Snow in Plettenberg Bay, the Bulls win the Super 14 in an all-South African final and a jail-bound Paris Hilton is photographed carrying a copy of the bible. Things got a bit weird towards the end of May, didn't they?
The occurrence of such previously unlikely incidents does make one wonder what we're in for next: Will Bob Mugabe mysteriously retire and become a Greenpeace volunteer? Will Colin Moss stop being such a dork? Is Noleen going to shock the poor viewers of 3Talk and actually listen to her guests? Probably not, but one can only hope. It is more likely, of course, that normality will be restored before long. The snow will dry in Plett, the Springboks will disappoint in the World Cup, and Paris Hilton will abandon the Bible after flicking through it and finding no photos of Jesus with his shirt off. Still, it was fun while it lasted.
This month in Extra Virgin we talk to Brendan Jack, writer and star of forthcoming comedy Footskating 101, about Catholic schools, the Olsen twins and why a talking baby doesn't make a good movie. We review albums from Simphiwe Dana, The Dirty Skirts, Wilco and Arcade Fire; a hilarious book by one of South Africa's most promising young authors and a movie about dope and murder featuring Justin Timberlake. Well, why not? Also, we wander around South Africa's West Coast and discover that there's more to it than toothless hitchhikers, cows and potato farms. (It must be said that we also found lots of toothless hitchhikers, cows and potato farms). Our money column this month looks at the perplexing jargon of the investment markets and translates the key terms into comprehendible, plain English, so that never again will you listen to your banker friend rattle off a monologue about hedging, cross-pollination and harvesting and wonder why he has decided to talk about farming.
But first, a quick shout out to you for the glowing feedback you sent us last month. Please keep the comments coming. We wish to know where we rock and where we don't, and what, if anything, is missing. We're open to all suggestions, provided you don't ask for pictures of celebrities climbing out of cars without any knickers, articles entitled '100 ways to please your man' or stories about people who live with hundreds of cats. You all know where to go for such things, and after all, we do have our limits.
Matthew Freemantle Editor
This month in Extra Virgin we talk to Brendan Jack, writer and star of forthcoming comedy Footskating 101, about Catholic schools, the Olsen twins and why a talking baby doesn't make a good movie.
Alpha Dog
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Go West
Consider going to the other side. Literally. South Africa's West Coast offers a quieter alternative, if one that will make ice-creams and tarred roads somewhat harder to come by...
Miss Kwa Kwa, by Stephen Simm
The genius of Borat was that he could get away with directing the most outrageous insults at his interviewees purely by being so preposterous himself. Miss Kwa Kwa is a similarly unsavoury character; a beauty queen from rural Kwa Kwa who...
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You don't have to memories these, just sprinkle lightly during dinner with your significant other's snooty friends...
Bulls and Bears - A Bull market is a market on the rise, a Bear market on the decline...
Simphiwe Dana - Zandisile
There are singers who can break your heart and there are those who can't. And then there's Simphiwe Dana, the new queen of jazz, whose voice is so staggeringly beautiful that it can probably do much more than that....
Dirty Skirts - On a Stellar Bender
It is immediately suspicious when a Cape Town-based band creates a sound that is so uncannily similar to the messy new alternative rock currently all over UK radio...
Diana Ross & The Supremes - The No. 1's
The onslaught of chubby American contestants belting out cover versions of old girl group songs has done wonders for Diana Ross and her Supremes....
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
If ever a band was afflicted with the intense pressure of The Difficult Second Album, it is Canadian band The Arcade Fire...
This month in Extra Virgin we talk to Brendan Jack, writer and star of forthcoming comedy Footskating 101, about Catholic schools, the Olsen twins and why a talking baby doesn't make a good movie. We review albums from Simphiwe Dana, The Dirty Skirts, Wilco and Arcade Fire; a hilarious book by one of South Africa's most promising young authors and a movie about dope and murder featuring Justin Timberlake. Well, why not? Also, we wander around South Africa's West Coast and discover that there's more to it than toothless hitchhikers, cows and potato farms. (It must be said that we also found lots of toothless hitchhikers, cows and potato farms). Our money column this month looks at the perplexing jargon of the investment markets and translates the key terms into comprehendible, plain English, so that never again will you listen to your banker friend rattle off a monologue about hedging, cross-pollination and harvesting and wonder why he has decided to talk about farming.
This month in Extra Virgin we talk to 
