What’s hip, hot and happening around the network this spring
BY CATHERINE HANLY
WHAT’S ON: Glasgow THE MAGNERS INTERNATIONAL COMEDY FESTIVAL takes over various venues in GLASGOW from 12-29 March and attracts a top-notch range of comedic talent. Big names appearing this year include Jimmy Carr, Ross Noble and Rob Brydon (right). If you’re looking for up-and-coming names, one ticket worth catching is curry king Charan Gill, who ran many of the city’s best-known Indian restaurants. He turned from kormas to comedy this year and is rumoured to put in a fiery-hot performance! |
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WHAT’S ON: Nice You’ll feel entirely underdressed if you arrive in NICE this spring without a mask in your luggage. The city’s annual CARNIVAL, which this year runs from 13 February to 1 March, has the theme KING OF MASQUERADES. Most of the parades are free to watch, but if you want a seat in the grandstands, you’ll have to fork out up to €25 – or buy tickets for two parades for a bargain €30. |
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WHAT’S ON: Cork If you’re looking to impress a date with your grasp of film noir or would like to know just exactly what makes an auteur or cineaste different from a Hollywood director, then hotfoot it over to Cork’s French Film Festival, which this year celebrates its 20th anniversary. Over a week (1-8 March) you’ll be able to take part in workshops and masterclasses and enjoy a fine selection of French films, like Johnny Mad Dog (right), a dramatic film about child soldiers in Africa. |
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WHAT’S ON: Prague Here at yeahbaby, we’re always up for shopping experiences that feature hot sausages and cold beer, so the Easter markets in PRAGUE (28 March to 19 April) get a firm thumbs-up. Most of what’s on offer are handcrafted traditional things like candles and ornaments, and particularly good presents to buy are the decorated Easter eggs which you can get personalised for anyone back home. The stalls are open from 9am to 7pm, but food stalls are usually still serving up to midnight. |
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WHAT’S ON: Paris Don’t be alarmed if you’re in the French capital on 1 April this year and someone sticks a paper fish on your back and then runs off shouting – it just means you’ve been April-fooled, Parisien-style. The practice of POISSON D’AVRIL stems from a centuries-old tradition when the joke consisted of sending a gullible person to the market to buy freshwater fish when they weren’t in season. Be warned: unlike in Britain where japes end at noon, the French April Fool’s Day lasts until midnight. |
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WHAT’S ON: Knock The third annual TEDFEST (run by the FATHER TED fan group, Friends of Ted) takes place from Thursday 26 February to Sunday 1 March on INIS MOR – one of several places in Ireland that lay claim to be the inspiration for the TV show’s Craggy Island. A huge hit since it started two years ago, some of the festival’s most popular events include the Lovely Girls competition, a Nuns and Priests five-a-side tournament and sponsored dunking in to the World’s Biggest Cup of Tea. Dressing up as key characters is obligatory, so don’t forget your dog collar or tea-cosy hat. Go on, go on, go on…. www.friendsofted.org/inismor.php |
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WHAT’S ON: Cork THE ST PATRICK’S DAY PARADE in Cork is one of the biggest in Ireland. The city throws a three-day festival around the patron saint of Ireland, culminating in the parade itself on Tuesday 17 March. Expect marching bands, street theatre, circus performers and queues 10 people deep at any of the city centre bars. If all the craic has you famished, head over to the Barry’s Tea Food Market where local producers from all over Cork ply their tasty wares. |
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WHAT’S ON: Amsterdam BRANDON FLOWERS takes his Las Vegas supergroup, THE KILLERS, to AMSTERDAM on 12 March for the Dutch leg of their European tour. They may not be sporting fabulous handlebar moustaches for their Day and Age tour, but expect plenty of sequins and feathers. You can take the boy out of Vegas, but you can’t take Vegas… Heineken Music Hall, 590 Arena Boulevard, Amsterdam; |
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WHAT’S ON: Nottingham It’s always heartening when a frankly barking olde English tradition has managed to survive to the 21st century. The rugged nature of the annual football game at ASHBOURNE, about 50km/30 miles west of Nottingham, brings locals and tourists alike flocking to the biggest game of SHROVETIDE FOOTBALL still running. The game takes over the whole town, shops are boarded up, cars are moved and hundreds of people take part in one of the last remaining public scrums that hasn’t been tainted by health and safety. If you do take part, kick-off is in the Shaw Croft car park at 2pm on Tuesday 24 February – top tips include wearing a wetsuit in case play ends up in the river! |
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M is for Menorca
Come explore bmibaby’s newest destination. Menorca is Majorca’s littler sister island, but it certainly doesn’t play second fiddle when it comes to fun and sun
BY GEORGINA BROMWICH
SPELLING IT OUT:
Mahón / Maó
What’s in a name? Plenty, given that you’ll see Menorca’s capital spelled both ways when you visit this Balearic island off the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Widely referred to as Mahón (in Spanish), since 2005 the city has officially been known as Maó (in Catalan), much to the confusion of visitors. Muddling the waters further, the town hall’s coat of arms proudly declares the city is actually called Mahó!
