First trip to the Theatre

West End Theatre Visits.

 My wife Anne and I started going out together in 2002. The first time we went to the theatre together was in the December that year which was We Will Rock You. It was only a little time later that we decided to visit all the West End theatres. There are 42 and we have not put any time limit on it. While we go to other theatres or the same one more than once, also we had been to some without each other; here is a list of our first visit to each of the 42. I love the inside of all the old theatres, it is like going back in time, close your eyes and you can see the ladies in their gowns and the gents in their top hats and tails.

   1. We Will Rock You. Dominion Theatre December 2002.

This a musical by Ben Elton and Queen based on the music of the band Queen. Set in the future where music had been banned. The story line was a bit??? But if you are into Queen music like I am, it was great. It was the week before Christmas and with people dancing in the isles it was a very good night. When I had left Anne, I was going down the staircase at Tottenham Court Road tube station it was packed and we had come to a standstill, and someone banged on the hollow metal wall, and everyone in the stairs sang out We will, we will, rock you!

     The Dominion is a Grade II listed art deco theatre in London's Tottenham Court Road, and opened in October 1929. It had a budget of just under £500,000 to build, I am not sure how far that would go on construction these days? The photograph above is of Freddie Mercury.  

2. Mousetrap. St Martin’s Theatre February 2003. 

 

One of Agatha Christie’s most celebrated works, and still going strong. Anne got these tickets as a surprise for me as she knew I wanted to see it and it had been on for 50 years and I was also 50 that year, it started the year I was born, 1952. It has been at this theatre since 1974.

     St Martins Theatre in West street London WC2 UK and it opened in November 1916 and is another Grade II listed building

      Anne had seen it before but did not tell me who done it, but I did guess, who done it. Wouldn’t you like to know? Go and see it.

3. Our House. Cambridge Theatre. June 2003.

                                                                                

   

Another musical based on a band’s music, this time it was Madness. When our children were young we would have this and others on all the time, mainly payed by our son Paul. I have got to say at the time I was not a big fan, but as the years have gone on I have got to like them and they did have a lot of hits. Suggs had been in the show but came out the week before, which was a real pity.

   The Cambridge Theatre opened in 1930, which was a particularly busy year for theatres opening in the West End of London with the openings of Prince Edward, The Phoenix and Leicester Square Theatres. The Cambridge Theatre is another Grade II listed building. 

4. Rat Pack. Aldwych Theatre. December 2003.

 

       

Based on the songs of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. It was meant to be in Los Vegas in the run up to Christmas. Of course, with them all being dead they were all played by look-a-likes. But it was very good and we enjoyed it very much. It did a lot of very good songs, I remember seeing this program on TV as a child.

    The theatre is in the City of Westminster and a Grade II listed building and has a seating capacity of 1,200 on three levels. It was built in 1905 and is named after the street it is in.

 

5. HMS Pinafore. Savoy Theatre. January 2004.

      

I have always liked the works of Gilbert and Sullivan, and we have seen others of their shows. The other name for this show is The Lass That Loved a Sailor. It is a comic opera in two acts with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W.S. Gilbert. It opened in London in 1878 and run for 571 performances.

   The Savoy Theatre was built next to Savoy Hotel in The Strand London just to show Gilbert and Sullivan’s works. The theatre opened on the 10^th October 1881 and was built by Richard D’Oyly-Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace. It was the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity.

6. Spartacus the ballet. Royal Opera House. The Bolshoi Ballet Company. June 2004.

 

We had been to a few ballets and had really enjoyed them, so the chance to see them at the Royal Opera House could not be missed. I was very disappointed by both. We had seen better ballet companies and while it was lovely inside the Opera House I hate being ripped off, and while you do at all theatres it was even more so here with tickets and drinks etc.

     The ROH is in Covent Garden in central London, next to the old market. It is home of Royal Opera and Royal Ballet. This is the third theatre on this site, following fires in 1808 and 1856 to the previous buildings. The façade, foyer, and auditorium date back from 1858, but it had an extensive reconstruction. The main auditorium seats 2,256 people, making it the third largest in London.      

