Christmas Carols Storytelling Show

Tonight was the Crick Crack Club's Christmas Carols show, at Hoxton Hall, starring Ben Haggarty, Tim Ralphs, and Steph Brittain, with Sheema Mukherjee on music. Booked the nearby Breeze Bistro for beforehand, and never did get confirmation.. so I gave up, and booked The Blues Kitchen again.

Left all my work to today - and still got it done early! so said I'd leave early, only to find a backed-up line of traffic and no #47 coming, as promised by Google Maps. Not within the next half hour. Well, the next option was to take a different bus from London Bridge, and hopefully take the #381 as far as there. One was due - however, when it finally showed, it had changed its destination, and wasn't going anywhere near as far. Which was when a few of us decided to walk. Unfortunately, the unexpected exercise proved too much for my weakened chest, and when I was nearly there, I dissolved into a violent coughing fit - actually felt as though I was going to choke, so thank goodness for the Soothers. (I've now used over half of one pack - mercifully, I bought two!)

My second bus was also delayed - and wouldn't you know it, diverted as well, owing to electrical works on the northbound side of Bishopsgate. But I was going past the diversion, so stuck with it - and it was funny, being near the no-nonsense driver, who evidently had no idea of the area, and had to ask for directions from dispatch as she went! We were eventually disgorged, and I made it to The Blues Kitchen - "Just in time!", as she said (which means within the 15-minute grace period after your booking time - I arrived about 10 minutes late.) I'd actually tried for 15 minutes later but they hadn't given that time as an option.. Anyway, again, it took some time to get my order in, but after that, everything went swimmingly, and it was delicious.

I had another short walk to Hoxton Hall, arriving, again, just in time - and crucially, right behind some other attendees! Got about the last seat in the Stalls:

These were more traditional carols than last night - and interspersed with some stories, all of which I believe I've heard, but which were told with gusto. And wouldn't you know it, I set myself off coughing again.. I was a lot less self-conscious here though, and crucially, was right beside the door, which I soon utilised, to go have a cough in the hall, then headed into the bar, where I had a very welcome glass of water from the free jug on the counter. That, and a couple of Soothers, pretty much saw me through the rest of the evening - and there were plenty of bins to dump things in, such as what I'd been drinking from, and the wrappers from the Soothers.. and I made something of a better hand of singing tonight, what with the constant application of liquid. Actually managed most of it! And it was a merry and convivial evening. No bus problems on the way home either.

Tomorrow sees my last Meetup of the year, with London Museums from A-Z (LoMAZ) doing their 2025 Xmas Pub Crawl! Not listed as an official Meetup event, it was advertised on their WhatsApp chat for people who have already attended a LoMAZ event - so restricted to people who've both attended an event and signed up for the WhatsApp group, and people they choose to invite. Now, Helen is also coming to town that day.. and when they amended their plans to include a pre-crawl lunch, she said she'd join us! So, we start at Nando's London Bridge, then it's off to Hays on the River - you never know, she might stay with us for that, it's near London Bridge - then the Globe Tavern, The Old Thameside Inn (one of my favourites), The George (another of my favourites), The Bunch of Grapes (a short walk away), and the Bermondsey Bierkeller (which also does wine, I checked). And all walking distance from my home, lovely! What's also nice is that we've planned 90 minutes in each, so it's not too rushed.. there's forward planning! (and they've been reworking the lyrics to the 12 Days of Christmas .. I'll have to take the singing a bit easy though..)

..and I'd better have packed before I head on all that.. because I'm catching a flight from Gatwick at 9.15 the following morning.. to Bergen! where I'm catching the Hurtigrute.. doing the classic voyage, to Kirkenes and back - AKA BKB. 12 days, 11 nights, returning on New Year's Day. You see, with my mother having died this year, that's my last close relative gone, and I was damned if I was spending this Christmas, whatever about future ones, alone, here or in Ireland. It was actually Mark who set me to thinking about it, bless him - and it didn't take me long to come up with this, which so many have recommended to me as one of the world's most beautiful voyages. It's real bucket-list stuff, so I spared no expense - happily, they have no single supplement, and equally happily, they include the flights (Norwegian Air - I just checked in). I booked an outside cabin (with full window), a wine package (a bottle a day), and seven excursions..

