Play: The Boy with Two Hearts

Yesterday, I "provisionally" booked for the Soho Comedy Factory again.. but lo, was saved from having to make another of those difficult decisions, when Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) posted a trip to see The Boy with Two Hearts, at the National! Based on a true story, of a refugee family from Afghanistan, with a little boy with heart problems. Interestingly, I thought to use my Theatre Token for this - since I was finally booking something during box office hours, and could ring them up; few theatres take them online. But with them, phone booking incurs a £3 fee that other booking methods don't! So I left it, and just booked a ticket online for full price. Was perplexed when it wouldn't accept my card - until somehow I was logged into my National Theatre account, and noticed I had an old billing address. When I changed it, I had no further problems. There's a moral there. (Interestingly again, I couldn't even cancel my attendance at the comedy club - they now close RSVPs very early!)

See now, I do know somewhere good to eat nearby - The Archduke, a steak restaurant, does a cracking roast chicken. Ironically, when I tried their steak, I wasn't mad about it.. Anyway, it's a bit expensive, and frankly, I prefer O' Neill's. So I ate there. The waiter I got hadn't noticed me the last few times I was in, it seems, and welcomed me back! and I was well fed, and quickly. I hadn't such luck with the buses - I started out waiting for the #91, but my Buses Due app disagreed with Google Maps, and said it wasn't due for half an hour! With no sign of the bus that Google Maps said was imminent, I gave up on it and schlepped around the corner, to Upper Woburn Place, where I could get a variety of buses. And.. which had a great big "closed" sign on it, for this week, it seems. Hmm.

Well, I could see no good reason for it to be closed - and with one of my buses approaching, and knowing I couldn't get to the next stop in time, I said I'd see whether it stopped - they sometimes do. Another guy had the same idea. When the bus happened along, the driver gesticulated wildly to indicate that the stop was closed, and drove on.. we schlepped in the direction of the next stop. But then - he was stopped at the lights, and opened the door for us! So we got on - with just a small lecture from him about how the stop was closed. Nyeh, we were on, that was the main thing..

And we got off on Waterloo Bridge, where I walked back to the steps to get down to the theatre. And guess what I saw:

They were just closing up as I passed.. and as I walked past the length of it, a very interesting rumbling emananted from inside.. more anon.

At the theatre, I met the others and we chatted briefly - we hadn't long before showtime. We'd all been upgraded, which was nice! And this was press night, so some were in hopes of seeing some celebs - no such luck, though. Although I did see a couple of journos taking notes, in front of me.

Rows of shirts hang from the ceiling, more clothes are scattered at the foot of the stage - I guess this represents the refugees that, at the start, this family is on the point of joining. And soon into the production, we're introduced to the most beautiful singer, who, throughout, provides a stunning and, at times, heart-rending soundtrack to the action on stage, as she moves around the stage, always just at the edge.

This is a fabulously directed production - five actors do the entire thing, representing mostly the parents and three sons of the family, but also swapping, when necessary, to represent a Taliban soldier, neighbours, border guards, or doctors. It's as simple as donning a jacket, or swapping it with another person. And it really works! Some imagination is required to remember that there are always supposed to be five family members, but otherwise, it's flawlessly done. Searchlights are used when required - otherwise, props are minimal. There's a section above the stage, that acts to depict the family being squashed into compartments as they are smuggled to the UK - a harrowing story in itself, which takes up most of the running time. And oh, the animations on the front of that section over the stage are fantastic.. to depict rain, the letters "r a i n" drop and scatter, like raindrops. To depict a heartbeat, the word "heartbeat" scrolls across the screen, with a pattern that looks like a cardiogram. And that's not the half of it..

This play is based on a book, written by the younger brothers about their older brother, the one with the heart condition. And with minimal staging - but terrific animations, beautiful singing, and very clever direction - they have crafted a wonderfully moving story. It's an absolute credit to them, and the standing ovation at the end was no surprise. Highly recommended - runs till the 12th of next month. Includes flashing lights at one point, and a gunshot early on.

