Wednesday 1 September 2010

Mastermind

Hi there, wow, it’s been a very long time since I’ve updated this blog, blogger wasn’t letting me log in for ages and then I just got distracted by other things and kept forgetting to update it. A lot has happened since I last posted, lots of Cherryade stuff, more PHD stuff and, of course, making it to the semi-finals of University Challenge before being knocked out by eventual victors Emmanuel College (well done to them, incredibly worthy winners!) Then, of course, there’s been endless gigs and Indie Tracks 2010, it’s been a really amazing year so far! I have a lot coming up this month, beginning with appearing on Mastermind on BBC Two at 8pm on Friday (3rd September) or for up to a week later on Iplayer.

I really got the quiz bug after Uni Challenge so when the chance to appear on Mastermind was offered I jumped at it! My specialist subject will be Belle & Sebastian. I will write more about the match and my thoughts on taking part in Mastermind after it’s been broadcast, hope you enjoy watching it in the meantime!

Will try not to leave such a big gap before posting next time!

Rach Cherryade xx
www.cherryademusic.co.uk
www.dandelionradio.com

Monday 29 March 2010

University Challenge semi-final

Hi Cherryaders!

So, after nearly 9 months and 35 matches we're reaching the very end of what has, even if I do say so myself, been an incredibly exciting series of University Challenge. 28 teams have gradually been whittled down to 3, with St Johns College Oxford having beaten the excellent Imperial College London in the first of two semi-finals last week and this week Manchester (that's us) do battle with the amazing Emmanuel College Cambridge to see who will be joining them in next weeks final and whose Uni Challenge dream will be over! Tune into BBC Two at 8pm tonight to find out!

Lots of love,
Rach x

Friday 5 March 2010

Pussywhipped 2 at Taurus Bar on Canal Street tomorrow

Hi Cherryaders, just a quick heads up about an incredibly exciting gig happening tomorrow (Saturday 6th March) at Taurus Bar on Canal Street. Following its amazing debut back in December last year Pussywhipped is back with a fabulous night of punk, electro, riot grrrl and weird musical goodness to kick Canal Street up its disco dolly backside!

Bands are as follows -

CANDY PANIC ATTACK - Cherryade Records finest punk-poppers play a rare Manchester show, coming up from London to give us their sweetie-throwing, pop-punk, riot grrrl flavoured pop. Do not miss!

WILL AND RICK - the strangest duo you will find. Expect leather outfits, saw-playing, theramins and songs about hotdog men and old ladies who give blow jobs.

PETE BENTHAM AND THE DINNER LADIES - Liverpool 3-piece, politically and lyrically perfect. Bouncy punkers with dinner lady outfits and a whole lot of (good) attitude.

SALTYLIPS - You mean you live in Manchester and you haven't seen them perform yet? Queer boy-girl filthy electro performance duo. Truly outrageous and jaw-droppingly entertaining. Expect outfit changes a-go-go and retro electro dancing.

All this and of course, riot grrrl and punk DJing from our favourite TRASH-O-RAMA folks and queer punker STE MCCABE. Dancing until 2am

Four quid entry and of course another free raffle full of musical prizes galore.

Grrrls, boys, punks, queers, everyone - this is YOUR Canal Street night. Dance, sweat, and show 'em what gay culture is really about, yeeeeaaaah!


Hope to see you all there! Plus, if you're still craving more dancing after this then head along to You Me Dancing at Night and Day, a brand new club night our friends from Pull Yourself Together are putting on along with a little help from the wonderful Under Achievers and Asparagus Next Left djs!

Lots of love,
Rach and Adam Cherryade xx
www.cherryademusic.co.uk
www.dandelionradio.com

Monday 1 March 2010

Our last University Challenge quarter final match tonight

Hi Cherryaders,

Just a quick note to say that our final University Challenge quarter final match is on BBC Two at 8pm tonight (March 1st) and for a week after on Iplayer. It's our very last chance to make it into the semi finals and we'll be facing the Edinburgh team who beat the excellent Jesus College Oxford in last Monday's nail-biting match so they are fearsome competition!

I will eventually get round to finishing my accounts of round 2's match against KCL and our first 2 quarter finals against St. Andrews Uni and St. John's College Oxford, promise!

