Disney or any production by Disney isn't usually my thing but went to see Disney Frozen on ice with…read morea friend who had a spare ticket so I thought why not. The Barclaycard arena was like any other venue for concerts or shows. It seemed very organised with the Stuards ushering people into lines to go through. Lots of little girls dressed as Elsa so I felt little left out! Once in there it was chaos with so many stands of Frozen merchandise, food and memorabilia. The seating area was quite a large arena. I'm not sure I would go again unless my favourite artist was playing and seemed like the place for kids shows.

I fulfilled a boyhood dream this year…read more Badminton is Malaysia's favourite sport and one of the sport's premier events, the All England Championships, has been held at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham since 1994. I recall being allowed to stay up late to watch my badminton heroes play on live telecast when I was growing up in Malaysia. It all seemed so far away, so exotic, so out of reach. So, I was overjoyed this year to find out that my parents were visiting me from Malaysia exactly on the dates that the All England Badminton Championships would be taking place this year. Booking tickets for all of us on line proved quite painless. We were able to walk to the NIA from our city centre hotel in about 15 minutes. There is parking available at the arena though it does seem to be in the middle of a fairly residential area. The excitement built as we ran into more badminton fans and we kept passing posters advertising the All Englands with Malaysia's world number 1 Lee Chong Wei taking centre stage. The only delay was in collecting pre-booked tickets. It wasn't really clear which of the many windows to join and lots of people were kept outside in the rain as people shuffled forward slowly to get the tickets. Once in, we could hardly believe we were actually at the finals of this legendary event that we used to watch on TV for so many years. The venue seemed a little more friendly than the rather stark Wembley Arena which used to host this event before it moved to Birmingham. There were enough fast food stands serving the usual fare and the toilets were clean. There were a lot of stands selling badminton kit and memorabilia. They had laid on some pre-match entertainment in the form of a classical music trio playing live before the badminton began. The actual set up for the badminton was good with side lighting making it easy for the players to spot the shuttles when they were lifted high and sightlines were good for spectators. The full house of good-natured supporters from all over the globe created a wonderful atmosphere, chanting and cheering on their favourites. Unlike football, no crowd segregation was necessary to keep the peace. The final icing on the cake came for us when we watched Lee Chong Wei defeat his personal nemesis and close rival Lin Dan in the final match of the championship to successfully defend his All England title. One of the best live sporting events in my life

The Alexander Stadium is a world class athletics venue and has hosted many big Athletics events…read moreincluding the Aviva Birmingham Grand Prix as well as European Trials and UK Championships. It is also the home of the Birchfield Harriers. Ashia Hansen, Kelly Sotherton and Mark Lewis-Francis are some of the members at Birchfield Harriers. The Stadium itself is a great place to watch Athletics and this place really is worth a visit. Alexander Stadium has recently had a £12.5 million expansion and refurbishment. The money has gone towards building a new stand which has a capacity of 5,000. That means the overall capacity of the Stadium is 12,700. So many of the world's best Athletes have competed at the Alexander Stadium and if you are in Birmingham and fancy watching some Athletics, pop in and see why the Alexander Stadium has received so many positive reviews.

For Athletic venues, you can't go wrong here. It is truly first class and famous for the Birchfield…read moreHarriers. With many different leisure activities available here, you are spolit for choice! The staff are all very helpful and so friendly. The only draw back with Alexander Stadium is the gym, its quite old and very small compared with a lot of other gyms out in Brum, I mean compared with Kingstanding gym, Kingstanding wins as it is larger and has more updated equipment, but it is still goodwhen it is quite like in the day. All in all, a great stadium with equally great staff.

