Musical: Sylvia

Tonight, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I was back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I got a front of stalls ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story (in song) of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket! Must remember not to post the link to my blog, to their page - they banned me from doing that, after discovering I was advertising cheap ticket resellers!

My go-to eatery for The Old Vic is The Duke of Sussex - however, from their website, it looked as though they were booked out. (On a Tuesday!) So I thought of Caprini's - but they don't have real-time availability, so I said I'd schlep up and see. As I walked back from the bus stop, though, I passed The Thames Indian Restaurant - and it occurred to me that I'd rather an Indian meal, which I hadn't had in a while, than the huge portions they serve at Caprini's. So, in I went.

Honestly, I was a bit dubious - I was the only customer. But I was shown to a table, and sat on the sofa, back against the wall. I was very glad he'd given me the end table, across from the coffee machine - because the whole of the opposite wall is taken up with a mirror - designed, of course, to maximise the feeling of space in what is a cramped area. Opposite the coffee machine, I didn't have to stare at my reflection..

I had a couple of poppadoms to start - they didn't have any starters I fancied, so I just had butter chicken and peshwari naan, two of my favourites. I also asked for lemon (!) rice - never heard of that before. Well, the chicken was lovely, the rice interesting - definitely lemony. The naan was indifferent, and I didn't finish it. The house white, the only wine available by the glass, was gorgeous, though: really full-bodied. So, I was decently fed.

Scurried down to the theatre - to find everyone else in the group was late. We were meeting in the Dress Circle bar, where I ordered a sauvignon blanc and managed to get a table by the window with sufficient chairs. Was wondering where everyone was, after a while, though.. the organiser eventually happened along, and wow, was that a blast from the past! Chatting, we discovered that I'd gone through four new jobs and four new flats since I'd seen her last! Another old acquaintance from the group was in town, and brought his friend, and his wife to say hi - the first time I'd met her. But we didn't have long until showtime.

And so we rushed downstairs - we were all in the Stalls, but there isn't any seating in the Stalls bar. The organiser had bought our tickets, and WhatsApped screenshots of them to us - would you believe, the scanner wouldn't accept them! We had to go back to the box office and get printouts - and it was at that point that I realised I didn't have my bag.. ran back upstairs, and yes, they had it behind the bar. It was fun, trying to think if something in there that I could easily identify.. got it back in due course, and took my seat.

Well now, in short, this is simply marvellous. My fellow group member - the one who's usually out of town - was critical of the first half, thought their act was tighter in the second. I'm not contradicting him that the second half was great - I just didn't feel as critical of the first half. Anyway, the soundtrack is a mix of hip-hop, ballads - whatever works to tell this emotive story. There's a constant, catchy beat, the outfits are lovely - and it's surprisingly moving. Case in point, the last scene of the first half, when the suffragettes are standing in a line, opposing police and singing - and one by one, they go down, as the police (standing on a ledge behind them onstage, miming) strike them - virtually. I've never seen anything quite like that, and it's most effective. Throughout, also, the fantastic dance routines - in fact, they all take a turn, during the curtain call, to show off their moves!

Really highly recommended - I'm not surprised it sold out, nor at the standing ovation. Runs till the 1st of April - book it! There are few better shows, right now.

Afterwards, we wanted to catch up - I suggested the basement bar, which stays open longer. Sure enough, the cast came in there after a while, too! And we had a good catch-up - who knows how long it'll be again, though? But it was a great night. Followed by a cold journey home..

Tomorrow, back with the Horror Book Club. Turns out that guy from tonight's group knows them! This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On Thursday, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On Friday, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc! Meeting my sometime dinner companion beforehand, down the road at Olivelli.

On Saturday, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Meeting Ivan that evening.. somewhere..

On Sunday, nothing on Meetup appealed massively - I thought I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'd have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. which I finally did, when Free Stuff and Free Events advertised a blues concert at the Earl of Chatham, Woolwich. It's a way out, is all - but then, it's free, if I wanted to cancel. And.. now I have, because London Herstory Guided Walks! has finally advertised a walk I can go on. I was recommended this group by someone a while ago - they run guided walks with a female theme. Sunday's is Deeds Not Words! Suffragettes, Spies, & Warrior Queens. Delighted to be able to go on one of theirs, at last - they're usually on during working hours. Only thing is, they don't specify how to pay - cash on the day, I'm guessing, as they don't take payment on booking.

