With having such love for The Fault in Our Stars, I was skeptical about reading this book as I heard it is basically the same story.
Well it’s not. It might have similarities but it is different.
Once again, it was another book that had me so glued, I read it within two days. And you’ve guessed it, I cried throughout the book. (WHY DO I READ BOOKS THAT MAKE ME CRY??)
The story expresses mental health problems perfectly. I could easily relate to Violet at times. It is such a beautifully written book, but I did struggle to read it at times as it felt all too familiar.
Plot: Two students, Violet Markey and Theodore Finch meet for the first time on top of the bell tower in their school, both contemplating suicide. Both characters couldn’t be further apart by social standards, Finch has long been labeled a freak by his classmates and Violet is the opposite as she is quite popular in school. While Finch is a regular at the bell tower, this is a first for Violet. She is struggling to cope with the sudden death of her sister in a car accident. After a while, Finch manages to talk Violet off of a ledge and Violet becomes Finch’s new reason to live, as does Finch for Violet. From there on, the story becomes about their growing romance as well as both characters finding the many other reasons to live. They begin to learn about themselves and each other while exploring the hidden wonders of Indiana for a school project. But, as always, there is a twist.
I will say no more as I will spoil it.
All I will say is make sure you are in a good frame of mind while reading this book. It’s deep.
It’s been a while since I have reviewed a book on here but that’s because I haven’t found the right one to express my thoughts on. That was until I read Jojo Moyes’ Me Before You.
Before this book, there has only been 5 books that made me really cry. Those are: My Sister’s Keeper, The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, All The Bright Places and The Gift. To give you an idea, when it reached the climax of Looking for Alaska, I threw the book across the sitting room floor and sobbed for about 20 minutes before picking up the book and finishing it. BUT not one of them compared to this. Me Before You, oh my god. I could barely see the writing on the pages for the last 100 pages or so because I was crying so hard.
Firstly, Jojo Moyes done a great job on writing this book. When you start reading this story, you have an idea how it is going to end, and you prepare for a not so happy ending. But throughout the novel, this changes and you begin to believe that Lou can change Will’s mind. That is what is the most heartbreaking thing about the story.
Okay, the plot!
26 year old Louisa aka Lou works in a cafe in a small town for over 6 years and is comfortable with her life. That is until the cafe closes suddenly. With no skills, she is lost as to what to do. Then the opportunity to be a career for a young man, Will Traynor, who had become a quadriplegic and with her family circumstances and her wages being the main source of income, it was an offer she couldn’t refuse.
At the beginning, you feel annoyed yet sympathetic towards Will. He is rude and angry. I would be angry too, he went from a man who had it all, good job, wealth, travelled the world, beautiful girlfriend – everything – to a man who needed 24 hour care because he had no use of his body below his chest. But being rude towards everyone, including his mother, pissed me right off.
But as Will begins to warm towards Lou, you see a different side to him, a side that makes you like him. A LOT! I began crying when he first was nice to Lou. (I am such a sap, I know!)
I don’t want to spoil the book so I won’t say much more about it! I highly recommend it, I have been saying it to EVERYBODY!
It has been two weeks since Australian pop punk band 5 Seconds of Summer rocked up to Dublin to perform 2 sold out nights in Dublin’s 3Arena and they put on a seriously good show!
Okay so I unashamedly will admit this: I WENT BOTH NIGHTS. I know, such a fangirl. It gets worse. It was my 12th and 13th time to see them live since 2013. I just can’t help it, they are my thing, I just need to seem them live, like all the time! I even considered just going on the whole UK & Ireland leg of the tour but you know, I ain’t rich so that plan was put to bed. I usually go to London for 1 date but due to SO MUCH university work this year, I had to call a rain check on that and it broke my heart because it meant I wouldn’t see my fave 5SOS friend Giana. It’s all good though, we have plans for next tour already 😉
Image belongs to me, Sarah Jane Allen
In case you are completely clueless as to who the hell I am talking about, I’ll help you out there! I wrote a blog about them a few years ago now actually, so you can check that out here to bring you up to speed!
