Walk: Movers & Shakers of Marylebone

Now, my boss suggested - quite a while ago - that we might have a jaunt to the head office in Tel Aviv today! I hadn't heard anything since, though - so I finally asked him. He confirmed that it won't be until at least next month now - wants to get the latest release out. (Just as well really, with all the unrest over there.) So I'll be in London this week. And in fact, for today, I finally found something good to do - London Herstory Guided Walks was doing Movers & Shakers of Marylebone! Great to be back with Mandy again.

Also nice to have a later start - why, I didn't even have to rush! much. She had mentioned that she'd be outside the Globe pub, across from Baker Street Station - the bus let me off just down from there, and Google Maps pointed me in the right direction; had I directed myself by Madame Tussauds, mentioned in the event description, I'd have gone wrong. Perhaps that's what happened to the one of our group that got lost.. apparently wandering around looking for us, but we never found each other! despite Mandy's best efforts. Ah well..

Speaking of which, did you notice that there is no apostrophe in the name? Turns out that's deliberate - because that family doesn't own it any more, but obviously wanted to keep the name..

Anyway, this, as she said, is a huge area, and we had some long walks between stops. Also, I didn't take so many photos.. well, unless you're a fan of architecture (or art, as one of the group, who went around snapping things that were blue!), what's there to photograph isn't that varied. Interesting, and certainly pleasant to look at, but not, perhaps, to photograph. Having said that, we next came to the parish church, which is striking.. and also where Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning were married! in secret.. for some reason, her father disinherited each of his children who married. Imagine..

We were later to come on her house - rather than a plaque, they decided to carve her name into the fabric of the building:

Most curious plaque of the day was the one about the Queen of Haiti:

This lovely piece of architecture apparently started life as a Debenham's!

And lo, for the computer fans among us:

Used to hang out with Ada Lovelace - I was intrigued by the story of how her mother encouraged her interest in science, to make sure she didn't follow in the footsteps of her feckless father, Lord Byron!

This is an exclusive part of town, full of attractive mews and courtyards:

We heard about other interesting women, such as Christine Keeler, where we stood outside the house where she created the fuss that brought her affair to light. And saw the house where Emmeline Pankhurst really died! (contrary to her Wikipedia entry). But this is the thing about London - it's not only packed full of history (and herstory..), but interesting people continue to live here, and interesting things continue to happen. So many stories..

We finished on the site of the "hanging tree", where we learned the origin of the word "hangover". The site is now marked by a plaque, on a traffic island, on a busy junction.. but hey, they did plant three trees around it, to commemorate the triangular gallows!

And so we repaired to The Carpenter's Arms - where the sauvignon blanc is incredibly good value! so I had two. And we sat outside - my first time this year, and boy, did it feel good. And the company was excellent.

So to food - I ended up in the nearest Spaghetti House, where, funnily enough, I didn't feel like pasta! So I had a veal escalope, which was gorgeous- far from the one I remember in Malbun, years ago, where - in a highly expensive place, and keen to keep the price low - I had the cheapest option possible, which was dry as a bone. This one, today, came with a slice of lemon, and was very moreish - I had the option of sautéed potatoes or spaghetti, and chose the spuds - which were served as wafer-thin slices! For starter, minestrone - for the first time in ages - and, of course, chocolate cake for dessert. And sauvignon blanc that was more expensive than the pub. Naturally. When I finally rolled home, I was exhausted - ended up falling into bed, and sleeping the rest of the evening away! It's a while since I did that..

There isn't honestly much coming up that interests me on Meetup - so I'm thinking of heading to the cinema for the next two days. I've been having terrible trouble with that film listings site, though - even with the new week's films started, listings weren't complete! and new listings were being added over the weekend. Anyway, for tomorrow, what it's looking like is The Beasts - set in Galicia, in Spain, this is the story of a French couple who move to a rural area, only to spark an argument with a couple of their neighbours.. I hear good things. Showing in my local cinema, the Curzon Bloomsbury. Not that you'd know it from the listings site, which - last I looked - had no listing for that, in that cinema, for tomorrow!

