Today, I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS - as always!) for a night of comedy with Sara Pascoe, at the Backyard Comedy Club. Gee, it's months since I was last at a comedy show! And longer since I was here before. The bus came quickly - and despite what Google Maps predicted, was absolutely packed - I was lucky to get a seat. Anyway, last time I was here, I was job hunting, and stressed, and missed the club entrance completely - this evening, I couldn't figure out how I'd managed that, as it's so prominent!
I arrived just after 6.30 - you had to get there by 7.15 and get your hand stamped, or pay a late fee. I was one of the first there - in the event, only the regulars made themselves known, at least. But then, we'd been hoping to get a table, but no - we had to stand, which made us harder to spot. Never mind. I went straight over to the bored-looking woman behind the desk - and it was funny, it took me a moment to realise she was looking at me. You see, she had this big shock of black hair, and a fringe, and dark eyes - honestly, they blended together and I thought her head was still bent..
I'd finished a glass of wine by the time we went in. And we were early enough to get pretty much our choice of seats - it did ultimately fill completely, from what I could see, and someone in the group mentioned that she'd tried to get another ticket, but it had been sold out. Sara Pascoe was the MC tonight, not the solo star - but she gave a star turn, with very funny interludes between acts.
I really don't have much hope of repeating the performers' names - I didn't even hear most of them properly! My favourite, however, had to be the only one I recognised - Tania Edwards gave the most hilarious performance of a psychotic mother, whom you'd believe would stab an audience member. Mind you though, I think I've seen Luke Toulson before - but he doesn't have a beard any more. He was the only man on the bill - and a couple of the performers in the second half acknowledged this, and said they'd try to make the tales of exasperated motherhood as original as possible.
They succeeded admirably - the second half, we agreed as a whole, was better than the first. Which isn't to say that the first half wasn't enjoyable - a particular highlight was when one performer came on with her woolly little dog, which she gave to someone in the front row to hold while she performed: and then nearly forgot to reclaim at the end of her set! Cue "aah"s all through the room..
The performers in the first half were obviously less experienced, but still gave a great show! and with this being a new material night, nobody's routine was too polished. Always a good night at this venue - and gee, when I actually braved the queue for the toilets at the interval, it only took about five minutes! A highly recommended venue - just get there early before a show, if you want a table and chair.
I'd researched my route home before I turned off my phone - which was a good thing, as I had no internet access for some minutes after I turned it on again. I just missed a #8, vexingly - and upon seeing that the next was over 10 minutes away, I thought I'd research the #388, which I'd seen earlier would also take me there. It was a lot closer - and the stop was just around the corner. So I took that. Oh, the joys of the smartphone..
Tomorrow, I was thinking of film - but honestly, wasn't so enthused by the offerings at the top of the list. I did have an offer of cheap tickets to a classical concert at Cadogan Hall, which sounded better - but the cheap tickets had sold out. Never mind, I bought a full-price ticket - it's the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Today, the cheap ticket agency advertised an extra ticket allocation (typical!), but when I checked, out of curiosity, the link was still saying sold-out. Still is, so I dunno.
On Wednesday, back - for the first time in what seems like ages - with Civilized London! It's another meal - we're headed for Thai food at Kin & Deum, meeting beforehand at The Woolpack. I do believe it's actually years since I've eaten Thai! Handily, for once this didn't sell out - and we have another taker, a Frenchman who's in town for a couple of weeks, saw this, and signed up. Isn't that a great idea?! He's not the first I've seen to take advantage of Meetup when in town temporarily.
On Thursday, I got a cheap ticket to another classical concert, with a different seat-filler group - this is a concert of Vivaldi arias, at the Trinity United Reform Church. Part of the Wimbledon Music Festival.
On Friday.. well, 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are off around the Southbank Christmas market. So I said, well, I can do that on my own - thus avoiding the Meetup fee, and I'm not pushed about the meal. Good chance to start on my Christmas shopping. Or hey, I'll see what the film listings are like - they change, that day.
On Saturday, I'm with cheap ticket source #1 - you have to book something with them every three months, or be expelled (!). Honestly, I've never heard such draconian regulations. So I'm going to Stop Kiss, above the Stag.