With an early start, it also finished nice n early, allowing me to shop on the way home - but I couldn't blog, having to be up early for the presale for Bono's book tour! Have been completely unsuccessful so far, BTW - tickets seem to have sold out in seconds for where I was looking for, London and Dublin. Still trying, in the vain hope of a ticket drop - the presale is technically on till 5.

Today, I was thinking film - but what was coming up wasn't as interesting as what the same group is advertising in Hampstead Theatre. So I booked to go and see Ravenscourt with them - a medical drama, centred on the failings of the mental healthcare system. And yay, for this I finally used my Theatre Token! (No phone booking fee, here.) Well, that's a weight off..

Then I'm back to Ireland again, because of the dates I have weekend things in London this month, and the date of my mother's birthday, which I want to be back in Ireland for. It all works out - but only if I switch weekends, which I'm doing by coming back to Ireland again this weekend. Film for the weekend? Currently looking like The Lost King, a comedy co-written by, and starring, Steve Coogan as the husband of the woman who found the remains of Richard III. Under a car park.. Only showing in the Omniplex, and a little late. Ah well.

Monday. Well. 👿 Anyone who knows me well, knows that I love horror. And am really excited that Darkfield is doing onsite shows this month. Mwa-ha-haa.. Five of them, in fact. I've booked the first of them for Monday, the first day I was free - the first they're showing, it's Intravene, nearby the BFI (actually, outside the National Theatre - see above). These are all held in shipping containers, and the unifying idea for all Darkfield shows is that they're aural - you have headphones, which are your main sensory input. The shows all take place in complete darkness. This one is about drug abuse, and focuses on the drug problem in Vancouver. And wow, seeing the container in person finally, last night, has just stoked my anticipation..

On Tuesday, signed up for another of The Garden Talks' free online talks - this one is Does Dark Matter Really Matter?

On Wednesday.. heehee. Back with Darkfield. (Cue scary music.) They're also doing shows in Canary Wharf this year - three, in fact. This is the first night for those.. and yes, I'm doing all three, that night. In fact, they allow for that when you're booking. So, I'm doing them in the following order: first is Eulogy, an unusual Darkfield concept in that it's somewhat interactive, at various points you have to say "yes" or "no"..

Second up, I chose Coma (they all have multiple showings, so you can decide exactly what you want to go to, and when. They just ask that you leave at least 15 minutes between, which I have.) For this one, we get to lie down, I think - which is nice - and get an option to take a pill. :-)

Final for the night is the one I've heard the best reviews of - Flight is a reconstruction of an aircraft cabin, and the show is based around - well, a plane crash! Booked all of these while waiting for my eternally delayed flight on Sunday - as I say, every cloud has a silver lining..

Next Thursday is the next of my busy days. See, first I booked with Civilised London (CL) for Tango After Dark, at the Peacock. All good, no-brainer. Then I was messaged by an ex-colleague - another ex-colleague is having leaving drinks that same night, in the Pelt Trader! Hellfire.. so, what I'm going to do is skip drinks with CL after the show and leg it over to the Pelt Trader - I've ordered her not to stop drinking till I get there!

On the 14th, something advertised with the Crick Crack Club (CCC) - they're celebrating all things Mexican in Kew Gardens, with Mexico After Hours! With something about the Day of the Dead, no doubt..

The 15th is another of those busy days. So.. first I'm headed on a walk with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners - this one is Paddington - Proud, Perky & Picturesque.

But, for nearly a year now, I've had tickets booked, for me and Helen, for Dara O' Briain in the Hammersmith Apollo that night! Crikey, I'd never even have thought of it if it hadn't been noted in my calendar. So anyway, she can't come to the walk, but we'll meet for dinner beforehand in Bill's of Hammersmith. I can only hope for better service than I got in Bill's of Clink Street..

On the 16th, back with the CCC for Inisfáil, Irish storytelling courtesy of the wonderful Clare Murphy, in the British Museum.

On the 17th, I originally booked a free online talk about Railways of Surrey, from the Surrey History Meetup. But now I've finally seen (despite the fact that it was evidently posted months ago) an event from UITCS - Samsara is inspired by the Chinese novel, Journey to the West, and contains partial nudity, we're told. Tickets for this are quite cheap, and we're all in the Stalls, for once - they haven't even opened the Second Circle, where we normally are! So, no stairs, for a change!

