I do like the French accent, but the rest of the story leaves me a bit cold. It's slightly too complicated, but I do approve of them bringing forward the bad guys from the first one. They're only in it briefly, of course. Ultimately, I find this to be a pointless film, but it's great to have the cast back together.

I don't know if you would technically count this as stationery, but it does fall under the organisation category, so we'll go with it for now. The Empty Your Pockets organiser is one of those things that you don't really need - any box would do - but the efficiency of it appeals to me. Most of my stuff stays in my bag, as you can imagine, but sometimes I …

So, yes, I have to admit it, the film is actually quite good. I'm still not 100% convinced on the whole Monty Python thing, but a couple of times I laughed out loud during this, and I can't deny it. At least now I get some of the jokes that everyone talks about.

Dorling Kindersley have released one of their internal videos that was created for a sales conference within the group. Apparently it was such a hit that they wanted to release it externally and give it a wider audience. It's good, although you have to have some patience to make it worthwhile. We found this via the OUseful.Info blog and there are some interesting thoughts over there on how it is …

Ahh, remember the good old days when you had to trudge to school with your calculator and your compass? I was looking at the Helix site and couldn't decide between two maths sets. The Black Case set comes with a highlighter mouse and a calculator which is pretty groovy: But the Oracle Maths set has the full circle angle measure with the really cool windy thing on it: I'm very …

I really quite enjoyed the film, even though it's not normally a style I would like. Jessica Biel lived up to expectations, whilst Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas were on top form. I wasn't all that impressed with the dog stuff, it was a bit lame comedy for my liking, but thankfully it was only a small part of the bigger picture.

Mary Poppins is a staple of the Christmas holiday. I always look for it as soon as the TV schedules are released because the festive season isn't right without it. I hadn't realised quite how long the film is, considering it's a kid's one, but you can't help but love it.

Things I have learnt about Filofax today: It's a brand name, not a thing! Like Hoover. They are actually not as dorky looking as I thought. That they come with accessories! Things that come with your Filofax: Week on two pages diary, five language Ruler-page marker, frosted Coloured 1-6 numbered index World map To do, five language Various colours of ruled paper Name, address and numbers, five language Coloured A–Z …

I've never really understood calligraphy, it seems like a whole lot of effort. The results can be beautiful, of course, but I'm not an expert by any means. I like the look of this Coles Calligraphy Set though. That's an actual feather! I'm pretty sure I would break it within a week of having it, but it's so pretty. It would make a fab gift. As an aside, the website …

The background Viacom is suing YouTube for the copyrighted material that keeps appearing on the video sharing site. Viacom thinks YouTube should do more to stop it happening, whilst YouTube are hoping for safe harbour from the DMCA - meaning they do their best but ultimately can't be held responsible for what users upload. The blog post On the official YouTube blog, a post appeared yesterday with some rather revealing …

So, here are my findings on this bizarre formula. A race weekend consists of the following: Saturday - two 45 minute practice sessions, one hour rookie session, qualifying Sunday - two 44 minute races, the second one with a reverse grid Some kind of Super Final race at the end of the season I'm already confused. Don't let's even talk about qualifying. The benefits of racing in this sport include …

Doctor Who is returning to our screens on the 3rd April, and there is so much stuff floating about that I need a post to make sense of it all. Firstly, the Beeb have released their press pack for the new series. Yay! I can't believe it tells us anything we don't already know, as people have been discussing the debut of Matt Smith and Karen Gillan since, well, forever. …

Now, it's not unusual for a misspelling of Franck's name to occur. Quite often the unusual 'c' is missed out, and whilst grating, it is understandable. Most of the time, when I try and write it spelt the other way, as in Frank Williams, I add in the extra 'c'. This is a much more acceptable spelling mistake, I find. With FKM's new gig in the Superleague Formula, I pointed …

Thanks to F1 Wolf who pointed out this tweet from Adam Cooper (how friend of a friend is this?): Franck Montagny is the latest ex-F1 guy to sign up with the Superleague Formula series. The official Superleague site has the news, and here's the basics. The Superleague Formula was introduced in 2008, as a way to cross over the divide between football and motorsport fans. The teams are all football …

When browsing for pens, a word you don't really expect to hear is "revolutionary." However, that is what Websters Pen Shop have on offer with the Dialog 3. The revolutionary part comes from the fact that this fountain pen has no cap. It twists, in the same way some ball point pens twist, and the nib disappears inside. Some fancy stuff then protects the nib from getting damaged or dirty, …

Let us begin with some awesomely cute pandas. I really love the running panda at about a minute in. Now, this may go against the grain a little but I was recently introduced to the YouTube account Cute Things Exploding. There doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason for the desire to make cute things disappear in a puff of smoke, but naturally, a baby panda wasn't far behind. …

I have mentioned the good stuff from Kikki.K before, but I just wanted to focus in on this book - 365 Days. It's a journal, but it doesn't start at the beginning of the year, you can pick it up and start whenever. I think there are good and bad points about this. Firstly, it's nice not to be tied in to a Jan 1st start. It's good that it's …

Have you seen a new site called Compare My Radio? It's from some lab type people at Absolute Radio, and is currently in Beta, but it's a very clever idea. Their short little blurb says: Compare My Radio tracks UK radio stations' "now playing" information and makes sense of it so you don't have to. The basic premise seems to be to find a radio station that is right for …

I seem to have a bit of a thing for pen holders at the moment, you will have to forgive me. However, I really like this rustic looking wooden pot. Barnwood Pen/Pencil Holder The pot is from old barn wood, sanded and smoothed to have nice round edges.

