ThePensmith

Just seen on Instagram that Nicola has been on stage as a surprise guest at Scissor Sisters' Manchester show of their tour tonight! InstagramAlouders on Reddit on Instagram: "BREAKING: Nicola made a...18 likes, 0 comments - aloudersreddit on May 21, 2025: "BREAKING: Nicola made an appearance in Scissor Sisters tour in Coop Live Manchester video : _itsbex /X, girlsaloudnews tiktok".

I'd really love to see her and I'm buzzing for the album... but I can't do The Roundhouse as a venue these days. It's too much hassle for me. If it'd been Kentish Town Forum I'd have been there in a heartbeat.

National Album Day back on October 18th... and the theme this year? Well let's just say my wallet will be safe around that time 🙄 InstagramNational Album Day on Instagram: "National Album Day is b...111 likes, 7 comments - albumdayuk on May 19, 2025: "National Album Day is back 🎉 This year we’ll be celebrating ‘Rock’ on October 18th 🤘 From rising stars like @wetlegband, @novatwinsmusic, @th...HMV yet to announce Vinyl Week, although they are teasing something being announced at 9am two weeks today on 2nd June. Not holding my breath given last year was truly "Dad faves only".

It is also currently being used in trailers for Alison Hammond's new series on BBC One at the moment. Cause my ears pricked up the second I heard it the other day!

Andy just updated with this on socials: InstagramAndy Brown on Instagram: "Morning! I just wanted to jump...2,881 likes, 209 comments - andybrownofficial on May 12, 2025: "Morning! I just wanted to jump on here and give you a little update on what’s been going on with me lately. I’ve always found it hard... Sending so much love for his recovery and good health ❤️

I can pinpoint the time I started listening to the chart - the spring of 1996 for me. Which I credit entirely to Gina G "Ooh Aah... Just A Little Bit". Top of the Pops had always been on weekly in our house and I remember songs whilst not really paying attention to where they were chart wise. That was the record that changed it all which meant my Sundays were occupied between 4pm - 7pm. Although it took me about another year to clock that actually buying singles directly influenced what happened in the chart 🤣 I did have a period of ebb and flow from around 2003 onwards, having gaps of months at a time where I was only really tuning in when my favourite artists were charting (largely dictated by whoever was hosting at the time. Let's just say I checked out a fair bit during the God awful JK and Joel years). By 2013 I'd finally stopped listening semi regularly altogether and had made the switch to Radio 2 full time.

Wrote a little something on my blog this week about the single that never was from Seeing Double era: https://wp.me/p4UO9N-33K

They're on a special edition of Fearne Cotton's Sounds of the 90s show on Radio 2 tonight at 10pm. I love that show anyway - would recommend if you're a 90s lover - but will definitely be tuning in! InstagramBBC Radio 2 on Instagram: "Some incredible poses 😂😂 Tom...1,602 likes, 29 comments - bbcradio2 on April 25, 2025: "Some incredible poses 😂😂 Tomorrow night on Sounds of the 90s Fearne is joined by FIVE! Listen from 10pm on Radio 2 and BBC Sounds 🧡".

Just seen on his Insta Stories he's had to postpone the next two shows in Brighton and Hull this weekend owing to a sickness bug he and half his band have come down with. What an absolute mare, hope he and everyone feels better soon!

New interview Rach did with OK this week ahead of the paperback being published:

There's a rather incisive new interview with them from Michael Cragg (author of Reach for the Stars) in The Guardian today: ‘If Jesus and Buddha had our work schedule, they’d have fallen out too’: boyband Five on bullying, Britney and their blockbuster return https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/apr/25/if-jesus-and-buddha-had-our-work-schedule-theyd-have-fallen-out-too-boyband-five-on-bullying-britney-and-their-blockbuster-return/ Also these images which were taken on the very same tower block / skate park that they filmed the "Slam Dunk (Da Funk)" video at! InstagramFive on Instagram: "The five of us went back to the skate...8,825 likes, 200 comments - itsfiveofficial on April 25, 2025: "The five of us went back to the skate park where we shot the Slam Dunk video for @guardian and to be there 28 years later was definit...

