Last Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year, Vanity Fair, and hallelujah, someone else finally signed up.. and then cancelled that afternoon, citing a prior, urgent engagement. Well hey, wouldn't be the first time I was the only walker.. or the only walker with this group.
With another chaotic week at work, I felt guilty leaving - but left anyway. Had to travel all the way over to Kensington, so the bus was out, it'd have taken too long. Still, Tube was ok, most of w hich was on the comfy Circle line, where I also got a seat. We were to meet at the Prince of Wales, where the guide had positioned himself conveniently near the entrance - not that I managed to spot him straight away! What the hey, I abandoned him briefly to get a drink at the bar.. never mind the West End, I'm unused - these days - to Kensington prices, and frowned at having to fork over more than £8 for a glass of wine! For the amount they charge, you'd think they'd be able to afford to pay someone to mop up all the spills at the bar..
Otherwise, it's a pleasant enough place, with a slot machine that actually appears to pay out! Unheard of, in my experience. Anyway, I broke the news to him that we were the sum total of attendees, and indeed, we spent so long chatting that we ran way over our scheduled departure time. Never mind, no rush as we meandered out onto the street.
More photos here. Much of the walk was spent wandering past pleasant Georgian townhouses where famous people lived:
Oh, and the Vanity Fair connection? Thackeray, who did keep popping up. (If you look carefully at the following photo, the estate agent's is also named for him:
As usual, a bevy of artists and poets lived in the area.. at one stage or another. Not all of whom I'd heard of. For me, I think the most interesting character was Talleyrand - named in one of the above photos for having lived in that house, he was an incredibly clever diplomat, surviving several regime changes in revolutionary and post-revolutionary France.
However, the main pleasure of the walk was just to stroll the backstreets of this attractive neighbourhood, in good company. We finished the night in The Elephant & Castle, which contains a plaque apparently attributing the name to a corruption of the name of Henry VIII's first wife, Catherine of Aragón, Infanta of Castile! Oh dear, poor woman.. Anyway, a fun end to another great year of walks - a shame for all who missed it.
Last night, I was with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, originally scheduled for Theatre N16, but later moved to Ye Olde Rose & Crown. Another Tube journey, all the way to the end of the Victoria Line at Walthamstow.. stifling, but at least I got a seat on the Victoria Line. Interesting murals in this part of town:
And so to the pub - again, stifling! Lookit, I know the weather's turned colder, but is that any reason to smother us? Anyway, after much searching through the ground floor of the pub, I found the door marked "The show starts here", where a nice chap examined my ticket and stamped my wrist. No time to get a drink, I just waited and traipsed up the narrow, winding stairs when it was time.
A two-person show about relationships. The characters were called Rachel and Alex, and the audience - which about half-filled the place - were asked beforehand for interesting anecdotes about Rachels or Alexes that they knew. With a story from one woman about an Alex who used to front a band, but was now a music teacher, they had a hook to hang the plot on.
After that, the whole show was improvised - although I do think they worked to a basic pattern, with a young couple first shown on their third date, then moving in together, then cracks appearing, and finally a break-up. The only props were a couple of chairs for them to sit on when they needed, the rest mimed. And they did quite a convincing job of turning the hook into a coherent story. I guess it's just human nature that my favourite part was the fight! Most enjoyable, although with the whole theatre to pick from, I got myself stuck behind a big head..
Got the bus all the way back, from the massive station. And had an interesting walk on the final stretch through Hoxton, familiar from another London Literary Walk! Tonight, back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On Monday, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on Tuesday, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Tonight, our team was supposed to be going for drinks - cancelled last week, because of work pressure. Mind you, it worked out really well, as an old friend got in touch, and this turned out to be the most convenient gap in our schedules! So we arranged to meet Leicester-Square-ish, which is roughly equidistant for us and handy for meeteries, and when I looked up cafes nearby, what should I find but Caffè Nero in Cranbourn Street. So that was the arrangement!
