Kirckman Concert: Joseph Havlat

Back to London, phew. Just as well I reminded my perenially forgetful taxi driver about the clock change though! But, what with Ryanair's schedule change, I get to fly a bit earlier now, and not on the last flight of the night - so, fewer knock-on delays! and I get in at a reasonable time - and, crucially, in time for the Stansted Express. When it's running.

Today, I initially booked with the Happy Positive Group! For their weekly Monday trivia night! They seem to be completely online. But wow, looking at it lately, they seemed to have switched today's meeting to tomorrow! Although, having cancelled my attendance, I then noticed that all Meetups were displaying in the wrong time zone, so were shown as starting five hours later than they actually were.. I complained, and they did fix it. Well, I probably wouldn't have gone anyway.

The best Meetup left for today seemed to be with the Shanty Singers Colliers Wood. This is another of those things I once booked and ended up cancelling, so I said I'd hold off on booking that till nearer the time. But you know, when I looked more carefully.. this is a big complicated affair, with "warming up exercises", a vocal coach, a "practice session".. for goodness' sake. The more I read, the less enthusiastic I felt.

I finally gave up on Meetup, and booked with TAC, for a Kirckman piano concert at King's Place. Thought it'd be nice, and it is definitely close.

Wow though, the boss found a lot of work for me to do today - I was still working on it after 6! Finished at 6.10 - which was actually fine for the evening, the concert didn't start that early - but I had wanted to shop first. Never mind, off I went. First stop Nando's, of course - I wouldn't eat in King's Place, in preference, the service is terminally slow. So was getting seated at Nando's! Did you know, they have different tables for one than for two?! Seems, if it has a bench on one side and a chair on the other, it's a table for one - the booths are tables for two! 

Well, I did get seated after 15 minutes, finally - and of course, the app makes it all the faster now. And the food was excellent, albeit the chicken was a little chewy today. I seem to have arrived at a bad time, BTW - the crowd waiting completely vanished while I was eating! Sadly, I had no time for a dessert, or a second glass of their excellent chardonnay - one day, perhaps..

A short walk, then, to King's Place, I had my name checked off the list and went downstairs. Where the show in Hall Two was just on the point of starting - I was in Hall One, though. I nipped to the toilet first, where someone urged me to hurry, it was starting! (Something about a rail workers' film..?) Anyway, my business done, I headed for the bar - only to be told it was closed! FFS.. Not worth their while, I guess, certainly once the crowd for Hall Two had gone in.

I was the first into Hall One - and had a most decent seat. (I checked afterwards - my £4.50 ticket was face value £25, yippee.. £27.50 with booking fee!)

The crowd was rather sparse.. don't take the photo as a guide to that though, it was taken at the interval! Anyway, the pianist was excellent, as you'd expect - apparently deeply entranced throughout, he threw himself into the expression of the music. The pregnant pauses were maybe a bit suspenseful, mind - he had a habit of sitting, hands still poised over the piano like claws, as if having a mental conversation with the instrument. I took to counting the seconds, towards the end - the last pause lasted about 40 seconds before he relaxed back in his seat, and we knew the concert was over, and we had permission to clap.

As to the material - as I anticipated, a mixture of dissonant modern stuff (yuck) and nice, lyrical, traditional classical. The only ones I half-recognised were some decent Gershwin adaptations. Not, honestly, my favourite musical sojourn, but still, it was nice to get back to classical again! First time in an age.

Oh, and I had time to shop - partially, anyway - on the way home.

Tomorrow, I've booked for Phaedra, at the National. Stars Janet McAteer.

On Wednesday, I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats to Sadler's Wells - first time in an age - for Creature, by Akram Khan! I absolutely love his work. Handily enough, I used my latest Theatre Token for this - would have used it for Phaedra, but while neither theatre takes them online (you have to phone if you want to use a token), the National charges extra for phone bookings. So I used it for this instead.

On Thursday, back with the London European Club, at somewhere called the Ugly Duck, for Synchrony, a female 12-piece string ensemble. Tickets from Eventbrite. As hosted by Eleanor Salter Thorn again! So glad to see her hosting events in more central locations..

I was keeping Friday free because Ivan is feeling thirsty again. :-) And for once, he seems to be sticking to the date, having booked us a table at The Lucas Arms (which, as he pointed out, has a smoker's area). We're hoping to have Martin - my other friendly ex-boss - join us, but he has more family commitments, which he's trying to juggle - we've told him to join us whenever. And this looks like turning into the first zapoi in a while - Ivan is talking about booking a studio, where we can drink overnight. Oy ve, watch this space.. So, not pushed about doing anything extra on Saturday.

And on Sunday, I'm back with the Crick Crack Club, for Orpheus Dismembered, at the British Museum, courtesy of Ben Haggarty. The event there that I'd already heard of..

