As an introduction to a
classical concert, I thought I'd buy my landlord and landlady a
ticket to the 40th anniversary Johann Strauss Gala at the
Royal Festival Hall. I've seen the show quite a few times before and
though it was perfect. A good mix of classical, comedy and dance,
perfect for June as she likes the ballet. I bought four tickets so I
went and took along my uncle Frank.
With South West Trains
forever being broken, especially on the weekends. I got a lift up
with my brother the night before when we went to eat at Pitt Cue.
The show started at 3pm
but Frank and myself left with plenty of time to have a fry up for
brunch at one of the best greasy spoons I've ever been to. The
'Double Six' on Eversholt Street opposite where the platforms are at
London's Euston station.
After the food we went
straight to the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank, London. We
went to the bar opposite the main stage in the foyer of the concert
hall, it is an ideal meeting place.
I was about an inch
from the bottom of my pint of Theakston's Bitter, when Richard and
June, my former landlord and landlady appeared. Richard bought me
another pint, the another, then it was announced over the tannoy
system to take our seats in the auditorium as the show was about to
start. We finished our drinks and walked up all the six floors, to
the very top. We were literally three rows from the very top, any
higher and we would have had our heads through the ceiling and into
the sky above.
Sir Ian McKellen did
his usual “turn your phone off etc...”, but not the thing about
keeping coughing to a minimum which I haven't heard for a while. So I
turned my phone off but not just off, before I shut it down, not only
was it already on silent, I switched it to airplane mode as my phone
has a habit of turning itself on. Extra special eh?
There was a feeling in
my that for some reason they'll be disappointed. That couldn't have
been further from reality. Not only had a comedian friend of theirs
who used to play at the pub, introduced himself and told us that he'd
co-written the script with the conductor. The music was fantastic,
the orchestra were flawless and all part of the comedy act. The
conductor's jokes really helped to break things up between songs and
added an extra layer of entertainment to the show. The part where he
and the percussionist played a duet on the vibes was a moment of pure
comic genius and sounded superb. During the interval I went over to
the dark said and had a glass of red wine. I made amends after the
show when I went back to another pint of the Theakston's Bitter. When
I finished my pint I said goodbye and left. Starting a marathon two
and a half hour journey consisting of two rail replacement buses and
a taxi courtesy of South West Trains.
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