Comedy: Lazy Bastard

For today, I got a free ticket for David McSavage's new show, Lazy Bastard, at the Top Secret Comedy Club. Mid-afternoon, so I had plenty of time for brunch, plenty of time to walk down there. No really, I was actually in plenty of time for once! Had my ticket checked at the door - and wouldn't you know it, they've opened a new, ground-level performance space - straight in, rather than going downstairs. As I made my way in, David McSavage - who has a habit of hanging around his audience - was busily insulting the guy behind the desk (as he does), whom he accused of wearing an upside-down cross. (It wasn't, it was the Mjölnir.) He was giving as good as he got - I left before it got.. interesting. Got a drink at the bar - I keep forgetting how deliciously cheap it is here. And took one of the few remaining seats - the free tickets did draw a crowd!

In due course, he showed up, with a guitar and a notebook. As he was at pains to explain to us, this was a "new material" show. As became obvious, he hadn't really done his homework. Well, that or he wasn't terribly interested. But you know the title of the show, so..

For an hour, he kind of meandered through some material, checking whether it landed. I suspect there was a process behind it, but he certainly didn't give that impression. Thing about it is, he's a funny guy to be around - just don't go in with any prejudices, like an objection to swearing.. or talking about sex.. or wokeness.. or, um, anything.. politicians also got a drubbing (he comes from a political family, you know; I can just imagine what his family gatherings are like). And yes, he can play the guitar - he just didn't do much of it. Yeah, as I say, just don't expect anything from him and you won't be disappointed. Of course, as he repeatedly pointed out, we were getting this for free.. But don't get me wrong, he is a naturally entertaining bloke, and we did enjoy ourselves. In a very unstructured way. Certainly, I'll come to his show again..

For dinner, I decided to try The Plough, where I've drunk before, but not eaten, and which is a Greene King pub. I got the last, unreserved table - and they'd sold out of Sunday roasts, so I opted for my usual steak and ale pie. Which went down even better than usual - once I navigated the roasting hot metal sauce pan, which had obviously been heated along with everything else.. Good atmosphere, even with everyone watching the football, which was turned up for the benefit of punters. And their tips jar encouraged those who were feeling "tipsy"..!

Man, what a lovely, relaxing day - I needed that.

Tomorrow - well, there's a ton of stuff on Meetup! I finally decided that the most attractive thing was the Vintage Soho guided walk with Barrie, again with the 45+s (it's a bank holiday, you see). As with so many of his walks, however, tickets are also available with TAC - and even though I still have to pay him £5 cash on the day, it represents a saving!

On Tuesday, I was thinking film again - but another late listing has the World Music Meetup (WMM) advertising Sounds of Sudan, at St. Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation and Peace. At a time when Sudan is in the news for all the wrong reasons, this sounds a lovely concert by Sudanese artist Mo Sarrar. So now I'm going to that.

On Wednesday, again, loads of stuff on Meetup - but two of my groups are running events that would interest me, but are sold out. The Horror Book Club, meantime, is reading The Yellow Wallpaper - a novella that I found on Kindle, and downloaded a free sample for. Mind you, it came as part of a collection.. and is so short that its entirety was included in the free sample! so I read the whole thing in half an hour. How different from our last assignment.. I wasn't that keen on it - although the ending is good. So I'll probably head to yet another film that night. That blasted film listings site still has, as of now, partial listings up for it. So - subject to change, as so many films are listed with the caveat "no information available at the moment" - Wednesday's film is looking like How to Blow Up a Pipeline, the fictional account of climate activists attacking a pipeline in Texas. Showing in my local cinema - not that the listings site let me in on that secret, but from experience, I tried the cinema website myself directly..

On Thursday, I booked a livestream from the Crick Crack Club, from the Story Museum Oxford. This is King Lear Retold. However, these tend to be available for a week after - so I've taken the opportunity, also, to book another concert with the WMM! This is La Chinganera, in the Finnish Church - and the concerts organised by Eleanor Salter Thorn of TunedIn London are always good!

Then back to Ireland for the coronation weekend..