He gave me an estimated time, I made my way to the bus stop in good time to make it. And promptly had to come all the way back, because I'd forgotten something! Well, when I returned to the stop, I didn't have to wait too long for my bus. And when I got to the cafe, I was the only customer - I'd figured I'd beat him to it! To be fair, he had to come further. I ordered a chocolate milano and one of those dinky little bars of gianduja they keep by the till, and took a seat at the back.
Arguably the best hot chocolate around, the chocolate milano is nice and dark, and separate from the range of hot chocolates they do. And always what I order here. Well, I had finished that, and started on my book, by the time he got there, and kindly got me a refill. Which, I swear, tasted better than the first! Really, I do think the flavour builds up - although the baristo, clearing up, was adamant that it was the company I was keeping. Which he had a good point about, as we found enough to chat about to last through to closing time, then another 90 minutes stood on the side of the road, as street sweepers and ambulances - and the odd noisy rickshaw - roared by. Ah, I miss living around there. And it was terrific to catch up - frankly, the most enjoyable evening I've had in a while. May it not be as long till the next occasion. I do hope we get to reschedule our work night out, though..
Tomorrow, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and hallelujah, someone else finally signed up!
On Thursday, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, originally scheduled for Theatre N16, but now moved to Ye Olde Rose & Crown. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On Monday, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And next Tuesday, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Jeez. Get off the plane, there's a 20-degree drop in temperature. So, today I had to dig around for warmer clothes - autumn has definitely arrived. Tonight, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
It was a manic day at work - as I said, running out the door, I was leaving before I could be given anything else to do! Taking the bus, I ran up to the door of the 205, but the driver pulled off, apparently not having seen me. Happily, a 135 was right along. With the day I'd had - and the busy weekend - I was, frankly, dreading standing in the normal crush at Wilton's - so I was delighted to receive a message that our organiser had secured a table.
Sure enough, we were sat right in front of the stage area. I've never seen the place so empty - why, it was even quick to go to the bar! Well, we chatted away until the music started, swapping stories of where we'd been and what we'd seen, as the band set up.. the band consists of two young fellows, one English, one French, the Englishman more naturally to the fore, but both on guitar. Video here.
They're undoubtedly accomplished - and alongside their flamenco-style covers of popular tunes, they played a couple of their own compositions. I'd really have liked to hear more of these, as I thought they showed great promise. Also, the earliest pieces they played seemed unfinished - but as my companion remarked, they were warming up. Sure enough, they were on fire by the end. Mind you, the highlight for me was their performance of Asturias - they are classically trained.
Tomorrow, our team was supposed to be going for drinks- cancelled last week, because of work pressure. Mind you, I might be meeting someone else that evening- watch this space!
On Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and hallelujah, someone else finally signed up!
On Thursday, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
Next Monday, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Last night, I finally fulfilled my ambition of seeing a flamenco show in Madrid - love Flamenco! La Quimera is just up the road from the hotel - show includes a meal.
I set out at 10pm for a show due to start at 10.30 - Google Maps said it would take about 17 minutes to walk. Well, I went up and down hills (very hilly country, Spain), down back streets, following the little blue dot.. finally it showed my destination to be right around the corner. And there it was. They had no record of my booking, mind- but I showed them the confirmation email, and they happily showed me to a table. Might have been a different story if there'd been more in my party .
There's a variety of menus you can choose- cheapest was the sharing menu, which I'd chosen, even though I wasn't sharing. Starter is a salad or Spanish omelette- I chose the omelette, which they halved for me. There's a long selection of main courses, from which I chose the apple and almond chicken. And a white wine.
I should probably have arrived earlier- I had time to order before the lights went down, but they brought my food in the dark! The omelette was good, but too much to finish, of course. The chicken was really tasty - even if I couldn't really see what I was eating! The wine was good too - although he forgot all about it, and was comically apologetic when I reminded him. Nice, big glass I got. I'd have asked for another, but didn't want to disturb the show, and no-one came near me once my initial order was served.
