Updated 7:01pm 21 November 2009:

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Diane Parkes

Diane Parkes

How to shape up the military way

A NEW fitness class in Solihull is putting people through their paces.Read

Suzanne Vega: I can't remember Brum gigs

AMERICAN singer songwriter Suzanne Vega is having problems remembering Birmingham. She is due to play the city’s Town Hall this summer in a benefit gig for a charity which helps street children in South America and is looking forward to coming back to the city. Only she is more than a little hazy on the last time she played here.Read

Jimmy Osmond talks about his role in the musical Chicago

AS one of the cleanest living performers in showbusiness it may seem strange that Jimmy Osmond is cast as the wheeler dealer lawyer Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago.Read

Young readers putting age issues under the spotlight

MORE than 120 youngsters from five Birmingham schools will today lock horns to debate whether or not books should carry recommended ages on their covers.Read

Jodie slims down against the odds

MUM’S the word for Jodie Underhill who successfully shifted seven stone in weight, despite having two children during her diet.Read

Midwives are starting to realise that doulas can provide a different type of care – and are not trying to take over

DEBBIE Green may be about to hit 50 but that was no reason for her not to change careers and train to be a doula. In fact, it was the very reason.Read

Doula helps ease pain for Rebecca

WHEN mum Rebecca Lee wanted a home birth for her third baby she decided to enlist a bit of help – from a doula.Read

Walsall mum loses seven stone in weight

MUM’S the word for Jodie Underhill who successfully shifted seven stone in weight, despite having two children during her diet.Read

A power facial will give you that glow

MANY of us don’t like having our photos taken and when the pictures are revealing all that is wrong with your skin the results can be even more worrying.Read

Mod-ern take on 70s Who classic

IT HAS been nearly 40 years since The Who released their rock opera album Quadrophenia but this year it has finally reached the stage.Read

Review: Breakin' Convention at the Birmingham Hippodrome

ANYONE who thinks hip hop is just a couple of guys spinning on their heads should think again as Breakin’ Convention shows.Read

Marc’s recipe for slimmer living

BEING a chef can make cutting the calories difficult but when Marc Pearmain tipped the scales at more than 20 stone he knew he had to learn to resist temptation.Read

Overcoming a food nightmare

WHEN Chloe Howard is invited to a party, goes out for a meal or is simply offered a piece of birthday cake she has to think twice about what she is eating as the 11-year-old has coeliac disease.Read

Planting the seed for exam success

PREPARING for SATs exams may put schools under pressure but one class from Great Barr ensured it found a fun way to do its revision.Read

Music man's Birmingham date with Suzanne Vega

WHEN Stourbridge musician Eddy Morton wrote the song City of Angels in the early nineties he had no idea that nearly 20 years later it would lead to him performing with Suzanne Vega.Read

Birmingham Hippodrome getting ready for hip hop festival

TWO years ago Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre stuck its neck out with a hip hop dance and music festival.Read

Now Alice can tell of abuse torment

ALICE Jamieson* appeared to have the perfect family. A glamorous mother, a studious brother, a successful solicitor father and a four-bedroom house in a posh part of Birmingham.Read

Blind can learn from bats, expert tells Birmingham students

IT is well known that bats and dolphins use sonar for navigation – but this method of using sound to identify objects is also the latest area for research and teaching for people who are blind and partially sighted.Read

Selly Oak teacher tells of moment he knew he had to get in trim

WHEN primary school teacher Doug Morgan saw his weight disappear off the scales he knew it was time to deal with his waistline.Read

Review: As You Like It, courtyard Theatre

THIS wry look at Shakespeare’s comedy of cross-dressing youngsters and mistaken identities has plenty to recommend it.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.

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