London Still Rocks!

Today,  London Social Detours  organised a  trip  to a talk about  James I  (who was obsessed with witchcraft), followed by lunch in the  Crypt Cafe  of   St. Martin's in the Field . Almost the only Meetup of the week for me.. I headed out in good time - which was just as well, considering that buses were blocked from Strand by roadworks! I just had time to trot down the road to Charing Cross Station , where we were meeting. Then I didn't have change.. just as well someone else in the company could break a £20 note. Anyway, we soon made our way to the National Portrait Gallery - the talk turned out to be a regular one, 12.30 daily it seems: a "portrait talk", focusing on a particular portrait, which today was of James I. You gather at a particular point, and are led to whichever portrait is the subject for the day's talk. Ushers also offer folding stools to anyone who might need them - now, you do have to carry them upstairs (unless you catch the lift, which we

Well, across town I schlepped to Hackney on Saturday evening. In the rain. Buses proved uncooperative, and I spent ages waiting - Martin was coming across town and predicted he'd be there around 7.30. I should have made it earlier, but, well.. We were convening at Pirate Studios . My first mission was to buy wine - I wasn't familiar with the area, and a quick search revealed no off-licences nearby. There were supermarkets though, and it wasn't that late.. there was one five minutes' walk away, and off I went, bought some supplies, and stuffed them into my trusty rucksack. As I headed back to the studio, Martin messaged to say he'd just arrived, and I told him to hang on, I was nearly there. And a few minutes later, there I was. Damned heavy, my shopping.. anyway, Ivan had given us the codes for all the doors. And when we arrived at the particular studio, he was in there with a bandmate. Martin was to remark that this was much more salubrious than back in the day, a

On Thursday, I was back at the cinema - this time, the  Prince Charles , with the  Hideout: Horror Sci-Fi Club London . We were seeing  Tales from the Crypt - Demon Knight . Stars  Billy Zane ,  William Sadler , and  Jada Pinkett Smith  - how could I resist such a fun way to kick off the  Hallowe'en  season?! Drinks and socialising at  Clubhouse 5 , as usual. So, headed in a bit early to find food - there's plenty around there. And I stopped as soon as I saw the Angus Steakhouse - I love it, and I was celebrating a very good job interview. Waited under 60 seconds for a table.. and decided I'd like chicken. For a change! Had their moreish calamari to start.. the chicken turned out to be doused in quite a spicy sauce, and I'm not sure I'd have it again. A carafe of Sauvignon Blanc - it's the most expensive, but I was celebrating - and I skipped dessert, as it was heading towards the time to meet the group. I was well fed, as always - but in future, I might stick

Yesterday, my mother dragged me off to get flu vaccines. Unusually, afterwards, she felt like trying The Grove for lunch! So we did. Parking was OK, we got a table near-ish the door, but not right in its draught, there was fish on the menu for her. Great! I went to get the dishes, as they do a carvery lunch - had chicken myself, with gravy instead of the suggested pepper sauce, all very tasty. Unfortunately, she was underwhelmed by her fish - I guess it didn't have the flavour of salmon, and she never has sauce on it, which wouldn't have helped. Of course, she wouldn't elaborate. Also unfortunate, there's no bar service during the carvery - nowhere is it explained that you have to order the drinks at the till, with the food. I managed to get her an orange juice, which - along with raspberry - is offered free on the bar counter. My wine had to wait until we got dessert - no way could I grab anyone's attention as they passed. I had a chocolate sundae, again lovely -

So, I'm back in Ireland - it's my mother's birthday on Tuesday, so I said I'd stay in Ireland until Wednesday. Looking at films for yesterday, I saw  Killers of the Flower Moon  is out - the trailer looked excellent for this film, starring  Leonardo diCaprio  in the true story of the  persecution of an Indian tribe  in the 1920s - they have become rich from the oil on their land.  Robert de Niro  plays his uncle, the bad guy, whose lawyer is  Brendan Fraser   (still looking chubby) ,  John Lithgow  is the prosecutor. Directed by  Martin Scorsese , how can you lose?! Showing at a manageable time in the  Omniplex .. So, off I went. But, busy as Saturdays in Ireland always are, I ended up rushing to get my mother's pension and local shop done, then get into Limerick - and everything conspired to get in my way: a herd of cattle, traffic jams in Broadford because of the cars parked on both sides, jaywalkers all over.. and a severe lack of parking at the cinema. When I