Top Secret Comedy Club

Tonight, I was supposed to be with a new group - Shanty Singers Colliers Wood - who seem to exist to advertise free shanty singing concerts. Tonight, it was in The William Morris. But then I got an email from the Top Secret Comedy Club (TSCC), advertising tonight's bill - headlined by David McSavage! Hmm.. David McSavage, versus a trip all the way to Wimbledon on what turned out to be a drizzly night, in the end. I love David McSavage. There was no contest. I hadn't had to pay for the shanty singing anyway.

Now, the TSCC is quite close to where I was last night - so there was no way I was trying my luck at finding food around there. No, I'd be passing Gourmet Burger Kitchen, that wouldn't be full - and it'd do fine! Sure enough, I got seated no problem. Sure enough, they were out of onion rings again - I had French fries instead, and they were gorgeous! One of the servers recognised me from Tuesday, too. And I was done in time to walk the rest of the way to the TSCC. A nostalgic walk, taking me past the last real-life office I had.. As I approached the TSCC, I was unnerved to see a large queue: but this turned out to be for a restaurant nearby - Kangnam Pocha. Korean, it seems.. Gee, I guess they don't take reservations?

Less of a queue at TSCC, where our tickets were scanned and we got wrist stamps. Wow, it's a long time since I was last here - just over a year, in fact. And it was for him, again! I got to talk to him on that occasion - not tonight, though. But man, when the owner claims to have the cheapest drinks in the West End, he's not kidding! I guess the last time I paid so little for a glass of wine was when I was last here.. entering the show area, it was already packed. I didn't fancy squeezing past anyone to get to a seat, so when I saw a couple of free seats on the aisle, side-on to the stage, I grabbed one. Not too close to the stage, I hasten to add! I'm not completely crazy..

There were five performers - we started with Carl Donnelly, who gave us an entertaining account of travelling across London on TFL. He was followed, after a break, by Michelle de Swarte (somewhat crazy) and Ivo Graham (somewhat public school), then another break, and we had Ismael Loutfi, whose MO seemed to be to bait us with racial gags, then give us a beaming smile so we'd forgive him. The owner was MCing, as usual - he begged us to try out the toilets, which he said he'd renovated over lockdown - but just as entertaining as anyone on stage were the audience members to either side of it. On one side was a police officer (cue any number of jokes about the police), on the other - where I couldn't see - apparently a middle-aged Indian man and two younger Indian ladies. Who turned out to be his nieces, after much fun being had at his expense! Indeed, the young ladies seemed most keen to play their part, heckling constantly..

And so to the headliner, who came on wrapped in a scarf and brandishing a guitar. He hadn't apparently witnessed any of the banter with the audience, but the young Indian ladies were delighted to enlighten him! Naturally though, McSavage by name, savage by nature, as he tore through the audience. Watching David McSavage, it helps to be a masochist. But my, he has a wicked eye for observation.. as they say, it's funny 'coz it's true. No sacred cows here - prepare to feel insulted.

In fact, it wasn't a show for the fainthearted, with Ismael's racial jokes, Ivo banging on about drugs, and David McSavage on - everything. Not to mention the MC, who had a protracted gag about abortion. Definitely a venue for the sturdier comedy fan. The audience was well up for it though, tankards of beer passing by aplenty, pairs of audience members sharing bottles of wine. The MC, at the end, promised a free shot to anyone who gave the club a five-star review on Google.. Yeah, a good night! Caveat emptor, though. Oh, and I was delighted to get home before the rain turned really heavy..

Tomorrow, I've finally booked for The Sex Party, at the Menier Chocolate Factory. My goodness, it's so long since I was last there, I couldn't remember my username, and had to ring them! (CT were advertising cheap tickets, but had sold out.)

On Saturday, back with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners, yay! This time, it's The Mysterious Square Mile Walking Tour.. lunch afterwards, natch.

On Sunday, headed with Cultureseekers (CS) to the "Executions" exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands. Should be nicely atmospheric. The organiser was just in touch, encouraging me to take out full membership, as I'd been to so many events, and could get a discount. Yeah, but most of them were during lockdown, and were free! I don't think it'd be worth my while - I don't go to nearly as many events with this group now.

