Breakfast boys & wily Wolfe....

....Kel and I paid a visit to Doug & Ross's new abode, on Graham Road. Very smartly kitted out, in it we were treated to coffee and pastries.


Lords of the Manor: Doug & Ross

We then met up with Matt, Fiamma and little Wolfe at Hackney Farm.


Wolfe bares his teeth

We had a quick lunch and catch up before heading out to see the animals.


Tucking in

And then we went for a little play in Haggerston Park, where Wolfe proved himself much more brave than myself when it came to the roundabout


In a spin

What Saturday socials are all about. Marvellous.

Clementine hits 3....

....Clem turned 3 last Saturday and what better way to celebrate than an afternoon at Kidz Mania? Quite. Once the playing had subsided, and the party rings eaten, Richie managed to sit her still long enough to get this photo.



Modelling her new birthday top from Uncle Kelly & Auntie Roy (A deliberate mix-up of titles owing to Clem's insistence!) HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Chase + Sorensen....

....A new Danish furniture and coffee shop has recently opened in Hackney. In the not too distant future, it could well become something of a local, which is fine by us, as we're rather taken with it.



They serve a mean AllPress coffee (with a complimentary biscuit!) and a range of Danish snacks.



And perusing the furniture is a rewarding affair, although I expect Kel and I to engage in some heated discussions soon, about what we actually need and what we don't!

Greedy pigs....

....Joss was lucky enough to shoot a suckling pig on a recent job for St. John's. He was even luckier to be given the pig. Then, we were the lucky recipients of a feast as a result.



As an additional birthday get together, Joss gathered the boys to tuck in to the fodder, following up with a cheese board. I, at least, was in utter heaven!


Richie, Richie and Joss

Bugsy hits 31....(but pretends it's his 30th)

....Joce surprised Bugsy a whole year after she had planned to, with this (slightly) delayed birthday bash at the Cinema Museum.



A phenomenal place - a relic that time seemingly forgot, the Museum is adorned with flotsam and jetsam from since when cinema began. There is even two small cinema rooms - one of which we used to watch some short home films of birthday wishes.



Joce even got caterers in, The Meat Wagon, so we tucked in to burgers galore on the outside forecourt.



Drinks then continued in the museum for the rest of the evening. A unique and rather marvellous birthday celebration.


Tom, Kel, Nick, Bugsy, Liam

[full reel]

Joss hits 30....

....Last of the crop of 30 year olds is Joss and he celebrated with a party on Saturday night.


Joss & Tom

It started with a band and followed up with friends Djing.



And went on to be a late, dancy, fun filled affair.


Nick, Harrie & Kel (stripes obligatory)

Happy 30th Joss!

Dinner with Nicky & Phil....

....A Tuesday night dinner party? That's right, and what a welcome one it was. Nicky & Phil invited us and friends to their lovely Stoke Newington house for an evening of great food and great company.


Jo, Nico, Fiamma, Nicky, Phil, Matt, Kel, Gemma (& bump).

To start we had potato cakes with smoke salmon.



For main we ate beef Wellington, (I know! On a Tuesday!), with sweet potato, greens, sprouts & bacon and potato dauphinoise.



And finally a dessert of home made raspberry pavlova.



It was noting short of epic - thank you to you both.

Kelly runs the Royal Parks Half Marathon...

....Today Kel managed quite a feat. A half marathon.


Kel & Natalie all smiles at the start

The course is a pretty spectacular one, taking in Buckingham Palace, The Mall, Hyde Park, Green Park, Westminster amongst others. I sure hope Kel looked up from the tarmac to see some of it!



Mile 6

When she did look up, I was standing on the side lines too - receiving the full, 'I hate this race and the world', glare. I simply cheered her on regardless.


Mile 10

Her time, (to be confirmed), was 2hrs 5mins, which is pretty damn good by anyone's standards. Kel was running for the charities, NASS and MS and can still be sponsored, here.


Le fin

Congratulations KC. I'm very proud. X.

Jude update....

....Well, at nearly 7 months, he's just dandy. A super happy chappy, he's sitting up and dressing up every day. Here's a snap:

Metronomy, Royal Albert Hall....

