I began my third visit to London in 2013 on what became the hottest day of the year and elsewhere with the temperatures in the nineties. The air had that intense Mediterranean hotness which is my DNA but which I have not experienced for close on a decade. It only lasted the day as this morning after a thunderstorm the air cleared and although it became sunny and warm late afternoon early evening my understanding is that the heat wave is over.
At one level I prepared well for the trip only leaving behind the charge unit for my camera phone and for processing the photos onto the laptop. Fortunately I had not only also brought the reserve mobile but its charger but it will restrict the number of photos I will be able to take during the five whole days in London although as it now transpires I shall spend the 5th night in Northampton. More on that and I why I added at one level in a mo.
I also left the house early unsure how left side of my back would hold up. I am assuming the recently difficulties, especially sleeping at night, were caused by not warming up before playing Wii sports and then performing at tennis with a professional rating together with ferocious boxing and other activities as a 30 year old, come to believe my fitness rate was real although for several months I felt it was so. Now I have been feeling more like 74.
I set off early arriving on the platform shortly before the train from London drew in and enjoyed a chat with a young mother and about to go to primary school daughter. She seemed to want to chat and commenced to tell me about her life but the opening of the train doors sent us to separate carriages although in fact I went to the next carriage to the one assigned with all four seats at the table were reserved while the carriage adjacent had several tables fully unreserved. This did mean I had no one sitting in the window seat for the duration although two people occupied the seats opposite having travelled from the home counties to some management venture in Newcastle. Usually they would have travelled first class and having disclosed that my ticket costs £15 the man said his was £160 something second class.
I had not slept well and spent most of journey eyes closed listening to the start of the Third Ashes Test from Old Trafford where as one commentator noted the fully enclosed ground means there was not a tree in sight and another thought the Pavilion was odd retaining part of the old structure but with a penthouse looking upper floor.
The train was delayed for part of the journey but speeded up to avoid penalties as the capital approached. It was indeed very hot. .I had baked two baguettes filling three parts with salami and olives and the fourth with cheese and olives and enjoyed one baguette at the station before the train set off. I managed to spill a cup of water over myself on the train forgetting it was still full. This has proved the only senior moment so far, I purchased a coffee on the train.
My room at the lodge is on the 5th floor and after settling in I went to the Waitrose supermarket for a can of Pepsi which i drank immediately before returning for the second baguette and a Feast Ice cream from the machine on the first floor of the lodge for the excellent price of £1.
I then went for a walkabout having changed out of the suit into the, lightweight trousers and blue top. My attention was taken by the sound of drumming, bells and cymbals coming form a little way down the High Street where I was able to take a seat and enjoy the hypnotic noise and chanting of a party of South Korean Christian Missionaries who according to their English speaking leader had spent £40000 coming to the UK to spread their message of love. He had seen the light after his brother had tried to kill him over drugs.
Croydon is most cosmopolitan area of London when Arab, Asian and African intermingles with Europeans from every corner of the continent together with West Indians and those from the Americas and Australia, and where the city also hosts International companies such as Nestles, It is also the Home Office Immigration central office. On the way back to the lodge I noted that a new oriental buffet has opened following the closure of the other further up the street. The two prices are £5 before 4pm and £6 after but the selection looks limited but interesting and worth a try, if I can fit in my schedule and limit the quantity
I am determined not to increase my weight on this visit with that in April for the Oval visit having been so disastrous especially as I have so much travelling away from home and being out and about when I am there. The warm weather will help. On return to the room the priority was to sort out a ticket for the quarter final 20 20 competition game between Durham and Northants at the county ground late on Tuesday evening.
There was no information about the game on the Durham web site but that for Northants revealed that tickets were available by phone and personal contact from the ground for Members and 20 20 season ticket holders during the day. Tickets at £15 were available for everyone else from Friday 2nd August. I had intended to stay up to see if they came on online at midnight but I was so tired I went to bed and sleep around 9.30 but fortunately waking around 11.30. By 12.05 I had booked a ticket with the booking reference required. I must find out what time the gates open. I had already booked my Travel Lodge accommodation and the plan is to pack after breakfast on Tuesday and take the luggage to Kings Cross putting the main case in left luggage over night and then taking the overnight bag and the sleep apnoea machine with me to register at the Travel Lodge at 3 and then go to the ground when it opens hopefully to view the earlier quarter final between Surrey and who ever they are playing or at last get a good seat bearing mind the potential weather. I have the information on bus transport from the city centre to the ground although I may walk. I have been to Northampton once before in the mid 1960’s when I went to see the wife of the brother of now imprisoned Stuart Hall in a restoration comedy. I watched the 1966 World Cup Triumph with the couple after attending their wedding.
