Plato the Greek

It is an excellent gym because it's so quiet compared to everywhere else, yet still has a decent range and number of machines. Also, it is definitely not a poser's gym. I've heard it is more expensive than JJB, but less so than Canons. I was there at 4pm yesterday and there were 5 people in the whole place. Student peak membership is 37 pm. I don't know about full-price off-peak costs, but it can't be much more than that. There is also a swimming pool, sauna, steam room etc and your membership also entitles you to free participation in the classes they offer. Hope that helps.

I will go. I'm a season ticket holder at Pittodrie, and would go to any pre-season matches anyway, but Man Utd are obviously a big draw and the 25th anniversary is important. I get the feeling that there may not be very many big names coming up, but having said that Sir Alex does seem to have an affection for the city and the club so he might field a decent squad.

There's something unsettlingly fascinating about abandoned buildings, particularly when they have been left with fixtures and fittings inside. There is an abandoned factory on the corner of Park Road and Duff Street in Aberdeen which looks really interesting. It is very secure though. There also used to be a door on Union Street up beside Jumpin' Jaks etc that you could just open, and once inside you descended into a huge derelict cellar. This was up until a couple of years ago. Does anyone remember this? I also think that old photographs of Aberdeen are so interesting because it has changed so much in the relatively recent past. I'm a bit of a nostalgia junkie, but it's mainly a nostalgia for a past I never actually knew because I was born in 1981 when a good deal of 18th-19th century Aberdeen had already been swept away. Diane Morgan's book 'Lost Aberdeen' is a great record of what was lost. The old 'thisisnorthscotland' forum which Alan Cynic mentioned was also breathtaking. In particular, one picture shows what Queen Street used to be like before it was all but destroyed. And don't get me started on the 'regeneration' of the George Street area. The images of the Victorian Co-op shopping arcade of the Gallowgate are truly astonishing. If you wander round Aberdeen today you see a huge amount of redevelopment going on, I just hope someone is keeping a photographic record.

The night was very strange I felt. The bands were actually quite enjoyable - I thought Amplifico sounded a little like Ace of Base at times though. However, the atmosphere was just completely lacking. Last year, I thought that the Fudge Awards were slightly toned down in terms of excitement / controversy but this year it felt like they were taking place in a deserted warehouse or something. I know there were many reasons why people possibly couldn't attend but it was nevertheless a bit of a shock. I perhaps should have guessed when I bought ticket No.23(!) from the Lemon Tree on Saturday afternoon. It brought a tear to my eye (almost). I remember the days .... VIP tables in Moshulu... rousing hate-filled speeches...folk arriving in limos... blah,blah,blah.

What about "Dead by Christmas" by Hanoi Rocks? 'My Mind's Eye' by The Small Faces is always used on Christmas stuff just because of the bells and stuff but isn't strictly yuletidey. Alternatively, why not gather the family round a roaring log fire with some mulled wine and listen to the heavenly 'Fuck Christmas I'm Dead' by King Liar and the Brutes?

Does anyone remember 'Knights of God' on ITV? Incredible series. Apparently it's never been repeated, but it featured a HUGE number of famous faces - including Michael 'born in Aberdeen actually' Sheard.

Wilkinson Sword Razors are vastly inferior to Gillette in my experience. Shaving for me was a nightmare for years, but there are loads of good products around now. I recommend using Mach 3 Turbo (don't think Fusion is as big an improvement over this as the Turbo was over the original Mach 3) and disposables are a joke. Always soak your stubble for at least 3-4 mins with a face cloth and very hot water. In combination with any King of Shaves shaving oil as an undercoat, followed by Shaving Gel of some kind on top, this will give an exellent shave. Don't ever use huge amounts of alcohol-based aftershave, it is not a good idea. Instead use something with acetylsalicylic acid in it - this will stop almost all razor bumps or spots caused by shaving, but you must use moisturiser after applying it. Alternatively, grow a beard.

Did 'Puddle Cruiser' ever come out in the UK? I've seen all the rest but have never even heard of this.

What part of this joke am I not getting? They are DJing in Weekends...sorry 'Fandangos' or whatever the kids are calling it now? Christ almighty. Why?

