Play: Britannicus

Headed for a late lunch this afternoon, which served for dinner as well.. and I fancied having a trawl around my now-local train stations! I could see nothing in King's Cross - apart from a walk of fame, naming all the films that were shot there!

So, over to St. Pancras - passing a checkin queue, for the Eurostar, that I can only describe as horrendous! As I passed, an announcement apologised for the delays, and advised people to have their Covid vaccination documentation ready. Hah! I somewhow suspect that's not what was holding it up, so much as a personnel shortage..

Anyway, restaurants were, apparently, upstairs. The lift was broken, so I schlepped all the way over to the other side of the station for the escalator - they really don't make it easy to get around here! Made it upstairs eventually, meandered around.. didn't see anything that grabbed me until Carluccio's. Ah, I thought, I have good memories of this chain.. so I wandered over, after a bit got someone's attention. She asked whether I'd like to sit inside or outside - jeez, given that the restaurant itself is in the station, it hardly makes a difference.. I decided to sit outside, so I could people-watch.

Oh, I really should have checked the online reviews. Service here is so hit-and-miss as to make you wonder whether they're taking the p***. I started making note of the timings; 15 minutes to get anyone to take my order (I resorted to drumming my fingers in an annoyed manner, in the end), another 15 minutes to get my drink (at least they serve wine in carafes), another 20 minutes to get my soup. Soup, FFS! In the meantime, they'd passed with soup for someone else - they're surely not going to say they make a fresh batch of soup for everyone! I presume theirs and mine came from the same pot - could the waiter not have carried two bowls? Could someone not have reached in and filled a separate nowl for me? Wouldn't have taken long - they definitely weren't busy. I think it was the manager who eventually brought mine - my exclamantion of "Finally!" went straight over her head. Oh, and the bread served with mine was a bit stale. Funny tasting soup, too - I wouldn't have it again. But by now I was starving.

Five minutes or so after that, someone finally thought to remove the extra setting at my table. Meantime, I finished my soup, and checked in with a phone call to my mother. Described to her what was going on - for instance, how I'd watched the ladies at another table arrive, be served, finish, pay, and leave, while I was still waiting for my starter - and I have to wonder whether someone wasn't listening! All of a sudden, service became quick. I wasn't off the phone when my chicken came - which was ok, nothing special, came with sauteed potatoes (eight bite-sized pieces, I counted). I grabbed someone for the bill after that - I'd have loved dessert, but not only had I already been there quite long enough, but I remembered that the cafe at the theatre did great cake, figured I'd go for that. And gee, I hardly had time to sip my last glass of wine when the lady came with the bill and the card machine, and asking me whether it had all been ok! Yeah, not worth the price.. certainly, don't go there if you're pressed for time!

On my way out, passed not one, but two pianos being played! Interestingly, one was attracting much more attention than the other..

Tonight, headed to Britannicus at the Lyric Hammersmith (and damned if CT doesn't now have tickets for this as well!). Thought I might make my initial office trip today, it'd shorten the journey. But then, I wanted to change clothes, so it was handier to be at home.. and anyway, I'd have had to be up half an hour earlier! And so home - briefly - and to the theatre, which I still had to take the Tube to! With luck, I might have managed a bus from the office in an hour.. well, never mind, I was on the Circle, which is spacious and has a good overground section. 

Damned if the theatre cafe no longer does cake! Muffins, yes, but I didn't feel like them. Bah humbug. So I had a glass of wine, headed up when the house was open. And I was front row, centre! Unfortunately, beside what acted like a group of schoolkids, all jittery and shaking the seats - happily, they were very attentive during the show.

So, this is set during the early days of the reign of Nero, when his mother, Agrippina, who secured the throne for him, finds herself shut out as he shows the first signs of the duplicity that would define his reign. (Does the fact that I couldn't stop comparing him to Boris Johnson say more about Boris, or about me? To be fair, the actor is blond..) Anyway, the play concerns both his relationship with her, and also with his step-brother, Britannicus, the late emperor Claudius' son, and so with a stronger claim to the imperial throne than Nero himself. So, nothing to do with Britain then.

