Maverick Festival 2012

Good Saturday at the Maverick at Easton Farm Park. Just the one day again (like last year), next time should really try all three days. A few quirks this time (the odd power problem early on had the knock-on effect of yours truly queuing 50 minutes for coffees, which is no fun, and quite a few of the ales were sold out by early evening.

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The Sunshine Boys

Down to London last week to see the matinee performance of the well reviewed staging of The Sunshine Boys at the Savoy Theatre. Couldn’t help but recall the wonderful George Burns and Walter Matthau film adaptation of the Neil Simon play so intrigued to find out how well it stood up to the tests of time and taste. (Across the board excellent reviews had of course given me more than a gentle hint).

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League One Play Off Final

I believe there was a play off final at Wembley last Saturday. I was in York so please don’t tell me the score……I’m sure if the unthinkable happened McCabe will now be telling us all that we will be making significant strides next season and challenging for automatic promotion, whilst simulataneously letting our best players leave and cutting the rug from under Danny Wilson’s feet. But, …

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O Lucky Man!

Has it come to this? Last night’s gig was a 70 year old Geordie who walked out on the Animals at the height of the band’s fame and once had a reputation for being ever so slightly chippy. However, that would hardly phase any Van Morrison fan, even if true…

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Trying To Stay Optimistic

As United snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, it’s hard for any United fan to remain optimistic, especially as there was almost a sad inevitability about the results yesterday. It’s a hard old life supporting this club……leaving the Premier league under harsh circumstances on the last day of the season and now this.

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Northumberland Break

Excellent few days in Northumberland and North Yorkshire. Good to revisit Corbridge, Hexham etc. after many, many years away. Also got to the very picturesque village of Blanchland, which I never managed to visit when living in Sunderland all those years ago. Lovely Abbey, and the famous Lord Crewe Arms, visited by W. H. Auden Philip Larkin, Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears amongst others.  It …

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Less Than Kind

Less than Kind at Colchester’s Mercury Theatre on Friday night – James Wilby and Sara Crowe took the leads in the Terence Rattigan play. Full of period detail, a lively comedy that had quite a lot to say in an understated and typically British way. Well worth a trip if the production comes anywhere near you (unless you’ve an aversion to some of the slightly …

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Noises Off at the Old Vic

Noise Off at the Old Vic yesterday. Can’t recommend the production highly enough; great cast, belly laughs galore – I could usually watch farce all day long and hardly raise a smile but Frayn’s 1982 “farce about a farce” is still achingly funny.  As an aside, the cast busts a gut for 2 hours every night plus matinees twice a week but footballers “get tired” …

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