Weekend in Birmingham

I spent the weekend in Birmingham with my friend Liz, tickets to see John Barrowman in pantomime and a burning desire to escape London a while.

I love London; j'adore Londres! But sometimes I need time away from the City and I am fairly certain that the City feels the same way. This was my first visit to Birmingham and I found it pleasantly laid back and relaxing. Which, considering it is the second biggest city in the UK, might seem like an odd epithet but I have found that coming from the actual biggest city in the UK throws everything else into sharp relief. And I mean 'relief': Take me away from the capital and the stress seems to melt away, evaporate and leave me pliant and (mostly) agreeable.

The pantomime was unsurprisingly fabulous, rather more shocking was the realisation that the show was being subtly but resolutely stolen by a hot ventriloquist (I know, I didn't think I'd ever form a sentence like that either) called Paul Zerdin, although in the interests of full disclosure he was playing Will Scarlet who has always been my favourite character, since I was five and had Robin Hood as a bedtime story. Robin himself I could take or leave (the will-they-won't-they fait accompli with the Maid Marion left me cold to the point of freezing even then), but I have always adored Will.

Liz & I threw, nay flung, ourselves whole-heartedly into the suspension-of-pretension panto spirit and yelled the set pieces like professionals - there are never enough times you can yell "He's behind you!" with pure abandon. I haven't been to the panto in far too long, so I am glad I had the chance to this weekend - I had intended to go to several shows over Christmas, a plan nixed rather throughly by the Plague of Death from last month.

That said, I doubt that Birmingham's Hippodrome extravaganza is anywhere close to the current mean average, the undeniably high spec experience owes (likely figuratively & literally) to a weighty list of corporate sponsors, who fall over themselves to support the arts when it will hit headline news and Lloyds appears to be funding anything with a letterhead at the moment, not that I am complaining per se, merely cynical and bitchy.

Or maybe it's just Monday? I attempted to retain the newfound Zen-like attitude upon arrival into Victoria Station yesterday, but by the time I stepped off the tube (taken to avoid the rail replacement bus) I was tense as ever. Birmingham was fantastic, but I should really take an actual vacation - haven't had more than three nights away from home in ... I actually cannot remember.

Unfortunately as I tend to spend my down time writing, spending money to go away and do ... pretty much what I'd do at home anyway seems a little flamboyant. Excessive. Wasteful.

Necessary? Then again a couple of early nights would likely have an equally uplifting effect. Having lost my weekend lie-in I am utterly knackered.

Worth it though.

Happy Birthday to the BM

250th Birthday of The British Museum today. Or rather it's the 250th Anniversary, as January 15th 1759 was the date the museum first opened its doors to the public and is not to be confused its last 250 year birthday back in 2003 (and again every year since).

It is like the perennial 49 year old, every year - same age. "And how old are you this year The British Museum? 250? Again? Congratulations!"

It isn't that I blame it for wanting to make its birthday last as long as possible, most people have this urge. It's just that most people outgrow it by the time they're in double digits. There are, after all, other years - better years maybe - that are being overlooked. 251, for example, might have been a nice one to celebrate, or the pallendromic 252. 253, 254 & 255 - all perfectly good years, passing utterly unremarked under the headline of '250th Anniversary'.

I shall be attending the Director's Lecture in the BP lecture hall tonight "250 years on: What Does It Mean To Be A World Museum?" and there will be an audio file posted online after the event.

Promises to be good, even if we are being a little interpretive regarding the numbers.

And onward to 2009...

The strangest, most haphazard, but pleasant Christmas passed and 2008 shunned after a unanimous vote, at which point 2009 was welcomed into the building with open arms.

Am yet to make New Year Resolutions as am not starting the "New Year" until back at work on Monday. I plan to scribble them down in the back of my diary sometime Sunday evening and take it from there.

One of these Resolutions will likely be procrastinate less. Ironically.