November Favourites ❤

It's come to that time where I write a blogpost about what I've been loving this month.

November has been a really good month for me, I hope yours was good too.

I can't believe it's almost Christmas, this year has gone by so quickly.

Anyway, here are my November favourites.

Glory Days - Little Mix

Little Mix's latest album, Glory Days, might be their best yet. Since winning The X Factor in 2011, Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Jade Thirlwall and Perrie Edwards have all achieved phenomenal success with their songs, the majority of which are fun, energetic and upbeat. They've already spent three weeks at number one with Shoutout To My Ex, the first single from Glory Days. If you loved their single then there's no reason why you won't enjoy their fourth album. Like Shoutout To My Ex, most of the songs are upbeat anthems you can sing along to. The girls are also known for producing powerful and emotional ballads. On Glory Days, the stand out ballad is Nobody Like You and this is where the girls' vocals are at their strongest. If you enjoy listening to catchy pop tunes, I recommend listening to Nothing Else Matters, as it's a fun and optimistic song about being in love. I've written a review on Glory Days on my blog, if you'd like to read it, click here. 

Arrival 

In the past few years, we've had some of the most thought provoking science fiction films released including The Martian, Interstellar, Gravity and many more. Arrival is one of the highly anticipated films we've had this year and fortunately, it didn't disappoint and is just as good as the aforementioned films, maybe even better. Although an alien invasion does feature, the film isn't necessarily about the aliens themselves and focuses instead on Amy Adams' character, Louise Banks, who is a linguist and is recruited by the military to try and translate what the aliens are saying so the film is actually about communication. Earlier this year, we had the sequel to the 1996 action film, Independence Day, and I don't think you can even call it science fiction as there was no science in the film. The film focuses on trying to destroy the aliens that had invaded Earth rather than trying to figure out what they wanted. This is why I'm appreciative of films like Arrival as, when done properly, they can be thought provoking and gripping at the same time. Arrival is, not only the best science fiction film, but also one of the best films we've had this year. If you'd like to read my full review, click here.

Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them

Like Arrival, Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them was also one of the most anticipated films this year because of its connections to the Harry Potter franchise. When the final film in the Potter franchise, Deathly Hallows Part 2, was released, many fans were devastated as they thought this was the end of the Wizarding World and it's unique and interesting characters. Fortunately, J.K. Rowling admitted she couldn't let go of that magical world she had created and, instead of writing another book, she wrote her first screenplay, Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, which was based on one of the textbooks that the students read at Hogwarts and is written by Newt Scamander, a magizoologist (someone who studies creatures). I'm happy that we got a film instead of book because I enjoyed watching the Wizarding World come to life once again via the silver screen. Eddie Redmayne was cast as the main character, Newt, and he portrays him perfectly. Too many films have brave and confident protagonists so it was refreshing to have a character who is shy, introverted and has a better relationship with his creatures than he does with fellow wizards and witches. Fantastic Beasts is set in New York in the 1920s (several decades before Harry Potter was even born) and features a great cast and some of the most unique creatures ever created on screen. I doubt fans of Harry Potter will be disappointed with this new addition to the popular franchise. If you would like to read my full review, click here.

The Big Bang Theory Season 10 (contains spoilers)

If you know me, you'll know that my favourite TV series is The Big Bang Theory and has been since I first began watching it in 2013 when season 7 had just begun. I loved how the characters were different to any I've seen in any sitcom before and were all likable in their own unique way. I find it hard to believe that this show is on its tenth season already and next year will mark ten years since the programme first began. The characters have developed so well and transitioned so much since the first season. For example, Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) is known for avoiding physical contact as much as possible and rarely hugs so it was a big surprise when he formed a relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik). It was even more of a shock when he kissed her in season 7 and had sex with her in season 9. It's something that no-one, not even the characters in the sitcom, expected Sheldon to do. This is why it's one of my favourite TV programmes. Every episode is different yet still manages to be just as funny as the previous episode. So far, I'm on episode nine of season 10 and I'm really enjoying it so far. The characters and their lives are still entertaining to watch. 

I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!

It's hard to believe that I'm A Celebrity... has been running for fourteen years and is currently on its sixteenth series. For those of you who don't know, I'm A Celebrity is a gaming show in which celebrities live in jungle conditions with few creature comforts. In order to win food, celebrities must participate in various Bushtucker Trials. The trials consist of various games that feature many different creatures and insects, including snakes, spiders and many other creepy crawlies. They're also incredibly challenging. Viewers choose which celebrity they want to do the trial by voting via the official app. The show is presented by Ant and Dec, a Geordie duo who have been presenting for over twenty years. They bring comic relief by making sarcastic comments about the celebrities themselves and the tasks that they had to do. This is what makes them successful presenters as they're not afraid to be themselves. The main source of entertainment comes from watching the celebrities face their fears by doing the Bushtucker Trials. However, if a celebrity wants to give up during a task, they must call out 'I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here' (hence the title of the show). This series has been good so far and has a great group of celebrities including Scarlett Moffatt (best known for appearing in reality TV series, Gogglebox), Larry Lamb (best known for appearing in TV shows such as Gavin & Stacey and Eastenders), Carol Vorderman (who used to do the sums on Countdown) and many more. One thing that is important in these type of shows is chemistry and these campmates have all been getting along. I think this may be one of the best series yet. I've also been really enjoying Extra Camp which is the live aftershow presented by Vicky Pattison, Stacey Solomon, Joe Swash and Chris Ramsey. I've met both Vicky and Stacey and they really are two of the most down to Earth celebrities I've met and both of them have won this show in the past (Vicky in 2015 and Stacey in 2010). In the aftershow, the presenters go behind the scenes and even try the Bushtucker Trials that the celebrities have completed and they also talk to the campmates and various celebrities to get their opinion of the show. All four of the presenters have natural chemistry and are really funny together. This series of I'm A Celebrity... has been great so far and I can't wait to see which celebrity wins and becomes King/Queen of the Jungle. 

'Winters' Snow' by Carrie Hope Fletcher (contains spoilers)

In July, Carrie Hope Fletcher published her first novel, On The Other Side. The story focused on Evie, a woman who has recently passed away but wakes up in the lift in her old apartment building. Confused, Evie walks to her apartment door but finds it locked, however, her former landlord tells her that on the other side of her door is the entrance to heaven. Unfortunately, she can't get through because her soul is too heavy as it's holding three secrets. Evie soon learns that, in order to pass through the door, she must rid herself of the three secrets she's been carrying all her life. This was a really enjoyable story to read and was full of magic realism, romance and drama. It proved how talented Carrie was at writing. Winters' Snow is Carrie's first novella and focuses on Vincent Winters, who was Evie's boyfriend and the only person she ever loved. Of course, Vincent is saddened to hear about Evie's death and this short story focuses on his journey to finding her so they can live in heaven together. In his journey, he meets Evie's cruel and strict mother who we see another side to and his fellow friend, Sonny. It's a really sweet story and, if you enjoyed On The Other Side, I'd recommend reading this book too.

Those were my November Favourites.

Thank you so much for reading my blogpost,

I hope you enjoyed it. 

❤