On Sunday, back with the Crick Crack Club (CCC) for 1001 Nights, at the British Museum. Mea culpa, I recently told people that this was The Embers Collective - nope! Turns out it's not. Ah well.
Next Monday, back, after a week, with UITCS for Falsettos, at The Other Palace. An aisle seat, as usual - legroom is poor, here.
On the 19th, back with them again for Acosta Danza - Evolution, at Sadler's Wells.
On the 20th, Anthony's Cultural Events and Walking Activities Group is off to a performance entitled Virginia Woolf - Killing the Angel, at the LSE. So I'm going on my own, and saving the Meetup fee - I haven't had that much luck with socialising with them, anyway.
On the 21st, back with Spooky London - the John Snow Pub. Then another weekend in Ireland.
On the 25th, the CCC is back with Rebel Children, at the British Library. Ben Haggarty & Jan Blake - ooh yeah!
On the 26th, my annual trip to Winter Wonderland - heading to Cirque Berserk and the Ice Kingdom, as usual. Might be able to persuade a couple of people to accompany me to this one.
On the 27th, the first night in ages with North London Friends! We're at A Day in the Death of Joe Egg, at Trafalgar Studios.
And on the 28th, our ex-company's social group's Christmas meeting. We had a tiff about the venue - the organiser decided on Thai Square, which I think is overpriced and underwhelming. So he started to grumble about the difficulty of getting somewhere before Christmas - which will take a group, and doesn't cost the earth. Still though, he came up with an alternative - we've decided on the Warwick Castle pub in Little Venice. Lovely area, the pub sounds nice - with a Christmassy open fire, and a room we can book - and hey, it's a pub, which won't throw us out as quickly! Must get on to booking their wine deal.. 10% off if you order at least £150 worth. Which I'm sure, among the dozen or so that are coming, we'll manage to drink. And gee, today he had us choosing what we wanted off the menu..
Showing posts with label Backyard Comedy Club. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Backyard Comedy Club. Show all posts
Monday, 11 November 2019
Thursday, 18 April 2019
Backyard Comedy Club & Pub: The Grove
On Tuesday, I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for a charity gig at the Backyard Comedy Club. Mind you, I'd had an interview that afternoon - and was it gruelling! I was somewhat exhausted by the end - and still so when I headed out that evening, despite having had something to eat. We were meeting a bit early, and some people were going to have food there.
I only got more tired on the way, and by the time I got there, I was sufficiently out of it that I walked right past the venue. To be fair, I'd never been there before. Happily though, I met a couple of the group coming in the other direction, who directed me back to where I needed to be. We were early enough to get a table that was - roughly - large enough for the group, and while some ordered pizzas, I just had a glass of wine and some onion rings.
Gotta say, I'd be happy enough to eat a full meal here - the onion rings were very nice, and most restorative. Wine was nice, too - and the pizzas looked lovely. Anyway, the rest of the group gradually joined us, and when we saw someone sit at the "box office" desk, we all shuffled over to get our hands stamped - tickets not necessary, she had a checklist of our names. We had a fun time chatting - but once they knew the box office was occupied, some folk were preoccupied with spotting when the doors opened; few people want to be at the front of a comedy gig, after all! For all their peering over the crowd, they missed the actual moment - it wasn't until there was a general movement of the crowd (which now filled the bar) that we all made a move ourselves. Happily, we got a row near the back - it's not as though we were going to miss anything, the venue isn't that big! Glasses - and indeed food - can be taken in, so that's not an issue.
MC was Ben van der Velde, a charming chap who introduced to us a whole range of comedy talent. The comedy came to us in three sections, each with two acts - starting off the night was Jonny & The Baptists, who entertained us with musical numbers. But for me, the highlight of the first section was Angela Barnes, with some wicked one-liners. For instance, the image of Jacob Rees Mogg being "the end result of a government experiment to produce the world's most punchable face" will stay with me. Imran Yusuf took a seat for his mild-mannered performance. Interesting background - never mind his ethnic origin, or family history; he used to be a software developer! (Well, I would find that interesting..)
