OH MY MELLOW No. 29

Move over new year’s resolutions – there’s a new hotlist in town, from pop stars revisited to actual stars.

STREAMING Becoming Madonna
Queen of reinvention, queen of cultural appropriation – or, simply, the queen of pop? Whatever your views on Madonna as a person and icon, chances are her hits have soundtracked many a key youth moment, such as slow dancing at the school disco (Crazy for You) or soundtracking a sun holiday (La Isla Bonita). Becoming Madonna on Sky and Now TV is a breezy new documentary charting the 66-year-old singer’s rags to riches rise to Blonde Ambition-era fame. It’s more skin-deep portrait than a deep dive, however the archive footage and celebrity vox pops will have you tapping your toes and maybe ‘voguing’ in your PJs by the end.

JOURNALLING Homecoming
The benefits of journaling for mental health is well documented but too much self-reflection can be counterintuitive. Immersing oneself in the external world however could be the happy medium, as more and more clinical studies prove that spending time in nature boosts both our physical and mental wellbeing. In Homecoming – “a guided journal to lead you back to nature” – Melissa Harrison, author of The Stubborn Light of Things, offers “a year-long course in noticing” the rhythm of the seasons and your place within them. Harrison has also soft-launched a kindred phone app, Encounter,for those who prefer to journal while on the hoof, although the hard copy Homecoming – abundant with month-by-month beautiful illustrations and observations – is one to really savour.

PODCASTING Promenade
“Memories are like time travel. With each season, I aim to uncover how deeply personal moments connect us, no matter how different our lives may be.” So says Wicklow-born Galway-based Andy Gaffney who has unveiled the third series of Promenade, an anthology of fascinating vignettes from across the globe, including barber Leslie (an apprentice to Vidal Sassoon) who became The Beatles’ personal haircutter after a home visit to Paul McCartney in 1966 and the Clonakilty-born Asking for It novelist Louise O’Neill whose homage to her grandmother recalls familiar scenes of rural Ireland in the 1980s and deeply personal autobiography. Your heart will break and burst joyfully in equal measure.

STARGAZING Stellarium
Twenty twenty-four was a bumper year for stargazing in Ireland, with the aurora borealis making a wonderful light show of itself across the country in October, a blue supermoon in August and – look up this week – a big, bright and shiny Venus for the new year, with Saturn to make a seemingly nearby appearance on January 18 (clear skies permitting). The Quadrantid meteor shower, visible since St Stephen’s Day, is set to continue until January 12 so why not download the free and real-time Stellarium app which demystifies planets, constellations, meteoroid events, lunar and solar cycles simply by holding up your phone to the heavens. Gloriously and nerdily addictive, especially if you’re into astrology as well as astronomy.

DRESS CODE The Long Set Octopus
Following the tentacles of Moon + Mellow’s iconic jellyfish print is our new black and gold Octopus pattern which elegantly curlicues across this relaxed-fit two-piece – guaranteed to put a spring in your step during the winter months. The pattern is part of Legends Revisited, a dreamy collection inspired by Irish mythology, from curious sea creatures to enchanting sirens. Its relaxed fit and finer details (piped cuffs, French seams) make early nights and leisurely lie-ons a real treat.