On Monday, Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) are headed to Mandela, a musical at the Young Vic. Unfortunately, I was way too late for a cheap ticket - but then I noticed that someone attending couldn't make it, and had advertised two tickets for anyone who wanted - much cheaper than what I could get elsewhere. Front row, too! One ticket had gone - I messaged her, and yay, I got the other! Well, they won't email it to her until a couple of days beforehand, at which point I'll actually get it..

On Tuesday, thinking film again - the listings site is being typically slow, but has some info for next week. But given my experience on Tuesday - when it hadn't even included listings for my local cinema - I checked what was on there on Tuesday next week as well. And lo, I came up with some not yet listed at all on the listings site.. highest rated is a documentary - Crows are White tells the story of a rather unusual Buddhist monk, who'd rather listen to heavy metal than birdsong..

On Wednesday, heading to Comedy in your Eye, at the Camden Eye. Tickets from Design my Night, including a free drink.

On Thursday - my first Crick Crack Club (CCC) event of the year! Online, but never mind - it's Nick Hennessy, at the Story Museum, performing The Kalevala. I think I remember hearing that he's the only non-Finnish person ever to win their competition to recite this! So, really looking forward to it. Then, of course, I'm back to Ireland for the weekend..

On the 16th, back with UITCS for The Art of Illusion, at Hampstead Theatre. Award-winning, it seems..

On the 17th, I'm headed to Chicago Blues Explosion in the January Blues Festival at the 100 Club. Just a shame their early bird tickets were sold out.

On the 18th, with TAC for a classical concert at King's Place (nice and close). This is the Kirckman Society for young artists, presenting Connaught Brass.

On the 19th, Ken's Green Walks for Health (aka Ken's Events, to those of us who know it from before) is off to see the Winter Lights at Canary Wharf. Now, I wouldn't go with them in a fit - but there's nothing to stop me seeing the lights myself for free, eh? I don't see the point in paying Ken £5 to lead a group around..

On the 20th (a Friday, unusually), back with Watkin's Bookshop for a book launch. This is Fifty Forgotten Books by R. B. Russell. Occult theme, as usual. Let's see whether I can avoid falling asleep this time!

On the 21st, back at King's Place - this time it's the CCC, with Stories in the Dark. Told in darkness, by the sound of it - sounds divine!

On the 22nd, back with CS for the Hieroglyphs: Unlocking Ancient Egypt exhibition at the British Museum. Assuming it's not curtailed due to transport strikes - there is a warning on the museum website that galleries might have to close early!

And on the 23rd, I've finally booked for Best of Enemies at the Noel Coward Theatre. This play concerns a series of debates on US television between liberal writer Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley in 1968 - the interesting twist here, given the time and place we're talking about, is to cast William Buckley as black! Had my own seat review on Seatplan to guide me in picking a seat - this is one of those restricted view/legroom theatres. And despite all the theatre offers flooding my inbox, I found the cheapest tickets for this on the official website!

Comedy: David McSavage, Immigrant Comedy, & Film: Caught in the Net

On Saturday, I got an email from the Top Secret Comedy Club - advertising limited, £8 tickets for a David McSavage show yesterday afternoon. Woo, I love that guy! So I booked - jeez, hadn't been there since the heady days of the Man with the Hat..

For brunch yesterday, I fancied something different. Now, Liverpool Street Station is pretty bereft of eateries these days - but I had noticed something called Eataly, just to the side of the entrance. You couldn't miss it, in fact, bedecked in Christmas finery as it is! Well, Italian, I supposed - so I said that'd surely be OK, and I'd try it.

OMG I had no idea what I was to encounter! Firstly, it's massive - spread over two floors, and extending at least the width of two buildings, it has food markets (Italian, of course) both upstairs and down - and the pick n mix downstairs is truly like Santa's Grotto. I wandered through the whole place, mouth agape. You can actually buy takeaway food at the counters too, and signs advertise that they "cook what [they] sell, and sell what [they] cook"!

