This museum is the perfect price. Free! It is a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours. There…read moreis lots of natural history as well as cultural history. Everything is in both English and Welsh. The natural history area had videos ad well as exhibits detailing the geographic history of the region. The Art of the Selfie exhibit had a small cost which was quite fair. Van Gogh's Self Portrait was the main draw, but they also had Rembrandt and other artists. In the other rooms, there were so many artifacts. Rooms within rooms and beyond, you can lose hours reading about everything on display.

it was a pretty good experience, but no one warned me that the bloody dinosaurs are getting starved…read morebecause they are literally just bones. animal mistreatment is NOT a joke I want to support, I cannot believe the STATE of this museum. Good value for money as its free. Cool stones and a selection of STARVED AND DEAD animals. and the service was poor because they encourage this. the toilets are good for kids, AND OTHER THINGS.

Booked tickets to see Avatar in 4DX at the Cardiff cinema today. Upon arriving and taking my seat I…read morefound that it was absolutely soaking and I couldn't sit in it. When I spoke to the manager I was told it wasn't the cinema's fault that the seat was wet and my only option was to wait for a later showing or get a refund. I would have been OK with just receiving the refund if the manager wasn't so confrontational about how Ciniworld were not a fault and it was somehow my fault for booking a seat in advance. So lesson is don't expect to get a prebooked seat and as such i would book somewhere else.

The Cineworld cinema in Cardiff has the unusual distinction of being one of the marks of the…read morelandscape. You see, it's an owl. I don't mean a literal owl. I mean the architect, for some unfathomable, no doubt drug-fueled reason, saw he had to design a building for a cinema and said to himself "What best represents the cinematic experience? I know! AN OWL! With a beak! AND EYEBROWS! I'm a genius. Where's the vodka gone?" Dubious structural design aside, the Cineworld is the middle-child in the Cardiff cinema trifecta. Not as vast and all-encompassing as the Odeon down the Bay, and not as scummy and as chav infested as Vue next to the Stadium, Cineworld is instead, just a cinema. The venue of the unassuming cinephile. The Odeon is where you go if you are treating yourself to an IMAX screening, and the Vue is normally the place to go if you've just stabbed someone for a fiver and need an alibi and a place to lay low for a bit, but the Cineworld is the place to go to just watch a movie. With its twelve screens and large auditoriums, the complex is in no way small, and competes with the more expensive Odeon on everything apart from the iMax experience. It also provides monthly viewings of classic films where the true cinephiles come out. It's one hell of an experience to watch Withnail and I on the big screen, you and all your friends (and everyone else, for that matter) surreptitiously sipping on sneaked-in wine you brought just for the event, and I heartily recommend it should you be given the chance. (Note: Yelp does not condone sneaking wine in cinemas. It is a naughty and potentially awesome thing to do in the right circumstances and should not be attempted by anyone.)

This annual celebration of Welsh design talent takes place each October, packing in stacks of…read moredesign-related events. Aimed at members of the public, businesses and fellow designers, the festival showcases Welsh design by turning the spotlight on a wide range of areas within the sector, hosting talks, exhibitions and even drawing workshops where you can turn up and try out your own design and drawing skills with Cardiff School of Art & Design, and Cardiff Open Art School tutor and artist Christopher Holloway. Events take place in various venues, so you need to check out the website's events page to find out more - for example the drawing workshop mentioned above takes place in a unit within Morgan Arcade, just opposite Neal's Yard Remedies, while other events take place at the art college. The 'Best of Welsh Design' awards event, announcing this year's winners, is also incorporated into the festival - having received submissions earlier in the year (and with the shortlist announced today, 1 October!).

This is definitely one for your diary...!…read more The Cardiff Design Festival really is an annual treat! Hosted at various venues around our nations capital, it is a positively splendid affair! Held every October it showcases 'The Best of Welsh Design', which really is more diverse than you might think! There's also a programme of design related events curated with the intention of educating and informing, as well as to inspire and perhaps even provoke. In addition there's also a series of talks, alongside the exhibitions and events. These run from 1st to 16th October. Don't miss it, especially if you are looking for that wow factor for your home!

