The SoGlos.com Blog

Coming soon on SoGlos.com

With May just around the corner, the SoGlos.com team can't believe it was almost a year ago the online magazine for Gloucestershire first went live on the world wide web - on Thursday 24 May 2007, to be precise. Little did we know that even the most ambitious of expectations would be surpassed, with SoGlos.com becoming Gloucestershire's leading, and most popular, guide to arts and entertainment by the start of the New Year.

But, as SoGlos.com's official first birthday fast approaches - on Wednesday 16 July 2008 to be exact - excitement in the office is reaching fever pitch as testing has begun on some pioneering new developments.

We'll be updating this blog in due course but, we're sure you will agree, Gloucestershire will never be the same again...

New Gloucestershire events calendars

While readers regularly get in touch to say how much they enjoy the Gloucestershire events calendar, the SoGlos.com team has also been asked to come up with specific calendars for the six main areas of our fine county. Hey presto! Check out the new, dedicated Cheltenham events calendar, Cotswolds events calendar, Forest of Dean events calendar, Gloucester events calendar, Stroud events calendar and, last but not least, the Tewkesbury events calendar. With longer days and the weather brightening up, there's never been a better time to get out there and enjoy everything Gloucestershire has to offer...

The Everyman Theatre sponsors SoGlos.com

It is with great pleasure that we welcome The Everyman Theatre onboard as a sponsor of SoGlos.com's dedicated Gloucestershire Theatre & Comedy section, and the team here are all looking forward to working closely with the theatre over the coming months. For those not in the know; The Everyman Theatre is one of Gloucestershire's most important entertainment venues, playing host to an exciting array of performances from local and touring companies. You can read more about  The Everyman Theatre on their website.

The Everyman Theatre's sponsorship comes at a time when SoGlos.com continues to go from strength to strength as Gloucestershire's leading arts and entertainment media, having also just unveiled a plethora of behind-the-scenes changes across the online magazine. While our development team are jumping for joy, we don't want to bore you with all the technical nitty gritty but, needless to say, there's even more just around the corner...

JEEcamp, looking back.

SoGlos.com had the pleasure of attending the first-ever JEEcamp on Friday 14 March - a Journalism Enterprise and Entrepreneurship 'unconference' organised by  Paul Bradshaw (who you might remember covered SoGlos.com's launch last year) of the Online Journalism Blog.

The event saw a number of leading journalists, bloggers, commentators and innovators in attendance, discussing the challenges facing today's new media publishers, particularly in light of digital media replacing the role of conventional print publications.

Rick Waghorn's keynote speech proved particularly insightful, as the online entrepreneur discussed everything from business models and funding through to the challenges faced in his work on Myfootballwriter.com - regularly cited as one of the most  innovative regional developments in UK online journalism (and for good reason too).

Martin Stabe (who also covered SoGlos.com's launch last year) from Press Gazette offered attendees a wealth of commentary as he formed part of a panel which also included the no-holds-barred Mark Comerford and Scoopt innovator Kyle MacRae - all taking questions posed by attendees in addition to those tuning-in to the unconference over the web.

All in all the day's proceedings provided plenty of food for thought in terms of journalism past, present and future, with interactive sites such as Nigel Eccles' news-forecasting Hubdub and Tim Hood's celebrity-quizzing Yoosk garnering particular attention. The SoGlos.com team will be discussing everything in more detail over the coming weeks, particularly as plans for a number of innovative new features for the online magazine are shaped up...

Cheltenham events, The Guardian and SoGlos.com

With the Wednesday 12 March day of the Cheltenham Festival having been cancelled due to adverse weather conditions, it was refreshing to see Stuart Jefferies from The Guardian recognise the spa town has plenty more to offer visitors any day of the year - perhaps thanks to a little help from SoGlos.com. From events at the Everyman Theatre and Cheltenham Townhall to The Playhouse, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum and Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, Jeferies' article takes readers on a whistle-stop tour of the town.

And the team here are delighted to see SoGlos.com cited in the piece which was printed in the newspaper and appeared online on Thursday 13 March - a testament to the fact there's no better resource for residents and visitors (and journalists researching the area...) to make the most of their free time in Cheltenham.

Gloucestershire Photo Galleries

It's out with the old and in with the new at SoGlos.com as we bid farewell to the Gloucestershire Shopping and Gloucestershire Forums sections, and welcome the brand-new dedicated Gloucestershire Photo Galleries section.

We decided to remove the Gloucestershire Shopping section as it's such a broad area and really deserves its very own publication - which means the SoGlos.com team will be able to spend more time doing what they do best, covering Gloucestershire events, Gloucestershire restaurant reivews, upcoming Gloucestershire theatre and comedy and upcoming Gloucestershire live music gigs for example.

With the Gloucestershire Forums on the other hand, while hundreds and sometimes thousands of readers dropped in everyday to see what was happening, far fewer registered and got involved in the debate. This wasn't helped by the forums being a little tricky for less IT-savvy readers, and so we're currently working on newer, easier and more innovative ways for readers to get involved with SoGlos.com.

Our tech guys are also currently beavering away on some very, very exciting new features for the online magazine as a whole, so watch this space and we hope you're making the most of your free time in our fantastic county with SoGlos.com - The online magazine for Gloucestershire.

Gloucestershire Theatre and Comedy Guide

Calling all theatre-lovers and comedy fans across the county, in case you haven't noticed, the SoGlos.com editorial team have recently started a Gloucestershire theatre performances and comedy nights guide which offers a day-to-day guide to what's on in Gloucestershire's comedy clubs and local theatres alike. Whether it's Shakespeare or live stand-up that floats your boat, make sure you check it out.

Top 5 Gloucestershire events this coming weekend

Don't miss the 'Top 5 things to do' this weekend in Gloucestershire brought to you by SoGlos.com and Severn Sound - available on the Severn Sound website here and to be discussed during the Saturday morning 'What's on Show with Joe Lemer'. And don't forget you can find details on a whole of host of carefully-selected county events happening over the coming weeks and months with SoGlos.com's Gloucestershire events calendar.

Gloucestershire spas, restaurants, music and more

With the New Year in full swing, the SoGlos.com team have already been busy, busy, busy. Highlights include the new Gloucestershire Spa break guide, a review of modern European eatery Merlot Brasserie in Cheltenham and a preview of the not-to-be-missed Cheltenham Folk Festival 2008 - not to mention a whole host of new Gloucestershire events just around the corner. You'll also find the Gloucestershire live music gig guide, Gloucestershire art exhibition guide and Gloucestershire restaurant reviews jam-packed as ever. And who said January was a miserable month?...

What's your New Year's resolution?

Some of the team are out and about in our fine county this month, spreading the good word about SoGlos.com - The online magazine for Gloucestershire via 10,000 leaflets. Don't hesitate to come and say hello if you do spot someone handing out leaflets - we don't bite, honest.