Play: House of Games

Tonight, back - after more than a year! - with North London Friends! We headed to House of Games, in Hampstead Theatre. And what a tragedy it is that Ye Olde Swiss Cottage has closed..! It was my go-to, there, and they served excellent food.. So I said sod it, I can go to KFC. Which did have the advantage that I could leave later.

This far out, it had to be Tube - mercifully, at the time I caught it (just after 6), it wasn't nearly as busy as usual - I even got a seat after a couple of stops! As I exited, I had a peek at Ye Olde Swiss Cottage - sure enough, it was dark and forlorn. Ah well.. At this KFC, they have order kiosks - the counter is for collection only. Which worked perfectly! I had the Boneless Banquet, as usual - comes with three chicken strips, so I asked for a couple more; I was hungry.

I was served before long, and there was plenty of seating. Now, I remember KFC being a lot tastier when I was a kid - where did that taste go? Even when everything else is faultless, the chicken these days is just.. bland. And I had one more quibble with this meal - I was only served four chicken strips! (Should have been five - three with the regular order, plus another two). Only thing is, by the time I noticed, I was already halfway through, because the extra strips were served in a separate paper bag, and I thought I'd eat them first before they got cold - it wasn't until I opened the box that I realised I only had two more. Lesson learned - check before you leave the counter!

I made it over to the theatre just after 7 - and beat most of the group to it! Indeed, I had time to get a drink before everyone showed up, and we had a nice chat before we went in. We were all in the Stalls, a bit spread out - two of us quite near the back. But, as someone said, there are no bad seats here.

Mind you, that chap in front of me did have a large head..

What you can see on stage is the interior of a bar, called "House of Games", where the game in question is poker. However, they cleverly maximise their space by having a stage area above this as well, which serves as the psychiatrist's office! The area in use at any given time is lit, the other area in darkness.

The plot involves a psychiatrist who has a client with a gambling addiction - says he owes a large amount of money to a guy in the House of Games. He describes how this place is amazing, how it's just like the movies -and criticises the psychiatrist for not living enough, for having her head buried in her work. Well, so goaded, she decides to check this place out for herself. But is she entirely prepared for what she's gonna find there..?

1hr 45mins straight through, no interval, had us a bit worried - about whether we should have a toilet break beforehand, about whether the seats were comfortable enough (I don't think they quite lasted the distance). But of course, it does mean you get a good portion of your night back - and in this case, as a number of us remarked afterwards, we really didn't notice the time passing! In fact, the story fairly motors along, and an interval would just have distracted us. It's a cracking plot, completely absorbing as you wonder what's going to happen next.

Very highly recommended - runs to the 7th of next month.

Afterwards, most of the group stayed for a drink, and we had a very nice chat. Lovely to be with them again, after so long.

Tomorrow, back with London Literary Walks (LLW) for the 101 Dalmatians walk! We're meeting in The Globe - I've booked to eat there beforehand. 

On Thursday.. flamenco!! Which I love. Found a group, Flamenco Events in London, and have requested to join - no word yet, and there probably isn't going to be! Anyway, have booked for this concert in St. John's Church Hoxton. Tickets from Eventbrite - free after-show party, but I'm passing- have work next day, of course. Have booked with Schnitzel Heaven for beforehand. 

On Friday, back at Sadler's Wells with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) again, for Oona Doherty-Specky Clark. Which sounds.. curious, being an interpretation in dance of a family history involving a family of butchers and, on the other side, working in an abattoir.. Anyway, eating at The Wilmington again.

On Saturday, I was to be back with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpies.. this time, for The Wallace Collection. But sadly, he's now postponed it till next month. Never mind, it isn't a complete loss - Helen is coming to town! We have a rough plan to have lunch at The Archduke, then follow our noses for the afternoon..

I was leaving Sunday free in case my ex-colleagues could come to a consensus to meet that day! But as it happens, Ivan can't make it that day, and with the sudden news of a cousin visiting, James isn't sure what he's doing for the whole month. So, for that day, I spotted an event from London Museums A-Z: for Gen Xers and Millennials (LoMAZ). I never heard of them before, but they seem to be zipping randomly around the alphabet.. this is T - for Tutenkhamun: The Immersive Exhibition, which apparently uses VR to put you right back in Ancient Egypt. Booked through an outlet called Fever, which I'd never heard of - also available on Eventim. Sounds interesting - and I do love VR. No problem in joining straight away, either..

On Monday, heading with my companion from the Swiss trip to a classical concert in St. John's Waterloo - booked with Eventbrite. We're eating at The Archduke beforehand.

Next Tuesday, was planning film - and gee, London Net seems to be down! Checking individual film sites - and finding there's a bit of a lack of choice - I came across Riefenstahl, a documentary about the photographer and film-maker that propagandized the Nazi regime, among other things, and afterwards claimed to have no knowledge of what went on. Looks interesting. Showing in the Curzon Bloomsbury - and was mostly sold out already, so I booked!

On the 14th, back with LLW - for the Alan Turing walk, about the man said to be the father of theoretical computer science. Meeting at The Prince Alfred, where I've booked to eat beforehand.

On the 15th, back with The Hideout - for The Lighthouse, lovely! A psychological horror directed by Robert Eggers, who so recently blew all of our minds with his new version of Nosferatu, and co-written by him and his brother, Max, this stars Robert Pattinson, and the always-excellent Willem Dafoe, as the sole occupants of an isolated, 19th-century lighthouse - where the occurrences might be down to the supernatural - or to their fevered imaginations?! Always wanted to see this, and never quite managed it - but now it's showing at The Prince Charles, excellent. As usual, I'm eating at Bella Italia beforehand, and we're meeting for drinks at Victory House before the film. This showing is sold out already, so the cinema has arranged another showing in its other screen, starting a bit after this one on the same evening! Only three seats left for that one, at time of writing.. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend, which I'm not really looking forward to - with my mother in the hospital. Assuming there are no developments.

And on the 19th, back with UITCS for How to Fight Loneliness, showing in the Park Theatre.