Apologies for the total lack of activity on this blog recently, things have been very busy round here but still had time to fit in some great nights out at Under Achievers, brilliant gigs from Los Campesinos!, This Many Boyfriends, Lovely Eggs, Everybody's in the French Resistance Now, Town Bike and many others plus a spot of djing at the brilliant new Chorleton girlpop night, Cherry Coloured Pop, run by the brilliant Kev and Linda, it'll be on every two months at Abode Bar in Chorleton, you should definitely go! Also, rumours about Cafe Saki closing are innacurate (though since they were printed in the Manchester Evening News that's hardly surprising, yes, I'm still bitter!) which means that Under Achievers will be staying in its natural home and continuing to delight Manchester's most discerning indie kids on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month for the forseeable future, hooray!

Plans for this week: little UC party at Cherryade Towers tonight, Fuel quiz (as always!) tomorrow, Rose Melburg (legendary indiepop superstar, has been in more awesome bands than you could shake a prittstick at, Softies, Go Sailor, Tiger Trap) playing in Sheffield with some genuine home-grown legends, Plouf!, Then, Saturday March 6th sees the return of Manchester's newest and most exciting queer grrrl night, Pussywhipped, run by one of our favourite people in the world, the incredibly talented and incredibly nice Ste Mccabe, performances come from Cherryade's own Candy Panic Attack (a very rare visit from the London trio), Manchester's own Salty Lips and the marvellous Will and Rick who I can't wait to see as I've heard great things! Should be a great week!

Take care,
Love Rach Cherryade xx

Thursday 4 February 2010

My thoughts on the Manchester Evening News article...

Hi Cherryaders!

Hope you all enjoyed Monday's super-tense UC match, St. Johns are a wonderful and genuinely friendly and likeable team and there was no shame in losing to them. We do get another chance to make the semi finals as we play an as yet undecided opponent on March 1st.

Those of you lucky enough not to have encountered me in the last couple of days will not have had to hear my (largely unprintable) thoughts on the article which appeared in Tuesday's Manchester Evening News and today's South Manchester Reporter but I wanted to state, on the record, that I do not endorse either the tone or content of this article, that I found the tone patronising, that the article ignored and misrepresented everything I told the journalist, that the article was pitched to us as being about the whole team and consequently we were all interviewed (though you wouldn't know it from reading it) but ultimately they had misled us as the eventual article was totally different and that the general standard of writing was appalling. Had I known that this was the type of article they were after I would certainly have refused to participate.

Ok, rant over, just wanted it to be clear where I stood!

I hate being grumpy but this has really annoyed me, sure I'll have forgotten about it soon though!

Take care,
Love Rach Cherryade xx
www.cherryademusic.co.uk
www.dandelionradio.com

Sunday 31 January 2010

University Challenge second quarter final match

Hi Cherryaders, January has been a bit of a blur, which accounts for the lack of posts! PHD work has been taking up lots of timeas has the preparations for my first GTA work. I start teaching two classes of English lit under-graduates tomorrow, exciting but scary too! We've still had time for nights out, will write about that as well as accounts of our last two Uni Challenge matches as soon as I have time!

So, our next University Challenge match is on tomorrow. For those of you who missed it, we won our first quarter final against the excellent St. Andrews' team by a score of 195 to their 50. However, due to the change in the quarter final stage of the competition this year, we're not yet through to the semi finals as we have to win one more match.

So, please tune in tomorrow (Monday 1st February) to watch us take on the formidable St. Johns College Oxford (who beat Girton College Cambridge 280 to 55 in their first quarter final) at 8pm on BBC Two and for a week after on Iplayer.

If we win we're straight through to the final, if we lose we play one more quarter final match to try and get through.

Hope you can join us!
Take care,
Rach Cherryade xxxx
www.cherryademusic.co.uk
www.dandelionradio.com

Monday 11 January 2010

University Challenge: quarter final match against St. Andrews

A little last minute I know but tonight sees our first quarter final match against the formidable St. Andrews team! It'll be on BBC Two at 8pm!

This year's University Challenge is going to be a bit different in that the quarter finals are operating on a best of three basis, which means, if we win tonight we'll still have to win another match to get through to the hallowed semi finals and if we lose then we still have another chance to get through, either way it means you'll see us on your screens at least twice more!

Hope you can tune in,
Love Rach Cherryade xxx
www.cherryademusic.co.uk
www.dandelionradio.com