On Friday, until the other day I was still technically booked for free comedy in Hammersmith with DiscoverLDN.UK. But, as I say - good atmosphere, but the comedy is usually pretty bad. I was saved - again - by Up in the Cheap Seats, who were off to see Doubt, a Parable, in Southwark Playhouse. I was delighted - it's so long since I was there, and I have so many good memories of it from my time with the Man with the Hat!
It was press night.. and packed! I queued for my ticket, directed someone I knew to the rest of the group, ran to the loo, queued for a drink, and was just in time to go in. Reassured someone else that yes, you can bring drinks in, and yes, in glass. As she remarked, very civilised! We were in the Large - for the first time I can remember, it was in the round; some of us had the front row, and had to tuck in our feet as the actors passed.. some were in the back.
A cleverly minimalist set represents church, office, garden. A raised platform shows us where to direct our attention, the floor decorated in something like stained glass, and centred on an Eye of Eye of Providence. Decorative railings round the edge are reminiscent of those around old Catholic altars. A chandelier and a couple of stained glass windows hanging from the ceiling complete the effect.
The story should be familiar to anyone who has seen the excellent film, Doubt, starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Viola Davis, and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. Set a few years after Vatican II, which dragged the Catholic church kicking and screaming into the 20th century, the story examines the clash between old and new in the church, when a disapproving old nun, principal of a Catholic school, starts to be suspicious of a trendy young priest, and sets a young nun to spy on him. What is revealed sets a dramatic chain of events in motion - but has justice really been done?
This is a fantastic production. The intensity of the four characters - priest, old and young nuns, and the mother of the boy caught up in the drama - is riveting. It's a splendid piece of casting, and in this one-act play, the audience frequently burst into spontaneous applause after particularly stirring scenes. The doubt shown by the old nun at the end will stay with audiences long after. True what they say - it's hard to find a bad performance here! Runs till the end of the month - go see!
Afterwards, the lobby was still crowded - they were holding interviews by the door. After a while, when we saw spare seats, a couple of us grabbed them, and a good night was spent discussing the play, and all manner of other stuff..
Yesterday, Helen and I had our 25km sponsored walk, in aid of Haslemere's Cat Protection Society. We went as Dick Whittington and his cat, respectively, and the route was the Thames Bridges Trek. You can still donate here.. Got a pair of Skechers Go Walk 4s last week, and was dying to try them out on the walk. I could register early on Friday, which I did, to avoid getting up quite so early in the morning. Between travelling to and from, the whole thing took me two and a half hours.. but it was worth it, as I was to discover.
Yesterday dawned beautifully sunny, despite dire predictions of rain. The plan had been to take the bus, but of course I overslept and ended up on the Tube. And when I got there - boy, was that a long queue! Which I blithely walked past. Poor Helen, who hadn't had the chance to register early, was stuck in it.. As she said, the suggested arrival time of an hour before the start really wasn't enough! I believe this year saw a record number of entrants.
Me, I grabbed a free biscuit and a free cup of squash, and was waylaid by the Cats Protection people, who cajoled me into an interview for camera. After that, we barely had time to grab our free, blue trilbies before we were off!
The cameraman was there at the start line, and indeed kept popping up along the route all day. As it happened, Cats Protection had quite a few walkers, and we had one other accompany us through the morning. Distance markers encouraged us on our way, and it was fun seeing places I'd lived near, before. Pictures here.
We began to flag a bit by the lunch break, but when it finally came, the portaloos, free snacks and drinks, and free blister plasters were much appreciated. Some others required medical care - we were finding out that this would be harder than it looked. Anyway, we dragged ourselves out again.. And throughout the afternoon, beautiful views and surreal sky scapes greeted us, as we crossed fully 16 bridges, travelling 25km. And we even met a couple of kitty cats on the way..
We finally hobbled across the finish line, to receive medals, free t-shirts and a glass of prosecco. And a cold buffet. Best of all was the chance to sit down.. but we made it! Not everyone did. 20km seems to be my comfort limit, I can now say.. that's where I hit the wall. I was seriously decrepit, heading for the bus.
I then had a load of things to research for my flight to Prague this morning! I'm at a conference there, Sunday to Tuesday. (What a nice company I work for!) Gee, but I love Prague - most beautiful city I've ever seen, and I've seen a few. They're putting me up at a nice hotel too, just down the road.