Moo
Islanders have long been busy as dairy farmers: prehistoric findings suggest they were making cheese as long ago as 3000BC. Look out for the Mahón-Menorca Denominación de Origen (www.quesomahonmenorca.com) when picking up a slab of local cheese: it’s a nationally recognised quality stamp.
Marina
Second only to Pearl Harbor in size, sailors have long admired Mahón’s natural port. Ferries and cruise ships dock at the foot of the town, while dinky fishing boats potter across the water in the wake of flashy speedboats. For landlubbers, it’s best viewed from one of the many restaurants lining the seafront.
Military
Evidence of Mahón’s military importance is strewn across the city and its port. Fortresses line the north (La Mola, www..fortalesalamola.com) and south (Fort Marlborough and St Philip’s Castle, www.menorcamonumental.org) entrances to the port, while there are coastal defence towers and even a 300-year-old British naval hospital on King’s Island in the middle of the port. (www.islahospitalmenorca.org)
Mayonnaise
This creamy sauce is alledgedly named after the city of Mahón. During the French occupation of 1756-1763, legend has it that a tired and hungry Duke of Richelieu stopped at a house in search of a bite to eat. The poor farmer had little to offer him, so he prepared a sauce using egg yolk, oil and salt, and the Duke liked it so much he took the recipe home!
Menorca
Declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1993, sustainable development is at the heart of island politics. Just a few kilometres from Mahón, the picture-postcard fishing village of Es Grau is the perfect starting point for exploring the island’s protected wetlands and nature park. (www.biosferamenorca.org)
Music
Home to one of Spain’s oldest theatres (www.teatremao.org), and with its own summer music festival (www.festivaldemusicademao.com), Mahón has been a stop-off point for opera companies since the early 1700s. Choose from daily organ recitals at Santa Maria church, parades with the local oompah bands or jazz at Sant Francesc’s cloisters.
Top 10 GIRLY treats
It’s that time of year again – Valentine’s Day – and all those irritatingly loved-up (and terribly unoriginal) types have sloped off to Paris. Well, good for them. But there’s no reason why you have to be coupled-up to experience the magic of France in springtime. Toulouse is known as the Pink City, thanks to the rosy hues of its brickwork,
so why not indulge your super-feminine, girly side without some recalcitrant male holding you back? Give those smoochy couples on the Eiffel Tower a wide berth, slip on your most impractical shoes and head to La Ville Rose – what have you got Toulouse?
BY SARAH RODRIGUES
1 Unwind
Pampering: it’s more than a female passion, it’s a prerogative. So take your already-gorgeous self to Buddha Boat for a range of beauty and well-being treatments – and emerge feeling like a goddess. The setting is a converted barge moored on the Garonne River and the treatment rooms incorporate earthy tones and Oriental imagery. Buddha Boat Spa, Boulevard Monplaisir, tel: +33 (0)5 6155 5487.
THINK PINK: book in for a blissful massage (from €60–€125) and request the rose essential massage oil, renowned for its emotionally uplifting qualities.
2 Be Inspired
Toulouse spawned one of the most prolific and influential female graffiti artists of recent times: Miss Van, whose signature style features doll-like female forms. She now lives in Barcelona, but her work may still be spotted on walls around the city.
Les Abattoirs, 76 Allée Charles de Fitte, tel: +33 (0)5 3451 1060.
THINK PINK: Modern art of a different kind can be viewed at Les Abbatoirs, where the entrance is dominated by a pink sculpture called Agoraphobia by Franz West. Get in for €6.
