Murder Mystery: The Murder Express - Jewel of the Empire

Tonight, my sometime-companion from Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) suggested a murder mystery! The Murder Express: Jewel of the Empire.. set on a train, and includes dinner (phew). Oh, lovely.. she got a Groupon deal, apparently..

Well, I headed out there by bus, she by train - I got less lost than she did, arrived first, and took refuge in the shade, on what was a very hot day.

She arrived just as we were being let in. Tables seat six, although not all were full - space was left for performers to sit. First though, we were left waiting in the bar - where there was no seating, unless you needed it. Drinks can only be ordered online - they have two WiFi systems, one of which I could connect to, ordering us some wine - took about five minutes to get it all sorted. Remember your table number when you check in, BTW..

Screens at each table depict "passing scenery" - although the graphics aren't great, this is still quite atmospheric. And the actors are quite entertaining. Dinner progresses in the meanwhile - we started with an amuse-bouche, which was ok, then a leek starter that I didn't like much. Beef, for main course, was lovely - there is a vegan alternative. Dessert is a delish chocolate thing. Portions are tiny though.. do eat beforehand if you're hungry.

As to the murder mystery - they recommend you buy the paper at the bar outside beforehand - and it's a good idea, it does help with the atmosphere, and you do get a clue from it. In my case, the barman's WiFi was down, so he couldn't charge me - and forgot to do it later, so I got it for free! Apart from that, though, you can forget the "immersive" murder mystery - the actors might talk to you, and they're very entertaining, but you haven't really a hope of solving it, you're not given enough clues. I remember doing a murder mystery over lockdown where you really could have a stab at solving it - not this one. But, as I say, it's atmospheric, it's entertaining - a fun night out.

Being at the earlier showing though, we were rushed out. And afterwards, we went to Casa Blue for one more drink. Passing, on the way, some of the graffiti that the area is known for:

Tomorrow, delighted to be back with Expat Bucket List London! Well, back with the founder of both this and Bucket List London - I haven't actually been with the Expat group yet. Yippee, back to the Globe - for The Comedy of Errors. Unfortunately, while I'm in the Lower Gallery, as usual, the others are upstairs.. the organiser did offer to switch with me, so I'd have some company, but I wouldn't subject him to such a lower-priced seat! Anyway, I do like to be close. I'd have moved to my new flat by now - indeed, tonight's event was closer to my new place than to my old one - but there's so much to move, even for a brief stay, that it's impractical! I have to make at least two trips - I'll have a go tomorrow evening.

On Sunday, back with Discover London - History Walks and Events to Discover the Secrets of the 19th Century London Docks. Always love this part of town - again, this is walking distance from my new place.

On Monday, got a cheap ticket with CT for From Swing to Soul, a concert series at Wonderville. I do wonder whether they fixed their tech issues from last time..

On Tuesday, back with UITCS again - this time, for A Strange Loop, at the Barbican. Multi-award-winning, it seems - cheaper tickets available from WhatsOnStage (WOS), fulfilled by London Theatre Direct. Interestingly though, to get the cheaper offer, buy through WOS..

On Wednesday, thinking film - and delighted to see that Asteroid City has risen in ratings, and is now top of my list! Ah well, that's a no-brainer - a Wes Anderson comedy, with an all-star cast, including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Maya Hawke, Rupert Friend, Steve Park, Liev Schreiber, Matt Dillon, Steve Carell, Tilda Swinton, Jeff Goldblum (playing an alien, appropriately I guess..), Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie.. and probably some other people I recognise. Anyway, I love Wes Anderson's stuff - and it's on in my local cinema (for flat #1). My new flat isn't so close to a cinema, so I'll stay in the old one for this, while I still have access to it. And there are showings all day, so, given that I probably shan't have any other demands on my time that day, until I get another job, I can go to whatever suits!

On Thursday, thinking of heading back to Watkin's Bookshop, for the first time in an age - they have an author talk called Holy Waters - Searching for the Sacred in a Glass. There's a new book about this, which considers the use of alcohol in religion - sounds interesting! Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.

And on the 3rd, I'm back with UITCS for A Playlist for the Revolution, at the Bush Theatre.

Musical: & Juliet

Tonight, ironically, I was on another Groupon deal - this one, however, seemed to be valid, unlike yesterday's! I was headed to & Juliet, a very non-Shakespearian take on the classic heroine, including a pop soundtrack, with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS). Running at Shaftesbury Theatre. Booked a lot later than many, but still two months ago..

