my own private hidey-hole

Criminy, I feel so apathetic at the moment. Let's see if I can be bothered typing and finishing this. I expect it will be brief. And full of gloom. Is this what the run up to 30 is like?

( Saturday )

***

( sunday )

***

( Monday )

***

( Tuesday )

***

( Wednesday )

***

( Thursday )

***

The End.

***


Shows Seen = 24.

Top Five (in no particular order):

Tim Minchin

Alex Horne

David O'Doherty (Kids show)

Elizabeth and Raleigh

Honourable Men of Art. Or perhaps Ms Emin. Yes. The actual art.

things i watched this weekend
♥ zodiac - mediocre serial killer film based on a real life serial killer from the end of the sixties. forgettable.
♥ the hammer - midlife crisis boxing comedy. occasionally mildly amusing, mostly a bit irritating. i had a weep at the end.
♥ some of shallow hal - a million times better than i expected, but jeez my expectations were terribly low to start with.
♥ doctor who - excellent episode proving you don't need special effects and other such japery to hold the attention.

***

things i did this weekend
♥ slept a lot.
♥ loafed a lot.
♥ celebrated wardytron's birthday by picnicing in his and fille_a_paris's garden and the lovely marble hill park close by.
♥ visited tasty cheese shop of joy.
♥ got ID'd in oddbins. sweet!
♥ rode a bike for the first time since i was 11! it's true what they say. you don't forget how to ride a bike. you *do* forget how to do corners, and it's a little petrifying, especially with a moleintheground chasing after you. dare i investigate getting my own?
♥ got a little over-inebriated and weepy. sorry folks!
♥ forgot to call it a night and accidentally stayed up too late nattering with dawnage and orangerick.
♥ slept a lot more.
♥ whinged.
♥ dragged self to the open air theatre in regents part for the yearly daniel kitson and gavin osborne show. a second half of 1hr 45m???? ARGH. failed to get in until half 12 or so.
♥ it was totally worth it.

***

how i feel today
♥ headache-y.
♥ throat shredded. (i was singing again, right?)
♥ in need of LOTS more sleep.

***

(and just so i don't forget, on thursday i played some poker. not very well, if i'm honest, but then there was wine. managed 4 / 6 on the first game, and was knocked out first in the second on a very unlucky all in. wah. still, i blame the new person and scarily repeatedly demonstrated beginners luck.....)

d'you know, i think i'd like it if every day could be rounded off by watching / listening to lovely john hegley for an hour or so.

must relaxing, entertaining, joining-inny fun.

(heh, if you go and see a different show at the BAC whilst ....red death is still running, and need the loo, they have to smuggle you into the forest at the bottom of the stairs in masks. most entertaining.)

***

i played proper (i.e. non-facebook) scrabulous yesterday. blimey, but that's a different sort of game. if you're a dunce with the options, at any rate. not only trying to beat your opponent, but in a set time as well. needless to say, i won...

...i don't have much to say today. went to a radio recording last night at the beeb for tim minchin's christmas show. twas very good indeed. he's got a lot of crazy teenage stalkers who make scary dolls of him. trufax. make me look completely sane. at least i only get drunk and talk harmless nonsense, ahem.

***

more importantly than that, however, is that there is a brilliant thing tonight! are you at a loose end? then you should totally come to clockwork comedy, at clockwork (on pentonville road), tonight, 8pm. curiousbadger and drasticsturgeon present an amazing line up of excellent comedy, from michael legge (mc), james kettle, steve hall and reginald d hunter. and if that isn't enough to tempt you up there, you get to see me and give me your cash monies on the door.

how can you possibly say no. see you there, yes?

kisskiss

***

p.s. please stop challenging me at facebook chess, i'm really, really woeful and only put it there to stop my eyes becoming scrabble shaped!

my audio-typing headphones are WELL weird. they appear to make more noise if i put them *on* my ears, rather than *in* my ears. music directly through my bone, perhaps. you may have gathered i'm not audio typing. no, i'm doing my supertramp homework. well, it's another nobody-in-the-office day, so i can't really hide in my filing room just in case the phone rings. sssh.

***

ooh, any recommendations for vaguely posh 'treaty' restaurants for a bunch of croydon reprobates? centralish? not too fussy, one COMPLETELY RUBBISH vegetarian who apparently likes chicken and bacon. the (extended) sibs (plus partners) and i feel like rampaging (sedately) around town.

