Lifestyle Monthly Cheshire June 2011

YOUR FAVOURITE FOR CELEBRATING 3 YEARS OFFREE THE NOGLOSSY 1 MAGAZINE FORCHESHIRE MERSEYSIDE

June 2011

News

Events

Fashion Music

Food

Business

Travel Brazilica Heart FM

Craig Phillips

E XC LU S I V E

SNOOP

DOGG

Liverpool International Tennis Tournament

THE LIVERPOOL INTERNATIONAL TENNIS TOURNAMENT 2011 A Northern Vision Event

16TH - 19TH JUNE, CALDERSTONES PARK

liverpooltennis.co.uk

General admission Tickets from £9 echoarena.com 0844 8000 400

ticketmaster.co.uk 0844 847 2332

Hospitality from £95.00 + VAT / per person 0151 227 5940

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Nothing compares to The Liverpool International Tennis Tournament, which celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2011.

T

his year Northern Vision is delighted to welcome back a true legend and ambassador of tennis, Miss Martina Navratilova to the Liverpool International.

Martina was the most successful female tennis player of the Open era; Martina Navratilova amassed an unmatched number of professional records over the course of a career that spanned an amazing four decades. She won 59 grand slam titles, including a record 9 Wimbledon singles championships, and overcame the odds to become a champion both on and off the court.

It seemed fitting to invite Miss Hingis back to Liverpool to compete against Miss Navratilova, especially with her own incredible tennis record, she spent a total of 209 weeks as World No. 1, won five Grand Slam singles titles, as well as nine Grand Slam women's doubles titles.

Wimbledon Champion and fellow Tournament Director, Richard Krajicek, former British Number One and US Open Finalist, Greg Rusedski and the Iranian tennis trickster with the unmistakable ‘tash’, Mansour Bahrami, will join the two ladies.

The Liverpool International is an important tournament for ATP and WTA players as it is a key warm-up event pre-Wimbledon. The grass court season is only four weeks long, hence the requirement by players for as much grass court time as possible before descending upon SW19. Fernando Gonzales is our main player in the ATP draw, he has been as high as number 5 in the world and is an Australian Open Finalist.

His forehand is renowned on the circuit and on his day, he can and has beaten the best players in the world including Nadal, Djokovic and Federer. He has been out for eight months due to injury, but he is now fit and well and has chosen Liverpool to mount his comeback.

Players such as world number 1, Caroline Wozniacki, world number 2, Novak Djokovic, local hero Ken Skupski and British hopeful, Laura Robson have all used this event to launch their singles careers.

Northern Vision is carrying out a lot of work at grass roots level in Liverpool and is working with some incredibly talented youngsters on our performance academies managed by Anthony Hardman. Harry Meehan is one of Liverpool’s aspiring players, at just 16 years old he possess all the qualities required to compete at the highest level. Harry has a wild card into the main ATP draw this year, so watch out for him and give him plenty of support.

Northern Vision has introduced over 50,000 children to tennis through our School Programme during the Liverpool International. Moving forward they will work closely with Liverpool City Council to guide as many of the children who attend the programme in the park into public tennis clubs in Liverpool.

The Liverpool International is set in one of the country’s most beautiful parks, Calderstones. This unique environment provides an entertaining and friendly atmosphere for guests which allows you to get‘up close and personal’ with tennis stars of the past, present and future.

General admission tickets start from £9 and hospitality from £95, for more information please visit liverpooltennis.co.uk, or call 0151 227 5940.

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Editor’s Letter Welcome to officially our firstkicked dedicated Cheshire issuebeofa Summer has off! Well it may not Lifestyle Monthly.

Summer hasBut officially scorcher, after all this is the UK. our Junekicked issue off!

Well isit and maywe notare be embracing a scorcher, the after all of thismy is certainly start the UK. But our June andofwe are favourite season of theissue yearcertainly with withis lots bright embracing startoffice of my favourite season of theIt block coloursthe in the (bang on trend) and razzle. year with of bright block colours the doesn't getwith morelots blingtastic than Snoop Dogg.inHow office (bang on to trend) razzle.with It doesn't fortunate are we get anand interview the kingget of more blingtastic Snoopextrordinaire Dogg. How fortunate rap and record than producer who just are we totoget an interview withbirthday the kingin ofthe rapsame and happens share the big 40th record extrordinaire justlike happens maybe he who would to havetoa week asproducer me this yearshare the big 40th birthday in the same week as joint party? me this year- maybe he would like to have a joint party?

Talking of which, it's about time we had a party and so in true Lifestyle Monthly spirit we are having throwing

Talking of which, it's about time a party a posh bash at Kingdom at the endwe of had the month to and so in our true prestigious Lifestyle Monthly we are announce venues spirit for Liverpool throwing a posh bash at promises Kingdom to onbethe opening Fashion Week 2011 which bigger and night of Liverpool Fashion even better than last year.

If youWeek want to2011, be part which of the promises to be bigger and even better than last biggest fashion event of the year in Liverpool, then year.

If you wanttotoKingdom. be partThis of the biggest fashion book your ticket is strictly ticket only event the year in Liverpool, then book your your place. so bookofonline to guarantee ticket to Kingdom. This is strictly ticket only so book online to guarantee place. of the Liverpool June sees the tenthyour anniversary Tennissees Tournament Calderstones We also June the tenth atanniversary of Park. the Liverpool celebrate Father's Day and if you haven't already Tennis Tournament at Calderstones Park. We also chosen your presentDay thenand check gift guide celebrate Father's if out youour haven't already chosen your present then check out our gift guide.

This month we are privileged to interview the poet

Nicomonth Russellwe who written a to moving tribute our This arehas privileged interview thetopoet soldiers.

Thewho poem been commended the Nico Russell has has written a moving tributeby to our Queen and Primehas Minister is well deserved, soldiers.

Thethepoem been and commended by the reminding as weMinister go about dailydeserved, lives, that Queen andustheall,Prime andour is well are about separated from lives, their brave menusand reminding all,women as we go our daily families fighting for us.are separated from that brave menoverseas and women their families fighting overseas for us.

As usual we have comment from our columnists,

As usual the we fabulous have comment fromRick our Vaughn, columnists, including Radio City's we including fabulous Heart James FM's Angela we welcome the pyschic astrolloger GriffithsJay, to our welcome astrolloger James Griffiths to our team and pyschic TV DIY superstar Craig Phillips who will be team andhisTV DIY hints superstar Craig bringing handy to you everyPhillips month.who will be bringing his handy hints to you every month.

See, June is sizzling!!!! Take time

See, is read sizzling!!!!

Take out to June enjoy the of Lifestyle time out toyour enjoynumber the read Monthly, oneof Lifestyle your number magazine Monthly, for Merseyside. one magazine for Merseyside.

Amanda Moss, Amanda Moss, Editor Editor Email: editor@lifestlyemonthly.co.uk Phone: 0791 633 2469

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Liverpool’s longest running Liverpool’s longest lifestyle magazine covering running lifestyle Southport, Liverpool and magazine covering the Wirral has now moved Southport, Liverpool in to Cheshire. and North Wirral

If you would like copies for your business reception, contact us Over 2500 fans on facebook and still growing!!!

editor@lifestylemonthly.co.uk www.lifestlyemonthly.co.uk

0151 280 0059

T: 2 Barnhill Road, Liverpool L15 5BE

Contents

June 2011 is proud to be working with Europe's largest taxi firm, Delta Taxis

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17

8 8 12 17

21

23

14

25 27

Celebrity Interview

With Snoop Dogg

28

Astrology

With James Griffiths

31

Craig Phillips Our latest columist

33

Restaurant reviews Red Carpet

Who has been partying and where

Nico Russell

Wirral poet

Business

21 Angela Jay FM’s new columnist 7 Heart News and events 21 Simon Ross 27 Rick Vaughn 23 Brazilica on his new34 dining Laird Assessors festival prompts out latino themed column 8 The Celebrityspecial interview 30 Light Night in restaurant with jennie freedland Liverpool 25 Music 12 Interview Beauty Benjamin Franis Leftwich 25 Delta Maid and 40 Competitions with Jennie Freedland Good Vibrations festival 14

26

Southport Food and Drink Festival

With business coach Darren Lawrenson and Marketing Director, Karl Fischer

Liverpool Sound Festival

Win a round of golf at Jungle Rumble win tickets to a music festival

THE TEAM

Editor: Amanda Moss editor@lifestylemonthly.co.uk 0791 633 2469 Sales Manager: Neil Woods Editor Amanda Moss neil.woods5@btinternet.com 07984 565931 Sales Manager

Neil Woods

Sales Executive: Gemma07984565931 Hibbert Head of Make Up: Jennie Freedland Sales Executive Gemma Hibbert Design: Catherine Cornforth, 45 Degree Design

CREAME DESIGN Design by Sleepycat Design www.facebook.com/sleepycatdesign.page Designed by Creame Design www.creame-design.co.uk

Copywrite Panda Print Ltd. Lifestyle Monthly is a free

Copywritemonthly Panda Print Ltd. Lifestyle Monthly is abeen free monthly Every effort title.

Every effort has madetitle. to ensure thehas been made to ensureof theeach accuracy of each publication.

However the publisher accuracy publication.

However the publisher does notdoes accept liability for any loss or damage maydamage arise omissions not accept liability for anywhich loss or whichin advertisement. may arise omissions in advertisement.

Please refer to our andon conditions ourbooking website Please refer to our terms andterms conditions our websiteon when when booking advertising Panda Print Ltd. advertising with Panda with Print Ltd. Reproduction of any content of this magazine, in part or whole is strictly forbidden.

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News & Events

The PLACE Blacklers18-22 RoomOCTOBER Welcomes...

LIVERPOOL FASHION WEEK TAKES and is looking for designer boutiques from across the region to D take part. This is the ’North biggest fashion event OMINIQUE S DWest's AY OF DECADENT OLYMPIC and attracts huge national publicity. Opening night is at a Hard Days Night Hotel, other venues include Alma de Cuba and DELIGHTS & DRINKIES! the Marriott. To get involved go to www.liverpoolfashionweek.co.uk TORCH TO (Proceeds towards Dominique Williams Trust) www.dominiquewilliamstrust.co.uk LIGHT UP Dog expert proves that dog SUNDAY JULY 3RD LIVERPOOL owners are nicer people!