It is a marvellous display of unadulterated power - the jitterbug beside me was enthralled. Nero's bloodymindedness, the way no-one can trust anyone, the complete betrayal of everything that you might consider sanctified.. there's a reason people like plays from this period in history - the emotions are so uncomplicated, although the actions are savage. The only thing I found unnecessary was the fits that everyone goes into, between scenes. We get it, it's stressful - do you really have to act out the emotion? Anyway, it's well-acted - highly recommended. Runs till the 25th. No interval, which is always nice - there was a Q+A after tonight's performance, and I debated - briefly - staying - but well now, did I really want to sit and listen to the actors expound on how it was to play someone nasty, or someone who's lost everything? Not so much - I decided I'd like my evening back, and scurried off home.

Tomorrow, must leave back the keys to my old place. Then back to Ireland for the weekend. And with a couple of films showing that I'd be interested in seeing, the higher rated is a horror film (yay!) called Men, in which Jessie Buckley decides to take a trip on her own through the English countryside, following her ex-husband's suicide. She rents a country manor from an odd chap, played by Rory Kinnear - and he ain't the only odd man she meets! England can be a rich trove of horror stories - certainly, the books are hardcore. Let's hope the film is as well. Written and directed by Alex Garland, who has an impressive pedigree as a writer. Has a slightly earlier showing in the Omniplex, so I'll think about heading there.

On Monday, I've booked for Tony! The Tony Blair Musical, at the Park Theatre.

On Tuesday, booked for Girl on an Altar, at the Kiln Theatre. This is the story of Clytemnestra and her husband, Agamemnon, following his sacrifice of their daughter to the gods.

On Wednesday, I was going to a concert in the City Churches Music series. This is Brilliant Brass, performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Brass Quintet in the church of St. Stephen Walbrook. This day, however, tied with the following day as the preferred day for our work dinner, and the boss decided today to pick Wednesday, venue TBC. I got my ticket for the concert from CT, and have now cancelled it - no ill effects, as of yet!

Next Thursday, headed to Mad House at the Ambassadors Theatre. 

On the 17th, back with the Crick Crack Club! for The Nine Muses of Queen's Crescent, at Rich Mix. Courtesy of my favourite storyteller, Clare Murphy, whom I haven't seen in an age!

On the 18th, I had booked with TAC for Haydn's Creation at St. Pancras Church, Euston. And then I saw that Bucket List London had booked something for that afternoon! specifically, a trip to Greenwich Royal Observatory and/or the Ranger's House. Ah well now, I haven't been out with this group since January! Ironically, that's where I first met Laurence, on so many of whose walks I've subsequently been - and who knows when I'll see him again?! since he seems only to run walks on weekdays, now. I seem to be swapping one for the other.. So anyway, I'm now going to all of the above. One of those busy days.

On the 19th, back with London Guided Walks - but, armed with the information that they now advertise through TAC, I've booked through them instead! This is the Secrets of St. James Walk, and given how I booked, I must remember to bring £3 cash on the day. I have to admit, the standard of these walks is excellent.

On the 20th, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Jitney, at The Old Vic. I didn't fancy the cheapest seats - but gee, SFF had seats in all but the most expensive price bands, for very little more! So I now find myself in the central Stalls for this..

On the 21st, I'm at the Royal Court for That Is Not Who I Am, a play about identity theft, from a mysterious writer about whom we have few details, except that he has worked most of his life in the security industry. Ooh..

On the 22nd, back with TAC for The Lark Ascending and Piano Quintet, a classical concert at St. Giles' Cripplegate, a church I've often passed but never been in! Part of the City Churches Music Festival.