Anyway, I got up unreasonably early. Packed, made for the Tube. I was a bit delayed in leaving, mind, when I checked, just in case, and discovered that bloody Easyjet still operate the outdated policy that Ryanair dropped years ago, of making you pack your handbag in your other luggage! So I had to check it fitted, which delayed me a bit.
Got to Victoria, to discover that unlike the Stansted Express, the Gatwick Express only goes every half hour. So that was me screwed then, even though I'd already checked in. Hate Gatwick. My only chance was if the flight was delayed? In which case they'd cut me some slack. Sadly, the gate closed while I was still on the train.
Our nonstop train stopped at Croydon, and our half hour journey took 35 mins. It then turned out that we were in the wrong terminal, so I had further to go. In all, the journey from Victoria took 50 mins. Now, I'd checked on the train, and the next flight is at 6.25pm. Should have taken that in the first place - it's not like I'd have been in time for anything today anyway. Well, tickets had been cheaper - but by the time I got to where I should be, the price had risen enough that it was cheaper to get Easyjet to switch my flight. So I queued for 25 mins at Customer Service - it's busy there. And now I'm booked.
Too early now to go through security, the best breakfast option seemed to be a meal deal from WH Smith. Very tasty it was. Pity I didn't get a seat - they're scarce here. Did eventually, and have been fiddling with very iffy WiFi to do the blog. Am now positioned between the weighing scales, which provided some entertainment earlier, with a wedding party who discovered they were overweight, and - up to just now - a highly irritating, fidgeting Italian, whom I was on the verge of throttling. Got an interesting phone call earlier - seems the hotel sent someone to the airport in Prague to pick me up! Well, I've booked the transfer for tonight - I'm sure work will pay.
So, I fly back on Tuesday, and on Wednesday I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats, at Sadler's Wells, for the Hofesh Schechter Company grand finale.
On Thursday, I was at another talk with Walks, Talks and Treasure Hunts - this one, at Southwark Cathedral, is about the River Effra, South London's Secret Spine. Another free Eventbrite event, this is to publicise a book about the subject, and the talk is again given by the author. Another thing that had no tickets, then it did (no notification)! Now I've changed though, and will be off with Up in the Cheap Seats to Loot, at the Park Theatre. Got the last £20 ticket, yay! Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.
On the 18th September, I was off to Showstopper! at the Lyric. Ticket courtesy of From the Box Office again. I have actually seen this before - but, being an improvised musical, it literally is different every time! But you'll never guess - the Crick Crack Club finally announced their autumn schedule recently, and now, that night, I'm off to Eaten Father, Eaten Mother by Ben Haggerty. In Soho Theatre, first time in ages. Finally advertised by their Meetup group, jeez!
On the 19th September, I was back with the Scarlet Ladies, for a talk entitled 100 Women - Their Breasts, Their Stories. No longer, of course - now I'm joining London Science Talks and Museums Meetup for a talk at the Alan Turing Institute about the future of data in public life. Most pertinent, given the talk I was at last week.
On the 20th September, Funzing (London Speaks Sessions and LDN Talks @ Night, as usual) and Jennifer Rees again - this time, a fun talk about the Psychology of Batman Villains! The first of hers for which I managed to get a 30% discount.. and it's on nice and close to me again. Seems to be a feature of her talks!
On the 21st September, it was free comedy in Hammersmith - with Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith, Wimbledon and Greenwich, Random London, and DiscoverLDN.UK. But yay, I have my alternative at last! Going to some comedy I have to pay for, which will probably be better. Mae Martin is at Soho Theatre. Advertised by a group called Moxie Ladies.. good luck to them, but as they charge extra, I'm going solo.
And on the 22nd September, the same free comedy - with DiscoverLDN.UK. I rather doubt it though - don't you?
On the 23rd September, I was to do the same, but am now headed to the launch of Rob Luft's new album, Riser, at King's Place. As advertised by The London Jazz Meetup. I finally ended up paying their membership fee after booking an event with them the other day, for November, which someone is attending that I know. So I figured it was wiser!
I had booked the same free comedy, with the same group, on the 24th September, but was again saved - this time, by the World Music Meetup! They're off to see Kefaya, in Nell's Jazz and Blues bar, back in my old stomping ground of North End Road! Happy days, when I was working there..
