Wednesday, 26.
At the Theatre Royal for Ian McKellen and Roger Allam in a new play, “Frank and Percy”.
The two-character play covers, rather bravely I think, a lot of ground. Among others, class, ideology, climate change, aging, death, grief, relationships, sexual desire, and most particularly, non-binary gender issues.
It’s a big ask really, talking about all that and having only two people talk about it. The play feels like a sketch, albeit a long one. It’s early days yet, we saw it on its second day in town. Maybe it will get better when it grows up.
But the audience, mainly faithful fans of the two stars I imagine, were very appreciative and most got up for a standing ovation.
Stuart and I loved Roger Allam as Inspector Fred Thursday in “Endeavour” on TV and so enjoyed watching him and the venerable Sir Ian onstage, their RSC voices ringing out beautifully in the small theatre, not taking themselves and their star power too seriously, dressing up in drag, a micro mini rainbow tutu for McKellen as Percy and metallic neon rainbow shorts for Allam as Frank.
I thought, Oh my, what would Mrs. Thursday think of that?
Tuesday, 25.
Margaret’s Buildings is a pretty pedestrian street lined with Georgian buildings and small independent businesses. Art, jewellery, interiors, antiques, beauty salon, a cake shop, 2 cafes, a laundromat, a restaurant.
Run by husband and wife team Simon and Leanne, Crescent Restaurant & Bar is a gem. The food is very good, the place welcoming and quietly efficient.
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There’s a lovely shop there called Berdoulat.
The storefront has a faded even slightly neglected look to it. But once you step over the mosaic tiled threshold you’re in a magical space full of interesting objects dangerously close to being not at all useful. They are however beautiful to look at and lovely to touch.
Down a steep staircase to a cave-like basement is an art gallery.
On a wall hangs an “honours list” charting the Grade II listed building’s history.
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I chatted with the owner of a shop called WYRD.
In the shopwindow was a huge bunch of glass flowers. I asked her about them. They’re solar garden lights. She had them in the garden of her Cambridge home and brought them along when she moved to Bath. People kept asking to buy them so she got more. Nothing precious about them, she said, you can get them on Amazon.
She was trimming leather pieces that she made into key rings. I said what a lovely shop she had. It smelled nice too.
It’s great fun having the shop, she said. And Bath is a nice place. People are friendly.
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Later, close to midnight, I watched the setting first quarter moon briefly break through a thick bank of rainclouds.
Monday, 24.
I love Bath. I hate it when they do unsmart things to change it.
We’re at The Royal Crescent Hotel where they’ve refurbished the front parlour. I really do wish they hadn’t. It has lost the character and charm of this venerable Georgian building’s cultural and architectural roots.
They’ve also redone the dining room. And the guest rooms. I wish they hadn’t. They’ve made it all look and feel ordinary, generic.
We were here last year. This is what made us want to come back.
The £2million reportedly spent on the refurbishment could’ve been put to better use updating the hotel’s amenities which are woefully inadequate for any property of this calibre.