And on the 23rd, back at the same festival - with CT, this time, for a concert of English Song at the lovely church of St. Bartholomew the Great. It's been too long.. Then back to Ireland for the weekend again.

Storytelling: Masters of Hex

Friday was my final trip of the year to the Crick Crack Club - Jan Blake was performing Masters of Hex at the British Library. Along with Ben Haggerty and TUUP. Same friend going with me as did on the 29th, and Helen too - and the same lunatic. Who would probably avoid us, and good enough for her.

Working from home, I could meet Helen whenever suited - so we met on Oxford Street, about 2.5 hours before the show. For once, I got there first! so had time to think about eating. It occurred to me that Nando's would be handy, so I researched where there was one on our route - the Brunswick Centre seemed like a good option, so that's where we headed.

Mind you, when we got there, the first thing we saw was a Carluccio's - so that's where we ended up. After a brief photo stop:

 

Right inside the door, they have a shop, which you can browse as you wait to be seated. Which didn't take long - but never fear, they have a retail list along with the menus, on the tables! Along with the a la carte, we had a "Menu Festivo", which we ended up ordering from, mainly - we had garlic bread as a side, along with starters, mains, desserts. They had a two-course price, a three-course price, and a three-course with prosecco and a cracker price. We decided against the prosecco and cracker option - we were having wine anyway - but a table just down from us went for it. And yes, the cracker is of the festive variety.

The garlic bread, unusually, was cold - but tasty enough. My starter was a chicken broth with ravioli - never heard of it before. I had chicken saltimbocca for my main course.. all fine, but nothing to write home about. Honestly, the wine was quite insipid too. Dessert for me was ice cream, which turned out to be topped with a mountain of cream, rather unnecessarily. But hey, we were both fed - although I wouldn't rate it as the best meal ever. And we did have something of a wait for the bill, our server being busy..

Anyway, we then galloped up the road to the library - I was glad I knew exactly where to go, we were so close to time! Helen had printed out both our tickets - I'd asked her, since my printer was in my old place and my laptop in my new, and although my work laptop was in the old place too, it hadn't been introduced to the printer, and I didn't think the relationship would go well! Annoyingly, we had to produce the printed tickets for access - get with the programme, British Library, most places just let you show them on your phone! The place was quite full when we did get in, but we got seats near my other friend, if not quite beside him.

This time, a library employee mc'ed - this event was part of a larger Harry Potter exhibition they've got going. Ben Haggerty started off proceedings, clad shoulders to toes in black, as usual -  he'd left his hat at home. His story, as theatrically told as ever, was familiar to me - a version of a Baba Yaga tale, and as visceral a tale as any of them. TUUP, following, gave a much more lighthearted rendition of a story about a rich man who was taken down a peg by a magician - his story started with a wee musical interlude on the drum he so often has with him, and was punctuated with frequent humour. Finally, Jan Blake upped the musical quotient, getting us all to sing along in a gospel number - before giving us a poignant tale, set in the dark days of slavery on the plantations.

All in all, a good mix - I'm just sorry I couldn't make the last Crick Crack event of the year, the following Monday (advertised after I'd booked my flights). Anyway, that exhibition runs through February, if you want to check it out. On our way out, the lunatic was spotted on the stairs, but was out long before us, as Helen and I stopped to tell my other friend how the break to Germany had gone (he'd been supposed to go, but hadn't been able to get the time off). We eventually decided to leave, passing the storytellers on the way, who were still hanging around with their families, it looked like. We dawdled some more in the lobby before heading down the stairs to leave - and would you believe it, Crazy Lady was still down there, bending the ear of someone who worked there, it looked like! We slipped out past her without incident.

My other friend headed the other way on the main road - I accompanied Helen as far as the Tube, which she caught to the station. She was going to be a bit late with her train, unfortunately - ah well, you're entitled to stay out late for Christmas! Me, I did some work when I got home, as it was my last day of the year - and had a dramatic time next day, as I flew back to Ireland for Christmas.

