NEW  London's METRO newspaper ran the story a story of a belly dancer whose snake helped her escape a parking fine:  "A belly dancer was let off after parking on a double yellow line with her engine running to keep her snakes warm.  She said she had to keep them cosy so they would not fall asleep before she took them on stage for her act.  The woman, from London, claimed it was a genuine excuse for parking illegally outside the venue as she unloaded her gear.  Caroline Shepherd, head of the National Parking Adjudication Service, told the story on Nicky Campbell's Radio Five Live as a new parking fines system came into force."  The story then ran in national newspaper THE MIRROR & journals from as far as afield as the US & Pakistan (as well as in specialist reptile publications), on April Fool's Day 2008 ...

NEW - BROADCAST (weekly magazine for the TV & radio industry) article 'Nuts shoots on mobile phones' (February 2008) - "Multiplatform producer Hub TV is shooting 30 x 2-minute mobisodes of The Belly Dancing Mobi-Diaries, which will follow a troupe of belly dancers over 10 weeks.  A 3-person crew will film the Belly Dance All-Stars as they audition a new member, try new routines, source costumes & head out on the road ... [T]he format was an experimental way of offering a warts-and-all look at its subject."  Footage will be aired on lads mag channel Nuts TV which carries such video gems as 'Sexercise' & 'Nuts Babe Search' ...

COMING SOON! SUNDAY EXPRESS (March 2008) profile of London belly dancers Tara & Shafeek Ibrahim ... 

The DAILY MAIL's 'Must try' section (December 2007) recommended belly dance classes - "Pole dancing is so 2007, it's all about belly dancing in 2008.  Not only will it get you get fitter, but it's a lot more fun than slogging it out on the treadmill.  Mia Serra, who has taught belly dancing for 10 years, has come up with a unique technique that blends traditional moves with Pilates & hip hop ..."

THE TIMES NEWSPAPER (December 2007) - Article entitled Ambassador’s belly dancer stages her life - "The belly dancing mistress of Britain’s controversial former ambassador to Uzbekistan is to perform her life story on the London stage in an attempt to change her image.  The British Ambassador’s Belly Dancer, which opens in January at the Arcola theatre in Hackney, tells the story of Nadira Alieva, the Uzbek dancer who captured the heart of Craig Murray, causing him to leave his wife and two children ..."

THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER (STUDENT CAREERS SECTION) (November 2007) - Feature entitled I want your job: belly dancer - "Fleur Estelle, 22, a professional belly dancer based in central London, says: 'I perform Middle Eastern dance at charity parties, corporate events, weddings & birthdays. My role is to entertain people & help them celebrate the occasion by getting them up & dancing.  I also teach people how to belly dance, from courses for absolute beginners to professional-level workshops, & I run my own business' ..."

SHARQ MAGAZINE - Article entitled Shake Off Your Inhibitions - a look at the belly-dancing scene in the UK" (above right) - "It's Monday & Maie, an attractive Egyptian in her late twenties, is in quite a rush as she gets home from her London office.  She has to get ready for her belly dancing class in less than an hour &, for her, this is a joy in itself.  Ironically, she got into her culture's typical dance form when she moved to the UK ..." 

THE TIMES NEWSPAPER (October 2006) - A A Gill's review of Pasha restaurant & its belly dancers -  "... Pasha has had a makeover, but still looks like a student’s exotic shag pad.  There was what sounded like Egyptian pop music playing too insistently.  The food really isn’t very good.  The saving grace of the evening was the belly dancers. One lady in particular could manoeuvre her breasts individually in an alarmingly compulsive manner. They would jump about in her bra like lemmings in blancmange ..."

THE TELEGRAPH NEWSPAPER (June 2001) - bizarre title, bizarre story: Belly dancers fear that Iraqi plot will ruin work in Britain - "Britain's belly dancers have reacted angrily to revelations that Saddam Hussein has been training female agents in the guise of exotic performers to target Iraqi dissidents in London, claiming that this will undermine their business ..."