Well, we're in the middle of another month, so it's about time I debuted a new blog, right? Welcome to Stationery Corner! I don't really know what it is or what it's going to be. At the moment I have just been posting some of the stationery bits and pieces I have found on the internet. Perhaps at some point I will research the history of the pencil and tell …

The Perfect Journal This journal looks really nice, the pages are chunky and I bet they feel good when you hold it. I also like the idea of the secret pocket at the back, although I'm not sure what you would put in it. Some of the notes from the seller: made of natural kraft paper and chipboard embellished with decorative papers great feel heavy creamy pages the design on …

Ikea do have some lovely stuff, even if it is mass produced and without character. I'm not 100% sure about this wicker style storage for writing materials, but I like the idea. I have a similar wooden organisation piece on my desk right now, also from Ikea, but I like that this one is nice and tall. You can get various different length pens to try and fit! Now we'll …

I have a thing about lady bugs because I call them lady bugs and Mr C insists that they are ladybirds. It's something we'll never agree on but every time I find something with bug in the title, rather than bird, it makes me a bit happy. That's why I would love to get these lady bug pins, rather than boring old drawing pins.

A while ago, my dad told me to check out a quiz show on the BBC called Only Connect, which I duly did. I watched one episode and gave it up immediately. I didn't even understand the questions. I'm one of those people that loves to watch University Challenge in the vain hope that I might get one question right, but Only Connect is on a whole other level. It …

I don't think I would ever find a use for an address book as I can't remember the last time I posted a letter anywhere, but that doesn't stop me ogling them. This is an interesting one. I like the handwriting design on the cover, and as a bonus, it's cheap! £1.99! Pocket Address Book

A while ago, Amy pointed out this fabulous stationery site - Kikki.K. They have the most gorgeous collections of pens, paper, folders, pots, anything you could want. It's all chunky and geometrical, and I love it! Here are a couple of examples of the greatness. A penpot: Sticky notes: Meal planning: I basically want everything on the site and I bet you'll feel the same.

I have never really heard of a stationery box before, but whilst investigating some rather posh pens, I came across this Secretaire box from Smythson. The box is made of leather, is lockable and comes with it's own rather fancy stationery, but I'm not sure that justifies the £5,145 price tag! I'm completely in love with all the little drawers, but really, I'd rather just get a pen pot, I …

The kind of thing I would never want to write in because it is just too precious. The Elite Writer's Journal (link no longer available)

I found this video on the Inside TWiT TV blog, posted by Dane Golden, who is unfortunately credited as Dave in the video itself. It's a 20 minute look inside the TWiT cottage including chats with Leo, Dane and Colleen - the engineering genius behind it all. Well worth a watch, particularly if you are crazy Leo fans like us. The video builds on something I wrote about previously - …

The very excellent, lovely, talented and creative Kat Hall made me a monster! After spotting Giles the monster on Kat's blog, I half-commissioned, half-begged for a monster of my very own. At Christmas I became the proud owner of the above monster, now christened Benjamin. Ben wears a tie as he works in the city and he carries a briefcase, although he's usually lost it somewhere. He's very smart, and …

Behold! I am back with another podcast, and in a relatively reasonable timeframe as well! I had planned to do this a few days earlier, but a sore throat kept me from my microphone. Hopefully all the stories are still relevant! I'm sure there are budgetary reasons for this as well On episode seven of Media. Future. Change. we investigate the buzz behind Google Buzz, who is living in a …

Just a quick admin note, I've updated the About Franck page to include his 2009 antics. I'm sure I've missed something, so please let me know if I have forgotten anything crucial. I've updated the About Me page as well. It was a bit cryptic before, pointing people at Sidepodcast but saying little else. Goodness knows why, it's not like it was a secret. Now I'm a bit more forthcoming …

I've mentioned in a couple of MFC episodes that YouTube are doing more and more to bring content into the site, moving away from the home video side of things, and dealing with broadcasters and networks. I've not really invested too much time in watching what's available, although I do keep my eye on what deals they're making. It came to my attention yesterday that our hero Leo Laporte has …

If you haven't seen the latest music video from OK Go, then you must view it now. I know. Wow. Right? It's taken me a while to be convinced that it is actually real but after reading a great behind the scenes piece on it, I'm gonna go with it. Some facts you need to know: It took about a month and a half of very intense work, with people …