For someone, like me, who commutes in and out of Cardiff every day on the train, Vue is in the…read moreideal location. Admittedly it's more out of the way than Cineworld, but I would choose to go to Vue any day. My reasons are: 1) This cinema, despite being mainstream, is quieter than many, and I much prefer seeing a popular new release with 30 other people than 250. Don't know about you. 2) Unlike Cineworld and Odeon, there are far fewer annoying teenagers at this venue who blow raspberries during death scenes (poor Cedric Diggory). 3) The screens here are huge; as tall as two double-decker buses, according to the publicity when it opened. Other screens in Cardiff are as big, but they generally go along with more seats, so cancelling out the largeness. 4) The staff here have always been lovely, as opposed to Cineworld staff who snorted at me in disdain when I complained someone was smoking during the film. 5) I'm very particular about sound, and I've noticed that in both Cineworld and Odeon you can hear the cinema next to you through the walls. This has never happened in Vue. Conclusion: If you want a mainstream cinema, then this cinema in the centre of Cardiff is just as good as any of the others. Cineworld was once just as much out of the way, but now the new St David's Shopping Centre has brought it into the fold. I hope the new bus station does the same for Vue once again.

This is my favourite cinema in Cardiff purely because it's always been dead whenever I've been…read morethere. I don't like watching a film in a crowded cinema which is why I always come here. I don't know how many floors there are but it's about 5 or so. It seems endless and a little eery as you ascend the escalator in a massive, empty building. There's bars and things inside which I think have long since closed down due to lack of business and there also used to be a Jongleur's comedy club here which also closed a few years ago further highlighting how unpopular this cinema is. There's one typically overpriced snack counter (around £3 for a regular coke) and 13 screens. The screens are huge and the seats are comfy with lots of leg room. It seems they are losing money though as I don't think they put the heating on. I've felt cold in every screen I've been in here. The toilets aren't very well maintained either and maybe they can't afford regular cleaning staff. Still, if you want a screen mostly to yourself and don't mind keeping your coat on it's not that bad. Try and avoid the toilets though so if you're thinking of going to see any 3 hour long, Lord of the Rings style epics, maybe take the trip to Cineworld instead.

Well! I'm getting really bloody excited! We are only a couple of weekends away from the pretty…read morespecial Fair Play Festival! This is a three day Music and Art festival that takes place at two great venues in Cardiff, and features a dizzying list of performers and artists. The most stunning thing about it is that it is only a tenner! Yes, you heard me right! A tenner! I shit you not! That's three days of live music and art for a tenner! Honest! Here's a few highlights: The Boiler House is hosting one of the stages throughout the festival, and has had a recent makeover by the SIN Cru, a graffiti collective that is comprised of street artists from all over the UK. (Canvas and prints will also be available at one of the stalls during the festival.) Rachel Taylor Beales will be performing on Saturday afternoon... if you haven't seen this musical alchemist with the hauntingly beautiful voice, you had better not miss this opportunity to understand why I think she is so utterly special! Dirty Revolution will be raising the rafters on Saturday night and Cakehole Presley will be putting in an illustrious performance. The very wonderful Whistling Buiscuits will have you dancing out of your skin with a big fat grin on your silly little faces and VJ Skulpt will be driving whacked out onlookers straight to rehab with his mind-bending visuals... There's early bird tickets on sale at the moment, but I reckon you're going to have to get clicking on that link pretty darned quick if you want to be one of the lucky ones to get one!

