Concert: Colm Wilkinson

Following a trip where my trousers zip, of all things, set off the airport metal detector (you think they might have it set a bit high?), we headed to Limerick yesterday evening, for a concert by Colm Wilkinson, in the University Concert Hall. We decided to try the new bar on campus, which does food, the Pavilion - unfortunately that didn't pan out very well. The car park for it turns out to be around the back, where the only access to the restaurant is via a rather long outside staircase, the Pavilion itself being on an upper level. There is a ground-level entrance, to changing rooms, toilets, and offices associated with the nearby sports facilities, but, rather incredibly, no access from inside to the upper level. V bad design. Given the rain that was pouring down, and the fact that, although the staircases at the front were shorter (the ground slopes and is at a higher level there), there is no parking there, we gave up on the whole thing and went to the Castletroy Park hotel instead, across the road from the university.

We have often eaten here before an event at the concert hall. The restaurant doesn't open until 6.30, but the Merry Pedler bar serves food all day, and that's where we usually go. Very dim lighting yesterday evening.. and that's not something I usually complain of! Anyway, we have often had slow service here, which is an issue, of course, if you're trying to make a show - but they do seem to have made a definite effort to improve, and indeed, a couple of ladies who came in after us and were heading to the same show were promised express service, and looked as though they were on track to make it in time. We had mains, desserts, and wine, and were out in an hour. I must also compliment them on the freshness of the food, which was excellent. All around, standards seem to have been raised.

The concert hall seemed quite packed, as is to be expected, and Colm treated us to a 2.5 hour show with a good mix of song, story, and jokes. That man has a voice of velvet caramel, delivered, when required, with the force of a cannon. Stand-outs include The Music of the Night, from Phantom of the Opera, in which he played the phantom; Halleleujah, by Leonard Cohen; and, of course, the song most associated with him - Bring Him Home, from Les Misérables, for which he dons the jacket that he wore in the stage version - the original and best Jean Valjean. This song always finishes the concerts, and we left well satisfied. And made it to the car between cloudbursts.

Will be back in London on Tuesday night, and have booked for The Amen Corner on Wednesday.