Yesterday, as usual for a Monday, I was on my own.. heading to Divas, at the QT bar. Which, of course, focuses on the hits of - the divas! Now, Over 40 Living the Life were going to this, too, but their event was full - I can't actually remember where I got the idea to go to the show, but it might well have been from them! Anyway, with them charging £20, I got a cheaper ticket on my own, for £15.
Well, the weather finally seems to have remembered it's supposed to be cold by this time of year - and it's catching up with a vengeance. I first noticed it on Sunday, and yesterday was freezing! Cue me having a major search for jumpers..
Now, I never trust places like this for food - not great choice, and too expensive. So I ate in O' Neill's (as usual) before leaving. Got to the address in time for 6.30, as specified on my ticket. So - the address is #66 Great Queen Street. What you need to know is, this is part of the Middle Eight - I'd have saved myself some confusion if I'd realised. It's actually a hotel. Has a big "66" on the front, you can't miss it. Oh, and I'd have saved myself some more confusion if I'd realised that the large windows are actually automatic sliding doors.. well, to be fair, I'd never seen any so wide! So, once I saw someone go in - and followed him - I was making progress.
Instead, £12 for a 175ml glass of chardonnay, which does make it the most expensive (by volume) I've had in London. Ouch. On the plus side, I got a very decent seat, for what was the cheapest ticket price in the house. I think I recognised the group, when they arrived around 7, BTW - not any individual, but they kind of had the look of a Meetup group about them. And guess what? Yes, for their £20, they were sat closer than I was - slightly. The row in front of me, in fact - and to the side. Four of them - when another pair arrived and said hi to them, they weren't seated together, but at another table, not even adjacent. Have to say, for the extra that you always seem to have to pay with them, I can't see the value!
And so to the show. Four singers, belting out a medley from a gallery of "divas" - aka solo female stars. Interestingly, one of the first things I noticed was that the singer in the strapless dress - second from the right in the photo - bore a striking resemblance to someone I knew in college! Huh, fancy. Second thing I noticed was how she had to keep hoiking up that dress during the show. :-) Might have had something to do with the mic pack hanging on the back..
So, as you might expect, it was a mixture - some I had never heard, some I had heard of and wished never to hear again. Some were crowd pleasers - and, as usual, what pleased the crowd the most generally left me quite cold, so as they were urging everyone onto their feet, I was sat there, sipping expensive wine and thinking - "don't you dare". Happily, they didn't really force anyone to do anything - although people in the front row, as in comedy shows, tended to get more attention. And the one in red had a habit of meandering through the audience, "engaging" us.
Having said that, there were some songs I really got into. "All the Single Ladies" opened the show, and was a pretty good choice. But it didn't make as much of an impression on me as "Torn", one I've always loved. And wow, Mary J. Blige was a revelation! Crikey, I'd forgotten "Family Affair" was one of hers.. Also glad to hear "Man! I Feel Like a Woman", it's been too long. But wow, I could have done without the Whitney.. So, basically, a good show. But just over an hour long! Hmm. Ah well. So, when they sent me a survey link today, I responded with two comments - overpriced drinks, and an unexpectedly short show. Otherwise, it's a good night out - runs every second Monday. And now you know. Oh, and FYI the toilets are back in the ground-level bar, through the restaurant.. and the disposal bin in my cubicle wouldn't work. Just sayin'.
Didn't have time to blog last night, as today, I was back with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners! Gee, over two weeks since I last saw them.. Anyway, this walk is around Sophisticated (& Sometimes Seedy) St. James'.. I got a combination of buses down there. Should have gotten there six minutes early - better, in fact, given that my second bus came early! Well, early according to Google Maps - the LCD display would make you lose hope entirely, constantly predicting it was coming when there was no sign.
The journey was entertaining - the lovely, quiet doggie sat across from me was as good as gold until another of his kind started complaining, somewhere down the back. So then the doggie beside me must needs join in, with the human attached to the dog down the back finally trying to shush it. And then there was a middle-aged lady, obviously unfamiliar with both London and its buses. So, unable to get the required info from the driver, she decided to sit beside me and ask how to get to the V&A - oh, and by the way, how to pay, which she hadn't for this bus! So, Google Maps and I helped her tremendously. (Wonder how she got back..)
With all the traffic, the damn bus was late. And I couldn't see anyone - of course, cold as it was, they were all ensconced in Pret. Easy to find 'em - just look for the large group. So I said hi, paid, and seeing all the peeps with hot drinks, thought - now there's an idea. So off I schlepped and got a hot chocolate. Which was v nice. And then we nipped back across the road I'd just nipped across to join them.
We started in Green Park, before mooching off around the posh streets of the area - our progress only marred by traffic noise, road works, and rain - we got poured on for a lot of the way.
Shocking to hear there are still men's clubs that refuse to allow women, or only allow them in certain parts. Sorry, I don't care how you frame it, I cannot support that. Anyway, speaking of toffs:
I never realised there was a statue of Beau Brummel! Well now. And it faces the fabulous Burlington Arcade:
Down alleys and backstreets we went - always good. And taking cover from the monsoon where possible. In one covered passage, we came across a piece of artwork, a play on the piece of artwork that brought Yoko Ono to John Lennon's attention:
An interesting frieze commemorates St. James' Theatre, demolished - as the plaque underneath explains - despite a campaign by Vivien Leigh and her husband, Sir Laurence Olivier, who managed it. That's them in the middle:
No visit to the area would be complete without swinging by the palace, of course:
And among other famous faces:
(More usually depicted with a hat..) In other facts - it had completely slipped my notice that Constance Markievicz was actually the first female MP! (and, after Irish independence, was elected to the Irish cabinet, making her the first female cabinet member in Europe).
Our walk finished with the Crimean War memorial:
and its most famous participant, Florence Nightingale:
One of the more interesting walks this, I have to say. And then we walked some more, seeking lunch! and passing a guy that I'm sure was filming for Streetview. Also noticed the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square is covered - in preparation for a new sculpture! Anyway, we finally fetched up at Mr. Fogg's Tavern - where, by dint of moving some folks, we made room for all of us! What a quirky place:
The ceiling is an absolute riot of colour, covered in every imaginable accessory - and some not really imaginable:
A constant diet of music hall music and similar - we remarked that the staff must have been sick of listening to so much of it! We ordered wine, as usual - which came in a fancy ice bucket:
Cute pub, excellent day! Meantime, during the walk, I got a phone call from the latest recruiters - called them back on my way home, and scheduled an interview (well, an informal chat) tomorrow! Maybe this one will work out..? Unfortunately, only last night I finally booked something for tomorrow - and wouldn't you know it, it's Walking the Lambeth Walk, which clashes with the interview! Even more annoying, I booked it with TAC to get it cheaper, and therefore had to pay in advance - and it's non-refundable. Nuts. So, after tomorrow's interview, the outlook is pretty bleak for things to do on Meetup - looking like Soho Comedy Factory again, really! Now, they do have a Meetup group, with no need to buy a ticket - but their attendance is booked up. Still, when I went before, nobody asked me for a ticket, or whom I was with.. Might schlep along there. Or might not. Watch this space.
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