Twojoe: The comment about middle aged men and motorbikes is so true it's painful. I actually know of one who fits this description exactly. Conversely, (in so far as they are not pretending to live life on the extreme edge but to be ultra-geeky) fake piercings also put me in mind of the whole emo-glasses cult - whereby contrivedly wan or bookish young boys and girls with 20/20 vision wonder around with clear-glass spectacles for that authentic geek/nerd look.

The Specials - More Specials.

YES! I have 'Plague of the Zombies' on DVD - Cracking stuff. Never mind that Romero or 28 Days later nonsense, give me lumbering fiends in a Victorian Cornish tin mine any day of the week.

I'm an advocate of the 'hands on' approach when it comes to religion. That's why I'm a Thugee.

Flamin' gallahs.

No-one in the entire world irritates me more than Russell Brand. No-one. I would love to watch him slowly drown in a vat of boiling rat piss. Let's see how far his wacky hair, fashion scarves, and 'punch-me-I'm-a-complete-cunt' face get him then. Not very far I'll wager.

Definitely 'Happy Days Toy Town' by the Small Faces with Stanley Unwin. If you watch them all together performing the track on Colour Me Pop from the late sixties they genuinely look like they're having the time of their lives. It makes me smile uncontrollably to see it.

As far as I've been told Bar Pivo (which is now 'technically' the Union but is just a rubbish pub) is only available to the university on a short-term lease. 'The Hub' is on the site of the old refectory which got ripped apart due to major asbestos problems amongst other things. Not sure if it's technically / officially going to be 'The Union' or not. It should be opening in September, but I understand that it will be primarily be a restaurant / cafe type eatery rather than a late night pub/club venue - I don't think there's any chance of nightclub type shenanigans a la 'The Factory' as King's Campus is too out of the way and local residents kicked up a stink about noise etc - as a result it won't have a late license, at least initially. It was initially also going to be housing several university facilities such as Student Accomodation and other SA bodies, not sure if this is still the case. On a related note, allow me to don my rose-tinted specs: I feel genuinely sorry for new students coming to Aberdeen as they no longer have access to the Gallowgate Union. It was such a great unique building and I saw so many great bands there(The Needles causing a power failure anyone?) and enjoyed so many amazing nights in The Dungeon, Sivells, The Loft etc. It seems it's essentially all part of the University's drive to almost totally remove any presence from Marischal College and its environs except for its retention of the Mitchell Hall. I just think it's quite sad, but then I suppose needs must in the current financial climate...

I loved the classic series and think that the new era is just as good. Eccleston just edges it for me I think. And yes, Catherine Tate is worrying me greatly with regards to the Xmas special, although I think 'Torchwood' looks quite interesting I'm hoping for a lot of fanboy stuff in the new series and I think they could do a great deal with the 'Time War' storyline. The return of The Master is an obvious thing to expect, perhaps Davros as well. Would like to see some lesser known enemies return too, like the Ice Warriors or the Sontarans. But I'm really hoping for some kind of flashback to the events of the Time War; I reckon some momentous event during it caused the regeneration of the Eighth Doctor. Probably a Paul McGann regeneration scene would be out of the question, but I'd love to see a multi-Doctor story tying up loose ends.

I can't believe no-one has mentioned Brighton Rock!

I used to really like Roxette when I was a kid - not only because of their music (which at the time I believed to be in equal parts both hauntingly beautiful and devastatingly powerful) but also because the female vocalist had more than a touch of the Violet Berlins about her.

I would probably rather pay to see a reformed Scarlet Division than Kula Shaker. That little Hayley Mills jnr guy was such an insufferably odious acting-school prick-toff.

This always happens to me. Boil a kettle, then fill a basin or sink with a small amount of boiling water (just enough to immerse the lid). Then turn the jar upside down and immerse it in the boiling water for a few minutes. The metal lid expands and thus the jar is easier to open.

Bill Ely & the Catnips playing Pantera songs is going to be the most incredible thing ever. I can barely believe that such a thing is even possible.

Look at those arms. It's like Geoff Capes gone wrong.