News & Events

GIVEAWAY!!!!

Liverpool is glowing with pride after the city was selected to host the Olympic Flame as part of the build-up to the 2012 Olympic Games.

Liverpool is one of 66 locations across the UK confirmed by the London 2012 Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).

Leader of Liverpool City Council, Councillor Joe Anderson, said: “Liverpool is a city world-renowned for its sporting prowess and it’s fitting we have been selected to take part in this prestigious event”.

“The city is no stranger to hosting high profile sporting events in many fields including tennis, badminton, netball, golf and sailing, and we’re proud that the city is part of the warm-up to the world’s greatest sporting competition!

The Olympic Flame arrived in the UK from Greece last month before travelling to Land's End. It is expected to travel an estimated 8,000 miles across the UK, giving thousands of communities and individuals their moment to shine as the Olympic Flame comes to their doorstep. It will arrive at the Olympic Stadium on 27 July 2012 for the lighting of the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony, signifying the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

If you haven't got enough of the Royal Wedding then

The Olympic Flame will be carried across the UK by 8,000 inspirational why not own a copy.

A souvenir DVD, out on 13 June, is torchbearers and once the detailed daily route is confirmed later this year, for95 free weofhave 2 copies will up for grabs.a Relive it isavailable the aim that peras cent the population be within one hour journey time, of the London Olympic Torch Relay. the events of the day,2012 from the arrival of the family and

celebrity guestsTO atCARRY Westminster Abbey through to the WIN A CHANCE THE OLYMPIC FLAME!!! bride and groom driving back to Clarence House in the LOCOG is seeking 8,000 of the most inspirational people to have their open-topped Aston Martin car. the ToOlympic win aFlame. copy email moment to shine next summer by carrying editor@lifestylemonthly.co.uk with your name, address The LOCOG Torchbearer programme is on the hunt for 2,012 inspirational and who WEDDING inbeyond the subject box. competition onto people have gone their personal best! Residentscloses are asked 22 Junesomeone and the decision is final nominate byeditor's visiting www.london2012.com/olympictorchrelay and writing 150 words on why their nominee should carry the iconic symbol. The deadline is Wednesday 29 June 2011.

MP’s passion to succeed MP ESTHER McVey is hoping to pass on her passion for young women to succeed with her contribution to a major event for parents.

Esther, Conservative MP for West Wirral, will be chairing a question-and-answer session at the Northern Independent Schools Show being held at Thornton Manor, Cheshire, in October A former pupil of The Belvedere School, Liverpool, Esther, who is Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister for Employment, Chris Grayling, has spent the past 10 years working with schoolgirls on leadership programmes and workshops and is passionate about young women having female role models.

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Visitor admission to the Northern Independent Schools Show is free and tickets are available online at www.northernschoolsshow.co.uk

2PM START £20 A TICKET

A Fabulous Girlie Day honour has of a set out to prove that Serial dog lover AlexinOlejnik Fabulous Girl! are Ladies, Pop on nicer your best dog owners indeed people by conducting a frock, heels & lippy! simple experiment.

A Glass of pink bubbles on arrival, Then shown to your table set out "Iwith proved thischina by simply saying "hello" to dog owners eclectic for a traditional delicious Afternoon Tea and non dog owners Twinning’s alike, and measured the response." with Homemade Finger Sandwiches, Said Alex.a"Over thestand course of 3 weeks I said "hello" to Alongside tiered Cake with Ample Homemade cakes & Delicious 300 dog owners walkingScones. their dogs in the park, then

spent a further 3 weeks "hello" to 300 non dog Entertainment supplied

by Oursaying Very own Michael at Buble Tribute...

‘Burst into Buble’I documented that 282 owners various public places.

Then Disco to finish off a good day had by dog owners responded with a the hello of some sorts with all.Raffles and Irish Bingo through-out many engaging in further day with some wonderful prizes! conversation, whilst out of the 300 list non owners Cocktail willdog be available foronly you to173 responded, with very purchase from the along with Wine, few engaging in bar further conversation.

Champagnes and full bar Available.

Bookhis Tickets go on Blacklers With findings Alex has now created an online social Room Liverpool on Facebook network for dog owners only. or call 07515423741 The Blacklers Room, 1st Floor Tess Riley’s

"Given my research it's clear to me that dog owners are www.theblacklersroom.co.uk more social, so why not get them all together online?

If you were to unite all the dog owners in the world and put them in one room, you couldn't ask for a room full of nicer people in my opinion, that's what k9united.com is all about, dog owners meeting, socialising and sharing. It’s clearly the dogs that are the icebreakers here, so members can feel more at ease when meeting new people”

CLAUDE’S

of CHURCHTOWN

For more information visit www.k9united.com

We are open for lunch Monday to Saturday and for dinner Tuesday to Saturday , licensed and with frequently changing menus (all available on our website). We also have a bakery shop selling fresh bread, made to order barms filled with our own roasted meats,fresh baked savoury and wonderful multi-sport homemade competition cakes and is the largest pies annual international pastries. in elite disability sport. Manchester has committed for the

The BT Paralympic World Cup

seventh consecutive year to hosting elite international athletes competing acrossRWheelchair Basketball, 98 B ot anic oa d, Churc htown,Athletics and Swimming. InSo addition, Boccia Volleyball uthpo rt PR 9and 7N Sitting E will be represented for the time, with w w w. cl aude s ofcfirst hu rc htow n.cinternational o.u k matches stagedTe during thene: competition. le pho 01 70 4228 33 4

The Arbour

Nestled in the heart of Wirral, an idyllic venue, located just 20 minutes from Liverpool city centre, surrounded by beautiful, tranquil countryside.

Our experienced staff are on hand to ensure your day is just perfect, looking after your every need. We can accommodate both intimate ceremonies or larger functions up to 400 guests.

Our 4 star Hotel also offers two elegant outdoor ceremony venues; the Arbour, which is surrounded by a magical lake and the Pagoda, surrounded by beautiful gardens and the countryside beyond.

Our luxurious award winning Spa is the perfect Hen Party venue so you can relax and unwind before your big day.

...the perfect location for your wedding. www.thorntonhallhotel.com

Thornton Hall Hotel & Spa, Neston Road, Thornton Hough, Wirral, CH63 1JF. T : 0151 336 3938 E: enquiries@thorntonhallhotel.com

What up doh, this is big Snoop Dogg in the studio working on my 11th solo record, ‘Doggumentary.”

AND TALKING TO LIFESTYLE MONTHLY MAGAZINE What was your inspiration behind ‘Doggumentary’: What was my inspiration behind ‘Doggumentary?’ My inspiration was just basically going in the studio trying to make a record that feel good, that felt good to me, that felt good to the environment that I’m in, that Hip Hop is in right now. For me being on my 11th solo record, like, just trying to go in and make a record that could really depict my whole career but go with a brand new twist to feel like right now Did you intend for the album to be so eclectic?

Um, no, when I went in to make the record I was trying to just make a record that felt good.You don’t really have no direction or no substance when you first start.

It’s just about shooting in the sky trying to find something, and when you hit, you know, you feel like, ok, I got one, and you go back and you, ok, I got another one, then I got another one, and then you start taking those songs and trying to put them together until you create a formula that has a concept behind it. So, in the initial beginning it was more about just making songs, because, you know, when you get to the point where I’m at, you know, some would say it’s time to retire.

So, you know, you try to find a groove that feels good to your groove, and once you get it then you stay at it.

What are the stand-out tracks for you and why?

Songs that stand out on this album to me, uh definitely a song I got called “My Own Way.” Frank Sinatra did it his own way, and this song is like my version, because it’s me just saying what I, what I really feel at the time, as far as like I really want to go back to the hood and try to kick it, but I can’t because I’m so far ahead of that now. And there’s another song on there called “Cold Game,” where it just talks about, you know, me as an artist, and my growth, and my, my failures, and my successes in the industry, and the things that I’ve had to deal with and overcome, and just the way I put them all in perspective, and, you know, still having fun doing it.

Tell us about some of the collaborations on the album.

Stand-out collaborations on my album would definitely be Wiz Khalifa “This Weed Iz Mine” is a hell of a record, T.Pain “Boom,” R.Kelly “Platinum,” and the way I get, you know, to the point of me working with somebody on my album, it has to be someone that I really love their music, their craft, and their whole integrity behind making music, and then it has to be somebody who I feel that can complement the record that I’m working on, and really fits the concept of the whole album as opposed to the song.You have to be able to, you know, engrope the whole concept of the record when I call on you to be a part of my situation, because to me my albums are like movies, it’s like, I can’t just throw you in the scene if you not a part of the movie.You know, you have to have some relevance to yourself and what you’re doing, so when we’re watching this movie and listening back to this movie it all comes together as a puzzle.

What stands out about the track you did with Kanye West and John Legend?

The Kanye West track, what stands out about that to me is just how he just flipped it and took an old school track and made it brand new. And John Legend singing the hook, just the stuff we talking about, just being real and opening up, and not really being on no flamboyant, flossy “I got it all” type rap, but really saying something that means something. And a lot of times, we, we don’t take the opportunity to say things that matter over great music, because in hip hop, it’s so cool to rap about what you have, as opposed to the have-nots, so this is more about a record that’s a reflection of what we see when our eyes are closed.

Uh yeah, David Guetta did a remix for “Wet,” which will be the original version for “Wet” on my European release of my album because he’s so big, and so international, and he flipped a song and made it sound completely different than it did when we did it, but, you know, working with somebody like that, that’s what I strive for - I strive to work with, you know, with greats. I also worked with Willie Nelson on my album, on a song that he wrote called “Superman.” So, you know, it’s - it’s about being great and working with great acts to continue to have greatness in your career.

Your music weaves seamlessly from Hip Hop to R’n’B, from Dance to Pop, has it always been an effortless transition for you?

