UK Trip 2005

After leaving the Caves I dropped in at the rather nice Bickley Arms on Chislehurst High Street on the way back to the station, and experimented with a pint or two of Bombardier Bitter. Man U were on the telly as well, giving Charlton Athletic a 4-0 pasting. And the jukebox, called The Music and proudly boasting 2 million songs on offer, had six or so from The Jam. Put on "Down In The Tube Station At Midnight" and suddenly half the geezers in the front bar came alive, almost semi-consciously singing along and gushing about Paul Weller. They did the same, only more so, for "Going Underground", and the forty-something crew-cut gentleman at the table in front of me, who clearly had some influence in the place, saw to it that the volume was turned decidedly up during that one. A pleasant surprise. I never thought I'd get to hear "Tube Station" on a pub jukebox, but there you are. Then I walked up to the station to find the trains were now hourly back to London and I'd missed one by about two minutes. Got some reading in on the platform. Back at Charing Cross, walked out to Embankment, went for a walk along the new Golden Jubilee bridge, built in mirror halves on each side of the Charing Cross rail bridge. Found myself on The Queen's Walk between South Bank and Westminster Bridge, around the London Eye. Also the first time this trip I'd had the chance to hear Big Ben, truly. As dusk fell I was relaxing on a bench quietly enjoying some of the best buskers I have ever seen anywhere. One young woman, dressed as Eliza Doolittle (or similar), sitting right next to the London Eye, beaming at her audience, playing what at first appeared to be an old upright pub piano, but which was more likely an upright shell with the (much heavier) inner frame and strings removed and cleverly replaced with a modern keyboard, the player sitting on a speaker disguised as a seat and connected to the keyboard...ingenious! She played about an hours' worth of lovely old tunes, a framed photo of what turned out to be her grandfather on top of the piano and an ancient candelabra attached to its front. Then she played White Cliffs Of Dover, on the edge of the Thames, with sun setting and Big Ben in full view, six days from VE Day 60...steady now, get a grip old chap! As she launched into something else, the grand old bell in Big Ben commenced striking nine o'clock. She was out by about 25 seconds; if we'd had Big Ben and Vera Lynn at exactly the same time I would have been on the ground, throwing paper money at her. She packed up, I went home. Tomorrow night I hope to be back down here for a catamaran cruise on the River. Here's to more blinding busking. Next Previous

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Andrew L

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ukmay05@yahoo.co.uk