A traditional "old" English football stadium, Villa Park has been home to Aston Villa since 1897…read moreand in that time its seen a number of highs and lows for the club from trophy wins to multiple relegations. It has also hosted more FA Cup Semi-Finals than any other stadium and even hosted the Community Shield, where Manchester City defeated Chelsea in 2012 back when Wembley was unavailable due to the Olympic Games behind held in London. The stadium is easy to access with public transport, although unlike The Hawthornes it isn't served by the West Midlands Metro, West Midlands Railway does serve Aston station on trains from New Street and back nearly every ten minutes, this station is around a 10 minute walk away. Witton station also has similar services but Aston Station is a slightly larger station with lifts and more frequent services, the station is so close to the ground (even though it isn't the most-used) the Aston Villa badge is right next to the station name. Disabled access at the stadium is poor, but it is an old stadium which still shouldn't be an excuse. It is especially bad for away supporters with Aston Villa now complying with Premier League regulations by having only a small number of disabled seating for visiting supporters but those seats are with the home fans - I mean I thought Newcastle was bad! Villa Park is probably one of my favourite more traditional old-fashioned stadiums in terms of appearance and the iconic, distinguishable steps leading into the ground where you can see the claret blue seats which are unique in the country following West Ham's relocation to the London Stadium. It isn't in the nicest part of the city though, even compared to other stadiums within the Premier League but still for a club of Aston Villa's level who are likely to be playing in the Championship next season, it isn't bad at all. 3*

Filler Park is full of people that have been given free tickets just to fill up the stadium (known…read moreas Fillers). At least it's not called Feeler Park because then it would be hard to go here without getting molested. Oh wait, it already is. First-Hand Experience: More info about my personal experience at this stadium - I've been to Villa Park on about 10 occasions. 3 or 4 times watching a footy match, once or twice to sleep in front of it (yes I know that sounds weird, but I stay in my car when I'm on tour), and then as a tourist, showing people my fave stadiums and such. It's not one of my faves (it's a bit old), but it's a lot bigger on the inside than it looks in the outside. It's the most historic stadium in the Midlands in the sense of importance to the country. When Villa is doing well, there is a really intense atmosphere, but I didn't really experience that on my trips here. Most recently I came here in 2014 because the M6 was backed up so I got off to hang out at the stadium for a bit. The last time I was here for a game was 2011 and I remember telling my gf, the food lines are way too long and the bathrooms are run down and old. The whole place needs a big renovation at some point soon, if it wants to earn that extra star. I've been to every significant stadium in UK & US, due to a lifelong obsession with travel, sport & especially footy (soccer to Americans). Born & raised in England, I followed Oxford United (hometown team) to stadia all over the country at away games, and later followed Liverpool (fave team) around. Every stadium review - like all my reviews - are based on first-hand personal experience, usually from multiple visits. In 2011, I was on music tour in the UK, visiting hundreds of stadiums for fun in my spare time. As recently as Fall 2014, when I was "stuck" in UK for 3 months, I went to most of them yet again while travelling. I have pictures of me at many of them, which I will post later. Also, when back in the UK I plan to take more pix, and add more stadia! So watch this space! *** return to regular review *** With 42,000 people in the stands, this is one of the biggest grounds in England, and the biggest in the second city of Birmingham. They are considering increasing the capacity to 50k. The last ever final of the Cup Winners Cup was here, in 1999, as well as many Cup Semi Finals played here as a neutral venue before Wembley took over. The Holte End has a lovely brick facade. If they can just properly close in the corners and increase that capacity I'll probably give it a 5. In Euro 96 4 matches were played here including the Quarter Final where the Czechs knocked out Figo's Portugal. By the way, when in Birmingham, try a Chicken Madras from Akbars and a Mixed Kebab from Lahore on Ladypool Rd.

