Colin Wyatt of Canvey Essex his JetSet books

I want to tell you about a new series of books for children created by local Canvey illustrator, Colin Wyatt – they are animated, colourful and help raise awareness of the problems faced by a selection of animals in the wild and even better, all profits will go to the animal charity, the Born Free Foundation.

A little about Colin…

Colin Wyatt has been an illustrator since 1957 where he worked for Amalgamated Press, which later became IPC magazines, on children’s comics such as Jack and Jill and playhour. But from 1970 IPC bought the Disney franchise and he began working on the prestigious job of illustrating Disney characters for annuals, monthlies and weeklies – his dream job. During those years, he was even invited out to the Disney studios in Burbank, California where he and his family were able to see films being made and animation in action.

Later turning freelance for a few years, Colin co-created the Poddington Peas in 1985. Colin worked on all the animation and Paul Needs from Hadleigh, Essex, wrote the stories. So successful were the peas, it later became a TV series.

About the books…

Now, after years of illustrating for other people, Colin has created his own set of books, illustrating and writing the stories for his series ‘The Jet Set’. Basically, these are books for 5-8 year olds, and all four books tell a tale of the adventures of a group of four superhero animals (The Jet Set) who rescue other animals around the world who are in danger. The underlying purpose and message of these books is to raise awareness of environmental and conservation issues surrounding animals in the wild, and that is why in the back of each book there is a fact file on the animal featured in the book. So, the books are educational as well as giving children wonderful stories to read.

Helping charities and the plight of animals in the wild…

The fact file was put together by Virginia McKenna of the Born Free Foundation, which is a charity the actress set up with the message that wildlife are born free and should stay free and in the wild across the world. (www.bornfree.org.uk )The profits raised will go to the Born Free foundation, which is just lovely, so there are plenty of reasons why to buy the Jet Set books.

I have read all four of the series, and they are beautifully illustrated, colourful, easy to understand, take the reader on a fun journey with the Jet Set, and yet they are also educational and help animals stay in the wild. Who could ask for more from buying a set a children’s books?

 

Getting them published…

And it isn’t just Born Free or Colin who are animal lovers involved in this project. Colin’s daughter, Debz Hobbs-Wyatt teamed up with her Dad to publish these books through her publishing company, Paws n Claws publishing, which specialises in stories about animals in the wild and supports the Born Free Foundation.

Well done Colin, Debz and Born Free – I hope you sell lots of books and keep spreading the word about the plight of animals in the wild.

www.colin-wyatt.co.uk  – Read more about the man himself and the many characters he has worked on such as the Jungle Book, Care Bears, Thomas the tank engine and very many more!

www.thejet-set.com  – Gain some more insight into the books and use the links on this website to purchase the series or a singular book

www.pawsnclawspublishing.co.uk  – Read more about the publishing company set up by Debz Hobbs-Wyatt and other books she has published to raise awareness of the problems faced by animals in the wild

www.bornfree.org.uk  – Read all about the Born Free Foundation set up by actress Virginia McKenna and find out where profits from the Jet Set books will be going.

http://debzhobbs-wyatt.co.uk  – Debz Hobbs-Wyatt is also a published author herself and offers editorial help to other writers in the form of critiques and mentoring schemes.

As everyone will know by now, Dougie won, so well done to him but as far as I am concerned, well done anyone who can get through that show!!!

Whitney goes too, to escape the clutches of Rob (Jody Latham) only to find that he has followed her there as the drama continues.  While Shirley (Linda Henry) and Heather (Cheryl Furguson) are planning to go to an eighties convention.  A fight breaks out with Rob and Ryan – very exciting!

Well, I look forward to seeing our Town on the TV, and it was a pleasure to watch them recording scenes for this weeks showing back in June 2011.  You can view the details of this, plus photos of Whitney, Fatboy, Heather and Shirley by CLICKING HERE to open up my article…

Having watched the first hour, listening to Essex accents as bad as they can be, swearing, fake boobs and tans and generally materialistic behaviour, I then looked at where it is filmed – Brentwood.