There's been a story doing the rounds recently about the Billboard Top 40 Money Makers, with U2 topping the list. I mentioned this to Mr C, as he's a former crazy fan who now just keeps an eye on what they're up to. He questioned the idea, and that led to a fascinating conversation. I wanted to blog some highlights, as it raises a lot of questions. Credit: Andrew3000/Flickr Firstly, …

The official Franck site has updated with talk of what he's been up to for the past few days: This week FKM took part to his first official practice session with Peugeot at Paul Ricard circuit. The weather conditions were obviously not perfect, wet track and very windy, but still Franck was way too happy to complain! Being back at the wheel was just what he had been waiting for …

I requested some sticky tape and then made the mistake of taking a couple of days off. The stationery catalogue is hidden away in my filing cabinet, but someone must have found it and placed an order. When I mentioned this over on Sidepodcast, the reaction was instant and very divided. As an over-generalisation, the girls hate it and the boys think it's funny. I'm sure you already know what …

After reading Silence of the Lambs and thoroughly enjoying it, I took on board the recommendations for this sequel. The style is very similar to the original, as you would expect, and there's plenty of action to keep you turning the pages. As with the previous book, what struck me more than anything was the ability of Harris to turn Hannibal into a sympathetic character. The man kills and eats people, for goodness sake. Yet, most of the way through, you were rooting for him not to be caught. By the way, the plan they had for him? Totally gross.

I can't quite believe we've reached the final part already, and yet, so much has happened to Mitch in just nine short chapters! This final vote was a very interesting one for me, and as ever, I was surprised at the voting. Not necessarily at the result, but at the margins and at the fact that the lead didn't change hands once. I want to thank everyone who took the …

It took me a while to get into this book. Jonathan Ross writes exactly as he speaks, and it wasn't until I could hear his voice in my head as I was reading that it really started to flow. Some of the statements and sentences seemed harsh and out of place, but as soon as you've got Ross reading it to you in your head, then it all fits together much better.

I was looking through some of the archives of my blog (don't you do that, I'm still in the midst of sorting it all out!), and discovered that I didn't actually write about mine and Mr C's wedding here on my personal blog. There are pictures and suchlike on Sidepodcast, and we even answered some questions in one of the episodes, but over here, it was all quiet. There are …

For a moment, I thought the Annette/Baby/Leon/Helen storyline was all done and dusted. Helen kept on shrieking until Annette left, and then Helen told anyone and everyone who came in to the shop exactly why it was that her young friend had fled. I read on the message boards someone who consumed The Archers via the email synopsis of each show, and assumed they were a couple from her scarily …

I've talked about Librivox on a few occasions before, and today I'm popping back to the topic to pass along a request for help. Although the time I can spare reading and recording LibriVox books varies throughout the year, it's always been really great fun. Time spent there is supportive and friendly, and the book selection is vast and fabulous. LibriVox has been giving away free audiobooks for several years, …

What I like about Deaver is the ability to cross information throughout the series without being dull, repetitive or patronising. In this one we have plenty of familiar characters, who all have history that shapes the way they work. There's even a glimpse of one of the criminals from a previous book, and at no step of the way was I thinking 'shh, I know this, get on with it.' That could be to do with my bad memory though.

Once again, the voting on the last poll really surprised me. For a long while, the daredevil answer was winning - don't listen to the team, just go for it. However, a more sensible approach seems to have won: So, Mitch is ready to do what the team wants, but on his own terms. Where will that lead? Today's vote will be the last one, and whilst I'm sure it's …

The vote for part seven was interesting because the conservative approach was winning to start with, but then all the rebels appeared and gave us the answer we now have: I had to explain the difference between the two qualifying approaches to my mother who said she can't wait until I have a less motorsport related story going on. For now, though, we're about to qualify in Monaco. “Just wait,” …

Everyone has been talking about this, so I guess I should too. I tried to resist but it is impossible to ignore. More information is available via Kottke. When it's cold outside, people are using sausages on their touchscreens so they don't have to take their gloves off. I find the whole idea kinda gross and would much rather use something like the Etip Gloves. That seems like a much …

Peugeot Sport held a press conference this week to confirm their plans and drivers for the year ahead. I was a bit disappointed with the lack of Franck talk, but that's probably because a lot of the focus was on new boy Anthony Davidson. The 5live commentator will be getting behind the wheel alongside Marc Gené and Alexander Wurz. Davidson gets to be in the number 1 car, whilst Franck …

There's always been a lot of talk about Flash and how, to be polite, it's a bit of a CPU hog. In our house, Mr C will often be found bemoaning the existence of Flash, and it's understandable that the Apple universe of products is less than supportive of it. I never really thought about the problem too much, but that has changed. I watch the majority of my TV …

I really enjoyed the last round of voting. Instead of a moral decision, or something that defines Mitch as a character, it was simply a "what obstacle shall we throw in his path" and you got to make that decision. The voting changed drastically throughout, but there could only be one winner. It seems as though Mason has got under everyone's skin, whether it is for good or for bad! …