On Monday, my first actual event with the Over 40s. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

Next Tuesday, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with Official London Theatre again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Play: Noises Off

Back to London last night, and more fun with planes. Ryanair has a habit of using other airlines' planes to fly from Shannon - last night it was Air Malta. Absolutely fine, nice to have a change of colour scheme - and they often have more comfortable seats. Only thing is.. the seat configuration changes. I've more than once found myself in an exit row seat, unexpectedly - I don't like it, I don't book them, because I find it annoying to have to put all my stuff in an overhead locker. But, with the different configuration, it can happen. Didn't happen to me last night - instead, it happened to an old lady, who'd arrived at the plane in a wheelchair, and used a cane to get to her seat. In the emergency exit row. Yeah.. don't think so. Get your act together, Ryanair..

And so to tonight, when I headed with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT). I discovered it was close enough to walk, and decided to eat at GBK, which I'd be passing on the way. It's a funny thing - last time I was here, they acted like I was an old friend, anticipated my order, were chatty. But the last time.. was 11 days ago. And tonight, they acted like they didn't know me. Ah, what a fickle thing memory is.. Well, the food was as good as ever, so I was happy!

More fun at the theatre, where I was the only one of the group in the Dress Circle, the others all being a level up, in the Grand Circle. See, I booked quite recently, and the cheapest priced tickets at that stage were such that there were also some in the Dress Circle.. so I naturally got one there. The ushers were quite perplexed when I explained to them that I'd need access to the Grand Circle Bar, to meet the group! They assured me I could get from one to the other, yes. However, when I went up, I couldn't see a way - I asked the barman, who pointed me at the fire escape and to the stairs up from there (on the other side, the door is just marked "Private"). And so I met them, and all was well..

They were saying, at the interval, that the Grand Circle was quite empty - well, the Dress Circle was packed! I was quite happy to have an aisle seat, where I had legroom if I needed it - not that I really did. Now, we were drawing comparisons with The Play That Goes Wrong - which I found absolutely hilarious - looking it up, we discovered that this one is 40 years old! And I think, at the interval, we all agreed that we couldn't see what all the fuss was. It's a play within a play, a play about amateurs putting on a play, and things going wrong - but it's rather reserved.

And then we went back after the interval - and all hell broke loose. See, all they are doing in the first half is setting the scene - showing us how the play is roughly supposed to go. When the curtain goes up after the interval, we see backstage - and the chaos begins, while the regular "play within a play" attempts to continue on the other side of the set. There's another pause - and we're back stage-side again. By this time, however, half the cast is demented (or sozzled), and the play we now get is nothing like the one we started with. We were literally rolling in our seats, tears of laughter streaming down our faces. And by "we", I mean the whole audience. Comedy is tricky - but when it's good, it can be wonderful. I thought this was wonderful. Runs till the 11th of March - highly recommended.

Afterwards, strangely, Google Maps thought it'd take me one minute longer to walk home than it'd taken me to get there! I'm glad I braved that one minute extra walk - I passed a building that interested me much more on the return journey than outbound! The Now Building is located across from Tottenham Court Road Station - and seems to display constant films on the walls and ceiling of its atrium. With seating, if you want to stay a while!

Tomorrow, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story (in song) of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket! Must remember not to post the link to my blog, to their page - they banned me from doing that, after discovering I was advertising cheap ticket resellers!

On Wednesday, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On Thursday, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On Friday, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc! Meeting my sometime dinner companion beforehand, down the road at Olivelli.

On Saturday, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Meeting Ivan that evening.. somewhere..