Their second album, Sounds Good, Feels Good was released on October 23 worldwide and went to Number 1 on the charts worldwide, including Ireland! In just one year since their self titled album ‘5 Seconds Of Summer’, they have matured their sound and produced some amazing songs on this album. A key thing to take note is that the guys actually wrote all their own material for the album and some of the lyrics came from personal experiences. I am still trying to decide my favourite song, get back to me on that 😉
One of my favourite parts of a 5SOS show is the queue because that is when we drink and catch up ( we typically queue for like 10 hours!!!). This time was a little different as I went with my friend Lisa (both nights!). But somethings never change and we did drink, causing us to get some strange looks from the young ones around us! We did make some friends in the queue both nights also! Still, I missed Gi!
On Tuesday night, we were on Mikey’s side and in typical Sarah Jane style, we were very close to barrier. I mean, we were 3 rows away. So close that the feedback from the speakers ruined my videos, but I didn’t care. I was happy out being on this angel’s side all night!
Image belongs to me, Sarah Jane Allen
On Wednesday night, we were on Calum’s side and Lisa was only delighted! And again we were 3 rows away from barrier. So I am your girl if you need to be close to stage okay?! Well it actually only happens at a 5SOS show but still *hair flick*
The set list for both nights was as follows:
Carry On
Hey Everybody!
Money
Voodoo Doll
Don’t Stop
Outer Space
Waste the Night
Castaway
Jet Black Heart
Amnesia
Beside You
Vapour
Catch Fire
Disconnected
End Up Here
Good Girls
Permanent Vacation
What I Like About You
She’s Kinda Hot
She Looks So Perfect
On Tuesday night, they did do a short cover of The Script’s The Man Who Can’t Be Moved.
Image belongs to me, Sarah Jane Allen
I vlogged both days and shows and you can check them out below.
Stupidly enough, we decided not to go out after Tuesday’s night show, even though we had planned to head to Dublin’s finest nightclub, Copper Face Jacks, but when it came to it, we decided to get pizza. I got a text at around 3am asking if I went out because a certain band WENT TO COPPERS!!! Ugh!
This is where my Mam would say ‘It wasn’t meant to be, don’t worry, there is always next time!’, even though that is the second time it has happened!!!
Anyway, the guys took a well deserved two weeks off and our now about to embark on the European leg of the Sounds Live, Feels Live tour.
If you are lucky enough to be going to see them somewhere around Europe, you are in for one hell of a show 😉
Don’t worry, there are some tickets still available and you can check here for more details.
On May 2nd, the annual Met Gala took place in the city which is the home of fashion, New York City.
The Met Gala, previously known as the Costume Institute Gala , is an annual fundraising gala for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. But it is really known as the biggest fashion event of the year. The event has been held at the Met since 1971 and is considered to be the ‘fashion industry’s premier annual red carpet event’ with all the big name celebrities attending the event yearly to kick off the fashion season with a bang!
Vogue editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour is the chair of the event and has been for over 19 years. Each year the event has a theme, and 2016 was no different. This year’s theme was ‘Manus x machina: fashion in an age of technology‘. The guest list was kept to a ‘minimum’ of 650-700 a-list celebs and tickets were a pricey $25,000 to increase exclusivity. The creators of the Met Gala are getting stricter with their rules, as this year, no phones were allowed inside the event. Sorry Kim, looks like no more selfies at the ball!
Again, Anna Wintour don’t worry about not getting around to invite me this year, I wouldn’t of been able to make it due to finishing assignments. I know you have me on the list next year and I am already in talks with Moschino about my design.
Let’s get down to business and talk fashion!
Best dressed ladies:
Claire Danes – Claire stole the show when she turned up in a beautiful Zac Posen design as a real life Cinderella, with not one but two men on her arm I might add. I gushed as soon as I saw her dress on Twitter and my little heart fluttered when I saw it light up. Her dress is what dreams are made of. Every girl dreams of being a princess.