We went back out to the bar for each of the two intervals, and got our table back - but with me being so spaced-out, I decided against any more alcohol. Although I didn't have much cash on me - never do - I did find some for one of the several charity buckets going around - the night was in aid of Refugees at Home, which supports people with spare rooms who want to accommodate refugees.
The second section started with Tez Ilyas - but Aisling Bea got a larger reaction! She used the show as a practice run for her speech for her sister's upcoming wedding.. but the talking point afterwards was whether her dentist is really called Mark Wahlberg!
The final section had the biggest hitters of the night - Ed Gamble, with an hilarious description of a massage, and Josh Widdicombe, whose solo show I had booked for a while back and missed. He wasn't the first of the night to base his routine around his baby, but his description of being a new parent was terrific. Afterwards, they milled around the bar - but we didn't hang around long, the evening had overrun and people wanted to get home. I accompanied them down the road until they all literally poured into the Tube station! Me, of course, I was bussing it, as usual.
Yesterday, I arrived back in Ireland for Easter - by the time I got around to booking flights, that was the closest reasonably cheap date! Not only that, but the evening flights were full - I had to fly in the morning, which meant I hardly got any sleep that night. And by the time last night rolled around, I was far too tired to blog. Today was much more relaxed - I took my mother to confession in Ennis. Might I point out that the "Wait/Enter" lights above the confessional were most misleading, given that the wrong one was always illuminated.. Afterwards we headed, for the first time in years, to The Grove for dinner - it has the advantage of easy parking.
What a glorious day it turned out to be, warm and sunny! (Is winter over at last?!) We took a seat near the door, for the breeze, and regretted it when someone closed it. Not enough to reopen it, mind - it wasn't that hot!
Wow, this place has improved since I was last here. Service was terrific, quick and friendly - although they took a while to come to us after we arrived, so I got menus from the bar myself. And they took forever to come to us for our dessert order - by which time we'd decided we didn't want one anyway. There is a decent supermarket next door, which served us well for that.
The choice has improved, and the food was very good. Vegetable soup - with some indifferent bread - was followed, for me, by "Phille" chicken, with mushroom sauce and cheese, which was delicious. My mother had salmon, as usual, which she polished off. We had terrific sides of onion rings and sauté mushrooms, which were served with onion - both utterly delicious. The only problem was the quantity of food, which was a little too much for us. Still, I'd definitely be back here.
Flying back to London on Monday. On Tuesday, with UITCS again for Come From Away, finally, at the Phoenix. I've heard so much about this award-winning show, it's about time I saw it, eh? It's the true story, apparently, of the aftermath of 9-11, when all planes were temporarily grounded. And a small Newfoundland town played host to people stranded there, from all over! And - listed as a separate Meetup - afterwards, the band from the show is playing at the Arts Club, downstairs: entry free if you have a ticket for the musical. If you're going separately, the entry ticket includes a free cocktail, which makes this excellent value!
On Wednesday, back with London Literary Walks for his Elephant and Castle Walk. Another popular one.
And next Thursday - considering I'll still be on garden leave, and my days will be nice and free - I'm meeting 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners for a walk about A History of Chelsea - from quaint to Quant. Starting in the morning, we're meeting in the bar of the Royal Court, and will have lunch after the walk.
I only got more tired on the way, and by the time I got there, I was sufficiently out of it that I walked right past the venue. To be fair, I'd never been there before. Happily though, I met a couple of the group coming in the other direction, who directed me back to where I needed to be. We were early enough to get a table that was - roughly - large enough for the group, and while some ordered pizzas, I just had a glass of wine and some onion rings.
Gotta say, I'd be happy enough to eat a full meal here - the onion rings were very nice, and most restorative. Wine was nice, too - and the pizzas looked lovely. Anyway, the rest of the group gradually joined us, and when we saw someone sit at the "box office" desk, we all shuffled over to get our hands stamped - tickets not necessary, she had a checklist of our names. We had a fun time chatting - but once they knew the box office was occupied, some folk were preoccupied with spotting when the doors opened; few people want to be at the front of a comedy gig, after all! For all their peering over the crowd, they missed the actual moment - it wasn't until there was a general movement of the crowd (which now filled the bar) that we all made a move ourselves. Happily, we got a row near the back - it's not as though we were going to miss anything, the venue isn't that big! Glasses - and indeed food - can be taken in, so that's not an issue.