And so to the flamenco:
More photos- and videos- here. This is a really snug little place, and I tell you, I wouldn't have liked to have had a table by the stage - likely the ferocity of the performances would have sent stuff flying! Indeed, there was one point where I thought the male dancer was going to hop onto one of those tables.. he did seem to be considering it.
Power and passion- perfecto. I finally achieved my goal. At €37 for the sharing menu, with a decent size glass of wine, friendly service, and a powerful and intimate show - highly recommended! Lasts for 90 minutes. And on my way back, in the post-midnight heat, I heard fireworks- no idea why. Adiós Madrid- hope it's not as long next time! Hasta luego, U2..
I fly back, exhausted, today. With Ryanair, carefully avoiding any of their strikes. Handily, the Metro ticket machines have an "airport" option. Now in the departure lounge, in imminent need of food, and more challengingly, of a charging point for my phone. Dreading my return to a London that promises to be even colder than when I left. Tomorrow, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
On Tuesday, our team was supposed to be going for drinks- cancelled yesterday, probably because of work pressure. Mind you, I might be meeting someone else that evening- watch this space!
On Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and I'm the only one has signed up for it - tsk! Damned if I'm missing this one, though.
On Thursday, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On the 1st, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Hola! Last Spanish concert for U2 for the year last night - and I had exactly the same excellent seat as the night before. Oh, BTW, here's a picture of the venue!
Got my merchandising purchased beforehand, went straight to the correct door this time. It was quiet enough that the nice lady showed me straight to my seat. Managed to get my blog done while I waited. And it occurred to me to wonder whether others in the crowd had been the night before - they seemed to know when to start cheering. But the crowd last night was more high-octane anyway: a terrific crowd, that swept us all along in the excitement.
I'm guessing the band come out through a tunnel to the vidiwall. Anyway:
setlist
Seems Ali was in the crowd, last night- wonder how she liked it. Things I forgot to mention from Thursday: well, Larry now sports Clark Kent-style glasses! Meantime, last night they replaced Red Flag Day with All Because of You.
Other things I forgot to mention from Thursday.. you know the scraps of paper that rain on the audience at the end of that terrific video sequence for Until the End of the World? Well, Thursday was my first time actually to get some- at the 20th concert where I saw it happen! Actually, two were passed to me by people around me, bless. Got one last night too. So I can finally testify that they mainly seem to comprise pages from Alice in Wonderland - although one is torn from The Divine Comedy.
The intermission sees Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me played softly as a backdrop to a clever cartoon strip sequence that depicts our Fab Four as superheroes, at the end of which Bono achieves his transformation to Mr. McPhisto. As a knowledgeable U2 fan, it's fun to spot the in-jokes here.
I also forgot to mention that Pride is reworked as an ode to love in all its forms, as we get a video montage of all sorts of odd-looking young people. And the added extra last night was Spanish Eyes- well, they could hardly avoid it! Mind you, I think it was mostly lost on the non-English-speaking crowd. Apart from the guy at the end of my row, who was jumping out of his skin all night, bless him. Another massive fan, there.
Thursday's was awesome, last night's even better- largely due to the extra energy funnelling from the audience. Back in the day, they'd have built that into a phenomenal show- these days, it tends to get dampened down during the video sequences. But hey, they have different priorities now.
I'm staying for the weekend - it makes a change from Barcelona, which is great, but I've been so often before - and having been to Madrid before and seen most of the city sights, I always wanted to go to El Escorial. Well, I did this morning.. way too early, ugh! English-language tour, with Ticketbar.
Dragged myself out of bed- good thing I set the alarm! Google Maps told me to get a direct Metro from Goya - unfortunately, Goya has so many entrances that I just got confused, then had an argument with the ticket machine. So I missed my train. Happily, it didn't take long, and I wasn't that much later than specified on the ticket. Bless Google Maps in the old town though, where street signs are rare and I wouldn't have had a clue what direction to head in but for the little blue dot..
More photos here. The ticket said something about checking in, so I asked at the desk ofJulià Tours, where they gave me a colour-coded ticket, and I joined the waiting crowd outside. Not all of whom turned out to be on our tour, so the colour-coding was a good plan.