Now, I was there for a sit-down meal.. they have no fewer than three restaurants. The ground floor has a spectacular cafe, scrumptious cakes as far as the eye can see - the more substantial fare is to be found upstairs, with a restaurant at either end. They have a pasta / pizza restaurant, of course - and at the station end, a grill restaurant called Terra, which was what I plumped for in the end. She was kind enough to give me a quick look at the menu before I decided, and when I said yes, I was quickly shown to a seat.

Longest Italian wine list in London, apparently. I panicked for a minute, thinking they didn't do wine by the glass - turns out that list is there, although more restrictive; just look for the "Be quick, drink wine" page! I had a Pinot Grigio. And then another. It was damn good. Service throughout was flawless - I haven't seen better.

I skipped a starter, and went straight for the main - first steak I've had in ages, which came with (properly triple-cooked) potatoes on a wooden platter, on a trolley. The server gave me the choice of having it on a plate instead, which she assured me was warm, and is what I opted for - so she happily switched everything over for me. Sauce is always served on the side, here. Not that I really needed it, with steak this good - it was served in slices, strewn with rock salt.. and just perfect.

They don't have a huge dessert menu, as it happens - mostly panettone, which seems to be a house specialty. I had the gianduja panettone, which comes with optional sauce, as do they all - so I had the chocolate sauce. It was nice, but I'm not sure I'd choose it again - it's quite substantial, after a main meal!

Throughout, my every need was anticipated. The waiting staff were attentive and friendly - and the bill, at the end, was served to me in a teeny little envelope. :-) I'm looking forward to going back there again - but it won't become a habit. More suited to a treat, given the bill total! But well worth the visit.

And so, off in the cold to Top Secret. As it happened, when I tried the door, it was still locked - and who but David McSavage himself should open it for me! He was perched on a stool when I got down to the performance area, and we had a merry old chat, mainly about Covid. And how underdressed he was, having come straight over from Dublin, where it was apparently warmer. And how the silver lining about the terrible weather was how it had forced the cancellation of I'm a Celebrity.. ;-) So, if you hear him come out with that in a future show, you know where it came from!

Well, he was worried about a low turnout, but by showtime the place was full. And once he removed his cap - we could see he'd gone blonde! Yuck. Ah well, anyway. So, this was just an hour-long taster show that he threw in, perched on another stool, plucking at a guitar. Seemingly unrehearsed. As he said, other comedians appear unrehearsed, but are faking it and their seeming unpreparedness is actually very well-rehearsed indeed. Not him though - he just hasn't rehearsed. And indeed, this is what it looked like - he tried a few jokes on us, but mainly rambled on for an hour or so. In a very funny manner. Being a surreally funny bloke. I do think it helped that by far the majority of the crowd seemed to be Irish, and therefore knew what to expect.. Anyway, I loved it, always love this guy.

And then I was back in the freezing cold again, back with London European Club - we were off to Immigrant Comedy (standup comedy in English) at the Camden Comedy Club. Tickets from Eventbrite.. two shows, we were going to the later one. So, a Day of Comedy, indeed! Well, I had a variety of bus options - one was direct, so I waited for that, shivering. And it dropped me just a short walk away from The Camden Head, which as it turns out has the Comedy Club above it. Now, I have been here before - years ago! With the - now apparently, sadly, defunct - London Literary Walks. Mind you, that was in daylight, and I didn't remember the place!

I tell you this though, based on this trip, I won't forget it in a hurry - first pub I've ever been to that had NO white wine at all! I didn't feel like red - ironically, as that was the colour of my outfit - so that was that! (At least I'd had a glass at Top Secret.) In due course, I did at least find a table.. the others arrived eventually, and we started to chat, and that was fine - although while I was waiting, a lovely little old gent did offer to buy me a drink: not, as he said, in an attempt to pick me up, but just because I was alone, and drinkless. Aww.