Walk: Clubland - Secrets of the Gentleman's Clubs & Book Launch: Stone Blind

Today - awesome! Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners had a walk I hadn't done, and which was scheduled for a day I could make it. May this be the start of many.. This was Clubland: Secrets of the Gentleman's Clubs. Unfortunately, it turned out that this is one of the many days affected by rail strikes.. and the poor chap also had terrible trouble getting people to confirm whether they were coming for lunch after. I know that feeling..

I had a late night - when don't I?! So it was a bit of a trial dragging myself out of bed this morning. But I did wake in decent time, and got buses - as usual. Plenty of protests around, as well as people preaching the Good News..

Of course, this walk was to meet at Bond Street Tube Station - which has multiple exits. And it's not much help when you're on a bus.. I arrived slightly before 11, the appointed meeting time. But could I figure out where the Marylebone Lane exit was? Heh. So I had to message him. Now, the last time this happened was a nightmare, because we were on Parliament Square, it was packed, it was noisy.. at least this time, when he rang back, I could hear him! Took a minute to orient myself correctly, but we did find each other in the end. I ask you though, this exit is way up Oxford Street from where I was, and from where you'd assume the exits to be, roughly. Not obvious at all..

Well, I had doubled the number of attendees, as he said - there were only two of us to accompany him! Now, I know there was a train strike - and to be fair, it was raining in the morning, although it had pretty much cleared up by then, and only spat on us slightly throughout. By lunchtime, we even had a blast of sunshine! But really, could people not let him know? By the start time, we still had eight attendees on the list.. Anyway, we waited an unnecessary 15 minutes for anybody else that might show, and off we went.

What I liked best about this tour was finding out about some of the many central buildings you pass, which seem to have a purpose that they don't advertise. You know, the great blocks of buildings, many with chandeliers visible through the windows, or large paintings.. so, not offices then, or banks. But obviously something significant. Well, gee, some of them are clubs! We were right beside the Oriental Club (known to cabbies, apparently, as the 'Orizontal Club), originally for East India Company employees:

Nothing to do with the walk, per se, but we just had to stop when we saw this display:

The Lansdowne Club was apparently the most egalitarian of those we came across, with a more relaxed dress code, and more relaxed rules about who could come in, apparently! Dress code smart casual:

White's - apparently the oldest gentleman's club in London - used to be a haunt of the King's! Might still be, as I hear he's still a member - and the Prince of Wales was, apparently, entered as a member just after his birth. No women allowed, though..

Our walk was to take us past a most exclusive club - St. James' Palace!

The Oxford and Cambridge Club occupies a lovely building; this was originally strictly for graduates of those two universities, although apparently now admits graduates from others. The friezes at the top depict sundry scientific and literary figures:

The Royal Automobile Club. Well now, I didn't know they actually had a clubhouse! And one of the few I've checked (purely out of curiosity) that doesn't require new members to be proposed by existing members. Edward VII was apparently a member:

The Reform Club, next door to the RAC. Again, they don't seem to require existing members to propose new applicants:

The Athenauem, next door to the Reform Club. Took women right from the start, unusually - also, unusually considering its traditional clientele of writers and actors, apparently stultifyingly boring! God forbid they should talk to each other:

And finally, the Garrick. As the name implies, this club welcomes men with an interest in the theatre. Doesn't take women, though:

And so to lunch! at last.. at the Lamb and Flag again. Jeez, I must remember this place when I'm in the area, and hungry - it really is excellent! The downstairs was packed with people watching the rugby, but happily, they have an upstairs dining area. Where an entire section was blocked off for our (non-existent) group. We took a table by the window instead. And, I have to say, were most excellently fed - seeing steak on the specials, I said it's a long time since I had it; I'll have it now. And it was a spectacularly good steak - so good, I didn't need the accompanying sauce. With spectacularly good, triple-cooked chips. Ooh yes. And I made sure the wine kept coming - it was a most convivial lunch, and terrific to be with the group again. Well, a select subgroup!

Home then, for a while - and I grabbed an hour's sleep. Then I was out again - because this evening was a Crick Crack Club (CCC) production, about Medusa, again at King's Place! An unusual take on it, from the evidence of last week's storytelling.. This, however, was not storytelling. Rather, it was to promote the book Stone Blind, by Natalie Haynes. In Hall One, for the first time I remember for the CCC! And wouldn't you know it, I was sat beside someone who knew me. What are the odds.. she had seen me at last night's storytelling, and is also one of Laurence's attendees! Well, well. And it was from her I learned that Natalie Haynes is in the habit of making radio appearances.

She's a classical academic, with a brief to put women at the centre of Greek myth. Honestly, if you're a history buff, it's fascinating - and she is a very entertaining speaker. Really, she enthralled us with her take on Hollywood's versions of Medusa, also speaking compellingky of how she has been demonised. I'm not sure I'm interested enough to buy the book, but I'm delighted someone is addressing sexism in mythology!