On the 25th September, a group called Theatre and Stuff is off to see Prism, at Hampstead Theatre. They're charging extra to go with them, though - so I happily bought my own ticket. What the hey, odds are I won't know any of them anyway.
On the 26th September, I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats - to see Wings, at The Young Vic. Accidentally booked standing, I think.. :-/
On the 27th September, with Up in the Cheap Seats again - for Jekyll & Hyde, presented by the National Youth Theatre, at the Ambassadors Theatre.
On the 28th September, with another new group: London, Surrey and Beyond.. for an event called "A Unique Experience. Olde Pub, Gerry's Private Club, 2 'i's Famous Fish 'n' Chips". Which says it all, really! Then it's back to Ireland for the weekend again.
On the 2nd October, I had booked at Hampstead Theatre, for No One Will Tell Me How to Start a Revolution. North London Friends are attending - and charging extra, so I was going it alone! But now it turns out I'm spending the week in the Stockholm office - back on the 8th.
On the 3rd October, it was free comedy in Hammersmith - nominally. With Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith, Wimbledon and Greenwich. So, that was easy to cancel, for Stockholm!
On the 4th October was Up in the Cheap Seats and Labour of Love, with Martin Freeman, at the Noel Coward Theatre. Cheapest tickets from the venue, for once!
On the 5th October, same group - headed to see the Company Wayne McGregor, at Sadler's Wells.
And finally! on the 6th October, headed to see Chekhov's The Seagull, at the Lyric. Third night in a row for that group - almost as busy a group as I am a person! So, four things in all I had to cancel, without refund.. what the hey, I'll doubtless be saving money in Stockholm! Expenses paid, after all.
On the 9th October, I'm finally going to see the show so many people have asked me whether I'm seeing. Ink is showing at the Duke of York's Theatre.
On the 10th October, I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Ballet Boyz at Sadler's Wells.
On the 11th October, back with Funzing for a talk on Revolution in Iran: Girl with a Gun. This will be an interview with a female Kurdish revolutionary.. on the Battersea Barge, which I believe can get choppy. Never mind. This is one I got for free, for completing a loyalty card with three talks.
On the 12th October, Let's Do This are back to St. Martin-in-the-Fields, where London Concertante is performing Bach Violin Concertos. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.
And on the 16th October, back at Southwark Playhouse with Up in the Cheap Seats - this time, it's for A Day By the Sea.
So, the final test of the hotel was my night's sleep. Not a great result.. the room was lovely, but the minute I lay down, I realised the mattress was rock hard. Well, I had this problem in Liechtenstein last year, so I implemented my workaround - when you have access to a double bed (and bedspread), make it into a kind of sleeping bag; fold it so that you're lying on half, and covered by half - it's much softer. Amazingly, this mattress still proved uncomfortable, so I nabbed the pillow from the spare single to put under my back as well, using the two pillows from the double to make sufficient height under my head. And so I slept decently..
I'd woken periodically and gone back to sleep, and on one of these occasions, was just wondering whether to check the time and get up, when my decision was made for me by a horrendous, whooping alarm - like a fire alarm. So I leapt from bed, earplugs still in, trying to figure out where this was coming from. Just as I figured out it was coming from my room phone, it stopped. I checked the phone - no alarm function. So I figure what happened was that reception had set up an alarm call for a previous guest, and not disabled it. I'm seeing a pattern here - the day before, they'd called me to tell me the taxi I hadn't ordered was waiting for me. Get your records straight, guys!!
Well, I had pretty much slept enough, so I got ready. I was still starving though, continuing the starvation of the day before, and texted my friend that lives in Dublin to see where she thought we could have - for me, brunch, for her, lunch. She suggested Gallagher's, an Italian bistro where we'd eaten years before. Mind you, I had to look it up on Google Maps, it's been so long - anyway, I planned my 15-minute walk there, and she took the bus into town.
