Quote Of The Day

"Victory goes to the player who makes the next-to-last mistake - Chessmaster Savielly Grigorievitch Tartakower (1887-1956)"

Thursday, August 30, 2018

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Art in the Park @FriezeArtFair ...

The other week Stuart and I went to see the annual Frieze Art Fair Sculpture Park in London's glitzy Regent's Park. Some fab works of art. We love art in the park.












Monday, August 27, 2018

Little Shop of Horrors "As we took our seats it started to rain. And then it poured. So the show was a wash-out." @OpenAirTheatre ...

Last Friday night Stuart, Darren, Vince, Andy, Kev and I went to go and watch Little Shop of Horrors at the Regents Park Open Air Theatre in glitzy London town.

As we took our seats it started to rain. And then it poured. So the show was a wash-out.

We have rebooked for a few weeks time.

Friday, August 24, 2018

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Mendelssohn’s Octet in a beautiful candlelit setting in the City of London.

Lovely evening last night as Gavin performed Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Mendelssohn’s Octet in a beautiful candlelit setting in the glitzy City of London.














Wednesday, August 22, 2018

Too British to do so yourself...

In Wagamama when you can see your food is ready but the waiter hasn't noticed it and you're just staring at your meal under the hot light willing it to develop the power of speech to it can tell the waiter it's ready because you're too British to do so yourself. That. 

Monday, August 20, 2018

Fun Home "sensational" #YVFunHome @youngvictheatre ...

Last Friday night Stuart and I went to see American lesbian coming-of-age musical Fun Home at the Young Vic Theatre in London's glitzy Waterloo.

Fun Home is adapted by Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori from Alison Bechdel's 2006 graphic memoir of the same name. The story concerns Bechdel's discovery of her own sexuality, her relationship with her gay father, and her attempts to unlock the mysteries surrounding his life. It is the first Broadway musical with a lesbian protagonist.

The action is set in a funeral parlour with the story told as non-linear vignettes over the three ages of Alison; when she is a little girl living with her parents and two brothers, when she is first at college and coming out, and as a 42-year-old graphic artist. It is this last older incarnation that narrates and revisits the other two - sometimes just to watch and sometimes interacting with them or reliving their stories.

The show is sensational - the singing is great, the story very sweet, and the acting top notch - especially by the kids. The dad's own story whilst moving is perhaps a little over-played for my taste though. For me, things were best and funniest when they concentrated on our heroine.

Of the musical numbers the funniest were 'Come to the Fun Home' (small Alison and her brothers John and Christian perform an imaginary advertisement for the funeral home) and 'Changing My Major' (when college Alison discovers her sexuality for the first time).

If you get a chance - go see.

Friday, August 17, 2018

Exit The King @NationalTheatre...

Last night Stuart and I went to see Eugène Ionesco's absurdist drama Exit the King at the Oliver Theatre on London's glitzy South Bank.

Ionesco, that French-Romanian titan of post-war drama, acclaimed architect of such avant-garde classics as The Killer, The Chairs and Rhinoceros, is only now receiving his first National Theatre production. And it is 2018. Well over two decades since his death in 1994. Utterly absurd... as is the play, of course. But perhaps not quite absurd enough for my taste.

Exit the King's original French title is "Le Roi se meurt" that literally translates as "The King is dying" which perhaps explains the plot somewhat more clearly and less poetically than the English version. The play is a fairly straightforward affair about a king (Rhys Ifans) who is in denial of his own death and refuses to give up power.

His first wife Queen Marguerite (Indira Varma) tries to make him realise what is going on. His second wife Queen Marie (Amy Morgan) seems to be in an equal state of denial as the king. The royal doctor (Adran Scarborough) and the guard (Derek Griffiths) complete the pack of cards.

In the play, Ionesco insists that death, for each and every one of us, is the loss of our everything – all our earthly possessions and powers. It is a simple point and a profound one, though not one that sustains an hour and forty minutes of overblown verbosity and polite, pantomime clowning that hits the same notes again and again. The initial absurdist politics soon gave way to a meditation on the meaning of death, of letting go, of giving up, of realising it is not really all about you. Some people in the audience were developing their own exit plan, heads bobbing in a way that signalled sleep was nigh.

One for the die-hard Ionesco fans I feel.

Thursday, August 16, 2018

Uncle Jim RIP...



Uncle Jim RIP. At his funeral today. I dropped a note to my aunt, his wife of 68 years earlier.