About five minutes late, our guide appeared, to muster us and lead us all the way to the underground car park at the Zarzuela Palace. On the bus, we were given what turned out to be electronic receivers, with earpieces, so we could hear her when she spoke into a mic - good idea. And the trip to El Escorial took about 45 minutes, during which I really wanted to go to sleep..
It's in the mountains that ring Madrid- do you know, it's at about the same height as Carrauntoohil, the highest mountain in Ireland! Carved out of granite- wears well, but I'm surprised it only took them 21 years! A combined monastery and palace, it was the vision of Philip II, so we heard a lot about him.
Parts are still a monastery, and private- but you can catch a glimpse of the spectacular art collection that he and his father began. And we saw fascinating royal tombs. Unfortunately- as usual- NO PHOTOS INSIDE! Not even of the ornamental gardens, which we only saw from the windows. Most frustrating. Also be warned- the place is full of staircases, so a lot of climbing is involved.
On, finally, to the Valle de los Caídos - Valley of the Fallen. Just down the road from El Escorial, this enormous cross, visible for miles, was built by Franco to commemorate the dead of the Civil War. He also tunnelled a huge church underneath, longer than St. Peter's, but as it was longer than St. Peter's, it couldn't be consecrated! So he only has the back bit consecrated.
Building started in 1941, and it's a spectacularly showy example of the architecture of the time. A grand front patio has incredible views of the valley:
Again, NO PHOTOS INSIDE! Not that everyone was obeying that rule, but as a tour group member, I felt a certain obligation. Anyway, there's a tiny gift shop at the entrance to the tunnel, where you can buy guides to both here and El Escorial; weirdly, the only gift shop I saw in El Escorial was in the middle of the building! And these guide books do have a reasonably representative selection of photos. So you, too, can peruse pictures of the Lord of the Rings-style statues in the Basilica!
Wrecked by the time I got back, I had a lazy afternoon. Tonight, I'm finally fulfilling my ambition of seeing a flamenco show in Madrid - love Flamenco! La Quimera is just up the road from the hotel - show includes a meal. For which reason I passed on a couple of nice-looking restaurants earlier, so I hope it's worth it!
I fly back, exhausted, tomorrow. With Ryanair, carefully avoiding any of their strikes. On Monday, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
On Tuesday, our team was supposed to be going for drinks- cancelled yesterday, probably because of work pressure. Mind you, I might be meeting someone else that evening- watch this space!
On Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and I'm the only one has signed up for it - tsk! Damned if I'm missing this one, though.
On Thursday, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On the 1st, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
So yesterday.. I had to get to Heathrow.. to fly to Madrid.. for my first U2 concert of the year, that evening..! I'd bought a pocket guidebook (and a Kindle version), sourced a continental adaptor. Found a couple of t-shirts.. even managed to find travel miniatures in Boots as I was leaving the cinema, on Wednesday night!
As usual, had trouble with BA's online check-in.. I had done everything I could think of to complete it, but just as well I checked that night, because it was of the opinion that I hadn't finished! Oh, and the app was, as ever, useless.. couldn't determine one way or the other whether I'd checked in at all.. so I couldn't get a useful version of the boarding pass on my phone and would have to print it out at the airport..
Managed to get up in time: had a very, very long Tube journey, during which I dozed off. The kiosk was, of course, most perturbed that I wanted to print my boarding pass. Since I'd apparently already done so! Bloody BA - more trouble than they're worth. At least they have a standard policy of checking in hand luggage now.. and the luggage tag comes out automatically sticky, which avoids the faff they had before, of peeling off one bit, then another, having to follow numbered instructions as though assembling furniture!
We were on one of the large planes, with individual screens - sadly, it was explained to us that as this was intra-EU, there would be no entertainment. Seat was comfy though, and I slept for most of the flight, apart from the takeoff and landing, which were the bumpiest I've had in years! A guy a few rows in front of me had to ask for a sick bag..
