London Still Rocks!

Back in Ireland, whee.  Today was  National Cinema Day , with most cinema tickets €5.. and it was Alien: Romulus   at last! In   Ennis , which had the most convenient time. Well, they've finally finished the pedestrianisation of Parnell Street - a no-brainer, it's narrow, and works much better this way. I'd been a bit delayed, waiting for my mother's new washing machine to finish its cycle - she still can't really work it, and I doubt she'll ever be able. But hey, I literally arrived just in time for the start of the film! Cinema Day must have worked - although it wasn't full, I can't remember seeing so many people at a matinée here before.. Hmm.. yes, I liked this. Interestingly, I rated it - the influence of The Hideout , doubtless - I vascillated a bit, but finished on 7.5. Not too many jump scares - but plenty of suspense, and some nice references to the original . Including the script references from the (gee) one person to survive. I also loved wi...

Last night, back with The Hideout ! Goodness, they are providing lots of fun these days - they invited us to the  American Horror Film Festival , which turned out to be an evening of short horror films - in conjunction with  Movie Roadhouse . I love short horror films! so even though, predictably, I wasn't familiar with any of them - well, I just couldn't resist. This was in the  Close-Up Cinema  - pity it's so close to home for me, as I was in the office again yesterday! It's just off  Brick Lane , so I booked  Cinnamon  - another place I hadn't been in  ages ! They're now BYOB.. and give a 20% discount for booking..  Bringing a bottle wasn't a problem - I have wine left over from a studio evening with Ivan, who bailed early.. showing his age! and I don't really drink at home in London. Hell, I'm hardly ever AT home in London! So, finding a nice bottle of wine to bring with me was easy - carrying it around, not so much. I lugged it to the of...

Last Tuesday , my only non- Meetup   day for the rest of the week, I went to see  MJ The Musical ! Showing in the Prince Edward Theatre . Well now, that promised to be an enjoyable nostalgia-fest.. I tell you though, I had terrible trouble with the official website! It was inconsistent in showing available seats, I tried several times to book but it didn't go through - I ended up having to pay a couple of quid more to book with  TodayTix ! Awful traffic meant I was later than anticipated heading in - I planned to eat in the nearby Nando's , but when I arrived, there was a queue! The person working at the door explained they'd just had a large order in, and were struggling to catch up. I didn't have much choice, right around there - so I gave the lady my name, and went to stand in the corner. Where I discovered - uh oh, no internet.. no WiFi, no phone signal. Now, that was all right while I waited - I'd picked up the paper - but did this mean I'd have to queue a...

Today was my third day of film in a row - back with  The Hideout , who were off to see the extended cut of  The Shining , in the  BFI ! Ah yes - sounded better than anything else I might have gone to today, and anyway, it'd be lovely to be back with them again. I decided to eat in  Black & Blue  again beforehand - don't much like the limited fare in the BFI. And as all that was happening a bit early, it's just as well it was a bank holiday! My, the buses were nice and quiet.. I couldn't avoid being early for my booking at Black & Blue, but they didn't mind. Now, after my last experience of the steak frites, I was avoiding that - had a simple sirloin, pepper sauce, sauteed mushrooms, fries.  OMG, it was fantastic. The steak - much different from the "medium" steak I was given last time - was delicious, too good to douse in the sauce, which I used on the chips instead. That was a toss-up, mind - they were excellent too. I had peppercorn sauce, inste...

Today, I was delighted finally to get a chance to see  Crossing ! I saw the trailer for this ages ago and it looked fascinating - it was just never on at a time that suited. Well, today, it was showing at the  ICA  - Lordy, I hadn't been there in  a while ! Dunno why I couldn't figure out how to book - when I checked on my phone, there was no problem! Well, all's well that ends well. Got off at Charing Cross and walked the last bit - the Mall is actually closed to motorised traffic at the moment (has been for ages), which is lovely for pedestrians! Just have to navigate the cyclists, who seem a bit more considerate with no motor vehicles around: I made the Institute in good time - checked out the bar I'm familiar with, only to discover it wasn't open yet! No, we were directed back to the "foyer bar" - I think that was a gift shop of some kind when I was last here. Anyway, I had a glass of wine - they only do small or medium, which under the circumstances...

These two days, I planned film, but didn't book - so my plans were subject to change;  Blink Twice  is just out, and just rated - but not highly enough to interest me yet. Today, the plan was to go to  Alien: Romulus  at last - showing in my closest, the  Curzon Aldgate . There were three different showings today, so I said I'd wait and see what suited. And wouldn't you know, the rating slipped.. so I went to see  Blood Simple  instead. The first  Coen brothers film , I'd never actually seen it! Stars  Dan Hedaya  as the owner of a seedy bar, whose wife,  Frances McDormand  (in her first starring role), is having an affair with one of his employees,  John Getz . So he   hires  M. Emmet Walsh  to kill them both.  Holly Hunter  appears as an uncredited voice on an answering machine. Showing at  The Garden Cinema  - a later evening showing, so I figured I should make this one! I see it's a "...

Last night, second Meetup social in a row - I was back with the  45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners  - first time in an  age ! Not a walk this time though - no, this was advertised to us as a  pre-trip social  for those who've signed up for the  trip  to  Bucharest  and  Transylvania  in October! Yes, I finally got around to booking it - it's at the beginning of October, I suppose to avoid the  Hallowe'en  crowds. The social was on the  Tattershall Castle  - long time since I was last there. I've put in the holiday request at work, still waiting for approval - perhaps they're waiting for my probation review, which happens in the meantime.. Traffic was like treacle - at least at the start of my trip. Mind you, if it hadn't been stuck in traffic, I'd have missed my bus ! Which did speed up after a while - but then, probably because it was so delayed and the driver's shift was over, terminated early, and I had to take an...