HomeAuthorsDiane Parkes

Diane Parkes

Diane Parkes

We'll do this our own way

WHEN senior staff at Primrose Hill Primary School decided to create an anti-bullying policy, they turned to the children. Read

Together, we can stop the bullies...

ONE of parents' biggest fears as their children head off to school in the morning is that their youngster will be the target of bullies. Read

Discovering I had a brain tumour was like being given a death sentence!

NIGEL Miller refers to himself as one of the "walking living dead". Read

Baby born after ten years in freezer

DEBBIE and Colin's romance began at a nightclub where scores of Brummies met for the first time. Read

Christine Jarvis

Cancer victim in plea for vital drug

A FORMER nurse is being denied a potentially life-saving anti-cancer drug by the very health organisation she worked for. Read

Hit Rings show takes Pete home

WHEN Birmingham actor Pete Howe landed a lead role in the international musical Lord of the Rings, it felt like a homecoming as he grew up in Moseley - author J R R Tolkien's childhood home. Read

Russ Abbott in The Producers

Life's a drag for comic Russ

HE is one of the best-known faces in entertainment but have you ever seen Russ Abbot in a dress? Read

Find Me Amongst The Black

Lozells race riots sparked writer's interest

BIRMINGHAM'S recent riots in Lozells might seem an unlikely starting point for a new piece of dance theatre but the fact that Asians were fighting Afro-Caribbeans gave writer Parv Bancil food for thought. Read

Fashion students take to the catwalk

FASHION stars of the future took to the stage in Birmingham to showcase their creations in a colourful catwalk display. Read

John Barrowman

Star signs up for city panto

HE'S used to time travelling but this Christmas John Barrowman dons the garb of an Arabian adventurer in the pantomime Aladdin. Read

John Barrowman as Aladdin at the Hippodrome.

Time travel star's bumpy ride to city

HE may be a time traveller in Dr Who, but jet travel didn't suit John Barrowman as he headed for Birmingham Hippodrome to launch this year's Christmas pantomime. Read

Joe stars with boyhood hero

WHEN Joe Pasquale returns to the Birmingham stage next month in the hit musical The Producers he will be acting alongside a boyhood hero - Russ Abbot. Read

Indian war and peace

WHEN writer Stephen Clark took on the task of adapting the Indian epic The Mahabharata for the stage he faced no easy task. At more than 100,000 verses, the original text is hardly bedtime reading. Read

Dozy bar steward forgot mum's wake

A GRIEVING family who booked a wake for their dead mother were shocked to turn up and find nothing arranged because the manager had forgotten. Read

Youngsters have their say

YOUNG people from Birmingham took the stage to argue over controversial books in the annual Teenage Debate. Read

Persistence pays off for Richard

BIRMINGHAM actor Richard Atwill is proof that nagging pays off after landing a job with the RSC who he convinced to see him perform. Read

Manic Street Preachers @ Wolverhampton Civic Hall

WITH their new single Your Love Alone Is Not Enough heading towards the top of the charts the Manics can be confident of a much heralded return to form. Read

Healing the personal scars of apartheid

EVERY time actor and writer John Kani stands on stage in his play Nothing But The Truth it brings back painful memories as the drama was inspired by and dedicated to his brother who was killed during the apartheid era in South Africa. Read

The Birmingham hip-hop-odrome

BREAK dancing grew up on the streets of New York but this month it is moving into the theatre with a two-day hip hop festival at Birmingham Hippodrome next week. Read

Creepy-crawly inspires Wayne

WHEN The Mission frontman Wayne Hussey was looking for an eye-catching image for the band's new album, God is a Bullet, he looked no further than his back garden - in Brazil. Read

Author Profile

Diane Parkes has worked in journalism for 14 years and has been with the Birmingham Mail for ten. She is Women's Editor covering health, fitness, education, fashion and beauty features. As Dance and Theatre Editor she is also responsible for professional arts coverage across the region.

Get involved

We want your local stories, videos & pics.