Well, music has always been a part of my life, and I mean by all forms of music, so for me to make the transformation from going into Rap, Hip Hop, Country, Rock, Pop, whatever it is, it’s all music to me. I never had a prejudice when it came to music, I had an ear for music, and if it sounded good, I rocked my head to it. And I tried to emulate it, and when I became a musician, the same rules apply, you know, that’s why you can find myself doing Country music, or Rock music, or R’n’B music, or Hip Hop music and never falling without, you know, hurting myself. When I do fall, I fall back.

Which Rock artists would you like to collaborate with?

Uh, If I was to do a collaboration with Rock artists, I would probably choose Rage Against the Machine, or um, what’s my guy, Trent from Nine Inch Nails - one of those two, so that way I know I had some exclusive, gangsta, rock your motherfuckin’ head shit.

What is your writing process?

Um, my writing process, it’s different. Sometimes I don’t write, sometimes I can just feel the track and go in and just spit that shit and it come out and it is what it is, and then other times it may take me a day or two, or maybe three or four days, to write something that’s compelling, that takes that sort of time to get off what I’m trying to get off, and then sometimes I can just go in there and hit that shit, start feeling it, right to it, bam, write it, spit it, drop it, double it, triple it, lock and load it, bounce it, mp3, ooo-wee.

What do you enjoy more, recording or playing live?

I would have to say that playing live is what I enjoy more than anything in my career.You know, the recording part of it is very fun, and you know, different, but it’s more work.The performing side is fun, because it’s, it’s like, you’ve reached the pinnacle, that’s when the music is already understood by the people, and the expectations is for them to sing along with you.

You have a huge Twitter following, how important is your connection with your fans?

Um, I feel like that’s like the number one key in music right now.You know, having that relationship with your fans where it’s not based on your record label, it’s based on you.You know, when you tweetin’ and all that, that’s not about what label you on, it’s about you dealing with your fans directly. So whether you have, you know, a successful album, or a label that supports you or back you, you have a relationship with the people who make you who you are, and to me, that’s way more important nowadays to me, because that’s what the industry is broken down into.Trust. I don’t trust, you know, that, but I trust you and if I have a relationship with you and you telling me you putting a record out and it’s gonna be good, I’m gonna buy it because I trust you.

How do you relax when you get some down time?

Go to sleep (laughs) how does Snoop relax? I mean, you know, I have many different ways of relaxation. Some is just sleep, um I like to play video games, umm, basketball, football, just, you know, the simple things in life go a long way with me. I’m not complex at all.

Do you want to coach football at the next level?

Um, I’ve been offered a position at my alma mater high school to be a coach there, so I’m thinking about entertaining that, then from high school, you know, what’s next? NCAA, and then, you know, the big wop wop, the NFL. I’m just easing into it, you know, I love the kids, I love coaching, I love giving information, and teaching, and learning, and passing it on, and being a mentor. So, football is one of my number one passions, and coaching is definitely up there at the top.

How did you become a Pittsburgh Steelers fan growing up in Southern California?

Well, when I was a kid in the 70s, you know, you was either a Steeler, a Raider, or a Cowboy. And um, something about the Steelers really intrigued me at an early age, the way their defense played, Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, Terry Bradshaw, just the way they got down. It was my style, it was me, and I fell in love with them, and I’ve never been able to really undo it, you know, I’ve got a lot of friends who I like that play for different NFL teams, a lot of NFL players that I love and respect from different organizations, but I am a die-hard Pittsburgh Steeler, and that’s what I was bred and bled to be.

Wrap-up It’s been a hell of an experience, you know what it is, the record is gonna give you what you need, cause I got what you want, and you can dig that. Peace.

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Beauty

Beyond the Colour WITH JENNIE FREEDLAND

Head of Make Up, Liverpool Fashion Week & Lifestyle Monthly

Well it’s certainly been a busy month and set to get even busier with the launch of Liverpool Fashion Week just around the corner- I can’t wait!! There’s been shoots a plenty including Gypsophilia Couture shot by the fab Keith Hitchmough and events including the Personal Shopping evening at Topshop with gorgeous drinks and cakes viewing some truly fabulous pieces for this summer leading to autumn with Grazia’s own Sophie Ferguson Jones (and a few pieces of make up were acquired of course!)

With colour everywhere at the moment, the other colour trend to go with is pastels. Urban Decay have brought out 3 limited edition palettes that will inspire even the smoky eye diehards to try soft shimmering purples, aquas, soft browns and sparkling blues along with the new 24/7 glide on eyeshadow pencil that comes in 8 shades and a must for the handbag. If pastels on the eye isn’t your thing try them on your nails- with fab new shades from Nails Inc, Dior, YSL and my favourite OPI, who have done a range to celebrate the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie with names such as “Sparrow me the Drama”, “Planks a Lot” and “Mermaid’s Tears” and to top them off the silver shatter polish.

Talking of nails..... and guys this one also applies to you as well.......we are certainly in the season of open toed shoes and heels are out There is nothing more terrifying to view peeling, cracked heels and yellow untidy, unpolished nails- eeewww!!

The must have treatment to start getting those feet in tiptop condition has got to be the fish pedicure. Yes, I said fish. This involves you comfortably sitting with your feet in a tank and Garra Rufa fish sucking and nibbling at all the nasty dead skin on your feet- I won’t lie it is a very odd sensation, yet strangely

relaxing and 15minutes later OMG you have new feet!!!

Seriously! My favourite place for this is Appy Feet in Chestergo see Harry and the team there. Once you have new feet, take a buffer over your nails, trim them and apply a gorgeous pastel and moisturise to keep them soft- best ones have shea butter in, try Body Shop, Soap & Glory and Crabtree & Evelyn who all have lovely foot products.

I have also been lucky enough to try lots of new products this month and making it onto my must have list are- Clinique’s Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser spf 15 (stays colour true for 12hrs) £21, Dior’s Addict Crystal Gloss £20, Rimmel’s new 2-in-1 Mascara (gives you 2 choices on how to wear your lashes) £7.99, Sleeks Acid i-Divine palette £6.49 ( colour blocking for the brave!) and Givenchy’s Le Prismissime eyes in Acid Lights £39.50 and the new fragrance for this summer is full of tangerine, iris and pink lily nectar courtesy of Estee Lauder’s Bronze Goddess Soleil Eau Fraiche.

And for those of you who are nicely pale like myself, we are in good company with Liv Tyler, Florence Welch, and Evan Rachel Wood this spring/summer. Fake tan is so pre-coalition and having a complexion look this good, you are going to want to dodge the sun or at least use factor 50. Cheating is allowed to achieve perfection with foundation and a dab of blush ( try the new Urban Decay Afterglow Cheek Tint).

Hope you’re all enjoying the sun that we seem to be having and remembering to use sunscreen (even if it’s cloudy!), enjoy some new products and treat those feet to a bit of TLC!!

I’m available for private appointments,shoots,advice etc.. Get me on 0795041177 or on facebook (Jennie MUA Freedland) Photography: Adam Johns Model: Alanna Saskia Thomas MUA/Hair: Jennie Freedland

Designer: Mark Melia Location: Posh Pads Liverpoo

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Astrology and Lucky Numbers James Griffiths James is an international Psychic Medium, Numerologist, and Astrologist from Cheshire.

James can be contacted to do personal readings: jamesagriffiths@live.com.

ARIES Financial situations are in hand and will level out very soon. Try and relax.

4,16,17,32,37,38 TAURUS Romance is in the air, show more affection and attention. Don’t neglect those that are close to your heart. 1, 5 6,18,21,34, SCORPIO Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but that does not mean that their opinion is right.You will be surprised who is listening.

4,5,7,15, 27,32, GEMINI Injustice, think positive as you reap you shall sow.

Love luck 2 ,10, 13, 27, 28, 30 CANCER Emotional support around a young person is needed.

Life does seem on the up for you. 4, 19, 22, 34, 36, 41 LEO Don’t despair, try to remain grounded; don’t have your head in the clouds.

5, 7, 22, 24, 39, 41,

LIBRA Stressful time lately just relax and let go. Surround yourself with nature.

Financial, your ship is on its way! 2, 17, 25, 28, 30, 35, SAGITTARIUS Remain tight lipped or you could end up saying something you may regret.

Stop look listen, is the best approach. 1,29,30,35,36,49 CAPRICORN New doors are opening fantastic opportunities.

An old flame turns up this month, please try and avoid them and their Karma!

16,24,38,39,40,42 AQUARIUS Look at problems differently look outside of the box. New friendships and good news. 15, 27,35,46,47,49 PISCES Very energised this month and able to do anything.

Enjoy yourself or you may miss a great occasion.

Wedding bells are on the cards. 21, 25, 27, 34, 40, 41 Spirit Messages Mike,Wallesey.

Listening.

Joan,Liverpool.

The top drawer.

Jean,Crosby.

Always with you.

Isim.Neston.

So many flowers.

Eileen,Chester.

Each evening.

Tom,Everton.

Fit perfectly.

Cheshire Firm Launches Prestige Asian Art Interiors Imaginasia Ltd was established last summer and is based in the Cheshire village of Madeley. Here the team worked hard over a number of months to combine British innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and graphic expertise with Asian tradition, design skills and artisanship.

The result is a collection of contemporary Chinese artworks that are already causing a stir. In both concept and execution, it’s a fusion of East and West and although thoroughly modern, the Imaginasia collection is resonant of an artistic and decorative tradition stretching back thousands of years.

From the smallest 6in-high ‘Essence of the Buddha’ to the ‘Harmony Apples’ rising right up to over 6ft tall, there are inspirational pieces which will surely sit (or stand) comfortably in a whole host of environments – in country homes, halls, living areas, galleries and displays, in conservatories, on patios and in the garden, the orangery and the arboretum.

Tina Whittaker, one of the Imaginasia directors, said: “We have visited a number of exhibitions and have also researched much of the retail offerings and I have to say that there really isn’t anything quite like this collection currently out there. I think that’s the reason that after only a few weeks of active presentation, a number of people have already come forward and are interested in promoting the Imaginasia brand.”

It’s clear on viewing Imaginasia’s prestige portfolio that the young Asian designers have successfully answered the challenge of producing contemporary, striking creations which nevertheless reflect some enduring themes – those with universal appeal.