Now to concentrate on my first day at Lords the home of cricket!!! Un terms of main pavilions Lords unlike Surrey is not visitor friendly. There are two problems. The main pavilion is treated as a gentleman’s club with all the traditional values of chauvinism, racism and class snobbery buried loosely below the surface. The official position is different but it is ingrained among some members and some of the staff where I noted that unlike Surrey there were no non whites.
There is also deep resentment about the rise of Durham and its supporters in particular. Although staff refer to you as sir it is said in a form of contempt. The MCC reeks the mentality of empire and the brotherhood.
I have been to Lords for Test Matches and one 40 over finals day although I missed Durham successful visit although I had a ticket because my mother had entered hospital a few days before from which she did not return to the residential home where she celebrated her 100th birthday a few months before. I have also been to Lords to watch Durham lose before as well as the one occasion when they won.
My first visit to watch the championship playing side was in 1992 when Durham lost by 195 runs and the following year we were able to hold them to a draw at the racecourse ground Durham City. In 1994 the defeat at Lords was more horrendous by an innings and 34 runs back at Lords and the following year at Chester Le Street we lost by 386 runs and then by 306 runs back at Lords in 1996. There was a draw at home and the magically the one and only win at Lords by the single wicket in 1998 15 years ago.
Games were played alternatively at home or away in those years until the two division were created and with Durham and Middlesex in different divisions the years of games between the two clubs has been fewer
1999 Lost at Lords 25 runs and lost at Chester Le street by 8 wickets. 2001 Drew at Riverside Division 2 and lost at Lords Innings and 74 runs; 2002 Lost at Riverside by 10 wicket and Drew at Lords. In 2006 there was the first win at the Riverside by 105 runs, drawing at Lords although I will need to check back to see if I attended. There was then a game until last year when I attended to watch the matched affected by rain draw when a win had looked likely because of some great bowling by Graham Onions and we won again at the Emirates by 15 runs as we did earlier in this season thus I attended Lords this time with optimism as we had played 18 times losing 8 but now winning 4 with 6 drawn.
The day was warm with the promise of a sunshine throughout and I immediately realised I had made a mistake in terms of bringing my suit rather than the fawn blazer especially with brown red shoes! However I will be glad of its warmth for the quarter final game on Tuesday. I enjoyed a sausage and bacon roll and a tea (the coffee machine was being serviced) from Greggs which I had on site for £2,25 before going over to Sainsbury’s and buying a taste the difference King prawn sandwich with rocket, a bottle of orange juice and a packet of baked cheese and onion crisps (£3).
On Saturday morning I went to Greggs and brought back the sausage and bacon roll with the coffee to enjoy in my room after getting the king prawn sandwich and crisps from Sainsbury’s. The limitation of this approach is that I had the coffee and also the orange juice before leaving and on both days the sandwich was consumed before midday with the crisps soon after but I survive without buying more food until the return journey and visiting Waitrose.
On Friday morning I also went to the Oyster card shop to add £30 and get a new wallet for my cards. These are excellent slim and can take three to five cards. I arrived at East Croydon station a few minutes before 9.30 and then caught the 9.32 cross rail train from Brighton to Bedford, getting a seat and alighting at London Bridge station. From here there is a direct underground train using the Jubilee line to St John’s Wood. On Saturday I missed the 9.32 but there was only a 15 minute wait until the next train which was nothing like as busy as that on the first day.
I have never explored St John’s Wood beyond the immediate environs to the huge ground apart from knowing its proximity to the Park and London Zoo and that it remains one of the most sought after residential area of London with expensive blocks of apartments some with penthouses valued in their millions and also individual properties with their tall electronically operated block gates suggesting they are hiding more than defending. It was on an early visit that I had the idea of using a property in this area for one of the key characters in my unpublished novel which I am rewriting this October after the two months of cricket watching have come to an end.
