London Still Rocks!

 Ah, I never thought I'd get on to this post, I was so far behind. But here we are.. and up to date at last! As soon as I heard Darkfield was bringing its latest show, Arcade , to London, it was a must-see. And with it starting on Wednesday - but with me booked already for Land of the Free  for that day, last night was my first chance to see Arcade. So I booked - as I told the lady when I arrived, I'd have waited for Hallowe'en , but it's not showing then.. with it running several times each day (it's only 25 mins long, with a 15-minute briefing), I booked the very last show. As always. Later the better, for spooky stuff. Now, 45+ Not Grumpy had a boat social last night, which I could have come to for a while before going to this. And which I was considering - but my main interest would have been meeting the people from the trip I was just on. And they weren't coming. So I cried off - decided I could do with the extra time to catch up with stuff myself, anyway...

Last night, the last   Meetup   of the week -   The Hideout   (and   Movie Roadhouse London ) had their  end of summer social ! Delighted the vote was for this day - it was the only one I could make. In the  BFI , as usual. I booked  Black & Blue  again. It meant a dash from the office. Funnily enough, someone in the office was trying to get people to go for drinks, was having trouble finding takers. I'd nearly have invited him, but I was eating first.. and I didn't think he'd want to go all that way.. and of course, he didn't know anyone that would be there. Anyway, I could have walked, but in the interests of staying in the office a bit later, I took the Tube . Which, again, was uncrowded - of the three "midweek" days I've been on the Tube this week, only Tuesday was a nightmare: wonder whether that's an indication of WFH trends..? Anyway, picked up a paper en route: I was sure I was slightly late for my booking, but the maitre d' ass...

For today's film - second in a row - I had a ways to go down the list, there were so many only showing yesterday - but I came to an interesting one;  Robin Redbreast  was part of an old TV series called  Play for Today , and the  BFI  was showing this episode! Out of several at the same rating, this caught my eye, with its sinister, folk-horror theme.. so I booked, as it was already over half booked out.  I headed off early, made it in good time. In fact, I was the first into the screen, asking the usher whether they were open yet! Turns out - as in so many cases, here - it's part of a season they're showing - Roots, Rituals and Phantasmagoria : Turns out the season was created by Daniel Kokotajlo , director of a new film along the same lines, Starve Acre - not that highly rated, mind. Stars Matt Smith  - and has English folk horror as its theme. Just like this film - and indeed, the season was curated using films that "shaped facets" of Starve Acre. ...

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...

These two days , two  Meetup  socials in a row. Last night, I headed to  The Hideout 's " Summer Social Part II " - in conjunction with another of their groups, which used to be called The London Movie Club, and is now known as  Movie Roadhouse London . It was in the  BFI Riverfront Bar  - there was a little confusion as to whether it was upstairs, as usual, or downstairs.. the description said both.. but then it was confirmed to be downstairs. I decided to eat in   Black & Blue   beforehand. Actually would have eaten in   Cote Covent Garden , but they are closed till next month..! Stayed late at work to try and finish something - which I finally got done just now! So, given that I was in the office, I could actually have walked. But I left it too late for that. I could have taken a bus, but I left it too late for that. Handily, it's only four stops on the Tube , which is what I ended up taking. I was still a little late for my booking, b...

Tonight, finally went to  Mnemonic , at the  National , which Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) saw last Wednesday , but of course I was otherwise engaged that day. Did sound interesting though. For food beforehand, I decided on Black & Blue again - I really have to find a cheaper, decent option around here. I just booked this afternoon - needn't have bothered either, they were practically empty. The bus got me there in no time flat. I was given a choice of table or booth - I chose booth, it's handier for leaving my stuff on. I was in a frugal mood, so chose the prix fixe - steak frites and an ice cream sundae. I'm not mad about their starters. Had I not been in a frugal mood, I suppose I'd have gone for the fillet. They have two Sauvignon blancs - again, I saved myself £6 by going for the Stellenbosch, but I do know it's good. And although the steak used in the steak frites is rump - as they tell you on the menu - it was very tender, and very nicely cooked. Even...

Last night, met an old acquaintance for drinks - he had to come to  Waterloo  anyway, so I said that location would be perfect, and suggested the  BFI . I booked to eat beforehand in  Black & Blue . Alighted from the bus into something like a gale - thank goodness I recently had a haircut, and my hair was a lot shorter! It was bad enough as it was.. Again, I had steak frites and an ice cream sundae - which were lovely. Service, I have to say, was flawless - it did help that I was sat right beside, and facing, the serving station! And I had a carafe of wine - as I poured the last of it into my glass, I suddenly noticed brown specks in it. Looked at the carafe, they were there as well. Sipped a little more wine, and it tasted fine - but I didn't want to risk ingesting the specks, and called the waiter over. He promptly removed glass and carafe, eventually returning with a clean glass of wine - and it was slightly fuller than the one I'd poured! Lovely.. Made my way...

Last night,  The London Movie Club  (in conjunction with The Hideout ) had their  May social  - back in the  BFI Riverfront Bar  again. I originally thought that'd be a good day to drag myself into the office.. except then it occurred to me that I haven't got a lot on.. and if I wanted to look busy, it'd be a lot easier today, when I have more meetings. So I stayed at home yesterday. Which turned out to be great timing, as the film list got done.. so I got a lot of forward planning done as well.. read on.. I have trouble, to be honest, eating around Waterloo - for all the eateries it has, a lot of places are sub-par. Tried The Archduke - but they were full by the time I got around to thinking about it. I ended up in Black & Blue , across from the station entrance - which is actually the same chain: ..where I had the Prix Fixe menu, with steak frites and an ice cream sundae - don't really like the starters, here, and it's cheaper if you only have ...