Unfortunately, with all I had to pack, I couldn't fit everything into my case, so booked a checked bag and took a rucksack as well (and my handbag). Sadly, the checked bag meant I couldn't check in at the self-service kiosk, and there was a queue at the two desks open. And the usual quota of idiots in front of me, who had to have the entire process explained to them - so the checkin deadline passed while I was in the queue! Then the idiot at the desk reacted with complete astonishment to the news that there'd been a queue there at all, claimed the gate had closed earlier than it had, and sent me over to the ticket desk - where the nice man, with at least two brain cells to rub together, asked whether I was ok to take the case on as hand baggage as well, and pooh-pooed the idea that I might have too many bags. And was I relieved to see that boarding pass appear - especially when he told me there was no evening flight, so that was it for the day..

I was lucky - Easyjet no longer use their discretion at Gatwick, once the gate is closed, it's closed. Here, I was one of the last to board, which is fine - a lovely young flight attendant found somewhere down the back for my bags, and also put up the rest of my things when I realised I was in the bloody exit row. And then the lovely chap, seeing my flusteredness, brought me a water - which I really needed - and a free paper. And suggested that I might go sit near my bags, at the back, later in the flight, rather than have to wait forever to get back to them when we were getting off. Which I did. Now, that's what I call service..

Finally catching up with myself. Must give a shout-out to two very good meals I've had since I came back - the first in the Abbey Tavern, where we ate on Sunday, so they had the Sunday menu on, which included the most succulent chicken and ham I've had. The second was the next day, in Nuala's, where we really don't eat often enough - and we do keep forgetting how good it is! Delicious garlic mushrooms to start, and two kinds of curry - korma, and a chip-shop-type curry, which I adore. (Mind you, I'm not mad about their rice, so had chips instead.) My mother also remarked on her very good salmon. And the chocolate fudge cake I had for dessert.. was pure fudge. Approach with caution! Nice to know we shan't starve - just a pity that neither of these is open on Christmas Day..

Running errands this week. Will be heading back to Bowes Ryan on Saturday, where my birth mother will be buying me lunch.. and seeing a couple of friends next week, once the madness of Christmas is over. Flying back to London on the 2nd of January, and on the 3rd I've booked to see Stewart Lee at Leicester Square Theatre. Determinedly not in the front two rows - not for a comedy show!

On the 4th of January, I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats (Happy New Year to them!), who are off to see Hanna, at the Arcola.

On the 5th of January, I thought Time Out threw me a curiously interesting event - so I'm going on this Space Descent VR experience, at the Science Museum. I'll have to leave work early for it - there are timed slots, and it consists of wearing goggles, and living the experience of a descent to earth, with the astronaut Tim Peake narrating in your ears.

On the 6th of January, Crick Crack is back! Happy New Year to them too. The story of When Time Began is being told at King's Place. Creation myths. And wouldn't you know it, we're being treated to a host of performers - the husband and wife team, Emily and Nick Hennessy, and co-founder of the club, the amazing Ben Haggerty. Accompaniment provided by the wonderful musician, Sheema Mukherjee.

On the 7th of January, another Happy new Year - this time to Let's Do This (LDT), who are off to an art exhibition. Gilbert & George: the Beard Pictures and their Fuckosophy. Sorry, but that is the title. Showing at the White Cube Gallery. Honestly, but for the group that's hosting, I wouldn't bother..

And finally, more art on the 8th of January, which I'll probably enjoy more. I'm taking the day off to go see Reflections at the National Gallery - an exhibition of Pre-Raphaelites, which, with a free day, I can peruse at my leisure. As inspired by a walk by the excellent London Literary Walks - roll on the summer, and a return of those! Oh, and just lately, LDT advertised another trip to the excellent Vintage Swing Jazz evenings at Wilton's - for the evening of the 8th. And why not, indeed? So I booked that, too..