On Sunday, nothing on Meetup appealed massively - I thought I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'd have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. which I finally did, when Free Stuff and Free Events advertised a blues concert at the Earl of Chatham, Woolwich. It's a way out, is all - but then, it's free, if I wanted to cancel. And.. now I have, because London Herstory Guided Walks! has finally advertised a walk I can go on. I was recommended this by someone a while ago - they run guided walks with a female theme. Sunday's is Deeds Not Words! Suffragettes, Spies, & Warrior Queens. Delighted to be able to go on one of theirs, at last - they're usually on during working hours. Only thing is, they don't specify how to pay - cash on the day, I'm guessing, as they don't take payment on booking.

Next Monday, my first actual event with the Over 40s. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Film: The Fabelmans

Well, back to Ireland for the weekend again. Interestingly, no scrum for the airport bus this week - it was very relaxed, in comparison to last time! Very relaxed driver too, considering he made us load our own luggage.. pity his driving wasn't as relaxed. What with the constant acceleration and braking, and a stuffy, over-warm bus, I felt a bit ill by the time we got there.

Anyway, I was in plenty of time to grab a sandwich at Pret. And we were boarded in due course, sat on the plane and waited. And then - it got interesting. A member of cabin crew asked could we please dig out our boarding passes again.. turned out that the computer that records your details as you scan your boarding pass as you board - wasn't working. So our details hadn't been recorded. And, I kid you not, a guy came on with a pen and paper, and wrote down all our details. And then off he went to enter those on the computer. And then we had to wait for them to get that computer working again, so they could board the rest of the plane - I'd thought it looked a bit empty! To top it all off, when we landed, someone was parked in our spot.. so the journey took a bit longer than it should have..

Film for the weekend was The Fabelmans (Oscar-nominated for Best Picture), in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking. Stars Michelle Williams (Oscar-nominated for Best Actress) as his mother, Paul Dano as his father, Judd Hirsch as his great-uncle, who spent his lifetime in the circus and drops by, following his grandmother's death, for a single, Oscar-nominated (Best Supporting Actor) scene,.and Seth Rogen as a friend of the family. Oh, and real-life director, David Lynch, as the legendary director, John Ford, whom Spielberg meets briefly, in one of the most spellbinding scenes of the film. Directed (with another Oscar nomination), co-produced, and co-written, by Steven Spielberg. Naturally.

An Evening Standard review said it best - this is pure.. magic. No more than expected, from the master magician of movies. All the characters are lovable, and despite the long running time, I didn't find it dragged at all. It's fascinating to watch as he learns his craft - and just near the end, as he's about to start making history, a couple of great scenes top it off.

First up is the scene after he plays the film he shot of the school's day at the beach, which he shows at the prom. He's been bullied a lot at school for being Jewish, but he makes one of the bullies the star, depicting him as a hero, winning the footrace. Afterwards, this guy seeks him out for an explanation. While they're talking, another bully appears - he didn't come across so well, and wants his revenge. Well, the first guy sees him off - then warns Fabelman (Spielberg) never to tell anyone about this. "Oh, I won't!" he reassures him. "Well, unless I put it in a film." Seeing the other guy's wary look, he hastily adds, "Which I never will!" Yeah, well, he did wait a while, huh..? ;-)

The other scene that stuck out to me was his chance meeting with legendary director, John Ford, who gruffly gives him a few minutes and a nugget of advice. Right at the end of the film, just as he's starting his career. And having watched years and years of his movies.. all I can say in response is, "Wow." This is like being there at the start. Just "Wow".

Back to London tonight, and tomorrow, I'm heading with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

On Tuesday, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story (in song) of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

On Wednesday, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On Thursday, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On Friday, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc! Meeting my sometime dinner companion beforehand, down the road at Olivelli.

On Saturday, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

Next Sunday, nothing on Meetup appealed massively - I thought I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'd have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. which I finally have, now that Free Stuff and Free Events has advertised a blues concert at the Earl of Chatham, Woolwich. It's a way out, is all - but then, it's free, if I want to cancel.

On the 6th, my first actual event with the Over 40s. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Play: The Welsh Lxdies

Tonight, Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) were off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales. My sometime companion from this group is in town, and fancied doing something, so agreed to come to this - she suggested food, and I looked for what was around. There are plenty of places, you understand - but getting one a few hours in advance, on a Thursday, isn't always easy.. I would have gone for The Archduke, but it had nothing at the right time. So we went to a steakhouse called Black and Blue. Turns out it's the same chain!