On the 18th, I've booked for Iphigenia in Splott, in the Lyric Hammersmith.

On the 19th, supposed to have drinks with Ivan! Might go to O' Neill's, we could do worse.

On the 20th, back with CL for dinner at Le Sacré Coeur. Always good.

On the 21st, back to Ireland again - and the following Monday, it's my mother's birthday, so I'm staying in Ireland for that and flying back on Tuesday 25th. I've already cleared it with work.

And on the 26th, I've booked with UITCS again - for Mary, at Hampstead Theatre again. Political machinations in the court of Mary, Queen of Scots. Funny thing - there were two seats in the main seating section at the cheapest price, but the site objected to me just booking one of them. No problem booking an equivalent seat in a higher price bracket, though! So I booked one of the high seats, at the back, instead. At the lower price.

Royal Coronation Walk

All weekend, I was back with the man with the famous name - Dr. Stephen King (not the writer) guided a couple of walks for London Guided Walks (courtesy of Walks, Talks and Treasure Hunts). Both topics / areas I've covered many times before, but gee, he's such a great guide! Today, it was Stephen's Royal Coronation Walk - not, like the others, advertised on TAC - discount of £3 on the official site, with the code MEETUP3. I betted he'd come up with something I didn't already know..

And another afternoon walk! Joy. So, I wandered off to get the bus - had to wait a while, but as usual, not as long as the Buses Due app predicted! It's generally quite accurate, but if it's showing a long wait time, you can be optimistic - I find. And so I alighted in Whitehall, with about half an hour to spare. Passed a protest, as ever - this one was against the killing of Muslims in India. Seems to be part of an unfortunate tit-for-tat between the Muslim and Hindu communities - honestly, it's sounding like Northern Ireland, but on a larger scale.. worrying.

Anyway, I didn't have enough time to get a full meal - but you know, there's a Tesco just down from Parliament Square, and I thought I'd run in there for a snack. Well now, I'd never been in there before - and wow, what a place! There's an entry door, and an exit door - obey them! It's literally just a corridor, with shelves either side - you walk past the shelves to get to the tills, there is no turning back. I grabbed a few bars of chocolate (there was an offer) - and my blasted card wouldn't work! The till wouldn't process a contactless payment, and when I tried inserting my card, it just asked me to remove it. I had to pay with my Irish card in the end..

More protests in the square itself - this very photogenic one was well-organised, with a speaker at the front, explaining that it was about live animal testing, and organising a two-minute silence. I believe it was also being filmed:

Our walk was to start at the Churchill statue:

With a Spanish tour group in front, I plonked myself on a ledge at the back to wait - and that's where the guide joined me, about 15 minutes early. And.. that was that! I was the only person who'd booked! Lordy me. Now, as he said, last time he did this walk, he had lots more people - the vagaries of the public, huh?! How bad - I got a bespoke tour! Now, we quickly established that I know a lot about the royal family - so he skipped a lot of the obvious stuff. But I had a fascinating tour..

How did I miss this statue of George V before?

I've never before paid much attention to the West door of Westminster Abbey - but those statues represent real people! namely, modern martyrs, who have been persecuted for their beliefs. Note Martin Luther King, in the middle with the child at his feet - and to his right, Grand Duchess Elizabeth, a great-aunt of Prince Philip's, who was murdered in the Russian Revolution!

A rather unprepossessing statue of Louis Mountbatten, and then a pair of statues, one of each of the Queen's parents! Wow, can't believe I never saw these before. Most impressive:

(even if George VI has fallen foul of pigeon-bombing). And around the base of the momument, below his statue and kind of behind his wife's, but to either side, are a pair of reliefs, depicting them, but particularly her and her interests! Fantastic level of detail:

Not the last royals of the day - I'd never seen this statue of Queen Alexandra either!

The figures surrounding her represent Faith, Hope, and Love.

