Steve Pafford

Perfect 10: Talking ’bout Marilyn Monroe in song

Marilyn Monroe is one of those cultural icons who everyone feels entitled to appropriating in their own particular way. Whether it’s because they’ve read all about her and identify with her…

June 1, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Say No Go: The surprise rehabilitation of Daryl Hall & John Oates (No Can Do)

May 31, 2026

Random Jukebox: Pondering Patti LaBelle’s big-haired Bond theme If You Asked Me To

Sometimes you just have to roll with the randomness of the storied jukebox, and today it picked a James Bond theme. But this ain’t no ordinary Bond theme, this is one of the secondary songs…

May 24, 2026

bySteve Pafford

We shall overcome? Why Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On is more relevant than ever

May 21, 2026

Age to the rhythm: Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Grace Jones (and why she’s younger than you think)

Music

May 19, 2026

Assessing the Girl Power of the Spice Girls — 90s nostalgia or a lasting legacy?

May 17, 2026

Perfect 10: Spice Girls

May 16, 2026

Highlights

Perfect 10: Produced by Brian Eno

Music

May 15, 2026

The day Frank Sinatra met Manic Street Preachers in Golders Green

Music

May 14, 2026

Angel or Legend? Assessing Bob Marley

May 11, 2026

Happiness is a place called Richmond: my erstwhile neighbour David Attenborough at 100

May 8, 2026

May The Fourth Be With You: How Margaret Thatcher launched the Star Wars ‘holiday’

May 4, 2026

Mick Ronson on the wall: Heaven and Hell in Hull

April 29, 2026

Exclusive audio: Neil Tennant talks David Bowie, Michael Jackson and Take That

April 25, 2026

The murder of Stephen Lawrence 33 years on

News

April 22, 2026

Random Jukebox

Random Jukebox: The Hotrats’ Turn Ons

October 3, 2025

Random Jukebox: Garbage say The World Is Not Enough

August 25, 2025

Random Jukebox: Neneh Cherry’s Manchild

August 19, 2025

Random Jukebox: Jack White & Alicia Keys find Another Way To Die

July 8, 2025

Random Jukebox: Cyndi Lauper’s Into The Nightlife

June 22, 2025

Random Jukebox: Duran Duran’s A View To A Kill + how they took over Bond from Bowie

May 12, 2025

Random Jukebox: The Belle Stars’ Sign Of The Times

April 30, 2025

Random Jukebox: Robert Wyatt’s Shipbuilding

January 27, 2025

100 words for Windsor

Historically, when it comes to notable Taureans April 21 has been a date with more than its fair share of Born On This Days, among them… Iggy Pop, of the Stooges Robert Smith, of the…

News

April 21, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Elizabeth Sladen: forever our Sarah Jane Smith

April 19, 2026

bySteve Pafford

You’re an actor too? That time I worked with David Tennant

April 18, 2026

It Was 11 Years Ago Today: Dusty Springfield’s Faithful found in the nick of time

April 7, 2026

bySteve Pafford

The winners took it all: ABBA’s Waterloo at 52

Music

April 6, 2026

bySteve Pafford

One could almost call it an altar: ten things you didn’t know about Elizabeth Taylor

March 23, 2026

Licence to flop: The trouble with Timothy Dalton

March 21, 2026

Black celebration: dissecting Depeche Mode’s Violator

March 19, 2026

Even better than the real thing: 11 Irish Icons that aren’t U2

March 17, 2026

Formidable femmes: The 115 women who changed the world

News

March 7, 2026

Music

Russell Crowe: Another one who’s ballooned

This is not a joke. World Obesity Day is a thing. It exists. And since 2015 it’s been organised by the World Obesity Federation because, well, why not? If we the peoploids have to stand (or…

Screen

March 4, 2026

byjames Harris

Trending Now

45 at 45(ish): Adam Ant is The Human League’s Mirror Man

In a different post, I did a bit of a switchback Sunday rewind and revisited some of the first slabs of vinyl I bought that expressly weren’t by Adam and his army of Ants. Number…

Music

February 28, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Six degrees of separation: How often do you think of Fanny?

