Interview - Toby Greenwood from It Takes Two on Brecks FM!

It's been an absolute age since I did any interviews on my blog, but finally they return! :)

I've recently become increasingly addicted to the "It Takes Two" show on Brecks FM.  The show is presented by twins Toby and Adam Greenwood, and is on every Wednesday evening from 7pm to 9pm UTC (aka UK time for British readers).  Toby was kind enough to take some time out to answer a few questions about their show, so, here we go!

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Q: Hi! So, for people who haven't heard of you before, who are you, what do you do, and tell us something exciting about you!

I'm Toby and with my twin brother Adam present It Takes Two on Brecks FM. I also work in admin for the Council. Something exciting about me? I have met the chef Ainsley Harriot - he was very tall lol!

Q: So, what's the "It Takes Two" show all about?!?

It Takes Two is a show for anyone- not just the younger listener. we aim to create a show that is enjoyed by both adults, young people and older people. We aim to give listeners the latest news and sport, quirky facts and great music in a professional and fun way.
 
Q: How did you get into presenting radio shows? Has it always been something that you've wanted to do?

We saw an ad in the paper for presenters at Wayland Radio- we went there to give an interview and ended up presenting after that, a little scary!!!!. after this we presented with some others on a show called "Our Turn" a show for the younger listener. After Wayland ceased broadcasting, we moved to SNYA Radio, an internet only station that was run by and presented by young people. We did this for several years before moving to Brecks FM - formerly known as Watton Radio - with some of our old presenters from Wayland Radio.

Q: How long have you been presenting for Brecks FM?

Around a year.

Q: What's the best thing about being on the radio?

Playing great tunes and having such a wonderful audience :)

Q: And what's the worst thing about radio presenting?

None - well the studio gets a bit hot in the summer but I'm being picky.

Q: Radio has changed a great deal over the years, from a purely audio channel received by radios, to today when you can listen to it over the internet, watch the studio over webcams, stream and listen again... do you think radio today is better?  Is it tougher for you, knowing that not only are you putting out a show over the radio, but also often being watched as well?

I think that radio is better- there is so many ways now to connect with the audience, social media etc, this can only be a good thing and provides good publicity for the station .

Q: What's the craziest or oddest thing that's happened to you while presenting radio?  Any technical failures at awkward times?

We were broadcasting but not going out live so the people listening were hearing silence, we were just doing our normal thing, none the wiser.....

Q: Any chance you can let us in on any ideas you've got for future shows of It Takes Two? Anything exciting coming up?

We take each week as it comes- just to keep you guessing.........:)

Q: Thanks for your time - so how can people listen to It Takes Two, and when is it on?

It Takes Two with Adam and Toby broadcasts on Brecks FM Wednesday evenings from 19:00-21:00, tune in online at www.brecksfm.com or on 106.9FM in the Watton Area.

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Many thanks to Toby for his time and for taking part in the interview, and I hope people tune in to their show on a Wednesday evening, either on the radio if you live in the area or otherwise via the website!  They also have a Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ittakestwoshow

Just like Gibbs...

On Friday I stopped at the coffee shop (I don't know why I'm being unspecific, I went to Costa, other coffee providers are available but Costa is the closest one to work, and they're open when I go to work, so I went there) and got a drink.  Mainly because I fancied one, but also being it meant that I felt a little bit like Gibbs of NCIS, being able to march into working, clutching a hot drink, ready to do business.

Although the look was probably thrown off a little bit by the drink being a hot chocolate, and by me also clutching a bag with a piece of Tiffin in.

While I'm talking about Gibbs, what's the deal with Norfolk?  You know how an episode of NCIS starts (well if you're addicted to the show like I am you will), basically Tony looks all smug and makes some kind of wisecrack about McGee being a geek, Ziva/Kate shoots Tony being with an epic remark, then Gibbs marches in, and says "Grab your gear - dead marine in Norfolk"

Why Norfolk?  Why is Norfolk, the fairly quiet rural county to the east of England, so popular for marines getting murdered?  Are they choking on insufficiently cooked asparagus?

(Note for American readers - I know Norfolk in the USA is home to the world's largest Naval Base, but in the UK it's a rural county with a penchant for growing asparagus)

Finally, many thanks to all that have watched my World of Warcraft video.  It's become one of my most viewed videos which makes the effort worthwhile.  And thanks again to Andy for helping make it.

Adventures in Norfolk - Post Three!

So, last time I asked the question, what does the word "Quaggled" mean?

It took us about half an hour to drag an answer out of Dusty's mum, but apparently it means wrinkled, as in how your toes might become wrinkled if you stay in the bath for too long.  You learn something new every day.

On the Saturday evening we had a barbecue, which included ghost chilli burgers from Tony Perkins butchers in Dereham.  Ghost chilli's are, for those not in the know, ridiculously hot chilli peppers, and we were somewhat concerned at our ability to manage to actually eat them.  I could certainly imagine stories of people decomposing due to an overly hot curry - and I can recall one night when a group of us went for a curry a friend of mine had a particularly hot one, and as a result several hours later he had to telephone NHS Direct because he thought he was going to die from it.

As it turned out we were delighted when we tried the ghost chilli burgers that rather than just being a battle to eat, they were actually really tasty burgers.  Very hot and spicy obviously, not the sort of thing you'd plough through in a couple of bites, but if you took your time with it it was really nice and I must admit if there had been another two or three on the go I wouldn't have been against taking another one on.  The butcher did advise us to marinade them in the hottest sauce that we could lay our hands on, cook them and then challenge people to eat two of them and then sit for five minutes without having a drink.  Perhaps we'll do that next time!

