Devouring as many books as I can, writing, salsa, hitting the treadmill at the gym, swimming, wandering museums and art galleries, taking arty photographs, cooking for friends, dining out, travelling to fabulous places and shopping.
Too many people to name. But Audrey Hepburn has to be one. An icon, a fabulously stylish and talented actress who was kind, loyal, hard working and unpretentious in an increasingly showy film industry.
Well, I don't really listen to music, but I love songs with beautiful lyrics and great rhythm. And I love it when people share that with me.
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe which is about everything that's good in this world; The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe because it is exactly what I imagined and I've always wanted to be that Lucy; Il Postino for its poetry mixed with a poignancy (as the main lead died before the film was released); Before Sunset and Before Sunrise because together they are absolutely incredible and I love the fact that life is made up of so many conversations like these in the films; Children of a Lesser God, which is passionate with beautiful signing; Breakfast at Tiffany's and Funny Face with the amazingly electric Audrey Hepburn;I Capture the Castle simply because it captures the essence of the book; Amelie with wine glasses dancing upon the table and a blind man having the world opened up to him; Big Fish for its surreality and its perfect ending and tons of musicals like The Sound of Music and Meet Me in St Louis. But that's not to say that I don't like more mainstream films... I love romantic comedy and the Lord of the Rings series.
Well I like gritty drama but I also enjoy Sunday night stuff like classic period drama - Mr Darcy, anyone? Then there's all the great imported shows like Friends (one of the best programmes of the 20th century) and Sex and the City... not forgetting our own comedy programmes, like Little Britain and Teachers, which is terrific stuff - there's something endearing and sexy about Andrew Lincoln. Oh yeah and I love Relocation, Relocation, purely because I'm a city and country gal, so I'd adore a dream cottage one day...
Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day - a truly incredible book; Marjory Fleming because I find her fascinating; Temples of Delight; To Kill a Mockingbird; On The Road and other Kerouac drug fuelled ramblings (he always fills me with a desire to barrel through the US in a Cadillac chasing dreams and sunsets); The New York Trilogy and most other books by Paul Auster; Once in a House on Fire because it is a powerful novel with many images peppering its pages... and it has one of my favourite quotes about literature; Anne of Green Gables series; To The Lighthouse and Orlando, two of Virginia Woolf's most revolutionary works; The Good Soldier; The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud - inspiring, romantic and beautifully imaginative; The Time Traveler's Wife for the same reason plus it is mind blowing; I Capture the Castle - a little gem of perfection by Dodie Smith that is ideal for autumn reading; Philip Pullman's the Dark Materials triology which is absolutely awesome; The Dale books by Gervase Phinn - a good teatime read and immensely funny; numerous childhood classics by writers such as Roald Dahl, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Shirley Hughes and the Alhbergs, plus the Harry Potter and all of the awe inspiring Narnia books. As for chick lit... I love writers like Jane Austen, Anais Nin - who writes fabulous erotica - Louise Bagshawe, Charlotte Bronte, Sophie Kinsella and Freya North.
My nan and my parents who inspire me. People like Aung Saan Sui Kyi who fight for what they know to be right and true, yet are oppressed by tyranny. Admire people like Frank Gardner who has survived a terrifying ordeal. Can't really think of anyone else at the moment...