“While different people respond to different themes,” says Tina, “everyone wants to touch the pieces and move them around. They do have a very tactile quality about them and are also visually very dynamic.

“Each artwork will, we feel, find its own unique space. How it’s placed, at what angle, how it’s lit, what’s around it – all of these factors come into play and lend excitement to the Imaginasia brand.”

While each creation has its own particular shape, surface texture and story to tell, the Imaginasia team at Madeley Poolside has settled on the use of modern materials across the range – stainless steel, polyresins etc – while at the same time demanding a certain level of dynamism which drives the artistic vision.

“In response to the interest that the collection has already sparked,” says Tina, “we are just in the process of organising a small number of Retailer Open Days where the whole range can be viewed in a relaxed atmosphere and where retailers can meet members of the team and get up close to the artworks. Anyone from the retail trade who is interested can just e-mail me.

“Additionally, many examples are also on show in a nearby 16th century country house and we can usually arrange for a quick tour to see Imaginasia pieces in situ. I’m expecting to whet the appetite of a number of new buyers right across the county; I think they’ll be impressed by the East/West fusion that’s been achieved and will see good sales opportunities.”

VIRGO You will feel you have an angel on your shoulder; onwards and upwards.

1, 4, 13,23 39,40 12

www.imaginasia.co.uk

WOWart airbrush art by neil j arms bespoke art on

canvas

& walls

specialising in portrait,

and figurative work

07523 278010

www.neiljarms.com

l

At the forefront of fashion is Liverpool designer, Caroline Oates who went down a storm at the Wirral Fashion Festival last month. We spent five minutes chatting about the bespoke design service she started 16 years ago....

Have you always wanted to be a designer?

Oh yes, since I was seven years old. I come from a big family, I was a child during the 1970s and I used to love seeing my sisters getting ready to go out to the local clubs and discos with their flicked hair and fabulous outfits inspired by Bianca Jagger.

street at C&A for three years. I chose to do window design and display. It was a great course to make me experiment with different creative aspects and life drawing. This really helped me create my own individual style even the way I dress myself. Following on from this, I went to do an HND in Clothing Technology. Design and style were always to be my main forte.

When did you start drawing designs?

I was forever drawing pictures of women wearing massive dresses out of history books as a child because I loved colouring them in with all my feltpens.

My dad was really into art and he used to encourage me to draw because he saw my talent from an early age.

When did you realise you had a unique talent?

I started to develop my own style from the time when I was drawing with my dad. I have always been creative and had a very inquisitive mind. I went to college when I was 19 after working on the high

CLEO B HEADS HOME Cleo Barbour is hosting the second annual CLEO B shopping event at Bolesworth Castle, in Cheshire, on 15th & 16th June 2011.

Cleo grew up in Cheshire and now runs her successful luxury shoe brand CLEO B, based in London. The shopping event creates an opportunity for shoe lovers from the North West to experience the CLEO B collections within the beautiful setting of Bolesworth. This is a rare chance to purchase shoes at exclusive discounted prices as well as see a special preview of new collections.

CLEO B has been named as the new shoe brand to watch by British Vogue, The Financial Times and Grazia has

What is your style?

My style has really developed over the years. I have put a lot of hard work into my creativity. I like to think my dresses are unique and they stand out because they are eyecatching and different. I am inspired by old movies, especially old 1970’s horror films and James Bond films, and also from beautiful fabrics will always get my attention too. My favourite designer of all time is Coco Chanel. I love the Chanel story even her personality - the way she knew what she wanted and the total simplicity of her style is just so amazing.

recently labelled CLEO B’s wedge as the new ultra-chic wedge to wear this summer.

CLEO B is steadily building on it’s reputation as Britain’s new it-shoe brand having opened a stand-alone boutique in Belgravia last year. Having attended the infamous Cordwainer’s College (which also trained the renowned Jimmy Choo), she went on to train at the Salvatore Ferragamo design studio in Florence and launched CLEO B in 2008. Lily Allen, Paloma Faith and Cheryl Cole are among the celebrity followers that can’t live without their CLEO Bs. The public are invited to attend the shopping event with drinks and canapes on the evening of Wednesday 15th June (5pm 8pm) or alternatively during the day on Thursday 16th June with tea and cupcakes (9am 4pm). CLEO B shoe clips will be available to buy alongside the CLEO B shoe collection.

What do you offer in your studio?

At my studio I give truth and honesty to my customers and from feed back from my customers, I know they Iike it to be an enjoyable experience where they have fun coming into purchase adressfrom my brand.

What are your working on at the moment?

The key trends to me this season is definitely 1970’s and plain white and simple classic cuts with plenty of room to breath and fabulous jewellery but not over done. I work with mainly chiffons and floaty fabrics I also do a lot with jersey.

My clothes parties are when my customers have get togethers and we talk about clothes material and where we are going, it’s all really good fun and we have a great night and also a glass of wine or 2. I like to dress my customers in my unique stylish way that I see suiting them as an individual. I like to tap into their personality and choose a look to flatter them. I don’t like to follow the crowd.

Caroline Oates 16 Newington, Liverpool, L1 4ED 0151 709 8359

l

CHECKING IN WITH

CHARLOTTE WOODS Our fashionista brings you all the party news from the high streets across our region Well I have certainly had an eventful past few weekends and bank holidays and i’m just about starting to recover.

Last weekend I headed to Manchester’s Deansgate Locks with my friends. The sun was shining so the legs and sunglasses were out! We had the best time sat outside Missoula Bar all day, just soaking in the rays. It felt like I was on holiday, plus they had some amazing drinks offers on which helped pass the afternoon. Cosmopolitans and Rose makes for a happy me. I will definitely be returning.

My boyfriend and I took a trip to the Trafford Centre. I spotted the cutest cardi in my fave shop Topshop, which turned out to be in the sale, result!

Its perfect for throwing over any outfit during the summer and festival period. I’ve already had my money’s worth out of it!

I found the most perfect pair of heels to wear to the event. Check out my bright pink stilettos from www.misguided.co.uk. I don’t think I have ever loved shoes like this before.

To get me back to normality I am in definite need of a bit of pampering. So I treated myself to some FakeBake selftan - cant wait to try it out and get some glow back!

I have a very exciting month planned for June. My Take That tickets have arrived so I cannot wait for that with my girls! I also I have a photoshoot for a lookbook with a very lovely independent designer called She Shea. Her creations are beautiful so keep your eyes peeled xxx

My friends and I headed to Bijou Club in Manchester for the Soap Awards after party recently. I must say, everyone looked great rocking lots of colour!

The venue, Bijou, is so pretty. I especially loved the atmosphere in the outdoor terrace. It was a bit more chilled and a great place for chatting combined with a bit of celeb spotting! Managed to get a cheeky hello and a picture with TOWIES Mark Wright. He is such a lovely guy, bless him.

15

DIY Superstar and original Big Brother winner, Craig Phillips, joins our team Welcome to Lifestyle Monthly. What can readers expect from your column?

My column will offer Lifestyle Monthly an insight into my life and what I get up to behind the scenes.

I will also be giving readers my latest DIY tips covering a huge range of tasks around the home and garden. I aim to help readers become more knowledgeable and have the confidence to complete DIY tasks at home.

Craig Phillips

What are you currently working on?

I am currently working on two brand new TV shows as well as running a campaign for UKTV called “Seize the DIY” which aims to encourage the British public to carry out more DIY and how to improve their home effectively and safely.

I also have a weekly column in the Sunday Mirror, which again gives the nation a few key tips to sort out their DIY disasters.

In addition to this I endorse a number of brands and will be appearing at events across the country to show off their products. I am a brand ambassador for Heat Holders ultimate thermal socks, Blåkläder clothing and Ryobi tools.

Tell us about your new show The shows are very different, the first, “If its Broke Fix it” sees two teams of hopeless homeimprovers battle it out to become DIY experts. I have set up a builder’s bootcamp in which I can teach the public vital DIY skills and tricks of the trade. The second show, “Celebrity DIY with Craig Phillips” delves deep into celebrities’ homes, uncovering their DIY dilemmas. I also find out some endearing facts about the celebs after spending so much time in their homes, it has definitely been interesting!

Will you be watching Big Brother?

Of course! I am really looking forward to see how Channel 5 are going to change it!

What is your favourite Big Brother moment?

Winning! I think my favourite moment would be just leaving the house after 64 days of being locked up, although I loved taking part in the tasks.

What did you learn from appearing and winning the first series?

Being stuck in the Big Brother house for so long, with very little to do but talk to the same ten people day in and day out, you do a lot of thinking and find that you actually learn about yourself, and how you feel about other people.

How well was your autobiography received?

The autobiography was very well received, it is something I am extremely proud of and it was nice to have some great feed back. Everyone said the name “Building Beyond Big Brother” was perfect!

What is most common DIY mistake people made?

I think a lot of people jump into DIY without doing the appropriate research. I have filmed loads of great video and picture tips in an attempt to combat this problem, and I hope they will help people to conduct their DIY tasks effectively and safely. They are on the UKTV www.lovehome.co.uk and Ryobi www.Ryobi.com websites.

What is the most popular DIY job people do?

I would imagine the most popular DIY tasks that people do are painting and decorating. However, I often get asked my advice on tiling and flooring, so I have tried to cover all of these areas in my two new TV shows.

What tips would you give people doing DIY? Do as much research as possible, plan your time carefully and make sure you are using the right tools.

Tell us about the charities you support and the work they do?

I try and support as many charities as I can to the best of my ability. I am proud to say I am ambassador for a number of charities and am happy to lend a hand in any way I can to support them.

In 2000 I became involved in the national ‘Think!’ drink drive media campaign, as a cause that is close to my heart, it was an honour to represent such an important campaign. I am also an ambassador for ‘Brake’ a road safety charity, and have used my profile to raise awareness to launch many drink drive campaigns across the country.

I believe my greatest achievement has been my work for The Down Syndrome Association, as not only have I raised money but also awareness of the discrimination that was demonstrated by the NHS. I am very pleased to say that with the support of Government ministers, steps were made to abolish this discrimination.