Dearest Aunty Jenny,

 

I just wanted to write a brief note to you to express how very upset I was to hear that Uncle Jim had passed away this week.

 

My thoughts are with you. And please pass on my deepest sympathises to all the family.

 

Uncle Jim held a very special place in my heart for many reasons. His sense of humour - I can still hear his roaring laughter so clearly. His love of family - the get-togethers at Red Tiles when we were younger were some of the happiest days of my youth. And despite Uncle Jim's no-nonsense manner I could always see his softer side behind his twinkling eyes.

 

As I am sure you know, I was christened after him too. Jonathan Mark JAMES Green. What you may not know though is that "James" was always the favourite of my first names and as a child I even tried to persuade my family to start calling me that. They didn't bite though. The swines!

 

And Uncle Jim was my Godfather too, a role he and I talked about a couple of times. Most recently, two years ago at the last big the family get-together.

"Uncle Jim, you know are my Godfather." 

"Yes, I know, boy" He smiled.

"Did we ever need to do anything about that? I mean, do godfathers and godsons need to actually do anything?"

"Do? No, I don't think so, boy. Don't you go telling your mother though"

"I won't Uncle Jim" We both smiled.

No nonsense. No fuss.

 

I know Uncle Jim had lots of nieces and nephews and at times our big family parties must have all seemed a bit overwhelming with all those kids running around - watching all those "Phillips smiles". But I always looked up to him at those events. He knew how to keep everything calm. How to keep order and yet still enjoy himself.

 

Whether we were all on the beach together on holiday in Mudeford, playing a game of Newmarket in Welwyn when Uncle Jim would place a £5 note on one of cards to get the children screaming with excitement, or simply watching you and him sharing a drink together and laughing together out loud. I will miss him.

 

He was a great man. And a great Uncle.

 

All my love,

 

Jonathan XX

Wednesday, August 15, 2018

£¥€$ (LIES) @AlmeidaTheatre...


Last Saturday night Stuart and I went to see £¥€$ (LIES) at the Almeida Theatre in London's glitzy Islington.

£¥€$ is an interactive game satirising the international banking system. Only it is a lot more fun than it sounds. Rather like Monopoly but you are playing for real.

You arrive with your group, but immediately get split up. You are then seated at one of ten gambling tables in a darkened room. The theatre has been gutted to resemble a casino and you along with six other strangers sit opposite a 'croupier'. Only they are not a croupier, they are your new country's central bank - and you and your new friends are all individual banks. Everyone is instructed to turn out their pockets and any cash is secured by the bank and exchanged for chips. You place you bets, you roll our die, and depending on the outcome, you make your returns.

The returns are initially modest but as time progressed more and more sophisticated financial products are introduced to the game. You can take out loans, you can increase your stake for bigger rewards, you pay your taxes, you can go short, you can issue bonds, you can buy bonds from other countries (each table i.e. country has a credit rating that affects their bond price), you can merge with other banks... You get the picture. As you make more and more money, you are encouraged to gamble more and more. You trust the system and the system keeps paying out. Credit thrives. Greed is good. For some.

Only the financial crash is never far away. And when it comes, and come it does, who do you bail out and who do you leave to sink?

The take home message? The national and international banking systems are incredible complex and highly interdependent. Money is very alluring. Trust is fleeting.

A great night out.

Tuesday, August 14, 2018

Aristocrats "good to see this companion piece to Translations revived at the Donmar." @DonmarWarehouse...

Last Friday night Stuart and I went to see Brian Friel's Aristocrats at the Donmar Warehouse in London's glitzy Covent Garden.

With Friel's Translations about to close at the National, it was good to see this companion piece revived at the Donmar.

The plot revolves around Irish stately home Ballybeg Hall - a place that once played host to grand balls, musical evenings, tennis parties: its rooms busy, bursting with painters, poets and politicians. And presiding over all of it was the imposing figure of Judge O’Donnell, the patriarch, a former judge, who is a stricken figure whose authoritarian ramblings we hear through a baby monitor.

Now, on the eve of a wedding, the O’Donnell children return to their ancestral home to find that the rot has set in.

But all is not what it seems. The son (expertly played by David Dawson) seems to have one too many tall tales to tell. The three Chekhovian sisters - one a careworn coper, another a London-based lush and the third a chronic depressive (beautifully played by Eileen Walsh, Elaine Cassidy, and Aisling Loftus) - all have their tales of woe.

Lyndsey Turner returns to the Donmar following Faith Healer to direct Brian Friel’s again. The staging it perhaps somewhat meta for my taste though - a bare stage with a small dolls house serving as the only prop.

