Another organised day out thanks to my old School – Selhurst Grammar School for Boys and The Old Croydonians’ Association. Today, it was a behind-the-scenes tour of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. We set off from home just before 10am, heading for Huntingdon Station. It’s become our ‘go to’ station-of-travel in recent years when heading …
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Return to the Firm – 2026
I suspect this might be the first of many! Ann and I travelled up to Blackfriars in London today for our first HQ Reunion of ‘The Firm’. Ann was eligible to go too, as she was part of the Store Development in her final years. So we agreed to give it a go and see …
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Audley End House and Gardens
We haven’t been to Audley End House & Gardens for quite a few years, and today, we’re taking Nicki and joining Jo, Janet and Carol there. Given the gap between today and our previous visit, I was hoping to find a previous reference here in my Blog, but nothing… nada..! So that means we must …
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Sealed with a…
…Knot! 😁 (read on)… We couldn’t decide whether to go to this event today (Sunday) or tomorrow. A quick check of the Bank Holiday weather forecast helped us make up our! Dry today, raining tomorrow. So that was an easy decision. Ann sorted out all the ingredients for a picnic yesterday, and we woke to …
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A Night at the Opera – The Magic Flute
Winner, Winner! TV Dinner: Peaky Blinders – The Immortal Man (2026)
Hot on the heels of Wednesday’s get-together with Jo & Janet, watching Superman, it’s another of our TV Dinners with mates! And it’s our second ‘away match’ as we’re at Trish & John’s. We’ve enjoyed a growing number of ‘TV Dinners’ in the past few years (see the foot of this Post). For us, they’re …
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Winner, Winner! TV Dinner: Superman (2025)
It’s another of our TV Dinners with good friends! On this occasion, it’s an ‘away fixture’ as we’re down at Jo & Janet’s watching the 2025 version of Superman on 4K DVD. It forms part of my growing 4K DVD collection, where this latest addition was a gift from Nicki a few months back for …
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Boys and their Toys (Part 984,213)
Those who know me, know that I like love my tech! 😁 If it’s also groundbreaking, then that always gets my attention. If it’s a good price too, that’s a bonus, but I’m not averse to paying over the odds for a shiny new piece of kit, if ‘it does the job well’. So, in …
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Return to The Fox (2026)
Off to The Fox Inn in nearby Thorpe Waterville. It’s our regular catch-up with (very) long-time friends, Mick & Jane 😀😀 The Fox Inn has been receiving good reviews of late, and we thought we’d give it a go, having not been there (I think) since April 2019! The Pub gets a lot of passing …
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Film: Project Hail Mary (2026)
Easter Concert (2026)
A bit of culture for Easter Saturday as we headed to The Citadel in town for this year’s Salvation Army Easter Concert. It was all part of their fundraising to refurbish the facilities here. Tonight, for our listening pleasure, we had ‘Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem’, ‘John Rutter’s Gloria’ and Kettering SA’s very own Richard Phillips’ composition: …
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Return to Hardwick Hall with Dennis and Sandra
Today, we’re off to meet Dennis & Sandra at Hardwick Hall (south of Bolsover, east of Matlock). The eagle-eyed amongst you will spot that we four have done this before! And you’re correct – back in August 2020. This time, however, we’re heading inside the Hall itself (last time we only explored the grounds due …
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Palmers Reunited
We Palmers don’t live in each other’s pockets, and so we don’t get together like this all that often. When we do, it’s always an extra special occasion meaning there’s plenty of news to catch up with! Living on opposite sides of the capital doesn’t help much in choosing a convenient location, especially for us, …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 8
Day 8 – Monday 16th March Welcome back, everyone! I appreciate your readership over the past week – there’s been plenty going on! Today’s a short one as we’re heading back to the Airport this afternoon – and home! 😀. The last Post for this holiday! 🍻👏😘 As I’m sure you know by now, we’ve …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 7
Day 7 – Sunday 16th March Morning, my loyal reader! Boy, that was a late one last night! We’re here in Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together in Corralejo was back in January, 2024, and we had a great time. This year, we’ve timed the break to coincide …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 6