 

7. Tonight’s the Night. Victoria Place Theatre. October 2004.

The show was based on songs from Rod Stewart and his wife Penny Lancaster was in it. This was in fact the last show but one, in the West End it was then going on the road. Again, I like his music and the tickets had been brought by my daughter Jean for my birthday. We meet her and her husband Paul after for a meal and they were the first to know that Anne and I were to get married the next year. Our seats were in the front row.

 The theatre was opened in 1911 and is in Victoria Street, Westminster, opposite Victoria station. There were two other theatres on the site, Moy’s Music Hall 1832 and the Royal Standard Music Hall 1863. It was rebuilt in 2016/17 and seats 1,602 on 3 levels. 

 8. A Christmas Carol. The Albery Theatre. 30^th December 2004.

   

    

This was the week between Christmas and New Year. I wanted to see this for two reasons, first I really like Charles Dickens and this play. Then as an actor I really like Patrick Stewart and wanted to see him live. I did not know until the day before that it was a one ‘man show’ and had only a few props. I was not sure about it when I found that out, but boy was it good. It is amazing how one person could do all of that, I did think he was good before this, but he did certainly go up in my view after that.

   The theatre has been renamed the Noel Coward Theatre after it changed owners and had a major refurbishment in 2006. It is in St Martin Lane Westminster. It opened on 12^th March 1903 as the New Theatre. It was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham’s theatre which was completed in 1899. It seats 960 people on 4 levels. 

                                                                                                                                                               

  9. Sleeping Beauty, the ballet. The Coliseum. 14^th January 2006. Moscow City Ballet.

                                                                                    

                                                                                           

We had seen them before preforming Swan Lake and really liked them. We have in fact been to this theatre more than any other up until now, mainly for the ballet.

    I think most people know the story, but just in case, here is a brief outline. A witch curses a new born princess to die on her 16^th birthday. However, a fairy alters the curse, allowing her to survive by going into deep sleep that can only be broken by the true love’s kiss.

    The Coliseum is another in St Martin’s Lane and is the West Ends largest theatre. It opened on 24^th December (Christmas Eve) 1904 as the London Coliseum Theatre of Varieties. When it opened it was the only theatre in Europe to provide lifts to all upper levels of the theatre. It was also the first in England to have a triple revolve installed on its stage. It seats 2,359 people.

10. Sinatra at the Palladium. London Palladium. 16^th September 2006.

         

This was another birthday present for me this time from Anne. The show was of course about Frank Sinatra’s life and songs. They had a Big Band on stage and footage of him singing. As Sinatra fans, it was as near as Anne and I would get to see him. It was good to see the show about him and of course growing up in the days of Sunday Night at the London Palladium it was nice to go there as well.

     The London Palladium is a Grade II West End theatre located in Argyll Street, London in the area of Soho. It opened on Boxing day, 26^th December 1910, it seats 2,286 people. While the theatre has resident shows it also hosts one-off performances, such as, concerts, TV specials and Christmas pantomimes. It has also hosted the Royal Variety Performance 43 times.

11. Blood Brothers. The Phoenix Theatre. March 2007.

               

These tickets were brought us by my daughter Jean, I think for Christmas. I had heard a lot about the play and enjoyed the story.

     Written by Liverpudlian Willy Russell who is an Everton football supporter, it was good spotting the things he had put in the play about the team.

   The story is about twin brothers, Mickey and Eddie who are separated at birth, one subsequently being raised in a wealthy family, the other in a poor family. The play is set in the 1960’s and is divided into two acts, with songs throughout.

     The theatre is in Charing Cross Road, in the London Borough of Camden. The theatre was built on the site of a former factory and then music hall, The Alcaraz. It opened on the 24^th September 1930 and seats 1,012 people.  

12. Waiting for Godot. The Theatre Royal Haymarket. 25^th July 2009.

     

Again, I wanted to see Patrick Stewart but also Ian McKellen was in it, we both like him as well. An old play which had been brought back and up dated, it was very funny at times.

     Waiting for Godot, is a play by Samuel Becket in which two characters, Vidimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), engage in a variety of discussions and encounters while awaiting the titular Godot, who never arrives. Waiting for Godot is Beckett’s translation of his own original French-language play, En attendant Godot.

     The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as the Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. The original building was a little further north in the same street. It has been at its current location since 1821, when it was redesigned by John Nash. It is a Grade I listed building, with seating for 888 people.

