A busy May

The car situation has been sorted out, but I think it merits a separate post. I will get angry writing about it and am in a relatively good mood right now, so it can wait!

May has been a busy month. First up was a trip to the Harold Pinter Theatre to see Betrayal starring Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Cox and Zawe Ashton. This was Anna's Christmas present (she is a teeny bit of a Hiddleston fan) and I was lucky enough to get tickets when they went on sale. Our tickets were 'cheap' (£40) because we were in the back row with a pillar in the way:

It didn't make too much of a difference but it seems like a strange design for a theatre. I thought the play was very good with all three stars putting on a good performance. Afterwards it became clear that sitting in the back row was actually a tactical masterstroke from myself(!), because it meant we could get into the queue at the stage door reasonably quickly. There were I think three other men in the queue with me which probably tells you who everyone was waiting to see! All three actors came out to sign autographs or take a selfie, I managed to get selfies with Charlie Cox and Tom Hiddleston!

After the excitement was over we had a nice meal at Wahaca and headed home.

We headed back to London the weekend after to see the Manics at the Shepherd's Bush Empire. I've lost count of how many times I've seen the Manics, I think it's around 22 now. Things have definitely changed since I first went to see them. Instead of queueing to be at the barrier or having a drink, we went for our now ritual pre-gig Wagamamas and then sat in an M&S café wondering if we were too old for this! It didn't help that they were playing This is My Truth Tell Me Yours in its entirety, I have fond memories of the album but it's not something to get excited about.

The support act was Gwenno, who was OK - I liked the cheese song at the end! The interval was as long as ever and the standing area was packed - getting to and from the toilets was an adventure in itself. Finally, the Manics came on stage and we realised that no, we're not too old for this and the Manics are still brilliant!

The photos are slightly better quality on Flickr, but I didn't take that many this time.

If I were to rank albums in order of number of listens, I'm sure TIMT would be near the top. It takes me back to being 18 again, how simple things were back then (even though I didn't realise it at the time!) It was great to hear Prologue to History for the first time, and I can also tick off SYMM.

The second part of the set was brilliant. SLEEPFLOWER! It made such a difference to not only be near the front, but everyone around us was clearly a) a fan and b) wanted to enjoy themselves, so there was much jumping around. I'm definitely feeling older now but I guess most Manics fans are too (I was wearing earplugs and I spotted a few other pairs around me). They played some of my favourite songs (Tristesse, No Surface All Feeling) and I always forget just how good Your Love Alone is. It was exactly what I needed after a crap couple of months, very cathartic!

Last weekend was my first capoeira festival. I've been doing it for about six months now, at times I feel great and other times I feel very inadequate, but it's fun. I learned a lot from the capoeira mestres and earned my first cord, as did Rory. Nicky now has an orange cord, although he has been doing it for several years!