Sunday 1st March 2026

Woke around 0800. Descended for porridge. Started packing. Drove Aki to the Metro station at Callerton Parkway to begin her journey back to London. Said our farewells at the station...I then drove to Kingston Park to do a shop at M&S, and fill the car up with petrol. Grabbed a Costa coffee. Drove back to High View to start cooking the Sunday lunch...roast chicken, roast potatoes, and a cauliflower cheese, followed by tiramisu. Dad didn't eat much, though he managed to demolish the tiramisu without a problem. Packed my stuff into the car boot and said my goodbyes. Decided to follow the satnav, which recommended heading west...I assumed to Carlisle, but it insisted on taking me over the Pennines via the A686, through Alston. Stopped briefly to take in the view from Hartside, 1,903 feet above sea level, though the view was somewhat dominated by a blanket of grey cloud. The weather got increasingly grim the further west I ventured...and there was a lot of spray on the M6 southbound. Traffic got very busy after the Manchester junction, presumably with Man United fans coming away from the game at Old Trafford. Got to Bakewell Street around 1845. Unpacked the car, and said hello to Lyndsey, who was busy baking Parkin. I heated up my M&S spaghetti meatballs, and retreated to my cold and damp room. FaceTimed Aki who had gotten home in one piece. She's hosting Kath tomorrow, ahead of their trip to Hammersmith to see David Byrne.
 

Saturday 28th February 2026

Woke around 0900 and descended for porridge. Kath popped out to see a client and do a bit of a shop. Aki and I walked down to Darras Hall Broadway for a coffee at No.9, and picked up some paracetamol supplies from Boots for dad. Back in time for a light lunch. Drove mum and Aki down to Ponteland for a walk in Pont Park...a lot of snowdrops were on show. Got back to the car just as it started to rain, so drove back to High View for a cuppa tea and a biscuit. I cooked a beef in Guinness stew for dinner, with mashed potato and vegetables, followed by semolina pudding and strawberry jam. Watched a bit of telly before bed...
 

Friday 27th February 2026

Woke around 0700...dozed for half-an-hour. Showered. Got some gear together and packed it in the car boot. Set off for Newcastle (-on-Tyne). Took the M6 up to Manchester, then across the Pennines via the M62, and from thence to Newcastle on the A1(M), stopping briefly at Wetherby service station on the way. Jim and Emma had tied the knot at Newcastle Civic Centre earlier in the morning, in the company of Kathryn, and Emma's sister Penny, who acted as witnesses. I got to High View in time to join mum, dad, Aki and Kath for lunch. Dad looked OK, but in too much pain to contemplate attending the reception in Byker, so I drove myself, Aki, Kath and mum in. The reception was being held in a small local brewery out toward Walker. 

We entered the downstairs bar area, which was pretty well packed...met Penny, and Emma's son Ronan. Mum's young piano pupil, Sienna, was there with her dad...he's an ex-professional rugby player...and is built like a brick outhouse! We were ushered upstairs to attend a wee ceremony presided over by Jim's mate, Martin, who was acting as celebrant. He gave a rather long, and rather dull speech, and Jim and Emma exchanged vows before the assembled guests, to the accompaniment of Finn on beer barrel!

We were then ushered by the staff back downstairs while they readied the space for the pizza party. It was very noisy, and no-one seemed up for directing mum to a seat, so she decided she wanted to go home. I drove her back to High View...got there just as dad was serving up a cauliflower cheese for dinner. I drove back to Byker and got there just in time for the pizzas. A small dancefloor had been cleared at one end of the rather narrow room, and the House Devils, a Celtic trio who delivered a rousing mix of Irish trad, Johnny Cash, and Celtic ceilidh tunes, played and called a couple of country dance routines. It looked like a rugby scrum...presumably Sienna's dad was in the middle of it somewhere! We left about 2100 and I drove Aki and Kath back to High View...the end of a long and exhausting day!

Thursday 26th February 2026

Alarm at 0730. Took a while to haul myself out of bed...knackered! Descended to the kitchen for porridge. Drove in to the theatre for a 0930 start...the Company Stage Manager bored us all to death for the first half hour with a load of admin guff, then we started work where we had left off last night. I'd explained to Kate the DSM that I had decided not to leave at 1600 as planned, as I'd hit traffic around Manchester, and have to drive a certain distance in the dark...so it meant Bob and Sayan could carry on marking out the shape of Act 1. Broke for lunch...I heated up a jar of baked beans, which I then lathered on top of two pieces of toast and some Emental...worked a treat. Chatted to Shirley about Dickens...she had told me that they lived in a village west of Rochester. 