And so to Madrid, with a panoramic view of mountains as we came in to land. Highest capital city in Europe, it seems! You could feel the heat straight away, getting off the plane. Hovering around 30 degrees Celsius, today and yesterday. It took another hour to get out of the airport, what with malfunctioning e-passport gates, having to take a train to get to baggage reclaim, and having another wait there. At least they tell you on a screen when the first bags are expected to arrive.
The Metro here charges by number of stops, it seems- very sensible. And so I ultimately came to O'Donnell, the nearest to my hotel. Named for the nearby street that's named for someone of Irish descent, of course. And the station has down escalators, but not up, whosever bright idea that was!
Staying in the Novotel Madrid Center, just a block away from the concerts at the Wizink Center. Olé! I was glad I'd researched online where the entrance is- from either side, you walk down the tunnel towards the car park.
Finally got checked in around 7pm. And wow, she explained that, because they were full (read overbooked), I was getting an upgrade!
Well now. My own lounge, private balcony.. Actually, I was looking online, and the regular price of this room is about €172 pn - not so much more than I'm actually paying for a basic room. But then, the regular price of a basic room is only about €90. The price I'm paying is a concert price. For once, at least, I'm getting value for money!
By the time I'd settled in and freshened up, it was after 8. Now, the concert ticket said 9pm.. so I decided I'd better head. It's literally only a hop, skip and jump away. Finding the building, however, was a lot easier than finding my seat - I had to ask five separate people, and even they didn't seem sure! My God though, the seat was worth the trouble - nearest I've been to the stage in an age!
They got the crowd going with People Have the Power in the intro, familiar to those who saw the Innocence + Experience tour. They finally took the stage at 9.30.. and I'd suspected they'd emerge from inside the vidiwall! Still don't know how they managed to get in there unseen..
setlist
Started politically, with a strong video message about state dictatorship - leading into The Blackout. And yes, when the video broke up, there they were in the wall.. Lights of Home had a beautiful display, and they returned to stage for I Will Follow. So, continuing the I+E tradition of getting us charged early!
The Ocean, rarely performed, was a lovely surprise. We then got a reprise of I+E - but out of sequence- with the Iris/Cedarwood Road/ Sunday Bloody Sunday sequence.
For Elevation, they moved to the B stage, Bono in a top hat, and it was when this segued into Vertigo that the show really took off for me. Mr. McPhisto made his reappearance at this point. I don't think I've ever heard Acrobat live before..
I never realised that Summer of Love is about refugees crossing the Mediterranean! Always too busy to think about it- well, I know better now. And the next few songs were focused on European integration, a large EU flag raised behind Bono as he decried nationalism - including from Catalonia.
Awesome concert, one of the better ones - which is saying something. Left with the last song ringing in my ears. And pretty quickly went to bed, too tired to blog.
Today, had a lazy day, and blogged slowly, forced to do so on my phone. Had a small leak in my aircon unit, which they fixed - imagine my surprise when I came downstairs to get a bite to eat and heard the sound of rushing water in the lobby. Water was pouring onto reception! Seems a theme of the day. Anyway, I ate in the hotel bar, where I had a watery wine, a decent steak - albeit accompanied by weird stuff - and a rather nice "chocolate soul", which turned out to be a mousse, covered in dark chocolate, with crunchy stuff in the middle. Now in situ, good n early, for concert #2!
I'm staying for the weekend - it makes a change from Barcelona, which is great, but I've been so often before - and having been to Madrid before and seen most of the city sights, I always wanted to go to El Escorial. Well, I am tomorrow morning.. way too early, ugh! English-language tour, with Ticketbar. And that night, I'm finally fulfilling my ambition of seeing a flamenco show in Madrid - love Flamenco! La Quimera is just up the road from the hotel - show includes a meal.
I fly back, exhausted, on Sunday. With Ryanair, carefully avoiding any of their strikes. On Monday, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
On Tuesday, our team was supposed to be going for drinks- cancelled yesterday, probably because of work pressure. Mind you, I might be meeting someone else that evening- watch this space!
On Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and I'm the only one has signed up for it - tsk! Damned if I'm missing this one, though.
