As I looked for something to do last night, a free comedy night in Hammersmith featured prominently - mainly because it was another of these events that was advertised several times on Meetup. I booked with London Live Comedy - but it was also advertised with Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith, Wimbledon and Farringdon; I'm not a member, don't live there, and didn't bother joining them. Meetup can be funny with its notifications - I also see today that, apparently, Random London had advertised it! As did London Art, Comedy & Culture Lovers. And then there's London for a Tenner or Less, one of Funzing's three Meetup groups (that I know of). Just like the gig last week at the same venue, they actually advertised it twice.. Funny thing about them, every Funzing event I've gone to via Meetup has been removed from their Meetup groups' calendars after the event. Last night, I said I'd try not signing up with them, see what happened.
I looked into driving, and was delighted to see that the route from where I live is actually quite easy! Onto the A3205, left onto Battersea Bridge, left on the other side, and straight through to Shepherds Bush. Left there, second left onto Hammersmith Grove.. ah, now there was a problem. The turn just isn't conspicuous enough - I'm unfamiliar with the area, and could easily see myself getting lost: and my phone battery is unreliable, so I wouldn't have that to help me. Ah well..
I was back early enough to take the bus. Our driver seemed in a hurry, and got us to Hammersmith nice and fast - and I arrived at The Grove about 10 minutes before start time. Ordered a drink, and ran into someone from Let's Do London - for less!, who'd said she might come - and duly did. Cool - we took our drinks upstairs.
It was a bit more crowded this time, and this time I actually met some other Meetup folks. There was a different host this time.. first up was Zahra Barri, whom I'd seen a video of on the Meetup page. She's half Muslim, and as it happened, there was a vocal, Muslim, Iraqi woman in the audience, who was also a lecturer in feminism (or some such). Talk about audience interaction - they must have spent half her set debating the role of women in Islam! (which was a lot funnier than it sounds..).
The "Music" in the title was provided by a hilarious duo called Hurt & Anderson, who came on in jeans and black t-shirts (one read "Hurt", the other "Anderson") and gave us a reworked musical medly. One on the guitar, both singing, they take popular songs and redo the lyrics. Fantastic stuff, and we gave them a rousing round of applause.
There was a wide variety on the lineup, some better than others, and culminating in the excellent Ria Lina. Effortlessly funny, she tried out some new material on us, and sent us out on a high. Some stayed for drinks after, but we two didn't really feel like it, and made our way home - Google Maps hadn't been very informative about which bus stop I needed, so I'd had to look it up. Turned out we both needed Bus Stop C. And so home - already past my bedtime, seeing as I'm in Guildford today: so too late to blog. Oh, and interestingly, today I see that London for a Tenner or Less has removed that event (both instances) from their Meetup calendar, even though I didn't book with them. Wonder whether they read my blog, and knew I was coming?!
Just back from lunch - a free one, with a team I just joined, and specifically to welcome an intern. And we were in the Bench Bar - a new venue for me, up the hill from work. A bit of a hike, but I could do with it - and we were just in time to miss the torrential rain that fell during lunch. We ordered at the bar, putting it all on the team tab, and while a couple had beer, I figured wine might be pushing it, so had a soft drink instead. And chicken and bacon linguini - since I don't have time for dinner tonight, pasta seemed a good idea.
We sat under the main bank of televisions, one of which was showing David Cameron's last PM Questions. And we could hear every word, after a couple of old gents, sat at the next table down, asked the staff to turn it up. Well, they were engrossed, I'm happy to say. And the staff did turn the volume back down when it was over. And it was something to listen to, during our interminable wait.. honestly, they take even longer than Heart and Soul! Whatever is it about eateries around here?! Well, when it finally came, it was absolutely delicious, as was the large piece of garlic bread that accompanied it. Mind you, I should have ordered the smaller portion - I couldn't finish what I had. Back to the office was downhill, thankfully, and again, we just missed some torrential rain.
Now, tonight I was supposed to go to a travel talk on Japan, hosted by The Roads Less Travelled: Ekzotic Adventures Travel Club. But wouldn't you know it, it proved so popular that they had to book a bigger venue, which wasn't available tonight. So they rescheduled, and I can't make the second date. Never mind, it was free anyway. Looking at what else was on, I checked out a World Music Meetup called The Girl with the Almond Eyes, happening in Sands Film Studios - a venue I love. Wouldn't you know it - not just a concert, this is an evening of music and poetry from the Mediterranean and Middle East. Sounds fabulous! I hadn't realised this before, or I'd have booked it straight away - well, I have now. Looking forward to that.
Tomorrow, 'tis back with the Man with the Hat - London for Less than a Tenner this time (the similarity in names to the aforementioned group has caused me some confusion). He's headed to an reputedly charming pub (well, it has booths), for yet more comedy.. A new venue for me, and (shockingly) he's wearing a.. GREEN hat! Oh I know, it must be a nod to the strong Irish community in Islington..
Back to Ireland for the weekend, and back to the Man with the Hat again on Monday, when we're off to an award-winning play called Fury, in Soho Theatre.
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