Ben Haggarty was MC, and at the end muttered something about upcoming events in the British Museum. Huh? I didn't remember more than one - I checked later, and sure enough, although they're not listed on the CCC website, they are on the BM website! So I've booked another - of which more anon. Tsk, someone in the CCC is not keeping up with advertising.. I walked back to the Tube with the lady I'd run into - sure is a small city, sometimes..

Tomorrow, London Walks, Art & Culture Explorers are going on a Quirky London walk. And so am I. Mercifully, it's not on till afternoon, so I kind of have time to catch up with myself!

On Monday, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for a play called Women, Beware the Devil, set in the year 1640 - showing in the Almeida.

On Tuesday, I booked with The London Palestinian Rights Meetup Group for Taking Sides – A Conversation about Love, War, and Changing the World. Happening at Amnesty International UK. But you know, I thought I might just go to a film instead.. When the listings came out, top of the list was Rye Lane, a romcom set in South London. The trailer looks hilarious - this looks like much more fun than that talk, and since it is free, I have no problem in cancelling my attendance. Nearest place to me showing the film that day is the Vue Islington - which now has theatre-style pricing, with different seats at different prices. So I booked, to get a decent seat at the cheapest price possible..

Back with UITCS for the next two days - on Wednesday, it's for comedian Rosie Holt at the Leicester Square Theatre.

On Thursday, I'm at Further Than the Furthest Thing, at the Young Vic. Then back to Ireland for the weekend again. Might get to see Scream VI at last..?

On the 27th, I booked with the Happy Positive Group! For their weekly Monday trivia night! They seem to be completely online. But wow, looking at it lately, they seemed to have switched that week to the next day! Although, having cancelled my attendance, I then noticed that all Meetups were displaying in the wrong time zone, so were shown as starting five hours later than they actually were.. I complained, and they did fix it. Well, I probably wouldn't have gone anyway. The best Meetup left for that day is with the Shanty Singers Colliers Wood. This is another of those things I once booked and ended up cancelling, so I'll hold off on booking that till nearer the time. As is becoming usual.

On the 28th, I've booked for Phaedra, at the National.

On the 29th, I'm going with UITCS to Sadler's Wells - first time in an age - for Creature, by Akram Khan! I absolutely love his work. Handily enough, I used my latest Theatre Token for this - would have used it for Phaedra, but while neither theatre takes them online (you have to phone if you want to use a token), the National charges extra for phone bookings. So I used it for this instead.

On the 30th, back with the London European Club, at somewhere called the Ugly Duck, for Synchrony, a female 12-piece string ensemble. Tickets from Eventbrite. As hosted by Eleanor Salter Thorn again! So glad to see her hosting events in more central locations..

I was keeping the 31st free because Ivan is feeling thirsty again. :-) And for once, he seems to be sticking to the date, having booked us a table at The Lucas Arms (which, as he pointed out, has a smoker's area). We're hoping to have Martin - my other friendly ex-boss - join us, but he has more family commitments, which he's trying to juggle - we've told him to join us whenever. And this looks like turning into the first zapoi in a while - Ivan is talking about booking a studio, where we can drink overnight. Oy ve, watch this space.. So, not pushed about doing anything extra on the 1st.

And on the 2nd, I'm back with the CCC, for Orpheus Dismembered, at the British Museum, courtesy of Ben Haggarty. The event there that I'd already heard of..

Storytelling: Beowulf

Now, today is Paddy's Day. But for once, I didn't do anything related - I was back with the Crick Crack Club (CCC) for a performance of Beowulf, at King's Place. Mind you, when I mentioned it to my boss today, he did point out that Seamus Heaney wrote a well-received translation of the same work - there's my connection! Two Danish storytellers for this.

I don't like eating at King's Place - the service is dreadful. I might have gone to O' Neill's - but, given the day that's in it, and the number of times I haven't been able to get a table, I thought it'd be a waste of time. Then I thought of Nando's, which is on the way - so I went there. Now, I had to queue - but it wasn't for too long, and I got seated down the back, away from the door, which kept being left open. And wow, they've finally graduated to taking orders online - so much handier, not to queue at the till! And aww, they remembered I had a reward coming to me, despite it being so long since I was last at a Nando's - a red reward, yet! which basically meant I got my food for free, and just paid for the wine.

Service was quick - and wow, the food was delicious. I caught myself wondering why I hadn't been to a Nando's in so long - oh yes, they kept burning the chicken! Well, you know what? Not here.. I had no complaints whatsoever. I do believe this is the very first Nando's I've ever been in where the chicken wasn't burnt. Oh my goodness, I wolfed it down. Didn't really have time for their delectable chocolate dessert, but I treated myself to another wine, since it'd be cheaper than at King's Place..