Monday, August 13, 2018

Home, I'm Darling "skewers any sexist notions of the perfect housewife" #HomeImDarling @NationalTheatre

Last Thursday night Stuart and I went to see Laura Wade's new play Home, I'm Darling at the Dorfman Theatre on London's glitzy South Bank.

Katherine Parkinson dazzles like a newly cleaned surface in this incisive critique of what happens when nostalgia goes too far as it skewers any sexist notions of the perfect housewife.

How happily married are the happily married? Every couple needs a little fantasy to keep their marriage sparkling, right? But behind the gingham curtains, when things start to unravel, is being a domestic goddess as easy as it seems?

Meet Judy: a woman arming herself against the modern world with a duster, a cocktail mixer and a pair of teetering heels. Judy has chosen to go back in time and live life as authentically as she can as a 1950s housewife. But as she roots herself firmly in the past, the modern world keeps banging at her perfectly painted door.

Katherine Parkinson, BAFTA award-winning actress of The IT Crowd and Humans, is magnificent as a jittery, bustling and desperate Judy. Parkinson deftly communicates the searing agitation underneath Judy's unwavering smile as she becomes trapped into thinking that the aesthetic of a happy, simple life is more important than acknowledging the despair that is seeping into her and her husband's (Johnny, played by Richard Harrington) household. Parkinson's Judy never quite lets go of her self-imposed restraint, even at her most vulnerable.

Playwright Laura Wade made waves in 2010 with her Royal Court play Posh, a cut-throat and wry analysis of British social structures and injustices. In Home, I'm Darling there is an abundant ease in Tamara Harvey's direction that makes Wade's script dance on the stage; the audience delights as Wade's sharp-witted gags pop and sizzle, hitting their mark each time. All of this takes place within Anna Fleischle's retro set - delightfully designed as a homage to vintage '50s-style domesticity.

Cracks start to appear in Judy's '50s illusion as real life starts to intrude in the shape of Johnny's boss Alex (Sara Gregory) and friends Marcus (Barnaby Kay) and Fran (Kathryn Drysdale).

A real highlight comes when Judy's CND protesting, commune-living mother Sylvia (Sian Thomas) annihilates her daughter's fantasies by giving a rousing diatribe on why the 50's were a horrendous time to live as a woman: having to huddle by the oven for warmth, while the hands of your husband and any other man grab at you, as you contemplate the dread of eating that new mould-based dairy product 'yoghurt'.

This is a play of ideas. Wade's penmanship nimbly tackles the fantasies of domesticity, the empty nostalgia of a simpler time, the stereotypes of gender, and the battle between the different waves of feminism. Although the narrative is slim, it makes space for an incisive character study of a woman driven to destructive absurdity by her unrelenting fantasies of a pristine, perfectly petticoated life.

Both fabulously funny and a revealing dissection of womanhood, Home, I'm Darling scrutinises both the fabricated image of domestic goddesses from the 1950s, and what it means to be female today post the #MeToo movement.

Friday, August 10, 2018

Little Shop of Horrors @OpenAirTheatre "a great musical, nicely done." Full review ->

Last Friday night Stuart and I went to the first preview performance of comedy rock musical The Little Shop of Horrors at the Open Air Theatre in London's glitzy Regent's Park. Regent's Park? How appropriate... Somewhere that's Green.

In fact, the park was a particularly well thought out setting dressed as it was as a cross between The Day Of the Triffids and Rocky Horror Show.

Alan Menken and Howard Ashman's fabulous 1982 musical, based on a low-budget 1960 movie of the same name, is a celebration of early Motown and rock and roll music, with a bizarre plot and plenty of black comedy. It is a well-loved show and possibly one of my favourite musicals so we were really hoping they wouldn't fuck it up.

From the moment Julian Clary (the voice of the prologue) states those opening lines, "On the 23rd day of the month of September in an early year of a decade not too long before our own the human race suddenly encountered a deadly threat to its very existence. And this terrifying enemy surfaced, as such enemies often do in the seemingly most innocent and unlikely of places." And the band struck up, we knew we are on safe ground though. The singing was good, the theatrics nice, and the staging clever.

For director Maria Aberg (best known for directing Dr Faustus and The White Devil at the RSC) this is her Open Air Theatre debut so there must have been some pressure on her. Creating a giant carnivorous plant, the realisation of which is the linchpin of the show, is not the easiest task, and designer Tom Scutt (Jesus Christ Superstar) makes a game attempt at it. Sadly, it doesn't always quite come off though.