My friend Drew won't stand up. I'm like, stand drew, stand! But he won't. This stadium was named…read moreafter what I want him to do. Stand, drew! First-Hand Experience: More info about my personal experience at this stadium - I was shocked when I came to St. Andrews for the first time in 2011. It's amazing! I was in the middle of a tour and had just played a really exciting concert in central Birmingham, and then I came here and it really put the cherry on a great day. What a fantastic, intense, perfectly situated stadium. Intense fans and a really great layout and nice updated facilities. A total palace for BCFC. I think it's a much more welcoming and homey place than Villa Park, and better even than Hawthorns. It's not far behind Molineux. The stewards here are really lovely too for that matter. I've been to most UK & US stadiums, due to lifelong obsessions with travel, sport & especially footy (soccer to Americans). Born & raised in England, I followed Oxford United (hometown team) to stadia all over the country at away games, and later Liverpool (fave team) around. Every stadium review - like all my reviews - are from first-hand personal experience, usually from several visits. In 2011, I was on music tour in the UK, and visited most stadiums for fun in my spare time. As recently as Fall 2014, when I was "stuck" in UK for 3 months, I went to hundreds yet again while travelling. I have pictures of me at most, which I'll post later. Also, when back in UK I'll take more pix, and add more stadia! *** return to regular review *** It's one of the best stadiums in England actually, which is weird because I don't really like the team that plays here much but I gave them a good rating as well. There are so many glowing reviews of this stadium but they're incorrectly listed under the football club, hopefully Yelp will move them over here at some point soon. Opened in 1906, it hosts 30k rabid fans in England's second biggest city. By the way, go get a Chicken Madras at Akbar's and a Mixed Kebab at Lahore on Ladypool Rd. 2 best things in Brum imo. The old St Andrews was pretty typical (like Villa Park is), there's just one side of the stadium that needs to be properly modernized and made to look like the rest, and then I think it'll increase to a 5 star stadium, but I'm going to give it 5 anyway. It's steep and it's loud and it's awesome, and right in the heart of Birmingham, and gets full marks from me.

Absolutely amazing staff Waqas and jak…read moreWent above and beyond for myself and my disabled son as we were visiting Birmingham and he wanted to go and see a film . I honestly cannot recommend tvis cinema an the people there enough was a lovely end to our weekend away thank you x

This is now my third movie theatre I have visited in Birmingham and I can easily say it's my…read morefavorite. It reminds me of the cinemas back home: lots of screens, an Imax, big theatres etc. I purchased the tickets online because I could save about £1 per ticket if I registered for their online club. Tickets were more expensive than Odeon, but this place let's you book seats ahead of time. I really like that feature because I'm one of those people who arrives way too early just to guarantee a good seat. The location was easy to get to. We didn't even have to go down Broad st or enter the 5 Ways Roundabout. Parking is free at the parking ramp next to the theater (for first 3 hours). Just remember to have your ticket validated. Picking up my tickets was easy as I just used the ticket kiosks. Type in the booking code and you're done! As for snacks, it was a lovely warm day so ice cream was in order. I had one scoop while he had 2. It came to £7.60 which is a bit much for ice cream. We also grabbed a drink and munch box from the snack bar. I thought the cost of those 2 items was extremely reasonable. Our theatre was very big. The seats were actually in good condition unlike the nasty torn seats at Odeon. We had no problems with people in our seats. Once the previews began the projector was distorted. An employee came quickly to sort it out, and it was fixed in less than 5 minutes. The only reason I'm not giving this place 5 stars is because I felt it was odd our movie wasn't fully utilising the wide screen. It had black bars at each end of the picture as if it was playing in the wrong setting. Like watching TV when something isn't wide screen. I mean it's 2015 so the movie should be using the entire screen, that's why they build them so big. So my final thoughts: I love Cineworld. Clean facilities. Great variety of movies and show times. Pretty affordable. I'm even considering getting the unlimited pass because it seems like a great deal for those who love to watch movies. And I think they offer food deals on Tuesday and Wednesday if you are looking to save some quid.

