The Happy Gilmore

I WAS not fair on 10-year-old Natalie Okri that she was made to stand in front of the cameras as The Britain's Got Talent judges decided on her fate.

She had already been made to sing live in front of millions, a feat most adults would find difficult, let alone a child.

Natalie then had to wait while the public were given their chance to vote.

Susan Boyle went through first, while Diversity and Natalie had to go infront of the judges, who had the final say.

Amanda Holden went for the singer, but Piers and Simon chose Diversity.

The 10-year-old was obviously devastated and she broke down in tears. It was not right someone so young was built up and then knocked down, ie exploited, just for the purpose of television.

Meanwhile golfer Padraig Harrington has been trying out a new golf swing that involves the player running up to the ball before he or she hits it.

The new shot has also enabled the player to gain an extra 30 yards.

This new swing has been named The Happy Gilmore following the 1996 film featuring Adam Sandler.

Harrington is not planning in adopting the routine into tournament golf as he looses accuracy.

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club, the sport's ruling body, said it was something they would not want to encourage.

Blackpool is worth a look

THIS year many people are deciding to spend their Summer holiday in this country in a bid to save money.

So it is good to see that Blackpool has come up with a good advert on YouTube to try and encourage more people to visit the town.

At first in the advert you think you are watching something about Paris as the trailer has a French actress and shots show iron towers, but by the end you realise the subject is Blackpool.

Ok, so Blackpool does have its negative aspects such as it is used by many people for drunken nights out. However it has many good attractions too.

I have many happy memories of visiting Blackpool with family and friends. Blackpool Pleasure Beach has some truly scary rides.

I can first remember going on the Pepsi Max Big One and being petrified as the carriage was pulled hundreds of feet into the sky and then dropped almost vertically. It didn't help that the week before we went on the ride it had broken down at the very top.

Another good rollercoaster is the Grand National, where you race an opposing carriage.

I have other happy memories of visits to the Sandcastle, which had a wave machine and water slides.

One musn't forget too the Blackpool illuminations, taking a car ride as a child down Blackpool promenade to see the illuminations is like entering another world.

Maybe Blackpool doesn't have the weather of a Mediterranean resort, but it does have plenty to provide hours of fun and entertainment.

Slow down

AN interesting group has started called the Slow Movement.

They recently held The Slow Down London festival with activities such as walking as slowly as possible across Waterloo Bridge. They contrasted with the businessmen running to their trains.

The idea behind the movement is to encourage people to stand away from the fast pace of modern life and take stock of what they are doing.

The “slow” in the movement does not mean we have to move at a snail's pace, but the ethos is that we enjoy what we do and don't try and cram too much into the day and by doing this miss the best bits.

Other activities during the festival included: wine tastings, orchestral performances, and yoga workshops.

Organisers were trying to emphasise the point that you don't have to live in the countryside to “live slow.”

Meanwhile, I wasn't the lucky person who bought the winning Euro Millions ticket.

That honour went to someone in Spain, who by having the numbers 4, 23, 24, 29, 31, and lucky stars 8 and 9, picked up £110m.

If that ticket was bought by one single person, then they would become the world's biggest lottery jackpot winner.

The last highest lottery win was in Italy in October 2008 when someone scooped £81m playing Superenalotto.

Just by keeping the £110m in the bank you would receive an estimated £1,959 in interest a day.