London Weekend

This last weekend we had a couple of nights in London with David and Jeannie.

On the Friday night we ate in the Mermaid's Tale on Leicester Square - I can heartily recommend it - and then went to see Les Miserables at the Queen's Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue.

David and Jeannie had both seen it before but it was a first for us. The woman in the seat next to me (on the other side to Miss Franny obviously) said that made me a "virgin" and she would watch to see how I reacted. It was her 19th time and by the end of the night she had thought it the best...

We thoroughly enjoyed it. My eyes started to leak a little at one point. Maybe more than one point actually... I would have got away with it but for my neighbour nudging me heavily and shrieking "Aha!!!". As she was having to use a squeegee mop on her face I thought that a little unfair...

We visited the Science Museum and British Museums which I'll look at in other posts but the other major sight that we saw hadn't been on our itinery and to be honest I could have done without seeing it...

It's obviously fashionable to wear short waist length jackets over tights without a skirt... Anyone who remembers miniskirts in the 60s as I do will remember that only a minority of girls could do them justice.

The one we saw sporting a pair of leopard print skintight leggings covered by a jacket that hid only the top half of buttock swell should have asked her companion "Does my bum look big in this?"

The correct response, had he been brave enough, would have been to shout "Big? BIG?!? That's nowhere near an adequate word!!!"

David had a camera with him but said his wide angle lens wasn't wide enough... The sketch gives another inadequate impression.

Blackpool's New Wedding Venue

An unexpected treat today. We went down into Blackpool to meet up with David and Jeannie for breakfast at Quilligan's. Sean provided us with the usual excellent breakfast and we took our time over it, interrupting our eating with plenty of chatter. Then we went down onto the Promenade. The fencing and scaffolding and machinery has now disappeared from the final part of the new Promenade in front of the Tower and up to the North Pier.

On this part of the Promenade is a new rather weirdly shaped building. This is the new Register Office for weddings. The tall narrow window of the upper floor has a wonderful view of the Tower. We hadn't realised but the building was open this weekend for the public to have a look around it. Someone came out to invite us to look round and we took them up on their offer.

Despite the rather odd appearance from outside, the interior is really well thought out. Wood panelling makes it look modern and won't require redecoration every two minutes and the wedding spaces are excellent.

Thanks go to David for the photos - he had his camera on him and I didn't! We couldn't get one with the Tower view as the sun was right behind it and extremely bright!

One room looks out over the beach and sea and from the staircase there are views up the Promenade and over the sea to Cumbria and Barrow where we could see plenty of snow on the Lakeland hills!

Return to Blackpool Promenade and Beach Index Page

Happy Birthday Jeannie!

Last night was Jeannie's 60th Birthday Party. The band played (with Bob on stage with us). Fran did the catering - and picked up so many compliments for the wonderful buffet spread she put on.

It was a very busy and very full day but all the effort over the past few weeks came together to good effect and it was a brilliant night that seemed over almost as soon as we started! Jeannie's birthday is during the coming week, but we chose the weekend for the party to ensure as many people could come as possible - mainly me I think at the moment!

There's a few more celebratory events to come this week. Jeannie and Fran are going off for the day on Tuesday for an all-day pampering at a local beauty salon. David and I were turned down as the staff said they had to have a fighting chance... Couldn't understand that...

Then at the end of the week we're taking a couple of days off work to have a meal and perhaps fit in a trip out somewhere. On Saturday the band have a club date in Ormskirk.

Today we have been unloading the cars - last night we were so knackered that we left everything in the car. Although Fran just wanted one bag out of the back seat. This was so crowded I opened the door very carefully as it was around 1:30 in the morning. Unfortunately whilst I caught the bag that wanted to fall out, it didn't much matter as it was upside down... A large Quality Street tin, which had cup cakes or something in it, fell out with the loudest crash I've ever heard and trundled off down the once-silent street! Sorry neighbours...

Dinner Party

Great night last night. We hosted a dinner party to celebrate Fran's birthday which falls within the week.

