Friday

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory



This year, rather than buying Myles some age-innapropriate DVD for Christmas, I decided to take him to a London show (and then I got a little treat too!). He chose Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and we decided to make a day of it. 

First, I got my hair cut so it was free to run wild in all its natural fluffiness! 

What Myles Wore: Hat- Fresh Ego Kid. Parka- Matalan. Bag- River Island. Jeans- Topshop. Trainers- Nike. 
I asked Myles if he had any comments to make about his outfit. His reply was: "Hipster... but spelt, like, hip$t3r". Oh dear! 

It was pretty windy!

He was very excited about going to London as, supposedly, he'd never been to central London before, although I don't believe that he could be 14 without visiting London. 

We had a little bit of spare time and Myles wanted to do a bit of shopping so I took him to Camden. Perfect place for a teenage hipster! 

He was desperate for a Casio-esque watch and, after looking all over Camden Stables, we finally found one. It turns out he's a great haggler and managed to get it for half the asking price. 

I knew he'd love Cyberdog and I was absolutely right. "It's like a shop but a disco!" 

I really love the whole atmosphere of Camden and the mix of old and new.
We stumbled across this crazy antique shop which was filled to the brim with taxidermy. 
Camden is so pretty in the evening!  
After a spot of shopping (and lots of Myles whinging about tourists, ironically!), we headed to Charing Cross for dinner. 
Nando's! Myles was a walrus.
I've been eating in the Charing Cross Nando's for 5 years, and had no idea that it was just one street away from Covent Garden! After filling up on chicken, we strolled over to Theatre Royal on Drury Lane. Presumably the one of Muffin Man fame. 
The theatre is a beautiful Napoleonic theatre with a  fascinating historybuilt in 1812 on a site that has housed theatres since the mid 1600s.
The interior architecture is just stunning. 
I'd bought seats in one of the boxes at a discounted price because of a slight overhang. I wasn't sure what I was expecting from the box, but it wasn't this! It was supposed to seat 4 people, but they didn't put anybody else in with us.  
The box had its own door and coat hooks. It was very private as it wasn't overlooked at all, so we could freely dance around without annoying anyone or looking crazy! We felt very posh and fancy!

This was our view. You can see the overhang but it didn't affect the view of the show at all. Occasionally there would be a detail on the backdrop that we had to crouch down to see, but we didn't miss any of the action. 
The show was great! The first half was a bit slow, with lots of ballads and not much action, but it picked up in the second half, on entry to the chocolate factory. Charlie Bucket was played by Troy Tipple who, due to his Yorkshire accent, seemed very authentic: None of this horrible stageshow kid stuff! However, I think the star of the show was really 11-year-old Matilda Belton, whose Veruca Salt was both sickeningly saccharine and ear-piercingly shrill when she wasn't getting her way. 
The squirrels were my favourite part of the show (for anyone who's confused about this, the geese in the 1970s film were actually squirrels in the book), so I couldn't resist buying a cute little fluffy squirrel from the merchandise stall! Rather embarrassingly, I caught myself squealing "I want a squirrel" in the foyer. Turns out I'm quite the Veruca Salt myself! 
Then it was time to head back home. We had a great time and have already decided to go to another show next year. We're going to have to get another box too- I've got a taste for the good life now!

10 comments :

  1. Sounds like you had a fab time. Camden is my favourite neighbourhood in London. And I've still never seen a show at the west end!
    Rosie x
    Every Word Handwritten

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    Replies
    1. This was only the third one I've been to. I definitely need to go to more!

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  2. Looks like a great day out - I'd quite like to see this show myself! And the pics of Camden are really nice - makes me miss London actually aha >.<
    www.mrjoiee.com

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    Replies
    1. I'm not sure if I'd recommend it since the first half is so slow, but if you do go, try and get box J!

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  3. Wowee this looks like such a fantastic day out! That box is amazing, I'll keep my eyes out for discounted seats with an overhang in the future! Camden is such a great place for exploring too! :)
    Carrie xxx
    carriebrighton

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  4. DO YOU KNOW THE MUFFIN MAN, WHO LIVES ON DRURY LANE?

    You're hot. x

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  5. Looks like a really great day - I love the squirrel!
    Megan x | MeganRoisinn

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