Handily, my bus passed right outside, so I knew where I was. Surprisingly, given that the place was quite busy, I was given a booth! Which would have seated four. Ah, the luxury of space.. She arrived right after I did. We had a very nice bottle of South African chenin blanc - I had chicken skewers to start, with some lovely dips. Very nearly too much food, actually.. but I managed. She hadn't wanted a starter to begin with, but after mine came, she changed her mind, and went for a dish on the cocktail menu - nachos with an artichoke dip. She liked the dip, I think, if not the nachos - I never did like them, myself.

For mains, I thought about not having steak - but it's been too long since I had one, and I knew they'd be lovely, here. So I had a sirloin - she had chicken. Both plates were cleared - my steak was divine. And now that I know it's the same chain as The Archduke, I'm not surprised. We also got a complementary salad, to share - perhaps it'd been left over? Anyway, I also liked how the chips were done, nicely crispy and just the right amount of salt. In the truest sense of the word, I felt restored, after what was a drudge of a day, chasing people for information about council tax. Only quibble was the nonexistent WiFi..

Well, it was but a short walk to Leake Street..

Happily, as the lady on the door said, they don't check your actual ticket, but instead just check off your name. Because, what with everything else today, I simply hadn't had time to download my ticket beforehand, and reception down here is iffy at best. Our organiser had messaged us though, to say they were in the Leakey Bar.

It wasn't long before the house opened, and we trotted across the hall. Seating is on upholstered, rough wood benches - not the most comfortable, I have to say. A guy at the end had a camera on a tripod, and also seemed to be filming it on his phone..? Dunno why the double recording, but whatever.

Four women took part - one explained at the end that one had just earlier come down with food poisoning, and there was another they couldn't get funding for. Never mind, they set to it with gusto.. This is basically a peep into the lives of different Welsh women. We hear audio footage of someone describing what it's like to be Jewish and Welsh, or of Indian extraction and Welsh.. but we also get sketches in classrooms, or among teenage girls discussing sexuality. There's a bit of chatter in a bar. There's some lovely music and singing. They even produce a couple of Welsh cakes..

There were a few problems with the production. They need to turn down the volume of the audio when people are speaking - they were very hard to hear! When sat on the floor, they were equally hard to see. And a couple of long tracts, completely in Welsh, left the non-Welsh speakers among us bemused! I expected to hear Welsh, but not so much in a row that I'd have no idea what was going on..

It's interesting, and well-written. With a couple of tweaks, it'd be a very good show! Also runs tomorrow, if you're around.

Afterwards, I had no idea which end to leave by - but it didn't matter much, there are buses everywhere!

Tomorrow, back to Ireland for the weekend again. With partial film listings finally out for there, it's looking like The Fabelmans, in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking.

On Monday, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

On Tuesday, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

On Wednesday, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

Next Thursday, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appealed massively - I thought I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'd have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. which I finally have, now that Free Stuff and Free Events has advertised a blues concert at the Earl of Chatham, Woolwich. It's a way out, is all - but then, it's free, if I want to cancel.

On the 6th, my first actual event with the Over 40s. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Comedy: John Bishop - Work in Progress

Tonight, Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) were off to see John Bishop at the Leicester Square Theatre. Love him, so I booked as soon as I saw this advertised - one of the few things for this month that I booked last month! Not that it came close to selling out..

There are plenty of places near there to eat. Mostly overpriced, a lot substandard - and likely to be busy. It's possible to eat well there, but it's not so easy. Anyway, the show is a late one, and I was hungry long before it was time to head in - I headed down to The Lucas Arms. It was bitterly cold outside - so what a haven awaited me inside, with delicious food and service so prompt that the cutlery and napkin got to the table before I did! Service with a smile, too - and they nearly have my order by heart!

When I got back, it was to discover that Amazon had delivered my parcel - and left it outside the flat door. Inside the building, but outside the flat. Not acceptable at all - especially when they disingenuously said on the receipt that it had been "handed to resident". Of course, they don't offer a way to complain about that.. Never mind, all's well that ends well, and it was an excellent buy..