We had Gill and Eddie, Mum and our great friends David and Jeannie.

The table had to be dismantled and taken into the front room to fit us all round it but it was well worth the effort!

Fran and Jeannie had decided (in advance I hasten to say) to be twins for the night and we had a very laughter-filled night with a brilliant meal - starters: chicken liver pate with toast, onion relish, green salad and cherry tomatoes or melon with summer fruits coulis or prawn cocktail. main course: chicken marinated in white wine with a white wine and cream sauce with choices of potatoes au gratin, boiled new potatoes, cubed roasted potatoes with green bits on (fancy names?!? what do you want fancy names for?) and a choice of veg with sliced carrots, asparagus spears, peas and mixed cauliflower and broccoli. Sweets were mandarin orange cheesecake, chocolate gateaux or an assortment of cheese and biscuits and we finished with coffee and mints. All complimented with pink cava, chardonnet, or decanted merlot - hey, can be good with chicken if you're not that fussed!

Me and my little girl!

Photos courtesy of David the click monster, great hilarity ensued when he announced in a shocked tone that the camera's storage card was full... It did already have a fair number of photos stored when he started. But even then it was after 100 photos of the night...

Larbreck Hall Gig

Great gig last night for David and I out at Larbreck Hall Caravan Park.

We were going to do an outdoor, but the weather was appalling. The organisers had sorted out an old barn and built a stage with scaffolding, pallets stacked and carpeted over and a backdrop and sides of sheet plastic - pretty good too for such a temporary set-up!

The pallets were very springy though - when we started foot tapping and getting into the faster stuff I thought I was going to be catapulted off stage a couple of times but we survived and dragged Jeannie up to sing backing vocals for The Ronette's song Be My Baby.

Thanks to the holiday makers and residents at the caravan park for such a great reception and your enthusiasm! Thanks too to the very enthusiastic group of girls who screamed and shouted and kept demanding Bob The Builder for some strange reason! I managed to work it into my keyboard solo on Ho Ho Silver Lining - that has to be a world's first...!

The gig rounded off a charity event organised mainly by my mother which she has run every year in support of Cancer Research since Dad died in 2004.

Trials and Tribulations

We've gained a new backing singer!

David's wife Jeannie joins us for a bit of help on the chorus of Be My Baby. Which is a good thing because my falsetto is not was it used to be...

We were round at our house last night for another run through of the new stuff and to see if we can revive a couple of numbers that have fallen by the wayside a bit. A good time was had by all, helped by Fran's cubed chicken in white wine and garlic which was just a bit yummy!

At the same time though we've had a gig called off this weekend so are going to console ourselves with a trip out to Frankie & Bennie's!

London Weekend

What a fabulous weekend!

David's surprise birthday trip included a trip on the London Eye - the weather was a bit dull but it is November so we couldn't expect brilliant sunshine!

Jeannie didn't fancy the height so she agreed to stay and keep a careful watch for any stray yoghurts that might be around to be spotted!

We spent Saturday wandering and sight-seeing and then hit the shops on Sunday. Well, to be more precise, the ladies hit more shops than David and myself, we just hit HMV big time...

Then driving home last night we found ourselves in the middle of a snow storm! Brrr! White stuff?!? We don't get that in Blackpool!

Ingrid Pitt's Birthday Bash

Have just got back from London (second time in a week!) where we went to Ingrid Pitt's annual Birthday Party and Fan Club Bash and a very good 'do' it was too!

For some reason Fran and I were elevated to the top table this year - very nice to be there too, I sat next to writer James Herbert's wife, Eileen and she was very friendly and was really interesting to talk to. Ingrid was next to her with James on her other side.

Kate O'Mara and Veronica Carlson came but had to leave early due to some busy schedules, but the ever-lovely Caroline Munro was there and looking radiant as she chatted with guests and posed for photos.

Ingrid herself looked well after all her health setbacks and I gather there's still some surgery to come so we wish her well with that.