The breeze blowing down the quays was ferocious - I don't know when I last felt the like, and I was relieved to turn off onto a side street, eyes and nose streaming from the battering they'd just taken. I had just composed myself by the time I got to the bistro, and she followed shortly behind - handily, because my phone had just died. We asked for a table for two, and were led to one right beside the kitchen - it was quite busy with the lunchtime crowd. Turns out it's not really Italian any more, but hanged if I'd go any further, and there we ate - for me, a steak sandwich: for her, a chicken linguini. And I think we were both very satisfied - certainly, the steak sandwich was very tasty. When you could find it under all the greenery under which both dishes were buried. Two desserts were washed down with a decent amount of a nice Chardonnay, and my tummy didn't know it was born! Just as well we weren't in a hurry though - service was relaxed enough to be described as sporadic; both when the place was busy, and after everyone but us had left, we were kept waiting.. and waiting..
Well, we moseyed out to her place for an hour or so, then I headed back to the hotel, and over to the 3 Arena nice and early - I intended to get there in time for doors opening, in the hope of getting a venue-specific t-shirt! I saw some lovely sights on the way - the Christmas lights on Grafton Street, the full moon over the Samuel Beckett bridge - but sadly, my phone was back at the hotel, charging, so I'll have to try and reprise those photos at the weekend. I arrived shortly after the doors opened. Last night, there were more security checks - a fellow shone a torch into my bag (still missing the Mars Bar I'd secreted under my glasses case), and then scanned me with a handheld metal detector. None of that the night before - and I noticed on a newspaper headline today that undercover armed police are now patrolling the U2 concerts.
Well, what a difference it makes to arrive early! The corridors were practically deserted, and I was soon able to scooch over to the merchandising stand, where there was practically no queue. I actually couldn't believe it, standing at the counter, when the guy behind it came up to me almost straight away to ask what I wanted! Easy-peasy, I now have a Dublin 2015 t-shirt.. I also see they come in a variety of colours; yesterday, I saw one in vivid green, mine is red (which I prefer), and I saw another chap admiring one he'd obviously just bought, which was in a light grey. All with the same pattern - the outline image from the cover of the Boy album on the front, the Dublin dates on the back. By the looks of it, they were all sold out again when I was leaving..
With nothing else I wanted to do, I took my seat - there was practically nobody in the auditorium at this point. My row turned out to be a bit higher up, and I had a touch of vertigo (of course) as I passed the end of the railing, climbing up to it. Anyway, I made it, and noted the locations of the rear stairs - the ones with handrails - for coming down again. Some entertainment was provided during the long wait, watching the individual spotlight operators being hoisted into the rigging - especially when one of them got stuck, suspended in midair, for about 30 seconds.. there was no-one to help; I think the pulleys are self-controlled.
As the house filled, the tension grew - helped no end when they turned off the lights in the upper levels, for some reason. I came to know the people sitting beside me, a little - a couple, not young: she had never seen them before, he had, in McGonagle's, way back in '76/77. Well, it came to that moment; People Have the Power started, and I jumped up. And as happens, it went on a bit and there was no sign of anyone. Next thing I know, I'm being tapped on the shoulder. The guy behind me wanted to know if I wouldn't mind sitting down - he'd stand with me in a minute. Eh, ok - I'd hate to block your view of an empty stage. After a minute or so, there was some excitement on the floor, and I jumped up again.. only to have the guy behind me wanting me to sit again.. I was spoiling his view! I guessed he thought they'd come on via the i stage, and didn't want to miss their entrance.
Well, I hadn't been sitting for 10 seconds when Bono did appear, and I jumped up again, and this time was left standing - third time lucky, eh? Along with the whole house. I have to hand it to them, last night's crowd - with the obvious exception of the (insert expletive here) behind me - were the crowd of the tour so far! The guy at the end of the row, who'd seen them all those years ago, was particularly blown away, and plagued his poor wife with exclamations of how good the band were! He was greatly impressed when Bono seemed to spot someone in the crowd, near the stage, that he recognised. He turned to The Edge - "Hey, d'you remember that guy in McGonagle's, years ago, who heckled us with 'More punk than The Monkees'? That's him!!" Later, we discovered that the President was also in the house.. a good mix, then!
