Play fair in fashion says Ali

Shoppers are used to seeing fair trade items in the supermarket and can buy them knowing that they are helping food producers get better prices for their products. But what about other items?

Ali is giving her support to the Fairtrade Foundation's Great Cotton Stitch Up which is campaigning to make fair trade cotton more widely used by fashion companies and designers in the UK, and to raise awareness of the issue.

Cotton farmers in West Africa are unable to raise their prices because they are undercut by producers in Europe and the USA who benefit from huge government subsidies. By producing fair trade cotton, the African farmers can earn more from their crops. Fair trade clothes are already available in Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, Debenhams and some supermarkets.

Ali modelled clothes from a fair trade fashion collection and was photographed by Trevor Leighton. Other celebs giving their support to the campaign were Lisa Snowdon and Mica Paris. The photos are on display at City Hall in London's South Bank for another week before going on tour.

The photo shoot was featured in the Telegraph and Mirror newspapers.

Ali to star in Agatha Christie play

Ali will star in a touring production of a play by Agatha Christie called Verdict.

The play opens at the Theatre Royal in Windsor on 11th January before going to Bath, Cheltenham, Wolverhampton before finishing at the Palace Theatre in Southend, Essex, on 12th March.

Ali is appearing in the Agatha Christie Theatre Company production with Dawn Steele from Monarch of the Glen.

Links to book tickets are on the producer's website Bill Kenright Ltd.

Brian's Beginners

Brian's DVDs are called Brian's Beginners: Latin Dance for Beginners and Brian's Beginners: Ballroom Dance for Beginners.

Brian back in Britain this week

Brian will be back in the UK this week with plans to teach in London, probably based at Karen Hardy's dance studios near Parsons Green.

He tweeted today:
Dance lessons with me are for any age and ability, individual or group, most likely at Karen Hardy's studio. Working out details x

Ali will also be involved with the dance studios, making a guest appearance at Karen Hardy's dance gala, the Crystal Ball, on Saturday 4th December in Chelsea Harbour.

Brian will also be promoting the two dance DVDs that he choreographed and filmed in September.

Brian's dance DVDs in shops in December

Two instructional DVDs choreographed by Brian for dance beginners - one ballroom, one Latin - are currently in post-production following filming at Kingswood Studios, near Bristol, in September.

The DVDs should be available to buy in December and feature dancers from Dance Factory in Bristol.

Photo courtesy of Bristol Film Studios - other pictures from the filming of the DVDs are on its website.