Worked a little (what else was I going to do?) and headed in later - still freezing outside, and me without the top button on my coat, which will keep popping off. Got to the theatre too early - they only open the bar an hour before the show, and I was 10 minutes before that - so I strolled around Leicester Square for a bit. There isn't a lot to see, now that the Christmas decorations have gone.. I was glad when the clock struck nine, and I could head in. The bar is is in the basement, and I was a solid 10 minutes waiting for the people in front of me to complete their order. Hey-ho, I got a drink at last, and took a seat. But, not seeing anyone else from the group, when the house was declared open, I made my move - I was sat beside what seemed like a family, who were talking incessantly about which of their many sun holidays was best.. Not a sun holiday type of person, me.

And so upstairs, to quite a decent seat.

Turned out that, of the four of us attending in this group, three were sat together! which was nice - it was good to chat. Now, both of my companions had seen the Mother Goose panto that's running at the moment, in which John Bishop stars - thing is, he was coming straight from there tonight, and neither thought he'd make the comedy show for 10! Sure enough, although they made us take our seats in time, the minutes ticked by.. it was 10.15 by the time he actually came on. Which, as one remarked, might have been the reason for all the empty seats - not everyone lives as close as I do, and can blithely stay out so late.

Anyway - as our organiser was to remark afterwards, she's never before seen a comedian do a WIP without any notes of any kind! I have, but it tends to be only in the case of well-established comedians, secure in their performance skills. Basically, the naturally funny - and Lordy, he is that. Tonight was kind of like a comedy jukebox, where he perched on the stool, sipped from a can of lager (best for his throat, he says), and invited us to ask him questions. Whereupon he'd launch into one story or another, one often reminding him of the next.

He started on the panto, naturally enough, and how - on this night, of all nights - they started half an hour later. And also on what it was like to kiss Ian McKellan on stage - tonight was, apparently, the 60th performance, so he's done that rather a lot! A long, meandering routine about pantomime was followed by someone shouting a question about politics - the loaded question was, "What do you think of our present government?" He's rather famously anti-Tory, and his routines about them are hilarious. I particularly like the description of Boris - and this is one I hadn't heard before - as looking like he's just woken up on someone else's floor, the morning after the night before.. and this, as he says, being the man who can't remember being at a party.. in his own house..

His Irish connection came up - apparently, he'd give anything for an Irish passport, and he had an interesting tale about his mother's family being gunmakers in Antrim.. but wow, he ventured far and wide in his performance tonight, even teaching us some sign language, and reciting Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? to a lady from the front row, who'd met her husband at a punk gig in 1977. Still rocking a long leather coat, too.. In all, an excellent night. He's doing it all again tomorrow night, and the audience is in for a treat.

On my way home, completely ignored Google Maps in favour of a quicker, and more convenient, bus route..

Tomorrow, we're off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend again. With partial film listings finally out for there, it's looking like The Fabelmans, in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking.

On Monday, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

On Tuesday, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

Next Wednesday, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On the 2nd, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appealed massively - I thought I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'd have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. which I finally have, now that Free Stuff and Free Events has advertised a blues concert at the Earl of Chatham, Woolwich. It's a way out, is all - but then, it's free, if I want to cancel.

On the 6th, my first actual event with the Over 40s. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Play: Orlando

For the next week or so, it's all Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS)! Last night, for some reason, I hadn't seen their advertised event to see Orlando, based on the book by Virginia Woolf, and showing at the Garrick. For this, however, I found the cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

We were meeting beforehand in The Chandos, because the theatre bar is so small and we had a large group. And it's just around the corner. Our organiser booked a table. I checked - yes, they do food - so I decided to head there early, try and grab a bite before we met. Turns out the main dining area is upstairs, although they do number the downstairs tables as well - I asked where her table was booked (upstairs or downstairs), but she didn't know. So, seeing that the downstairs was quite packed, I headed upstairs - our table wasn't booked for a while yet, so I grabbed what looked like the most convenient spot to eat at, a shelf with high seats. It did have a young couple at one end - sod it, this wasn't really like sharing a table! So I occupied the chair at the far end. Whereupon he remarked to her that this wasn't very private. Aww..