On Thursday, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On the 1st, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Tonight, I was thinking film, and enthused about what was on the list - BlaKkKlansman and Searching, tying at the top. I decided I'd rather Searching, the story of a man who tries to track his missing teenage daughter's movements through her online profile, finding many surprises in the process. Very claustrophobic, all focussing on a computer screen - and wouldn't that be a busman's holiday, considering I spend my whole day doing the same! It's showing at my local cinema, but unfortunately too early, given that I had an evening meeting that I couldn't get out of. So instead, I'd have to go to the later showing at the Vue West End. What the hey, it did sound good.
Wouldn't you know it, the very most important attendee at that meeting had sent an email to say he'd be in training, and wouldn't be able to make it. With an eight-hour time difference, I got confused, and didn't realise he was talking about today..! No meeting! Naturally, off I schlepped to the Vue Islington then, for the early showing, which I could walk to, and which costs less than half the West End price. Result!
What you might not quite call a gale was definitely a strong breeze as I headed up there - but I managed, and arrived a little beforehand. Now, it's a while since I was in the Vue, and I'd forgotten that what they say on the ads is true - it is cheaper to book online. Which I did from the lobby, cheekily. Your email acts as your ticket, so that's ok - however, this is showing in Screen 10.. which turns out to be downstairs. I'd never been there before. When I got down there, it transpired that the door, which is near the main lobby door, has code access, and you have to get the code from a staff member who's verified your ticket - back upstairs. Duh. Got my email barcode scanned, got a slip of paper from them that had the code written on it. Back down again. And yes, it worked.
By 'eck, it's a comfy cinema! The showing was actually mostly booked out by the time I finally booked, and I was a little close to the screen - but the legroom is superb, and the seats are soft leather. It filled up, mostly, and there was some popcorn-rustling.. I'm happy to say that it didn't impinge on my film-watching experience at all.
Yes, it was just like being in the office - they use iPhones and Macs (is it sponsored by Apple?), and for goodness' sake, the thing is even set in San Jose! (Our West Coast office is there, too.) The entire film consists of the contents of a computer screen, which displays Gmail, Facebook, YouTube, YouCast, Twitter, and whatever else happens to be on the desktop. It's the story of John Cho, who seems to work for a software company, whose wife dies of cancer in the early part of the film, and who's become distant from his teenage daughter (her acting debut, and an excellent one!). So when she goes missing, he's not even sure who her friends really are! Quite realistically, he manages to hack her social media accounts - all he needs is to get into her email accounts first, to which the verification codes are sent, so he can reset her passwords. Debra Messing is compelling as the detective in charge of the case, once he finally decides to report her missing.
It uses some social media that I use, some I don't, and some I'd never heard of - but it's all believable. Cleverly, the story debunks the idea that Facebook friends are the same as real ones, and only by digging around on her laptop, which she's left behind, does he find clues about where he should really be looking. À la Agatha Christie, there's a hidden clue at this early point, although you'd have to be really imaginative to make anything of it - however, it is an indication of the film's attention to detail. Kudos.
I adored the twists and turns - as he uncovers more detail on her various social platforms, the story takes completely new directions - and although the various reviews are disparaging of the extreme twist at the end, I loved it! Again, it's believable, and several good stories have a twist in the tail. The observation of the story through various screen windows does put us at a remove, and I found a lack of emotional engagement - but it is a fascinating thriller, and don't give up on the story too soon - it does seek to wrongfoot the audience, and that twist is coming, believe me!
Glad to have gone to the early showing, as I have to be up fairly early tomorrow.. to get to Heathrow.. to fly to Madrid.. for my first U2 concert of the year, that evening..! I've bought a pocket guidebook (and a Kindle version), sourced a continental adaptor. I'm sure I'll find my t-shirts.. somewhere.. even managed to find travel miniatures in Boots as I was leaving the cinema, tonight! Staying in the Novotel Madrid Center, just a block away from the concerts at the Wizink Center. Olé!