She said she'd inherited a full set of leather-bound Dickens novels, but had yet to read any of them. Carried on working bits of Act 1, and the songs as they came up. We actually did a stagger through, which held together remarkably well...Bob seemed very chuffed with our progress. Broke for dinner...microwaved the last of the chicken and mushroom lasagne I'd cooked on Tuesday evening. Worked through "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Dirty Old Heart of the City", then broke early. I drove back to Bakewell Street, aiming for a No.2 in my private bathroom. As I sat there with my trousers around my ankles, a large spider came hurtling across the bathroom floor, making a bee-line for my trouser leg. I used a mug to catch him, leaving it in situ for mein hosts to deal with tomorrow! FaceTimed Aki, who had arrived at High View this evening...she was stuck in the house with John and Margaret, Kath having gone home, and Jim and Emma shacked up in an AirBnB ahead of tomorrow's 0930 wedding at the Civic Centre. Drove down to the London Road Alehouse in the drizzle, to catch a bit of James's band's set...they are called the British Premonition Collective. As I rocked up outside the venue, with it's floor to ceiling plate glass windows, I could see eight blokes cavorting about in black, their faces obscured by black balaclavas with eyes sewn onto them...James sat at an ironing board and played lap-steel guitar with an e-bow, putting it through several effects pedals. It was loud and tuneless, but intriguingly compelling...the singer declaimed improvised lyrics, a sort of demented cross between Mark E Smith, John Cooper Clarke, and Gerry Adams! I really enjoyed it...they'd go down a storm in Berlin! 

Wednesday 25th February 2026

Slept through to the alarm at 0730... presumably because I'm knackered! Got up and descended for porridge. Lindsay was up and about...working from home today, and going on a cycle ride. I put together a packed lunch. Drove in to the theatre. Shirley led the warm-up. Continued working through Act 1, stopping to cover the songs as we went along. Broke for lunch at 1300...ate my packed lunch in the Green Room. Rehearsed Lady Eleanor before going back into Molly rehearsals. 

Broke at 1800. Drove down into Hartshill and parked up near James's house on Cumming Street, then walked round to the Sanctuary Ale House to meet up with James and Anne. As the pub quiz was just beginning, we hightailed it up to Noah's...they've got a good Indian kitchen, and we got stuck into curry, onion bhaji, mushroom rice, and paratha. The mushroom rice was highly spiced with chilli, which was a bit of a surprise...I'd have preferred to avoid the chilli! Had a good catch up...exchanged health problems...James has been diagnosed with asymptomatic myeloma, cancer of the bone marrow. It is progressing, though slowly, but he hasn't required chemotherapy as of yet. Decamped to No.106 Cumming Street for a cuppa tea, and a quick rehearsal of Lady Eleanor, and chatted in the company of their daughter Beth...she's gearing up for a trip to Nepal! Drove back to Bakewell Street, getting in around 2215...exhausted!

Tuesday 24th February 2026

A fitful night's sleep. Woke at 0530 and didn't really get back to sleep before the alarm went off at 0730. Got up and showered. Porridged in my room. No sign of mein host this morning. Drove into Basford for a 0930 warm-up in the Workspace. The band rehearsed "Dancing in the Street" whilst I departed for costume fitting with Liz and David. Returned to the rehearsals and took up a tambourine. We then worked through Act I, stopping to learn the songs as they appeared in the narrative.

I'm backing singing on some, and playing guitar on one. Broke for lunch...had my beetroot soup in the Green Room. Decamped to the music room to work on "Lady Eleanor" ahead of meeting JED tomorrow. We continued working through Act I in the afternoon. Broke for dinner...I ventured over to the atrium to use the oven, and cooked a ready-made chicken and mushroom lasagne...the oven took about 20 minutes to warm up to the required temperature. Just had time to devour it before having to head back to the rehearsal room. Worked on harmonies for "Chapel of Love". Broke around 2000 and drove to Tesco to do a bit more food shopping. FaceTimed Aki from the car park...she's rowing tomorrow. It's forecast to be 18C!!! Got back to Bakewell Street around 2115. Door was double locked, and the car wasn't in the drive, so I assumed they were out, but the alarm hadn't been set, and the dog was in the kitchen...house in darkness, though.

Monday 23rd February 2026

Woke around 0430...took ages to get back to sleep. Alarm at 0730. Showered then porridged. Mein hosts were leaving for work as I entered the kitchen. Warmed up some soup to take in for lunch, and drove in to Basford. Felt elated to be parking up in the car park at the Vic once more. Cast and crew gathered in the atrium, and I caught up briefly with Liz Evans, who assisted on the design of the original production, and is over-seeing this one...Karen Norcross still working in the wardrobe department! Amazing. 

Kate the SM gave us all a tour of the building and we convened in the Workspace across from the theatre, a building which didn't exist when I last worked at the Vic. Did a read through before gathered staff members, then broke for lunch. Had my soup in the Green Room. The afternoon session was largely concentrated on working on the Pott'ries accent, and we basically did another read through, plus accent notes from the voice coach. Broke at 1730 for drinks in the Lounge and a little speech of greeting from the AD, Teresa Heskins. Sat about chatting with Bob, and some of the cast members before heading for the chippy in Penkhull Village. Ate my steak and kidney pie, chips and peas, in the car, then drove on to Tesco to do a shop. FaceTimed Aki, who was at Tammie's having dinner. Got back to the digs around 2100.