Blake Lively – She may be pregnant but that didn’t stop Blake looking absolutely flawless last night as she arrived in a blush pink Burberry dress to the Gala.
Kylie Jenner & Kendall Jenner – As soon as I saw the two sisters on the red carpet, I knew exactly who they were wearing. The Kardashian/Jenner’s reliable designer – Balmain! The two looked incredible! Kylie please leave your hair like this, it suits you so much! Kylie later showed that us ladies will go through anything to look good when she showed her snapchat followers the damage her dress and shoes caused.
Jourdan Dunn – One of my newly grey haired sisters wowed at the Met last night as Jourdan also rocked Balmain (I think I need to invest in some Balmain!!)
Nick Jonas – Only one man stood out for me and that was the very hot Nick Jonas. Although it was kind of a safe option, he looked ever so handsome in this gorgeous tuxedo from Topman.
Kim & Kanye – Once again, it didn’t surprise me when I heard they were wearing Balmain. Kim steals the attention this time Kayne, even those blue contacts couldn’t distract me from how good she looks!
Gigi & Zayn – Without a doubt, they are THE couple of the year and were certainly sticking to the theme with their matching outfits. Gigi stunned in Tommy Hilfiger while Zayn looked gorgeous in Versace. Can they do no wrong?
Many people and critics seem to forget that the Met Gala ain’t any normal event. It’s the one night where designers and celebrities get to be creative and explore new tastes with fashion and personally, it is my favourite event in the fashion calendar. Impatiently waiting for next year already.
If you are lucky enough to be going to Longitude this week, whether it’s for a day or all three days, here is my guide to who to see and what you should/shouldn’t bring!
WHO NOT TO MISS:
Hozier – Who doesn’t love Hozier? He is one of the main acts for this year’s Longitude! Last year, he opened the festival at 2pm (we might of missed most of his set because Sarah needed to pee, but we got to see him sing Take Me To Church!) One year later, he is headlining the festival. You won’t forgive yourself if you miss him, he is fastly becoming the world’s most sought after singer.
Image from @yearsandyears
Years & Years – If these guys aren’t already on your list, I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN YOU! I wrote about these guys in my Ones To Watch for 2015 and god, they are owning 2015! If their tunes like King and Desire aren’t enough reason to see them, Olly Alexander, the lead singer is HOT. Please, for me, DO NOT MISS THESE GUYS!!
Alt-J – Alt-J was also at last year’s Longitude! The tent was crowded for them, and the crowd went crazy for them when they started their set! I am sure it will be the same this year!
Tove Lo – Name doesn’t ring a bell? It didn’t with me either. Until I googled her and figured out I knew her already! She sings Talkin’ Bodies and Stay High (Funny fact: I was convinced she was singing Say Hi for about 4 months!)
WHAT TO BRING:
Your Ticket and please mind it at all times, don’t leave it behind you in the shop you stop in on the way to Marley Park. It just leads to disappointment and embarrassment.
Cash – avoid depending on a card machine because either the queue is too long or the machine has run out of money!
Most websites say bring a camera – if you are like me and can handle drink and be responsible, work away! But if not, avoid bringing too many valuables. You’ll have snapchat on your phone anyway;)
PORTABLE CHARGERS (& USB)!! It amazes me how majority of people still don’t have them! I have 5 and bring them everywhere! There is nothing worse than being separated from friends and either your phone is dead or theirs!
It is to be around 18-19 degrees all weekend in Dublin but with some rain. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t wear suncream! You can still burn when temperatures are that high and it’s cloudy! Trust me!
Rain jacket – It’s Ireland!
Wellies – again, it’s Ireland. I wore them last year and it was roasting on the Saturday but had rained on the Friday and I didn’t want to ruin my converse!
Girls, go crazy with festival style! Flower crowns, kimonos, feathers, anything that screams festival style!! But please, wear shorts that cover your ass. I just want you to look good!
ARRIVE EARLY TO AVOID MISSING THE FIRST ACT (if you want to see them) – The queues are crazy at 2pm!! Gates open at 1:30pm each day.