And so they took us through a blistering first four numbers, the poor guy at the end of my row thinking he'd have a break after the third, only to find himself on his feet again. Setlist:
SET 1
SET 2
ENCORE
I was doing pretty well for being allowed to stand, until the crowd in my section got tired of standing, during Raised by Wolves, for goodness' sake! And so a pattern developed that lasted for the rest of the concert, whereby my "friend" said nothing as long as people were standing in front of me, but as soon as they sat down - I'd get a tap-tap-tap on the shoulder. "Would I mind sitting?" (Do you want the honest answer to that?) Seriously, if you come to a U2 show, you don't have to stand, but you do have to expect that others might do so. Don't be so BOLSHY as to insist that they not block your view. Stay at home, save yourself the money, wait for the dvd, watch without obstruction. Although if he did, and I knew where he lived, I'd love to drop by and stand in front of his tv..
And so I was up again at the start of the next song, and down again in the middle of it, when the people in front of me got bored of standing - again - and I got a tap-tap-tap again. I see the shredded pages of poetry are back for that song, though - great, it's a terrific effect! Even if I couldn't stand to show my appreciation.
I was actually scared to stand during Invisible, since no-one in front of me was. Halleleuja, they decided that Even Better Than the Real Thing was worth the effort, and I got to my feet at last. And at least I was getting a rest. And so into Mysterious Ways, where a guy was brought onstage to dance with Bono - only the second time that's happened, that I know of! I'm not surprised - he was dressed just like Bono at the start of the concerts on the Popmart tour, as a boxer with large shades and a fake "torso" t-shirt. As Bono remarked, "You're not from around here, are you?" Nope, he was from Brazil..
Introducing Angel of Harlem, Bono revealed that the very first time it was played live was in '89, on this same spot, when it used to be the Point Depot..! Jeez, and I was there.. I was happy enough to sit for the next couple of numbers, along with the people around me. One man was moved to jump to his feet at the end of Every Breaking Wave, just briefly, to applaud, though - well, it is memorable. And then we all jumped up for Bullet the Blue Sky.. and then my section unbelievably got bored of standing halfway through it, and sure enough, tap-tap-tap..
Fortunately, that was the end of my woes. For the rest of the show, either I didn't feel like standing, or everyone did. So my nemesis had nothing to complain about. At the end of the second set, the guy on the end of the row - who'd been so enthusiastic all night - wanted some reassurance that they'd do one more. "Three!" said I.
I forgot to mention how they've included identifiable images of Dublin in the visuals for City of Blinding Lights, in these Dublin shows - well, last night they also included some of Paris, and Bono sang a snippet of a French song to finish. Beautiful Day saw flags being flung onstage - Bono finally chose a large Irish one to drape over the drum kit. And It was lovely to see his face in closeup on the big screen, because he was beaming.. he'd sensed what I sensed, that this crowd was (pretty much) at one. Concert of the year so far, for me. And as a reward - they didn't do three encores, they did four. Bad and 40, usually reserved for the last show in a city, got an outing last night. Well done, gentlemen!
Everybody made a fairly swift exit, so I got to speak neither to the guy who was so enthusiastic about them - which was a shame - nor to the tapper - which wasn't. And then, peering over, I saw that they didn't seem to be letting people down the back stairs! O hell - I had to navigate down the main steps, without a handrail. Bent practically double, using the seats as a handrest. At least it helped that there was such a crowd on the steps. And I made it down alive, not even being run over by the cycle rickshaws on the way back. A huge queue, again, for the rental bikes, though..
I got about four hours' sleep in the end. I'd checked the location of the bus stop - across the bridge, and second stop to the left, across the road. Not mentioned on Google Maps, mind - I had to go on the bus website. Just as well I didn't have to go far - it was pissing rain. And at that time of the morning - I caught the 5:30 - traffic was so light that we made it in 20 minutes, instead of the regular 40. I trekked through the interminable terminal, finally finding decent sustenance in the form of a meal deal from W. H. Smith - a sandwich, drink, and packet of crisps for less than the sandwich and drink would cost on their own. And yes, their festive chicken and stuffing sandwich is just as tasty as their regular chicken and stuffing sandwich. And after another trek, I found somewhere to sit and eat them. By this time, the flight was boarding, and after an unexplained delay, we were let on the plane - Ryanair still distinguishable by making its passengers climb steps to get onboard. I ended up having three seats to myself, and dozed most of the way back to London..