I often get asked to help out with various charities, and whenever I can I go along to events to support them and give something back.

If you have a DIY question for Craig email: editor@lifestylemonthly.co.uk

17

Let us entertain you

this summer

! " # $ "

LIVE ON STAGE

SATURDAY 16th JULY Tickets from ÂŁ30 Full evening of racing followed by Scissor Sisters performing live on stage after the last race.

Ladies’ Evening Grab your hats and don your finest for a fantastic night out with friends, family, clients or colleagues.

These evenings combine all the thrills of first class racing together with the glamorous world of fashion.

Friday 1st July and Friday 5th August

Book tickets now at haydock-park.co.uk or call 0844 579 3006 Serious Sport, Serious Fun

From the first ever artist collaboration for Primark, the menswear T shirt designed by Ben Allen, £6

Watch £35 from Next

Men’s cut jeans from Matalan

Sir Peter Blake heart cufflinks £12.99 from The British Heart Foundation

Father's Day is on June 16th.

Stuck for that special gift?

Let Lifestyle Monthly help you...

Matalan spring summer collection 2011 linen shirt £16, polo £12, linen drawstring trousers £22, twin buckle sandals £8

Mantaray leather mule £38 from Debenhams

Short peak trilby from Next £12 Calvin Klein men’s fragrance £44 19

Batman Live

Cliff Richard

7 - 11 September £20.00 - £45.00

John Bishop Sunshine 5 - 6 June £25.00

The Soulicious Tour

19 October £60.00/£70.00

Deacon Blue

WWE Presents RAW

Dolly Parton

WWE Smackdown

7 November £25.00/£35.00/£45.00/£60.00

29 July £18.50 - £36.50*

31 August £50.00/£60.00/£67.50

Radio City Live NE-YO, LMFAO, Tinchy Stryder

8 November £25.00/£35.00/£45.00/£60.00

Example, Parade, Mike Posner

10 June

The GB Judo World Cup

£25.00 - £30.00** Gold Circle £70.00

1 - 2 October £5.00 Under 16’s / £15.00 Adults

The Yehlex Liverpool Badminton Bonanza

Rihanna 7 October

See website for details 12 June

Bill Bailey

Dandelion Mind 14 November £29.50 T SOLD OU

World Netball Series

Paddy McGuinness

ft. England, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Jamaica, Fiji 25 - 27 November £5.00 - £24.00

Saturday Night Live 8 October £25.00

Bryan Adams

20th Anniversary Tour Waking up the Neighbours 28 November £39.50

Jason Manford

17 June £35.00

11 October £25.00

Selco Mersey Masters Football ft. Liverpool, Everton, Blackpool, Bolton Wanderers, Wigan, Tranmere Rovers 18 June £7.00 - £20.00

Here and Now

TWO

ft. Boy George, Jason Donovan, Jimmy Somerville, Belinda Carlisle, Midge Ure, Flock of Seagulls, Pepsi & Shirlie

Katy Perry

TWO ECHO DEVELOPMENT WORK B

18 October £28.09

25 June £36.50

TWO

Brit Floyd

QUOFEST 2011

2

1 July £21.50 - £39.50*

Symphonica - The Orchestral Tour 30 November £51.00/£76.00/£91.00

2

Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra

George Michael

Status Quo, Roy Wood & Kim Wilde 6 December £37.50 TWO

Blink 182

2 & 30 July £10.00 - £37.50*

25 - 26 October £30.00

12 July 2012 £33.19

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Bringing you closer to the enterainm

Bringing you closer to the enterainment

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Creative by Robin Cooke, June 22 2010

Carnival Du Vampires Rock The Greatest Rock Show on Earth!

29 October £15.00 / £28.50

2011 Women’s Artistic Gymnastics British Championships 9 - 10 July

Tinie Tempah

£15.00 Adults £10.00 Under 16’s

plus special guest J. Cole 31 October

World Championship Boxing

22 - 24 November 2012 £35.00

T SOLD OU

With a smaller audience of up to 4,000, you get everything you already love about Echo Arena, but in a more intimate atmosphere.

Roadrunner 2 - 4 November £30.00

16 July See website for details

What is...

EchoTwo is Echo Arena’s brand new venue-within-a-venue!

Lee Evans

ft. Ricky Burns WBO World Super-Featherweight Champion

Michael McIntyre

Get Closer With EchoTwo! DEVELOPMENT

2

BOX OFFICE: 0844 8000 4002 WWW.ECHOARENA.COM All ticket purchases are subject to a ‘per ticket’ booking fee and a handling fee. Tickets are subject to availability. * VIP Package available for selected events - call Box Office for details. **Gold circle tickets available

Bringing you closer to the enterainment

2

TWO

TWO

SCAN THIS WITH A QR CODE READER APP!

BE THE FIRST TO KNOW! WWW.ECHOARENA.COM/SIGNUP ECHO TWO WORK B TWO

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Bringing you closer to the enterainm

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Don’t miss

ANGELA JAY

Chester Rocks July 2nd

if you like The Saturdays, The Wanted, Taio Cruz, McFly, Sugababes and Eliza Doolittle plus more –then make sure you get your tickets now before they sell out and keep listening to Heart to win them

Reaching out to the heart of the community.......

Lifestyle Monthly welcomes Heart FM’s popular breakfast presenter as our regular columnist Well, what a month……I don’t know what to speak about now the Royal wedding is over ….didn’t she look beautiful – and the dress?... I know ‘WoW’.

Apparently a friend’s cousin was involved in the ‘sewing on of the individual lace flowers on top of the lace bodice’ (yes an extremely important job!). As if reporting about it all on the breakfast show in the morning was not enough I went home and watched it all from beginning to end ( thank goodness for sky plus) I could rewind and pause whenever I wanted ! This is sad to admit but after it all I even watched the cheesy low budget Kate and Wills- the movie, along with the cake and biscuits! Many street parties were held across the UK including Chester, Birkenhead and perhaps the biggest one was in the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge hometown – Anglesey.

Lots to look forward to for me next month as I turn 30- aaaarrggh! Just how much pressure though do we put on ourselves these days? When I was little by the time I imagined by 30 I would be happily married have the perfect two point 4 a lovely big house (yes with the white picket fence!) and lots of disposable income. I ponder for a moment- what has happened?– can I stop the clock for a moment please if only to assess.

In reality I am pretty happy with what I have- I have a great support network which consists of a loving family a great man and long term friends. I think we need to learn to not think about what we haven’t got sometimes and when we have these moments (which lets face it we all have from time to time) we need to focus on what we have, which will in turn encourage us to feel more positive in the future …..i am happy with what I have but I will still be buying a lottery ticket!!

At the moment I am loving: Fav drink is Mojito cant get enough!

Fav hair product is Kerastase hair serum Fav restaurant is Ruan Orchid Thai restaurant in Chester.

Item of Clothing is My oyster coloured silk birthday dress cant wait to wear it!

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ment

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ment

Now I don’t mind the occasional fix of The Only way is Essex or TOWIE as some call it (as Mark is yummy to look at), but I am baffled how it came up trumps in the BAFTA’S ‘You tube audience award’, beating the fabulous Downton Abbey, Sherlock, The Killing, Miranda and My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding (loved the dress with lights on!). That’s not all- Best Entertainment programme I was sure it would have been the X Factor but no it went to The Cube, which I do enjoy watching but just cannot believe it beat the X Factor. Who is voting?!

Yes you can tell I am a huge fan and am very excited for the return of the X factor particularly the American one – yes I will be nosing at welsh lad Steve Jones presenting along with Nicole Scherzinger (is she now judging it? I can’t keep up! ) Feel for Cheryl if the rumours are to be believed that she has now been dropped. Apparently Cheryl is jumping on the latest celeb trend the baby food diet– yes it’s been around for years, but is now making a comeback. Sales of wet baby food are up 20 per cent compared with the same two-week period last year, while the figure for dry baby food has jumped 59 per cent, according to upmarket web grocer Ocado.

Fancy it- eating a tub of pureed baby food every hour! ….Not one for me, will I need a nappy?!!

Fed up of: Another Skinny celeb- making me feel fat!

Super Injunctions - we all know if we are on Twitter!

Want to look younger??

Make sure you get yourself Frown Fix by Nip and Fab …available online and at Boots stores although I hear there is a waiting list……

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4 – 10 July

The Unique International Festival

FOLLOW US

Latin fever

BRAZILICA COMPRISES OF THREE EXCITING DAYS OF FIESTA:

will sweep through Liverpool next month as the biggest Brazilian samba carnival in the UK, called Brazilica, hits the city...

On Friday 15th July Liverpool city centre’s shops and bars will play host to the ‘Samba in the City’ event, a colourful taster of the carnival, to get Liverpool in the mood to party.

Brazilica is an exciting three day event that will comprise of a Rio-style, glittering night time city centre parade, plus lots of free for all activity filled with music, dance, sport and entertainment. The event, which takes place on the 15th - 17th of July attracted over 30,000 revellers last year who lined the streets.

The festival is designed to appeal to families, young people, fans of art, music and sport, and people interested in travel and discovering new cultures. The festival is also directly targeting the Latin communities across the UK. There are opportunities for brand awareness across all our promotional materials including the Brazilica souvenir brochure (30,000 copies) and Big Screen advertising on the Williamson Square city centre event site.

(August 2010 footfall figures: 6,000,000).

Brazil is a country with an economy on the ascent; it will host the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. As the eyes of the world turn to these events, the opportunities for the future of Brazilica are bright.

Saturday 16th July will see the city come to life ‘Latin style’ with Brazilian and South American inspired activities taking place around Liverpool throughout the day including a FREE all day South American street party, which will see open dance classes, music sessions, street football demonstrations and workshops taking place, with Brazilian food, drink and fun for all the family available throughout the day The carnival steps up a gear in the evening as Liverpool’s streets are set ablaze with colour and the carnival parade of over 1,000 people makes its way to the festival site, winding through the city centre streets, whilst the Brazilian bands and DJs take to the stage for the party to begin! Festivities will continue well into the evening finishing with an exciting after part event at a city centre club Wind down your weekend with Samba

Sunday on 17th July as the carnival gets cultural with sports, film and artistic events taking place across the city.