Yes, concerts. I have one on Friday too. ;-)
I'm staying for the weekend - it makes a change from Barcelona, which is great, but I've been so often before - and having been to Madrid before and seen most of the city sights, I always wanted to go to El Escorial. Well, I am on Saturday morning.. way too early, ugh! English-language tour, with Ticketbar. And that night, I'm finally fulfilling my ambition of seeing a flamenco show in Madrid - love Flamenco! La Quimera is just up the road from the hotel - show includes a meal.
I fly back, exhausted, on Sunday. With Ryanair, carefully avoiding any of their strikes. On Monday, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
On Tuesday, our now-monthly writers' social event - we're just going for drinks, this time, what with work pressures.
Next Wednesday, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and I'm the only one has signed up for it - tsk! Damned if I'm missing this one, though.
On the 27th, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On the 1st, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all lanky of leg!
Tonight, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for my only Meetup this week, Pinter at the Pinter.. Pinter plays at the Pinter Theatre! Our particular combination was One for the Road / New World Order / Ashes to Ashes / Mountain Language. I bought my ticket for this one from another member who couldn't go - Ticketmaster, so hopefully there wouldn't be a problem with me picking up the ticket. To that end, I decided to print out the booking confirmation email she'd forwarded me - minus any mention of my name! Of course, there were issues with cropping it, issues with resizing it, issues even with printing it.. all duly sorted, and off I went, things having finished in the office early enough that I could also grab a bite to eat before I left.
I didn't forget my Oyster card this time - but then, I was bringing my coat, what with it being cooler and breezier than yesterday. I could take either bus from my local stop - had just missed one, but the other was right along, as was the one I needed to change to, later on. It was a shame I had to change, really - I was eavesdropping on quite an interesting conversation an American-sounding woman was having on her phone, with her mom, during which I found out she was a lawyer and lived with a guy called Sean, and she was 35, and if he had as much saved as she did, they could afford to buy a place.. but he was paying back loans of 240,000, what with his student loan, and medical fees from when he was in hospital (yep, he must be American too). Amazing, what information people drop.
So, back to me. A short walk got me to the theatre, where I joined the long box office queue. And when I finally got to one of the two desks, in the tiny lobby, the guy was called away! When he did come back, with a cheery smile and an apology, I smiled right back and wordlessly handed him the printout. No problems at all - he even called me by her name. And so back outside to chat to the others before we went in, and the same guy as before checked my bag again.
Happily, I was in the Dress Circle, which is on ground level, here. Just five rows in it, and I was second row from the back - right behind a pillar:
Now, it's awkwardly positioned, without doubt. But it's slim, and I was on the aisle, and could lean that way if I needed to look around it. Put it this way, I didn't miss anything! Rather glad I bought a programme, though - they don't tell you much, but they at least give the running order, and tell you when the interval is! And this is useful, because if you think the number of plays in the title is large - wait till you get there! They haven't listed half of them. (Plus, getting a programme is nice, because I do love the smell of paper. Also folds out into a poster, which now adorns the wall beside my desk!)
For instance, we start with Press Conference, followed by Precisely, neither of which was expected from the title. We get New World Order (with some nudity) and Mountain Language, and then a poem "American Football", followed by The Pres and an Officer, another poem "Death", and finish the first act with One for the Road. The second act is completely taken up with Ashes to Ashes.
As was remarked at the interval, the shower of confetti at the start is very un-Pinter-esque! Never fear, it gets darker from there - much darker, as Pinter pokes at the sensitive bits of tyranny and hypocrisy. Press Conference, for instance, has the former head of the secret police now elected Minister for Culture! (The confetti is for him.) Imagine what he'll do with the role.. Precisely has a couple of besuited gentlemen discussing the exact magnitude of a number whose significance becomes clearer as the play progresses. New World Order is set in a prison cell - hope you never get sent there. Mountain Language - the people's language is banned, along with more of their rights.