Well, I ordered at the bar. Funnily enough, they don't do sauvignon blanc, but they do a very nice chenin blanc. I could have had the steak and ale pie - to compare with Greene King - but I decided to have the half roast chicken instead. Very moreish, I have to say - yummy chicken gravy served with it, in a sauce boat, accompanied by pots of BBQ sauce and aioli. All massively tasty, and my chips did a round of all three. I posted on the Meetup page where I was sitting - there were people at the table we'd reserved - and was just about finished when people from the group started to arrive.

In due course, the organiser arrived, said hi, and went off to see about the reservation, digging out her confirmation email. Well! She came back in high dudgeon. Although someone had indeed emailed her to confirm the reservation - and given her a table number - they were now saying they didn't take bookings! Indeed, I hadn't been able to see a booking option when I looked it up on Google Maps. Now, it's one thing not to take bookings - it's another thing entirely to take a booking and then let customers down! Of course, the exact same thing happened on Sunday, when our organiser had booked a table at The Museum Tavern, which staff knew nothing about when we got there.. Well, you have been warned. Just because you're in a popular area, it's not worth treating customers badly. In the end, we did get a table downstairs, and chatted away until showtime.

Another cursory bag check, and we were in - and how pleasant it is to be on ground level! The Dress Circle, where I was booked, leads straight off the lobby. And it's lovely to be so close to the stage - closer than I usually am in venues like this. Good, comfy seat, too.

The only thing I can say I didn't like about this play was the use of no fewer than nine (!) Virginia Woolfs on stage, mostly just overseeing proceedings. I don't get the point of that, and as our organiser said, it's awkward when they're all speaking together - which, happily, doesn't happen much. Well, Emma Corrin plays the title role - a young man at the Elizabethan court, who zips through history, looking for love. Every time he goes to sleep, he seems to wake up in another time period - from the 1700s, he becomes a woman! (There is a maid to keep us all informed, but we can also tell from the costume changes.) By the end, (s)he is flummoxed - still Orlando, but when asked what (s)he loves, the best answer seems to be "a good red wine"!

It's a feminist piece, of course - and I guess there's no point in representing our hero as a woman before the 1700s, she'd have had so little say in her own life. By the 1700s, she might have had some - but, as we learn, she couldn't own property, and basically had to choose an obliging husband, who would allow her to live the life she chose. The Victorian period is funny, with the straitlaced manners, and the husband who marries her, then disappears to sea - indefinitely! The play's aim is ultimately unfulfilled, as despite his/her perambulations through history, (s)he cannot find an era where (s)he's truly happy, or a person with whom (s)he's truly happy. But hey, it's a fun romp through history! Runs till the 25th of next month, if you want to check it out for yourself.

Couldn't blog last night - I had to be up early for a delivery today. Which hasn't arrived yet, and won't now, unless it's by courier. Tonight, we're off to see John Bishop at the Leicester Square Theatre. Love him, so I booked as soon as I saw this advertised - one of the few things for this month that I booked last month! Not that it seems to be selling out..

Tomorrow, we're off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend again. With partial film listings finally out for there, it's looking like The Fabelmans, in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking.

On Monday, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from OLT.

On Tuesday, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

Next Wednesday, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On the 2nd, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appeals massively at the moment - I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'll have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. 

On the 6th, my first actual event with that group. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Play: Best of Enemies

Tonight, I 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! Mind you, what with See Tickets doing the selling, I found myself with a second, unexplained, booking fee..

I thought I'd look nearby for food - the nearest place with availability (third I tried) was, to be fair, only a minute's walk away from the theatre! (The joys of a Monday night.) So I booked a table there - it was Spaghetti House. The queue at the bus stop rather phased me - there was such a huge queue, it looked as though there was a shortage of buses! Now, there were a few I could get - when the first of these happened along, I dreaded a scrum to get on. Mercifully, a #205 arrived at the same time, and most of them gravitated towards that! Now, that explains the scrum - that bus is so rare, its arrival should make the papers..