For Tuesday, what's coming up is a Ginger Rogers film - the BFI is doing a season of her films. This one is a comedy called Bachelor Mother - daring for 1939, it has her as a single mother! Mind you, in her case, she finds the baby abandoned outside an orphanage.. also stars David Niven, and Charles Coburn as her father.

For Wednesday, I've booked For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide.. at the Apollo. I have a front-row seat in the Dress Circle - now, I seem to remember ridiculously tight legroom, here - so I'm at the end of a row, and Seatplan says it'll be OK if I lean forward.. Just yesterday, they asked me to "check in", and thereupon sent me my ticket..

On Thursday, I'm with TAC for a talk on Arab & Islamic Roots of Europe's Architecture, at St. Mary Magdalene Church.

Then it's back to Ireland for the weekend. On the 24th, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for The Secret Life of Bees, at the Almeida - no seats left in the stalls, when I booked! Seatplan made me wary of the cheapest seats, so I'm in the next bracket up..

And on the 25th, back with Over 40 Living the Life, for dinner at the Greenwich Yacht Club again. Well, it was good last time - good food, cheap prices, good company. Four of us going so far - I'm sure there'll be more!

Play: Lemons Lemons Lemons

This week is mostly Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS). Tonight, back with them for Lemons, Lemons, Lemons, at the Harold Pinter Theatre. This is a rom-com about a couple living in a dystopian state, which limits the number of characters they can speak. Lots of body language then, I guessed! Frankly, I was delighted to see that, by the time I booked, the Balcony was sold out - the legroom there is woeful, and good luck to those who'd booked up there. The cheapest price bracket left when I booked included some in the Dress Circle - and thanks to Seatplan, I thought I'd identified a decent seat among them. Cheapest tickets from the official site, but I booked with From the Box Office, which had tickets at the same price, but without the booking fee.

Looking for eateries nearby, I settled on Spaghetti House again - not the branch I ate at before, but I had a good experience then, so I said I'd try it. Also said I'd better book - and I was right to do so, it was quite full when I got there, at 6pm! They stuck me in a corner - my place had already been laid out, and I was miffed to realise they had me facing the wall - until I figured out that, had I sat on the other side, I'd have impeded what is a useful passage for them to the back. I was wary of being sat with my back to the waiters, but actually, service was fine - until, of course, I wanted the bill.

I dunno why I didn't try the garlic bread before - I did this time, and it was very moreish! Had the carbonara again, as it was so good last time - and here, they had sauvignon blanc. I was well fed, again - considered having a second wine, but at £12.50 a glass, I thought I'd see what the theatre was selling it for. Didn't really have much time to spare, anyway, if I were going to meet the group - and although I was left for a few minutes at the end, I've definitely been kept waiting longer to pay elsewhere.

And so to the theatre, where, joy, the Dress Circle is on ground level. Mind you, I had to climb to the bar where they were meeting - not that far, though. A large group, they were easy to spot tonight - and lo, the wine here is the same price as at the restaurant. Well, nothing lost either way then - happily, you can take it in. As someone said though, pity we didn't wait until tonight to get tickets - quite a few people cancelled last minute, and we might have got one for free..

Wow, was I impressed with the legroom on this row - no comparison with the Balcony! Back row too, so I could happily lean if I wanted. I was right over by the wall, but the two seats beside me were free, so I moved over one for a slightly better view. Not that I'd have missed much - the only action consists of the two actors, circling each other, and none of it takes place very far to the side.

90 minutes or so, straight through - and yes, by and large we thought it could have been shorter. It's well acted, and the characters are personable - in fact, the conversations they have are very interesting. The pre-quietude ones, that is. (I think that's what it's called, the Quietude Act. Something like that.) You see, after this law is passed, it becomes illegal to speak more than 140 words per day, so the conversations become necessarily stilted.

I couldn't help comparing it to Brexit - the passing of an inane law that does no-one any good, but is inexplicably voted for, to the bafflement of those who are against it. And just like the Covid restrictions, what do we find during the play but politicians making exceptions for themselves - the word limit doesn't apply in Parliament. Or in its restaurants, etc. 