Aerosols – Buy airport sized aerosols and beauty products. Much easier to carry around also!
HAND SANITIZER!!!!
Tissues – They are great for everything from when a friend is getting sick to when you need to pee to when your hay fever kicks in! Pack loads.
WHAT NOT TO BRING:
To go with my last point above: avoid bringing anything that is going to hold you up in the queue, you are just wasting fun time with your friends and missing good music!
Ladies, it’s not race day so please avoid big hats. The are pointless at a festival.
Do not bring umbrellas, they are not allowed! God, they were allowed when I used to go to Oxegen!
No alcohol or food (what harm will food do?) is allowed to be brought in. You have to buy it all on site.
No folding chairs!! You have to sit on the ground like everyone else!!
Excessive amounts of cigarettes, you are only allowed enough for you.
Reflective jackets, you aren’t working!
Fireworks, Flares or Chinese Lanterns, they are pointless at a festival anyway!
That’s it. Have a good time, look after yourself and friends, be careful and most importantly, enjoy the music.
I am not jealous of anyone going.. Nope.. I am just going to stay in my bed and cry!
Oh and one last thing, MIND YOUR DRINKS. Cover your drink at all time!
On May 4th, the annual Met Gala took place in New York City.
The Met Gala, previously known as the Costume Institute Gala , is an annual fundraising gala for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. But it is really known as the biggest fashion event of the year. The event has been held at the Met since 1971 and is considered to be the ‘fashion industry’s premier annual red carpet event’ with all the big name celebrities attending the event yearly to kick off the fashion season with a bang!
Vogue editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour is the chair of the event and has been for over 19 years. Each year the event has a theme, and includes a cocktail hour and a formal dinner for all in attendance. 2015’s theme was ‘China Through the Looking Glass’. The guest list was kept to a ‘minimum’ of 650-700 a-list celebs and tickets were a pricey $25,000 to increase exclusivity. It’s okay Anna Wintour, I didn’t want to go this year anyway, I had plans to watch Gossip Girl instead.
My Best Dressed Ladies:
Beyonce, she just wins all the time! She looked flawless in her Givenchy Dress and Lorraine Schwartz Jewelry.
Ansel Elgort looked ever so handsome. I think he looked so handsome, people forgot to ask him who he was wearing. I could look at him all day. He is gorgeous. LOOK AT THAT FACE!!
And once again, the most anticipated Fashion Night is over! Can not wait for next year and another crazy theme, with more outrageously gorgeous outfits!
Since the age of 3 or 4, I have always dreamed of being a Laois Rose. This year, I got to fulfil the dream. On January 16th 2015, I met current Rose of Tralee Maria Walsh with my current co-op placement and after robbing her crown and chatting to her, she said ‘Sure why don’t you apply for the Rose of Tralee? You’d make a great Rose!’ So with encouragement from family, friends and Anne Marie in the Laois Rose Centre, I filled out the application and sure the rest is history now.
The whole Laois Rose experience kicked of on April 10th, with our Information night in the Heritage Hotel. I had NO idea what to expect that night and was a bag of nerves! As soon as I walked into the room, I was put at ease straight away, greeted by Bernadette with a warming smile!! When I sat down among the 17 other Roses, I became even more at ease when I saw a few familiar faces and sure you couldn’t stop us chatting then. Anne Marie and Bernadette briefed us about the two upcoming dates we had and by the time they were finished, I was more excited than I have ever been before! To get to know the other Roses even more, they had organised for us to go to a local pub for cocktails, a lovely relaxing way to mingle with everyone.
On the 18th of April, we had the Laois Rose Tour. This day was about seeing what Lovely Laois has to offer and ’embracing the cheese’ as Anne Marie said multiple times throughout the day! We also got our sashes for the first time and it all became very real then. We went to the Heritage Hotel Portlaoise, Laois Shopping Centre, The Store Yard Portlaoise, Abbeyleix Heritage Centre, Timahoe Round Tower, The Maldron Hotel and Roll ‘n’ Bowl. It was a fantastic day and a great laugh. All of us got to know each other more and we really didn’t want the day to end!