13. Oliver. Theatre Royal Drury Lane. 12^th December 2009.

       

                   

 

Another Dickens story and of course one we both like a lot. Another theatre trip before Christmas. It was a show that was with Anne’s work and we went for a meal with some of her colleagues afterwards in Val Taro’s off Leicester Square.

       We enjoyed the show very much, and they made a lot of up to date gags about MP’s expenses etc. Omid Djalili played Fagin. He was born in London to Iranian parents, I have seen him on TV doing stand-up I think. He was very good and funny. Oliver is a musical based on the 1838 novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickins.

     The Theatre Royal, Dury Lane, commonly known as Dury Lane, is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, London. The building is the most recent in a line of four theatres which were built in the same location, the earliest which dates back to 1663, making it the oldest theatre site in London still in use. It has been rebuilt a few times the last in 1812. It is a Grade I listed building and has a capacity of 1.996 on 4 levels.  

14. Mrs Warren’s Profession. The Comedy Theatre. 24^th April 2010.

I wanted to see this as Felicity Kendal was in it, another actress I like a lot. We have used the bar across the road the Comedy Bar a lot but have never been in the theatre before. The show  was by George Bernard Shaw, another show which had been brought back. It was about a young girl who finds out that her Mother was a Madam. I must say did not think much of it, thought it was a bit flat!

      The name of this theatre changed in 2011 to the Harold Pinter Theatre. It is on Panton Street in the City of Westminster and opened on the 15^th October 1881 as the Royal Comedy Theatre. It was designed by Thomas Verity and built in just six months in painted stone and brick. By 1884 it was known as simply the Comedy Theatre. In the mid-1950’s the theatre underwent a major reconstruction and re-opened in December 1955.It is a Grade II and has a capacity of 796, originally 1,186.  

15. All the Fun of the Fair. Garrick Theatre. 28^th August 2010.

This was based on the songs of David Essex. We had seats in the third row, so we were very close to the stage. I like some of his music and it had a story line and was a clapping sort of thing. Christopher Timothy (All Creatures Great and Small) was also in it, that was a bonus for me as I also like him.

    All the Fun of the Fair, is a jukebox musical with a book by Jon Conway, based on David’s songs. The tile to the musical is taken from his 1975 album of the same name.

    The Garrick Theatre is located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, it is named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889, it’s capacity is currently 718 on 3 levels, originally it was 800 on 4 levels.

16. Onassis. The Novello Theatre. 13^th November 2010.

This is a newish play, I wanted to see it because Robert Lindsay was in it, I really like him. The play was about the Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis, around the time he took up with Jackie Kennedy, the widow of JFK. It says that Onassis had her bother-in-law Robert Kennedy killed as he did not want them to marry? There was a lot of swearing in it and a lot of sexual references, a very adult play.

   The Novello Theatre, is in the Aldwych in London, (formerly The Waldorf Theatre, The Strand Theatre and the Whitney Theatre) was opened on the 22^nd May 1905, it is Grade II listed and has a capacity of 1,146. Another really nice theatre, but sorry to say it was not very full, but we enjoyed the show.

 

17. Stomp. Ambassadors Theatre. Saturday 5th March 2011.

Stomp is a unique combination of percussion, movement and visual comedy. It was created in Brighton in the summer of 1991 by Steve McNicholas and Luke Cresswell. Its dance and music made up from using the likes of dustbin lids, brooms, supermarket trollies and much more. It was very good but also the first show we had been to that did not have an interval.

    The Ambassadors Theatre (formerly the New Ambassadors Theatre) is a West End theatre located in West Street, in the City of Westminster. It is one of the smallest West End theatres seating a maximum of 444 people, on two levels. It opened on the 5^th June 1913.

18. Three Days in May. Trafalgar Studios. Saturday 3rd March 2012.

       

This was a Christmas present from my sister and brother-in-law Jean and Roy. The theatre/studio was more modern than the older theatres in the West End. It was nice but the seats were uncomfortable and not very big. The play was good and stared Warren Clarke as Winton Churchill. It only had 8 cast members in it and was set in May 1940 just after Dunkirk. Italy and Germany wanted Britain to do a deal, to in fact surrender.  Of course, they did not and the rest is history as they say.