Where the Gatwick Express was cancelled again, and again I ended up on a regular train. Seems they've halved the off-peak (i.e. most of the day) service, to improve punctuality! Makes the Gatwick Express less and less worthwhile, if you ask me. And I got back in time for a nice, normal lunch - ah, the luxury of sitting down with food in front of me!
Bravely, I'm off again tonight - well, the Crick Crack Club is meeting in The Forge: a great venue for what is always a great evening! Tomorrow night, I'm heading with the London European Club to Allegri - Miserere Mei Deus, in St. Martin-in-the-Fields. Part of their Brandenburg Choral Festival. Friday, I'm back to Dublin for my final U2 concerts of the year, flying back on Sunday - I hope to get the keys to my new place that evening, so I'm not bothered about going out that night. On Monday though, I'm headed to The Homecoming by Harold Pinter, at Trafalgar Studios. Stars Gemma Chan, Gary Kemp, John Macmillan, and Jon Simm. And the good old London Dramatic Art group has tickets (well, one left now!) for cheaper than I can get them anywhere else! Premium, front row seats too. Excellent - and I'll be glad to meet them again, it's been months! Finally (for now), on Tuesday I'm joining the Kensington Classical Music group, who have the cheapest tickets I can find for a performance of the pianist, Lang Lang, with the Philharmonia, at the Royal Festival Hall. Features my two favourite classical composers - Mozart and Beethoven. Cool..
Hello, hello.. I'm at a place called Vertigo! Actually, close enough - I'm staying at the Clayton Hotel in Dublin city centre, and you'd never guess - they have a Vertigo bar. Had me wondering for a while there, what with Bono and The Edge owning The Clarence Hotel, further along the quays. But no, seems it's a chain - although they do have a U2-inspired Vertigo promotion!
Anyway, a sparcity of days left to take off work meant that, after spending the weekend in Co. Clare, I had to fly back to London for a morning's work today, before jetting back to Dublin for two U2 concerts. What the hey, there were deadlines to be met anyway. I also went in today with the plan to print off my booked tickets for the Gatwick Express, and check in for my Ryanair flights and print the boarding passes. Well, the first part went fine..
When I came to check in for my flights (today's and the return flight on Wednesday), I couldn't access the website - I suspect it didn't make it past my work computer's firewall. I tried all the browsers I had installed - nothing. I tried to access it on my phone, and had more luck - but the website kept malfunctioning, and I spent time I didn't have, trying in vain to get it to work. Nor could I find a phone number to contact. Finally, in desperation, I took my own laptop out of its bag - I wouldn't normally have had it in work, but I was travelling with it, and leaving straight from the office. On the second attempt, I got it to connect to the company network, got checked in, and downloaded the boarding passes, which I emailed to myself - then accessing them from my work computer, which is connected to the printer. And so the day was saved! (Good laptop..)
I even met my deadlines, and scooted out the door, somewhat later than I had intended - but still ok. As I was packing up my things, I realised I'd meant to check the name and location of the hotel! Well, I wasn't about to go through the palaver of turning my computer on again and waiting several minutes for it to boot up. So I scurried off, fairly confident I'd manage. And despite something of a wait at West Kensington - a frustrating station, with no departure boards on the platforms, and no WiFi I can access - I made it to Victoria in no time.
..where I was momentarily lost - I think they've changed the entrance. And it's a while since I've been. Anyway, I found my way in, found the main departure board - and the next Gatwick Express was cancelled! Which meant that the Gatwick Express wouldn't now be coming until 1:29. Which meant it'd be nearly 2pm by the time I got to the airport. Which was a bit too tight for my liking, with the gate closing at 2:15. So I located the next train headed there, explained to the nice man - who had to let me in because the regular ticket gates don't read the barcode you're supplied with for the Gatwick Express - and got myself on the non-direct train, which was, however, leaving at 1:16. Much better.
I've done this trip before, so started to relax. And got my phone to tell me where my hotel was - turn left off the Samuel Beckett bridge, it seemed. While I was at it, I looked up which terminal I was to fly from - the boarding pass didn't say, but the airport website obligingly told me it was South. Where the trains come in. It's a bit of a trek out to the airport, and we arrived there at about 1:50 - but I made it through security in plenty of time, and was most impressed by their attempts to streamline the filling and emptying of trays at the metal detector. Mind you, by the time I made it through to Departures, it was 2:05.. had I waited for the Gatwick Express, it'd have been 2:15 and I'd have been cutting it very fine to get through security! Really, I don't know that the Gatwick Express - any more than the Heathrow Express - is really a good choice. Certainly, be aware that there are options..