Like any County, there are good, bad and indifferent parts, and that could be down to a Town or even just a particular road. With this in mind, I re-looked at this soap and actually quite enjoyed it. Brentwood is situated near London, and generally has many an affluent resident, along with a few celebrities, being associated with the likes of Frank Bruno, Steve Davis, Russell Brand, Pixie Lott, Frank Lampard, Bill Murray, Jonty Hearnden and Jodie Marsh, amongst many others…….. It is quite an upbeat place and offers shopping and a good night out for all, from dining, to drinking, to partying.  This programme does not show the vast miriad of people who live here in Essex, but there are certainly plenty of people like those on the show here too – like many other places, I hasten to add.

I don’t usually watch much soap opera or trash TV, apart from the odd episode of Eastenders, and I am sure that is not a great example of life in the East end – there cannot really be so many murders, deaths and deceit in one small area can there?

Taking Essex, acting skills and the loose, simplistic storyline out of ‘The only way is Essex’ and what I see is an easy to watch programme of some Essex people, so I quite like it in a way. It covers friendships and relationships. That is not to say that they are a typical example of Essex people – the stereotype. They are not. They are an example of young Brentwood, Essex people, who are all working in various jobs, enough money to go out and enjoy themselves and they do have that fairly typical Essex trait of being materialistic. OK, so Jodie Marsh did come from Brentwood, and there are some similarities, although one character more close to a ‘Jordan/Katie Price’ look a like, don’t you think? Amy, maybe…

If they spoke in a different accent, then I don’t think you would have to change much else to get away with it being in Liverpool or Manchester for example. What I mean is that, there is not a clear cut Essex image anymore, particularly for the younger residents, so there is nothing to get fed up about, with this programme or the Essex stigma.. The programme is not portraying anything but a group of young people in today’s lifestyle, so there is nothing to get upset about. I am not saying that I hear swearing everywhere in the UK that I go, but a good portion of people swear, and I don’t blame them, since life itself, heath risks and the Government give us plenty to get annoyed about. That all said, I would rather not hear them swearing in this programme, as it sounds crass and doesn’t add anything to the theme.

I am surprised, however, that Denise Van Outen has chosen to be a part of this programme, as narrator, as I thought she was now more affiliated with ‘more class’ than a programme of this sort, but each to their own – at least she is from Essex and she has been a great role model for our County’s young women, and as a face of Essex.

I have had fun in my life as an Essex girl in the 80’s, and I can understand, does have its stigma and is where the ‘Essex girl’ was born.

I am proud to be Essex and I continue to stand up for Essex people against certain stigmas, but I don’t think this programme is a major issue – its cheap, smutty entertainment in some ways, but entertaining all the same, if you take it for what it is! I think those who are getting upset about it should get over it and concentrate on something else more worthy! 

People have slammed the charaters as all being ‘dumb’ but at least they have all got jobs and are earning what appears to be a good living eh!  Perhaps look at it that way, and you will see that this is not as derogatory as it could be!    And why is everyone so ‘ashamed’ of this type of person anyway - maybe they should enjoy thair fellow human beings that live on their doorstep whether they like it or not!  Crime and harming others is one thing, but just having a way of life doesnt harm anyone does it?

I havent heard an Essex girl joke in years, or had my Essex roots joked about for years when I meet people.  The ‘Essex girl’ stigma died out years ago and too much moaning and arguing the facts are only going to keep the Essex girl in the limelight.  I dont mind too much, as it will only help my book sales when it is published, so carry on!

It certainly doesn’t offend me, and I am a true Essex girl with values

ps, When I found out Amy was to be taken to the Zoo, I could only hope that it would be Colchester, and to see footage of Rajang in the background and there he was in the last episode!  I was so pleased to see my favourite animal in the whole world – Rajang the 41 year old Oran-utan.  I frequently go to Colchester Zoo to see him, take pictures and video him.  So, thanks to the programme for that – it made my day!  (if you like Oran-utan too, please see my campaign on this website or my other site at www.orangehairyape.com )

Olly Murs thumbs up for X Factor copyright Sandra M Dean

Olly’s Mum, Vicky Lynn

, has been updating me with news on Olly….

