A childhood favourite brought up to date

A sunday afternoon growing up will always be for me Thunderbirds on BBC 2. Yes, it might have been a re-run in terms of viewing but for me, it was a first time (add to that the Friday night viewing of The Simpsons & either Stingray or Captain Scarlet...) So early this year when the first images of the reboot for Thunderbirds (or as this is known, Thunderbirds are Go) appeared, I admit that I did jump on the 'no please don't do this' given what I deem a failed attempt at reboot Captain Scarlet a number of years ago.

I'm not going to lie. I have been pleasantly surprised by what they have done. Whilst yes it has been brought up to date with the CGI (so things can be done that the puppets couldn't) there are some nice nods to the original series. Let's start with the obvious: music. The original countdown by Peter Dyneley (who voiced Jeff Tracey in the original) has been maintained. It is sort of synonymous along with the familiar theme song. Occasionally, there's even the odd original music moment.

The vehicles:They are more of less the same designs as the old, maybe a few tweaks to modernise them but then, don't they do that to vehicles anyways? And they have also maintained how the vehicles leave the island too (although, there has been some redesigning on the pool. It's no longer a yoghurt pop, more of a margarine tub (this will make sense to those of a certain age!))

Characters: More of less the appearance of the puppets have been maintained. As I said, the CGI allows them to do things the puppets couldn't. Although, I do miss the bobbing that they used to do when walking. I love that the Parker is voiced by his original actor () although I'm not entirely sold on Roselind Pike as Lady Penelope.

The sets: yes I'm calling them sets. Not all the action is CGI. WETA, the team behind shall we say, the magic of The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings, have also had a hand in the show. There are points where CGI & miniatures collide and they do so wonderfully (we wouldn't expect anything else from them, would we?)

It's been loving updated version of the show that does pay homage to the original making it accessible not only to older fans, but also to children.

Taste Testing: BirdsEye Lightly dusted Cod Fillets – Lemon & Black Pepper

Battered fish. Fish in batter. However you want to describe it, it seems that the UK may be having a little love affair with fish in it's various forms. But now it seems that there's a call for lighter options. And it's here that we find BirdsEye latest offering: Lightly Dusted Cod Fillets. They are currently available in three flavours: Lemon & black pepper, rosemary & sea salt and garlic & herb. If you haven't guessed by the title, this review focuses on the lemon & black pepper version.

Packaging

The fillets have more of a thin batter & lovely flaky cod. The fillet itself isn't too thick or too thin. Birdseye have found just the right fillet size for this 'lighter' option. The flavourings of lemon & black pepper complements the fish beautifully and aren't too overpowering.
Looking at this from a personal point of view, while enjoying it and it's lightness (I'm not a great fish lover to start with ), it's not something that I could have week in, week out. I think that it's more of a once in a while meal when you're wanting something a little different from the norm and definitely something for the warm summer months. Wonder if we could get a plain version of this for a try….

Fish with salad & mango. Yum!

When Cycling Came to The Streets of Motherwell….

I'm not going to lie. I'd never heard of the Pearl Izumi Tour Series until a few months ago when an email dropped into my inbox from the local council library who happened to mention it and that it was going to be coming to Motherwell. Apparently, it's in it's 7^th year! But this is the first time that they've dropped by the Scottish town (and officially, on the day, the first dry round that they'd had! Well done whoever bribed the weatherman!)

If you're like me and not too clear on what it is, let me try and explain:

Nine teams battle it out in the Series across the ten rounds for the overall title and to be crowned the fastest and best team in Britain. However,it’s all about the teams. Just because a team’s rider has crossed the finished line doesn’t mean that their team has won.. They get the honour and glory of the individual win, but the aim is for the teams to complete the race in the lowest cumulative time with their five riders, making them the fastest team on the night

Each round will also sees selected guest teams joining in to bring local interest to the Series and to provide them with the opportunity to race on the high-profile stage of the Pearl Izumi Tour Series to aid the development of new teams and younger riders.

All clear now? Good! Now where were we…

So the afternoon was taken up by support events for run by Scottish Cycling which provided viewing before the main event, starting with the Women's Matrix Fitness GP Series before the main Pearl Izumi Tour Series men event. I only got to see a wee bit of the main events as I was volunteering* at it. It was only when I watched it back on TV (very impressed on the turn around time on that, even if it was just highlights! 24 hours?! Can I have some tips please as my videos usually can take up to a week!) I realised how fast the event was. It appeared to be a very well attended event from my point of view. And clean up was already starting before the men's presentations were being made.

I did overhear people complaining about the roads being closed, that it should have been held on the weekend or on the Monday as it was a bank holiday. After all, it was a school night, who was going to trek down there when kids had school the next day…a fair few from what I saw. To be honest, I don't think it was going to matter when they hosted the event, there was always going to be someone who would complain. Folks were saying that it should have been held in Strathclyde Park but I don't think the challenge would be there. And to be fair, the clean up started almost as soon as the last riders had been confirmed returned.

Why should we be hiding events behind 'closed doors' as such in parks & stadiums? Why not bring more events to the streets and show what we can do with our area? It’s not as if they happen all the time. If it was all the time, I could under stand, but once in a blue moon? There should be a community pride in that we got to host something like this. I'm hoping that there's a chance that the Series might make a return to the town in future years. In the meantime, there’s always 2017 and the British Transplant Games to look forward to coming to the area! And then the first European Sports Championships in 2018! 

*Motherwell provided the most volunteers (at the time!) of the series! Go Scotland!

Photos: © Vhari Lannigan. More photos are here