Yay!  Lovely to meet you, Mara.  I read your introduction and am pleased to note that I'm a Jane Austen fan, too.  Have you ever seen the brilliant Austen improv comedy group. Austentatious? 

http://austentatiousimpro.com/

I'll be seeing them twice in December, if you want to come along for the show on December 3 or December 9. We could have dinner beforehand if you like.

I plan on a lot of museum and theatre visits while I'm in London.  The Cheapside Hoard exhibit at the Museum of London looks like it will be splendid.  I've seen bits and pieces of the collection before, but they've never had it all together like this. For someone who likes both shiny and history, it's a winner. Real buried treasure! And Sherlock would approve that there's a mystery attached to how the jewels ended up buried and abandoned:
http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/london-wall/whats-on/exhibitions-displays/cheapside-hoard-londons-lost-jewels/

Can't wait for their Sherlock Holmes exhibit next year:
http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/london-wall/whats-on/exhibitions-displays/sherlock-holmes/

The V&A museum also has some great stuff, as usual.  Love the V&A!

Anyone else interested in meeting up at any point?

Anna M.C.

Hello Nick/SherlockHound, lovely to meet you, too!

I just read your post on the Birmingham market - sounds fun.  If the convention isn't canceled, I'd definitely like to see the market while I'm there.  Perhaps we can make arrangements to meet up there, if you're planning to visit the market as well.  If not, we can meet up in London, or both.   I've been to Birmingham once before for the Discworld convention, but the museum was about the only thing I saw there besides the convention hotel.  They had a nice selection of Pre-Raphaelite art there, though. The Shakespeare Memorial Room you mentioned at the library would be worth a visit.  Speaking of the Bard, I have a ticket to see Hiddleston in Coriolanus in December!  Go, me!  I hope the rumors about HamletBatch next year turn out to be true; he was brilliant in both roles in Frankenstein. Wish I could have made it to London this summer to see Roger Allam in The Tempest at the Globe, as well as Pride & Prejudice at Regent's Park, but neither my vacation allotment nor my finances are infinite.   I do have a ticket to see Perfect Nonsense in November, though. Hurrah for Jeeves & Wooster!

Yes, the metalwork at the V&A is exquisite -- just about everything is.  I'll admit that the costume and jewelry sections hold an extra-special place in my girly heart, and I can get lost for hours in the British galleries.  Theatre galleries, too.  So much good stuff!  How I wish that I could live in London. I know I'm lucky that I can at least visit every year, though.

Anna M.C.

Into the Woods is my favorite play!  I've seen it at least half-a-dozen times in various productions.  I wish I could have seen it in Regent's Park -- I can't imagine a more perfect venue.

Back when Benedict Cumberbatch was performing in Frankenstein, I was also lucky enough to get a ticket to see him recording the St. Petersburg episode of Cabin Pressure. Although I admit I was initially interested for the Cumberbatch Factor, that recording got me completely hooked on the show, which I immediately purchased from Audible.com.  The writing is hilarious and the entire cast is marvelous; best comic timing ever.  Roger Allam's voice can actually rival Benedict's, which is not something I would have thought possible. Attending that recording is one of my favorite memories. Some kind stranger showed me the best place to wait by the doors before they let us into the studio, so I ended up getting a seat in the second row, dead center.  To quote Arthur, it was brilliant.

I've only been to Stratford-Upon-Avon once, for less than an hour, alas, and I didn't really get to see anything.  I'll have to go back one day. So many things left on my list to do.  I really want to see the lake country sometime.

A road trip would be fun -- we'll see if the convention ends up happening.  Just to warn you, though, the convention doesn't offer day passes, and it's not cheap.

Speaking of road trips, I'm trying to find someone with a car who also enjoys Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy to attend this with me:
http://www.hitchhikerslive.com/tour-dates.html

I was thinking of the Nov. 22 show in Bromley with John Lloyd.  I'll happily pay for the other person's ticket and help out with the cost of petrol if they take care of the to-and-from-Bromley part.   Anyone interested?

Anna M.C.

Last edited by annamc (October 13, 2013 1:13 am)

Mara, if you'd like to go to Austentatious on Dec. 3 or Dec. 9, please let me know and I'll email them to request that they hold two seats for me instead of just one.  They tend to sell out quickly. If you'd rather just meet for lunch or tea or something on another day, then no worries.  Just let me know.

Anna M.C.