They were already boarding. Well, kind of. At least, that's what the departure board said. Now, boarding for Ryanair isn't quite what you would understand as boarding for other airlines. Yes, in the sense that they check your boarding card and id, and that your face matches the photo taken earlier. No, in the sense that you don't actually get on the plane. What you do is sit in a holding area until they're ready to let you on. I remember the days when, despite all the seating, there was a long queue down the centre - people wanting to get on first to get the best seats, or seats together. Allocated seating has done away with all that, thank goodness! There were also vending machines, where I bought my lunch - a £3 bag of Minstrels.
We had to venture out in the rain to get on the plane, of course - some Ryanair features never change. It turned out that I had an exit row seat - so, despite the nuisance of having to stow all my baggage overhead, I had terrific legroom. Mind you, the whole plane gave the impression of being more spacious than the Aer Lingus ones. The staff were younger, and polite to a fault. And I had a very comfy ride, dozing in parts. And that reassuring bugle to tell us we'd arrived on time! Dublin was drizzly, and we had to wait for ages for them to source "ground equipment" - stairs. So we could get off.
I unloaded a ton of change on the unsuspecting bus driver, and spent much of the journey watching the tourist video, which had music that was too loud, and commentary that wasn't loud enough to be heard over traffic. The 747 takes a different route - and a handier one - than the one it used to in my day. Now, it passes right by the 3 Arena, where I was to attend the show later! When I saw the bridge approach, I pressed the request stop button, and he left me off just past it. In fact, I could see the hotel, whose sign blazed prominently across the river.
It looked gorgeous, and welcoming after my damp entrance to the city:
And after a bit of r&r, I headed out along the south quays, with a nice view of the North Wall:
You could see the 3 Arena in the middle distance. Which made it very vexing, as the road runs out and I had to retrace my steps all the way to the Samuel Beckett bridge! adding 10 minutes to my journey. Ah well. I'll know in future.
I see the Gibson would probably have been my closest option. Well do I remember years of trekking all the way out to the end of the North Wall - a not insignificant walk - for concerts, because there was a wasteland out here when it came to accommodation. Not any more.. When I finally got to the 3 Arena, it was packed, and I had to join a long - but fast-moving - queue to get in. I passed some fast-food outlets, but figured I'd get something inside.
Boy, was I wrong. I remember this place being better run - I don't remember whether as the Point or the O2 - but now it's a tip! Inside, it's chaos. Downstairs, I could only see drink outlets, and crowds of drinkers. The space is very limited, and it's really difficult to make your way through. I decided to try upstairs, where my seat was - it was no better, though. Persevering, I ploughed through the crowd in search of merchandise - I wanted a venue t-shirt. There was one measly, poorly stocked stall - right at the end of the passage - with a predictable scrum of people waiting. There was indeed an event t-shirt, already with a sign above it that said "Very Limited Availability". Sure enough, people turning back from the counter told others in the crowd that it was now completely sold out. I'll have to show up earlier tomorrow, is all - hopefully, they'll have restocked. I did see the Cedarwood Road t-shirt that I bought in Barcelona, and haven't seen since - I guess this is an appropriate venue for it!
Starving, I was to discover that all hot food was sold out as well. I bought a Mars bar to keep me going. Ate it, and went in search of my seat - mercifully, there was no repeat of the last concert in the SSE Hydro, where I was stuck at the top of a flight of stairs! It's a lovely, small venue, and I had a good view:
Anyone familiar with the stage configuration will notice that it's a wee bit different - this is a smaller venue, and they didn't have room to put the e-stage at the end of the catwalk, so they've put it in the middle. Didn't make much of a difference, except that Bono now enters at the end of the catwalk and walks to the e-stage, rather than the other way around - and the roadies setting up the drum kit on the e-stage for the second half of the show are a little distracting, being now right in front of the vidiwall instead of at the end. Not a big deal.