***

last night i went to a pub, to say a brief hello to (temporarily in the country) verlaine, have my first CCP in a long time, and bounce around so much in an overexcited fashion with slater joy that even strange old men at the bar were commenting on it. oh dear. i'm a small child when it comes to certain things. and never really able to hide my emotions. what you see is what you get, even if it is ridiculously annoying, sorry!

anyway, yes, more importantly last night i stalked my second husband (to be) went to see swimming with sharks at the vaudeville theatre, starring mr s as buddy ackerman. now, (despite barrysarll's best efforts) i have never seen the actual film, so didn't really know what to expect. slater isn't really stretched, playing a hollywood hot shot that shouts a lot, but you know, he's very good at what he does, and if it ain't broke, why fix it? i must admit, i am *always* mesmerised by his charisma.

i didn't realise it would be so funny, so a pleasant surprise to sit and chuckle throughout. they've clearly updated reference points and stuff, i'm sure paris hilton wouldn't be mentioned in the original. the second half was less good, but i suppose there's a lot more you can do on film rather than on stage.

my seats were EXCELLENT, i didn't need my glasses. Best Present i have EVER given myself, i think.

***

vaguely considered heading back to the pub afterwards, it being only 10pm, as it was i was home and scrabbling before 11, in bed by half past, having had only a pint and a half all evening.

so why is it this morning i felt like death and almost overslept my tube stop, hmmm?

Best thing I have seen so far today: a cement mixer, bearing the legend "Jim'll Mix It!". Brilliant.

***

Here are some other brilliant things I have seen over the last week, that you should DEFINITELY go to if you happen to find yourself in Edinburgh this month (leaving out the obvious straight stand up of people like lovely Russell Howard, the D O'D, Josie Long and Daniel Kitson, you should know about them already). These are mostly things I wouldn't have dreamed of going to, but really enjoyed:

Breaker Morant. (Early afternoon in the Udderbelly.) OK, so a courtroom (court martial?) drama about some Australians in the Boer War with a completely male cast doesn't *sound* particularly appealing, but it is in fact completely excellent and mesmerising and I had a little weep. Also, Salman Rushdie was watching it with us, so you can feel all smug and worthy. Also, I don't know if I've mentioned this, but it is ACE.

Sarah Kendall - My First Kidnapping. (Evening, Assembly Rooms.) Wonderfully told true story with a little help from Jo Neary and Justin Edwards. Proof that the scariest things can be funny.

Little Howard and the Magic Pencil. (EARLY! Assembly Rooms.) Allegedly a children's show, and therefore on at the woeful hour of 11.30 in the morning. Despite this, and despite having seen a fair whack of it before, it was most enjoyable, and even helped combat the disgusting state of brokenness I was in that morning.

Pappy's Fun Club. (Mid afternoonish, that tenty place that hasn't been rebuilt...) OK, I've seen them a million and one times. However, Marty, Mim and Julius is quite possibly my favourite sketch EVER (sorry Klangs!) and has me hysterical every time. Wonderfully silly sketch comedy. Wonderfully clever sketch comedy. Good, good.

Venus as a Boy. (Early afternoon, Traverse.) Kinda straight 2-man theatre piece telling the story of a young man from the Orkney Islands. One man acting, one man (who has allegedly been in some old Evening Session bands) providing a gorgeous, evocative soundtrack with guitars and violin bows and magic. Not hugely cheery, but quite, quite spellbinding.

Oh, and late night mixed bills - Storytellers Club (C Baraka), lovely people, lovely stories. I am an idiot. Full Mooners (Baby Belly). Fast becoming my achilles heel. Always excellently funny, always resulting in brokenness and The Wrong. Ahem.

***

Anyway, yes, I am BACK for 4 days only! I have avoided the internet for almost a week, so if you have anything of note to tell me please assume I haven't seen it and do so here. Comments screened, in case you think my friendslist is full of stalky mentals.

***

If anyone is in the Southwark area today, I appear to have a whole heap of pastries that are likely to go to waste due to silly bossman. Come and say hello! Eat free food! Errr.....

Last night (as a treat after Tuesday Doom) to the National to see The Man of Mode with perfectlyvague and suicideally.

It was a wonderful stylised production, updated to the trendy fashion present, and worked really well. Sometimes there's nothing like a spot of romantic farce, pounding music and dancing to hit the spot. Sir Fopley Fopling, Medley and Mrs Loveit were all great, though there were also a few, shall we say, less good performances.

Not one to restore your faith in human nature, being populated by people generally being self absorbed and not very nice, though interesting that it applies as much today as hundreds of years ago.

A fun romp, I'm glad I went. Though did catch myself musing on a few Dorimant-esque characters from my past.....*

(If anyone wants to go I think it's still in rep til the end of this month, and you can get best seats available deals for a tenner on lastminute.com. Ours were pretty ace!)


* No names no packdrill. They were never 'serious' on my part either....

I am rubbish at Shakespeare.