This is the story of geek plant shop worker Seymour (Marc Antolin, very impressive) who is secretly in love with co-worker Audrey (I'd enjoyed Jemima Roper before in Hand Of God and Midsummer Night's Dream but she comes into her own here) who discovers a strange and interesting new plant that transforms the fortunes of his Skid Row florist.

Drag queen Vicky Vox makes her theatrical debut here as the voice of said strange and interesting new plant (named Audrey II) and it is a role that is at the heart of this fun-packed musical. It is this casting of Vox, a member of the band Tranzkuntinental, that is the absolute making or breaking of the show. And she almost nails it.

We only saw a preview but we'd advise Ms Vox to relax and enjoy it a little more – and that she can get away with even more of what's she's bringing to this absolute blast of a performance. It was as her cries of 'Feed me' grew wilder in the 2nd half and she scratched at her crotch with a pitchfork that I realised that I wanted her to be even more outlandish. She's essentially Divine‘s sassier and more fabulous daughter so she should just go for it!

It is a role however that's more than matched by Matt Willis from Busted as the evil dentist boyfriend of Audrey's who boasts a maniacal laugh and fondness for nitrous oxide that renders him pure Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest goes Twin Peaks.

Fans of the musical can rest easy though that despite all the scene-stealing by both plant and dentist the romance at its heart, and the score's best song, Suddenly Seymour, remains as moving as ever.

Special mention does need to go to Skid Row street girls Renée Lamb, Christina Modestou and Seyi Omooba who absolutely boss their roles as Crystal, Ronnette, and Chiffon and bring a real sense of location to the early part of the show. I also loved the skyscrapers in shopping trolleys that the cast wheel about. Forbes Masson as shop owner Mr Mushnik is especially good value too.

The Regent's Park Open Air Theatre has a tradition of its musicals being Olivier Award-nominated and we wouldn't bet against Little Shop Of Horrors featuring in 2019's show.

The audience leapt to its feet in acclaim at the show's encore of 'Mean Green Mother From Outer Space' in a flurry of green beach balls flung into the audience and fantastical plant-based costumes.

So a great musical, nicely done. But not a patch on the original production, the film or the Menier Chocolate Factory revival a few years back.

Thursday, August 09, 2018

Tuesday's quiz? Here are the answers...

Tuesday's quiz? Here are the answers. See how you do? If you think you can beat us (you know you can!) - come next month! Booking essential!


In The News Round

l. In the US, a shark in a Texas aquarium was kidnapped this week. How was she abducted?

Disguised as a baby in a pram

2. Welshman Geraint Thomas made the headlines for his accomplishment of what?

Winning the Tour de France

3. How did newly appointed foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt embarrass himself during his trip to Beijing?

Said his wife was Japanese when she's actually Chinese

4. Princess Eugenie and hubby-to-be Jack will have 1,200 of what at their wedding at St. George's Chapel later this year?

Members of public

5. Sadly the nation lost Barry Chuckle one half of one of our favourite double acts, what was the brothers' most famous catch phrase?

To ME to YOU


Round The World Round

1. Which British town is home to one of the largest natural harbours in the world?

Poole

2. The city of Deadhorse is located in which US state?

Alaska

3. What is the name of the partially recognised state which declared independence from Serbia in February 2008?

Kosovo

4. Which city in Saudi Arabia is Islam's holiest city and the birthplace of the prophet Muhammed?

Mecca

5. Two of the three enclaved countries in the world are completely surrounded by ltaly. Name them.

Vatican City, San Marino (an enclaved country is one completely surrounded by another)


Food and Drink Round

1. What is the primary grape of the Rioja wine-making region?

Tempranillo

2. Which cooking method is thought to have originated on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean - its name comes from the Spanish translation of "A framework of sticks set upon posts"?

Barbeque

3. What name is given to the provincial vegetable stew that originated in the French city of Nice?

Ratatouille

4. According to their once popular slogan, what does one get if ones drinks a Red Bull energy drink?

Wings

5. What breakfast food is associated with the town of Tiptree in Essex?

Jam/Marmalade - (Home of Wilkin & Sons)


Connections Round

1. Who is the only world leader to have ever used nuclear weapons in war?

Harry Truman

2. Which country created its own time zone in 2015 in an apparent return to life before Japanese rule? It has since abandoned this move.