Selection day – The big day! I have never ever been as nervous as I was when I woke up on Friday morning. I was cool as a breeze all week, very excited for the whole thing and then reality hit! I had my first Rose interview at 10:55 am with the three judges. The minute I walked in the room, the nerves eased a little! The judges were so lovely, I can certainly see why they are all part of The Rose of Tralee. I spoke about how I suffer with anxiety and how I did lose my voice 3 years ago and they were so comforting and supportive towards me. That made me feel a lot better. My only regret in the whole experience is how nervous I was in that interview. I panicked a bit on some questions that I could easily talk for an hour about any other day of the week. Sure I was only getting into the interview when Anne Marie knocked on the door! It was off to get the hair done then! We were treated like princess all day really. We had our group interview at 3pm and that was so much more relaxing because I got to go in with 8 other Roses who are now my great friends! We all vibed off each other, it was like a casual gossip with the girls rather than a group interview! I think we impressed the judges so much that the asked us 5 questions instead of 4! As soon as that was over, it was rehearsal time! Before we knew it, Steve was in and telling us it was almost time to kick off the show! To the two beautiful Escorts, who put us at ease throughout the evening and helping us up and down the stage, a huge thank you to you. Brendan Hennessy, the MC, you got rid of my nerves all together! I was so comfortable with him on the stage that I could of stayed up for another 10 minutes chatting away to him!
To the 17 other Roses, you are the most friendliest, kind hearted and fabulous girls I know. I couldn’t of asked for better girls to go through this experience with. You made the experience so wonderful, I will truly never forget it. To Ailbhe, The Laois Rose for 2015, the biggest congratulations to you. You are the perfect ambassador for Laois in the Rose of Tralee, you have beauty, a kind heart and effortless grace. I look forward to seeing you on stage with Daithi at Regionals, you’ll have your Laois Rose family behind you all the way.
To my sponsor, Eamon A’Chnoic. You have been great. I can never thank you guys enough for allowing me represent your pub and our community. This whole experience has been incredible and without your support, I would have never been able to do it.
To all my family, friends and everyone who has sent me best wishes and supported me, thank you so much. I am deeply touched with all the support I received and it meant the world to me. I just hope I done everyone proud.
To Anne Marie, Bernadette, Sarah and Teresa, Thank you so much for everything, especially the words of encouragement when I was so nervous or anxious. The amount of work you guys done with us over the past three weeks is mind blowing, and you always graced with smiles and comforting hugs. You are very admirable women and I am blessed to have been in your company. To anyone who has ever considered going for Laois Rose, do not hesitate. Take the risk. It is totally worth it.
This whole experience has been amazing. It has help me grow as a woman and has definitely helped with my confidence. I am so proud to be associated with such a great organization.
I most definitely will go again, maybe when I’m a little older, wiser and more experienced. That is if the Laois Rose Centre will have me again! 😉
There were a few talking points at last night’s (22/2/2015) 87th Academy Awards, which took place in the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. The celebrities proved that the Oscars is more than fashion and winning awards. It is a platform for the stars to be vocal about important issues.
Prior to the Oscars, actress Reese Witherspoon and other A-listers showed support for The Representation Project’s #AskHerMore initiative, which asks journalists to ask female celebrities about more than their outfits on the red carpet. Reese took to Instagram to help promote the campaign, I love this movement #AskHerMore..have you heard of it? It’s meant to inspire reporters to ask creative questions on the red carpet. I love the Oscars AND fashion like many of you – & am excited to share #WhoAmIWearing later tonight. But I’d also love to answer some of these Qs….And hear your suggestions?! (Share em below!) There are so many amazing, talented nominees this year..! Let’s hear their stories! Spread the word.’
