Ooh! He never did!

"It reads like a soap opera." Just a book-reviewer’s cliché, right? Wrong; read on…

Dirty dealings

It seems that Julie, who was one of Wayne’s mistresses, was used by old Charlie Roberts to try to stop Wayne sleeping with his own mother Dotty, when, according to Keith, she was trying to control the family by getting Wayne into bed with her.

Eastenders? Emmerdale? Try ancient Rome – all I did was change the names from Acte, Nero, Seneca, Agrippina and Tacitus, respectively. And I got the dirt, not from the News of the World, but from Who’s Who in the Roman World, part of the Credo Reference stable.

I was drifting through the History stuff on Credo Reference when I came across this everyday story of Roman incestuous folk, and there’s lots more where that came from. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not all smut (I was just lucky) – the list of titles stretches from the ancients to Anzac, from Who’s Who in Ancient Egypt to a Dictionary of Contemporary History. 29 titles, and that’s just on history!

I’ve already been rude about the name Credo Reference, a couple of weeks ago, so I won’t go on about it. But I will repeat that the resource itself is a fantastic range of reference material, which you can search title by title or all together. Don’t forget that you will need your library card to use it at home.

And talking of home, will Charlie manage to keep Wayne from under Dotty’s duvet. Catch the next tasteful episode…

(From the Gateway to websites, select "History". Credo Reference is a Key Link. Being so huge, it also pops up in several other categories.)

A birthday boy, and Tricky Dicky

Apparently, on this day (29 May) in 1630, Charles II was born. Then on the same day in 1660, he was restored to the throne. On his birthday! – isn't that nice!

In Paris, the first performance of The Rite of Spring caused a riot (1913), while Richard "Expletive Deleted" Nixon agreed to hand over the Watergate transcripts, which would show what a very naughty boy he’d been (1974).

I know it’s trivial stuff, but it does get rather addictive. Today in History will feed my addiction, and yours too if you like. The joy is that tomorrow is another day of anniversaries (Tweety Pie and women’s underwear on 30 May – I’ve already looked).

(From the Gateway to websites, select "History". Today in History is under "History Tools".)

Under a bushel and in your face

Some people don’t only hide their lights under bushels, they try hard to make the bushels look extra-dull. Others shine out unashamed. So here are two great online resources, one a dedicated light-hider and the other a shameless shiner.

Hidden treasure

If you wanted to publish an online database of magazines, but you didn’t want anyone to look at it, you could do worse than call it Infotrac Custom Journals. Well, honestly! How appealing is that? But don’t be put off – here’s why…

It’s a pity about the name, because it’s full of good things. Westminster library members get a hand-picked list of specialist journals which can be hard to find in a library in printed form nowadays. In fact some of them we do have in print (Apollo and Design Week in Westminster Reference Library, for instance). But the online version is available anywhere you can reach the Internet, armed with your trusty library card.

Farmers Weekly, History Today, Money Management, Scientific American… none of these is my choice of a good chill-out read in bed. But if you have a specialist interest and need/want to keep up with the latest in your field, Infotrac Custom Journals might have the mag for you.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "News & magazines". Infotrac Custom Journals is a Key Link.
Hint: if you want a user-friendly list of the journals, together with the details of how long Infotrac have been archiving them, click on the "all listed here" link.)

Treasure on show

News UK, on the other hand, is a really good title, because it tells you exactly what you are getting. Up to a point…

The "up to a point" thing is that you have to dig into News UK to find out exactly how huge it is. Search it and you are searching 115 UK newspapers all at once (or separately if you want to). All the national dailies, regional papers from Aberdeen to Yorkshire, and more than 40 magazines – it’s an impressive list.

What you will find is news stories, obviously, but the interpretation of what counts as news can be quite loose, so it’s always worth a search even if the item you are looking for is more of a feature than actual hard news. No promises, but I’ve had some agreeably unexpected results. News UK is very heavily used by library members, and rightly so.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "News & magazines". News UK is a Key Link.)

Picture credit: hotblack/morguefile.com

Anything on tonight?

We’ve always known that London was full of arts events and performances, but it’s often been difficult to track them down. These two websites are now up to speed and able to help.

Let’s see now

theSeer rides two horses. Let them explain for themselves:

"theSeer is the free online directory and resource for all of London’s creative individuals, organisations, venues, commissioners and bookers to find, receive and promote arts and creative information in London. It is also a key research and communication resource for London's Local Authorities, Arts Council England, London, arts policy makers and researchers."

So, not much of an agenda there then! The twin-track approach, catering both for London arts professionals and the rest of us, is an advantage and a disadvantage.

The advantage is that artists and arts promoters have a big incentive to keep their directory entries up-to-date and attractive. The disadvantage is that it’s a bit clunky to get into. If you’re just looking for an exhibition or a show to go to, the quickest way in is via the left hand "What’s On" menu. For more options you will have to get your thoughts together (where and when) and use the search engine.