Well, I'm bound to give my Alma mater a five star rating, as I had such a great time here (so much…read moreso, I ended up doing two degrees). But, on a more serious note, it is one of the UK's leading academic institutions - one of the original 'red brick' Universities, it has been ranked 5th overall for research excellence in the UK. It has around 18,000 undergraduate and 11,000 postgraduate students, and one of the UK's most impressive University campuses, being one of the earliest to adopt this model of urban design. Its history can be traced back to 1825 with the founding of Birmingham Medical College, and the establishment of the Mason Science College in the City Centre 1875. But it was not until 1900 that, with the driving force of Joseph Chamberlain, the University was awarded its charter - arguably the first of the so-called 'red brick' Universities to be formally recognised as such. For the new University, a new site was chosen in the suburb of Selly Oak, three miles south of the city centre, to build a campus on the American model, of buildings built in a parkland environment. The original buildings at its heart really are made of blood-red brick: they include the main Aston Webb building, with its impressive main hall and domed entrance hall in the neo-Byzantine style. But its most distinctive and well-known feature is the 100m (330ft) tall clock tower, modelled on that of the town hall in Siena, and named 'Joe' in honour of Joseph Chamberlain. (Useless facts: Joe is the tallest free-standing clock tower in the world. The University's own website calls the tower 'Old Joe' but I never heard anyone use this in over 7 years) Subsequent expansion - especially in the 1960s - has brought a greater diversity of architectural styles, notably the brutalist Muirhead tower, completed in 1969. There are impressive sports facilities, and the University is regularly in the top five at Inter-varsity sporting events. The campus itself is in two main halves, with the main halls of residence and student village on the Vale site a mile to the north. Land has been donated over the years by a number of local worthies, including Lord Calthorpe and the Cadbury family. In 1999, the various colleges of the Selly Oak campus (two miles further south) were integrated into the University, including the Westhill College of Education which was formally merged with it in 2001. The University has a long list of achievements to its name: it was the first to accept students on an equal basis from all religious backgrounds; its school of Commerce in 1902 was the UK's first (it is now the Business School); in 1937, vitamin C was synthesised by Professor Norman Haworth, who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (one of several Nobel Prize laureates); and in 1940 the first microwave device was built here, heralding both the development of radar and microwave ovens! Sir Edward Elgar was professor of music in the early 1900s, and the University boasts a long list of impressive alumni. And so on Practicalities Access to the University is easy, thanks to it having its own station on the Cross-city railway line, between the main campus and the medical school at the Queen Elizabeth hospital. There are frequent buses on the A38 Bristol Road just to the south of the campus, and extensive car parking, although this has been restricted in recent years. The University's motto is 'Per adua ad alta' - 'Through hard work, great things are achieved' (literally, 'through work to the heights').

Fantastic University! Really nice campus with some fantastic architecture, especially in the Aston…read moreWebb building. Plus UoB have the tallest free standing clock tower in the world. Beautiful campus, very well maintained grounds. If you're not a student, best to visit the last Wednesday of each month (during term times), when the Farmer's market runs and adds an extra buzz to campus. There are Cafés in many of the main buildings, but the best food is found in University Centre - the burritos from GoMex are a must!

So.... I tried. I tried once and I tried again and the Everyman still hasn't quite won me over yet…read more After the initial launch, I booked tickets to go and see Avengers in April for a bit of a date night treat with Dan G. As the cinema specialises in bringing food to your seat, I figured it would be worth heading down for a spot of dinner and a film on a Thursday evening to give this place a proper try. Firstly, I do love the layout and vibe. You're welcomed into a smart, stylised bar and eatery area and invited to take a seat before your film. You can order food before the showing if you would prefer or order for delivery during the film. On our first trip we flashed our tickets (on email, rather an a paper ticket system) and headed to the bar to order a couple of burgers and beer. I went for a veggie burger and Dan went for a smoked. This with a couple of beers came to around £30 (which was incorrect as per the website and seemed to be quite pricey - especially for drinks), still, we duly paid up and headed to the screen for a punchy extravaganza of superhero proportions. The food was bought out to us during the adverts and bought out to us on a tray (so you can pop it on your lap). The burger was really atrocious. I couldn't taste anything at all! Considering it was packed with all kinds of lovely veg - this was a total shame. The seats were comfy enough (every seat at the Everyman is a sofa seat), but as Dan has pointed out - the sound didn't seem to be great (which was another disappointment). Following this visit I got in touch with the Everyman to tell them about my experience (I would have spoken to the manager on the night, but the film didn't finish until nearly 12pm and I was shattered). Their customer service was top notch (that gets 5*) and I received an email reply stating that they would update their website and offered another two burgers on the house to make up for our sub-par food on our first visit. We decided to give them another go and visited a second time in May to see Mad Max. We popped in, flashed the email and were offered the free food without any issues. I went for a house burger this time and we just ordered a couple of glasses of water (as it was a roasting hot day and we were parched). The screen we were in a second time (downstairs) was a lot better. Even comfier, more leg room and better sound. This was a much more pleasant screening experience than we had, had previously. The food didn't come out until the film had started (which was a bit of a pain as we had to eat in the dark) and although my burger seemed to be a lot more flavoursome, it was a tad burned. All in all, I would give the venue 3.5 stars due to the great customer service, comfy seating and great screening area downstairs (which has it's own dedicated bar). I am not in a hurry to head back (it's quite expensive for films at around £12 - £13 a ticket) and the food hasn't wowed me yet. Don't let that put you off though! It's definitely worth a visit if you haven't yet been, just be sure to keep in mind that the drinks are quite pricey. I would recommend it for a date night or a treat, but for an everyday cinema experience I would probably head elsewhere.

