Has Sharpie will travel - Bypass Movie & QnA with George MacKay

So I can definitely say I'm a George MacKay fan. I have literally travelled to opposite ends of the country to see him. Last month I saw him perform Ah, wilderness! at the Young Vic Theatre and on Tuesday I headed up north to see a screening of his latest film Bypass followed by a QnA.  Added bonus of this trip was a chance to catch up with one of my fangirl besties Vicki. With Taylor Swift blaring we hit the road to Newcastle. After an interesting tour of the city caused by me not paying attention we found a bar close to the Cinema.

Over a glass of white wine and a Sage of Ultron cocktail (well I couldn't pass up that opportunity could I - even if it was only Tuesday afternoon) we discussed potential questions we could ask George if we plucked up the courage!! We decided that maybe questions on character development were more appropriate than requests to touch his hair. 

From here we headed for tea at the Cinema Bar. From this point on high alert for George. The bar at Tyneside Cinema was lovely and as we pondered the menu I saw him. I managed to resist the urge to point and shout but unfortunately for Vicki this energy travelled down to my leg and I kicked her under the table (sorry again Vicki). He walked passed the bar and into the cinema! Squeeing and tummy butterflies a-go-go. An hour of eating tea and me whipping my head round to see if he came in to the bar passed quickly. He came into the bar and was chatting with the producer and friends as we headed up to the Cinema. 

Vicki and I were on the second row. I don't think I have ever sat so close to the screen in a cinema. But we were playing the long game. We wanted to be close for the QnA. Vicki and I were giggling and didn't notice George and Samm Haillay (Producer) come in. They introduced the film, the lights went down and for the next 2 hours we were engrossed.

The film centres on Tim. Bad luck rains relentlessly on him, brother in Prison, absent father, bailiffs and his mother dying. Tim turns to selling stolen goods to earn money for him and his sister to survive. He is inevitably drawn further into this world. As Tim faces decisions to earn money through crime or do the right thing he is struck by a mysterious illness that is a mirror to the morality of the choices he has made. It is a very tense and pacy film with a driving atmospheric sound track that adds to the intensity of the action on screen. This is a film with a tough message. Is morality a luxury? The film ends on a hopeful note. It is not a happy ending that erases the message of the film but a glimmer of hope that brings the story to a close.

The QnA session started with the Samm Haillay asking George about his process of developing Tim's character. Which apparently involved long walks round Regents Park with the Director. Samm complained that was what they where doing while he did the all the hard work getting the money together for the film. It was really interesting and we got a really good insight into the process of the film making. Then the questions were opened up to the audience. The questions focused on the illness, the use of imagery and the meaning of the end of the movie. George saw the illness as a physical representation of the mental stresses he is suffering. I won't go into too much detail as I don't want to spoil the film if anyone wants to watch it. I am hoping as that the QnA was filmed all or parts of it will be available to watch later. If this happens I will post a link here. 

Samm announced we had time for two more questions and I got brave I put my hand up but he picked two other people. Vicki and I made sulky faces that I hadn't been picked. George noticed and gave us a big smile. I just about died. With a round of applause the QnA finished. There was a raffle to win a signed poster and George was handed a popcorn bucket to draw the ticket from. The winner announced and a very British round of applause given. George put the bucket down looking rather disappointed and said "I thought we were getting popcorn".

**Fair warning I have a teensy crush on George some fangirling is about to happen. Brace yourself.**

Vicki turned to me and said "Right Charlie get your Sharpie out." And panic set in. I believe my exact words were "Are you serious? Is this really happening? Is this a thing?" And the response I got was "Yes come on" and before I knew it I was stood in front of him. So handsome. 

I told him I enjoyed the film and asked him if he'd mind answering my question now. I asked him if the soundscape of the movie was something he was aware of whilst filming or something that was completely post production. George said he was knew what would be happening as Duane Hopkins the director and writer had notated in the script. But the majority of the work on the soundscape was done post production. I told him that on top of his performance the soundtrack had really put me on edge and added to the intensity of the movie. I think because I am a dancer I tune into sounds and music very easily. I said that it helped me feel more for Tim's situation and heightened the emotions in the scenes and still felt anxious because of it. At this point George beamed at me,nudged my arm, and told me this was fantastic and he'd tell Duane. I just about exploded inside I managed to hold it together. 

