The View From Lower Down

It may have come to your attention that basically the entire planet is in lockdown. Let's start with the bad news. One of the first industries to go were theatres, due to lots of people congregating in small areas. Most of the West End in London shut down even before the government guidelines were introduced, so they couldn't even claim insurance to recoup their money. Fortunately, that is no longer the case, but they are still refunding tickets (If you have bought tickets to a West End show, look up online how tickets are being reimbursed - some are automatic, but some you have to directly request). To clarify, this is most likely a worldwide problem, but I am only informed on the UK condition. Cinemas have had the same trouble, but that's not what this blog post is about. So here's the good news - theatres, writers, actors and directors of several west end shows are waiving their right to a fee for performances being shown online. The National Theatre are p...

This is a riddle I made up, loosely based on a Chinese exam question about sailing. In the British General Election on 12 December, these were the results in the fictional constituency of Haverford: Dennis Taylor (Con)                      42,601 votes Mark Ellsworth (Lab)                    18,461 votes Margaret Stone (Lib Dem)            16,064 votes Michael Winter (Brexit Party)       4,082 votes Barbara Morris (Green)                 803 votes And here's the riddle: HOW OLD IS BARBARA MORRIS? Clues: All the same candidates (including Barbara) ran in the previous election on 8 June 2017 Michael Winter ran in the previous election but was at the time a member of UKIP You will need a basic knowledge of how British General Elections work The total number of voters was 82,...

This blog post is about the content of Magic Goes Wrong so you can decide for yourself whether it's suitable for you/your child. PLEASE NOTE: This is based on the show before it was rewritten so  I'll try to keep this post as spoiler-free as possible so I don't ruin the show for you. All spoilers are kept as context-free as possible If you do want to read more about the show: My Full Review (MASSIVE SPOILERS) My Notes (mild spoilers with no context) My Short Review (no spoilers) Book Tickets I will now leave a gap so you don't see any spoilers you don't want to by accident. This includes spoilers for the final trick. Still here? Great. This is my content warnings of what I think are the worst things to happen in the show (to the best of my recollection) Sex and Nudity Repeated references to a character's father (unseen) being a womanizer including multiple references to his having many illegitimate children Confusion with a te...

Full Review (4553 Words, so not for the faint-hearted. SPOILERS GALORE) Mischief Theatre's latest madcap performance is a spectacular display of what they are best at. Go in expecting a spectacle, with plenty of laughs thrown in for good measure. The hilarious writing talents of Mischief, combined with the magical expertise of Penn and Teller, combine to form a uniquely creative piece which showcases the trademark slapstick and dangerous stunts of Mischief Theatre interspersed with genuinely impressive magic tricks. A tour has been  hinted at  (DISCLAIMER: I do not have any official confirmation of this, so don't take my word as gospel!), so if you can't catch it in the West End before it closes on April 30, don't worry! If you can though, see it in London, but if you use a wheelchair, check out my accessibility review first! I'm looking forward to Mischief Theatre's 3rd instalment at the Vaudeville, which is shrouded in secrecy... UPDATE: Magic Goes Wr...

The below is an extract from my review of Mischief Theatre's Groan Ups. Check that out here . As you probably know if you've read my reviews before, I am a wheelchair user, so, unfortunately, the review has to include a mandatory rant about disabled access, sorry. It's a shame because the Duchess Theatre ( home of The Play That Goes Wrong, hereafter shortened to TPTGW) is very accommodating of wheelchairs ( full accessibility review ). The Vaudeville Theatre, however, has entertainingly bad access. I would be annoyed if it weren't for the creativity. There is no lift at all, and this is probably because  it is Grade II listed  (I do my homework when writing these reviews!) Therefore, wheelchair users have to sit in the stalls, which is also down 6 steps, although while booking tickets for Magic Goes Wrong (Mischief Theatre's next show) a theatre worker implied that there was some sort of stair climber available, although this was not mentioned at any point be...

DO NOT SKIM TO THE BOTTOM OF THE REVIEW. I didn't think I would have to say that, but apparently, I do. You know who you are. Key: MGW = Magic Goes Wrong TPTGW = The Play That Goes Wrong PPGW = Peter Pan Goes Wrong MT = Mischief Theatre GU = Groan Ups TGWS = The Goes Wrong Show For  my notes , click the link. If you can't be bothered to read the entire review (coming in at a whopping 4553 words), you may be suffering from an illness known as not being completely nuts. Therefore, here's a link to the short review . Too late - Unfortunately, I saw MGW after the 'proper' reviewers saw it, so my review will be too late to make the top of Google's search list . Nevertheless, I'm still going to try to maximize my SEO (What's SEO, I hear you ask? Check out my GU review to find out) though. I've put it at the bottom though because there are so many keywords to include. Art Imitates Life - No, I didn't encounter a magician on my way t...

Too late Lite SEO Art imitates life (tube) Accessibility Cast/creative Not Comic Relief Pre show Hairnet Subtle No stooges Henry Banner Hard to review Warning Dead father Real magic What happened to Dave? Only some of these are tricks Bär unt Spitzmaus No English Boxes Cannon Bear Quick Change Mind Mangler Senses Colours Names Jobs Kent Denise Brian Mind Teleprompter Auditors Health and Safety 20% Sophisticato Mother Copperfield Dynamo Saw Speaking of halves... Doves (picture) Wand Finale £-3175.37 Stair Safety (plant?)

Thanks for entering! As you will now have gathered, the theme this year is ANAGRAMS. Every day you will be sent a clue at (hopefully) 11AM GMT which is an anagram of a Christmas movie. They start easy but they do get harder as the quiz goes on. The hardest clue is Trim a beach car’s soil bar That clue was given out early due to the obscurity of the movie. It is currently worth 50 points to the first person who gets it and the points will decrease by 10 every week. 20 points will go to the first person to answer each question correctly, with the second receiving 10 points and the third receiving 5 points. If no one has answered correctly by 4PM GMT, I will release another clue which will be another anagram of the same movie. Some of the movie titles contain numbers (but they're not all sequels, what's that about?) Obviously, numbers do not work as anagrams, so they will be in written form, ie 2 will be written as TWO etc. Clues do not always match up (tr...

Why 1996? Everything is Sony Gameboy advance? (See you later) refrigerator Christopher Walken stunt double Mindy (good place) (Catch on your own) juggling Thanos Smoulder Cake (weakness) It's so much easier! Margaritas? Jack Black is perfectly cast Crawford is fly

DO NOT CLICK AWAY UNTIL YOU READ THE FOURTH SENTENCE OF THIS BLOGPOST I know I have said in the past that I do not broadcast my political opinions but... There is one important thing you should do, no matter what your political views are. YOU. SHOULD. VOTE. In case you can't be bothered to read the rest of the post: Register here  (You only need to do this once, you will be automatically enrolled for future elections) Apply for a postal vote Apply for a proxy vote Check if you've already registered The UK is having a General Election on 12 December 2019. It promises to be the most unpredictable (almost certainly the wrong word) election ever (my opinion, no sources). If you are over 18 and a UK citizen (or an Irish, EU or Commonwealth citizen with a permanent UK address), you are entitled to vote, with a few exceptions: If you are in prison (does not apply to those imprisoned for non-criminal reasons or people awaiting trial) If you are guilty of election-b...