Made it up there just in time, and was directed to a row - this was in the round. Ben Haggarty was MCing, as usual, and took a seat in the front row for the show. And in due course, our performers took the stage. Now, this turned out a lot funnier than I expected. Nay, hilarious is the word. A very physical performance, a very interactive performance. The two storytellers were lovely - one making very inventive use of a watering can. And it was a riotous evening, probably the most entertaining version of Beowulf I'm likely to hear. I do hope we have more of these international collaborations..

Tomorrow - awesome! Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners have a walk I haven't done, and which is scheduled for a day I can make it. How unusual.. This is Clubland: Secrets of the Gentleman's Clubs. Unfortunately, it turns out that this is one of the many days affected by rail strikes.. and the poor chap also seems to be having terrible trouble getting people to confirm whether they're coming for lunch after. I know that feeling..

And what a very good job it's in the afternoon - because that evening is a performance, in conjunction with the CCC, of Medusa, again at King's Place! An unusual take on it, from the evidence of last week's storytelling..

On Sunday, London Walks, Art & Culture Explorers are going on a Quirky London walk. And so am I.

On Monday, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for a play called Women, Beware the Devil, set in the year 1640 - showing in the Almeida.

On Tuesday, I booked with The London Palestinian Rights Meetup Group for Taking Sides – A Conversation about Love, War, and Changing the World. Happening at Amnesty International UK. But you know, I thought I might just go to a film instead.. When the listings came out, top of the list was Rye Lane, a romcom set in South London. The trailer looks hilarious - this looks like much more fun than that talk, and since it is free, I have no problem in cancelling my attendance. Nearest place to me showing the film that day is the Vue Islington - which now has theatre-style pricing, with different seats at different prices. So I booked, to get a decent seat at the cheapest price possible..

Back with UITCS for the next two days - on Wednesday, it's for comedian Rosie Holt at the Leicester Square Theatre.

On Thursday, I'm at Further Than the Furthest Thing, at the Young Vic. Then back to Ireland for the weekend again. Might get to see Scream VI at last..?

On the 27th, I booked with the Happy Positive Group! For their weekly Monday trivia night! They seem to be completely online. But wow, looking at it lately, they seemed to have switched that week to the next day! Although, having cancelled my attendance, I then noticed that all Meetups were displaying in the wrong time zone, so were shown as starting five hours later than they actually were.. I complained, and they did fix it. Well, I probably wouldn't have gone anyway. The best Meetup left for that day is with the Shanty Singers Colliers Wood. This is another of those things I once booked and ended up cancelling, so I'll hold off on booking that till nearer the time. As is becoming usual.

On the 28th, I've booked for Phaedra, at the National.

On the 29th, I'm going with UITCS to Sadler's Wells - first time in an age - for Creature, by Akram Khan! I absolutely love his work. Handily enough, I used my latest Theatre Token for this - would have used it for Phaedra, but while neither theatre takes them online (you have to phone if you want to use a token), the National charges extra for phone bookings. So I used it for this instead.

On the 30th, back with the London European Club, at somewhere called the Ugly Duck, for Synchrony, a female 12-piece string ensemble. Tickets from Eventbrite. As hosted by Eleanor Salter Thorn again! So glad to see her hosting events in more central locations..

I was keeping the 31st free because Ivan is feeling thirsty again. :-) And for once, he seems to be sticking to the date, having booked us a table at The Lucas Arms (which, as he pointed out, has a smoker's area). We're hoping to have Martin - my other friendly ex-boss - join us, but he has more family commitments, which he's trying to juggle - we've told him to join us whenever. And this looks like turning into the first zapoi in a while - Ivan is talking about booking a studio, where we can drink overnight. Oy ve, watch this space.. So, not pushed about doing anything extra on the 1st.

And on the 2nd, I'm back with the CCC, for Orpheus Dismembered, at the British Museum, courtesy of Ben Haggarty.

Stories in the Dark

This afternoon, I finally caught up with an online video - I'd booked an online ticket for Nick Hennessy's performance of the Kalevala in the Story Museum, in Oxford. Courtesy of the Crick Crack Club. And the link expires on Monday. It's an hour and a half long, and apparently they had sound issues - which they seem to have fixed. Mostly, it's a little dark..

But oh my, it's special. He's all about the music, this one - and as well as the harp and bodhrán he has on stage, he has a synthesiser, which he uses to record, and then layer, his voice, to powerful effect. As he says in the beginning, the human voice was made to sing - all speech is really singing - and this epic is sung poetry. The tale itself? Mad as anything you'll hear. But add the musical undertones, and it becomes timeless, something you might have heard in the womb. Soul music. I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Tonight, back at King's Place - this time it was also the Crick Crack Club, with Stories in the Dark. Told in darkness - sounded divine! Got a warning email a couple of days ago - they'd give each of us an LED candle on the way in, which we should turn on if we needed to leave for any reason (no readmittance, of course). An usher would show us in, and out if we needed to leave early. And yes, as they say - turn off your phone before you go in.. quite right, too.