Of course, what it really (to use an example of one of the words that one of the characters thinks could happily be dropped) is getting at, is a dig at Twitter, which used to have a 140-character message limit. And in particular, I guess the play's message is how much communication is lost in that - yes, you can get the basic meaning across; but how much richness do you lose, how much depth of feeling, how much context? How much less do you know about the person? Hey, even Twitter doubled their limit in the end.. Particularly disquieting is when, at the end of the day - when they use their remaining words for a conversation - on one occasion, they start to sing an old song (Total Eclipse of the Heart, as it happens). But then they have to stop, because they've used up their word quota.

It's an interesting concept - for instance, they briefly consider the effect on babies - but it did drag a bit. And the constant back-and-forth between pre-Quietude, when they could let loose volleys of words, and post-Quietude, where they're constantly counting them and inventing abbreviations to save words, is a little confusing. None of the concepts they could have explored really were dealt with - which is why it dragged, I think. Anyway, if you're interested, it runs until the 18th.

Afterwards, we met at the Tom Cribb pub - outside the pub, I should mention. Where we shivered as we discussed the play - could have done with being inside, but never mind. It's bitter out there.. Got one of those weird bus drivers on the way home, who wouldn't stop when I pressed the bell - happily, it wasn't too long before he did, and my way home from there took me past the shop anyway. And I did need some shopping.

Tomorrow, my one non-UITCS day this week - back with Over 40 Living the Life, for a dinner at Greenwich Yacht Club. Ooh la la.. The organiser has provided quite complicated meeting instructions - it'll be interesting to see how useful they prove!

On Wednesday, back with UITCS at the Arcola for Afghanistan is Not Funny, the true story of a British comedian and photographer in war-torn Afghanistan.

On Thursday, with them again at the Peacock (think I can walk to that!) for Bat Out of Hell, a musical based on the music of Meat Loaf. Awesome - just a pity it isn't one of the singalong nights..

On Friday, ending a run of UITCS with Lucrezia Borgia, by the English Touring Opera Company, at the Hackney Empire.

On Saturday, back cat-herding - Ivan suggested that whole day for, well, a lot of drinking. And food - he wanted to go back to O' Neill's. Well, he got in touch. To say that, unfortunately, he can't now make it. My other coworker from that company still can, though - as they've both said, it's been so long since they actually met each other! They can never seem to coordinate.. Still have to hear from my other ex-coworker with whom I'm in contact, as to whether he can make it himself.

On Sunday, back with Discover London at last - she does excellent walks, but sometimes they clash, and sometimes they sell out before I get to them! This one is Discover Historic Chelsea: From Quaint to Quant - 1660s to 1960s.

Next Monday, back with - you guessed it - UITCS, for Romeo and Julie, at the Dorfman.

On the 7th - not so much appeals on Meetup. Free Stuff and Free Events does have Free Community Singing with Ros Hone and the Global Fusion Sound Singers, which you can attend on Zoom, or in person at Fossdene School Community Hall. Which sounds just fine - except that this is the sort of thing I keep cancelling! So I'm not confirming until nearer the time.

On the 8th - back with the Crick Crack Club, woohoo! for Goddesses in the Garden, at the Chelsea Physic Garden. Features my favourite, Clare Murphy, along with Sarah Liisa Wilkinson, Laura Sampson, and Xanthe Gresham.

On the 9th, my final booking - for now - with UITCS, for Brilliant Jerks at Southwark Playhouse. And wouldn't you know it, I still had credit on my Pay as you Go subscription, so got it for free! And then it's back to Ireland for the weekend again.

Play: Best of Enemies

Tonight, I 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..

I thought I'd look nearby for food - the nearest place with availability (third I tried) was, to be fair, only a minute's walk away from the theatre! (The joys of a Monday night.) So I booked a table there - it was Spaghetti House. The queue at the bus stop rather phased me - there was such a huge queue, it looked as though there was a shortage of buses! Now, there were a few I could get - when the first of these happened along, I dreaded a scrum to get on. Mercifully, a #205 arrived at the same time, and most of them gravitated towards that! Now, that explains the scrum - that bus is so rare, its arrival should make the papers..