Man, I really enjoyed this tour. Delighted I came! Anyway, on to a late lunch - and back to Henry's (thanks to Laurence for introducing me to it!). Where, if you want a drink, you just head to the bar and grab a free table on the ground level - but if you want food, you wait to be seated up the steps. I had calamari to start - interesting, strips rather than rings - and the roast chicken for main course, part of their Sunday Roast selection, which all come with "bottomless" roasties, Yorkshire puddings, and gravy. Just as well, considering the miniscule chicken I was served! But with all the sides, I was well fed. Dessert was a scrumptious chocolate orange torte - advertised with dairy-free ice cream, but as I explained to her, I can't stand the dairy-free stuff; could I have regular? So I did. And a glass of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, not advertised on the menu as served by the glass! Yum..

Tomorrow, I'm headed to A Doll's House Part 2, at Donmar Warehouse - sequel to the famous original, where the wife leaves an unhappy marriage; this sequel examines what happens when she returns. And it turns out that this is my last day at work - so it's handy I'll still have the office, because it's very handy for here.

On Tuesday - well, I finally saw Up In The Cheap Seats (UITCS)' ad for Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch, at the Underbelly Festival! A parody musical, right up my street - I hate how Meetup so often doesn't show me the events I really would enjoy! Just as well I saw this in time, before I booked anything else. So it'll be a hectic evening, with an interview scheduled for 5.30! Just as well I'll have finished work already. Meantime, the festival just sent me an info email today, including my ticket code and instructions.

On Wednesday, back with CT for a concert by the Royal College of Music Brass Ensemble, at the college on Shelton Street.

On Thursday, back with Guided Walking Tours in Brighton and Sussex, for The London Necropolis Virtual Tour. I pointed out to him that the registration link had the wrong date, and he said it was outdated, and he'd replace it and send me the new link - well, he's removed it, but no new link yet. And then - you guessed it, I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again!

On the 11th, I'm going to Favour, at the Bush Theatre - after much effort, as their website wasn't working for days! In fact, it seems to go down sporadically. I chose an unreserved seat, will be allocated one on the day. Anyway, I see TAC has now started selling tickets for this - gee, might be not only the cheapest, but the easiest way to book! Only up to Wednesday, however. Wow, was only there once before, 3.5 years ago..

On the 12th, I'm going to The Southbury Child, at the Bridge Theatre. I noticed that UITCS is going, later in the week - ah well.

On the 13th, back with Civilised London for dinner - this time at The Crown itself, where we usually meet for drinks before heading somewhere else for dinner. Excellent choice. Which marks the beginning of a whole spate of Meetups in a row! When's the last time that happened..?

On the 14th, back with The Garden Talks - this online talk is How Do Languages Evolve?

On the 15th, back with the London Classical Music and Theatre Group for the opera Otello, at the Royal Opera House.

On the 16th, which is a Saturday, I had booked with Discover London for a trip to see a cart making ceremony - and then Eleanor, organiser of TunedIn London, advertised a concert through the World Music Meetup, for that evening, at City Hope Church. So now I'm going to both.

On Sunday the 17th, back with Bucket List London - this time, it's a trip to Sandown Antiques Market. Well, I've never been to Sandown, so this could be interesting.

On the 18th, back with North London Friends! for the first time since before lockdown. This is for an Edinburgh Comedy Festival preview, at the King's Head in Crouch End, featuring Lucy Porter and Rachel Fairburn.

On the 19th.. I'm taking a punt that I won't actually be employed that day, and have signed up again - at last - for a walk with Laurence and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners. This is The Magic of Midtown - and as I said to him, it finishes very near my new home! I also promised to let him know if I can't actually make it - although, even if I have started work by then (which would be surprising), perhaps I could take a day off.

On the 20th, I finish my Meetup run with a trip with UITCS to Leicester Square Theatre to see Frankie Boyle, who has a work in progress show.

On the 21st, I'm thinking of heading - at last - to Summer by the River at More London. This is for a free evening of music, curated by Soho Radio. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend.

