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the_g_man 's return to Coventry, temporarily escaping from the clutches of New York. Which seemed like a pretty good excuse for a bunch of us (including malal , jorune , misstemperance , mrbear , ehrine , jambon_gris and, sobrique ) to gather in Inspire and drink Belgian beer. Much fun was had. A certain amount of beer was consumed.
...and then I headed for a train and escaped to London, wheresouldier_blue had been spending her evening watching Hamlet. Now, I'm not bitter in any way, but I'd just like to mention that souldier_blue had to drop out of our original Hamlet trip (i.e. the one this Saturday) due to other commitments, and was understandably unhappy about not getting a chance to see it.
Then, at the last minute, she got hold of a spare ticket for last Friday - so, out of 25 of us, she's the only one who actually gets to see Tennant in Hamlet (since he's now injured his back and we'll all be watching his understudy...)! :-)
Saturday started quietly enough. A full English breakfast in a decent cafe in Bermondsey, a complete failure to arrange lunch and a trip out to Seven Sisters for the London Rollergirls 'Christmas Quarrel. I'd never seen a roller derby bout before, so wasn't entirely sure what to expect - as it turns out, it's great fun. This one was the initial match between two of London's newly-formed teams, the Steam Rollers and the Suffra Jets.
It's hectic, energetic and occasionally a little bit dangerous - even for front row spectators, as at least one Rollergirl went flying into the front row (there is a warning saying you sit there at your own risk, and the 'proper' seats are much safer...). I like the showmanship and the atmosphere of it all - especially the aliases (the more memorable player names included 'Ana Rampage', 'Correctional Felicity' and 'Raw Heidi').
I'm still trying to completely work out the rules, but the overtake-and-block bit seems simple enough. And it's kinda cool to see jammers being catapulted ahead of the pack by their own teammates. We were supporting the Steam Rollers - I think it was their first game, whereas their opponents had already played (and won) their first game of the season. Alas, the 'Rollers didn't quite manage to claw back the huge lead that the 'Jets built up early on.
The merchandise stall also sells fairy cakes. And vegan fairy cakes. I gather that these are an important part of the ritual... :-)
...and then it was on to a pub near Euston, to celebrate the birthday ofsouldier_blue 's friend Amy. Good food, good company and a nice selection of beers. A very civilised way to end the evening.
Sunday was fairly quiet, starting with the now-traditional breakfast gathering at the Deptford Project (I finally encountered their infamous - and faintly disturbing - Elvis bathroom). There was a vague plan to grab food later on, but somehow this failed - so we actually ended up back at Euston, drinking beer that tasted like Christmas pudding in the company ofthe_g_man, who was just returning from his weekend in Coventry. Beer was quaffed, tattoos were displayed and the perils of investment banking may have been mentioned in passing.
Unfortunately, I did eventually have to catch a train home. Meh. But a rather good weekend, all in all...
the_g_man 's return to Coventry, temporarily escaping from the clutches of New York. Which seemed like a pretty good excuse for a bunch of us (including malal , jorune , misstemperance , mrbear , ehrine , jambon_gris and, sobrique ) to gather in Inspire and drink Belgian beer. Much fun was had. A certain amount of beer was consumed. ...and then I headed for a train and escaped to London, where
souldier_blue had been spending her evening watching Hamlet. Now, I'm not bitter in any way, but I'd just like to mention that souldier_blue had to drop out of our original Hamlet trip (i.e. the one this Saturday) due to other commitments, and was understandably unhappy about not getting a chance to see it. Then, at the last minute, she got hold of a spare ticket for last Friday - so, out of 25 of us, she's the only one who actually gets to see Tennant in Hamlet (since he's now injured his back and we'll all be watching his understudy...)! :-)
Saturday started quietly enough. A full English breakfast in a decent cafe in Bermondsey, a complete failure to arrange lunch and a trip out to Seven Sisters for the London Rollergirls 'Christmas Quarrel. I'd never seen a roller derby bout before, so wasn't entirely sure what to expect - as it turns out, it's great fun. This one was the initial match between two of London's newly-formed teams, the Steam Rollers and the Suffra Jets.
It's hectic, energetic and occasionally a little bit dangerous - even for front row spectators, as at least one Rollergirl went flying into the front row (there is a warning saying you sit there at your own risk, and the 'proper' seats are much safer...). I like the showmanship and the atmosphere of it all - especially the aliases (the more memorable player names included 'Ana Rampage', 'Correctional Felicity' and 'Raw Heidi').
I'm still trying to completely work out the rules, but the overtake-and-block bit seems simple enough. And it's kinda cool to see jammers being catapulted ahead of the pack by their own teammates. We were supporting the Steam Rollers - I think it was their first game, whereas their opponents had already played (and won) their first game of the season. Alas, the 'Rollers didn't quite manage to claw back the huge lead that the 'Jets built up early on.
The merchandise stall also sells fairy cakes. And vegan fairy cakes. I gather that these are an important part of the ritual... :-)
...and then it was on to a pub near Euston, to celebrate the birthday of
souldier_blue 's friend Amy. Good food, good company and a nice selection of beers. A very civilised way to end the evening.Sunday was fairly quiet, starting with the now-traditional breakfast gathering at the Deptford Project (I finally encountered their infamous - and faintly disturbing - Elvis bathroom). There was a vague plan to grab food later on, but somehow this failed - so we actually ended up back at Euston, drinking beer that tasted like Christmas pudding in the company of
the_g_man, who was just returning from his weekend in Coventry. Beer was quaffed, tattoos were displayed and the perils of investment banking may have been mentioned in passing. Unfortunately, I did eventually have to catch a train home. Meh. But a rather good weekend, all in all...