3 Coo
We may be eschewing Paris the city this Valentine’s, but it’s femmes like Paris the A-lister who have made pet ownership as vital to starlet status as carrying the right bag. Get your fix of puppy love at Bête de Mode, Toulouse’s newest and sassiest pet shop. Boutique Bête de Mode, 19 Rue du Coq d’Inde, tel: +33 (0)9 5147 5348, www.betedemode.com
THINK PINK: pampered pussies and pooches will adore taking up residence in the pink, all-leather “Maison de Luxe”, complete with fuschia and white cushion, €84.90.
4 Stay
The best thing about staying in a hotel on your own? You get the whole bed to yourself! At Les Loges de Saint-Sernin, choose from four rooms in a 19th-century building by Saint-Sernin basilica, in the heart of Toulouse. No meaty male repasts here either – le petit déjeuner, included in the price, is lusciously indulgent and quintessentially French – think freshly baked breads, jams, eggs, cheese, fresh fruits and a daily “house” pastry, including, on occasion, tarte tatin, made by the proprietress herself. Très yum. Les Loges de Saint-Sernin, 12 rue Saint Bernard, tel: +33 (0)5 6124 4444.
THINK PINK: book the Chambre Saint-Sernin – unashamedly pink, its décor, say the owners, evokes the drama of sunset over Toulouse. Price per room
5 Shop
Men can be such a drag when shopping, dismissing every outfit with epithets as bland as “nice” or “fine” – so make the most of not having one around! A relative newcomer to the Toulouse boutique scene, Les Fées de la Création was set up by two women with the aim of helping young, local designers establish themselves – forget the ubiquitous high-end labels, you’ll find something chic and unique here. Les Fées de la Création, 12 rue Cujas, tel: +33 (0)5 6112 1170.
THINK PINK: ditch your old carry-on in favour of the Art’lex, a predominantly pink bag, it features oh-so-stylish bamboo handles and will set you back a mere €68.
6 Sip
No pubs, please, we’re ladies. And sassy lasses about town want only the sleekest surroundings in which to enjoy their Champagne and cocktails (or, for that matter, Champagne cocktails) – so head to Les Coulisses, where you can perch on high black stools (all the better for showing off your heels) at the glossy black bar. Les Coulisses, 5 Boulevard de Strasbourg, tel: +33
(0)5 6230 8251
THINK PINK: not only is the bar lit with a dark pink light (très flattering for the complexion), but the drinks menu includes several pink Champagnes. Choose from Taittinger, Veuve Clicquot or Moët, or try the lesser-known Billecart-Salmon or “R” de Ruinart.
7 Drink
A salon de thé (tea room) along English lines, Bapz is a delightful mix of antique furniture, gloriously mismatched china and pastries piled high on quaint cake plates. For the perfect date-for-one on 14 February, take your book and while away the afternoon in true shabby-chic style. Bapz, 13 rue de la bourse, tel: +33 (0)5 6123 0663.
THINK PINK: forgo your usual “white with one” in favour of a soothing rosehip tea, €4.
8 Eat
An irresistible name, wall-to-wall pink décor and a menu tout compris (that’s all-inclusive: aperitif, starter, main course and dessert) for €26.50 – what’s not to love? Rose Bonbon is open year-round, so you can choose to eat on the terrace or in the cosy surroundings of the salle privée or main restaurant. Rose Bonbon, 5 et 6 impasse de la Colombette, tel: +33 (0)5 6163 4846.
THINK PINK: how could you possibly walk past La Rose’s smoked salmon, prawns and langoustine in a rose sauce?
9 Buy
Indulge your passion for ultra-feminine florals in the sweetest, most edible sense. Toulouse is famous for its violets and at Confiserie Regals you’ll find them in every imaginable incarnation – tea, honey, chocolate, liqueur, jam and crystallised petals, as well as perfumes, lotions and candles. The perfect Valentine’s gift for… yourself!
Confiserie Regals, 25 rue du Taur, www.regals.fr
THINK PINK: 360g of crystallised rosebuds and jasmine flowers presented in a hatbox, €35.
10 Refuel
Everyone knows that boyfriends + holidays = ruination for the waistline. Of course you should sample the local delicacies, but why should you pay for it by having to shop a size larger than usual? Make at least one virtuous pitstop and snicker as you imagine your ex’s frites-clogged arteries. Banana Land Juice & Salad Bar, 49 rue du Taur.
THINK PINK: try a yummy smoothie of banana, raspberry and blueberry
GETTING THERE
For fares to Toulouse from Manchester that are really in the pink – from just £41.99 one-way, incl taxes – log on to www.bmibaby.com