No earthly point in trying O' Neill's for dinner - I hit The Lucas Arms, which was less busy than yesterday - good to know. Same dinner, but slightly different - they'd obviously banged the metal sauce pot under the heat, which was unfortunate, as the handle is metal too.. made it hard to hold. The sauce was a little lumpy, but fine. But my, the chips were divine! much crispier than usual. And whereas yesterday I got to listen to Spanish, this evening it was French..

I arrived early at King's Place, and went straight downstairs - where Ben Haggarty (looking incongruous in a beanie) and his wife, Kate Norgate, as well as Martin Shaw and I don't know who else, were directing proceedings. Now, I knew we couldn't take drinks in with us - probably for safety reasons - but when I saw the downstairs bar was closed, I headed straight back upstairs again, to brave the main bar. After all, I had time! I hate this bar though - it's such a palaver. I asked the doorman whether I could just get a drink at the bar, he replied, "Of course!" and insisted on showing me to a seat. Ridiculous - the place was mostly empty. And then the barman wouldn't just give me a drink - he took my order, then asked me to take a seat and it'd be brought to me. Which took five minutes. (I chose the chenin blanc, BTW - prices are a bit steep here. And it is lovely.) When I finished it, I lost no time in waving my card prominently and asking whether I could pay - they do take an absurdly long time to serve customers. Mercifully, I got back downstairs before the doors opened.

There were lots and lots of (black) signs around, reminding us of the rules, and what to do if we felt nervous. Well, in due course, the doors finally opened, and we were shown in - they were more concerned with making sure each of us had an LED light than that we had a ticket! Inside, the lights were already off - which was atmospheric, if impractical. I was actually first in - the ushers all had LED tealights, and one asked me whether I'd like him to show me to my seat. Which was ironic, considering none of us had any choice in where to sit.. as the lady who sat beside me, to whom I got chatting, opined, it was probably a good idea to know how many people were seated, and where, because - well, the ushers couldn't see anything! She also informed me that it had sold out - I hadn't realised. She was actually on a waiting list, got a last-minute ticket. Apparently, capacity for this show was only 90.

Instead of the stage (which I guess they might have been afraid of falling off of), the performance stage tonight was a mat on the floor. And yes, it was pretty damn dark, when they closed the door - a couple of spots of light was all. No introductions - but we recognised the first voice as that of Daniel Morden. Now, I'd told the lady beside me that I hoped for something scary - well, his was decently so, the tale of a young woman, left alone to tend the family business, and set upon by a group of ruffians. Told in his inimitable style, I think this was the best of the night.

Mind you, Ben's was suitably weird - although I'd heard it before, the tale of the prince who, when he becomes king, discovers he's supposed to marry the woman that a particular ring fits. Unfortunately, that's his sister.. who makes her escape right into the arms of Baba Yaga, for goodness' sake. Honestly, what an unlucky princess.. Final of the night was Sarah Liisa Wilkinson, who just doesn't do scary. So, she had a story of Merlin having a crush on a beautiful young huntress.. who, mind you, had a novel way of dealing with him!

Storytelling in the dark has two aims, as I see it - either you want to scare people, or make them concentrate. If your aim is to scare them, darkness can work very well - it's easy to imagine things creeping around where you can't see them. Try hard enough, you can probably conjure up a vision of them! But as for focusing the attention - honestly, I find I do just fine with the lights on, and the performers to look at - they are very engaging, very good at what they do. I don't think the darkness helped at all in that respect. Still, it's great to see them innovating - roll on the next Crick Crack event!

Tomorrow, back with Cultureseekers for the Hieroglyphs: Unlocking Ancient Egypt exhibition at the British Museum. Assuming it's not curtailed due to transport strikes - there is a warning on the museum website that galleries might have to close early!

On Monday, I've finally booked for Best of Enemies at the Noel Coward Theatre. This play concerns a series of debates on US television between liberal writer Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley in 1968 - the interesting twist here, given the time and place we're talking about, is to cast William Buckley as black! Had my own seat review on Seatplan to guide me in picking a seat - this is one of those restricted view/legroom theatres. And despite all the theatre offers flooding my inbox, I found the cheapest tickets for this on the official website! Mind you, what with See Tickets doing the selling, I found myself with a second, unexplained, booking fee..

For the next week or so, it's all Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS)! On Tuesday, for some reason, I hadn't seen their advertised event to see Orlando, based on the book by Virginia Woolf, and showing at the Garrick. For this, however, I found the cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

On Wednesday, we're off to see John Bishop at the Leicester Square Theatre. Love him, so I booked as soon as I saw this advertised - one of the few things for this month that I booked last month! Not that it seems to be selling out..

On Thursday, we're off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales. Then back to Ireland for the weekend again.

On the 30th, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from OLT.

On the 31st, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

On the 1st, back with the Horror Book Club. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. Last night, I managed to get through the club's book, and read the entirety of the story it's based on, which is much shorter - and less coherent. Again, the meeting is in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On the 2nd, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appeals massively at the moment - I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'll have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind..