I'm surprised she's never done it either, she'd be ideal! I know she does a lot of Pride shows anyway.

Jon is quite literally looking for romance 🤣 (Sorry, had to be done!)

So... tour kicked off last night in Plymouth. And he only casually dropped a brand new song for the first time! It's called "Save Me". I've heard a very small snatch of it on socials and it's really promising, it's a bit of a hark back to the ska / reggae pop feel of the first album. Looks as if it'll be the first single off the new album so not long to wait! InstagramDawn Gillingwater on Instagram: "What an opening night @o...6 likes, 0 comments - dawnio21 on April 24, 2025: "What an opening night @ollymurs @plymouthpavilions . A little bit of trouble #ollymurs #ollymurstour #ollymursarmy #newsingle".

Reach and Natural were absolutely still the right two to be the first two singles. I do think Bring The House Down should have been a double-A-side with Never Had A Dream Come True - it was being lined up as the single after Natural anyway, so it would have made sense and would have also nicely dovetailed in the way the S Club album era went, plus it would have meant not yeeting a whole album era. After that I'm not sure what would have been the best fourth single. Maybe Love Train given they performed that on telly a few times and it had the same sort of vibe to it as Reach?

I feel like Everybody Wants Ya was the missed fourth single opportunity. It would have been an ideal release for either late February or early March 2000, it would have kept fans tided over until promo for Reach and L.A. 7 got under way.

Was up at half 4. Got there about twenty minutes to 7 with 30 ahead of me in the queue and... Beautiful reissue, going to give it a spin in a second!

I was at the O2 last night. Didn't think the One Night Only show could be topped but they absolutely did. They have this wonderful way of maintaining the intimacy of their shows they've done to now at an arena level which I think is divine. Great to hear some deep cuts as well as Jungle and Weeds live for the first time!

Out tomorrow early doors too! Got to get two buses just to get there cause the earliest direct one wouldn't get me in until just seconds before 8 and I don't want to chance it! It's only Sugababes I'm after this year really so hopefully I'll be alright, but don't want to chance it!

It is on there now, got added a few months back!

The singles back catalogue of Lolly is on DSPs from today!

The digital singles are now complete as the 1999 releases are up as of today:

Couldn't see a topic for this yet but I thought I'd start it. Austin is a new BBC sitcom co-produced with ABC in Australia which started last Friday, although the full series is on iPlayer, and it's already got commissioned for a second series. It stars Ben Miller (Armstrong & Miller, Worst Week Of My Life) Sally Phillips (Miranda, Smack the Pony), and Michael Theo, who was one of the participants in an Aussie neurodivergent dating show called Love on the Spectrum, and this is his first acting role. He plays the title character, who is a 28 year old autistic man who finds out his birth dad is Ben's character, a highly egotistical British children's author who has just been on the receiving of a widespread media cancellation following inappropriate use of social media. I've watched the first three episodes so far. Firstly Michael is wonderful, and plays the character so true to life being neurodiverse himself, and a lot of the comedy actually comes from him. Ben Miller isn't as likeable or funny to be honest and his character and the whole being cancelled plotline is a tad shoddy. I'm sticking with it though (Sally is brilliant as always).

I treated myself to the deluxe Yearbook and Yearbook Extra 98 CDs. I mean 1998 has always been one of my favourite music years so I couldn't not really, even despite owning all the main Nows and Hits albums from this year. Really well compiled and comprehensive - it'll make good accompanying listening when BBC Four get to showing the 98 editions of TOTP in a couple of months' time! I must admit I'm excited whilst equal parts nervous for when they finally do one for 1999. Only in so far as they have had a rather nasty habit of compiling incorrect versions of hits from that year on other retrospectives (watch where my eyes fall, Shania Twain and ATB).

Just been listening to this tonight which I can highly recommend from Hits Radio, it's an in depth chat with the band with Fleur East (it's on the Rayo app but it's free to download and sign up): https://hellorayo.co.uk/hits-radio/shows/off-the-record-five/