After a small ripple of public demand, I'm going to start posting a series of extracts from my unpublished memoir Hit Girl: My Bizarre Double Life in the Pop World of the Eighties - which may be undergoing a title change to avoid confusion with the character Hit-Girl in the Kick-Ass movies. The first extract is from chapter three - Betty Page Is Born Again, which tells the story of my … [Read more...] about My bizarre double life in the pop world of the Eighties
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Stories of a life less ordinary
I am a story archaeologist. I help people unearth the treasure buried in their life stories. I firmly believe that, no matter what anyone says about how boring they are, there is no such thing as an ordinary life. That’s why my favourite TV programmes are the genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are? and the documentary Long Lost Family, which reunites mothers parted from sons, brothers … [Read more...] about Stories of a life less ordinary
Don’t be seduced by stories that sell you lack of self-worth
As I walked along the station platform I spotted a young woman dressed in the sort of short shorts I could never have worn, even at her age. She was all long, coltish legs and porcelain skin, balancing on the edge of a cold metal seat while applying black eyeliner. When I boarded my train, there was another woman, barely into her 20s I would say, who was busy smothering foundation all over her … [Read more...] about Don’t be seduced by stories that sell you lack of self-worth
A little story about a beautiful day
One of my favourite story quotes is from an American poet called Muriel Rukeyser, who said: "The universe is made not of atoms but of stories." I can find meaning in this quote on many different levels but today it's telling me that the small stories are every bit as important as the big ones. So I have set myself a challenge: find a small story to write about in 15 minutes that will offer some … [Read more...] about A little story about a beautiful day
Who were you, Kathleen? My grandmother story
Who were you, Kathleen? What were your fondest hopes, your most cherished dreams? How did life treat you? Did it unfold as you wished? I’ve often pondered these questions, especially when looking at the only photograph I possess of my maternal grandmother (NB: it is not the photo above!). It was taken at my parents’ wedding in 1949 – a formal portrait of both sets of grandparents standing … [Read more...] about Who were you, Kathleen? My grandmother story
This girl’s story will change the world
What did you do on your 16th birthday? I was probably doing glam line dances with my friends to the Sweet's Blockbuster (we are talking 1973 here) and stressing about my impending O-levels - typical teenage stuff. But Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai celebrated her coming of age by giving a powerful and inspiring speech to the United Nations in New York on a day that had been named in her … [Read more...] about This girl’s story will change the world