Roger Morris, festival producer at Liverpool Carnival Company said ‘Since we started in 2008, the Liverpool Carnival has continued to grow and we’re looking forward to our biggest year ever with BRAZILICA in 2011. It’s so exciting to think that we now have Britain’s biggest Brazilian carnival on our hands!

The festival is going to be immense and I hope that the people of Liverpool will come along and join in, there will be so much to do, it’s going to be sambatastic!’

www.brazilicafestival.com 23

Nando’s is the home of legendary, Portuguese, flame-grilled PERi-PERi chicken. At Nando’s you will experience our traditional hospitality, warmth and fun. Your senses will be fired up by the addictive flavour of our delicious PERi-PERi Chicken, grilled to perfection and served with pride and passion.

to whip your taste buds into a frenzy. Choose between the layers of blissful Carrot Cake, creamy Chocolate Cheesecake, heavenly White Raspberry Swirl or the ultimate in indulgence – the decadent ‘Choc-a-lot’ cake – all served with the perfect compliment of clotted cream. Nando’s cakes are ideal for sharing… so you can have a bite of all of them!

Nando’s focus on the individuality of each of the restaurants created, making them unique and interesting. Each restaurant has a rustic and trendy appeal with the most of the floors made from wood, comfortable seating and fantastic chilli shaped lighting. There are also several pieces of art, sourced directly from South Africa - which really adds to the authenticity of the design.

Nando’s makes you feel part of the family and encourages you to tuck in by helping yourself to cutlery, sauces and bottomless soft drinks and frozen yogurt. What’s more, PERi-PERi chilli is pure and wholesome and rich in vitamins. It’s also reputedly an aphrodisiac, making it hot stuff in more ways than one!

Whether you go for a quick bite, a fun night out with friends or relaxing over a superb bottle of Portuguese or South African wine it won’t be just your taste buds that are invigorated. At Nando’s you’ll find the spice with life!

Nando’s pride themselves on their quality PERi-PERi chicken!

Fresh, never-frozen, A-grade chickens are butterfly-cut and immediately marinated in Nando’s marinade for 24 hours to ensure that the flavour seeps through the meat. The legendary PERi-PERi chicken is flame-grilled right in front of you and basted with your choice of sauce from the PERi-ometer: Lemon & Herb or Mango & Lime for the not so brave, Medium PERiPERi for the slightly more adventurous while Hot and Extra Hot should satisfy hardcore chilli enthusiasts. Flame-grilling the chicken means most of the fat of the chicken literally disappears during grilling and the result is the finest tasting, healthy chicken on the high street.

Chicken is the main dish at Nando’s but the menu is diverse enough to cater for all tastes including vegetarian options such as veggie and bean burgers and new house special Portobello mushroom and halloumi burger with tangy chilli jam. Fancy a salad? You can choose between a Mediterranean, Caesar and Cous Cous, which you can have with or without chicken. There’s a wide selection of appetizers and side dishes including PERiPER nuts, Macho peas, Creamy Mash and Ratatouille. If you are going in a group, there are a number of platters designed for sharing so you’ll find yourself spoilt for choice.

Although we are passionate about chicken, we haven’t forgotten the perfect way to finish a meal – something sweet! Nando’s new range of sublime and devilishly delicious deserts are guaranteed

NANDOS 14 Paradise Street Liverpool One

www.nandos.co.uk

Music

Benjamin Francis Leftwich

Up and coming star, launches his solo album on 4 July, "Last Smoke Before the Snowstorm". At just 21 years of age he is already causing waves in the music industry with is sell out tour and we were fortunate to have a 5 minute chat.....

Congratulations on your whirlwind success, did you ever imagine this?

Thanks! No I never thought it would get to the stage where Iwas doing my own headline tours and playing festivals.

Crazyness!

Tell us about your headline tour The headline tour was amazing. It was great to be able to get out and take my music to lots of places and countries I'd never visited before. I think being that far from home and playing shows has a really positive impact on the live shows.

It was also great because we were touring in really small venues so it was always rammed and a good vibe!

Good

Vibrations music club night Summer Soiree

The freshest underground music club night and magazine in Liverpool!

Friday 24th June 7.30pm-1am Good Vibrations presents it’s summer soiree.

If you missed out on Glastonbury, then Good Vibrations Summer soiree, is something that you may be interested in. It is the feel good factor gig of the summer, with Wirral samba bands, improvised hip hop bands with mc’s, blissful solo acoustic duos and solo acts and Dj’s playing afro-beat to get your grooving. All this for a startling £5 Ticket and we also have a face painter for good measure. This is the only place to be on this weekend and all in the unique setting in the suburbs of Blundellsands rugby club!!!

Jo Bywater (www.jobywater.com) Yorkshire-born, Liverpool-based singersongwriter Jo Bywater assumes the form of an innovative and inspired musical force. Solo and acoustic, her tunes are an infection of tasty riffs

You're playing all the major festivals this year, what can people expect from you?

I'm going to play most of the festivals just by myself...so just me and my guitar... :) Who would you compare yourself to?

I never really take the time to compare myself to anyone, it's hard to take that much of an objective view of my own music when I'm so involved in it all the time!

How long did it take to write your debut album?

Some of the tracks on my album are 4 years old and some are much newer, it's quite varied I guess. I re-worked some of the older ones though.

What plans are in the pipeline?

I guess I'm just going to be touring the album a lot after summer and I'm going to europe and america too which will be cool, and also a festival in iceland!

Who would you like to collaborate with?

I'd love to collaborate with Mike Skinner from THE STREETS. I think he's an amazing lyricist and song-writer! and blues rawness. A melting pot of styles and influence laced with funk and injected with the rusty edge of vocal honesty. Dynamic, rhythmic, tactile, rockin’ poetry.

OXIRIS (The Wirral samba band) Oxiris, the Samba Band from Wirral have performed at many festivals, events and carnivals since their formation in 2002.

Oxiris are led by Brian Evans, a professional drummmer/percussionist/percussion teacher who lives on the Wirral. They perform regularly throughout the North West in festivals and events. They have taken part in ‘Fated’, a feature film starring Craig Charles, Brendan McKay (Touching The Void), Michael Angelis, Kate Robbins, Lee Boardman (ex Coronation St) which was made by Liverpool film company ‘Ace Films’.

Sensorites (www.sensorites.com) Sensorites are an interesting duo, who have bucket loads of authenticity and soul in their live set-up and on recordings. They are an acoustic led duo with genuine song-writing and added to this they sometimes have drum loops and beeps in the background. Sound good, they are!

Jamurai Warriors (Improvised hip hop band with MC’s) Jamurai Warriors are on a quest to do things differently. A hip-hop jam band with a difference, all the grooves are laid down and improvised on the night. Guest MCs then turn up and do an impromptu jam not to be missed! Jamurai Warriors play for Good Vibrations nights only, so are a rare live performance to saviour.

Explain your style of music and fashion?

I really love writing and playing songs predominantly on the acoustic guitar. I love the realness of that kind of music and it's cool being able to write and record in a wider variety of places ya know? As for fashion, I wear whatever is closest to the bed when I get up in the morning.

Who do you want to bump into on the festival circuit?

N-Dubz What message do you have for your growing fans?

Thanks for the support and see you at a show soon! :)

Lucy Carew A DJ who play’s everything that make’s your body groove or just anything to chill out to. Ruminating from her DJ sets can be anything from samba, afro-beat and the best in world music.

Organiser James Wilson said, “The summer soiree is all about bringing something to the community in the Crosby and Waterloo area. I wanted to bring a unique samba experience to the area with a few little extra surprises as well.”

Price: £5 ticket/ £6 Door Tel number: 07948994985 Facebook: Good Vibrations Website: www.gvmag.co.uk Venue name: Blundellsands Rugby Club Address: The Pavilion, St Anthony’s road, Blundellsands, Liverpool, L23 8TW City: Liverpool

Wirral Samba band

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LIVERPOOL INTERNATIONAL SAMBA CARNIVAL 15TH, 16TH & 17TH JULY 2011

Day One

Samba in the city

THE CITY TOUR & CARNIVAL BALL

Day Two - MAIN EVENT

Carnival Parade AND AFTER PARTY

Day Three

Samba Sunday

ART & CULTURE EVENTS AROUND THE CITY

www.brazilicafestival.com

Home is the perfect choice of name for but we were too full and were watching our waistlines!

Restaurant Review a cafe that not only makes you feel at My daughter amused herself during lunch by opening home, but serves delicious home cooked all the sugar sachets and licking the sugar off the plate. what a view and what an aroma I wasNo-one hit withbatted as I entered Matou.

Why had I not food as ow, well. an eyelid or made any disapproving glances.

It was asits refreshing changeoffor we all felt so been here before? This pan Asian delightful restaurant on the edge theme, Mersey The cafe at the Woodside Ferry Terminal has just very much at home that it was with huge reluctance above the ferry terminalwithonthe Pieraddition Head. To side ceiling undergone a refurbishment of one that we there had to are leavefloor to dotothe schoolwindows run. a £10,000 outdoor terrace at its Woodside Ferry Ben Harrison who runs the his wife Polly capturing the amazing views of the river andWirral shoreline.To the other sidecafe arewith the views Terminal premises. said he hoped the terrace would become a major of the city. It’s a beautiful sight.

I went for a leisurely lunch with my 2 year old attraction for business lunches, tourists and family days daughter and a couple of friends. While the menu out and after our lunch there, I would say that he is on Coupled with the mouthwatering aroma of freshly They tasted fresh and light, a perfect starter. For mains isn’t vast, it is sufficient for a stylish lunchtime snack track fr that to happen. cooked spices, it’s a real awe inspiring visit. The decor I opted for the Salmon Teriyaki (£17.90)served with However if you’re onfloors a carb theremosaic are a egg“Anoodles huge amount of investment taken place at and a house special has sauce.

It was is beautiful, dark oak andfree eyediet catching few salad choices soup the day.

I opted The for delicious.