After Vicki had managed to wrestle the pen back off the cinema manager she asked him to sign her Ah, wilderness! program. George looked confused and asked if we'd come to see the show. Vicki told him we had and we were the girls with the LGSM t-shirt that he signed. His was response was a very enthusiastic "Oh Fuck yeah!!" Quickly followed by an apology for swearing at us. He remembered us. I died a dead. I gave him my Pride DVD to sign and asked if Andrew Scott ever came to watch his play. I told him that we'd met Andrew and told him how good it was. George said "No he didn't. I'm going to have a word with him about that". Said with mock annoyance at Andrew.  

Vicki being the professional that she is made sure we got pictures too George was so happy, friendly and willing to chat. I didn't want to stop talking to him but I knew our time was up and other people were waiting. I didn't want to be one of those fans that just hogs all of the time. Sharing is caring people. Vicki and I walked calmly out of the cinema, round the corner and into the stairwell where freaked out. Squeeing, clapping, jumping, stamping feet and clapping hands a deep breath and we were calm-ish again. We went down to the bar for a drink and to collect our thoughts. And by collect our thoughts rehash the entire conversation moment by moment. And we had to let Jackie, who was waiting patiently in Canada for news, know what had happened. I don't know that our garbled messages of excitement made much sense but I think she picked up the key themes.

Then he just strolls into the bar and has few drinks with Samm and his family. So we are just sitting in the bar having a drink and so is he. Heaven. I have actually never been so keen to got to the bar for a drink. I totally did it as an excuse to stand by George again. I'm not even sorry. Never been so happy to be bumped into at the bar! I got an apology' "Oh hello" and a lovely smile. Sigh. So we sat and sipped our drinks with a lovely view of George. There is a downside to this. Which is when you forget they are there and you get your freshly signed DVD out of your bag, stare at it adoringly, stroke it a little and glance up, see them looking at you and you want the earth to swallow you. Blush. Blush. Blush. 

With our drinks finished we said a quick bye to George, thanked him for his time earlier and headed off back to Vicki's. What a wonderful night I'm so happy Vicki spotted the QnA and is mad enough to go with me and make me talk to my Georgie!!! Love her I do! Happy happy happy little geek. 

Are you a George MacKay fan? I'd love to meet others! Have you ever met one of your favourite stars? I'd love to hear your story too! 

Much love 

Charlie x

(Pictures from Tyneside Cinema Twitter and Bypass Movie Instagram) 

OOTD - Wonder Woman

So this was a quick cosplay that came about because I couldn't decide what to wear. Everything I put together looked wrong or didn't fit right. We all have those days. Wardrobe full of clothes and nothing to wear. So I decided to approach it from a different angle I decided I was going to cosplay. I headed over to Pinterest for some inspiration and settled on Wonder Woman. 

Now there are some AMAZING Wonder Woman cosplays out there. But I needed to keep mine casual. I was just going to the cinema after all. So I kept it nice and simple I put on a red vest top.

Blue jeans and red shoes. Echoing the basic colour combinations of Wonder Woman's classic outfit.

I had the most trouble deciding what jewellery to wear! I first thought of wearing my gold necklace and cuffs. Gold is definitely a Wonder Woman colour. However I don't have any suitable earring. I need to invest in some gold stars. And I thought these accessories were too dressy for the rest of my outfit. I'll save these for when I do Glam Wonder Woman! 

So to keep it more casual I went with my silver stars and bracelets on each wrist. 

I was pretty pleased with how this look turned out since I didn't have long to plan it. Have you ever done a Wonder Woman casual cosplay? I'd love to see! 

Much Love

Charlie x

5 Fandom Friday: Fictional Characters You Most Identify With

I think for me this list is a mix between identifying with these characters but also aspiring to be more like them. I hope you enjoy my Fandom 5! 

Felicity Smaok

The babbling. For a very intelligent woman Felicity often speaks before she thinks. It sounds so innocent in her head but man is it funny when she says it out loud. I quite often suffer from foot in mouth syndrome! Finding myself talking incoherently to try and explain the true meaning of the words that came out of my mouth. Felicity, I feel your pain.