This is one of those places that has been on my radar for ages but I haven't been inclined to…read morevisit. I am not a huge film watcher so always give it a miss.....I was surprised how much I loved it here. So this place take the edge of the hardcore cinema Experience by playing on two on my weaknesses...hunger and thirst. To watch the film we had nachos, nuts and hummus delivered to our seats and I also had an elderflower fizz. I admit not the most manly of drinks but we were watching Bridget Jones....I think t can be excused. I really like the way that the cinema has sofas instead of chairs so you can be more comfortable watching your chick flick and I also love the way the manager comes out to say hello and introduce the film. Small finishing touches...great effect.

Oh, crap, I have to go check the oven, I think my ham is burning. Yep, I thought I smelled…read moreBurningham. Now the whole City smells like it. When it gets cold around here, it becomes Brrrrr mingham. First-Hand Experience: I never saw them play until 2011, and I was shocked at how loud the fans were and how amazing the stadium and stewards were too. I did get picked on a little bit for wearing a Liverpool shirt, including a couple of threats of violence, so that makes me want to dock them 1 star because I was very friendly with them and have no problem with BCFC. I was purely there as a tourist. "Brum" as this area is known, has some lovely food. Go and try a Chicken Madras from Akbars west of the city, then try a Mixed Kebab from Lahore on Ladypool Road in the Balti Triangle. Trust me. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, this is one of the great teams of the UK. They're not the most famous team in Birmingham, but they're the friendliest and least racist (lol). Their excellent stadium holds up to 30k. They play in boring blue and tragically have never managed to win the big thing... the Prem or the top division. They've won the second many times, and been promoted many times, but no, never the big thing. They've won the FA Cup zero times, but were runners up once in the 30s and once in the 50s. Their recent moment of glory came under McLeish (I think?) who also got them relegated... when they beat Arsenal in the League Cup final. Well done to them! Their choice of managers though, has been utterly awful. Steve Bruce? Ew. McLeish? Ew. And boo to Alec too for defecting to Aston Villa. Awful show from him and from Villa for that matter. You just don't do that to your rival. I like Brum better than Villa even though I don't really like either team but I have to give mad props to this club and give them a nice solid 4/5 even though they've never been one of my faves.

Okay I didn't go to watch football or play football! But my company arranged a course at the…read morestadium. I got lost, even with a satnav and kicked myself for following it instead of the signs!! Lol there was adequate parking at 8.30am so no need to find some where to leave the merc ha ha We were in two rooms, one for refreshments and the other - the jasper carrot room was where we had our course. The jasper carrot room was spacious and reasonably good temperature. It had projector screen and no glitches so the course was fine. The lunch- we went into the other room on time, and found the sandwiches covered with cling film so people started uncovering it and we helped ourselves. Half way though people taking food, two staff walked in with more food lamb burgers, salad etc that were hardly touched. We were only give 30 mins break. It would been nicer to have a juice rather than just water, coffee & tea. Traffic was crazy trying to get out of the place and round the roundabout at 5pm!!But I made it home phew!! It's a good location for meeting / course/ conference but the food could have been arranged on time.