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..

Tour: Wonders of the National Gallery

This morning, 9am (ouch), I had another interview with one of the companies I'm considering - I've put a hurry on them, on account of being at the final stages with their rivals. Had to be early, because in the middle of the day, I'd booked for another tour with Laurence and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners - Wonders of the National Gallery. Heading for lunch after to the Lamb and Flag.

Interview went well, I thought - and wouldn't you know it, the drilling started right after I hung up! Spectacular timing. No word back from them yet though, and they were supposed to get back to me this evening - well, no news is good news.. Anyway, I grabbed a banana and headed out. And given that I was getting buses there, I was on time, this time! Wasn't entirely sure where we were meeting, but as I rounded the building, there was someone I hadn't seen in an age - who spotted me. And sure enough, that was where we all grouped - Laurence in his summer hat again. I shall have to start calling him the Man with the Hat, if he keeps this up! So, so many people there that I hadn't seen in ages - and it was great to see them.

We trooped inside, and he gathered us together in the lobby for an initial word, attracting the attention of some passers-by. He explained that this was a private tour, and off they went - however, as he said, he couldn't really do that in the galleries. And sure enough, as we went around, lots of hangers-on benefitted from his wisdom as he delved into the finer points of famous paintings. I've seen this tour advertised before, but never been able to go - so felt myself very lucky today!

We started in the Middle Ages - with the Wilton Diptych! Now, most of what I ended up taking photos of were paintings I've actually seen before - and this is one. I've done an awful lot of reading about royalty over the years, and this is one picture of Richard II that I have seen - just not the whole artefact!

Just grabbed this next one in passing - thought it looked nice:

You know when you've hit Leonardo:

The mysterious portrait with hidden meanings:

I was faced with an absolute riot of paintings that I knew, when we came to the Hans Holbein section! The main focus was - naturally enough - on The Ambassadors:

but there were other old friends there, such as Christina of Denmark:

and the man she didn't particularly want to marry, Henry VIII himself, sketched in the corner:

On to more modern pieces, and a couple painted by Gainsborough - she was looking a bit shifty-eyed, it seemed:

We saw Turner:

Constable's Hay Wain:

and to finish, a couple of Monets:

and van Goghs:

(The obvious one to photograph here would have been Sunflowers. But I never took to it. Unlike the person with the face mask of that design!)

What a smorgasbord of amazing art to absorb. And all through the gallery, Laurence picked famous paintings to stand in front of and describe to us - their significance, their symbolism, their hidden meanings. I've always loved that in art.. wonder whether any of the casual listeners roundabouts the gallery got something from it!

Well, we got a lot from that, and I'm delighted I went - but it was somewhat exhausting, and we were glad to head for lunch.

Where the convivial host had reserved a section of the upstairs for us! and we were tastily fed - me on the steak pie, Laurence on the fish pie, others on salads, sausages, or sandwiches.. took a while to come out, but it was worth the wait. And after a most pleasant and relaxed lunch, as we were leaving, we took note of the Christmas menu. Yep, you read right.. watch this space!

Now, that had nothing to do with me missing my flight. Which I did. Blasted bus got mired in traffic, took forever to get to the station, and I missed the train I needed to get. The timetables are erratic, and the next wouldn't get me there in time - I tried Uber, but first the app insisted on being updated, and then took forever - I had to go back to street level to get it to work! Then it refused my card - and by the time I'd added my Irish card details, Uber couldn't have got me there in time either. Now, I know the flights are usually delayed (and indeed, tonight's was, and I should just have got the train after all, as it turned out) - but you can't depend on it. So I rebooked, at a premium rate, for the morning flight, and went back home. Bah humbug. And now I have to get up ridiculously early.

So TOMORROW I'm back to Ireland for the weekend - tried, once more, to get my car serviced, but for two days in a row, nobody was answering the phone. So, sod that - I'll get my taxi driver to take it for a service somewhere else. Which leaves me free to go to a film tomorrow afternoon - and what's coming up is Bullet Train, an adventure caper with a Japanese bullet train full of assassins, one of whom is Brad Pitt. Looks like fun - I've seen so many trailers for this! Ennis it is.

On Monday - yes, I am succumbing. Finally managed to get a decently priced (seated) ticket to Abba Voyage. Hell, I love Abba, and even if they have been replaced by avatars - it's supposed to be a spectacular show. Kind of has to be done..

On Tuesday, I've booked with London Classical Music and Theatre Group - Didi, from the group, who is herself a classical guitarist, is playing a free Summer Music Festival concert in the Holy Sepulchre Church, which should be lovely.

That evening, I'm at Chasing Hares, at the Young Vic. And wouldn't you know it, CT now has ticket offers for this..

On Wednesday, I'm with a new Meetup group - Soho Comedy Factory Shows and Socials, which organises free events on Wednesdays at the aforementioned Soho Comedy Factory. Unless something better comes along - I've had bad experiences with free comedy!

On Thursday, I've booked a free ticket with an improv group called Kid Smokers Improv! at Barons Court Theatre. (It's Pay What You Can, actually.) They're actually stepping in while Avocado Presents takes a summer holiday - they seem to have a residency here, now. Anyway, I've seen Avocado Presents before, and they're excellent - so I figure I'll give these people a shot! Avocado Presents, interestingly, have a Meetup group now - Watch Improv & Chat Comedy! which I've also just joined.

Next Friday, I've booked for the Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street Tour with Poppy's Events for 40s 50s and 60s, another new group to me. But Laurence has a walk that day as well - the Strange Tales of Old (and New) London Tour, which, you know, I'll go on if I'm free.. haven't booked it yet though.

On the 13th, I'm off to see The Ehrlich Brothers, a magic show at the Wembley Arena. This is with Friendly Frolickers 50+ Meetup Group - so I've joined them as well, making that four new groups in a row! I was - as often happens - rather frazzled when I booked though, and completely forgot that they have their own, discounted tickets! Blast - they do this specifically so that they can sit together. Well, I've booked my own - more expensively - and explained. Can't be helped.

And on the 14th, I've booked with the 45+s again - but not with Laurence this time! They do have walks guided by other people, and this one is of Brick Lane.