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One hundred people’s ninth favourite thing: [title of show] @swkplay

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[title of show] takes you back to a time before the fast paced social media where word of mouth for a positive show came from chat boards, video diaries or (god forbid) blogs. A simple staging makes it an ideal (and economical piece to stage), but it’s sweet and earnest take on just putting on a show, and putting it out there and taking a chance gives this show its heart. With a strong and energetic cast and endless musical theatre references, it’s hard to resist and it’s currently playing at the Southwark Playhouse .  It opens with Hunter (Jacob Fowler) and Jeff (Thomas Oxley) as struggling young writers in New York City. An upcoming New York Musical Theatre festival, inspires them to write an original musical within three weeks to make the deadline. As they discuss ideas, writers block, distractions and endless other good and bad musicals, an idea for a show emerges. Which is about writing a show for a musical theatre festival.  Their friends Heidi (Abbie Budden) and Susan (Mary Moor
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Theatre: Little Shop of Horrors

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Paul Keating plays Seymour... Hello! Suddenly Seymour he purified everyone... Tonight I caught Little Shop of Horrors at the Menier Chocolate Factory near London Bridge. Again it is another fantastic production that doesn't put a foot wrong. I have never seen a stage production of this show but this musical has been a long-time favourite of mine... There's a talking plant, a sadomasochistic dentist, a sweet girl and a nerdy boy. Throw in the late Howard Ashman's witty book and lyrics and Alan Menken's music and you have a very entertaining show. I knew almost every lyric in this show and found myself still laughing at the jokes... They still seem fresh and funny even though the show is approaching 25 years of age... My excitement over Little Shop of Horrors surprised Mk who I went with. He likes the show too and normally we have rather different tastes in musical theatre. For instance he has seen Mamma Mia ten times and I just can't bring myself to seeing it yet...
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News: Cabbies have it tough

In news that doesn't feature polonium 210, we learned this week that London cabbies have the most stressful job in the UK. Poor things they have a hell of a time earning all that money and having to refuse fares if they take them to places they don't want to go (like South London)... Everytime I have caught one it has been a rather enjoyable and efficient experience so I could be missing out on the stress and everything... Then again in September I did see at Cambridge Circus one driver get out and shout to a pedestrian who punched his window (after the driver went through a red light no less), "Come back and do that again you little cunt!" so I guess there could be some anger management issues for drivers...
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Music: Dreamgirls (revisited)

As a sometime fan of Dreamgirls since discovering it after the concert recording that was made in 2001 featuring Audra McDonald, I was chuffed to find out that the original Broadway cast recording has been remastered with a few additional tracks included ahead of the movie release (in February in the UK). It arrived today and I have been giving my colleagues a drip-feed on the musical brilliance of this show. This special edition also includes orchestral versions that could become... Karaoke versions... I can just see after a few work drinks me trying to lead everyone in a version of "And I'm telling you, I'm not going". As for the movie soundtrack... That's out December 11 , but thanks to the wonders of YouTube you can see just what Beyonce is like in the movie with the song "Listen" (below). Beyonce performed this last week on Oprah and the copyright lawyers haven't spotted this infringement yet... This movie is going to be huge... It's releas
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Scenes from Piccadilly Sunday

All the talk this week has been about polonium-210 so A and I went to Piccadilly to find out what all the fuss was about... The sushi was definitely off the menu so we went elsewhere for a bite... Meanwhile the police have reportedly updated their investigation from an "unexplained death" to a "suspicious death". Polonium-210 poisoning does sound a bit suspicious as I don't think its a normal filling in a California Roll ... It would bring a new meaning to "Asian fusion" cooking if it did... The Economist this week offers helpful advice for dissident Russians living abroad: for longevity don't investigate the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, the mysterious Russian apartment bombings in 1999, or the embezzlement of funds for Chechnya reconstruction. These subjects could soon find you loosing your hair too...
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News: Russians and Polonium-210

The death of a Russian ex-spy this week in London from radiation poisoning is causing a bit of a stir given that three London locations have found traces of the radioactive substance... Tonight the Met reports that "Traces of Polonium-210 have been found at the Itsu sushi restaurant in Piccadilly, the Millennium Hotel, Grosvenor Square, and at Mr Litvinenko's home in Muswell Hill, London (not prepared to discuss further [whatever that means - Paul]). The sushi restaurant is currently closed, and parts of the Millennium Hotel have been closed while examinations continue." Itsu Restaurant has been at pains to point out that the poisoning didn't occur from dodgy fish, but dodgy Russians... And to date there are no special deals at the Millennium Hotel for anti-static rooms... Oh for the days when people were just stabbed with umbrellas or found hanging from Blackfriars Bridge...
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Scenes from the Tate Modern Friday 13:59

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Scenes from the Tate Modern Friday 13:59 , originally uploaded by Pauly_ . As part of a team building half-day away day I suggested that we try out the slides by Carsten Höller at the Tate Modern . Well actually, the away day was fashioned around the desire to go on these monster slides but never mind that... I tried both slides in the foreground. Starting with the one on the top level I found it to be a bumpy ride that was only improved after yelling a four-letter expletive for the entire journey down. The lower one was more fun and I managed to even enjoy it a little... There was a shorter slide that I even managed to make "wheee" noises for... By that point I had become a slide pro... The slides will be around until April next year. By then I may try the slide from level four that has you going at speeds of up to 30mph... But not today... Höller may be onto something when he suggests that slides should be incorporated into new buildings as an interesting way of gettin
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Film: Borat - Cultural Learnings of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

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I luv Borat , originally uploaded by Crystal Pistol . Finally caught the Borat movie tonight which has been playing for the last month here. The above scene was mild compared to the nude wrestling with a large fat hairy man that happens halfway through the film. Watching it with M she didn't appreciate the finer comic points of a large fat man's hairy ass... Not all the set pieces seemed to work (especially the one making fun of the US national anthem - at a Rodeo in Texas). But a film with frat boys talking about dominating women, hookers at social gatherings and a bear in an ice cream van is my kind of movie...
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Overheard at the cafe Wednesday...

Man #1 : I'm just bored with it all... Man #2 : Well I know a guy who can get you cheap Viagra... Man #1 : I don't need Viagra, I just need better looking talent...
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