to actually be together. Death is the final solution and it is thought that in the 'afterlife' Cathy and Heath can be together forever; no bound of class.
I can't really explain why I love this book so much, it's quite a harrowing tale really. I think it's the unconventional romance of the book, the fact the 'happy ending' is really that Cathy and Heath have to die to be together and in turn is a tragic ending. It differs vastly from the romance of Romeo and Juliet where a certain magic veil is placed over the romance.
I reccomend everyone gives it a go at least once.


30 Day Movie Challenge: Movie That Makes You Cry: King Kong.
I think the reason the film makes me cry so much is just the amount of animal cruelty in this film. I'm a big animal lover, possibly more then humans, I love all animals and King Kong really strikes a chord with me because it shows the true cruelty of human nature. The Humans in king kong really had no need to go to the island and capture Kong but they pursued him anyway. I think what upsets me to is that even though King Kong is shown such cruelty by these creatures he offers kindness to the Lady of the picture. He does everything to save her.
The ending line is 'Twas beauty Killed The Beast' this annoys me because it wasn't it was humanity destroying something beautiful as it often does.
The film makes me cry so much :(

Ugly duckling Out

30 Day Challenges Day 7.

30 Day Movie Challenge: A Movie That Makes You Happy - Wind In The Willows

This film never ever fails to cheer me up. This film has got me through some dark times if a film can offer such comfort.
There are actually two film versions that make me equally happy, and I believe I can put them under that same day because they have the same title, cheating I know.
Wind in the Willows is the tale of Moley coming out of his hole in the spring and meeting the wonderful Ratty and the 'Incredible' Mr Toad. Mr Toad is a rich eccentric creature who becomes fascinated by motorcars, a fascination which leads to his downfall, Ratty and Moley then must find Badger the only person who can help Mr Toad and help save Toadhall from the evil weasels.
The first version contains Eric Idle, Steve Coogan, Terry Jones, Stephen Fry and a whole host of other brilliant english actors who in a some what disney-esque way manage to capture the spirit of Wind In The Willows and come up with a rather fun and brilliant piece of film. While it quite drastically in some places strays from the book, the characters and the settings remain the same.
The second version however contains Mark Gatiss, Lee Ingleby, Bob Hoskins and Matt Lucas. The show also houses some of the rather fine english talent availible, this version was made for christmas tv but runs at around the same length. This version is beautifully dramatised with the worlds created looking bright, dazzling and colourful. This version of the book sticks more closely to the book and makes few emissions which are not in themselves to important in the book. The reason these two films are so important and make me happy are because when I was in a very dark place, when I couldn't sleep everynight for a six month period these films were the only thing that allowwed me even a few minutes of sleep. I watched them so much I wore out the videos they were taped on.
The film has such an uplifting feeling that all worrys tend to fade away, be it angry, sad, upset or fearful this film would always pick me up and put me in a so called happy place.



30 day Book Challenege: Fvourite Science Fiction Book.
The Clockwise Man

I don't read a lot of science fiction if I'm honest which is strange I imagine if I read it I'd enjoy it. I imagine if I read something like Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy I would thoroughly enjoy reading as of yet though I have not read it.
So how can I choose a favourite; the truth is I can't, but what I can do is I can take a book that I read when I was younger and tell you about that.
When I was at highschool and Doctor Who was revived I was amazed, I was in awe. I had heard a lot about this mysterious Dr and seen him referred to on so many TV shows. The show looked awesome of course I'm referring to the old Doctor Who at this point. When it was revived then I thought I MUST see this programme. I was hooked from the start, while not actually fancying Christopher Ecclestone, there was indeed something very attractive about his character about the Doctor, he's extreamley intelligent yet amazingly flawed, he saves the world but cannot save every soul. He's the classic beautifully tragic hero.
Naturally I went crazy I bought posters, sticker albums toys and eventually made my way around to the books. The books are really quite good and I always remember this one, even the name sounds cool 'The Clockwise Man'.
The Doctor and Rose set off on another adventure, this time it's 1920's london and a killer is on the loose. The writing is brilliant and captures the real esscence of Ecclestones Doctor. This however is also a flaw, once Ecclstone left the show I found it hard to read the books, they were written specifically for his Doctor and now the words on the page didn't fit Tennants Doctor. Due to this being the case and Tennants Doctor being everywhere at the time I think that was why I found it hard to read them again.
Anywho these books are really quite brilliant for any avid Doctor Who fan.

Ugly Duckling Out xx

30 Day Challenges: Book Challenge

I'l do 5 and 6 here because I missed them no pictures today unfortuneatley.

30 Day Book Challenge: Day 5 Favourite Informational Book

How Not To Write A Novel.
This is a brilliant little informative books that gives you all these pointers on how not to write a novel. Unlike other books which tell you what to do this one basically says go write whatever you want just don't do this, this and this. Its taught me a thing or two and I would reccomend it to anyone who is thinking about writing a novel.

Day 6: Favourite Historical Fiction Book
Much Ado About Nothing.

Of course when the book was written it wasn't historical but now it is and I love it.I had to read it for my a-level and I absolutley adore the relationship between Beatrix and Benedict. :)

Ugly Duckling Out xx

30 Day Challenges

I was really busy yesterday so I didn't get chance to post so I'll do yesterdays and todays now :) 30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 5 Favourite Drama

This has to be my favourite ever drama film it's absolutley fantastic.
Snow Cake is a film about chance meetings; Alex played by Alan Rickman, is on his way home when he picks up a hitchhiker, as he is driving the girl home a truck smashes into them, Alex escapes unscathed but the girl is killed. Alex decides tovisit the girls mother to offer his condolences and finds Linda played by Sigourney Weaver. Linda is autistic and Vivienne, who died in the car crash did everything for her. Alex decides to stay and help her out until and after the funeral. The films simple uncomplicated about the human nature. It's not about them falling in love or finding each other, it's simply about a moment in time a period, part of the journey that is Alex's life.
I love how the film uses little inserts of comedy to lighten the mood, I reccomend the film to everyone, I think this is a film you will want to watch over and over again.

30 Day Challenge: Day 6 Favourite Comedy.

Now I'm a huge comedy film fan. I could have chosen something obvious like Monty Python, Hangover or even Hot Fuzz. I thought I should stop myself right their though.
This film is simply a comedy, its not subtle in fact it's quite in your face, but it contains some of the best quotes and comebacks anyway. In the film our two older characters have to do community service and get put into a programme called Sturdy Wings. Where they must take care of their two younger parts.
Wheeler ends up with the smart mouth dirty talking Ronnie 'The Boobie Watcher.' They are matched perfectly together along with Danny and Augie the odd ball role playing kid with his knights of xanthia.
I give it a high rating, a must see.