"I was looking on my desk for something and all I could find were photos of me with you!" she said. It didn't even sound like a complaint...! In fact she didn't tell me off once - very strange...

The night flew by all too quickly and we left her happily chatting away and as usual went off to find a taxi cab with Caroline who lives on our route back to our usual hotel.

Once back at the hotel we had a nightcap with David and Jeannie who spent the weekend in London with us - a surprise pressy for David's birthday. They had been to see Les Miserables whilst we were at Ingrid's party. It was a superb weekend - more when I can keep my eyes open!

Happy Birthday Jeannie!

Happy Birthday greetings to a roadie extraordinaire, diary keeper supremo, props finder, Creeping Bentgrass dedicated fan, wife to some singer or other and sometime tambourine basher, the ever youthful, glamourous, thoroughly lovely person...

...Jeannie!

Ah... 30 at last...!

We went round to whisk her and David out for lunch and the afternoon and we hope you enjoyed your day Jeannie!

Lots of love,
John and Fran xxx

Cancer Charity Gig

Last night David and I played at Larbreck Hall Caravan Park. Bob had a prior engagement with The Old School Band but we gave them a good night of music and they got up and filled the dance floor!

We have played there several years - the first one at Larbreck was for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002 - and we usually do an outdoor gig. The weather looked a little suspect yesterday so we were inside a huge barn and with a few pallets, boarded over for a stage and a couple of caravans as a backdrop, we added a few lights and it made for a good atmosphere!

Since Dad died in 2004, Mum (pictured with the band's organiser and fixit, Jeannie) has organised an annual charity event in benefit of MacMillan Cancer Support. The afternoon is spent on the lawn at the side of her caravan, with piles of jumble, bric-a-brac and competitions - a whisky wall, a photo caption competition, raffles, tombola, etc.

Fran spent most of the weekend, making mix and baking scones for cream teas or just for selling. At least 6 dozen went through the oven!

The residents and holiday makers on the caravan site and various family members raised over £500 for the charity. During the gig we auctioned a couple of bottles of whisky and a large dinner service that someone had donated and until Mum does her reckoning today I'm not sure just what the final total will be.

It was strange to think that our next gig will be a spot at the reception of Gill's wedding next week! When we played "Constantly" which is destined to be the married couple's first dance together, both Fran and sister-in-law Joyce had tears streaming down their cheeks! As David said, "I didn't think we were that bad..."

7 Brides, 7 Brothers and a Preacher...

Last night we had the most excellent night out. We went to the Spring offering from GLOG - the Garstang Light Opera Group - who were staging "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers".

Band member David Lancaster is a member of GLOG and was playing the part of the Preacher. As usual he put in a fine comedic turn with lots of face pulling and a few ad libs here and there. There were some fine performances from Marion Gaughan as Milly and Roger Lloyd Jones as Adam and I must especially mention some of the younger members of GLOG who turned in blinding performances as the brides and brothers.

The more experienced of the cast being chastened to realise the script would have needed rewriting a touch as "Seven Widows for Seven Divorcees" perhaps? No matter! I always remember the excellent line from "42nd Street" which goes something like "Son, I've been playing juveniles on Broadway for 15 years and no one is going to tell me..."

As it was the last night for the show the cast traditionally have a last night after the show party, the last few of which Fran and I have been privileged to attend. I travel too much to be able to attend rehearsals to be a member, but the band play GLOG's fund raising evenings and I've sort of been adopted as a sort of associate member! In order that both David and Jeannie (who works behind the scenes) can enjoy the night I've always driven on these occasions.

Last night the party was held in the Church Inn, giving David the chance backstage to adopt his Preacher persona and announce "Everyone to the Church!". GLOG Chairman, Peter Cooney and I took along accoustic guitars and after the hotpot supper we gathered the cast of the show around us for a couple of hours of sing-a-long fun to the music of the Everly Brothers, Dylan and more...er.. did I somehow launch them into Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody???"