Meantime, my phone battery was rapidly running down - something of a worry, as my ticket was on it. Never fear, here they had a list - checked off by the MC, who turned out to be the excellent Radu Isac! The acts themselves.. rather less excellent, I'm afraid, although hey, they tried! This was a night of immigrant comedy - mind you, the first up had a distinctly local accent! (but Polish parents, as he explained). We had Israeli, Serbian.. I thought the most natural of the night were the Italian and the Russian / Ukranian - although the latter did focus particularly on one of our group, which might have been uncomfortable. Ah well, if you will sit in the front row.. Most of the audience were foreign too, with a particularly high Bulgarian contingent! Well, not as polished a show as David McSavage's, but you have to start somewhere..

Afterwards, with my phone dead, I gave up on buses and followed my companions in the direction of the Tube, which at least got me home faster. Not in time to blog though, given how early a start I have on Mondays! Now, this evening was - of course - destined for film.. as usual on Mondays these days, with not so much on Meetup! Well, once I'd eliminated a couple of Indian films I'm just not interested in, top of the list came out to be Caught in the Net, a documentary from Prague about an experiment that was conducted, involving three young (but grown-up) actresses who could pass for children, and were hired to impersonate 12-year-olds online, and see what happened. Only showing in the Picturehouses, and I was originally going to see it in Picturehouse Central, until I discovered it had been cancelled there, for some reason!

Well, next closest was Hackney Picturehouse. I tried to use a Tesco voucher to book - wouldn't take it, for some reason, but at least I got the voucher converted! (It was due to expire tomorrow.) Another of those places I'd been to before, but completely forgotten. Anyway, again I got a single bus there - and did wonder whether I'd be late, given the stop-start traffic. Well, I made it just in time! and then had to figure out where the entrance was. No, not under where it says "Cinema", you actually enter where it says "Kitchen" - and I was glad it was in Screen 5, as that's the only one I could see signs for! So, upstairs, and into a pretty empty screen - it did fill up a little. Nice, soft pullman seats, as always in Picturehouses.

I was just in time - didn't even have time to log into their WiFi. Now, we all know pretty much what to expect from the topic of this film - perhaps what is most astonishing is its predictability. Within five minutes of creating a fake profile for a 12-year-old girl, it had 16 messages - and over the three months of the experiment, the girls were contacted by nearly 2500 different men, generally middle-aged. And generally fond of showing off their body parts. And very persistent about asking the girls to do things they weren't comfortable with. The rules of the experiment were carefully explained - they weren't to lead anyone on in any way, weren't to be flirty. Psychologists and a lawyer were always present on set - they actually built three bedrooms, using the girls' personal possessions, side-by-side, each complete with laptop and mobile phone.

Probably the stand-out moment of the film is the Skype call that one gets from a bloke that's so nice, so normal, that she breaks down in tears. He's the only one whose face is shown. And towards the end, they confront one of the prime offenders - they've concentrated on just a few, and this is one that the makeup artist on set recognised as someone who organises camp trips for children! He's utterly unapologetic, I might add. The closing captions explain that the police later seized the recordings to form the basis of criminal prosecutions - you can't go propositioning 12-year-olds, you know! Ugh, dreadful stuff - as one of the girls remarked, she had nightmares for weeks after.

I had fun on the way home - had to change buses, and Google Maps had me changing from one to another at the same stop! And there I was, getting all annoyed at the driver, because I could see my second bus, at the stop where he was also supposed to let me off! But eh, no - his stop is around the corner - silly Google Maps. At least I didn't have to wait long for the next.

Now, this was the last depressing evening this week. Tomorrow, back to comedy - one of my cheap clubs (CT) sold me a ticket for Mic Check at 2Northdown. (And sent me a dire warning today that late cancellation, or a no-show, would result in my account being blocked. No exceptions.) Gee, if they didn't have such cheap tickets..

On Wednesday, I booked A Medieval Ghost Story with the Surrey History Meetup, on Teams this time. Tickets from Eventbrite, free when I booked, at least! But you know, they'll probably record it. I hope so, because in the meantime, Invigorate came back with another pub crawl! (AKA Tour of Historic Pubs.) Much closer together this time, thankfully, and all in Southwark, so convenient for me! So I'm going on that, now.