I have been asked where to send fan mail to Olly Murs and this can be sent to ‘Olly Murs Carraways, Witham Essex’

Vicky Lynn also said ‘He definitely is not at home and we didn’t pick him up from the house on Monday (after the X Factor final). We did pop over to take most of his stuff and it was lovely to actually sit with our son and have a lovely chat without camera’s in our face. I have noticed lots of gigs that people keep telling us he is doing, one of them local on Christmas Eve at escape in colchester! He has a tour manager so I expect quite a few fans will get to see him in their area and then of course there is the X Factor Tour’.

Olly Murs tour dates

THURS 24TH DECEMBER, MAYHEM (SOUTHEND) 11PM

THURS 24TH DECEMBER, ESCAPE (COLCHESTER) 12.30AM

SAT 26TH DECEMBER, TRAMPS (WORCESTER)

SUN 27TH DECEMBER, TWICKENHAM STADIUM (4.00PM CAN YOU FEEL IT) (HALF-TIME) (5.00PM SUPERSITION)

SUN 27TH DECEMBER, 1.00AM CUBE (LIVERPOOL)

TUES 29TH DECEMBER, HALO (WARRINGTON)

WED 30TH DECEMBER, VIPER ROOMS (HARROGATE)

SUN 2ND JANUARY, FACES NIGHTCLUB (ESSEX)

There are a few more into January which will be added shortly, and of course, the X Factor tour will be touring next year!

For everything Olly and to see all his photo galleries and articles CLICK HERE to go to the listing in date order….

A happy Olly Murs copyright Sandra M Dean

Finally it is the end of the X Factor 2009 on this day (Sunday 13th December 2009)! We are all a little sad about the show ending, but it has done so with our favourite performer coming second so we are really happy! Olly Murs you deserve it but for us you are the winner of this talent contest that looks for the ‘X Factor’ as you have just that. Never mind that you didnt win.  I parcially blame Simon Cowell for not supporting you properly in the weeks leading up to the final, as he seemed to back Joe and Danyl far more.

Although there were some good singers in the competition this year, I think that a pop star/X Factor spells a ‘performer’ not a stand still ballad singer. We have enough of those, so even though Joe has a great voice, the soul voice and dancing talent of Olly Murs won it for us for the last 3 months. The minute I saw him in the auditions, I knew that he would go far! It is a shame that the public voted in the winner as a ballad singer.

Olly sang ‘Twist and Shout’ and cracked it even better than when we heard it on the 7th November 2009 (movie week). He has come on so much, and he has so much further to go that we wish him the best of luck to live his dream of becoming a star! We love the Thriller dancing in Twist and Shout – it is so original!

The judges were all smiling and had some great comments…..

Louie Walsh – “You always entertain us – a born showman– you are going to have a great career– you deserve it!”

Cheryl Cole – “I am glad that you are standing up there in the bottom two – I wish you the very best”

Dannii Minogue “Everyone on the tour will be looking forward to seeing you”

Simon Cowell – “We are here to win the X Factor tonight – there could be an upset tonight – you are fearless, put on a great show – brilliant!”

The winners single ‘The Climb’ originally by Miley Cyrus was then performed by both acts. Olly was up first and he did such a good job – Dannii and Cheryl couldn’t believe where he had found his new voice, and we were surprised and delighted too, as it now proves 100% that Olly can do Soul, Dance and slow songs too – Go Olly, well done!

The judges had great comments:

Dannii Minogue said that she couldn’t believe where his voice had come from and she really liked the new voice that he pulled out for this song

Cheryl Cole asked where he got that voice came from and she wished him all the best

Louie Walsh “I love everything about Olly Murs”

Simon Cowell “I can see now you really want it – I hope everyone gets behind you”

Watching his video clips of his fans and family was emotional and Olly shed a few tears, bless him. I did too, and I think that as he said, his family have been behind him all the way and having had the pleasure of meeting them, I say the same as Simon Cowell, it was a real pleasure!

The final 12 sang their charity single ‘Hero’ and it was lovely to see them all together again. It seemed such a long time ago that we saw Ricky and Rachel! The Mariah Carey cover is raising funds for the ‘Help For Heroes’ charity, which supports wounded servicemen and women, and the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal.