Don’t get me wrong – it’s worth doing, mostly because the mix of large- and small-scale stuff you will find here would take a heck of a lot of searching for anywhere else. You will find things which are otherwise only advertised on A5 flyers stuck up in local shops and libraries, so you can save yourself some shoe-leather while you find some entertainment.

Of course I’m writing this from the point of view of the average bum on a seat. If you are, or want to be, a practising artist, performer or craftsperson, you will certainly want to visit theSeer as soon as possible, for news of funding, and to generate your own directory entry.

Pleasingly, Westminster Reference Library’s exhibition and events about Oliver Messel feature prominently. Quite right too.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "London". theSeer is under "Art & performance".)

Strictly Young London

londondance is promoted jointly by the Arts Council and Sadler’s Wells. In addition to advertising professional and amateur dance events, they have a great section devoted to youth dance. Like youth theatre, youth dance has an educational function, but it can also provide some cracking performances which anyone can enjoy.

As London is hosting the National Youth Dance Festival in July, there’s a lot going on in this field and this town. Just the pictures on the website are enough to make you want to catch a performance – or even join in!

(From the Gateway to websites, select "London". londondance is under "Art & performance".)

Picture credit: clarita/morguefile.com

Spots & bumps

Having children can be difficult and expensive, but are they grateful? Of course not, they arrive demanding constant entertainment whenever they deign to stay awake for a few minutes. We point to help before and after childbirth, but not in that order.

Dog in the… park

The Fun with Spot website has been a fixture on the Gateway to websites for rather a long time, and quite right too. It’s not intended to be a substitute for the Spot books – no surprise there, since it’s promoted by the publisher of the books, Frederick Warne. But it stands alone as a great interactive site for children, full of movement and colour.

Mostly, the graphics don’t fill the screen – Spot does his stuff in an attractive box in the centre of the screen, with navigational icons at the top or the side, depending on where you’ve followed the perky pup.

By clicking on different bits of the picture, you can, for instance, go to a party, to the beach, or to the park for interactive games. In the books section, there are animated versions of two of the Spot books, with a not-too-shouty link to the bookshop where you can buy the actual books.

There is content for adults, including links to other child-friendly activity sites, but it’s Spot who’s the star of this show, and his antics will appeal to many a child.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Family & personal". Fun with Spot is under "Children & young people".)

I’m a stranger here myself

As an ageing bachelor I approached the Babycentre with some care. A large picture of a pregnant tummy rather confirmed my worst fears (would there be any squidgy stuff?!), but I pressed on with my investigations, and I liked what I found.

There is so much information here – on pregnancy, childcare and all related topics – that the only danger is that a mum-to-be would feel overwhelmed by the quantity. But the site is well organised, and plays well to its real strength, its interactivity.

You can sign up to newsletters, you can join a forum or a blog, or you can generate a timetable for maximising your chances of getting pregnant. This site is seriously into tailoring itself to suit each individual user.

They don’t hide their sponsors – they’re clearly stated on the home page. And there’s even a chance to win some free stuff from two of the sponsors.

[Oh no!! I’ve spotted another tummy! Time to leave…]

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Family & personal". Babycentre is under "Parenting".)

Socks... knickers... visa...

The last time my team reached a final, food was on ration and Vera Lynn was warbling at the troops. If your team has just done better, in the Champions League for instance, and you fancy savouring the occasion, you might need a visa. (I say might because, at the time of writing, there was confusion as to whether Chelsea and Man U fans might be allowed to travel without visas. If so, they should read on anyway, and stash the information away for the summer hols.)

"Are you buying – or just looking?"

MyVisaAdviser is one of a growing breed – a website which combines commercial services with free content. If you register with them and pay them, they will offer you a bespoke service, doing all the leg-work and delivering your visa. If all you want is advice and information, there’s a lot of it here.

Take the Moscow footy match as an example. They’ve put up a dedicated page with an up-front offer of their services, followed by a concise summary of what the do-it-yourself visa hunter needs to do and when. Also particularly useful (now that the Foreign Office website has stopped being helpful on this subject) is the list of addresses for foreign embassies in London.

Some of the advice is a bit dated. Under "Travel Health" is a note about the replacement of the old E111 form 3 years ago. But the link to the Department of Health information about the replacement cover is accurate and up-to-date.
If you’ve some money left after buying your cup final ticket, your plane ticket and your visa, MyVisaAdviser even has a list of worldwide charities – that’s a good idea.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Transport & tourism". MyVisaAdviser is under "Tourism & travel: world".)

Drink/don’t drink (the water)

Once you’ve got your visa sorted out, you can start to check out the local scene at your favoured destination. You could do a lot worse than visit Lonely Planet Destinations. This online version of the printed guides has gone rather high-tec. They use text, photos and videos to do the same job as the books – help you to have some fun while staying safe.

Be warned: the video clips are on the tiniest screen I’ve ever seen, and I couldn’t figure out how to make it bigger. But it’s a free resource, so who’s quibbling?

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Transport & tourism". Lonely Planets Destinations is under "Tourism & travel: world".)

Picture credit: kconnors/morguefile.com