     The Trafalgar Theatre as it is know known (following a major multi-million-pound refit in 2021, it is now 2022) was two theatres in the same building but is now just one. It is one of the newer West End theatres, it first opened in 1930. It was first named the White Hall Theatre and changed to Trafalgar Studios in 2004 until 2020. A Grade II listed building which has a capacity of 630 seats. 

19. Mamma Mia. Prince of Wales Theatre. Thursday 9th August 2012.

               

This was while the 2012 London Olympic were on. I had the two weeks off for the games and Anne had some time off near the end and we spent time in London, in a hotel, we had no event on that day, so after a day out in London we went to see Mamma Mia. It has been a film as well which we saw before this but really enjoyed it.

     It is set on a Greek Island and is about a young girl who is about to get married and wants to know who her father is? It could be one of three men, who she invites to the wedding without her Mum knowing. It was set to ABBA songs which I do like a lot. it was a fun kind of thing which had everyone up and dancing and singing in the isles at the end, loads of good fun.

    The Prince of Wales Theatre is in Coventry Street near Leicester Square London. It was established in 1884, rebuilt in 1937, and refurbished in 2004. It has a seating capacity of 1,183 and is a Grade II listed building.

20. Les Misérables. Queens Theatre. 16th November 2013.

             

The play was in its 28th year in the West End and at the time the world's longest running musical. We had heard a lot about it mostly good some not so good, but we really enjoyed it. Written by Victor Hugo. In the first half it follows an ex-con, who the policeman who is chasing him thinks he should still be in prison. The second half still follows that story but it is also mixed up with the French Revolution. While of course it was sad, it was also very funny at times. This was a birthday present to me from Anne.

     This theatre is now known at Sondheim Theatre. It is located in Shaftesbury Avenue on the corner of Wardour Street. It opened as The Queens Theatre on the 8^th October 1907. It was designed by W. G. R. Sprague and became a Grade II listed building in 1972. The theatre seats 1200 people on two levels.

21. Made in Dagenham. The Adelphi Theatre. 21st February 2015.

    

We worked this show in around the fact that we had be given a champagne dinner at the Waldorf Hotel by friends Will and Gill, we also stayed the night in London. We had seen the film not long before which we had enjoyed. This of course was set to music, but we did enjoy it and had a good night out also. The play is about women car workers at the Ford factory who went on strike in the 1960's and in the end changed the women's employment world how it was known. It is a really great story.   

     The Adelphi Theatre is located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on this site. The other names have been, Sans Pareil – 1806, Adelphi – 1844, New Adelphi – 1858, Century Theatre – 1901, Royal Adelphi – 1930. It is a Grade II listed building and seats 1,500 people. Currently (March 2022) it is showing Back to the Future: The Musical. Anne and I went to see this in September 2021, it was very good.

22. Wicked. Apollo Victoria. 28th March 2015.

          

When Anne and I were on holiday the year before last in Malta, we used to have a drink most nights in the bar with a couple, Phil and Sandra who came from Crew and they liked the theatre but did not come to London much, so I said let’s meet up sometime. So, this was the weekend, we all stayed at hotels in Waterloo, we meet up had a bit of lunch, went to the show then had a meal in the evening, we had a really good day and enjoyed it very much. The show was very spectacular and the story took a bit of keeping up with but it was enjoyed by us all. This is linked to, The Wizard of Oz. 

   Another Grade II Listed Building, this is in Shaftesbury Avenue, in the City of Westminster. It became the fourth legitimate theatre to be constructed on the street when it opened on the 21^st February 1901 with the American musical comedy, The Belle of Bohemia. Seats 658 people.

23. The Lion King. Lyceum Theatre. 15th August 2015.

           

This was a last-minute thing to go to this show as we were spending the night in London after going out with my cousins Linda and Janet and their husbands the night before. As we had a fair few theatre tokens which we had been to given us, we ticked another theatre off the list. The production was very good but I would say it is a bit of a kid’s thing as there was a million there! But as I said it was well put on and the acting very good. At the start the whole cast entered the stage from the rear of the theatre coming down all the isles, it was very impressive, a person would not want to be late.

