Live audience at the Jonathan Ross Show...

As a "it's winter, let's do something exciting!" gift to my husband, I applied for tickets to be in the live audience of The Jonathan Ross Show. I didn't hear anything for quite a while so I assumed that I had not been successful and forgot all about it. Less than a week before the date I had applied for, though, I got an email telling me we had two tickets for the show on 5th Feb!

The big day unfortunately coincided with a tube strike so I was running late. We were meant to be there before 6pm, my husband was already in the queue and I was rushing along Southbank to get there. Next thing I know, I'm face down at the foot of a statue located on a small plinth that I hadn't seen and had tripped over. Whoops, slightly damaged pride and some ripped tights later, someone kindly helps me to my feet and I am on my way.

I reach my husband in the queue just as he has received his wristband, which means I am sent to the back of the queue to wait my turn. He joins me and we anxiously wait to see if we will both get seats - although we received tickets, SRO slightly overissue tickets to ensure full capacity. Luckily we did get in and took our seats in the studio, looking around the set and joking about how much larger it seems on TV. The evening started off with the warm up act who picked on people in the audience. We were pretty happy not to be sitting towards the front, even though this particular show isn't heavy on the audience interaction!

At about 7.30pm the show started and our job as the cheering audience began. I found it really interesting to see how it was filmed - which was without "takes". There were breaks in recording in between each guest but other than it ran pretty smoothly. It was great to see the full interviews, each of which took about 20 to 25 minutes. Guests that day were Kiefer Sutherland, Chris O'Dowd, Kevin Bridges, Emily Mortimer and John Legend. We had fun spotting boring stories that the show would likely remove from the final cut. In one of the recording breaks Jonathan was interacting with the audience and showing off his Japanese language skills. Chris O'Dowd had a few drinks backstage (after his interview) and was hilarious during the recording of the trailer, fluffing up Jonathan's hair incessantly.

We had a really great time at the show and would definitely do it again. It was straightforward to get the tickets - I applied through SRO audiences. I would recommend being there in good time though, to ensure you get a seat.

The right gift for: a Jonathan Ross fan or someone who wants to experience being in a TV audience
Price: FREE
Add on potential: Date night a few days later, watching it on the TV!

Photo credit: SRO Audiences website

Pick the right Valentine's gift....

Oh, Valentine's Day is tough, isn't it? I never know whether to buy a present or not, or how much to spend on the present or even how sappy to be in the card. One thing I truly believe, though, is that the gift should be authentic and heartfelt - not just bought because it is Valentine's Day. 

So this year, instead of worrying about the commercialisation of the day, I am going to use it as an excuse to show my husband and also my family and friends how much I care. It is pretty easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and forget to tell my loved ones how important they are.

I am focusing here on things that are free or cheap, but heartfelt. There are hundreds of recommendations out there for expensive gifts so I will skip that this week. 

For my husband, I will drag myself out of bed before him and make us a cup of tea or espresso before we go to work. We used to have a hot drink together every morning before work but then we got busy and the ritual just went away. 

I wish I could visit my parents, but they are too far away so I am sending them a card just to say thanks for being great parents. 

Lately emails to friends overseas have been reduced to one-line responses, so I am going to take some time this week to write proper emails. I am way overdue filling them in on what is happening in my life and asking them about their lives. I also want to make plans for seeing them all again soon. 

For my friends close by, I would love to start more traditions with them and will make the effort to organise these rather than just waiting for stuff to happen. 

And for myself... I will take 5 minutes to myself on friday and be grateful for all of these wonderful people in my life. 


What will you do to celebrate?