And for once I took off in decent time, walking the last bit from Holborn - the #8 route stops and starts there until the 10th of next month, what with roadworks. I had my ticket conveniently on my phone - whose battery was low, but sufficient - and sailed straight through upstairs. I half expected an upgrade - and I wasn't the only in the group that did, Mondays are good for upgrades, and apparently a lot of tickets remained unsold - not enough to prompt an upgrade, but never mind. Quite a lot of stairs later, I discovered myself the first of the group to arrive in the bar. Grabbed a drink (they only do 175ml here) and a seat (lovely!). And when the others arrived, we pretty much nabbed all the other seats in what is quite a teeny bar. It was good to see them - some I haven't seen for quite a while - and we had a nice chat before we went in.

I was actually pleasantly surprised with the legroom - might have been able to stand a mid-row seat after all. The view above, however, was snapped by leaning into the aisle - from my seat, the handrails got in the way, and I found I had to lean into the aisle, or forward, to get a better view. Even at that, any captions to the rear of the stage - there were a couple - were unreadable from that angle. But overall, it was a decent seat, especially for the last row in the house. Even if the staff's walkie-talkies did disturb us a little, during the odd quiet moment.

So, in this offering, we get Will Shakespeare arguing with his wife about the ending of Romeo & Juliet. She thinks it's a bit depressing. She thinks Romeo is a bit of a douche. She runs off with his quill.. and reimagines a play that starts where his leaves off.. with Juliet saying, hey, I can do better than this - I don't have to kill myself, I can head off for a new life. In, eh, Paris. Will isn't that impressed, doesn't want her to have such an easy time - says you can't have a play without conflict. Keeps interfering in the plot. Oh dear, poor Juliet..

Ah, this is irresistible. It's an absolute hit parade of songs - some of which I recognised. As originally released by a whole variety of artists - but all written by Max Martin. You did know that most current hits are written by just a couple of guys, right? This is one of them. Yes, he's a multi-millionaire. And a damn talented songwriter - holds the record for the most wins of the Songwriter of the Year award from the ASCAP. Which all makes for a toe-tapping, singalong show - yes, you might as well, nobody will hear you over the din!

Absolutely stunning vocals from all the cast, with several show-stopping solo numbers, and all the hits cleverly woven into a witty plot. Snippets of Shakespeare are woven into the script. I loved the plot twists, too - when the playwright is part of it, well, it can go anywhere! Yes, the female empowerment message is a bit heavy-handed - forget that, focus on the songs. They're the important part. As someone said afterwards, a perfect distraction for a Monday night! You know, beforehand, we were remarking how it'd been since we were last there - for me, nearly three and a half years!  As someone said, they tend to have long-running shows here. I can see why. Currently booking till July, but I predict this will run and run.. another hit for this theatre.

Afterwards, the others headed for the Tube, me for my bus. Which, as I say, now starts in Holborn - where we all stood (except the guy in the wheelchair) shivering, staring at the bus sat on the stand. Which eventually picked us up. And there began the most interesting journey.. First thing to happen was the guy who got on, saying the Tube had closed down - well, he didn't get a free ride. I guess he should have got some kind of ticket at the station. Next, we discovered that we had a driver who didn't want to let people off - one poor chap was stood at the (closed) central doors for ages, pressing the bell, while the driver let people on at the front. As the bus moved off, he had to go and ask the driver to let him off!

Oh, but you should have seen the sea of people that got on at St. Paul's - turns out there were "severe delays" on the Central Line. (Hope my people got home ok.) So the bus took the strain - I've never seen anything like it. Never mind that you're not supposed to board by the central doors on this line - they just poured on, sod paying. At some subsequent stop, something like five people wanted to get off - they got stuck in the crowd, of course, and as the driver moved off, having ignored their calls to him, one reached out and pressed the emergency door release, bringing the bus juddering to a halt. So, that worked, and he let people off after that. When it was my turn, I had to reach behind me for the bell - couldn't reach the one in front. Well, he opened the door for me - and kept it open while I squeezed off. I'm guessing the crowd all got off at the next stop.

Last night, I was too tired and cold to blog. Tonight, back with North London Friends for Fairview, at the Young Vic. And I was lucky to get one of their tickets, which they booked a year ago - people were saying, last night, how hard it was to get them!

On Wednesday, back with the Crick Crack Club for a night I'm really looking forward to - Ben Haggarty and Jan Blake again, combined with my favourite, Clare Murphy, and Jordan Campbell, will treat us to a night on the theme Sovereign, at Rich Mix. It's the last in their series called the "alternative tarot", where four storytellers take turns to expand on variations on an archetypal theme, and hold a Q+A after. Unfortunately, Ivan, who would've loved this, is out of town again. But never mind, he's just got a new job, which won't take him out of town as much.

On Thursday, back with UITCS for Three Sisters, at the National. Also signed up with Love London Arts, Theatre, Music & Stuff for this - the last time I tried to integrate the two, it didn't really work! It'll be interesting to see how it goes this time. I'll try to gravitate more towards them this time, as I missed them completely the last time. And then it's back to Ireland for the weekend, again.