Today, Chris A and I took the train from Northampton and headed for the Excel International Exhibition & Convention Centre in the Docklands for the F1 Exhibition. Actually, this was the very first time I’ve visited Excel! Getting there was easy by taking the Elizabeth Line and getting off at Customs House and then taking …
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Category:Friends
Buckden Bound!
These days, The George Hotel at Buckden is fast becoming one of our go-to Restaurants (that and Hitchen’s Barn in Oakham) for a guaranteed quality meal and excellent service. Today, we met up with Steve & Helen for a catch-up and to hear all the news about their recent house move. We were last all …
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Return to The Falcon Inn
Off to the Falcon Inn in Fotheringhay to meet up with long-time pals, Mick and Jane to celebrate their 41st Wedding Anniversary. The last time we were there was pre-Covid back in 2017. Before then, this was our go-to Pub/Restaurant when we lived in nearby Peterborough. Since then, we’ve developed other allegiances and, in that …
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Bank Holiday Street Party 2024
A Bank Holiday Street Party in nearby Berwick Way for no other reason than ‘because we could’! 👍👍 Well, the weather wasn’t exactly ‘glorious’ – a cool and breezy 17°C – but that didn’t prevent around 20 of us from getting together at the foot of Berwick Way. With Mick, the Burger King on BBQ …
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Theatre: Tolethorpe Hall 2024 – The Recruiting Officer
We’re at Tolethorpe Hall for Stamford Shakespeare Company’s production of ‘The Recruiting Officer‘. Those with an HR background (and like me, unfamiliar with this title) will be disappointed to learn that it’s nothing to do with employment best practice! 🙄 According to Tolethorpe’s website, it’s a tale of… “plot twists, cross-dressing, forged letters, mistaken identities, …
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Movie Night: The Imitation Game
It’s fair to say we love a good pie and a pud! We also like a great movie and an evening with friends. So, why not combine all three!? 👍👍👍 Tonight, inspired by our recent visit with John & Trish to Bletchley Park and then our first visit to PieFest a few weeks ago – …
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Arrow Time!
It’s our three-monthly catchup with long-time friends and ex-business colleagues, Ian & Ann and Alan & Mags. Today, our eatery of choice is the Arrow Mill in Alcester – we were last here in October, 2022. It was almost deserted inside when we arrived just after 12 noon, but this place has a large area …
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Theatre: Fawlty Towers
For me, the most eagerly anticipated theatre trip in a long, long time – “Fawlty Towers – The Play”. The ‘Famous Five’ aka Jo, Janet, Carol, Ann and yours truly jumped on board the 10.28 out of Kettering, heading for the capital. The train was busy, and I think we got the last seats. Noisy …
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Return to Bletchley Park
The past week-or-so has had a recurring theme – ‘return to…’. Last Saturday, it was a return to my old school for their annual reunion, whilst on Monday, I made my second visit to Silverstone Museum. Tough life, ehh?!?!? 😉 Today, we’re with mates, John & Trish heading for the famous ‘Bletchley Park‘. We were …
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Return to Silverstone!
A return to Silverstone Museum for me, this time with super-techy-mate, Chris A. The reason? Well, nothing specific, we just fancied going there, and it’s only a short drive away! 👍 I was last here back in December, last year with John C for exactly the same reason! 😀 With today’s weather looking and feeling …
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Le Picnic – Lamport Hall
Took a drive to nearby Lamport Hall today for ‘Le Picnic’ with Chris & Gill and Steve & Denise. It’s on our doorstep and given our love of old stately piles, I can’t believe we’ve never been here before! 🤔 You can’t beat a good picnic and if the sun is shining (as it was …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 8th July (Day 10)
Here we are, as part of the Northants Nutters group! It’s Day 10, our final day, and our third and final Sea Day as we head for Southampton. Not much to read today, as it’s more of a summary of this year’s adventure with the Northants Nutters. Northants Nutters – Previous Tour Dates Nutters 2019 …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 7th July (Day 9)
7.25am: Here we are, as part of the Northants Nutters group! It’s Day 9 – our penultimate day – and we’ve just docked in La Coruna, northern Spain. Thanks for all the reads this holiday – over 350 so far! 👍 We weren’t expecting to be here, but P&O tweaked the schedule a few days …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 6th July (Day 8)
Day 8 – Saturday, 6th July 7.32am: Morning all! We’re with the Northants Nutters group aboard the good ship Ventura! It’s Day 8 and we’re just about to dock in Leixoes in Portugal. Missed a Post?Day 1 – Setting Sail (eventually!)Day 2 – Sea Day 1Day 3 – Santander, SpainDay 4 – Sea Day 2Day …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 5th July (Day 7)
Here we are, as part of the Northants Nutters group! It’s Day 7, and we’re on our second (and final) day in Lisbon. We set sail later for Leixões in Portugal at around 5.30pm tonight. Missed a Post? Day 1 – Setting Sail (eventually!)Day 2 – Sea Day 1Day 3 – Santander, SpainDay 4 – …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 4th July (Day 6)