Neil Patrick Harris, who hosted this year’s awards, said, “Welcome to the 87th Oscars. Tonight we honour Hollywood’s best and whitest — sorry, brightest” blasting criticism of the Hollywood system, drawing attention to the awards’ lack of diversity and how majority of the nominees were white. While the awards was on, civil rights groups staged a protest outside and were vocal about how “white wash” this year’s show was, with all 20 acting nominees were white.
It was the night to be vocal about important issues! Graham Moore, winner of Best Adapted Screenplay for The Imitation Game, announced he had attempted suicide at 16 because he felt “weird” for being gay. “This is for that kid who feels like they don’t fit in,” he said: “Stay weird, stay different.”
Patricia Arquettes spoke about gender equality in her acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress, which has become one of the major talking points of the night. In her speech, Patricia stated “To every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else’s equal rights. It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America.” Her speech received huge appreciation from Dame Meryl Streep, who showed her support about the speech, along with Jennifer Lopez.
Eddie Redmayne made an emotional speech after he won his Oscar for Best Male Actor. He dedicated it to “all of those people around the world battling motor neurone disease”.
Twitter went into overdrive after Joan Rivers was noticeably absent from the in The Memoriam Montage.
Now, The Best Dressed
Jennifer Lopez wore a Elie Saab gown with a Salvatore Ferragamo clutch, Neil Lane jewels and Giuseppe Zanotti shoes. She looks like a princess. I want the dress.
Rosamund Pike must of took my advice after the Globes and sacked the stylist because she has got it so very right every time since on the red carpet. Rosamund wore Givenchy with Lorraine Schwartz jewels.
Eddie Redmayne & Ansel Elgort both wore the same suit! Both men looked extremely dapper but I can’t inform you who they are wearing as no one seems to ask who the men wear 😦
Channing Tatum a Dolce&Gabbana tux, Louis Leeman shoes, and Neil Lane studs and cufflinks. Jenna Dewan a Zuhair Murad Couture dress, Stuart Weitzman shoes, Lorraine Schwartz jewels, and Lee Savage bag. They always get it right. Channing is like a vintage wine, gets better with age!
Image belongs to perezhilton.com
Chris Pratt looked smashing in his tux (again don’t know who!) and Anna Farris is wearing a Zuhair Murad Couture dress, Jimmy Choo shoes, Judith Leiber clutch, and Lorraine Schwartz jewels.
Keira Knightley, I know you are pregnant, but it doesn’t mean that you can relax on the fashion front! This Valentino dress is … quite something. But not red carpet style.
Solange is usually the one making Grade A fashion choices but at the Oscars, she got it wrong in the crimson Christian Siriano design.
Pale pastels and white seemed to be the go to colour for the Oscars Red Carpet this year, with over 25 dresses in those shades.
The Winners at the Oscars 2015:
Best Picture
Birdman — Alejandro G. Inarritu, John Lesher and James W. Skotchdopole
Best Director
Alejandro González Iñárritu — Birdman
Best Actor
Eddie Redmayne — The Theory of Everything
Best Actress
Julianne Moore — Still Alice
Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons — Whiplash
Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette — Boyhood
Achievement in Costume Design
Milena Canonero — The Grand Budapest Hotel
Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling
Frances Hannon and Mark Coulier — The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Foreign Language Film
Ida – Pawel Pawlikowski
Best Live Action Short Film
The Phone Call — Matt Kirkby and James Lucas
Best Documentary Short Subject
Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1 — Ellen Goosenberg Kent and Dana Perry
Original Screenplay
Birdman – Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo
Achievement in Sound Mixing
Whiplash — Craig Mann, Ben Wilkins, Thomas Curley
Achievement in Sound Editing
American Sniper — Alan Robert Murray Bub Asman
Achievement in Visual Effects
Interstellar — Ian Hunter, Scott Fisher, Andrew Lockley and Paul Franklin
Best Animated Short
Feast — Patrick Osborne and Kristina Reed
Best Animated Movie
Big Hero Six — Don Hall, Chris Williams and Roy Conli
Achievement in Production Design
The Grand Budapest Hotel — Adam Stockhausen and Anna Pinnock
Achievement in Cinematography
Birdman — Emannuel Lubezki
Achievement in Film Editing
Whipalsh — Tom Cross
Best Documentary Feature
Citizen Four — Laura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy and Dirk Wilutzky
Best Original Song
Glory — John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn
Best Original Score
The Grand Budapest Hotel — Alexandre Desplat
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Imitation Game – Graham Moore
Oh and how could I forget, Lady Gaga stole the show with her tribute performance to the Sound of Music. Gaga ditched her usual out there theatrics for a toned down, beautiful 50th anniversary tribute and she even hit all those high notes Julie Andrews’s hit.