   This theatre is in Wellington Street in the City of Westminster, just off the Strand. It has a seating capacity of 2,100. The origins of the theatre go back to 1765. The building has hosted a variety of entertainments, including a circus, a chapel, and the first London exhibition of waxworks by Madame Tussauds. From 1816 to 1830, it severed as The English Opera House.  

 

24. The Woman in Black. Fortune Theatre. 25th October 2015.

       

Again, this was the day after staying a night in London for cousin Linda's birthday. We booked the show a little while before and had some good seats in row D in the stalls.

    It was first written by Susan Hill then adapted by Stephen Mallatratt who died at 57 in 2004, it was now in its 25th year in the West End. It is a ghost story, the stage had very little props on it with only two actors in it, apart from the Woman in Black that is! It is well known for the jumpiness of it, and it lived up to that. But it was very well acted and we enjoyed it very much.

    We had a bit of time before the show and it was raining, so being around Covent Garden's we went in St Paul's Church, also known as the Actors Church. There are lots of plaques to actors who have died, it's very interesting and worth a visit for anyone who likes the theatre.

    The Fortune Theatre is a Grade II listed building in Russell Street, near Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster. It opened on the 8^th November 1924 and seats 432 people on 3 levels.

25. Lord of the Dance - Dangerous Games. Playhouse Theatre. 5th December 2015.

This was presented by Michael Flatley, it was a weak and somewhat strange story line, but the dancing was good and I think that is what a lot of people went to see. We had a massive family of women and children behind us who had a family member in the cast so the screaming and shouting did spoil it a bit.

   Another older nice theatre right beside the Thames, a very nice spot. It was Anne's birthday weekend so we had been out with my cousins Linda and Janet plus Jeff on the Friday night for dinner and stayed overnight at Waterloo. 

   The Playhouse Theatre is in Northumberland Avenue, not far from Trafalgar Square. The theatre was built by F.H. Flower and Hill with a seating capacity of 1,200. It was rebuilt in 1907 and still retains its original machinery.

26. Miss Saigon - Prince Edward Theatre. 13th February 2016.

     

This show was having its second run in London's West End, before it opens in Broadway in Spring 2017. Anne saw it the first time but I had never seen it before. I think I can say it is the most powerful play I have seen. Set around the Vietnam War it tells the story of a GI who falls in love with a local girl and has a baby with her that he does not know about until she comes to the USA to find him.

  We enjoyed it very much and as I said, very powerful. The Prince Edward Theatre is just off Tottenham Court Road, we had lunch in the pub called The Montagu Pyke which used to be called the Marque Club which saw a lot of well-known bands in its day.

   The Prince Edward Theatre is in Old Compton Street, just north of Leicester Square. It first opened in April 1930. It has a seating capacity of 1,727.

27. Hangman - Wyndham's Theatre. 27th February 2016.

      

A black comedy based on Harry Wade’s, The Last Hangman, 1965. There were a lot of laughs in the play, but of course it was a very dark subject. At the time of writing this, it is the night of when we went so I am going to try and find out how much truth was in it?

   The Wyndham's Theatre opened on the 16th November 1899, it is small but a very nice theatre, we were at the back in the stalls and paid £65.50p a ticket and had people standing behind us who seemed to be moving around a lot which at that price we could have done without.

    It was designed by W. G.R. Sprague, the architect of this and six other London theatres between 1898 and 1916. It was designed to seat 759 people on three levels; later refurbishment increased this to four seating levels. The theatre became a Grade II listed building in September 1960.

28. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Gielgud Theatre. 26th March 2016.

       

The play is about Christopher a 15 - year old with Asperger Syndrome. A dog in the street where he lives is killed with a pitch-fork and Christopher plays detective like his hero Sherlock Holmes, to find out who killed Wellington the dog. In a small neighbourhood in Swindon, a boy with AS digging up clues is a powerful device for exposing the social relationships of his community. Anne, my daughter Jean and I went. We all really enjoyed it, it was a very moving play.

   This theatre opened on the 27^th December 1906 as the Hicks then later the Globe and was renamed the Gielgud in 1994 as a special tribute to Sir John Gielgud and to distinguish it from the nearby Shakespeare's Globe on the South Bank. It is a Grade II listed building and seats 994 people on three levels.