Well, I arrived at the restaurant with a couple of minutes to spare, and was shown straight to my table - the only free table I could see. I perused the menu - it's ages since I've had minestrone, so thought I'd have that: fancied a carbonara as well. And the usual 250ml of sauvignon blanc - unusually, described as a carafe, here! Well, the waiter happened along - I have to say, I've never seen such ridiculously smiley waitresses. This one looked so gleeful, she might burst at any moment. Either it's a great place to work, or they're on something.. her smile didn't falter one bit as she informed me that they had no sauvignon blanc - so I had chardonnay. And they'd just served the last of the minestrone - all right, I'd have calamari. I was ok with the carbonara.

When the wine arrived, it became apparent that the reason they serve 250ml carafes is that the wine glasses are smaller than that. Seems easier to buy bigger wine glasses, but hey. The wine was decent, the calamari passable. The carbonara was lovely, actually - and quite filled me up, which was a good thing. The theatre had emailed to ask me to arrive half an hour early, and I was coming up to that - happily for the restaurant, who'd given me a two-hour max. When I asked for the bill, the server seemed a smidgeon confused.. she brought me the bill, waited a respectable five minutes, and asked whether I was ready to pay now! Ehh..?

Well, they're nice, and worth the slightly higher than usual service charge. Trotting over to the theatre, I walked along the world's longest roped-off area, leading around the side! Nobody waiting in it, just the people to check bags. Right to the end I had to walk, and back. In a side door then, and up (and up and up) what you might call a refurbished fire escape, to get to the Balcony. Would you believe, after all that climbing, the bar is another flight of steps up! (Mind you, I think I spied another on the climb..) Lovely bar, after all that - I got a drink, in plastic so I could take it in with me, and sank into a seat until showtime. When I had a fun climb - down, this time - to my seat, on the aisle in the front row:

Ok seat - decent legroom, actually, and I had the aisle to swing my legs into, and to leave my stuff in. The guy beside me was massively disappointed when I arrived, having all his things on my seat.. Only thing was, we kept having to get up to let people in and out! Anyway, 60s music plays at the start of each half. This is actually a great play for anyone with an interest in the 60s - the events depicted take place then, of course, and we get some 60s fashions: but we also get some real-life stills and film footage, projected onto the side of the stage. Most atmospheric.

The debates take place during a presidential election campaign, and start during a Republican convention in Miami. The fun starts when they move to a Democratic convention in Chicago - the Democrats are at sixes and sevens following the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, and things aren't helped at all by the city's reactionary mayor, who isn't at all a fan of the revolutionary spirit of the age.. and, faced with protests against the Vietnam War, sends in the National Guard.

As to the debates themselves - they're fun, the participants treating them like boxing matches and using them as an excuse to slag each other off. Mrs. Buckley is frequently seen giving her husband advice, as Gore Vidal's companions also do for him. Each is very keen to best the other, and the verbal battles are terrific. Not that they're given great rein to wax on about subjects at length - television doesn't lend itself to that. Gore Vidal is certainly better at soundbites - but it's perhaps Buckley who has the definitive final word, warning that democracy cannot survive when menaced by moral supremacy. For the latter part of the play, such argument as there is finds itself superseded by the riots erupting around them.

So, not one for those hoping for deep political discourse - but it is riveting, and a real window into the past. Runs till the 18th.

Afterwards, I had a choice of buses home - bless continual decent internet access, so I could keep adjusting my journey to find the most comfortable trip (least walking).

For the next week or so, it's all Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS)! Tomorrow, 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. With partial film listings finally out for there, it's looking like The Fabelmans, in Ennis - an autobiographical tale from Stephen Spielberg, about how he got into filmmaking.

Next Monday, 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. 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! Indeed, that evening might be the time to meet Ivan - and our coworker, if he's recovered, by then, from the jetlag he'll suffer from the trip to India he's currently on!

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.