It was also great to see Leona Lewis back. Alexandra Burke and JlS did a medley of Alexandra’s ‘Bad Boys’ and JLS’s ‘Everybody in Love’

Sir Paul McCartney performed whilst the last of the votes were taken before the phone lines were closed, accompanied by the 12 X Factor finalist, singing ‘Baby, you can drive my car’ That was very cool! He then did ‘Live and let die’ whilst playing the piano which was spectacular.

What a great show!

The celebrity acts on this year, such as Lady GaGa, Rhianna, Whitney Houston and Michael Buble, have given the show a real wow factor and worth watching. Jedward were entertaining and Stacey was our second favourite to win from the start. All in all a great show – well done Simon Cowell, the producers, ITV and everyone else involved. It is one we will never forget.

And what with such a good ‘Britain’s got talent’ show earlier this year, in which Essex dance group, Diversity, won, we are now so proud to have another two out of the three in the finals coming from Essex, with Essex Girl Stacey Solomon in 3rd place! Well done guys!

Read all the posts, see all the photos and stuff from Olly Murs’ family CLICK HERE (in date order)

Read all the posts on Stacey Solomon CLICK HERE (in date order)

Olly Murs thumbs up for X Factor copyright Sandra M Dean

Oh my gosh, tonight’s X Factor was just fantastic! Olly Murs is through to the final – woo hoo! He deserves it! Sadly Stacey Solomon didn’t get through to the Final tomorrow, but third place was a great place for our Essex Girl!

Olly was fabulous – ‘Superstition’ which got him through to his first audition, was 100 times better! The judges agreed saying:

Louie Walsh said he has “Definitely got the X Factor!

Dannii Minogue said “Spectacular…. Brilliant!”

Cheryl Cole said he is an “Entertainer…. You thoroughly deserve your place in the final”

Simon Cowell added that Olly was the “Best risk I’ve ever taken…. On the biggest night you gave the performance of your life”

And then the duet with Robbie Williams, well, what a hit! They sang together in unison and were the perfect match. Olly IS the next Robbie, as they are so similar – they both can sing, dance and perform for an audience. This is a show that is looking for an ‘X Factor’ performer and a new pop star and Olly has everything that this Country now needs. Robbie is a huge fan of Olly, and it showed in their performance of ‘Angles’ which is Robbie’s biggest hit of all time. What a choice of song!

If you are voting for Olly, please leave your comments/good luck messages below….

Joe does have a great voice for his kind of song – ballads mainly and he does those well. George Michael was fantastic, it was not a proper duet and a Elton John track which was unexpected. Stacey has a beautiful voice and her performance with Michael Buble was fabulous, as were her single performances – she far outdid all her previous ones and was on top form. However, Olly was the star, with a great soul voice, great tracks and a visually exciting routine.

Olly’s third performance was the second one that won us over weeks ago ’Fool in Love’ by Tamyra Gray which is a great Saturday night song. I cannot help it but I don’t want to listen to slow songs on a Saturday night – I like them in their place and I do buy them – but I like to hear jazzy, dancy numbers and that is why Olly is the one for us!

Big Olly Murs fans Robbie Williams, 4th place X Factor contestant Danyl, Simon Cowell, Alan Carr and from what we have seen on the Xtra Factor, many more in the celebrity world behind him, Olly just has to win it! Watching the Xtra Factor tonight, it was clear that some have moved away from Joe to Olly and those voting for Stacey Solomon have now moved over to Olly, although we know that he already has a huge following, as he has got through to the final 2 and has 3 times the amount of facebook fans compared to Joe – this says a lot! We have voted for him all the way and said 3 months ago that he was going to be the winner!

Now Stacey has left the competition at a wonderful 3rd place, which she should be very proud of, I call to all you who voted for Stacey and all you who live in Essex and London, to vote for Olly. Every vote counts and please, please vote just as many times as you can, as we need him to win!

Olly’s family must be over the moon tonight – I screamed, so I bet they did! And I admire the efforts from his Mum, Vicky Lynn, as she has not been well, yet pulls out all the stops to help her son. If Olly wins he can help his Mum with doctors and take his Grandma to Graceland – let’s hope it all works out for this genuine Essex boy and his family!