I went to see Rain Man here a few months ago featuring Oliver Chris and Neil Morrisey. As a…read moretheatre virgin as it were, I entered with much trepidation, unsure of what to expect. I was highly impressed. It's decorated quite lavishly in a pretty old-fashioned way. It certainly conformed to every imagining I had of what a theatre should look like inside and was in keeping with the history of the building, built in 1878. Onto the bar then! The service was quick and the drinks were reasonably priced. A surprise, as I thought I'd get stung for a drink here. A cool service they provided (I have no idea if this is standard fare or not) is that you could order drinks for the intermission, so when you come out, rather than waste any precious time queueing and paying, your drinks are there waiting for you with your name on! I thought this was brilliant. As nobody really wants to stand up in the middle of a tense scene and shuffle past an entire row, there was the expected mad rush for the bathrooms at the end of the performance but the toilets were adequately sized which was great. I'm not a big theatre person but I had a really enjoyabke night here and would definitely go back if something that took my fancy came to town.

The New Theatre is an old classic looking theatre that I always remember when visiting it on school…read moretrips to see what shows they had. I vaguely remember seeing 'The Hobbit' on stage and that was enjoyable. The New Theatre is one of the oldest buildings in Cardiff and still delivers shows for everybody. If I were to put a certain category of shows the New Theatre has it would be pantomimes. Everyone loves the pantomime and The New Theatre knows this, it has had shows like Aladin, Dick Whittington and a variety of other shows. It does have some drama plays too. I went to and see Romeo and Juliet with my girlfriend. However, this does bring me to mention a problem the auditorium has. We were sitting at the back of the stalls and unfortunately we had a giant pillar between our seats so we couldn't even see each other, this wasn't exactly the most romantic way to spend an evening watching Romeo and Juliet's final scenes and all I have to comfort me is a pillar. New Theatre I beg of you, please knock this pillar down. The New Theatre is an old classic theatre that still has a buzz when a performance starts. It may not have the most contemporary shows but it's brilliant for families. My only problem is that annoying pillar. Knock it down!

Want to see Boy Zone? Take That? West Life? Enrique Iglesias? Pink? Then this is the best place in…read moreCardiff to go, when these and other pop stars come to Wales. I long for Britney Spears to come and sing here. I've seen her in London, but it is not the same as it would be to be able to see her here. I really enjoyed the Boy Zone concert it was amazing, they were on roller skates and they performed scenes from the Movie Grease. This was back in their early years. It ended with fireworks and started with fireworks. Spectacular! I saw Busted there as well that was another awesome concert! I'd never had such fun in a long while, before I had been to that concert. I didn't even really care about how loud it all was, which I often do. I recommend it for all; especially teenagers, the older the better I feel. It's near Cineworld cinema, in the town centre.

This is a really good arena. I've never been to it to see any sports (I don't even know if they do…read moredo sports there - sometimes places really surprise you and you realise that they have an ice rink under the floor and things!) but only music. It's a fantastic venue to see a concert. There is always a really atmosphere - and although part of that will obviously be my own excitement, a bad venue can hinder a gig. There's a good amount of seating and of standing room and the prices are always reasonable. I just wish there were more loos! That's always the problem!

CMW do a huge amount to provide Welsh musicians and bands with the means to develop their talents…read moreand to find platforms on which to showcase their music something which all music fans are hopefully grateful for! Talking to many of Cardiff's bands, it's amazing how many of them have been involved with CMW in one form or another - whether it's a CMW-organised music workshop they've attended, or help getting the necessary equipment. It's a charitable organisation and its work extends right across Wales, with one base in Cardiff and another up in North Wales. Bands can get in touch with CMW to find out how they can benefit from the organisation's support - whether it's equipment, tuition or industry knowledge they need to help get them writing, playing and performing their own music.