On the 6th, my first actual event with that group. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Concert: Kirckman Society Presents Connaught Brass

Tonight, with TAC for a classical concert at King's Place (nice and close). This was the Kirckman Society for young artists, presenting Connaught Brass.

I needn't have bothered with O' Neill's, but tried anyway - downstairs was full, upstairs was closed. Just as well I know service is fast, and the food good, at The Lucas Arms! So I schlepped off there instead. Was well, and convivially, fed, and just made King's Place the requisite half hour beforehand. Given the pile of tickets dedicated to this group, I daresay we made up most of the audience! Certainly, it wasn't packed - nothing like the queue for the sold-out concert in Hall Two: Martyn Joseph it was, I believe. Well, I excused myself through the queue, got a drink (in plastic), and waited for Hall One to open, whereupon I was first in to take my seat:

An array of trumpets on stage was joined by another couple of trumpets, a French horn, a tuba, and a trombone, for this brass quintet. They're young musicians - and what I found lovely was to have every piece introduced. I didn't recognise any until the last, but of course, they were all bright and, well, loud! as you'd expect for brass. In the second half, the composer of one of the pieces was in the audience, and came up to introduce it himself; and for the last piece, they'd "reworked" Carmen! As the young man who introduced it to us explained, imagine you're watching the opera at home, and can pause, rewind, and fast-forward to your favourite bits. Yes, that's what the piece was like - lots of "favourite bits", complete with a (slightly) sped-up version of the famous overture to represent fast-forward, and a nicely weird rewrite of a famous aria to demonstrate the internet "going wrong". Very inventive.. and a lovely evening. Even if the guy inside me didn't think much of it, apparently, and left at the interval. Well, that just meant I didn't have to stand to let him in or out!

Tomorrow, Ken's Green Walks for Health (aka Ken's Events, to those of us who know it from before) is off to see the Winter Lights at Canary Wharf. Now, I wouldn't go with them in a fit - but there's nothing to stop me seeing the lights myself for free, eh? I don't see the point in paying Ken £5 to lead a group around.. Mind you, the lady that sold me my ticket for Mandela was in touch afterwards to say that the theatre is offering a free link to a livestream of the full show! and she was asking me what day would suit. This being one of the options, I figured it'd be a good way to avoid the cold of Canary Wharf..

On Friday (unusually, it's usually Thursday), back with Watkin's Bookshop for a book launch. This is Fifty Forgotten Books by R. B. Russell. Occult theme, as usual. Let's see whether I can avoid falling asleep this time!

On Saturday, back at King's Place - this time it's the Crick Crack Club, with Stories in the Dark. Told in darkness, by the sound of it - sounds divine!

On Sunday, back with Cultureseekers for the Hieroglyphs: Unlocking Ancient Egypt exhibition at the British Museum. Assuming it's not curtailed due to transport strikes - there is a warning on the museum website that galleries might have to close early!

On Monday, I've finally booked for Best of Enemies at the Noel Coward Theatre. This play concerns a series of debates on US television between liberal writer Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley in 1968 - the interesting twist here, given the time and place we're talking about, is to cast William Buckley as black! Had my own seat review on Seatplan to guide me in picking a seat - this is one of those restricted view/legroom theatres. And despite all the theatre offers flooding my inbox, I found the cheapest tickets for this on the official website! Mind you, what with See Tickets doing the selling, I found myself with a second, unexplained, booking fee..

For the next week or so, it's all Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS)! On Tuesday, for some reason, I hadn't seen their advertised event to see Orlando, based on the book by Virginia Woolf, and showing at the Garrick. For this, however, I found the cheapest tickets from Official London Theatre (OLT).

Next Wednesday, we're off to see John Bishop at the Leicester Square Theatre. Love him, so I booked as soon as I saw this advertised - one of the few things for this month that I booked last month! Not that it seems to be selling out..

On the 26th, we're off to The Vaults Festival - specifically, The Welsh Lxdies, a bilingual show about the women of Wales. Then back to Ireland for the weekend again.

On the 30th, we're heading to Noises Off, starring Felicity Kendal, at the Phoenix. Again, cheapest tickets from OLT.

On the 31st, with a group I haven't joined in a Very Long Time - I'm back with London Dramatic Art, from whom I've got a front-row ticket for Sylvia, at The Old Vic; this is the story of Sylvia Pankhurst, and stars the excellent Beverley Knight. Completely sold out - this was my only way to get a ticket!

On the 1st, back with the Horror Book Club - Lordy, that means I need to read a book! :-) I'm using my flights for that. This time, it's The Ballad of Black Tom, based on the Lovecraft story, The Horror at Red Hook, but told from the perspective of a black man. Which means I should really read that, too.. Nice, I'd like to get back to some Lovecraft! I've read the summary of that, and am a decent way through the book club's book. Again, it's in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden. Question is, will the kitchen be open..?