Olly’s support tonight at the University in Colchester was wonderful – we had a chance to go, but sadly could not make it – hope to go tomorrow and come back with good news!

More news about Olly Murs …..

What would he like more than anything in the world – Olly said “A new car – he currently has an L reg 1993 car –a fiat Cinquencento which he says is old school and his style of car, but he would like a new flashy car.

In his week 10 X Factor diary he was filmed in a new pair of pants that were bought for him saying “Look at these bad boys – I haven’t got a six pack just a normal hairy body – I am pretty paranoid about my body” all while walking around in his pants. His room was filmed as a mess, and he apologised, but he is so cheeky we forgive him and don’t expect he is that messy normally.

His sister Fay Murs lives in Surrey and says that she can “see Olly as a Superstar” We agree!

See everything about Olly Murs including exclusive photo galleries, stuff from his family and facts and more CLICK HERE

Good luck Olly – we will be voting for you!

Sandra

Olly Murs at Colchester homecoming concert copyright Sandra M Dean

 Olly Murs was accompanied by his X Factor mentor Simon Cowell today on his homecoming trip to Essex! 

 Olly spent nearly the whole day today away from the X Factor house, to take a trip back to Essex to see his fans, friends and family. He went back to his Mum’s (Vicky Lynn) house in Witham, for a visit and X Factor judge, Simon Cowell even came with him, so that was a treat for his family!  They also went to Notley High School in Witham, where Olly went as a child and wooed everyone there – judging by some of the comments on my site, it appears that Olly perfomed (sung) there too!

Olly’s Mum, Vicky-Lynn, told me:

Olly went in a helicopter from London to Notley High School, Flying over the house about 4 times (that was amazing) he sang a few songs at the school. Then they arrived here at home. The neighbours were waiting for his arrival, which was brilliant as they only kept it to themselves so we didn’t have loads of other people arriving which made it very personal to them all. Simon came in for a lovely chat and I made him his favourite “butterscotch Angel Delight” and a Mug of tea, which he thoroughly enjoyed. Simon met all my close family and even our littlest member of the family Molly our dog! It will be a weekend and week we will never forget in a long time. Mamma Dels in Witham made us a selection of various Sandwiches which were absolutely scrummy, we would highly recommend them to anyone who needs a selection of sandwiches made or even their wicked Olly Breakfast. All in All a Fab day.

Well, that did sound like a great day for all…..

I went along to the event in Colchester, at the Charter Hall (Colchester Leisure World) in Cowdray Avenue, and we were met with a huge crowd already waiting for Olly’s arrival at around 7pm. The ITV crew were there of course, since it was an X Factor organised event, and they had the crowds going whilst everyone waited. In true celebrity style, Simon Cowell and Olly arrived a little late but it did not deter the crowds who chanted his name and cheered ‘Olly, Olly, Olly, Oi Oi Oi!’  Martin and Sue from Essex FM Radio were there getting the crowds going outside, and Heart FM posters in red and white were handed out for everyone with ‘I (heart sign) Olly’ on them – very good show!

Simon Cowell at Ollys Homecoming Colchester copyright Sandra M Dean

Olly slowly came round to the entrance to the Hall, via a very long red carpet, as he and Simon stopped to chat to the lucky few in the crowd, sign autographs and take in the massive support that they received. Fireworks were set off to celebrate the event.  Olly looked great in a black hat and he topped it off with his dazzling smile and many thanks to the supporters.

His fans had been turning up since 3 o’clock in the afternoon, which was 4 hours before his arrival was due at 7pm.  Judging by the cheering and smiles on their faces, they thought it was worth it to see their famous Essex boy, Olly!

Vickylynn Pete and Fay Murs at X Factor event copyright Sandra M Dean

Once inside the Hall, seating was laid out and it was rather well organised. Olly’s Mum sat near us, with her husband, Peter, and daughter, Fay, surrounded by many friends and family of Olly’s. I caught a nice photo of them after a quick chat and I really do admire Vicky Lynn and Olly’s family for their endless support of Olly and their efforts to help him achieve his dreams. I am also very grateful to have been able to attend the event with their help. Their genuine personalities mean a lot, as this is how we have perceived Olly to be. It is all correct, and I am pleased to know that I have been supporting the right contestant all along!