Everyone knows I love X Factor and especially this season with the formation of my favourites, Stereo Kicks, and Only The Young being on the show! So when tickets went on sale for the tour, I snatched them up straight away!
X Factor Tour kicked off on Friday 13th February in Belfast and was there two nights before hitting Dublin on Sunday 15th of February. Only 8 acts made the Tour, Fleur East, Lauren Platt, Andrea Faustini, Jay James, Stevi Ritchie, Ben Haenow, Only The Young and Stereo Kicks!
Fleur. Image belongs to me.
Lauren. Image belongs to me.
Fleur opened the show with ‘Can’t Hold Us’. Lauren performed her slowed down version of ‘Happy’, which took me about a minute to know it was that because she was singing so low and I couldn’t hear the words! She then followed with ‘How Will I Know‘, and she danced a little bit. Jay sang ‘Changing’. Stevi performed ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca’. Andrea belted out ‘And I’m Telling You’, his voice is incredible.
Only The Young really got the arena going with their version of ‘I Wanna Be Like You’. They made me fall in love with that song again. They made it fresh and cool. They put the OTY Stamp on it. They put a few dance moves in there too. And I got a little excited and screamed ‘Gwan Charlie and Mikey!’. I am sorry you can hear me in my video (insert cover eyes monkey emoji here!).
My bae’s Stereo Kicks hit the stage and the place went crazy, with them receiving the loudest screams of the night. They sang their cover of ‘Let It Be/Hey Jude medley and their vocals live are just incredible. With the reaction they got all night, I firmly believe Stereo Kicks have a great future ahead. Who said 8 boys wouldn’t work? They are incredibly talented and so down to earth, they can’t believe everyone loves them.
Charlie from Only The Young. Image belongs to me.
Fleur proved she is a double threat when she returned to the stage to perform ‘All About That Bass’ and ‘Bang Bang’, with her killer moves and stellar vocals. Andrea then sang ‘Listen’. The last song of the first half of the show was a group ensemble, minus Ben! They sang Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake It Off’. Stevi donned his Freddie Mercury outfit and performed ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, probably his ‘best’ performance. Not much I can really say about Stevi. Fleur was back on stage to sing ‘Thriller’, she didn’t give it as much energy as she did on the show or her other performances on the night which was disappointing. Lauren sang Disney favourite ‘Let It Go’, which had everyone singing along as usual.
Only The Young sang ‘Blame It On The Boogie’ and I just wanted to get up on stage and dance with them! They are so energetic and have so much on stage, it is infectious. These guys are going places. They are unique and extremely talented. I am excited for their future!
Stereo Kicks. Image belongs to me.
Stereo Kicks got the girls (and boys) screaming again when they sang ‘Everybody’. It was during this that I couldn’t contain myself and shouted ‘Casey you are fit’ and ‘Tom you are fit’ several times. They look gorgeous though, so you couldn’t blame me! My SK buddy Tania is very proud of me 😛
Jay sang Skyfall. Jay did nearly put me to sleep during this but that is simply because he doesn’t mean anything to me. He has incredible vocals but I am just not a fan. Jay got quite emotional after his performance. Stevi sang Footloose. To be honest, he ruined the song for me. I know he is the guilty pleasure act and he does proved entertainment but… I can’t even say anything. There are no words. Stevi is a genuinely nice guy and very pleasant when I met him. Fleur sang her only ballad ‘If I Ain’t Got You’ and she proved she can slay the slow songs too.