On the 2nd, I'm on my own for My Son's a Queer (but what can you do?), a musical at the Ambassadors Theatre.

On the 3rd, my first meeting of the year with London Classical Music and Theatre Group! We're off to Wigmore Hall, to listen to the Hagen Quartet play Mozart. They're Austrian, so that's appropriate.. I just need to remember not to drink the ultra-expensive sauvignon blanc!

On the 4th, well, Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners are back to Greenwich again. Now, I have been there with him before.. not sure how "new" this one will be, but hey, it was a great day last time!

On the 5th, nothing on Meetup appeals massively at the moment - I might go for a walk along the Ken's Events route, if I feel like it! (on my own). Or Over 40 Living the Life has advertised a walk along the New River.. I'll have to see, as I have to pay to sign up (refunds given to those who then come). And I might well change my mind..

On the 6th, my first actual event with that group. We're off to How Not to Drown at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East - the first event of theirs for which I couldn't get a cheaper ticket! So I decided, if I couldn't beat them, I might as well join them. True story of an unaccompanied, 11-year-old asylum seeker.

On the 7th, excited to be headed to see Derren Brown in Showman, at the Apollo Shaftesbury Avenue. Cheapest tickets with OLT again.

On the 8th, off to The Lehman Trilogy, at the Gillian Lynne Theatre. Based on the true story of the bank that collapsed. Got the last £39.50 ticket!

On the 9th, back with UITCS for Winner's Curse, at the Park Theatre - an interactive show about a peace negotiation. Turns out North London Friends are headed to it the same night - what, are they now copying this group, as another group did some time ago? (since closed down). And then I'm back to Ireland again.

And on the 13th, I'm headed to Allegiance, starring George Takei in a musical based on the true story of his time in an American internment camp during the Second World War. Showing at the Charing Cross Theatre.

Storytelling: The Beast in Me

Tonight, back with the Crick Crack Club for The Beast in Me, by Daniel Morden. At King's Place. Fantastic! And yay, I persuaded the lady from Tuesday who booked the restaurant that night to come to this as well - we were grabbing a bite in the Rotunda Bar beforehand.

Mercifully, after yesterday, I could walk to this. My walk took me past King's Cross, which was handy, as I had errands to run there - one of which was to get a passport photo. They have a photo booth here - which I could look up on Google Maps, or I'd never have found it. And how things have changed since I last needed to do this - this has contactless payment, and allows you to enter an email address for the receipt to be sent to. Lovely! Seems, however, that for all of their talk about sending you a digital copy, that's only for UK passports - me, I have to input a code, which is printed on the same sheet as the photos. (And, as usual, yuck to the photo. But anyway.)

And so up the road to the theatre - I got there early, and messaged her. She gave me her surname, for the booking, and I went in and was shown to a table on the terrace. Brr.. when she arrived herself, a bit later than anticipated, we took a table inside instead.

Now, service has never really been good here. First problem we had was that nobody thought to bring our water and menus from the first table. Well, we decided to share a bottle of wine - that came, but it took 15 minutes to get menus. Another 20 to get anyone to take our order. Another 20 to get fed. And now it was 5 minutes until the doors opened..

As to the food, I had shepherds pie. Which was tasty enough - but the lamb inside was pulled, which hadn't been specified on the menu. Lord, I hate pulled meat - I hate the texture, it's so messy. Well, I gobbled my way through that, and the accompanying carrots. She had ordered mushrooms, which she was surprised to see arrive without sauce - it cost another £3 for a pot of sauce. She had also ordered something with rice - as she remarked, when a dish has rice, you expect to be able to see it! There were a few grains around the edge..

When someone came to ask how the food was, she asked for the bill. Which was brought. Again, 15 minutes more until anyone came with a card machine! After which, I galloped for the toilet, and she brought down the dregs of the bottle, along with a couple of plastic containers and some almonds that had come with her meal. Oh God, I do hate coming here when I have somewhere to be.. it's seriously slow. As she remarked a couple of times during the meal - she was facing the restaurant - they all smiled as they passed, but nobody was bringing us anything.. She deliberately ordered less food, to make room for dessert - which she then didn't have time for!

We just made it before lights down, got a decent seat, although it was quite packed. Ben Haggarty MCed, giving a short introduction to the Devil's Violin - a pair of musicians, Daniel Morden the storyteller. And we were off - for two halves of 45 minutes or so each. Now, it's been a while since I've heard the like of these stories, which followed a theme - in general, we met "The Gentleman", dressed in black, who gave people horrendously difficult tasks, lasting seven years, and took their souls in recompense if they failed.

What a magical, mystical winding road he took us on. I love his storytelling - he can turn on a penny to give us suspense, dread, humour.. Seriously, I hardly felt the first half pass. Delighted to say that my companion seemed to enjoy it as well! I love to spread the word about storytelling - it is something special. And as she says - and others have said before her - music does add that extra level..