Woodside Terminal andSpiced we believe we now TheFerry husband had the Lamb Shank pillars set the sceneand for this fineofdining experience. the homeismade with a crispyinrole. havepanang one ofcurry the most caféOur bars on Merseyside, ” saucestylish (£16.50). daughter had kitchen openmushroom plan and soup sits majestically the with chow mein, which took finishhere off are of the restaurant, you right can see the chefs at beef Itmiddle was served exactly atsothe temperaturehe said.

“Certainly the we views wehome offer todiners later.

The presentation wasis exceptional, work. The is clean andtofeels fresh andabsolutely inviting. piping hot space but not enough burn.

It was spectacular.

Birkenhead crying out as forwere this the kind of large portion sizes. delicious, I could have had another bowl! venue and we want to urge local workers and families We went for lunch on a busy afternoon of the races.

My friends had the barbecue chicken melt, a to visit us and see our terrific facilities including our new We were seated by the window. For lnch we were Having never come across Matou before it was a real towering stackmenu of thick gherkins, mayo and treat terrace sample oura wonderful menu. ” in the withbread, just three dishes for each to and discover such gastronomic gem given a small bbq chicken.

A vast andHad generous portion! other middle Benofsaid the Part caféofbar’s new corporate course to chose form.

I not been doingMy a review the city. the dining experienceloyalty makes card friend selected tunaample, melt served with an ample you is aimed public sector this would haveabeen but I wanted to explore feel as ifat youBirkenhead’s are on a five star cruiseand ship,private I am sure the salad main with menudressing. of this Again breathtaking restaurant.

The that is intentional. The service is impeccable, the food side the portion size wasd workers. dishes merge and foodcertainly from the FarforEast, including is exceptional.

A wonderful is guaranteed at this ” he very generous value money.

“When workers comemeal here they are amazed, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan aside and China.

What made thisSingapore, lunch special, from the marvelous said. “Andrestaurant. we want to spread the message far and wide stunning riverside views and galleried venue, was the about the new refurbishment and the standard of food The staff were wonderful, as always we took our feeling light they and space.

It was asfanned if timeround stood her, still and drink we offer. The new loyalty card is available to toddlerof and immediately and we actually relaxed andand forgot about work that individual workers and organisations. It offers terrific cut offering her prawn crackers tasty nibbles to keep two hours flew by quite comfortably. We ordered price deals on lunches, take out drinks and food and her occupied. lattes to round off our meal, and my daughter was corporate functions. Our aim is to bring European style Chicken For our appetizers we had Malaysian TO BOOK, CALL: 0151 even brough a bayccino.

Thatthe touched me that the café society to Birkenhead. ” 236 2928 Satay(£7.50) a crunchy sauce, along with 2ND1475 FOOR, MERSEY FERRY TERMINAL, owners reallyinhave thoughtpeanut of everything.

We could 0151 330 Wonton soup (£6.50) and Crispy Spring Rolls (£5.90).

GEORGES PARADE, PIER HEAD, LIVERPOOL L3 1BY have had a selection of the delicious looking cakes enquiries@homeedr.co.uk such as chocolate brownies and traditional scones http://www.homeedr.co.uk/

Restaurant Review

W

The Red Door is named after its imposing large red door, funnily enough. The bistro style restaurant, on Grange Road in West Kirby is warm and inviting, with mellow tunes playing softly to put you in the mood for relaxation and leave your troubles outside the door.

W

e arrived on a warm spring afternoon and the large doors were open to the street. I preferred a table tucked away in a corner and we were offered a drink immediately, which was very welcome.

I chatted to our waiter, a very pleasant and friendly chap who informed me that the previous weekend there had been a table of girls who came in for a drink and stayed 5 hours. This is the kind of establishment I like.

The menu is a small, simple affair, with around 8 dishes in each section.

Apart from the starters in which there was plenty of choice, I think this restaurant encourages people wanting to order lots of nibbles alongside their drink, such as salt and pepper chicken wings, mixed olives, houmus and beer battered prawns. Thus making it an ideal place to lounge around with the papers on a leisurely weekend afternoon. We chose the Thai fish cakes, which were petite and piping hot. Absolutely delicious salmon infused with spring onion in a sweet chilli sauce. In addition we had the roasted portabello mushroom with cheese and a garlic sauce. Amazing. You could taste the fresh ingredients, they make such a difference to a meal.

There's a selection of salads, sandwiches and baked potatoes and "Home comforts" rather than mains. I like that touch. We both had steak frites, a 7oz fillet steak with crispy home made french fries. The steaks were seared to perfection.

It would have been rude not to have a desert and we had the hot chocolate fudge cake with vanilla ice cream. It was a perfect, comforting lunch, and had I not been required to leave to do the school run, I would still be sitting there now.

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Red Door Grange Road, West Kirby, Wirral CH48 4DY www.reddoor.uk.com Telephone: 0151 929 6380

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WELCOME TO THE

RED CARPET

THE OPENING OF THE RED DOOR, CHESTER

Liverpool’s best dressed men flocked to Hard Days Night Hotel, which is hosting the opening night of Liverpool Fashion Week 2011,as it hosted Esquire magazine and my-wardrobe.com’s search for Britain’s Best Dressed Real Man 2011.

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Bespoken Dreams Wedding Design & Consultancy launched last month at the Neighbourhood Cafe in Childwall. Local business donated their goods and raised £750 for Marie Curie Liverpool on the day. Guests including Liverpool designers Kirsty Doyle, Benna Harry, Wade Smith and television dramatist and writer Alan Bleasdale enjoyed champagne, canapés and entertainment from hot on the circuit wedding singer Steve Charles, supplied by Riverside Entertainments Agency

The Vincent Hotel held it’s second Charity Golf Day at Royal Birkdale in aid of the newly formed Steven Gerrard Foundation. Over £30,000 was raised for children and young people in need, whether through illness, family breakdown, disability, involvement in the streets, financial or educational disadvantage.

Celebrity guests which included Steven Gerrard, Alan Hansen, Roy Evans, Mark Lawrenson and Kenny Logan, joined corporate clients of the Vincent Hotel and enjoyed a great day of golf followed by an evening drinks reception and dinner at the Warehouse Restaurant in Southport, which included an enthusiastic charity fundraising raffle and auction.VIP guests then headed back to the stylish Vincent Hotel for a nightcap in Mc Gee’s Bar.

Opening night of Days Inn, Liverpool

More than 200 guests enjoyed a fundraising first birthday party at at Matou pan Asian restaurant.

IF YOU ARE HAVING AN EVENT, EMAIL YOUR PICS TO EDITOR@LIFESTYLEMONTHLY.CO.UK

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POET NICO RUSSELL from the Wirral, was so moved by watching the repatriation ceremony of three local soldiers killed on duty in Afghanistan, that we wrote a poem that received recognition from The Queen and the Prime Minister. He spoke exclusively to Lifestyle Monthly.

What inspired you to write poetry?

A British Heart I would never class myself as a typical poet - I Down beats the drummer’s hand to lead them on their way. don't even own a corduroy jacket. I always Faultlessly they march in line, no single stride astray. enjoyed writing limericks when I was a child, Immaculate from head to toe, this military perfection; These highly polished men, today in personal reflection. but when I started studying the likes of With heads held high and shoulders back, they carry him with pride; Owen, Keats and Shelley in school, I realised Their ally and their friend, who on the battlefield had died. how immensely powerful poetry could be. When you read a great poem you find yourself immersed in the words and transported The English breeze caressed the air and dried the springtime dew; into the mind of the author, feeling either their sadness, terror or As children watched in wonder at the draped red, white and blue.

He was just a boy himself, yet the job had made him older. joy depending on the subject. Despite studying the First World War To most he was a fearsome sight, an armed and dangerous soldier. in depth and reading the terrible accounts of soldiers, it was really But to his doting mother, who now numb forever more; Wilfred Owen's poetry that gave me a true sense of the horror those He’d always be her tender son, snatched from her by war. men faced, and therefore helped me better understand the subject.

Likewise when reading Wordsworth's 'Daffodils' even on a cold The streets were lined with mourners: those he knew and had not met; November morning I still getting a real sense of Springtime. So I think There to do their duty and whisper, “We shall not forget”.

He spent his life in service, to his Country, to his Queen; poetry has a unique way of engaging the reader and conveying a sense He gave his life for freedom, a better future, now unseen. of true feeling, and that's what I always try and achieve in my poetry.

The essence of a British heart: proud and brave and loyal; Tell us about the Repatriation Poem.

Returning home to peaceful rest, within the British soil.

I wrote 'A British Heart' after watching the repatriation of three local soldiers from the Mercian Regiment who were killed in Afghanistan, by the Grand Canal was wonderful. It was a very inspiring and beautiful two of them only 20 years old. As always, the ceremony was carried place, perfect for a writer. However I think to experience life properly out with such dignity and respect that I felt a real mixture of emotions: you need to see as much as possible and do as many different things sadness, pride but also tremendous guilt that these 'boys' were giving as you can which is why I joined the Merseyside Special Constabulary, up their lives so people like me, sitting at home in comfort, could and in doing so I saw and experienced situations that I would never live in a safer World. I wanted to show not only my overwhelming (hopefully) have had to deal with in normal everyday life. I am very gratitude to them, but also my pride in having the most professional glad I did though, I am a true believer in variety being the spice of life. and well-trained army in the World, the terrible waste of life that war What moves you to write? brings, and the fact that they will never be forgotten. I wanted to write Anything can move me to write, especially regarding poetry, but it's something that gave a sense of pride and patriotism to whoever read normally the strongest emotions that fuel the best poetry. Strangely it, and make people stop and think about the sacrifice our servicemen though, especially as all my other areas of writing are comedy-based, and women make, and I hope I've achieved that.

I find it much easier to write sad poems despite being a very happy person, and I have only ever written one love poem called 'When How did the Queen get to hear of it?

I Awake'. I love the English language, especially obscure words and I sent a copy of the poem to the Mercian Regiment and got a very nice phrases that are no longer in general use, and even this can move me reply and a suggestion to send it to the Royal British Legion and other to write a verse.

