Sally Phillips

Sally Phillips is an award-winning writer, actress and comedienne. Credits include Smack the Pony, I'm Alan Partridge, Bridget Jones' Diary, Green Wing, Jam and Jerusalem, Miranda and Clare in the Community. Her screenplay, The Decoy Bride, has been made into a film starring David Tennant and Kelly Macdonald and is due for release next summer. Her favourite productions to date, however, are her two children, Olly (6) and Luke (3). She can't dance, diet, iron or budget but is kind to animals and can ask for wine in ten languages.

SALLY'S FAVOURITE SITES

The Amphibian Avenger - A blog about the mysterious disappearance of the world's amphibians thanks to a deadly fungus. Written by the writer and filmmaker Lucy Cooke who's on a mission to rid the world of "cute crack" and turn people on to the frogs before it's too late.

Shooting People - The go to website if you want to make your own film. It's where all the independent filmmakers hang out and is a great place to find your people for low budget independent projects or ask advice on how to get things off the ground. I remember a thread where someone needed to film a fly landing on a piece of cheese but couldn't afford a fly wrangler or a trained fly... Within a couple of days they got the answer.  You catch a fly put it in the fridge apparently, place it on the cheese, wait for it to warm up and fly off and then run the shot in reverse. Less interestingly there's a short clip with me in it - shot in an afternoon at my mate's kitchen table circa 1996. 

The Onion - Graham Linehan got me onto this years and years ago and I still love it.  Stories like 'Rich Guy feeling left out of recession', 'Martin Scorsese attends free i-movie demonstration at local Apple Store' and 'National Machete Organization speaks out against machete control legislation' are examples from today's paper. Absurd but not whimsical, satirical but not cruel. Oh. And funny.

Tarvu - Not looking for God? Despairing that you might never learn to speak to an octopus? Then Tarvu is the completely fictitious religion for you. In the information film on the front page we meet many people who have signed up, including one man who has had his life transformed. "Six months ago I was in prison for arson," he says. "And then someone gave me a [Tarvu] brochure. Now I'm a priestmunty at my local chabbernaggle." People interested in the creation of "Universe A and Universe B" will like this as will any fans of Peter Serafinowicz and Robert Popper. Isn't it about time you said "Hebbo" to Tarvuism?

Handpicked Collection - I didn't realise my presents were quite such a joke among my friends until my hen night when everyone went round the table in turn listing the most bizarre gifts they'd had from me in the time they'd known me. It seems not everyone is as delighted by families of mechanical Zanzibari clowns as I am. Thank goodness then for The Handpicked Collection. A whole catalogue of presents that people with taste (ALIENS!!!) actually want. They can deliver to any address and you can even programme in your friends and families birthdays so you never forget anyone. 

BookMooch - Ok so I haven't done this yet but I'm signed up and what a great idea - a book swapping site! Free books! You offer up books you don't want and if people want them you exchange them for points which you can either exchange for books you want or donate to charity. The success of the venture depends on loads of people signing up.  My resolution for 2011.

7 December 2010