A couple of digs at America, specifically, then - "American Football" is an all-American interlude, followed by quite a funny take on a certain president.. we thought it was a bit too relevant to recent events to be Pinter, but no, it seems he was quite prescient! The Pres and an Officer was a posthumously discovered play. For me, however, the event of the night was One for the Road - I'm sure I've seen it somewhere before, and indeed this harrowing story is not one you'd forget in a hurry. You hope never to meet this most creepy interviewer. The same couple that appear in that play also star in Ashes to Ashes, after the break - a (slightly) lighter piece, where he tries to get her to come clean about what she's really feeling.
A very dark evening, and not for everyone - several people left at the interval, including the couple beside me, which was handy for having a spare seat for my coat! I might have moved in from the pillar, but with reasonably tall people sat in front, I figured I was as well off on the aisle. Me, I love dark and intense, and that's exactly what this combination of plays is. Definitely not an easy watch, even for me - I don't think even I breathed during the last five minutes of the first act.
Terrific acting throughout, everyone appearing in several of the pieces. Special mention, I think we all agreed, for Paapa Essiedu, who played a blinder as both victim and oppressor, and frequently stole the show when he was on stage. Mind you, my second choice would be the aforementioned creepy interviewer..
As we'd been warned, teeny lobby and bars throughout, here, and we were lucky to find a corner to huddle in at the interval. The lobby bar is gin and champagne only - otherwise, head upstairs or downstairs. A brief chat outside afterwards, and back. Google Maps was good enough to mark the location of a local restaurant, so it was easy to find my way to the stop, where Google recommended a couple of buses as faster. They weren't joking - the driver was going so fast as he approached that he sped past me, and continued in that vein for the rest of the journey. Not that the next bus was exactly slow - I swear, I made it in record time.
Tomorrow, I'm thinking film, and enthused about what's coming on the list - BlaKkKlansman and Searching, tying at the top. I'd rather Searching, the story of a man who tries to track his missing teenage daughter's movements through her online profile, finding many surprises in the process. Very claustrophobic, all focussing on a computer screen - and won't that be a busman's holiday, considering I spend my whole day doing the same! It's showing at my local cinema, but unfortunately too early, given that I have an evening meeting that I can't get out of. So instead, I have to go to the later showing at the Vue West End. What the hey, it does sound good.
Even if I have to be up fairly early on Thursday.. to get to Heathrow.. to fly to Madrid.. for my first U2 concert of the year, that evening..! I've bought a pocket guidebook (and a Kindle version), sourced a continental adaptor. I'm sure I'll find my t-shirts.. somewhere.. Staying in the Novotel Madrid Center, just a block away from the concerts at the Wizink Center. Olé!
Yes, concerts. I have one on Friday too. ;-)
I'm staying for the weekend - it makes a change from Barcelona, which is great, but I've been so often before - and having been to Madrid before and seen most of the city sights, I always wanted to go to El Escorial. Well, I am on Saturday morning.. way too early, ugh! English-language tour, with Ticketbar. And that night, I'm finally fulfilling my ambition of seeing a flamenco show in Madrid - love Flamenco! La Quimera is just up the road from the hotel - show includes a meal.
I fly back, exhausted, on Sunday. With Ryanair, carefully avoiding any of their strikes. On Monday, back with Let's Do This for Duo at Wilton's - always a great night, there. Always great company with them, too!
Next Tuesday, our now-monthly writers' social event - we're just going for drinks, this time, what with work pressures.
On the 26th, finally back with London Literary Walks for his final walk of the year. Vanity Fair, and I'm the only one has signed up for it - tsk! Damned if I'm missing this one, though.
On the 27th, nothing on Meetup - instead, I'm with my £3.60 club for the final night of Between Us, at Theatre N16. Then back to Ireland again for the weekend.
On the 1st, back with North London Friends for Every Day I Make Greatness Happen, at Hampstead Theatre - which I hear great things about. Nice to get a group discount, too.
And on the 2nd, another thing I've heard great things about - I'm taking myself to Eugenius, at The Other Palace. Finally, after all the praise I've heard of it.. This theatre used to be known as St. James', and is dreadful for legroom - take an aisle seat if you're at all tall!