Tomorrow, I have my Christmas get-together with Helen! We're planning a Christmas bonanza - first to the Magical Ice Kingdom at Winter Wonderland, where we must also have a stroll around the Christmas markets, and get some alcoholic hot chocolate. Then food - then we're on a Tootbus night-time open-top bus tour. As booked on Wowcher. Now, there is a rail strike that day, but she says it's not yet affecting her - she'll keep an eye on it. Mind you, the Tube strike might - I had her asking me for bus directions on Monday! Of course, there's a bus strike too..

On Sunday, I'm back with Discover London, for a walk entitled Secrets of the Riverside Part 1: Tower Bridge to London Bridge. These events are good - I'm delighted to be back on one! And I see this one is now booked up.

The next two days, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) - for some reason, I only just saw their advertised trip, on Monday, to see Austentatious: An Improvised Jane Austen Novel, at the Arts Theatre. Awesome! This should be good - title decided by the audience on the night.

On Tuesday, we're back at the Park Theatre for the Make Mine a Double series - next week, it's Press, which examines the world of journalism, and Tunnels, about two cousins hoping to escape East Berlin. So, darker than this week's.

On Wednesday.. same problem as last Wednesday. Until just today, when the London Classical Music and Theatre Group advertised a London Philharmonic Orchestra concert at the Royal Festival Hall for that day! And wouldn't you know it, there's a Black Friday discount until the end of Monday if you book on the LPO website with the code BLACKFRIDAY. As I'd only just seen! ;-) So now I'm going to that.

On Thursday - well, my contract has been extended, and the new company is busy with a background check, and hasn't yet given me a start date. Which is just fine, as I only have to give a week's notice. I booked an online talk, The Life and Times of Magnus Folk, from the Surrey History Meetup. One of the earliest electrical engineers in England, it seems. Anyway, it's free, and I've now cancelled - I found something more interesting while I was waiting for the play last night. The Arabic Music, Dance and Party Meetup Group are advertising an evening at the Bethlehem Cultural Festival - tickets from Eventbrite - in which there's a talk about 19th century travellers, as well as discussion of a forthcoming book, and a talk from a female artist in Gaza. Not that the group is advertising it, but there's also an Arab dance after, and another talk - you can go to some, or all. Happening in The Tabernacle. So, I booked a ticket - stopped short of joining the group though - we shall see.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend again - flying Aer Lingus for a change! My passport is due to expire, you see - I don't technically need one to travel between Ireland and the UK, but Ryanair demands it. Aer Lingus doesn't.. and I can get on to that renewal as soon as my photo code works! It's not accepting it right now, but it seems that it can take up to 48 hours for the photo to be ready to add online..

On the 5th - yep, the London Chess Community again looked like the best option. Hmm. But just lately - hallelujah! I was saved by London Social & Cultural Meetups, who have scheduled a talk on The 70th Anniversary of the Great London Smog. (Although oddly, we're meeting outside - perhaps the venue is hard to find?) Anyway, I'm delighted - this is that friendly group I joined a while ago for Evensong at St. Bartholomew the Great, and I'm glad to be seeing them again.

On the 6th, well, Free Stuff and Free Events are holding another online singalong. Again, I cancelled my attendance at the last of these I booked for, so am reluctant to rush off and book again.. Or the Garden Talks have one on How Did Language Begin? Unfortunately, my free trial has long since expired, and they won't let me take out another. Well, I might pay - but I'd be paying for a month's worth, so I figure I might as well wait until closer to the date, and get the value..

On the 7th, phew, a definite plan! I'm back with UITCS for Baghdaddy at the Royal Court. About a little girl, realising she's half Iraqi, just as the Gulf War is raging. I see CT now has tickets for this.. unusually for this venue!

On the 8th, I've signed up for another Watkin's Bookshop talk! This is Colin Stanley on Colin Wilson's Introducing the Occult. Well, the last talk I was at here was interesting, so..

On the 9th, I'm heading to Lightopia, at Crystal Palace Park. As suggested by Over 40 Living the Life, who are not actually hosting a trip themselves, but just wanted to advertise it. 15% discount if you subscribe to Lightopia's mailing list, 20% discount for purchases of 10 or more tickets. And durnit if Groupon hsn't just advertised cheap tickets..

On the 10th - I've bravely scheduled another meeting of Those who Do Not Come. It's my last weekend in London before Christmas, you see. Well, so far Ivan and my first boss in London are probable attendees, the one person who came the last two times probably not, for once. We shall see - I asked them again to confirm, and Ivan did, and the one who probably can't make it said he probably couldn't! Nowhere booked yet, but I'm thinking The Lucas Arms, maybe - O' Neill's isn't taking bookings for that day. And then, there's the complication of different festive menus.. and a £10 deposit per person..

And on the 11th, I'm vaguely thinking of heading to see Carnaby Street's Christmas lights..