My Westminster Day ★★ FREE


This second annual day featured an open air dance floor, several food stalls and presentations by community groups from across Westminster. There were performances in the bandstand and free face painting and arts and crafts for the children. It is a quiet family affair.

 Our score:  ☆☆ 

WHEN, WHERE, GETTING THERE:
Last Reviewed: June 2019
Paddington Recreation Ground, Maida Vale
Nearest tube: Maida Vale
Map & Location: Randolph Ave, Maida Vale, London W9 1PD, UK

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St. Martin in-the-fields: Lunchtime Concerts ★★★★ FREE

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Maybe the best musical value in London. The lunchtime concerts at St. Martin's are always a wonderful way to escape the hustle and bustle that is London and the sensory overload that is Trafalgar Square. This is a beautiful setting with great acoustics, and a church pew hard enough to make sure you don't nod off. Reviewed by J.C.  Our score:    ☆☆☆☆  WHEN, WHERE, GETTING THERE: Mon & Fri: 1 pm - 1:45 pm ( occasionally Tues & Thurs)  St. Martin in-the-fields, Trafalgar Square Nearest tube: Charing Cross https://www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org/whats-on
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Hedda ★★★★ Orange Tree Theatre | Oct 18 - Nov 22, 2025

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In her adaptation of Ibsen's Hedda Gabler , Tanika Gupta largely follows the original narrative while introducing a new element: Hedda is portrayed as an Anglo-Indian film star who must conceal her origins due to pervasive racism in society and the movie industry. This reimagined aspect draws on the career of Merle Oberon, a film icon of the late 1930s and early 1940s who was only later revealed to be of mixed-race parentage. To succeed in Hollywood, Oberon claimed to be from Tasmania and often asserted Armenian heritage. In Gupta's version, Hedda remains Ibsen's bored, desperate woman who capriciously inflicts pain on those around her, but her motivations are expanded. She struggles not only with the constraints imposed on women by society, but also with the prejudice of a world that would never accept a mixed-race film star. The play is filled with the characters' casual racist remarks and an unmistakable colonial condescension, creating an atmosphere that illuminates...
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Crocodile Fever ★★★★★ Arcola Theatre | Oct 17 - 22 Nov, 2025

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In this gruesome absurdist comedy, two very different sisters confront both the memories and the reality of an oppressive father. Playwright Meghan Tyler has crafted a darkly humorous work that shocks and amuses in equal measure. Just when you think you have seen everything, she takes the absurdity to yet another level. As in many contemporary Irish plays, this domestic conflict serves as an allegory for the island’s political divisions. Here, however, the message is presented as a wonderfully goofy and gory feast. Fianna, the free-spirited sister, rebels openly against their tyrannical parent (read as Britain). She has even served time in prison and is now linked to the IRA. Allanah, by contrast, obeys and conforms, embodying repression and religiosity as she caters to the demands of her vicious, bedridden father. At first, the sisters seem entirely opposed, but gradually they recognise their shared oppression and unite in an attempt to murder their father. That plan, however, proves ...
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Mr Jones ★★★★ Finborough Theatre | Oct 28 - Nov 22, 2025

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On 21 October 1966, the small Welsh village of Aberfan became the site of a heartbreaking disaster that captured the world’s attention. When 150,000 tonnes of mining waste cascaded down a hillside, engulfing the local school and killing 144 people, including 116 children, the world mourned the senseless loss. The sheer scale of such horrors can make them seem almost abstract, and their incomprehensible nature often leaves us numbed. In this powerful two-hander, playwright Liam Holmes brings the Aberfan tragedy vividly to life by focusing on one young couple caught in its shadow. Stephen Jones is a carefree teenager whose ambitions reach no further than becoming the village rugby star and courting his childhood sweetheart, Angharad. Content with his simple dreams, he believes himself to be winning at the game of life. Holmes, as Stephen, and Mabli Gwynne, as Angharad, both deliver deeply moving performances. Their innocent affection and flirtatious banter feel as authentic as their late...
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The Maids ★★★ Donmar Warehouse | Oct 13 - Nov 29, 2025

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Playwright and novelist Jean Genet was the quintessential outsider in post-war France. A criminal and a homosexual, he nonetheless attracted the admiration of luminaries such as Jean Cocteau and Jean-Paul Sartre. His daring literary experiments and provocative imagery in works like Our Lady of the Flowers fascinated both writers, while the layered symbolism of his plays, particularly The Maids , invites multiple interpretations. In this drama, the servants Claire (Lydia Wilson) and Solange (Phia Sabin) engage in ritualistic power games as they assume the identity of their mistress (Yerin Ha) in scenes that can be read on political, religious, existential, or erotic levels. In Kip Williams’ current staging of Genet’s best-known work, the director seems to adopt a role toward the play similar to that of the maids towards their employer, both reverent and mocking. The production moves between homage and parody, overflowing with theatrical excess. An initial curtain separating audience an...
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Marie Antoinette Style ★★★★★ Victoria & Albert Museum | Sep 20, 2025 - Mar 22, 2026