Well, I arrived at the restaurant with a couple of minutes to spare, and was shown straight to my table - the only free table I could see. I perused the menu - it's ages since I've had minestrone, so thought I'd have that: fancied a carbonara as well. And the usual 250ml of sauvignon blanc - unusually, described as a carafe, here! Well, the waiter happened along - I have to say, I've never seen such ridiculously smiley waitresses. This one looked so gleeful, she might burst at any moment. Either it's a great place to work, or they're on something.. her smile didn't falter one bit as she informed me that they had no sauvignon blanc - so I had chardonnay. And they'd just served the last of the minestrone - all right, I'd have calamari. I was ok with the carbonara.

When the wine arrived, it became apparent that the reason they serve 250ml carafes is that the wine glasses are smaller than that. Seems easier to buy bigger wine glasses, but hey. The wine was decent, the calamari passable. The carbonara was lovely, actually - and quite filled me up, which was a good thing. The theatre had emailed to ask me to arrive half an hour early, and I was coming up to that - happily for the restaurant, who'd given me a two-hour max. When I asked for the bill, the server seemed a smidgeon confused.. she brought me the bill, waited a respectable five minutes, and asked whether I was ready to pay now! Ehh..?

Well, they're nice, and worth the slightly higher than usual service charge. Trotting over to the theatre, I walked along the world's longest roped-off area, leading around the side! Nobody waiting in it, just the people to check bags. Right to the end I had to walk, and back. In a side door then, and up (and up and up) what you might call a refurbished fire escape, to get to the Balcony. Would you believe, after all that climbing, the bar is another flight of steps up! (Mind you, I think I spied another on the climb..) Lovely bar, after all that - I got a drink, in plastic so I could take it in with me, and sank into a seat until showtime. When I had a fun climb - down, this time - to my seat, on the aisle in the front row:

Ok seat - decent legroom, actually, and I had the aisle to swing my legs into, and to leave my stuff in. The guy beside me was massively disappointed when I arrived, having all his things on my seat.. Only thing was, we kept having to get up to let people in and out! Anyway, 60s music plays at the start of each half. This is actually a great play for anyone with an interest in the 60s - the events depicted take place then, of course, and we get some 60s fashions: but we also get some real-life stills and film footage, projected onto the side of the stage. Most atmospheric.

The debates take place during a presidential election campaign, and start during a Republican convention in Miami. The fun starts when they move to a Democratic convention in Chicago - the Democrats are at sixes and sevens following the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, and things aren't helped at all by the city's reactionary mayor, who isn't at all a fan of the revolutionary spirit of the age.. and, faced with protests against the Vietnam War, sends in the National Guard.

As to the debates themselves - they're fun, the participants treating them like boxing matches and using them as an excuse to slag each other off. Mrs. Buckley is frequently seen giving her husband advice, as Gore Vidal's companions also do for him. Each is very keen to best the other, and the verbal battles are terrific. Not that they're given great rein to wax on about subjects at length - television doesn't lend itself to that. Gore Vidal is certainly better at soundbites - but it's perhaps Buckley who has the definitive final word, warning that democracy cannot survive when menaced by moral supremacy. For the latter part of the play, such argument as there is finds itself superseded by the riots erupting around them.

So, not one for those hoping for deep political discourse - but it is riveting, and a real window into the past. Runs till the 18th.

Afterwards, I had a choice of buses home - bless continual decent internet access, so I could keep adjusting my journey to find the most comfortable trip (least walking).

For the next week or so, it's all Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS)! Tomorrow, for some reason, I hadn't seen their advertised event to see Orlando, based on the book by Virginia Woolf, and showing at the Garrick. For this, however, I found the cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

On Wednesday, we're off to see John Bishop at the Leicester Square Theatre. Love him, so I booked as soon as I saw this advertised - one of the few things for this month that I booked last month! Not that it seems to be selling out..

On Thursday, we're off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend again. With partial film listings finally out for there, it's looking like The Fabelmans, in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking.

Next Monday, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from OLT.

On the 31st, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

On the 1st, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On the 2nd, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appeals massively at the moment - I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'll have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind.. 

On the 6th, my first actual event with that group. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.