Only The Young performed one of my favourites of the night ‘Jailhouse Rock/Twist and Shout’. Charlie’s vocals were seriously on point all night but he’s parts in this song were incredible. Mikey looked so hot (love heart eyes emoji here) and he even wore my favourite Houndstooth shirt!!!
Lauren. Image belongs to me.
Lauren’s final song was ‘Don’t You Worry Child’. Apart from ‘How Will I Know’, this was my favourite performance from her. After her throat problems recently, I doubted if she was vocally ready for the show but she was and she sang incredibly. She also looked very beautiful.
Stereo Kicks stole the show with the song that started their journey, ‘Run’ and 6 months later they are on an arena tour! I was so proud, there were tears! Chris made a little speech at the end of their performance and I was so proud of him. I’ve known him for over 3 years from his days in Level 5 and met him at Niall Horan’s birthday party in 2012. I was also extremely proud to see Tom Mann on stage. I’ve been supporting him for nearly 3 years too. He’s really fit. I might have mentioned that before but I am just making sure you know it. Casey Johnson is also fit. Okay Stereo Kicks are fit.
Casey Johnson and James Graham. Image belongs to me.
Tom Mann and Jake Sims. Image belongs to me.
Chris Leonard and Barclay Beales. Image belongs to me.
Reece Bibby and Charlie Jones. Image belongs to me.
Fleur performed her outstanding performance of ‘Uptown Funk’, wow that woman can dance!!!
Ben Haenow. Image belongs to me.
Finally the winner graced the stage! Ben Haenow (HAENOW, HAENOW, DON’T DREAM IT’S OVER!) started his set with ‘Come Together’. Ben also sang ‘Thinking Out Loud’, ‘Highway to Hell’, ‘Jealous Guy’ and ‘Demons’ before closing his set with his winner single ‘Something I Need’.
All 8 acts closed the show with a group performance of ‘Never Forget’ and seemed to happy with the response they got in Dublin on the first night!
If you are a fan of X Factor, you will adore this concert! Ben, Only The Young and Stereo Kicks were my stand out favourites and the three acts I heard the majority of people talk about after the show.
So the Irish leg of the tour may be over but if you live in the United Kingdom, tickets are still available for some of the shows. Go get them ASAP!! A show not to be missed, especially if you want to say you’ve been there from day one for OTY and Stereo Kicks 😉
I have a few more videos to add but I am currently in Laois and Wifi is slow. I will add the rest of the videos when I get to University with fast internet!! ❤
Check out my X Factor Blog from when I went to London here.
Firstly, I am very sorry this is over a two weeks late! So as I prepare for the big finale of award season, The Oscars tonight (22nd Feb), here’s a recap on my favourite awards, The Grammys!
So here’s the low down of the night! Sam Smith was the big winner on the night, sweeping up 4 awards including Best New Artist, Song of The Year and Record of The Year. The biggest shock of the night was when Beck won album of the year over Beyonce and then Kanye West tried to repeat what happened when Taylor Swift won over Beyonce back in 2009. Although he hopped off the stage quickly, Kanye was extremely vocal in a post Grammys interview, which you watch here. The performances are the most talked about moments of the night! Beyonce closed the show with ‘Take My Hand Precious Lord‘, John Legend and Common sang ‘Glory‘, Sia performed her hit ‘Chandelier‘ but as usual her face was not seen! Kristen Wiig joined Maddie Ziegler on stage, both dancing in nude bodysuits. Ed Sheeran sang ‘Thinking Out Loud‘ with John Mayer (MY HEART CAN’T HANDLE THAT!!!)The most anticipated performance of the night was Rihanna, Kanye and Paul McCartney performing ‘FourFiveSeconds’. It was pretty much the same as the music video but it was still an incredible performance!
My Best Dressed
Nick Jonas wowed in a Versace suit with yellow plaid details and bright white sneakers.
Sarah Jane Allen 