Dusty also picked up in Tesco a bag of what appear to be a Polish version of Wotsits.

Wotsit?

They're basically massive wotsits, but without any flavouring.  Dusty did say at one point "They're really nice dipped in something!" - yes, they would be nice perhaps if they were dipped in cheese powder.  Like they do with Wotsits!

(I do actually like Polish food - these things however were just flavourless and reminded me of the puffed rice that would sometimes be used as packaging materials in the parcels my parents get from their business suppliers!)

Unfortunately that's pretty much all of my news from Norfolk - I had a great time, except for when I had to go for a lay down after drinking a glass of water - yes, apparently the beer was fine, but I couldn't handle water.  Life is strange.

After my bad experience with the water I bought some cider to be on the safe side.

Adventures in Norfolk - Part One!

Hi!

Again, apologies for the delay in blogging.  I have literally had nothing worthwhile to write about, so I decided not to worry about blogging until I had something that I could talk about that could possibly result in quality content.

Anyhow, I've got just back from a long weekend in Norfolk with my friend Dan aka Dusty, and I've got a pile of stuff to talk about which I'll split into two or three posts (so I'll have this week covered for blogs at least!)

First thing which I must must must tell you about is Davenport's Magic Kingdom, newly opened in North Walsham.  This magic museum, launched by multiple award winning magician Roy Davenport, has been planned by the Davenport family for the last thirty years, and provides the public a unique opportunity to view a fantastic selection of magical items and learn about the history of magic and illusion, touching on various historical and famous magicians such as Houdini.  You also get the opportunity to experience first hand a number of tricks and a magic show - myself and Dusty were fortunate enough to enjoy the attraction on its first day, and indeed were in its very first group of people going around the museum.

Roy Davenport at Davenport's Magic Kingdom - the picture above the fireplace is of his great grandfather Lewis Davenport

Both of us have an interest in magic, particularly Dusty who is quite accomplished (compared to me anyway!) in conjuring tricks and the like.  The museum is fantastic - it's very interactive, and what could have been a somewhat dry exhibit of just pictures and text is brought to life by the people working there, and the illusions and tricks you see firsthand.  As mentioned earlier, the experience also includes a magic show, and the one we attended the magician was none other than Scott Penrose, Vice President of The Magic Circle.

I won't spoil the surprise by saying what exhibits are to be seen there but I'd definitely recommend a visit.  All the staff are extremely friendly (Roy in particular stands out - he couldn't have been nicer even though we got inside before the museum opened and interrupted him while organising everything!), the exhibits are very interesting, decent cafe (licensed too) and it looks as though further plans are in place to further expand the exhibits there.

Happy Boxing Day!

I've just come back from my friends place in Norfolk where we've been celebrating Christmas - yes, I am aware it's slightly early, but I was there, he was there, so we decided to have an early Christmas Day on Saturday.

We had a gift limit of five pounds, so we had to make the most of our money to get the best present we could.

Or, if it's me, go on as many websites as possible to order free samples.

Some of the 'gifts' I wrapped up included:

• A piece of tile
• Some damp proofing gel
• Some block paving crack sealant
• A nappy
• A Knorr Gravy pot (not ordered from the internet but from Leeds Railway Station, where people were handing them out on Thursday)
• Carpet, curtain and fabric samples
• Aftershave
• Various customised bits from Vistaprint (okay I had to pay for post & packing, but £3 for a mouse mat, pen, mug and bag wasn't too bad!)

I did buy a few bits, prime one being a USB Air Freshener.  I nearly came a cropper when I realised that the air freshener needed essential oil to work, fortunately those good folk at Raven (who I may be slightly related to) sorted me out with some free Nag Champa oil, which does smell lovely.  If you are interested in any kind of weird and wonderful stuff, from josssticks to tarot cards, books to oils, get in touch with Raven at:

Raven
17 Melton Fields
Brickyard Lane
North Ferriby
East Riding of Yorkshire
HU14 3HE

Send them your address and a couple of first class stamps for a mail order catalogue.  I know, in this time of the internet we all automatically search the websites for stuff, but their catalogue is excellent (yes I am biased but even so).

All in all we had an excellent time, played some Cards Against Humanity (first time I've actually played it, I can recommend it as long as you are of a mature age and have an immature sense of humour!)

I can't blog today without a word about Sir Patrick Moore, who died this afternoon.  Sir Patrick was for anyone remotely interested in astronomy and the night sky, a legend which brought the science of the final frontier to life.  Despite only describing himself as an "amateur astronomer", he presented the Sky at Night television show for over fifty years, wrote tens of books on the topic of astronomy, and carried out functions such as working on the mapping of the Moons surface in the 1950s.  There are many tens of fascinating and fantastic facts about this amazing man, which I am not worthy of reproducing.  Being an 80s child I recall him as the GamesMaster on the Channel 4 TV show of the same name!  I would recommend to anyone interested in knowing more about him to get a copy of his autobiography, Eighty Not Out.  Indeed, any of the many books Sir Patrick was involved in writing would be a worthy read.

A memorial website has been set up for people to offer their tribunes, which is located at http://www.banguniverse.com/sirpatrickmoore/.