On Thursday, I'm making what used to be my annual pilgrimage to Winter Wonderland! Whee! Particularly as, to get an evening ticket, I had to book three weeks in advance - to combat Covid, they're restricting numbers, and of course, evenings are the hardest to get. Not to mention that they're now charging an entry fee - but that is waived if you book at least £20 of attractions, food or drink in the same transaction. Which I always do - the Cirque Berserk and Magical Ice Kingdom. Looking forward to that hot chocolate with the shot in it already..

And then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend.

Top Secret Comedy Club

Ah now, it was great to be back last night with the Man with the Hat - truly, the rock on which I build my social life.. and Top Secret always turns out a good night. Shortly before the event, he contacted London for Less than a Tenner to say that there was an early, free show at 7, as well, which hadn't been previously scheduled - ah cool, as I remarked, easier to get to the bar at that time!

So off I schlepped, stopping on the way to get cash from from the handily located ATM on Short's Gardens - Top Secret charge for card payments under a certain amount. As I turned into Drury Lane, I gave a small start - with no scaffolding around the entrance any more, I hardly recognised Top Secret! Anyway, got my hand stamped - the poor guy on reception seemed new, and it took him a moment to locate the list of Meetup participants - got my drink, had a wee chat with the Man with the Hat, got a seat in the third row.

Oh my God, it was good to be with friendly faces again! I missed them, y'know.. Anyway, the place really filled up for this first show, with Luisa Omeilan - as the MC was careful to point out in his introduction, we were the placenta (!) for the embryo of her show for Edinburgh. I've never seen her for such an extended show before - and whoo, it's exhausting! Now, the girl is hilarious - and clever - but it's actually dizzying to see her in action. This new show is to be based on politics - if she can figure out a way to make it funny. Jeez, I'd love to see the finished article - and hope she manages it, that would be a great combo! She passed around a jug for donations at the end, but it didn't come my way, or I'd have given..

And so into the show proper - there wasn't much space for latecomers, and I believe they opened the area upstairs as well. Paul Sweeney was first up - an odd fish, but he grew on me. Followed by Heidi Regan, an Aussie who read us a poem. First break saw everyone around me disappear to the bar, and stay there for the duration.. I should do that in future, apparently it's much quieter back there. Not that I'm dissing the soundtrack, which is excellent - just quite loud. Louder still as they replaced one of the speakers to the side, and were trying to adjust the volume..

Second section - and Luisa was back! I guess she figured her preview stint hadn't gone so well, so she reprised it in a shorter version for us now, as high-speed as ever. George Lewis finished that bit, and we had another break. And for the final section, we had Grainne (pronounced Grawnye) Maguire - really, really nervous, and maybe trying a bit hard - whose material was good, if a bit hastily delivered. The show ended with Tom Lucy. Never seen him before - and I don't know what it is, but there is something very funny about this guy. Nothing particularly striking about his material - it's all in the delivery, and it was compelling. Would love to see him again.

Afterwards, a small group of us headed up the road to the White Hart (tricky to assemble, given that they don't allow crowds to gather outside Top Secret any more) and after the Man with the Hat had performed his shepherding duties, he joined us. Where he started singing the praises of Tom Lucy.. who turned out be sitting at the table next to us! :-) And a good old chat was had, following which I strolled home.

Tonight, the Man with the Hat is back to the Opera House for the opening night of a mixed bill of ballet. As usual, he's in the slips with London for Less Than a Tenner, and in the amphitheatre with Let's Do London - for Less! This'll be the last night for a while I can walk to the venue - last night scheduled with him this month!

Tomorrow, I got a cheap ticket to a very topical version of Twelfth Night, in the Drayton Arms. Ah, I remember when I was walking distance from there..

Saturday, I'm back with Walks, Talks and Treasure Hunts for an Oliver Twist walk. Back with Hazel, excellent!

