Simone Reddington

It’s hard to believe that not only have England reached the final of the Euros, but 2021 is half over already. June has been an extremely busy month for me, but here are the things I’ve most enjoyed in what had been the sunniest month of the year so far.

1. Blackpool Staycation- I went away for a weekend break in Blackpool with my uni friends, and I had the best time. I hadn’t seen them in over 9 months and it was lovely to catch up like old times. We found a gorgeous house to stay on Air Bnb, that was right by the sea front and we were very lucky to have a full weekend of glorious weekend during our stay. I’d only been to Blackpool for the day once before, so I was very keen to fully explore the ‘Vegas of the North.’ We climbed the famous tower, which I absolutely loved, and enjoyed pints and ice creams on the sea front. On our final day we visited Blackpool Pleasure Beach. It was absolutely crazy to think that the roller coasters that thousands of people enjoy every year, such as the Big Dipper and the Pepsi Max, have been around for nearly a century. I know Blackpool may not be regarded as the most glamourous holiday resort, but there is something for everyone to enjoy and the atmosphere during the summer is absolutely fantastic. It’s a classic holiday resort and represents everything we love about the British summer.

2. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine– I’ve read a good few books this year, but Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine is the first so far that I’ve completely fallen in love with. It tells the story of a young woman who has no friends or family in the world and has accepted the fact that she will be alone forever, until one small incident changes her life forever. When I read the first couple of chapters, I assumed that it was going to be a typical light-hearted romance novel but, without giving away too many spoilers about the plot, it’s nothing that you would expect. It’s a beautiful story about the power of friendship and kindness, and really emphasise the important message that you never know what another person is going through behind closed doors.

3. Costa’s golden caramel iced lattes- If there’s one thing that cheers me up when I’m working on a sunny day, its an iced coffee. My bank account may not be as keen on them, but they give me the well need caffeine boost I need when it’s too hot to drink to actual coffee (I personally can’t drink coffee when it’s more than 20 degrees). I’m also a sucker for flavoured syrups, so when I saw Costa’s new golden caramel latte when I went for a coffee when I was in Blackpool, I knew I had to try one. They taste absolutely delicious, sweet enough but not sickly. Would highly recommend.

4. Olly Alexander: Growing up Gay– June is Pride month, where the LGBT+ community come together to commemorate those who were involved in the Stonewell riots and celebrate queer culture across the world. As someone with a lot of friends who identify as LGBT, I hope that I am a good ally to the community so I wanted to take the opportunity to educate myself. BBC iPlayer have a category for LGBT TV programmes so I watched pop star Olly Alexander’s documentary from 2017 about the issues that young gay people in Britain face today, and how their experiences impact on their mental health. It was very well made but it does tackle some issues that can be very triggering for some people, such as homophobic bullying, drug abuse and eating disorders. I found it very eye-opening and it made me realise that despite a lot of progress over the last few decades, we still have a long way to go to make society a more accepting place for LGBT people.

5. Solar Power– Best new song I’ve heard all month is Lorde’s new single ‘Solar Power.’ It’s not what I expected from her at all but its such a feel good anthem. Its not often a song can make me feel like I’m on a tropical island when I’m listening to it while tidying my bedroom, but that’s the power of Lorde I guess!