Elle Woods

She may have gone to Harvard for the wrong reasons but she proves everyone wrong. She doesn't quit she digs her heels in and shows you how valuable Elle Woods can be. Even though the odds are against her, she never loses her kindness and never tramples on anyone to get her way. I have made scary decisions such as quitting my job to start my business and there were plenty of people who thought I couldn't do it and 4 years on I'm still going and growing. I also hope that like Elle I'm kind and although I'm am ambitious I'm not ruthless. I'd much rather work with people and treat people with respect. 

Willow Rosenberg

Oh Willow. She was not the most popular kid at school and neither was I. But she was lucky to have a great group of friends and as I know that's more than enough. She is clever, funny and fiercely loyal. I grew up with Buffy, Willow and the rest of the scoobies. So as they grew, got more confident and found what they loved an pursued their dreams and destinies, so was I albeit with far less Armageddon's to deal with. Although I do remember some monsters....... 

Clara Oswald

Two words. Control. Freak. She is my favourite companion and she isn't taking any of the doctors crap. She is a strong woman who is perfectly fine with giving the doctor a good slap if she thinks that's what he needs. Now I wouldn't say I'm a control freak but I do like things done my way (The Correct Way FYI). 

Jessica Day.

Wonderful adorkable Jess. I identify with her enthusiasm and passion for the things and people she loves. She sings and dances and has fun. She plays ridiculous drinking games and wears all the colours of the rainbow, sometimes all at once. The older I have got the more confident I have got and more open with my geeky ways. I'm less bothered about what people think I'm just fully enjoying my fandoms and passions. My geekdom has given me amazing experiences and I through it I have found wonderful new friends. 

I really enjoyed writing this post thanks to The Nerdy Girlie and Super Space Chick for starting it all. Special thanks this week to @SoMelificent for her brilliant post suggestion and Darling Stewie for the gorgeous new 5 Fandom Friday logo! 

Much Love 

Charlie x

Constellations

Last night I was lucky enough watch Louise Brealey and Joe Armstrong in the touring production of Constellations by Nick Payne. It is a tale of love and friendship between Roland a bee keeper and Marianne a scientist. The play explores the infinite possibilities and different out comes to the same situation. We've all been there. After a moment has passed wondering "What if?". What if I'd just asked him for a drink. What if I'd asked her to marry me. What if I'd had the courage to say hello. 

We watch Roland and Marianne re-enact an awkward first meeting, falling in love, affairs and it's fascinating. The consequences of their actions change with a flash of light. The scene begins again and a different outcome is reached. The scenes don't follow a linear narrative and they jump back and forth across their timeline. This led to a great discussion after the show about which scenes fitted where in their story and what we hoped for the characters. 

I adored this show. It was only 70 minutes long with no interval but that is perfect as there is no break from the magic of the world they have created. I have so much respect for Louise Brealey and Joe Armstrong. They were on stage the whole time and replayed scene after scene with only slight changes to their lines but the inflection in their voices and their movements really affected the scene. I have no idea how they remembered where they were up to but the effect was magical. I laughed and I cried, I really felt for these two characters all tangled in their endless possibilities.

Then in good fangirl fashion I headed for the stage door to see if I could catch both Joe and Louise for autographs. I bought a program for them to sign but it was extra nice as the program doubled as a copy of the script. I thought this was a lovely idea. More shows should do this. 

We were waiting a little while and this was the husbands first stage door experience. He was very impatient and kept asking when the cut off was. I informed him that waiting is a key skill of fangirling and he would be a rubbish one! 

First Joe Armstrong appeared. I approached him for an autograph. He seemed surprised but happy to oblige. He was very friendly and we chatted to him about how much we loved the play. I told him I thought I was a great idea the script was in the program and he said "Well you can have a go yourselves now!" I laughed and James said "Well that's our evening sorted." He looked like he was about to head off for a night on the town and as he was leaving said "It's a great city you have here" and I couldn't agree more. 

Then a few moments later Louise Brealey tumbled out the door arms full of flowers, bags and a big blue balloon! She was super sweet and plonked all her stuff down to sign our autographs. Again we told her we thought the play was wonderful and she thanked us for coming and agreed the writing was brilliant. She remarked "Joe wrote good luck, he always writes that." She asked if we'd like pictures and I had to crouch down because she's super tiny! We thanked her for stopping and after James gallantly helped her untangle her balloon from a drain she trotted of in to the night. 