North Korea

3. Name the 1949 Broadway Musical that was set on a tropical island in World War 2? lt was later made into a motion picture in 1958.

South Pacific

4. The 2013 biographical movie Behind the Candelabra features Michael Douglas undergoing a dramatic transformation to portray the life of who?

Liberace

5. One of the most famous renditions of the great song Happy Birthday was sung to JFK by who?

Marilyn Monroe

6. Spot the connections to the previous five answers

All mentioned in the first verse of Billy Joel's 1989 hit - We Didn't Start the Fire


Sequences Round

You have to fill in the BLANK - For example - Game.... Set.... BLANK (Answer: MATCH)

1. 4 - Be... 3 - Li.... 2 - He... 1 - BLANK

H (Periodic Table symbols and numbers (Beryllium, Lithium, Helium, Hydrogen))

2. Bayern and 1860 ... AC and Inter... Wanderers and Wasps.... Giants and... BLANK

Jets (Groundshares - where 2 different sporting teams share a stadium - Vllcombe VVanderers and London VVasps, Bayern Munich and 1860 Munich, AC Milan and Inter Milan, New York Giants and New York Jets)

3. 40 Ruby.... 50 Gold.... 60 Diamond... 70 - BLANK

Platinum (Wedding anniversaries with associated precious metals or gemstones)

4. Speak Now.... Red.... 1989.... BLANK

Reputation (Taylor Swift's latest four albums)

5. France - Zero.... Australia - 6.... China - 5.... Morocco... BLANK

One (Number of stars on each of the countrys' flags)


Science & Nature Round

1. In the phases of sleep, what do the letters REM stand for?

Rapid Eye Movement

2. The Pacific Ring of Fire takes its name as it has 452 of what?

Volcanos

3. The Latin name for which bear, translates literally as "black and white cat-foot"?

Panda

4. What is the name given to a type of rainfall that is formed when air is forced to cool as it rises over features in the landscape such as hills or mountains?

Relief (Orographic accepted)

5. At a party, everyone shook hands with everybody else. There were 66 handshakes. How many people were at the party?

12


Arts and Culture Round

1. In Greek Mythology, what name was given to female monster with living venomous snakes in place of hair?

Medusa

2. In Ernest Hemingway's 1952 novel, The Old Man & The Sea, which animal does the protagonist battle with for days?

Marlin

3. Which opera tells a story set in Southern Spain of a naive soldier who is seduced by a fiery gypsy?

Carmen

4. Whose 2016 album cover features the CN Tower in Toronto?

Drake (Views)

5. In the 1992 movie Wayne's World, which Led Zeppelin song is banned from being played in the guitar shop much to Wayne's disappointment?

Stairway to Heaven


Tie Breaker Question

How many studio albums did Prince record?

39!

Wednesday, August 08, 2018

Quiz Night @HighburyL "Great fun. How did we do? Well, we didn't come last!" #QuizTeamAguilera #PubQuiz

Last night Jane, Sara, Stuart and I entered Liz's amazing monthly quiz at Highbury Library in London's glitzy Islington.

Liz was calling out the questions, Andrew spinning the tunes, and Ryan pulling the pints. It was great fun.

There were loads of inventive rounds involving eating, making stuff and guess the intro.

We ordered pizza to be delivered and have a rare old time.

But how did we do? Well, we didn't come last! 30.5 points. 7th out of 8 teams. The winners got 37. And ‎the £98 jackpot.

Here are the questions. See how you do? If you think you can beat us (you know you can!) - come next month! Booking essential!


Taste Test Round

We were given three cups of Pringles to taste

1. Paprika

2. Sour cream and onion

3. BBQ


In The News Round

l. In the US, a shark in a Texas aquarium was kidnapped this week. How was she abducted?

2. Welshman Geraint Thomas made the headlines for his accomplishment of what?

3. How did newly appointed foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt embarrass himself during his trip to Beijing?

4. Princess Eugenie and hubby-to-be Jack will have 1,200 of what at their wedding at St. George's Chapel later this year?

5. Sadly the nation lost Barry Chuckle one half of one of our favourite double acts, what was the brothers' most famous catch phrase?


Round The World Round

1. Which British town is home to one of the largest natural harbours in the world?

2. The city of Deadhorse is located in which US state?

3. What is the name of the partially recognised state which declared independence from Serbia in February 2008?

4. Which city in Saudi Arabia is Islam's holiest city and the birthplace of the prophet Muhammed?

5. Two of the three enclaved countries in the world are completely surrounded by ltaly. Name them.


Food and Drink Round

1. What is the primary grape of the Rioja wine-making region?

2. Which cooking method is thought to have originated on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean - its name comes from the Spanish translation of "A framework of sticks set upon posts"?