On the 25th, I'm headed to see The Throne, a comedy about to open at Charing Cross Theatre, in which the Queen gets locked in a portaloo with a staunch republican. Time Out has an offer of £10 tickets for the cheapest seats for this - a saving of more than 50%!

On the 26th - tan-ta-ra! I finally managed to get a decently priced ticket to Jerusalem, at the Apollo. I have heard so much about this, and it's always at the top of the Time Out listings - nearly as hard as Hamilton to get a reasonably priced ticket for, so I'm delighted to get one, if only not to have to look any more.

On the 27th, back to Summer by the River again.. for Bumper Blyton: Improvised Adventures for Grown-Ups! Improvised comedy in the style of Enid Blyton books.. sounds jolly good!

On the 28th - another UITCS event that Meetup finally decided to flag to me. So I've booked to go with them to see Briefs Factory's show, Bite Club! at Queen Elizabeth Hall. Drag, burlesque.. should be fun!

And on the 29th, thinking about the National Theatre's River Stage 2022. This will be the first night of the Hackney Empire's Young Producers Weekend, and there'll be some dance and some music.

Film: The Jump, Musical: The Drifters Girl, & Dance: Outwitting the Devil

Well, film on Tuesday again. Top of the list was The Jump, only showing in the Curzon Bloomsbury, and is a documentary about a Lithuanian sailor, back in the days of the Soviet Union, who chose to defect to the United States by jumping from his ship onto an American one. Didn't do him much good - they sent him back! but the whole thing blew into a political storm. Sounded interesting. As long as it wasn't as much as half sold out, I kept an eye on it.

Well, it wasn't on until late, so I stayed late in the office again. I could walk. Except that I got caught up in doing something, so it'd have to be public transport for me to get there in time. Google Maps told me I'd make it by bus.. and I made it to the stop just in time for the bus that they'd predicted would come. Then checked my Buses Due app.. to be given the harsh news that it wasn't due for a quarter of an hour! Oh hell, that was all I needed, after a hard day. The only thing for it now was to scurry asap to St. Paul's and catch the Tube, which is what I did. I had to change in Holborn, startling a rat as I disembarked - and why, oh why, do they make you climb two sets of stairs, and leave the escalator for going down? I eventually arrived at the cinema about five minutes late, which wasn't bad. And had a third set of steps to climb as I exited the Tube. So I didn't completely miss out on exercise!

At the cinema, I walked straight into an "event" on the ground floor (the cinemas are in the basement). So I had to buy my ticket downstairs - as I eventually gleaned, although a combination of my stressed demeanour and the assistant's muffled voice behind her mask meant she had to tell me twice. And when I got through that hurdle, I forgot completely where the screen was! Ended up nearly going out through the emergency exit before I realised. And when I got in, someone had his stuff on my seat. So I sat in the one beside, and was quite glad nobody came along to move me.

It's a dramatic, Cold War tale - this guy was in the Soviet navy, off the coast of the US, and the US coastguard came along to see what they were doing. And they started throwing stuff to each other, from one ship to the other, until the Soviet officers objected to the American magazines. Whereupon our protagonist got the idea - just to jump for it! Now, this comprehensive documentary also interviews a couple of officers on the US ship, and one remarked that 4.15pm was the worst time of day to defect, because all the politicos were leaving the office for the day! They couldn't get anyone on the phone, so figured they'd better send him back - wow, what a furore that caused! The story of how he came to the US in the end is fascinating, and as well as archive footage, the documentary has him visit New York, where he used to live, and also follows him around his home in Lithuania - which he and his wife returned to, after independence. A well-rounded documentary, and a fascinating glimpse into this period in history.

And on the way home, I got off at the stop across from my flat - which, according to Google Maps, was not an option for me. Well, nuts to that.

The past two days, for the first time in a while, I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats. Yesterday, we went to see The Drifters Girl, a musical about the female manager of The Drifters, played by Beverley Knight. Playing in the Garrick, and wouldn't you know, when I was checking it out, I saw a message from a member who couldn't go, and was willing to give away her ticket for free to the first person to get in touch. Well, it just goes to show, you can't even give tickets away - this was three days later, and I said I'd take the chance - sure enough, I was the first! It's a physical ticket, which she posted to me - I just had to remember to take it with me! Not often, these days, I get a physical ticket. Oh, and yippee, Rear Stalls!

