If you’re not watching Game of Thrones you are really missing out – Cheryl Gibbs

Oh my giddy aunt – are you watching the new season of Game of Thrones?
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister. Cheryl is hooked on Game of ThronesNikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister. Cheryl is hooked on Game of Thrones
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister. Cheryl is hooked on Game of Thrones

We were never into it when it was first cool. We watched it a couple of years after it became a roaring success and I admit it took us at least the first series – which we watched twice – to get into it.

I often watch it with a blank expression because I can’t keep up.

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Nevertheless, it’s such an amazing series and I urge everyone to give it a go.

They were discussing this in the office at work on Monday and one of the guys admitted he’s never watched it to which I piped up with a big argument as to why he absolutely must.

I think he’s going to watch it just to shut me up!

Hooray for the first (chilly) barbecue of the season – Cheryl Gibbs

We are definitely a family of sun worshippers. None of us have ever been on a skiing holiday or really opted for a cold holiday – although I admit that filming in Finland and Sweden last December was incredible, even if it was –25C.

But my point is we really do love the heat.

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Perhaps it’s because I was born in Australia and spent my early childhood over there where you ate your dinner outside every night, or after school time meant swimming in our pool or going for a walk along the beach.

We are that family – you know the ones you often look at and laugh at where everyone is huddled behind windbreaks on Southsea beach.

We’ll do whatever it takes to pretend that we’re in warmer climes and this was also true at the weekend when my sister Jo and her husband Steve organised the first family barbecue of the year.

They did it for a family friend’s birthday and thought it was a better choice than going to another pub and, to be fair, none of us argued that point.

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I love get-togethers round people’s houses and it’s certainly a cheaper night.

Well for us it is cheaper, but not so much for Jo and Steve who are brilliant hosts and always go above and beyond when it comes to catering.

The weather wasn’t the best, but there was no stopping us.

Jo has an outside garage conversion, I guess like a kind of sunroom which means extra living space which we always use in the summer as a kind of indoor/outdoor venue.

They put up a big marquee with several heaters and we basically all huddled in there away from the wind, which was rather chilly.

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‘Bring blankets and make sure you all wear layers’ was the text that went out that day.

No need to tell me twice, I don’t do cold very well. I wore a thermal vest and a huge thick jumper to ensure I stayed warm.

We got there at 5pm and left at 10.30pm and not one of us went inside – we persisted and the first barbecue of the season was a great success!

The birthday boy ends up hungry at his Mexican treat

Matt celebrated his 39th birthday on Tuesday which means we’ve shared more birthdays together than we have on our own.

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I met him when he was 19 so we’ve shared 20 of his birthdays and I have no idea where the time has gone.

We went to the Mexican restaurant Wahaca, in Chichester, to celebrate and ordered lots of dishes, meat and vegetarian.

All mine came at once, but there was a mix-up with his and he ended up sitting there watching me devour mine.

By the time his came out he was starving and wolfed them down.

They were very apologetic and he got a free tequila for his birthday so all was right with the world in the end.