Sunday.. not a Man with the Hat event, but one he's advertised. One member of his group plays Spanish guitar, and is giving a concert that night - so I've booked a ticket. Well hey, I do love Spanish music..

Monday, I'm off to a Funzing talk on The Science of Psychedelics. Courtesy of London Speaks Sessions, LDN Talks @ Night, and London for a Tenner or Less (nothing to do with the Man with the Hat). Unless I think of something better up to 48 hours beforehand.. can cancel that far in advance without penalty.

Tuesday, I'm with London European Club (LEC) for Carradine's Cockney Singalong, at Hoxton Hall. Had some fun with this a couple of weeks ago, when I noticed another group member had confused it with something at a different venue, and thought it wasn't now happening..

Wednesday, I'm headed with LEC again - with a different organiser - to see 2 Cellos in concert in the London Palladium. Cool - never seen them before, never been there before, and I can probably walk there!

Next Thursday was another Funzing talk, with the same three groups, on The Science of Hypnosis. And then, wouldn't you know it, Henning from the LEC advertised.. Hypnosis - Altering Consciousness! With Pint of Science. (What is it about that day and hypnosis?!) Anyway, I do enjoy events with Henning, and as I say, I can cancel Funzing up to 48 hours in advance without penalty. So I did, and booked the other instead. And then it's back to Ireland for the weekend again..

Top Secret Comedy Club

The evening actually started nice and early- after another of those late meetings - with leaving drinks (no, not for me!) at Bar Soho. Never been there before, but - like so many other places - it's a hop, skip and jump from the office. 

With Happy Hour from 5 to 8 (hence half-price drinks), the clientele were as manic as the music, and it took something like forever to get served. Eventually though, we ended up at a reserved section at the back..

Mind you, with the seating spread out along the wall, it turned out to be handier just to gather in small, standing groups, and that's what we ended up doing. A good rock soundtrack entertained us until it was time for me to leave, and a 10-minute walk got me to Top Secret..

Holy Hell, a queue to get in! Now, although the show wasn't to start till 8:15, the Man with the Hat had said he'd be there from 7:30, and advised us to come early, which is what I'd done. I suppose it was about 7:40 by this time. And by the look of it, his attendees had taken him at his word - he was standing outside, and as I passed I asked him whether they were all his. To be fair, he wouldn't have known, there were so many newcomers last night.

After the obligatory pit-stop at the bar - just buying one, rather than my customary one extra for the interval, I'd drunk so much already - I ended up in the second row. And the place filled up about as quickly as I've ever seen it.. justifiably, because last night's lineup was one of the best I've seen. Francis Foster was first up, setting the stage for a very, very strong program. Leo Kearse followed, with a much stronger routine than the last time we saw him. After the break, we had Lateef Lovejoy, and a very funny Irish guy, Daniel - Brown? The final set saw Tania Edwards, with a very sharp set about marriage and motherhood - she had to rein in her comments about the Northern Irish though, as there were some at the back. And - glory be, that "ethnic guy", as he describes himself, whose name I can never get, was on last. And funny as he was, again I failed..

Feeling a bit more flush than the last time I was here, I acceded to the mc's plea for donations, and dropped a contribution in the bucket he was brandishing at the exit. Lord knows, the show was worth it. And I even gave enough to get a card, supposedly entitling me to free entry for the year. Not that that's why I did it, mind - I figure this is well worth the £1 price of admission. Caveat though - I just checked, and the card I was given expires in June! :-) So, you know, if that does matter to you, you'd better check..

Wow, afterwards we got people to go to the pub, for the first time in a while! I'm sure the milder weather has something to do with it. Anyway, a short trot got us to the White Hart, where we bagged the sofas at the back and had a good old blather, finally disgorging ourselves into the night. And a good night was had by all, I think.

Passed a guided tour on my way into work this morning. Just around the back of our building..! Goodness. Anyway, tonight the Man with the Hat s taking London for Less Than a Tenner to a concert in St. Martin's, where we have gallery seats. And he's sold out his quota, I see. And I can walk there again, happily.