Now, I ordered a whole lot of warm clothes for this trip (as you can imagine) - had them delivered to a pickup point, and he bloody lost some of them! including the thermal underwear I ordered. That could be a problem.. Well, I needed to pick some more stuff up there - and when I gave him a sad look, and without too many people waiting this time, he had a good root around.. and lo, produced a stained envelope from the back.. which turned out to be the missing undies! HALLELUJAH! Not only that, but checking the envelopes for combined orders, it now turns out it was all delivered.. what a weight off..

On Monday, I'm off to see Alnes Lighthouse. William the Conqueror's great-great-great-grandfather apparently hailed from here. Or maybe not.

On Tuesday, I'll be on a guided city walk in Trondheim.

On Christmas Eve, I kid you not, I'll be on a Sámi adventure - including feeding the reindeer! It took someone else to point out to me that I'd be setting them up for their big journey..

On St. Stephen's Day (AKA Boxing Day), I'll be at the North Cape (Nordkapp) - weather permitting. Seas are rough up there.

I arrive in Kirkenes, on the Russian border, on the 27th - apparently we can take photos, but can't cross! ;-)

We're in Hammerfest on the 28th.

And I'm at a midnight concert at Tromso Cathedral on the 29th.

So, Christmas and New Year's on the boat! Just what I wanted.. and a guarantee of seeing the Northern Lights, to the extent that if I don't, I get a free cruise. Ooh, and I mustn't forget, I promised postcards to someone..

So, back on New Year's Day - not as early - and taking the next day off, because it's a Friday - and back home to Ireland for the weekend, because it's been too long. The next two days are with CT - on the 5th, I'm back at the Hen & Chickens for Shake It Up: The Improvised Shakespeare Show.

And on the 6th, I'm at a comedy show - Live Next to the Apollo, at Riverside Studios.

On the 7th - my first Meetup of the year - I'm back with the Horror Book Club - assuming I get the book read in time! It's The House on the Borderland - and they're meeting in the Prince of Wales, as usual. Now, considering the lack of progress I made with Hogfather for my work book club.. we'll have to see.. it's over a year since I was last with them for a book review! (As to Hogfather, we met yesterday (me virtually - I stayed at home because of the cough), and it turned out I was one of the ones that read most.. I had a last-minute sprint, and got to 71%..)

The next two days, I'm with CT at the Backyard Comedy Club.. again, it's been a while!

Then, four days in a row of Meetups, including five in total. On the 10th, two Meetups.. firstly, a walk titled Southwark: Seedy and Sublime with none other than Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpies, yay! Haven't seen him since September, would you believe..

And that evening, back with The Hideout for 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Venue and timings TBC, but it'll be somewhere around Leicester Square. 

On the 11th, back with LoMAZ for T is for Thirst: In Search of Freshwater, an exhibition at The Wellcome Collection. Advertised, would you believe, while I was looking at my phone but not especially busy, in The Rockingham Arms recently - and this being the next unscheduled date in my diary, I was one of the five to snap up a place in the first minute!

On the 12th, with Up in the Cheap Seats again, for Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo - a dark comedy set in Iraq - at the Young Vic. Booked for Bar + Block Southwark beforehand. Ooh, another place I haven't been in an age..

And on the 13th, I'm back with London Classical Music and Theatre Group for The Makropulos Affair, by the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, at the Barbican - one of the group with a wildcard ticket couldn't go and kindly offered it for free, so I snapped it up. Eating at Cote Barbican beforehand. And gee, you guessed it.. Haven't been there since September, but was with the group slightly more recently, in October..