Here we are aboard P&O’s Ventura, part of the Northants Nutters ‘on tour’ group aka Geoff & Rhonda, Paul & Sue, Richard & Nicki and us two! It’s now Day 6 of our 10-dayer where we’ve arrived in Lisbon, Portugal – and we’ve got a sleepover as we’re here for TWO days. 👍 Missed a …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 3rd July (Day 5)
Morning everyone! 😎🌞. Thanks for all the reads so far! Here we are with our fellow Northants Nutters, halfway through our 10-day adventure aboard P&O’s Ventura. It’s Day 5, and we’re moored in the Port of Vigo, on the north-east coast of Spain until mid-afternoon. Missed a Post? Day 1 – Setting Sail (eventually!) Day …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 2nd July (Day 4)
Here we are, as part of the Northants Nutters group on board P&O’s Ventura! It’s Day 4 (of 10) and it’s our second sea day. Tonight is another ‘formal’ night where most of us will be dressing up. Prepare for some ‘bling overload’ and ‘Bond Lookalikes’ later! 👍😂 Missed a Post? Day 1 – Ship …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 1st July (Day 3)
Morning all! It’s Monday, and here we are, aboard P&O’s Ventura, as part of the Northants Nutters group. It’s Day 3 and we’re here in Santander, Spain. 😎😎. The clocks went forward an hour last night, so at least one of us is a little bleary-eyed this morning! 😵💫 Missed a Post? Day 1 – …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 30th June (Day 2)
Morning all! Here we are, as part of the Northants Nutters group! It’s Day 2 – Sunday – and a sea day aboard the good ship, Ventura. Our next stop? Santander, tomorrow👍😀. Today, for many, the highlight of the day will be the televised soccer match between England and Slovakia (more about that later!) – …
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Northants Nutters at Sea (2024) – 29th June (Day 1)
Welcome to Day 1. Here we are, aka The Northants Nutters group – and we’re all at sea!👍😀. In fact, we’re building up quite a travel record together… Northants Nutters® Tour Dates Our first Warner experienceWarner Weekend 2019 – Littlecote House Hotel(March 2019) Our second visit to Warner’sWarner Weekend 2020 – Holme Lacy House(March 2020) …
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Doctor Who Series Finalé 2024 – Advanced Screening
10.27pm: Evening all! It’s nearly showtime at 11pm and well past my bedtime – but we think it’s worth it, as Jo and I are here at Cineworld, Rushden Lakes about to watch the season series finalé of one of our favourite programmes – Doctor Who. Yes, THE CINEMA! In a masterclass of marketing, last …
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Job Done in Dunstable!
Headed off to Toddington in Dunstable this morning to catch up with long-time friend, Angela C. The journey there took longer than expected – it should have been around an hour, but with the M1 near Flitwick being dug up in both directions, it made my progress VERY slow! 😟 We made good use of …
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The George, Great Oxendon
I’m beginning to lose count of the exact number of times we’ve been here since our great friends, Paul and Sue first introduced us to this eatery back in November, 2021. It really is a first-class place to eat, and the service is second-to-none. Today, we’re meeting up with Ian & Ann and Alan & …
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Nottingham with Dennis and Sandra
Today was another of our cultural days out with Dennis and Sandra – this time it’s Nottingham. Since we first started doing these in 2017, we’ve built up quite a list – today will be our 16th ‘day out’ together! 👍😀 Doddington Hall (December 2023)International Bomber Command (September 2023)Southwell (March 2023)Chatsworth House (November 2022)Belvoir Castle …
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Theatre: “Legally Blonde”
We headed off in the direction of Kettering’s Lighthouse Theatre this afternoon to see ‘Legally Blonde’ (based on the 2001 film of the same name, that starred Reese Witherspoon). It wouldn’t be my first choice of theatre entertainment, but with six women – Ann, Jo, Janet, Carol, Helen and Chris and just me along for …
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Holiday: Jordan – Day 9 (24th April)
We’re coming to the end of our first-time visit to Jordan with great mates, Ralph & Karen. 😍😍 Welcome to Day 9, our last full day here and my final Post for this holiday. Another day, another guided tour! 😁. This time we’re heading for the ancient town of Jerash, population 237000! The Plan… Read …
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Holiday: Jordan – Day 8 (23rd April)
We’re in Jordan for 10 days with great mates, Ralph & Karen. Welcome to Day 8! Thanks for all the great comments about yesterday’s visit to Amman. Yes, it was a busy one, and I think we’re going to need another holiday after this one! 😁😁😁. If you missed any of my previous Posts, the …
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Holiday: Jordan – Day 7 (22nd April)
We’re in Jordan for 10 days with great mates, Ralph & Karen. Welcome back! It’s Day 7, and after a four-hour drive from Petra yesterday, we’re back in Jordan’s capital, Amman. If you’ve missed any of my previous Posts, I’ve put the links below. Today we’re meeting our local Guide, Eddie, for a half-day historic …
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Holiday: Jordan – Day 6 (21st April)
We’re in Jordan for 10 days with great mates, Ralph & Karen. It’s day 6 of our 10-day trip, where today we take the Dead Sea Highway back to the capital, Amman – some 150 miles. Forget ‘Route 66’, this route is known as ‘Highway 65’! It’s a long road ahead – about 4 hours …
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