From Here to Eternity @ The Shaftesbury Theatre

From Here To Eternity

As an ex-drama student, and a massive drama queen- I am a massive fan of theatrical productions. All of them. Plays, musicals, ballets, even pantomimes- you name them, I love them. (The exception to this rule are circuses with clowns in, because I hate clowns and they should be banned from life)

So it was clearly a very welcome (and surprising!) suggestion when MM mentioned he had seen a flyer at work for 2-4-1 tickets to selected musicals in the West End, and perhaps we should go.

I obviously laughed at what I assumed was a wind up joke (bearing in mind this is the boy that almost fell asleep during the ballet at Christmas,) before realising that he was being serious- and quickly snatched the opportunity - alike to a fat kid grabbing cookies that they can't believe they're allowed to have- before the offer was retracted.

The flyer was for a website called Showpairs- and it is great. The idea is that you pay for a top-price-bracket ticket (which means good seats!) and get the other one for free. 

I had spied advertisements for From Here To Eternity on the tube and read the reviews, which were all very positive. Produced by Tim Rice, the play is set in Pearl Harbour in 1941- just before the Japanese attack, and follows two separate (but intrinsically linked) love stories.

The tickets were booked and paid for £67.50 in total, and absolutely worth every penny.

The show, whilst a little slow in getting going, culminated in an incredible final 30 minutes. It's not all glitter and bright lights- it's harsh, hard hitting, and emotional, well choreographed, dimly-lit and brilliant.

The song performed by Private Angelo "I Love the Army" is a particularly poignant moment, and "The boys of '41" sung by the entire cast at the end had me in absolute bits... Actually, I was crying for the majority of the second half- but I cry at everything, so this is not really a groundbreaking event. I'm a bit of a drip.

It is wonderful though. A completely different west-end experience to the big name shows, but no less enjoyable- albeit for different reasons.

I have been re-bitten by the musical bug, and tickets for my next theatre visit are already booked!

Cocktails @ Lounge Lover

Lounge Lover

After speaking with each other on a daily basis during our year in New York (I say 'speak' ... this is actually code for 'emailing each other song lyrics'), returning to the UK and beginning new and slightly more demanding jobs whilst living in completely different postcodes of London (She is Totteridge, I am Putney) has driven a little wedge of space between myself and one of my wonderful friends SM. 

"This will not do!" Said we, and so we resolved to meet more often- to catch up on life events, have a good ole gossip, and, most importantly, drink.

Our first date location: Lounge Lover, in Shoreditch. I stumbled across this gem by scouring my London go-to websites and blogs, and it didn't disappoint.

Situated just off Bethnal Green road, we arrived at about 7 o'clock and were seated, without a reservation, straight away. 

Coincidentally (ahem) they just happen to have a happy hour every week night until 8pm- offering 2 cocktails for £12. Who knew!

The cocktail list is extensive, and our idea was to buy a round each, ultimately trying 2 different cocktails. In reality, we ended up ordering 4 rounds of the same dreeeeam cocktail! Woops. It was just so good. 

'Love Letter' (cracking name) consists of Elderflower cordial and stolichnaya raspberry vodka, stirred with white grape juice and served straight up in a martini glass. Mmmm.

The interior of the bar is very quirky; there was a hippo's head hanging on the wall, wooden panelling, a large wall map, palm -tree-shaped lampshades, and huge Chinese vases positioned by doorways.

This place would make a great date spot, and an ideal place to catch up with friends- quiet enough to hear each other, but not so quiet that you feel awkward/listened in on, and they do offer a tapas menu should you get peckish.

Lounge Lover is very cool, very shoreditch, and very yummy. 

Well done, me! (And my internet advisors!)

Pottery Painting @ Pots 2 Go

Pots 2 Go

Having been in London since the New Year- the smoggy air was getting a bit too much for my lungs, and I felt that it was time to take a little weekend trip back to the Motherland: God's own county, the happiest place in the UK (according to Mr Guardian journalist himself) or Yorkshire to you and I.. Harrogate was calling!

My train from Kings Cross to York was delayed, again! (I have the most hideous luck with trains ever. Train drivers literally have some sort of vendetta against me) but eventually I arrived at Harrogate station, a bit cold and tired, and was met by Daddy Simmo and my two very excited mini-me sisters, Em and Be.

When the girls were considerably younger (they are now 7 and 9 and far too tall for my liking) and I used to live at home, I used to host 'Girls Club' in their bedrooms at bedtime... This was a very simple and genius means of getting them into their PJs and into their beds before bedtime (Bravo me)! However, it is something that seems to have stuck- Girls Club is something that they always request we do when I am home (and, I have been duly informed, is an occasion from which Daddy is categorically banned!)

On this trip home, I proposed a 'Girls Club' day out (basically a cunning excuse to let me off the night shift so I could have some wine!) and the 3 of us adventured into the town centre for Girls club fun.

First stop: Marks and Spencer's toilet, Phoebe had had too much juice in the car.

Second Stop: Pots 2 Go. If you have ever go to Harrogate/ever plan on going to Harrogate and you have children in tow... Go to Pots 2 Go.

Positioned on Montpellier Hill, it is right in the town centre, and conveniently close to Betty's (any excuse, ey!) Pots 2 Go is essentially a pottery painting cafe.

It is advisable to book, as they are always very busy- but when you arrive, you are presented with a huge selection of white pot items from which you can select your pieces to paint- these range in price from about £5 to about £30 depending on what you choose (and obviously include the cost of painting and equipment)

I chose 2 egg cups (very practical), Em chose a bird shaped plate (somewhat practical) and Phoebe chose a rabbit ornament (practicality is clearly not a priority for Be)

You are seated at your table and given aprons, paint, a colour chart, about a thousand paintbrushes and some paint 'pens' for finer details/writing, and you're pretty much left to get on with it.

The reservation was for 90 mins which was plenty of time. I made MM a Sunderland inspired egg cup (as it was cup final weekend and I wanted to be a supportive girlfriend) and myself a suitably girly one. Em painted her bird plate purple and green (exotic) and Phoebe painted her bunny brown, with a pink tummy etched with the name 'Hopy'... An unusual spelling of Hoppy, but Pheebs is a rebel and breaks the rules.

We finished painting, washed our hands (and the paint off Phoebe's face..) and handed over our items to the lady behind the counter. She explained to my two amazed sidekicks that they are going to be left to dry, then taken and dipped in glaze, before 'cooking' in the oven for 24 hours. The whole process takes about a week- and we could pick up our things the following weekend. 

The service is great, the girls that work there are ao helpful- they will help you choose colours and do any painting that you want help with.

The prices are so reasonable- you pay about the same as you would find the items retailing for in high street shops, and that price includes the experience and the finishing process over the course of the next week.

I think I can safely assume that the girls will suggest we make Pots 2 Go a regular girls club location.. And it gives me an excuse to paint pretty things, and shop in Betty's, naturally.

On the way back up Montpellier hill, we came across a tree that has been carved in advance of the 2014 Tour de Yorkshire. 

Complete with a 'fairy door' round the back- we stopped for a quick photo op, before heading home for juice (wine) and a night in front of the fire watching trashy Saturday Night tv. Ideal!