The piped music beforehand was louder and more disco - reflecting a party mood, methinks. Indeed tonight's crowd gets my Crowd of the Year So Far award - the floor was packed, and energetic, and I couldn't fault the stands either. Much like in Glasgow, which is a similar-sized venue, there's a feeling of a constant crowd, all the way to the stage, and a camaraderie. Setlist:
- The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone)
- The Electric Co. / Send In The Clowns (snippet) / I Can See For Miles (snippet) / Live Forever (snippet)
- Vertigo
- I Will Follow / Mother (snippet)
- Iris (Hold Me Close) / Hold Me Close (snippet)
- Cedarwood Road
- Song For Someone
- Sunday Bloody Sunday / When Johnny Comes Marching Home (snippet)
- Raised By Wolves / Psalm 23 (snippet)
- Until The End Of The World / Love And Peace Or Else (snippet) / Words (snippet)
(Intermission - The Fly)
- Invisible
- Even Better Than The Real Thing / Break On Through (snippet)
- Fashion (snippet) / Mysterious Ways / Burning Down The House (snippet)
- Elevation
- Sweetest Thing
- Every Breaking Wave
- October
- Bullet The Blue Sky / Ode To Joy (snippet) / 19 (snippet) / Looking for America (snippet)
- Zooropa
- Where The Streets Have No Name / California (There Is No End To Love) (snippet)
- Pride (In The Name Of Love)
- With Or Without You / Love Will Tear Us Apart (snippet)
encore(s):- City Of Blinding Lights
- Beautiful Day
- Mother And Child Reunion (snippet) / One / Invisible (snippet)
With the Dublin concerts announced so late, of course there were going to be people in the audience who'd been to some already - in fact, two people in front of me were comparing photos and videos of previous concerts. However, this wasn't true of everyone - a couple of people who passed me as I strolled back to the hotel afterwards were remarking to their companions how cool it was that they played such-and-such, or that there had been one they weren't expecting. One guy said he completely lost it during Electric Co. Yes, if I hadn't known it's one of three oldies they cycle amongst for the second song, I'd have been impressed too! Really, it's phenomenal how much old material they're including in these shows.
There were a couple of interesting changes, since I last saw them, in Glasgow a couple of weeks ago. The Sunday, Bloody Sunday video sequence now no longer shows pictures of terrorist victims on the gable ends of houses, but instead shows typical Northern Irish political murals. And they've taken out the bits where Bono shreds poetry pages and flings them into the crowd.
The Wall that comes down during the intermission now only covers one end of the vidiwall - there isn't room at the other end! The girl pulled from the crowd for Mysterious Ways turned out to be Josie, from California..
Mrs. Bono was, again, in the house. And what was lovely was that we finally got the name of that bombed city whose footage is shown during October - the subtitle now reads Kobani, Syria 2015.
The crowd featured several French flags, and towards the end Bono draped one over the drum kit. His mind frequently focusses on France these days, and it's lovely to see that they're now going to end the tour there next month, with the concerts they rescheduled following the Paris attacks. Little bit of a shame that the Dublin ones won't bookend this leg of the tour, but I don't begrudge it them.
On the way home, I bought a not-very-good hot dog from the vendors outside, but it was much appreciated in my near-fainting state, and since it had stopped raining - and was quite mild - it made for a pleasant walk back! What was funny was the fleet of bicycle rickshaws, buzzing around just across the road, tooting their horns for business. Quite comical as they zipped back and forth, they made life interesting for pedestrians trying to avoid them.. and I heard a few passengers shrieking in alarm at intervals, as they zoomed by..
And so back to my pleasant room, and I am looking forward to my bed. I'd have liked a drink, but the aforementioned Vertigo bar was deserted, and I don't have a minibar. What they hey, I can have a lovely lie-in tomorrow.
The second concert is tomorrow night, and then I have a miniscule amount of sleep before I have to drag myself out again, for an early-morning flight back to London and another half-day's work. Bravely, I am headed out on Wednesday night - the Crick Crack Club has another meeting at the Forge, and this time I booked the minute it was advertised, knowing how regularly they sell out. On Thursday, I'm joining the London European Club at a concert at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, as part of their Brandenburg choral festival.. sounds lovely. And on Friday, I'm back here - same hotel, same venue, same band - for their last two shows of the year in Dublin - and my last U2 shows of the year. I fly back to London on Sunday, when I pick up the keys to my new place, all going well!