....We booked these tickets a while ago, thinking October was a distant future. Suddenly, here we are. Metronomy's current album, The English Riviera, is the sole reason why we're here. A beautifully constructed, imagined and realised album of intelligent pop, that has a slight Roxy Music glean to it.


The English Riviera

We grabbed a bite to eat first, at Stick & Bowl on High Street Kensington, then headed along to the gig.



The support act tonight was an added bonus. Django Django provided a brief, but thrilling set - and even more exciting is that a friend Jimmy was up there playing bass.


Django Django, (with Jim furthest right)

(He has latterly told me all he could see was a threatening guy in a Chelsea shirt, not the splendour of the Hall!!)


Splendour

The Metronomy set started with a quartet of young musicians playing instrumental versions of a couple of their old records. It was a befitting scene, though perhaps they were on stage too long. But that was all forgotten, as the band entered stage right and immediately blew everyone away.


Underway

The seating system at The Royal Albert Hall was totally forgotten about a third in to the second song, with everyone on their feet, as Metronomy ripped through records old and new.


Before the party started

Vocally, I don't think they're astounding, but musically, I think they're on top of their game. Kel and I boogied away as the tracks kept coming.



They ended the set with an encore of two songs, Everything Goes My Way and R.A.D.I.O, each of which was met with delight. It was a great set and a great night - yet remarkably I left commenting that it would be their next album that really sets them apart. Watch this space!

Weekend in Newcastle....

....Kel and I came up to Newcastle this weekend for no other reason other than the fact I'd only brought her once before. Another visit was long over due. The early Saturday train rolled us in to town just before 11am and we walked straight over to Tyneside Cinema, where we had booked seats to see Drive, (see previous review).



After the exhilarating film, we caught a snack downstairs before mooching around the shops for bits and pieces. We got back to the house to see mum & dad briefly, before heading back in to town again. This time for dinner with friends.



After a drink in Bacchus, we ate at Dabbawal, a new Indian restaurant that was pretty good. (It's mantra is 'street food' but I couldn't see a great deal of that - it seems they're simply playing on the buzz word(s) of the moment).


Nick, Tom, Roy, Kel, Andrew, Liz

Following dinner we had a couple more drinks in Alvinos and Popolo before heading home. The following morning Kel and I went in to Tynemouth for a walk along the beach, then on to Tynemouth Market.



Shortly after we were picked up by mum & dad and driven to lunch, where we were meeting Ruth, Andy & Jude and Jean & Nige at the Crab & Lobster in Asenby.


Kel (with Jude), Dad, Ruth, Mum, Jean, Nige, Andy

We had a fantastic lunch, in wonderful surroundings - a ceiling laden with hanging puppets and fishing net and a gent's loo with hanging brassieres and pictures of Marylin Monroe! Music too:



We had a brief walk around the grounds afterwards, before heading our separate ways. Kel and I were dropped off at the train station to make our way home. A fantastic weekend had.

[Full reel]:

Drive....

....Kel and I were excited to see this. Not least because we were watching it in the beautiful Tyneside Cinema, but also because we hadn't yet heard a bad word.



Drive, directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, is in a similar family to Bullitt or The Driver. Ryan Gosling, (who's name is never given), is the protagonist get away driver and fill-in stunt man, who's life in LA becomes more complex on meeting new neighbour Carey Mulligan, (Irene).



The art direction is fantastic - slick, stylish, sexy. Swooping and swooning shots of LA at night, noisy gear changes and electric pink italic copy fill the opening credits. We're in for a ride.


The Scorpion man

The relationship, (if you can call it that), between Gosling and Mulligan is quite spellbinding, leading to an opening hour of sexual tension, above gripping thriller.



The second hour, however, kicks in to gear, literally and is a violent, inescapable, captivating watch. It's the kind of film I want to be in. The kind of film I wish I'd directed. The kind of film I wish I owned already. Then I'd watch it over.



The finale leaves us guessing at what might be, (that could still be), but also leaving us totally satisfied. This should be seen. Now.