February 26, 2026

bySteve Pafford

100 words for Kenneth Williams

February 22, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Twenty Years Ago Steve Pafford did Robbie Williams in the Rudebox review

Music

February 13, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Die young, stay pretty: the intimacy and iconography of James Dean

True to his “live fast, die young” philosophy, James Byron Dean, the archetypal angry Rebel Without A Cause, was born 95 years ago today, just 24 years before being obliterated at the wheel of…

February 8, 2026

bySteve Pafford

John Lydon at 70: “Have I mellowed? Absolutely fucking not!” – a classic interview revisited

Music

January 31, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Starman in Streatham: David McAlmont climbs the Wall To Wall Bowie

January 25, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Remembering Robert Palmer: Bryan Ferry on Johnny & Mary

Music

January 22, 2026

bySteve Pafford

Trending Now

Random Jukebox: Dinah Washington’s Mad About The Boy

One hundred years ago, jazz and blues singer Dinah Washington was born in Alabama. The Grammy-winning “Queen of the Jukeboxes” would leave this bitter earth behind at the tender age of 39,…

August 28, 2024

bySteve Pafford

Random Jukebox: Goldfrapp’s Human

July 31, 2024

bySteve Pafford

Random Jukebox: Chris Cornell’s You Know My Name, from Casino Royale

July 19, 2024

bySteve Pafford

Random Jukebox: Blancmange’s Living On The Ceiling

June 13, 2024

bySteve Pafford

Random Jukebox

The Caped Crusader of camp: Holy Happy 60th, Batman!

One for the Bat-fam? Officially named 85 years ago (in the comic book pages of January 1941’s Batman #4, triv fans), the Bat-location of Gotham City was named after a village in the English…

January 15, 2026

bySteve Pafford

The Moolah Of Suburbia: cashing in on Bowie’s Bromley house

Bowie

January 10, 2026

bySteve Pafford

The Grand Illusion of David Bowie: David Currie book foreword by Steve Pafford

Bowie

January 8, 2026

bySteve Pafford

That time Neil Tennant reviewed a Duran Duran gig in Smash Hits. Talk Talk bring up the rear

December 17, 2025

bySteve Pafford

The Frank that drank: when Pet Shop Boys did dinner with Sinatra

Before every performance on 1989’s Ultimate Event triple header tour with Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minnelli, the American icon born Francis Albert Sinatra in Hoboken NJ one hundred and ten…

December 12, 2025

bySteve Pafford

These are the crimes: The time David Bowie sung John Lennon’s Imagine

December 8, 2025

bySteve Pafford

The Youth of Today: That time Neil Tennant interviewed Musical Youth in Smash Hits

December 6, 2025

bySteve Pafford

Perfect 10: Grace Jones’ Alternative Island Life

Music

December 2, 2025

byCallum Pearce

Events

David Bowie’s DNA: Spaceboy Keeps Swinging

THE MAN WHO SOLD US THE WORLD, MADONNA & LADY GAGA David Bowie was the bisexual alien rock star who sold genderfuck to the world. He’s also claimed to be the first pop star to…

December 1, 2025

bySteve Pafford

June Whitfield at 100: Mum and Gran’s most Absolutely Fabulous one-liners, dear

November 11, 2025

bySteve Pafford

Love is a stranger in an open car: locating Eurythmics in Little Venice

Music

November 8, 2025

bySteve Pafford

A Case of Blue: Joni Mitchell’s fabulous fourth album

November 7, 2025

bySteve Pafford

FFF: The time Neil Tennant interviewed Marc Bolan for Marvel Comics

“Who d’you think you are, Captain Britain?” A certain kind of Marc Bolan aficionado will know all too well the elfin bopper had quite a penchant for comic books. The Beano, The Dandy, The…

November 5, 2025

bySteve Pafford