Vote for Olly!  If you support Olly, then please vote as many times as you can afford – he really needs every vote to get through and win!

The show was short, but really good. Martin and Sue from the radio came on first, to host the show, and then Simon Cowell came on with words of support and told us that one of his family members came from Essex! He said he ‘will do everything he can’ to ensure that Olly wins the X Factor this weekend, as he told the crowd

”I am going to do everything I can Saturday night so that Olly returns here next week as the winner of the X Factor – who’s gonna win?” to which the audience shouted ‘Olly!’

On introducing Olly Murs, Simon told the crowd ”Give an essex welcome to Olly Murs!”  and the audience started chanting  ’Olly, Olly!’  It was a fabulous atmosphere.

 With Danyl now out of the competition, this will certainly make it easier for him, and I only hope that he keeps all his best praise for Olly.

Olly then came on, got the crowd going, and had everyone chanting, singing, dancing and waving their banners in no time at all. He performed three songs by himself and he did a great job. After tonight, I can honestly say that Olly is ‘the best all rounder and performer’ He can sing, dance and woo the crowd and is the only person in the competition who can do all three – he simply has to win!!!

All the song choices were hits that he has sung in the shows. First up, he sang the Michael Jackson hit ‘Can you feel it?’, then ‘Come Together’ by the Beatles, and finally the song that got him flying through the auditions ‘Superstition’ originally by Stevie Wonder. Fantastic choice of songs and everyone loved it. We even got to see some of Olly’s signature dance moves, including a bit of body popping and the ‘wiggle’.

Well done Olly, you rocked the crowd! Cannot wait to see the clips on X Factor on Saturday 12th December 2009 – go get ‘em! Vote for Olly Murs!

More info following below this photo gallery, Click on each photo and use the back button on your browser to come back to this page…

 

 

 

 

For a full photo gallery of Olly Murs, inclding his homecoing photos plus exclusive photos direct from his family photo collection CLICK HERE

Earlier in the day, GMTV interviewed some of Olly’s friends (mates as we say in Essex) Leigh, Ricky, Carl, Cody, Leigh and Ryan, who are supporting Olly all the way. 

To see all my articles, photo galleries and family stuff about Olly, including the answers to tonnes of your questions, CLICK HERE  (will open all the articles in date order)

Apparently, Dannii, 38, was up at the crack of dawn, and on her Twitter page revealed “I’m up and getting ready for my home visit with Stacey, yippeeeeeee. Yes! A surprise tour for me!” calling her trip with Stacey “Dannii Does Dagenham”.

Joe McElderry was joined by mentor Cheryl Cole in South Shields on Monday, with Olly Murs heading to Witham in Essex today.

 The tickets to the gig which starts at 6pm on the 9th December 2009, were available from 8am this morning, and were quickly snapped up by eager fans, who were allowed just two tickets per person on a first come first served basis – so it was a sell out in no time at all!

The venue is Charter Hall at Colchester Leisure World, Cowdray Avenue, Colchester, Essex and there are rumours that Olly’s mentor, Simon Cowell, may even accompany Olly to the event!

It is no wonder, since Olly has gone from office worker to superstar since being in the X Factor and his fan base is huge. He has many more facebook fans than any of the other contestants, so I guess this says it all, but he will need your votes on Saturday, in the final so please vote for Olly. He is the best all rounder in the finals, as he can sing, dance and give an all round performance. For me, ballads are good, but to make a popstar, you need to be able to sing and dance and entertain and he is the only one in the competition that can do all of those things and well!

Update at 1pm Wednesday 9th December 2009 – The event will take place after a visit back to his hometown of Witham, to see friends and family.  I will be going to the event with a VIP ticket, with Olly’s friends and family, so let’s hope I get some fabulous photos of Olly and Simon Cowell – I am so looking forward to it and I think it is going to prove why Olly must win the X Factor.  Check back on Thursday morning (10th December 2009) to see all my news and photos from the event!  Thousands of fans are set to be crowding outside the venue, so it should be good!

See all my other articles, photo galleries and info direct from Olly’s family, by CLICKING HERE (opens in a new window)

To see the photos and info from this event, as seen by me CLICK HERE