My involvement with CMW was back in 2001 when I took up training course for a year and was assigned…read morePaul Gray as my mentor. I used to meet with him on a monthly basis we would spend around an hour discussing what I had been doing for the last month with regards to my work, also what gigs I had been to and any developments going on in the music industry that we thought were relevant. The good thing about this was that I knew Paul used to play bass in a band I really like and therefore I knew that he had been in the business long enough to have gained plenty of experience. I felt that confident in the advice he offered me and he always sounded happy to hear from me if I ever called him. Community Music Wales funded a lot of things that I did in that year. They set me up with a guitar tutor in Newport called Nick Brown and a vocal tutor in Cardiff by the name of Amy Wadge, both highly talented professionals. They also funded studio time for me in Whitehall studios in Cardiff, 24/7 studios in Pontypool and White Oaks studio in Crickhowell. As anyone who knows anything about the music industry would know, all of these things cost a pretty penny and I am eternally grateful for the help and support they gave me during that year. I keep hearing good things about this highly charitable organisation to this day. They are there helping out young hopefuls and up and comings to make their way along the music mile and fulfil their dreams of success. In my own experience they gave me a year I will never forget and given me so many tools to use for my own progression. If you need help of any kind with your music industry ambitions I strongly recommend you give these folks a call and find out what they can do to help you

The Big weekend is an annual 3 day music festival in the city that encompasses a range of different…read moremusic types and aspects for families as well as the adults. Last year The Zutons and The Lightening Seeds were headlining and this year you can see Chaka Demus and Pliers (I'm excited about that!) as well as Welsh rockers The Blackout and Feeder. There's also a funfair, fireworks and the whole town comes to life.

The summer counterpart to the annual Winter Wonderland, Cardiff's Big Weekend is an event that…read morebrings the whole city to life. Sponsored by Admiral, the Weekend is an annual three day festival based in the heart of the city, completely swallowing up the civic centre and the museum area with its fairground rides, games stalls and massive stage. Every year, the festival puts on three nights of gigs from a selection of local talent, old stalwarts (such as this year's fantastic Chaka Demus and The Pliers) and major contemporary bands such as The Zutons or Athelete, all for free. The atmosphere is always loud, lairy and happy with most people being there just to have a good time. There are the occasional problems amongst the teenage crowd, loaded up on adrenaline and this can put a damper on small pockets of the area, but nothing that isn't resolved quickly. Everyone's too busy thinking of what to do next to stay mad for long.

Clickity clicks, Gallery 66. Situated in the arcades of town, Gallery 66 is a framing specialist…read morewith art and photo's for sale too. I do love this shop as it feels you've stepped back in time upon entering and sells some fabulous art. It's almost as if this could be put on a ye olde Victorian tour of Cardiff. You may be able to make out the paintings of the galaxy in the pic, I bought one of them. The detail on them are fantastic and is reasonably priced (Under £70), the person who served me as well was so lovely that the whole experience from entering to leaving with my fine painting was an absolute joy. Please visit this place, especially if your visiting Cardiff and want to get a real feel of the culture this city has to offer.

Gallery 66 is possibly my favourite shop in The Royal Arcade. Set up in 1975 by Eva Walters, the…read morebusiness has a firm footing in the customised interior design marketplace. Offering picture framing of varying qualities and style, ranging from conventional frames, canvass stretching to box frames, as well as original artwork and prints sourced from around the globe, signed limited edition prints, in addition to local artwork including commissions, if you are looking for something specifically tailored to your tastes. Gallery 66 is a progressive business that has definitely kept up with the times. These days it provides full-time employment for Dan, (Eva's son, who wasn't even born when the business was launched), an immensely talented artist who works in the medium of print, digitally reworking iconic images, embellishing the original concepts with intelligent and creative adaptations, ultimately creating new and original artwork. Music seems to be a key influence, with album covers and portraits of legendary artists providing much of the inspiration for his work. There's also a very definite interest in graffiti, particularly the work of Banksy. Nina, Eva's daughter is also often in the shop. She comes in to help out when she has time off from pursuing her career as a teaching assistant. Being a family business the service levels are second to none. Eva is a vivacious, smart business woman who really knows her stuff. If you have a space on your wall that needs filling, this is where you need to come!