MC was Ben van der Velde, a charming chap who introduced to us a whole range of comedy talent. The comedy came to us in three sections, each with two acts - starting off the night was Jonny & The Baptists, who entertained us with musical numbers. But for me, the highlight of the first section was Angela Barnes, with some wicked one-liners. For instance, the image of Jacob Rees Mogg being "the end result of a government experiment to produce the world's most punchable face" will stay with me. Imran Yusuf took a seat for his mild-mannered performance. Interesting background - never mind his ethnic origin, or family history; he used to be a software developer! (Well, I would find that interesting..)
We went back out to the bar for each of the two intervals, and got our table back - but with me being so spaced-out, I decided against any more alcohol. Although I didn't have much cash on me - never do - I did find some for one of the several charity buckets going around - the night was in aid of Refugees at Home, which supports people with spare rooms who want to accommodate refugees.
The second section started with Tez Ilyas - but Aisling Bea got a larger reaction! She used the show as a practice run for her speech for her sister's upcoming wedding.. but the talking point afterwards was whether her dentist is really called Mark Wahlberg!
The final section had the biggest hitters of the night - Ed Gamble, with an hilarious description of a massage, and Josh Widdicombe, whose solo show I had booked for a while back and missed. He wasn't the first of the night to base his routine around his baby, but his description of being a new parent was terrific. Afterwards, they milled around the bar - but we didn't hang around long, the evening had overrun and people wanted to get home. I accompanied them down the road until they all literally poured into the Tube station! Me, of course, I was bussing it, as usual.
Yesterday, I arrived back in Ireland for Easter - by the time I got around to booking flights, that was the closest reasonably cheap date! Not only that, but the evening flights were full - I had to fly in the morning, which meant I hardly got any sleep that night. And by the time last night rolled around, I was far too tired to blog. Today was much more relaxed - I took my mother to confession in Ennis. Might I point out that the "Wait/Enter" lights above the confessional were most misleading, given that the wrong one was always illuminated.. Afterwards we headed, for the first time in years, to The Grove for dinner - it has the advantage of easy parking.
What a glorious day it turned out to be, warm and sunny! (Is winter over at last?!) We took a seat near the door, for the breeze, and regretted it when someone closed it. Not enough to reopen it, mind - it wasn't that hot!
Wow, this place has improved since I was last here. Service was terrific, quick and friendly - although they took a while to come to us after we arrived, so I got menus from the bar myself. And they took forever to come to us for our dessert order - by which time we'd decided we didn't want one anyway. There is a decent supermarket next door, which served us well for that.
The choice has improved, and the food was very good. Vegetable soup - with some indifferent bread - was followed, for me, by "Phille" chicken, with mushroom sauce and cheese, which was delicious. My mother had salmon, as usual, which she polished off. We had terrific sides of onion rings and sauté mushrooms, which were served with onion - both utterly delicious. The only problem was the quantity of food, which was a little too much for us. Still, I'd definitely be back here.
Flying back to London on Monday. On Tuesday, with UITCS again for Come From Away, finally, at the Phoenix. I've heard so much about this award-winning show, it's about time I saw it, eh? It's the true story, apparently, of the aftermath of 9-11, when all planes were temporarily grounded. And a small Newfoundland town played host to people stranded there, from all over! And - listed as a separate Meetup - afterwards, the band from the show is playing at the Arts Club, downstairs: entry free if you have a ticket for the musical. If you're going separately, the entry ticket includes a free cocktail, which makes this excellent value!
On Wednesday, back with London Literary Walks for his Elephant and Castle Walk. Another popular one.
And next Thursday - considering I'll still be on garden leave, and my days will be nice and free - I'm meeting 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners for a walk about A History of Chelsea - from quaint to Quant. Starting in the morning, we're meeting in the bar of the Royal Court, and will have lunch after the walk.
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