       

29. In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel. Charing Cross Theatre. 30th April 20016.

       

This is a play by Tennessee Williams, it had a cast of just four. It was about an artist who was getting old and a bit strange and his wife who I suppose you could say "wanted rid of him" as the story unfolded in the bar.

   There has been a theatre in the arches under Charing Cross Station since 1864 known by several names, Gattis-in-the-Arches, The Players Theatre, The New Players Theatre and was renamed to its current name in 2011. I did read somewhere that it was the smallest theatre in the West End but was told different by the bar manager who said it was the Jermyn Street Theatre where we have yet to go. It is a nice spot under the arches we had lunch in the restaurant which was nice and was cheap compared with the rest of the West End as were the tickets at £29.50p and a program at £2.50p. I suppose it could be called an intimate theatre which I think made it all the nicer along with all of the staff being very helpful.  

30. Show Boat. New London Theatre. 28th May 2016.

     

The show covers many years following the lives of the people who had lived and worked on the boat. It is a story of slavery, racism, a love story and people's lives’ as they get older. We really enjoyed the songs and of course it had, Ol Man River, in it, which is one of my all-time favourite songs.

   Although the New London Theatre is a modern building, there has been a place of entertainment on the site since Elizabethan times. What has been on the site has changed many times over the years but the building as it is today was opened in the early 1970's, it does look from that time with a lot of concrete on show. It is said that Nell Gwynn, mistress of Charles II, was associated with the tavern which was there. By the end of the 18th century it was called the Great Mogul.  

   This theatre was renamed on the 1^st May 2018 to the Gillian Lynne Theatre, this is the first theatre in the West End of London to be named after a non-royal female. It seats 1118 people on two levels.

    Paul Robeson above in the film Show Boat, 1936.

31. The Comedy About A Bank Robbery.  Criterion Theatre. Saturday 18th June 2016.

I think the best to say about this play is that it should have been called a “Farce" in the Brian Rix type of show. Anne enjoyed it, but I must say it was not really my cup of tea, I did call it "silly" at one point, but it did have everyone laughing.

   The Criterion Theatre is in Piccadilly, there has been a theatre there since the 19th century. It started off as The White Bear, a seventeenth-century posting inn. We had a box, which was good but only because I booked it late and that was all we could get and there were parts of the stage that we could not see. This a  is a Grade II listed building with a seating of 580, on three levels and opened on the 21^st March 1874. 

32. The Go Between. Apollo Theatre. Saturday 16th July 2016.

This was an anniversary present to Anne and I from daughter Jean and she came with us. This was a musical adaptation of the classic LP Hartley novel The Go Between. There were mixed reviews among the three of us. It was very simple, a one scene play, and with the star actor Michael Crawford from Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em to the original Phantom of the Opera and many other things. He was looking back when he was a young and was used by two lovers, the young lady of the house and the gardener as a Go Between to give each of them letters from the other. I enjoyed it but it was very sad in many ways.

   The Edwardian theatre, The Apollo named after the Greek god of music and arts first opened its doors in February 1901, a month after the death of Queen Victoria. It has seen many plays over the years and stars such as, Sir John Mills in Separate Tables, Richard Briers and Paul Eddington in Middle Aged Spread, Albert Finney in Orphans, Vanessa Redgrave in a Mad House in Goa, Peter O'Toole in Unwell and many many more.

    A small, but very likeable theatre. It has a seating capacity of 658 people and is a Grade II listed building.

 

33. Hobson's Choice. Vaudeville Theatre. Saturday 27th August 2016.

This was the second time Anne and I had seen this play in the past two years. The first time was at the Regents Park Open-Air Theatre with Anne's company. An old and simple story by Harold Brighouse which has been a film a few times over the years the most famous being in 1954 with John Mills and Charles Laughton. This production had Martin Shaw as Hobson and also had Christopher Timothy and other well-known actors. One of the good things about going around the West End Theatres is getting to see some very good actors and going to shows that we would not have maybe gone to.

    We did in fact go to two shows in the day as after this one we got the tube to Baker Street then on to the Open-Air Theatre in Regents Park to see the last night of Jesus Christ Superstar. We had booked covered dinning there so we had the meal before the show and a sweet at the interval then a taxi back to Waterloo where we were spending the night.