Tomorrow, I was supposed to go to free comedy in Hammersmith. Courtesy of London Live Comedy, Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith Wimbledon and Farringdon, and London Art Comedy and Culture Lovers. But hey, that guide's voice must have recovered - yesterday, she advertised a Sweeney Todd tour for tomorrow evening with Walk About London - and I booked. Walks, Talks and Treasure Hunts also going.

Saturday, after lunch with Helen - somewhere around Euston - I'm back with London Dramatic Arts for a production of Hamlet, at the Almeida.

Sunday is shaping up to be a busy day. I'd booked to go to a free organ recital, with the London European Club, at the Methodist Central Hall. Then the Man with the Hat decides that would be the perfect evening to take Let's Do London - for less! to see the Pop-up Opera, with the Barber of Seville, at Charing Cross Theatre! With a 6pm start, I'll have to rush over from Westminster.. have to make my excuses to the London European Club. My, what a busy life!

Monday is the only day I have free to use my Wowcher before it expires - it's for the Magic Lantern festival.

Tuesday, unusually, London European Club is taking us to some storytelling - up in Cambridge Heath!

Wednesday, I'm headed, with LDAM, to The Cherry Orchard, at the Arcola.

Next Thursday, the Crick Crack Club is back at Crouch End, with The Fate We Bring Ourselves - finally advertised on their Meetup page! Ben Haggerty standing in for Claire Muireann Murphy, who's having a knee operation, it seems. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend.

Monday 27th, London for Less Than a Tenner is off to Two Man Show at Soho Theatre. I've seen it before, but it's worth seeing again. And so is the group!

Tuesday 28th, Let's Do London - for less! is off to Sleeping Beauty, at the Opera House.

Wednesday 1st March - well lookee that, the same group is off to Roundelay, at Southwark Playhouse. Three in a row for the Man with the Hat - we'll have to carry him off on a stretcher. About time we got back to Southwark though - we've missed it!

Thursday 2nd, I was thinking of free comedy in Hammersmith - this time with London Live Comedy, Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith Wimbledon and Farringdon, and Random London. But then Walk, Talks and Treasure Hunts (and Walking Victorian London) announced a walk called True Spy Stories! So I thought that sounded more interesting, and booked.

Friday 3rd, again, Crick Crack is telling stories - Daniel Morden and Hugh Lupton are performing Metamorphoses at Rich Mix. However, the Rich Mix website doesn't seem to have heard of this.. The independent Crick Crack Club website now has a link to buy tickets from Rich Mix though, and at the moment they're being sold at a discounted preview price. And now that the link is available, their Meetup group is advertising it too.

Saturday 4th, Let's Do London - for less! is back to see Sleeping Beauty - and so am I. Honestly, this was a mistake on my part - I was booking a lot at the time and forgot I was already going - but hell, I'd rather be doing this anyway than not. Amphiteatre, this time - it's been a while since I was there.

Sunday 5th, London for Less Than a Tenner is advertising "Soho: the Roots of the Swinging Sixties - guided walk"! Now, this confused me, before I read deeper.. I do recall the Man With the Hat saying that, while he was interested in guided walks, he wasn't interested in actually guiding them. Turns out someone else is doing the actual guiding.. Anyway, count me in.

Monday 6th, I'm off to see Russell Howard at the Albert Hall.

Tuesday 7th, jeez, the Man with the Hat is back again! Hard to keep up these days - so as of yesterday, I'm going with Let's Do London - for less! to The Diary of a Teenage Girl at Southwark Playhouse.

Wednesday 8th, I finally get to go to something with the Post-Apocalyptic Book Club - not a book discussion this time, instead they're off to a play called The Machine Stops, at Jacksons Lane Theatre. Suitably post-apocalyptic. Then I'm back to Ireland for a long weekend.

Monday 13th, I'm with LDAM at the Royal Court, for The Kid Stays in the Picture.

And to complete the tally of a month from now (!), that rescheduled talk on Brexit Vs. Trump from last Tuesday is on Tuesday 14th. Unless I decide to go to a film instead - being Funzing, I can get my money back if I cancel at least 48 hours in advance.