Talk: Gabrielle Chanel - Fashion Manifesto

Today, London Social Detours (LSD) was off to a lunchtime talk about Chanel, at the V&A - and so was I, still being unemployed. Now, I was looking forward to an early night.. but just as I was about to turn in, I refreshed the film listings page.. and lo, the listings were (partially) up for next week. So, that took half the night, then..

Boy, I so didn't want to get up when the alarm went off. I checked my mail, then let myself sleep another 10 minutes - that was all I could spare. Hurriedly dressed, gobbled an apple, and headed off. Of course, it was pretty much the same route as yesterday - I mused that I could just have checked into a hotel nearby! Never mind, the Tube was pretty quiet at that hour anyway - and I made the V&A with five minutes to spare. Of course, now I had a problem - the organiser had said to meet at the main entrance. But she hadn't said where that was, nor how to get there from the subterranean tunnel that leads from the station! Well, I had a bit of a nosey around, figuring the "main entrance" must be signposted somewhere - I didn't see a sign for it, but did for the "Main Shop"! So I headed for that. And when I got there, I saw signs for the "Cromwell Road Entrance", and figured that must be it. Sure enough, just as I was wondering whether I'd have to go back out past security (which I'd already passed, coming in from the tunnel), she hailed me from the side.

I was trying to pass my outdated pound coin on to her, but sadly, she spotted it and I had to use another. What is it with the constant expiration of coinage, here?! The group were bemoaning the lack of Christmas decorations - but for heavens' sake, it's not even December yet! And this is hardly an austere museum. Anyway, we waited a bit for latecomers, and off we went, some of us taking the lift to the lecture theatre. Funnily enough, those of us who did were on the opposite side of a security barrier from those who didn't! (It wasn't open yet.) I saw two other members of Laurence's fan club down at the bottom of the stairs.. they nipped under the barrier to come join us! See, it doesn't seem to have occurred to the organisers that you could get around the barrier just by going one level further up in the lift!

Well, I wasn't really watching the time, but apparently we started late. A large lecture theatre, but apparently it completely filled for this - there's an accompanying exhibition that runs till February, and is proving popular. No photography or filming, we were warned at the start.. me, as I told one of my companions, I was going to nod off periodically. Which I kind of did - although it was interesting to see the fashions through the ages. As the speaker pointed out at the beginning, lots of people don't know that "Coco" Chanel's real name was Gabrielle..

I hadn't known a lot about her, and found it interesting that she started all the way back in the 20s - or that her initial idea was to copy the ease and comfort of sportswear, with its clean lines and accommodating fabrics. Also, the black and white colour scheme didn't occur to me - a staple of hers, it seems. And gee, there she was, pretty much designing all the way through to the 50s and beyond.. Fashion isn't something I'm generally interested in to any great extent, but she truly was an icon. Mind you, as we remarked when we came out, we didn't really feel like we had to go to the exhibition now - we got the highlights in the talk!

Our organiser had been planning to take us around a bit of the museum, but didn't bother in the end, making a beeline for the cafe - but, of course, we hadn't a hope of all getting a table together. So out we went, and down the road - in brilliant sunshine - to the Institut Francais. Over a year since I was last here, at the Cine Lumiere - and I see the cafe there has upgraded itself to a restaurant! The poor guy behind the counter was the only staff member - he pushed a few tables together for us, and brought us some food menus.

And wow, were we fed.. not the fastest service in the world, but you wouldn't blame him for that. I had garlic bread to start - which was a baguette, in two halves, and soaked in garlic butter. For my main, I had the chicken, which was melt in the mouth, lying on a bed of mash, and the whole thing doused in - again - butter sauce. Oh man, I couldn't finish it.. I was stuffed. Not enough that I wasn't tempted by the dessert cocktails, though - I couldn't resist the Slow Death by Chocolate, which has Bailey's, and ice cream, and chocolate, and mint:

Very thick, like a milkshake - my one gripe was that the mint came in the form of leaves, which clogged up the bottom of the drink, and kept getting stuck in the straw. Should make it with some kind of syrup, instead. But otherwise, very moreish - as I said, 'tis the season! Conversation buzzed as well - this group has got a lot friendlier, actually, and I tend to enjoy my meetings with them more now. Long may it continue!

And so home to bed for an hour.. got a seat on the Tube for most of the journey.. and walked past the decadently dressed-up Shangri-La hotel!

Tomorrow, back with the Crick Crack Club for storytelling at Rich Mix - this one is The Spanking Goddess, with the inimitable Clare Murphy.

On Saturday, at The London Horror Film Group's Christmas Social - again, at The Angel on St. Giles High Street. 

On Sunday, back with Buddies on a Budget (BoB) in London for more Christmas lights - this time, it's a full lights walk, and she's charging, sensibly. A joint event with her London Herstory Walks group.

On Monday, I'm thinking film again.. Curzon Bloomsbury yet again, and I'm finally getting to May December, in which Natalie Portman plays an actor portraying Julianne Moore, who got involved with an underage boy, and has now married him. Based on a true story, except they've changed her profession from being his teacher to being the owner of the pet store where he worked. Supposed to be nice and disturbing. Not selling out though, so I haven't booked yet.

The rest of the week is theatre - none of which was listed on the Meetup page when I did a search for each day! I had to look on the individual group pages to find these, knowing that these are busy groups. So, the next two days, I'm finally back with Up in the Cheap Seats, and on Tuesday it's for Backstairs Billy, a comedy set in 1979, based on a real character, a page to the late Queen Mother, played by Penelope Wilton. Playing in the Duke of York's Theatre. (Wonder whether they'll have real corgis..?)

On Wednesday, we're headed to a new production of Pinter's The Homecoming, at the Young Vic.

Next Thursday, I'm with Over 40 Living the Life, for the first time in months. We're headed to a magic show - Influence: The Magician's Story, at the Collective Theatre, a new venue in London! And for once, their tickets seem to be the best value.. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend.

And on the 4th, back with LSD - let's see whether this one will be as much fun! We're headed to a Christie's Late on Old Masters, pub after..