I saw this pub, the Seven Stars, in a Holborn sidestreet.
...and I wondered, does London have pubs numbered 1 to 10?
1)One Over The Ait, Brentford (also a One Bell in Crayford and a One Tun in Hatton Garden) 2)Two Brewers(there are at least six of these) (also a Two Doves in Bromley and a Two Chairmen in St James') 3)Three Magpies, near Heathrow (three is by far the most popular number for a numbered pub) (also three Three Compasses, three Three Crowns, three three Tuns and four Three Wishes) (also Blackbirds, Cranes, Falcons, Greyhounds, Stags, Steps and Travellers) 4)Four Thieves, Battersea (also a Four Sisters in Canonbury and a Four Quarters in Peckham) 5)Five Bells(coincidentally there are five of these... in Chelsfield, East Finchley, New Cross, Streatham and Harmondsworth) 6)Six Bells(there are four of these... in Acton, Brentford, Enfield and West Drayton) 7)Seven Stars, Holborn (as pictured) (and another in Foots Cray) 8)Eight Bells, Fulham (oh look it's bells again) 9)Nine Elms Tavern, Battersea (it's quite recent, this one) 10)Ten Bells, Spitalfields (so yes, a numerical pub crawl is possible) (but I don't recommend it)
I saw three closed branches of Cards Galore in the City.
...and I wondered, did they go bust?
It looks like it. The stores aren't just empty, they're up for sale, even ye olde one at the top of Cheapside. The Cards Galore website remains functional and is encouraging you to buy stuff, except every item is 'Sold Out' so you can't. It also says they hope to open their shops on April 12th 2021, so that's a bad sign, and they haven't tweeted since. Indeed it seems they went into administration on April 8th, which perhaps isn't unexpected after their boss pleaded mid-lockdown "Dear customers, I face ruin, please come back." A business model based on selling office workers coloured cardboard couldn't survive the pandemic, not when everyone was sat at home ordering them online (if indeed they were still sending them at all). What'll fill their 28 former stores is most likely something meal-based because you can't post that, that is assuming they have indeed gone bust but I bet they have.
I went to Tate Modern to see the aerobes before their last day yesterday.
...and I wondered, is there any point writing a review of something you can't go and see any more?
The were a striking sight, these translucent creatures floating noiselessly over your head. Anicka Yi's creations resembled eggs with tentacles that flexed repeatedly up and down, and shared the air with what looked like unlit Chinese lanterns. Look closer and their translucent form revealed a web of wires powering tiny propellers providing directional thrust. Watch for a while and you saw their movement was generally vertical or horizontal, not both, which probably helped prevent awkward collisions. Scanning the Turbine Hall you'd have spotted the corral from which they were being dispatched, and the technician keeping them in flight or manoeuvring them back home for a rest. I found them mesmeric - at last an artist making the most of the space - and wondered if and where we might see them again.
I saw this litter bin billowing in the breeze by the Thames.
...and I wondered, could they have stopped that from happening?
An empty bag in an open-topped litter bin is always going to be susceptible to heavy wind. It doesn't help that once a bag's been whipped out it is now permanently empty and is going to be whipped even more. The problem could be solved by a lid, except that deters bin usage so is self-defeating, or a weight at the bottom of the bag, except that's impractical. Much better windproof litter bin designs exist and are all around us, for example those with slots on the side, but this seems to be an old bin from an era before optimum design was prioritised. Ideally they should replace the bin with a better one but that would be a waste of resources which councils don't tend to have any more. I guess best stop wondering and enjoy the occasional gusty flap, because normally an open litter bin works fine.
I spotted this Coronation Oak in Lincoln's Inn Fields.
...and I wondered, how many of these are there in London?
A plaque at the foot of the tree confirms it was planted in 1953, the year of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. It's not quite as old as her reign but very nearly, and I was struck that the size of the tree presents tangible evidence of the passing of seven decades. Much has changed since, as the building site behind confirms, but the oak remains steadfast. I know lots of Coronation oaks were planted across the country but they're very hard to Google for. We had one in Croxley planted in the 'commemorative tree' part of The Green, but that's not in London so doesn't count. Some druids planted one in Crystal Palace in 1911 but that's for the wrong coronation. Other than Lincoln's Inn Fields I've drawn a blank.
I walked under Fenchurch Street station and found this.
...and I wondered, how many other central London rail termini can you walk under?
That's properly underneath, in a public space that isn't part of the station. Waterloo definitely counts thanks to Leake Street, the graffiti artist's mecca, and London Bridge has Bermondsey Street which burrows darkly under the far end of the platforms. Blackfriars and Cannon Street have riverside walkways, only one of which smells of chlorine. Charing Cross has The Arches which provides access to several well known understation businesses. St Pancras maybe counts, not because of the Eurostar terminal but because they extended the platforms over a road. But nothing quite has the feel of FrenchOrdinaryCourt, the gloomy brick vault under Fenchurch Street station which is used during the week for parking and connects to a grim alleyway. It's not as wow as what's underneath Leeds station, but for London it's likely the most atmospheric we've got.
I changed my template for the Platinum Jubilee yesterday.
...and I wondered, how many people noticed the background was lighter?
This blog's background colour is normally a light grey and has been since 2003 when I switched from the original unsettling off-green. In hexadecimal terms the shade is #cccccc, which is one-fifth of the way from white (#ffffff) to black (#000000). But yesterday for the jubilee I switched to platinum, which is #e5e5e5 so a fair bit lighter, and I wondered if you'd found it easier to read. I've kept the platinum background today so you can knowingly compare it to what you're used to, and will leave it here behind this paragraph if I change back. I might decide to keep the new colour or I might shift to a compromise somewhere inbetween like #dddddd or #eeeeee (except they'd result in tables I've previously published blending into the background so probably not). Basically the question is should diamond geezer go platinum, and maybe if you never noticed it doesn't matter.
And I wondered, was there any point writing the rest, because all you're going to do is wibble on about the background colour.