Regiments around the Country. I received some lovely letters back, What plans have you got for this year? including a letter from the Household Cavalry Casualties Fund asking I hope to achieve a lot this year. I am planning to put together a if they could use the poem in charity events around the Country, and collection of poems entitled 'A British Heart' to raise money for then to my great surprise I received a letter from Buckingham Palace those who have been injured and families who have lost loved ones saying how appreciative The Queen was of my poem. I then sent a in the conflict, and I would love to hear from any of your readers who copy of the poem to the Prime Minister and the Ministry Of Defence would like to submit poems of their own which can be sent to me who wrote back requesting permission to publish it in Soldiers at:nico@nicorussell.com. I am currently trying to find an illustrator for Magazine so servicemen and women servicing throughout the World my Children's books (many publishing houses prefer to use their own could read it. but I'd like to find someone young and fresh who is looking for a break How did you feel getting a letter of thanks from the Queen like I am) and once they are finished I can start the up-hill struggle to and the Prime Minister? find a publisher. Same with the sitcoms; I've had feed-back from a few I felt very honoured that my poem had been so well received, especially production companies so after a few tweaks I shall resubmit them by the Queen as it is a great ambition of mine to meet her, so now and see what happens. If nothing comes of it I shall just go back to we'll have something to talk about! However, what I found extremely the drawing board and start again. As long as I am doing something humbling was receiving a message from relatives of a soldier that had creative I'll be happy. been killed, saying how touched they had been by the poem and that Does living in the wirral have any impact on your writing? it had given them some comfort in such a difficult time. This to me was I feel immensely lucky to have been brought up on the Wirral, It's a the most important letter.

You have worked in so many places, what is your most very beautiful place. I am fortunate to overlook miles of fields and trees which is a great inspiration for my writing, and has shaped my outlook memorable experience?

I couldn't really pick out one experience that overshadows everything on life. I'm very calm and laid back which is probably because it's hard else, I have been lucky enough to travel extensively and experience to get stressed when you're surrounded by beautiful countryside all life in different cultures, and the best thing to come out of that is the the time. I also love the fact that I'm so close to such a vibrant city friends I have made whilst there. One of the most enjoyable times in like Liverpool which is only 15 minutes on the train, and which is full my life was working in Italy though. It was so different to the corporate of like-minded enthusiastic people all working hard to create original office environment that I was used to and hated so much, and being work, so again I've got that variety; with living on the Wirral I can be able to take a fifteen minute train to Venice after work and have drinks surrounded by fields one minute, then in the heart of the city the next. www.nicorussell.com

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Monthly recommends: BUSINESS FOCUS... Lifestyle Nik Ellis and his company Laird Assessors. Set up in 2000, Nik comes from and Karl Fischer; Who am i?

I have worked in business since 1987, I am well known in the Liverpool business district.

I am delighted to be working with Lifestyle magazine on businesses across the north west.

If you would like to be featured on this page please contact me: twitter: @karlfischer_biz Email: karl@karlfischer.biz Web: www.karlfischer.biz

We are a National Personal Injury Claims Specialist who offer a ‘no win, no fee’ service. Our team has over 12 years’ experience within this sector. We pride ourselves on client care, which can be lost within larger companies. We update you throughout by email, text, phone or letter - whichever you prefer.

We try to make the process simple and hassle free.

It is a fact that only 30% of people actually make a claim for personal injury, as many don’t realise they may be entitled to compensation.

We operate an open door policy and a Freephone service which enables people to ring or visit our offices to chat with one of our team to discuss any potential claim. Never be put off contacting us - a call could turn into compensation.

We specialise in all road traffic accidents which include cycle and motorbike accidents, caravan and camping accidents, slips, trips and falls, accidents at work, medical negligence and industrial disease and illness.

Every case is different, every client is different, but the service you receive from us will be the same high standard throughout.

automotive engineering background and served 11 years in the accident repair industry prior to setting up Laird Assessors. He has been praised in court for his "pragmatic" approach to forensic accident analysis. www.laird-assesors.com

Darren Lawrenson is one of the North West's leading business advisors and life coaches. He shows Lifestyle Monthly readers how to get the most out of networking events.

Networking = a supportive system of sharing information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest: “I would be great at meeting people if knew what to say” This is a common statement and yet to be great at meeting people and networking you need to be great at asking questions. People and their business are more interested in themselves than they you. So why not work with this truth. Allow people to tell you about what interests them. Let people tell you how great they are by asking them about themselves. Questions can unlock a great conversation.

Networking has been a buzz word for growing your business for 30 plus years.

Networking truly became a buzz word when people started to make a business from setting up Networking events and meetings.

Networking as the definition says is in essence the coming together of individuals for the mutual benefit of all.

For some people networking comes really naturally and for some we have to work on it. Experts in networking have no end of opportunities to grow their business and explore exciting and interesting opportunities. I believe great networkers build their network and meet people all the time. Communicating and asking questions is a habit and a habit that’s worth forming, but it does and will take practice.

The best networkers are the one that ask the best questions and pay a real interest in other people. Some of us have a natural fear of meeting people and uncertainty of what to say. It’s what you ASK not what you say about yourself that is critical to successful networking. Meeting new people can challenge our comfort zone and by definition can feel uncomfortable like a duck out of water but remember “practice makes permanent” So we have to get our focus right and overcome the FEAR of rejection, FEAR of failure and the FEAR of uncertainty and remind ourselves that most people have the same FEARS. Remembering this can really help.

You don’t have to BE confident to ACT confident you do however need to practice being confident. The act of walking up to people and saying, "Hello my name is Darren, what’s yours?" can, and does, give the impression of a confident person. Try it and practice it. The skill of remembering and using a person’s name can have a real impact just use their name 3 plus times as you have your opening dialogue to embed their name.

When attending a Networking Event be prepared. Be prepared by having a goal, how many people do you want to chat with. Look at the attendance list and decide who want to meet. Be prepared with an answer to the question most commonly asked , “What do you do”. Be prepared by having business cards. Be prepared to make contact quickly after the event with people you meet. Be prepared with open questions. Open questions warrant an explained answer eg.Tell me about your business? Tell me about yourself? Can you explain to me how your business works?

A great tip that I use is to use the acronym when meeting new people FORM = Family, Occupation, Recreation, Message. Asking questions about these 4 key conversational areas can really help the conversation feel natural and follow a comfortable path.

So number 1-Set a goal = know your outcome Mindset = Focus and ACT confident Be Prepared Challenge your Comfort Zone If you have any questions please email darren@dasala.co.uk 33

Laird Assessors was founded at the start of the new millennia and start of a new era in technology. It was this emerging IT and internet access that revolutionised the traditional business model as a multitude of ideas and solutions unraveled.

We took full advantage by creating management systems which would allow us significantly increase our efficiency and communications. This meant we could send a mobile engineer to inspect a vehicle quicker than ever; he could access repair data and produce reports from field and back to the client considerably faster than our competition. As a result of this reduced turn around time, insurers made huge costs savings due to reduced storage, loss-of-use and car hire claims.

Our engineers weren’t the only ones to enjoy our embracement of IT; our administrators could now track & control the locations of the engineers live, direct them to urgent inspections and work more efficiently than ever. We were able to give very accurate & honest information to our clients and our reputation for providing an exceptional service grew.

34

Our original business plan was to service Liverpool and surrounding areas, but we were getting more and more requests to go further afield. Always keen to adapt, we altered our structure after the first year to cover all of the North West, and continued growth meant that we took on our first engineer in London at the start of 2005.

Today we have around 50 staff with engineers dotted all over England.

Whilst we specialize in anything to do with road traffic accidents, we’ll examine anything vaguely mechanical; we’ve inspected at jetskis, horse-boxes, trikes and even a garden gate!

As an independent company we provide a completely unbiased view, so we are often involved in disputes between a driver and their insurance company. Insurers can be cost sensitive which is sometimes at odds with the correct repair method and occasionally safety factors. We can intervene where total loss cars have been undervalued or have lost value due to accident repairs.

Our company ethos is to work smart, play hard & provide a service unrivaled in the UK.

The  Driving  Force  in  Accident  Investigation Laird  Assessors  specialize  in  accident  investigation  services,  providing  high  quality  independent,  comprehensive  reports  to  the  insurance  and  legal  industries,  examining  vehicles  and  accident  sites  throughout  the  UK. We  are  renowned  for  our  market  leading  service  standards  and  speed  of  response,  from  the  initial  instruction  through  to  the  6( & )'*& . )'*&# (. , *),. &# (.- , )(. . 1#."#( )( ")/, ) #(-.,/ .#)( ." 0 "# & 1#&& ." ( 2 '#( (31" , #( ." 1#."#( ")/,- ( )'*, " (-#0 # (. ' ! , *),. 1#." #' ! - #- *,) / 1#."#( ")/,- ) 2 '#( .#)( " -. ./- ( 0 (. &#-. ) (3 #(-.,/ .#)( ( ., % 0# - /, *),. & )( ." 1 -#. 1" , )*3 , *),.- & .. ,- ( #' ! - ( )1(&) Whilst  our  standard  vehicle  accident  damage  report  is  our  most  popular  service,  we  also  prepare  the  following  reports:

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-4 $*-"(16 +. "10 Â

We  investigate  what  effect  the  impact  has  caused  upon  the  vehicle  and  occupants  to  determine  the  direction,  acceleration  and  magnitude  of  any  movement.

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Our  locus  reports  include  full  colour  images  showing  views  from  the  claimant,  defendant  and  witnesses  with  a  full  locus  description  including  street  layout,  speed  limits,  measurements  and  sketch  plans.

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Forensic  examination  of  one  or  more  vehicles  is  carried  out  to  determine  1" ." , ." ' ! #- )(-#-. (. .1 ( ." 0 "# & - #(0)&0 ( ." accident  circumstances.

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We  provide  a  full  range  of  reconstruction  services  ranging  from  minor  mathematical  analysis  to  determine  a  particular  piece  of  data  (e.g.  impact  -* &#% &#")) ) ,)&&#(! % .) ,. #( -* .",)/!" .) /&&3 #(. , .#0 (#' . , )(-.,/ .#)(

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