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When the daughter of Maria Theresa, Empress of the Hapsburg Empire, became engaged to the heir to the French throne, her mother wrote to young Marie Antoinette, “All eyes will be on you.” The words proved prophetic, for she would become France’s most famous queen, and her life story has since entered the realm of legend. Her reputation for extravagance and her tragic end remain enduring cultural touchstones. This exhibition, which highlights her distinctive style and traces her fashion legacy to the present day, also recounts the drama of her opulent life and unforgettable death. Historical events and sartorial elegance are seamlessly intertwined. The beautifully curated display not only conveys the richness of 18th-century design, from dresses and jewellery to fans, china and even fragrance, but also presents the slanders that circulated about the queen and contributed to her downfall. A representative model of the guillotine by which she was executed is also included. The narrative, ...
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Death on the Nile ★★★ Richmond Theatre | October 7 - 11, 2025

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Agatha Christie is a name to conjure with. Her books have sold in the billions, making her perhaps the most widely read author on the planet. The Mousetrap remains the longest-running play in history, while Witness for the Prosecution has enjoyed a London run since 2017. Death on the Nile , one of her most popular novels, has been adapted twice for film, twice for television, and was turned into a stage play by Christie herself in 1944. Can this latest adaptation by Ken Ludwig live up to that remarkable heritage? The sets by Mike Britton cleverly evoke both a cruise ship and The British Museum, and Sarah Holland’s costumes are eye-catching and stylish. The show has a pleasing art deco feel, and despite some initial hesitancy and rather stilted performances at the beginning, the cast eventually achieves the right balance of naturalism and stylised mannerism, which allows us to believe in Christie’s world of suspects. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Mark Hadfield’s Poirot. Wh...
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The Assembled Parties ★★★ Hampstead Theatre | Oct 17 - Nov 22, 2025

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Richard Greenberg’s The Assembled Parties contrasts an American Jewish family’s celebration of Christmas in 1980 with that of 2000. Over those twenty years, both the family and the American political landscape change significantly. Although there may be a connection between these two developments, it is only faintly suggested. Indeed, it is difficult to determine the play’s central theme or even its main storyline. In the first act, several subplots are introduced, but in the second only one reaches a partial resolution, and it feels more like an anecdote than a complete narrative. Perhaps the real focus lies in the contrasting ways of engaging with the world embodied by Julie, the hostess of the unusual Jewish Christmas gathering, and her sister-in-law Faye. Julie, though insightful, remains relentlessly optimistic despite the family’s underlying tensions. She maintains a cheerful façade, adhering to social expectations while ignoring unpleasant truths. In contrast, Faye’s sharp and ...
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Ghost Stories ★★★ Sadler's Wells Peacock Theatre | Sep 30 - Nov 8, 2025

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Ghost Stories comprises three tales of supernatural encounters, framed by an academic’s sceptical perspective. Writers Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman have crafted a clever script that keeps the audience engaged and unsettled as a night watchman, a student, and a new father recount their chilling experiences. In today’s highly technical age, the production’s reliance on light and sound effects to create the moments of horror may appear somewhat simplistic. Nevertheless, these evocations of confrontations with the spirit world still elicit the intended gasps and nervous laughter. Indeed, a strong cast does an excellent job of drawing us into their unsettling realities. Jonathan Guy Lewis strikes just the right note as the slightly condescending professor who provides a rational counterpoint to the three narratives, while David Cardy is completely credible as the curmudgeonly warehouse caretaker confronted with an inexplicable phenomenon. Preston Nyman effectively captures the terror of bei...
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Mary Page Marlowe ★★★ The Old Vic | Sep 23 - Nov 1, 2025

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The central metaphor for Mary Page Marlowe is a quilt, the sewn-together collection of patches of cloth, which may, or may not, have a pattern or a theme. To achieve the quilt effect in her play, writer Tracy Letts gives us a series of scenes in the life of her central character. This is done via the ubiquitous and overused technique of presenting material in a non-linear fashion. The audience is then left with the task of taking what are apparently random instances and piecing them together into a whole which will provide some insight into the titular character. This is no easy task since with three husbands plus affairs Mary Page has led a rather complicated life, not to mention issues with addiction, motherhood, and prison. Indeed, it would be no surprise if audience members, like Mary Page herself, had difficulty finding the thread and end up being challenged to understand how it all fits together. Disappointment, dissatisfaction and despair all play their parts, but surely auth...
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The City Life Magazine | Reviews & Ratings