3. What name is given to the provencal vegetable stew that originated in the French city of Nice?

4. According to their once popular slogan, what does one get if ones drinks a Red Bull energy drink?

5. What breakfast food is associated with the town of Tiptree in Essex?


Connections Round

1. Who is the only world leader to have ever used nuclear weapons in war?

2. Which country created its own time zone in 2015 in an apparent return to life before Japanese rule? lt has since abandoned this move.

3. Name the 1949 Broadway Musical that was set on a tropical island in World War 2? lt was later made into a motion picture in 1958.

4. The 2013 biographical movie Behind the Candelabra features Michael Douglas undergoing a dramatic transformation to portray the life of who?

5. One of the most famous renditions of the great song Happy Birthday was sung to JFK by who?

6. Spot the connections to the previous five answers


Play D'oh! Round

If you could stop time what would your team do? Make it out of Playdoh.


Sequences Round

You have to fill in the BLANK - For example - Game.... Set.... BLANK (Answer: MATCH)

1. 4 - Be... 3 - Li.... 2 - He... 1 - BLANK

2. Bayern and 1860 ... AC and Inter... Wanderers and Wasps.... Giants and... BLANK

3. 40 Ruby.... 50 Gold.... 60 Diamond... 70 - BLANK

4. Speak Now.... Red.... 1989.... BLANK

5. France - Zero.... Australia - 6.... China - 5.... Morocco... BLANK


Science & Nature Round

1. In the phases of sleep, what do the letters REM stand for?

2. The Pacific Ring of Fire takes its name as it has 452 of what?

3. The Latin name for which bear, translates literally as "black and white cat-foot"?

4. What is the name given to a type of rainfall that is formed when air is forced to cool as it rises over features in the landscape such as hills or mountains?

5. At a party, everyone shook hands with everybody else. There were 66 handshakes. How many people were at the party?


Arts and Culture Round

1. In Greek Mythology, what name was given to female monster with living venomous snakes in place of hair?

2. In Ernest Hemingway's 1952 novel, The Old Man & The Sea, which animal does the protagonist battle with for days?

3. Which opera tells a story set in Southern Spain of a naive soldier who is seduced by a fiery gypsy?

4. Whose 2016 album cover features the CN Tower in Toronto?

5. In the 1992 movie Wayne's World, which Led Zeppelin song is banned from being played in the guitar shop much to Wayne's disappointment?


Intros Round

We were played the intro to each summer-themed song

1. Walking on Sunshine - Katrina and the waves

2. Hot in Here - Nelly

3. Here Comes The Sun - The Beatles

4. Everybody Loves The Sunshine - Roy Ayres

5. Sunny - Boney M


Tie Breaker Question

How many studio albums did Prince record?

Tuesday, August 07, 2018

Highbury Library "Cool music, nice beer and friendly staff and crowd. We'll definitely be doing back." @HighburyL #HiddenIslington...

Last week Stuart and I tried out a couple of new (to us) local places in glitzy Islington.

After BabaBoom (see earlier post) we headed to super-friendly bar Highbury Library just by the Emirates Stadium. Andrew, one of the co-owners and fellow block 6 season ticket holder, welcomed us at the bar and we had a nice chat about beer, Arsenal and his venue. Cool music, nice beer, outside space, and friendly staff and crowd.

We'll definitely be doing back soon.

UPDATE: Sooner than we thought! We'll be at their Quiz Night tonight!




BabaBoom Islington "The food was delicious, the staff fast, funny, helpful and engaging. We'll be heading back soon" @bababoomlondon #HiddenIslington...

Last week Stuart and I tried out a couple of new (to us) local places in glitzy Islington.

First on the list was posh kebab joint BabaBoom in Upper Street that had just opened up. They offered us a free lunch as they were in training mode. The food was delicious, the staff fast, funny, helpful and engaging.

We'll be heading back soon.







Monday, August 06, 2018

Brighton Pride...

Having a lovely time down in Brighton for Pride. A few things I have learned:-
Britney can dance but can't mime very well.
The floats at Pride are the same every year.
There are never enough beer tents.
Has Dame Edna Experience has lost her shine somewhat (half empty tent)?
You can never have enough sunscreen.
I'm not as young as I used to be.
The best times, are those laughing with mates.