London Still Rocks!

Last night, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Allegra , starring Maureen Lipman , at the Harold Pinter - got a cheap ticket with Seatplan , and completely forgot I'd earned a voucher I could've used! I managed a seat at the edge of the Dress Circle, which is at ground level. Booked to eat beforehand at Bella Italia again, yay!  Well glory be - I actually made it just in time for the bus . So I was early to the restaurant, where the manager was surprised to see me so soon again, twice in one week! As I told him, he'd be seeing me a third time.. The new guy was there again, and had been told my name now - and wow, the manager showed me the order that had gone through to the kitchen for my food, which had VIP printed on it. :-) Supposed to take extra care over it in that case, so I was told. Well, it was all gorgeous, as usual.. and, coming for the second time within the deadline, I got 25% off my food bill! Nice one.. sadly, I didn't have time for dessert this ...

S ome London Museums A-Z (LoMAZ) members have developed a new group - Museum, Arts & Culture Socials - and I headed with them yesterday to see The Symptomatic Surreal , an exhibition at the Freud Museum , which is Freud 's actual final home. Meeting beforehand at the Garden Breakfast Cafe .  That far away, I had to take the Tube - and wow, fourth time lucky! Three times in a row, I couldn't take the Jubilee Line because of severe delays - I was lucky to be able to take it yesterday, not sure what other route would have been practical! (There were only minor delays..) As Camilla, the organiser, remarked when she arrived, she'd arrived early because she knew I was always early, and I still beat her to it. ;-) Happily, the cafe does wine - red or white, as the lady behind the counter asked me. I also had a ham & cheese panini (excuse me, mozarella & parma). Which was burnt on the bottom, and tasteless on top. Ah well, the wine was good, and I had a second...

Last night was with CT, at a concert called Sirens , with an all-female group singing classic numbers in the Emerald Theatre . Booked to eat in L' Ulivo beforehand. Well, those road works outside my estate are ongoing, and TFL is adamant that the #188 , which I would use, isn't running past my house. Which is rubbish, because traffic is now flowing in that direction, and indeed I caught that bus on Thursday, outside my house, to go to work! Buses Due was down - has been for weeks now, and I do wonder whether it'll ever work again. Still, I let myself be persuaded by TFL, and walked on to where I was supposed to be able to catch it.. only to see it sail past me before I got there. Lovely. So I had to catch another bus, and change, and then the second bus didn't come and I had to walk the last bit.. So I was a few minutes late to the restaurant. Not a problem, and I was seated a bit more centrally than usual - which might be why it was a bit easier to get service. ...

Yesterday, I was thinking of Life Support , a documentary about the medics operating in Gaza . Evening showing is in the Rio Dalston . But then I saw there was a comedy showing in Riverside Studios , called The Big Dog , about a married stockbroker whose savings are cleared out by a dominatrix. Thought I might have a look at that instead. But gee, it turned out to be one of those really changeable days.. because it turned into sort of an unofficial London Museums A-Z  (LoMAZ) day! Second in a row, then. One of  the organisers, Shelley, decided to do something for International Friendship Day , and we were to meet at Between the Bridges ! a free event with street food and such. They created a WhatsApp group for it - and 27 people joined.  I headed from the office on foot.. at least it's mostly downhill, what with that heavy laptop bag n all. I tell you though, I did not appreciate the overhead walkway from Villiers Street to the bridge being closed, because of ...

Yesterday , I was back with CT for Ludwig: Unfinished Business , a comedy about Beethoven , showing in the Playground Theatre and performed by an actual pianist . Another Fringe preview. Eating in The Pavilion beforehand - and it's a good thing they reminded me on Monday, because I'd totally forgotten! Over an hour, no matter how I got there.. unless, perhaps, I flew, which wasn't practical. So, Tube it was.. and WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT, severe delays again. Signal failure again. How long has it been since the Jubilee Line was usable?! Took the Northern Line , therefore, to connect to the Central Line - which wasn't too bad; the aircon wasn't great, but it was there, and I got a seat after a couple of stops. A long and, frankly, boring walk to the pub followed - lots of terraced houses and gardens, a sports pitch, and a big flyover. The pub itself wasn't crowded - the youngster serving me hadn't a clue where to look for the reservations, so just gav...