Day 6 – Saturday 14th March Morning readers! Thanks for following our latest adventure! Just a couple of days left before we return to Blighty, where the highlight of TODAY is to be the Grand Parade tonight in town – all part of the annual Corralejo Carnival! 👍 We’re here with great mates, Paul & …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 5
Day 5 – Friday 13th March Welcome back, dear reader! It’s another day in Paradise! We’re here in Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together, was here in Corralejo, back in January, 2024 where we had a great time. This year, we’ve timed the break to coincide with the …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 4
Day 4 – Thursday 12th March You came back! Thanks! 😉. Welcome to Day 4 – a day of wonky weather forecasts, wishlists and worship; performances, processions and pizzas! 🙂😉 We’re here in Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together, was in Corralejo, back in January, 2024 and we …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 3
Day 3 – Wednesday 11th March Morning loyal reader! Welcome back to our adventures in Fuerteventura. Today’s is a relatively short one – a super-lazy day! 👍🙂 We’re here with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together in Corralejo,was back in January, 2024 and we had a great time. This year, …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 2
Day 2 – Tuesday 10th March Morning all! Welcome back, and thanks for following my Blog! 👍 We’re in Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together, here in Corralejo, was back in January, 2024, and we had a great time. This year, we’ve timed the break to coincide with …
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Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 1
Day 1 – Monday 9th March 6.05am: Morning readers! A lie in (or sorts) this morning as it’s the first day of our holiday 👍👍 We’re off to Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together like this, was in Corralejo, back in January, 2024, and we had a great …
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Off tutu the Ballet! – Giselle
Sayonara Mr Sainsbury!
The end of an era today, as not one but TWO of our closest friends said goodbye to their employer and joined the ranks of the retired due to ANOTHER Sainsbury restructure! After a little deception by Janet, unsuspecting retiree, Jo was taken to Kettering’s poshest restaurant – The Palmichael – in nearby Burton Latimer, …
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The Saxon Returns!
It was back to the Saxon Mill in Warwick today to catch up with Ian & Ann and Alan & Mags. We haven’t been here for a few years – last time was in July 2021! Today was all part of our regular three-monthly catchups and it was good to see everyone again. Pity about …
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Winner, Winner! TV Dinner: The Darkest Hour (2018)
Yes, another of our TV Dinners with mates! This time it’s Sir Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill in The Darkest Hour – and we’re watching it with Trish & John. We’d originally seen the film just before its official release back in January, 2018, courtesy of Sky VIP. We hadn’t really spent any quality time …
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OCA – St Bride’s Church
Another organised day out thanks to my old School – Selhurst Grammar School for Boys and The Old Croydonians’ Association. Today, it was a trip to London and St Bride’s Church in Fleet Street, London. Actually, it was a full-on day even before the Church visit. By the time we headed for Fleet Street, we’d …
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New Visit – Olde Vic!
We caught up for Lunch with Geoff & Rhonda today. Our Eatery of choice was the ever-reliable The Olde Victoria in nearby Burton Latimer. We do love this place, having only been there as recently as last Sunday with Carole H for Lunch. It’s probably our most frequently visited Pub since we moved into the …
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A Night at the Opera
We’re off to the Opera – in Corby. Now there’s a sentence, I didn’t think I’d ever write! 😀 We’re here at the excellent Savoy Cinema in nearby, Corby for the livestream of the RBO‘s latest production of Verdi’s La traviata (translates to “The Fallen Woman”). Don’t worry, it’s not a Health & Safety theme! …
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Quorn or Meat?
Well, both actually! 😀 We took the hour’s drive to Quorn, north of Leicester, to meet up with Ralph & Karen for lunch and a catch-up. Our destination? The Quorndon Fox. Last time we were here was back in December 2023, again with these two! 👏👍. The perfect combo then – great mates and (based …
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London Calling!
Sunday – 4 January We woke to a freezing cold Kettering! It felt much colder than the forecast suggested. Well, at least it was dry! 🙄 But we weren’t at home for long, as we’re off to our favourite City – London – where it was a tad ‘warmer’. We’re with friends, John & Trish …
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