I decided to pop the ticket in my bag the night before - and just as well, with me in a rush yesterday morning! No email from the theatre, it seems, as they'd said they'd send, with instructions about what to do, and when to be there.

But I left work for the theatre in good time - in fact, I was the first of the group to arrive! Pleasantly, when I came to the auditorium, they were playing music from the era. Plenty of time to bag a drink - and as I sipped it, at the exit from the bar, I spotted a couple of the group over the other side. So I made my way over there - and we spent a good half hour chatting. Problem was, it was pretty cramped - people were having to push past us to go to the bar or toilet, and we duly made for our seats - some were sitting upstairs too, which was a consideration.

As you can see, the pillar "in my sightline" wasn't an impediment at all. Few people were wearing masks until an usher went around with a large sign, urging us to do so, when a lot complied. Anyway, the show started about 15 minutes late - apparently there was a to-do, with a large group of people near the front sitting in the wrong seats! This wasn't the only kerfuffle with the audience last night - a number of our group who were sitting upstairs apparently had terrible trouble with people near them who not only wouldn't stop talking through the show, but became quite belligerent when challenged! As someone remarked, theatre etiquette has really gone downhill since lockdown..

Well, we got the story of The Drifters - but what everyone's really there for is the actual music, and there's plenty of it - as usual, more of their back catalogue than you realised was theirs! And throughout, it's beautifully sung. Beverley Knight herself doesn't get much opportunity to sing until the end of the first half, when a showstopping number brings us to the interval. She is heard a bit more after that - and I distinctly remember being about to take a sip of wine while she was belting out a number, only to stop with the glass halfway to my mouth! Truly, she blew us away. And by the end, we were only too ready to rise to a standing ovation - and to sing along. (Mind you, some had started already, and a group just behind me were very merry after a trip to the bar at the interval..)

Terrific musical performance - plenty of laughs, too. Highly recommended if you're into the old classics. Runs until the 26th March. And it was great to see some folks I literally hadn't seen in years.

I was looking forward to tonight, when we were headed to Sadler's Wells for an Akram Khan production, the UK Premiere of Outwitting the Devil. Part of their Carnival of Shadows tour. And ooh, the first time I'd have been there since lockdown!

Of course, our office has now started serving free beer (and, crucially, wine) on Thursdays, so naturally, I imbibed before setting off. And the new office, with its single-kitchen layout, means a lot more mingling between the different departments. Indeed, I networked happily until I decided I really had to tear myself away - it was a pity, I was enjoying it. As it was, I'd have been able to walk if I'd left earlier - instead, I had a number of potential buses to choose from.

Just missed one - which I could have caught, if I hadn't been unsure it was the right one: caught another - and treated myself to a ride up in the lift, as I was already late. (Happily, not late for the show, just a little late to meet the group.) And again, it was great to see people I hadn't seen in so long.. had a good old chat until it was time to go in.

So, this is straight through without an interval.. and a more intense, creepy piece I defy you to find. (So, I loved it.) Nobody, but nobody, seems to have figured out exactly what the plot is, but as ever, it looks great, looks and sounds eerie, and grabbed my attention throughout. If you want to give it a shot, it's running until Saturday, with decent availability. Under-5s not allowed. And with it having no interval, it was over early enough for me to blog!

Tomorrow, back with one of my cheap ticket groups - TAC - for another concert at the Wimbledon Music Festival. This time, it's Yantra, an a cappella group, in the Trinity URC Church.

On Saturday, back with the Surrey History Meetup group - nominally - for yet another Zoom call. This time, it focuses on SHERF 2021 - a day-long conference based on the work of the Surrey Historic Environment Research Framework, and specifically on church archaeology. As promoted by the Surrey Archaeological Society.

And on Sunday, back with London European Club - we're off to Immigrant Comedy (standup comedy in English) at the Camden Comedy Club. Tickets from Eventbrite.. two shows, we're going to the later one.