    The Vaudeville Theatre first opened in 1870 the present theatre is the third on the site. Another small theatre with I think has just two sets of toilets (one for each) and only one bar where people were able to sit, but none the less a nice theatre. A Grade II listed building with a seating capacity of 690 on 3 levels. 

 

34. Jersey Boys. Piccadilly Theatre. Saturday 3rd September 2016.

Anne and I was taken to this by my daughter Jean as part of my 64th birthday present, they had also paid for the VIP lounge which we had done once before for Anne's 60th birthday. It is a really nice touch, its £15 a head with the first drink free and nibbles, but it is worth it to not have to queue at the bar and have your own wash room.

   Jersey Boys is the story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. It follows their rise from singing at night under a lamp post in New Jersey USA, doing the songs along the way, we enjoyed it very much.       

   The Piccadilly Theatre was opened on the 27th April 1928 and was one of the largest theatres to be built in London: as its souvenir brochure claimed. “If all the bricks used in the building were laid from end to end, they would stretch from London to Paris.” I do like the old theatres and this one was “no let down” with the old design and photos inside. It was a shame that it holds around 1,200 people (on 3 levels) and there was only about 300 there this day, but it was holiday time!

 

35. Thriller Live. Lyric Theatre. Saturday 22nd October 2016.

Out of all the time we have been going around the West End theatres this was the most disappointing for the show and other reasons. It did not start until 4/00 which is very late in the afternoon for a start. We had paid £50 for each ticket but we were way up in the Gods and while in the front row there it was a restricted view which we did not know about. There was four women behind us who for the first 20 minutes continued to talk and laugh, I then turned around and said "is it possible not to talk please?” They stopped. When we went out at the interval Anne said she was not enjoying it very much and while I was ok with it (just) the women had spoiled it a bit. When we went back for the second half the women behind me said "we have shut up all right", I said "thank you very much" she then said "there's four over there and four over there but we have shut up, all right"! Her tone was very intimidating so I just said to Anne lets go, and we left. So, it's a shame but it would not have been nice to have stayed and I would say they had been drinking a lot and she was ready for a row, she was not going to get it from me.

  The theatre is nice, it's in Shaftesbury Avenue and is the oldest one in the Avenue. Opened in December 1888. It was originally built for operetta but has since then hosted drama, comedy and musicals. It is a Grade II listed building and has a seating capacity 915 people, over 4 levels. This was ordinally 1,306.

36. Motown The Musical. Shaftesbury Theatre. Saturday 11th October 2016.

This is a show recounting the first 25 years of Motown records founded by Berry Gordy in 1959. They started the careers of many pop stars some of which are, Diana Ross, Smoky Robinson, Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, Gladys Knight And the Pips and many more. It was a very interesting story which I have now read about. When we came out of the theatre I was putting my overcoat on and I stood next to an old black guy who was smoking, I said to him "did you enjoy it"? He said "it was good" I said "I thought it was very good" I turned away, he grabbed me by the arm and said "not as good as me when I was young"! I am so mad I did not ask who he was.

   The Shaftesbury Theatre, originally named The Princes Theatre is an Edwardian theatre that opened on Boxing Day 1911 with The Three Musketeer. In 1928 it had Funny Face with Fred Astaire, and the trail blazing rock musical Hair in 1968, West Side Story 1974, and Tommy created by The Who in 1996 and many others. Like a lot of the older theatres there is not much room between the seats and few toilets but it is a beautifully theatre. Grade II listed, capacity 1,416.

 

37. The Dresser. Duke of York Theatre. Saturday 3rd of December 2016.

This was Anne's birthday weekend and we spent Friday night in London after going out with my cousins and husbands that night. Anne did not know what we were going to see and also did not know I had arranged for my daughter Jean and Anne's friends Maureen and Greg to be there.

  The show was set in WW2 and was about an ageing actor and his dresser who took care of him between act's, he helped him change etc. It did have its funny bits but overall it was a sad play, but we enjoyed it, it was just a pity it was not a full house.