Both of them were lovely people, friendly and happy to chat to fans. This makes all the waiting worth while. No airs or hints of ego just generous with their time. A perfect end to a fantastic evening. However I did discover James makes a rubbish fangirl substitute. He didn't squeeee or want to repeatedly look at my pictures or autographs! Where are my girls when I need them? Canada and Carlisle that's where. Jackie I need Darren to train him up please! 

Have you been to see Constellations? Let me know what you thought! You can click here to see a list of tour dates! http://www.royalcourttheatre.com/whats-on/constellations-uk-tour

Much Love 

Charlie x

Happy Little How Too - Loki Manicure

Ah Loki. 

Loki, Loki, Loki. 

Thanks to divine Thomas Hiddleston Loki is probably one of the most adored villains in recent cinematic history. I for one am a proud member of Loki's army. So I'll be using this post as an excuse for some Hiddles-pics.... No I'm not sorry! 

Today I'm bringing a bit of geek into my life in a really fun and subtle way with my Loki themed nails. I'm not going to tell you how to paint your nails I'm guessing you've got that down. I have a home gel nail polish kit which I use to paint my nails. I adore it and my nail varnish lasts a good two weeks. But this look will work exactly the same with regular nail varnish. 

For this look you will need:

Green Nail Polish

Black Nail Polish

Gold Glitter Nail Polish 

Matte Top Coat Nail Polish. 

Taking my inspiration from Loki's Armour green and black were obviously the colours to go with. I added the matte top coat to bring in the different textures and the gold glitter as a highlight. 

Being a geek I didn't go straight to painting my nails I had a little practice on a nail wheel first. I wanted to get a good idea of colour combinations and what patterns to use.

On my right hand the colours go thumb to pinky: Green, Matte Green, Black, Green Base Gold Glitter, Black Matte. 

On my left hand the colours go thumb to pinky: Black, Matte Black, Green, Black Base Gold Glitter, Green Matte. 

To the uninitiated I simply have glamorous nails but I am in fact burdened with glorious nails fit for the King of Asgard. 

Much Love

Charlie x

5 Fandom Friday - 5 Nerdiest Things I've ever done

I sit here in my TARDIS onesie contemplating the nerdiest things I have done. Now I know some people would use the word nerd as an insult but I certainly don't. I think us nerds and geeks are awesome so I'm using this post to share 5 of my awesomely nerdy moments. 

1. I started a blog

I started a blog to document all of my casual cosplay outfits. I spent a lot of time getting outfits together in the style of my favourite characters. So I thought I'd keep a record of them in a blog and if other people fancy reading it too that's great. I've loved meeting other bloggers on line the geek girl blogger community is so friendly! I will spend hours wandering round shops looking for the perfect skirt or accessory to complete my look. I have taken to making my own jewellery as that way I can definitely get in all the geek and fandom references. 

2. PCap face

The excitement was all too much and I made this face when I met Peter Capaldi. If this isn't the face of the happiest little geek you have ever seen I don't know what it is. I met him at the stage door after Mark Gatiss and Friends at the Crucible Theatre. He was so calm and patient with everyone. I told him I loved the way he said Clara and asked him to say it to me. He did and then some! So the reason behind my PCap face is he is saying "Clara, Clara, Clara" repeatedly to me as we are having our picture taken and I am giggling like a school girl. I told him he'd made my year and he thanked me for supporting the show! It was amazing! 

3. I've been on the TARDIS

Not a replica the actual TARDIS used in filming. The real one. I was a truly magical experience. I walked through the the blue doors and stepped on to the TARDIS. I can't describe the feelings I got. I was in awe it's so beautiful and the details are incredible. I got really itchy fingers I was desperate to press a button or put my hands in the psychic link but I fear I would have been kicked out. Best. Birthday. Present. Ever. 

4. I attended my first convention

Ok so I may have mentioned once or twice on this blog I went to Sherlocked! For me this is the ultimate nerd activity. And I loved every second. Being with fellow fangirls, geeking out over details in the exhibitions, getting star struck meeting the cast and just generally immersing myself in Sherlock goodness for a whole weekend. I could have picked 5 nerdy moments just from this weekend as my friends so eloquently said it was a "Whirlwind of Nerdiness". Please take me back!

5. I went looking for places used for filming in my favourite movie

If I'm so lucky to have regular visitors to my blog you will also have picked up on my love..... Nope adoration for the movie Pride. So on a recent trip to London my best fangirls and I went to visit the Regency Cafe and Gay's the Word Bookshop featured in the film. It was awesome. Like being on the set of the movie! Now I want to find more places featured in the film to extend the tour. 

