Solved, thanks!
I haven't used it yet to send out details to people but have found Mail chimp quite easy to use. You can paste some simple code onto your blog so there is a simple box for people to type their email address and the mail chimp site allows you to easily monitor who is signed up and you can easily remove people if you need -
http://mailchimp.com/
I use Mail Chimp and it's great. Just make a template once and upate it with relevant info each time you send out a newsletter.
And being on the receiving end of Mailchimp lists: they're always simple to peak through. Tordon Ljud, Scream & Writhe, etc...