It’s a long standing thing. I don’t have a problem reading or studying it, analysing it, even acting it. In fact, then I really enjoy it.

I am rubbish at watching Shakespeare.

I think it’s mostly because it takes me too long to adapt to being able to listen and process the language, trying too hard and missing as it zips by at talking speed. After about 15 minutes of this I tend to be able to cope, but by then I’m usually in a huff with the play and can’t be bothered.

Maybe I’ve just seen rotten Shakespeare. I’ve certainly repeatedly tried. Mind you, I've seen acclaimed Fiennes and Postlethwaite productions (Hamlet and Macbeth respectively) and had the same problem. It isn’t that I don’t like the stories. In fact, when turned into musicals (Kiss Me Kate) or trashy films (10 Things I Hate About You) I very much like it. (Of course it’s always possible I only like The Taming of the Shrew!)

So I was a little bit unsure of whether I would cope with The Tempest this weekend. Especially because I’ve never read/ seen it (or Forbidden Planet) and the extent of my knowledge was there was a tempest and a magical island. Though if anyone can make it understandable for me it’d be Patrick Stewart, right? Well, yes actually. Right. Is voice is such that it all sounds perfectly natural. I still had those 15 minutes or so of doooom but importantly I realised why I wasn’t enjoying it and managed to stop my brain panicking and relax and suddenly everything made sense. Phew! I just need to stop thinking of it as some high and mighty art, and realise it’s only entertainment. Duh.

Patrick Stewart (Prospero) is just wonderful, and obviously perfectly at home with anything you throw at him. I’ve seen him several times but never actually doing his first love. I’m always impressed by his comic timing. I also really liked the performance of Trinculo, though diamond_geyser (sitting unknowingly elsewhere with other people in expensive seats) will disagree completely with me here. However, the Best Thing about it really had to be Ariel, as played by Julian Bleach. Yes, the chappie that was the narrator in Shockheaded Peter, which is surely due a revival. Please? Pretty please?

Either way, I think I’d like to test my theory out on some more of the bard this year.

The majority of last night was spent scurrying around an old warehouse in Wapping, chasing Mephistopheles in the dark. ( There are Faust spoilers under here for those who have tickets…… Plus I appear to have got carried away! )

I presume you all know the story anyway, and it’s pretty easy to piece together. The dancing is acrobatic and fantastic. Temporarily it was another world. So much to see and do! I definitely didn’t get all of it. If you can find a ticket, jump at it.

[The only bad thing is if you are wandering around on your own and have a terrible sense of direction you can miss a lot. Following a person is good! Also, it did feel like because it was dark, and you couldn’t see anyone’s faces, people were happy to be more selfish than usual, barging past when you’re all trying to see something, pushing you out of the way. Perhaps a lot of it was accidental in the dark. Some of it definitely wasn’t!]

***

Just as exciting to me was the fact that the street just down from it was named after me. Well. Kind of. See icon. Excellent!

I don't feel particularly well, my children. I think I may have some sort of coffee intolerance. Which is a shame, because it sends me sky high before the nausea and jitters kick in......

*****

Last night, to Spamalot, via too much food and Baileys filled shakes at Ed's Diner.

Apologies to chums whose legs appeared to be longer than mine (despite me being generally taller) for the front of balcony squashed knee action :/ The other seats are £40. Why is the theatre so expensive?!!

I have to say, I enjoyed it a lot more than I had imagined I would. Two thirds of the first half is pure genius (it seems to take a while to kick in properly), and the second half has some ace bits, but then quite a bit falls flat on its face. The Producers-mocking Jew song, for instance, doesn't actually work at all. The Lady of the Lake has an amazing pair of lungs. And norks. I like her Liza Minelli impression best.

Obviously Tim Curry is astounding. I did enjoy being able to see his real-life Tim Curry face with my actual eyes in the actual flesh..... How do I get him to be my friend? I love him. Am almost tempted to try and sit in the special seat so I can get up on stage. Thankfully, finances do NOT allow. Little Herbert was pretty fantastic too.

Yes so. Mostly gloriously silly and over the top. The staging is inspired. The songs are actually pretty good pastiches too. Not entirely perfect, but I am very glad I went.

I bought tickets in February you know. Blimey. I wanted a spam sarnie, but was still stuffed from dinner.

*****

I love my Dennis the Menace-esque chenille jumper, but it finally appears to be shedding more than it is staying together. I'm leaving a trail of what looks suspiciously like rabbit droppings around the office. Does chenille always eventually die?

*****

Tip of the day: When tradespeople give you an estimated arrival time of between 8am and 12pm, use your head and don't go into work an hour early. It isn't worth it.