These are my top 5 nerdiest moments! I'd love to find out what yours are comment below or leave a link to you blog so I can come and read yours! If being a nerd is wrong, I don't want to be right!

WOAH WOAH WOAH. Hold it right there. I need a bonus ball!!! How could  I forget to include the time I went on  tour of the locations of Lord of the Rings! That is spectacularly nerdy. On my gap year in New Zealand I arrived in Queenstown with only one thing on my mind. Getting to Middle Earth.

I had saved up my Dollars for this as it was a big splurge. It was money well spent. We spent the morning horseback riding and the afternoon in a 4x4 heading to further locations. I was amazing. I was travelling by myself and it was great to be amongst likeminded people for a spot of unadulterated geeking! It was amazing riding round the beautiful South Island countryside. The views were spectacular and I really felt like a Rider of Rohan! I was particularly lucky as my horse Oscar was actually used in filming. not by anyone famous but that's still super cool right.

Much Love

Charlie x

A Cracking Day At Bletchley Park

It was a gorgeous sunny day and I was filled with excitement for two reasons. Firstly I was getting to spend the day with one of my bestest girlies, Carrie, my friend from university who I don't get to see as often as I would like. Secondly we just arrived at Bletchley Park. I am a huge history nerd. I'd been wanting to to come to Bletchley Park for ages and was pleased to be spending the day immersed is World War II history. 

A brief history lesson if you haven't heard of Bletchley Park or if you've not watched The Imitation Game! During the Second World War Bletchley Park in Milton Keynes was the main site of the UK Government Code and Cypher School. The code breakers stationed here regularly deciphered the top secret communications of the Axis Powers. The most famous of these being the cracking of the German Enigma cipher. Project Ultra, as it was known, is believed to have shortened the war by at least 2 to 4 years.

Carrie and I bought our tickets, picked up our media guides. Top tip if you are planning on visiting travel by train and you get two for one entry into Bletchley Park all you need is your train ticket and a voucher from a flyer at the station. You'll save yourself about £12. The media guide they give you is great, very informative and interactive but it prohibited conversation between Carrie and I. As we don't get a chance to catch up very often we put the guides in our bags for the rest of the visit. 

As we walked into the house we came across The Imitation Game exhibition. This was a lovely surprise. I was hoping for some references to the movie as we went around but I never hoped for a full exhibition. 

I adored this film I get dehydrated every time I watch it through excessive tears. It is a clever, beautiful made and superbly acted. The exhibition was excellent. There were costumes worn by Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley and Charles Dance. 

The props used where so detailed. From ID cards used to typed letters they really did everything brilliantly. They had the engagement ring Alan makes for Joan and even the rocks he threw at her window. 

The highlight of this exhibition was seeing the sets used in filming. They had the bar scene set up where Alan and Joan have there engagement party and Alan has the breakthrough when he is told the German coders often use the same words. This was a brilliant start to the day! 

After this we went over to the museum and looked at all the different Enigma Machines and found out more about the life of Alan Turing. The best part of this section was the demonstration of a replica Bombe (the machines invented by Alan Turing to crack Enigma) the volunteers were great very knowledgable and entertaining. Sadly it was still to complicated for me to understand but it was fascinating to watch! 

As part of your entry you get a free guided tour run by volunteers. This a great opportunity to get more information about the story of Bletchley Park and a chance to ask all the questions you have thought of. I highly recommend doing the guided tour. 

Lastly we went into the huts where the code breakers worked completely oblivious of the importance of the work they were doing. It was kept that way for secrecy. The workers rarely sat next to the same person and only ever worked on one part of the code. This reduced the amount of people that knew the full story of the work that was going on at Bletchley Park. Secrecy was drilled into the workers of Bletchley Park so much so that many people took their stories with them to the grave even after the release of the official secrets act. 

My favourite part about the huts was that they really gave you the atmosphere of what working there would have been like. This was helped by images of Wren's and code breakers hard at work projected on to the walls of the huts. Very clever and MUCH less creepy than mannequins! 

Our busy day came to an end with tired feet, heads full of knowledge, hungry tummies and smiles on our faces we headed off to a local country pub for tea! 

Have you ever been to Bletchley Park or is it still on your to do list? 

Much Love 

Charlie x