Family affair....

....as in just back from one, and decidedly squiffy. Subjects tonight are granddaughter Daizy on the left (about to inflict some sort of fiendish foot tickling torture on her victim) and her second coz Ben on the right (who doesn't seem to mind too much and is always willing to smile for the camera) Bed calls................

A night at the theatre

Just back from a great night out at our newly refurbished (read virtually rebuilt) neighbourhood theatre with the sister and bro-in-law. Roy Marsden and Susan Penhaligon in 'Murder on Air, three radio thrillers read in an authentic studio setting with live sound effects in the style of their original BBC broadcasts'.....loved it, especially the sound effects! I also loved the fact that it was only 10 minutes walk down the road. They've done a great job with the rebuild, plenty of legroom, neither too hot nor too cold, considerably more toilets than the original two with dodgy plumbing and a sensible sized bar replacing the one that used to operate from a cupboard. Another shot of the foyer/bar below.

 

Still here.....

wor::site has been disgracefully neglected recently....apologies....promise I'll try to do better! Coming up...Eat! NewcastleGateshead
"EAT! NewcastleGateshead 2nd May to 17th May 2009 - a festival which passionately advocates to all the pleasures of creating and sharing good food and drink in the North East." There's a downloadable programme of events here

Memo to self....must buy a tripod

Out of the 76 photos I took tonight at the Sage (Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band...not bad but not as entertaining as The Ukulele Band of GB on Monday) there were only half a dozen that didn't look like they'd been taken by a dipsomaniac on a bad morning....this is one of the least shaky. You can just about make out the Tyne Bridge through the windows if you try very, VERY hard.

It'll be a bit of culture at the Sage tonight....

....for Chris and I



Sometime later....fantastic concert, their rendition of 'I'm just a teenage dirtbag' brought me out in goosebumps! If you get the chance, go and see them....you won't be sorry.

Party tricks

With the festive season fast approaching you're going to need some of the above tricks to keep those parties going with a swing....no really! Click the image to enlarge.

Found at ModernMechanix

Ukuleles on the Tyne

A date for your musical diary, there's still tickets left! A taster follows......

Mouth of the Tyne 2008

I've just uploaded this to YouTube. A damp number from Beverley Knight during a brief lull in the rain. Great concert, pants weather....oh, the joys of a northeastern summer, thank goodness we packed flasks of coffee and something a bit more robust than chilled champagne. Roll on MOT 2009!!

Priory Theatre 2008/09 programme

Click on the image for a more readable version. Season ticket for 5 plays (pantomime not included), same seat/same night of the week, is a paltry £30!

Little Shop of Horrors - Brief Review

Whitley Bay Operatic Society excelled themselves and a fun night was had by all. Great set, great voices and great comic acting....if I could I'd be back there tonight for the final performance! Their next production is Jeckyll and Hyde - The Musical, October 6th - 11th....I vote we book advance tickets! I promised Bex I would post a link to the currently running London production website (which is definitely worth a click, and possibly even a trip down to the smoke!) Little Shop of Horrors

Anybody fancy.....?

....just spotted a lone advert on a lampost on the way to work this morning....so short notice!

Imagine you're on the Great Wall of China at sunset...

...and it would look just like this. A 360 degree panorama at Sleeponthegreatwall

The return of the Tyneside Cinema

After a long holiday in Gateshead during refurbishment, the Tyneside Cinema re-opens it's doors for business on 22nd May. It opened as the ‘Bijou News-Reel Cinema’ on 1st February 1937, and is now the last news-reel cinema in Britain. Read more about it's history and resurrection to glory here, and there's a photogallery here at the BBC website. I'm hoping they've restored/retained the Tea Rooms menu, when the kids were tots it was the only place I knew where you could get soft-boiled eggs WITH TOAST SOLDIERS! Oh, and there's details of a celebratory free outdoor screening here if you fancy doing a bit of Dirty Dancing over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend here. I'll drone on about the, now sadly missed, Silk Shop next door some other time!

Mouth of the Tyne 2008

There's a website, but not a lot of detail yet. Despite that, tickets have already been booked for the Saturday night concert at Tynemouth Priory, any family members wishing to join the party on the grass call John or Mo for more details. Anyone else....this has always proved to be a good night out, weather permitting of course!

Eat! NewcastleGateshead 2008

This years local eating extravaganza.....like we needed an excuse!

They say....."EAT! NewcastleGateshead, now in its second year, celebrates the region’s very best food and drink. There’s an exciting programme of unique events with the finest local and fairly traded produce all here on a plate"

I've put a copy of the programme in the box files

Coming up......

.....takes place across NewcastleGateshead, Sunderland and Middlesbrough from 28 February - 8 March 2008. They say....

"The theme of the festival is broadcast. In October 2007 the BBC began to switch off analogue television signals, paving the way for television to become entirely digital. At the same time the Internet and mobile networks have created opportunities for us to ‘broadcast ourselves’ in entirely new ways. As the landscape of broadcasting changes irrevocably, AV Festival 08 will be a catalyst for debate about the future of broadcasting, and an event to celebrate a century of on-air and online transmission."

Link to their website

PS.....NewcastleGateshead doesn't trip off the tongue quite so lightly as BudaPest does!!

Sarah's trunk

Family trip to the Theatre Royal to view the unveiling of Sarah's trunk to the world at large? Suitable for the over 8's. Click on the image to enlarge to readable proportions.

New (relatively) empty calendar syndrome....

Chinese New Year, 7th February?

Oh no it isn't.......OH YES IT IS!!

This years Panto at the Priory Theatre Tynemouth.....anyone fancy it? If so, give me a ring with preferred dates and I'll book tickets. Current takers, me (natch!), S, H and D, Ma, Anne and John

Update....and Chris and Bex (Nick said "Er......probably not".....so boo, hiss to him!!)

Update 2...and Richard, Janet, Laura and Ben. Now all we have to do is settle on a date....I'm on the case!

Update 3....it occurs to me that we have a ratio of 3 under-10s to 10 (so-called) grownups, we may have to spread the 'smalls' around to look credible.....at a push, one child to 3 and a bit adults looks ALMOST normal! But be warned, party frocks, alice bands and clean ankle socks for the ladies/long shorts, scabby knees, clip-on dicky bow ties and a dollup of Brylcreme for the gents MAY have to be declared mandatory! PS.....Grandmas are exempt!!

New restaurant alert

I haven't been yet but I've heard good reports....and the menu looks great (and VERY reasonably priced, main courses range from £4.50 to £7 ish) For those of you who knew it, it's where almonds and Raisins used to be (near the now demolished Central Library/Princes Square area) Open from 11am to 9pm seven days a week.

They say......

" Gospoda is the first Polish restaurant in Newcastle Upon Tyne and in the whole North-East region.Gospoda, which is located in the very centre of the city, is a place with warm atmosphere, delicious, home made food and Polish alcohol. The chef intends to meet the demands of people with even the most sophisticated taste. Everyone will be satisfied with the menu composed by the our chef. With more than ten different sets of dinner courses on the menu (the number will be increasing), it is possible to order meals for breakfast and home made cakes in GOSPODA. For those clients who are not familiar with Polish cuisine, short descriptions and pictures of our dishes have been prepared. A very nice service, good Polish music and reasonable prices of meals and alcohol, are also an unquestionable advantage of Gospoda."