   I paid for the Ambassadors Lounge which is well worth the extra money which Anne loves. The Duke of York opened on the 10th September 1892 then known as The Trafalgar Square Theatre with the Wedding Eve. It became the Duke of York 1895 to honour the future King George V.  The now Ambassadors Lounge used to be Royal Retiring Room. Grade II listed building, capacity 640 on 3 levels. This was our last new theatre for 2016 which saw us do 12 new theatres leaving us 5 to go! 

38. Christmas Carol. Arts Theatre Saturday. 7th January 2017 – 3/30.

         

We saw this as a One Man Show with Patrick Stewart at the Albery Theatre (now the Noel Coward) in December 2004. This was with Simon Callow. In some ways it was different from the first one we saw, but again very enjoyable maybe this one had a few more laughs in it, but again good to see a top actor at their peak.

    The Arts Theatre was founded in 1927 not subject to strict censorship laws of the time it was able to produce risk-taking and experimental plays which could not be performed elsewhere. Waiting for Godot was shown there for the first time in 1955. A very small theatre with a café/bar above it and I must say the smallest Gent's I think I have ever been in! But a nice friendly theatre. It opened on the 15^th June 1913 and has a capacity of 350.

39. The Play That Goes Wrong. The Duchess Theatre Saturday 7th January 2017 – 7/30.

     

The reader may notice it is the same date as A Christmas Carol, not at the same time of course but in the evening. We were staying the night to go to a birthday party which was cancelled, so we ticked off another theatre. If we were not going around the West End theatres it is not a play I would have choose to go to, not my cup of tea, and after seeing it I have not changed my mind. What I must say is the timings were very good, and that is for someone not to get hurt, but there was a lot of laughing in the theatre.

   The Duchess Theatre was opened in 1929 on a plot that had suffered bomb damage from a WW1 Zeppelin raid. We were in the stalls that are below ground level, with only 495 seats it is one the West Ends smallest theatres, and it feels it, but there is more room in the Gents than there is in The Arts, you can't be seen here having a pee if the door opens!!! 

 40. BU21. Trafalgar Studio 2. Saturday 14th January 2017.

This was the second time we came to this Theatre as it has 2 studios we saw "3 Days in May" in March 2012 which stared Warren Clarke who sadly passed away last year, a very good actor.

   Studio 2 is the smaller down stairs studio, in fact only holds 100 people. We were in the front row and the stage was the floor in front of us. We had taken my daughter Jean for her birthday, this was not a cheery happy birthday play, in fact the complete opposite. It was about terrorists who bring down a Jumbo Jet aeroplane on to Fulham in London, it was very powerful, a lot of swearing and very black humour. The three of us did enjoy it also it made for very good discussion over dinner in The Kitchen at The South Bank later that evening. There were only six actors, five chairs, a wheelchair and strip lighting.

 

41. Phantom of the Opera. Her Majesty’s Theatre. Saturday 4th February 2017.

The show has been at this theatre since the original production by Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1986, it has almost become a tourist attraction along with seeing Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London. We enjoyed the show and while in some ways it was sad it did have its lighter moments.

   We really liked the theatre it did in fact look like it had been refurbished of late, it first opened in 1897, it was the first of its kind not to have a sloping stage. The theatre is situated on Haymarket, Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J Phipps and was built in 1987 for actor-manger Herbert Beerham Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre. A Grade II listed building, it has a capacity of1,216 on 4 levels.

42. The Palace Theatre.

The date is now Tuesday 12/05/2020. It is now over three years since the last one. There are a few reasons for this. The first being that the Harry Potter play is on there. I have read all the books and seen all the films, but I feel it’s a rip off. Not only are the tickets very expensive, as most of the West End seems to be now, but it is two shows. I have been told a few times it is dragged out. I am now retied and also with have this horrible virus going on so there are no shows on at the moment. Well and it is the last one which is also a pain! May be one day?

   The date is now Monday 16/08/2021. It is over a year since I last wrote about the Covid virus, and while it is still out there, things are getting back to normal, and theatres are reopening, so watch this space? 

   It is Now 04/07/2022, things have sort have got better with Covid but it is still out there and I think it is a thing we have to live with. We still haven’t got to the Palace Theatre but have been to a few other shows in London of late. We went to see My Fair Lady, Oklahoma, Legally Blond.  

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