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Barbara Hodgson

Barbara Hodgson

Luxury in land of contrasts

WHAT strikes us most is the utter silence. Sitting on the sand, surrounded by nothing but barren desert, all we can hear is the bubbles fizzing quietly in the champagne that’s come courtesy of staff who carried it on foot from where we’ll be camping for the night.Read

Whirlwind week for Joe McElderry

After winning that live final, the Sunday Sun's Barbara Hodgson takes a look at how our own Joe McElderry coped with his non-stop first week as a pop star.Read

Billy Elliot at the Victoria Palace Theatre

Take a super break to London

BATHROBES, Billy Elliot and a big, big breakfast: Barbara Hodgson samples a Superbreak to London.Read

Watch find ticked all right boxes

When Garry Hunter was a boy growing up in South Shields, he occasionally heard mention of John Gaffney, a great-uncle who had served with the Durham Light Infantry and died in the Second World War.Read

Satirical end for Mrs T

With plays like Dirty Dusting and Waiting For Gateaux, they've been making us laugh for years. But now the successful Tyneside writing partnership of Ed Waugh and Trevor Wood are back with something darker.Read

Courtney Pine, Gala Theatre

Jazz legend Courtney Pine proves to be as cool and as laid-back as his music - even when my phone goes dead halfway through our interview.Read

Dutch dancers are electrifying

If you thought ballet was boring you've obviously never seen Nederlands Dans Theater 2 (NDT2).Read

Ancient city takes Pole position

In little over three hours from leaving Newcastle airport, I am standing under tall palm trees in the airy foyer of a four-star hotel.Read

Adventure in the Alps

The memory came back to haunt me. Some years earlier a colleague was on a press trip to Disney World in Florida to try out its new Tower of Terror ride.Read

Sail away

Sun, sea - and smiles, Barbara Hodgson experiences cruising at its most friendly and informal.Read

Feast for the senses in idyllic Tuscany

After what can only be described as a hair-raising drive from the airport - in persistent rain and high-speed traffic - we finally arrived at our villa in the heart of Italy's Chianti country.Read

Author Profile

Barbara Hodgson is an arts and entertainment writer who also contributes to our sister Culture magazine. She has worked in journalism for 18 years and has worked at ncjMedia for the last nine years.