Lords is a large ground full of areas to sit and picnic and where they is a wide range of places to eat during matches, domestic international. The ground also reflects the wide range of clients from cricket players and cricket lovers, to the hospitality junkateers, socialites and snobs and this is has developed as a love hate relationship with many and is regarded in awe by professional cricketers and hardened supporters.
My experience this time was a mixed one lasting only two days because of the course of play with day one spent in the grand pavilion although I regard that at Surrey as now better from the position of the county club member and visitor. Because I am returning for the one day 40 over final I decided to explore all the options for food. The Thomas Lord Restaurant offers breakfast at £16 and packages offering breakfasts and lunch and teas at test matches and International one days. There is a la carte at the Lords Tavern with three courses around £25 excluding drinkies.
The Sir Pelham Warner restaurant is located within the members stand to the left of the main pavilion but is only available to MCC members on test matches and other match days. The cost is between £38 for two courses and £50 for four with afternoon tea £16.50. The Harris garden specialises in fish and shellfish with main courses from £15 to £40, offers breakfasts and has a late licence so on special days you can go early for breakfast and have a late dinner wines after the game as ended. The Academy Restaurant offers breakfasts and teas to MCC members and to everyone else a three course lunch at £40. There is also a coffee shop there on other days. I will come to the Pavilion in a moment.
To one side of the Nursery ground where from the seats outside the Academy it is possible to watch the players warm up there is an L shape of permanent concession outlets which open for special matches. Here you can enjoy fish and chips, burgers, pies and curries together with peri peri chicken, or a sausage roll at £ 4.50 or a Jamie Oliver special steak sandwich at £20 washed down with glass or two of Verve Cliquot. There are two coffee and tea concession stalls which also sells alcohol and soft drinks as well as the understand bars and those within the upper tiers of the Grand stand and the Mound. There are no facilities of any kind in the Upper tiers of the Compton and Edrich stands either side of players and Groundsman entrance from the Nursery and with the media centre above. It is my understanding that this is area the club wants to develop which does pose a challenge given the two scoreboards and the media centre appears as obstacles to any major transformation. I sat in row L about two thirds down and immediately over the wicket in the Edrich stand on the second day among a small knot of Durham supporters
I purchased my ticket from box office (£40) for the one day International forgetting I had been told it was for the Compton stand so although it is row L I missed the opportunity to see immediately adjacent to the wicket although the seat is at an aisle. It was good to share what became an evident defeat among friends, so to speak.
On the first day I entered the Pavilion without difficulty in the morning although the season was inspected but sneered at after lunch by rather humourless and spiteful character who insister I put on jacket despite the knowledge that once inside everyone was removing their to watch the play. Ritual is everything here and he appeared forlorn when I refused to lodge my haversack in the lower cloakroom. Here there are four areas for food and drink.
The famous Long Room bar which serves different meals at each end overlooked by the cigar smoking Ian now Sir Ian Botham with across from the entrance and through the reading room a little bar from which it is possible to view the game while holding a pint. The member’s lounge with TV’s and newspapers serves coffee and tea and cakes but I am not sure if this extends to bacon rolls in the morning and cream scones in the afternoon and to one side of the middle tier there is also a bar which serves baguettes and cakes and where I enjoyed a refreshing lemonade at tea time. There is also a choice of iced or natural water and I must say the toilets are exceptional A unique feature is the availability of electronic scoreboard which give the progress of the home game as well information on the rest of championship games being played.
I purchased an edition of the MCC rules from the main store noting a second store which opens on Test and other special days. The price of admission is a modest £8 for the first three days with the fourth free. Entrance to the Museum is a standard £3 with concessions £1 Finally not to be missed are the three Hamper options with two by Jamie Oliver £155 and £77 and one Indian foods at £77. They are designed for two people and can be ordered up to 48 hours beforehand.
I suppose I must talk about the cricket match which Durham lost within an hour of the third day by six wickets. I would like to say that the main cause was the loss of the toss with Middlesex putting Durham into bat on wicket where the ball did fall low at time and appeared to swing and play in uncertain ways after a storm had drenched what I assume was a covered wicket a couple of hours before the start of play. There was great cloud cover for most of the day has Durham failed to make 150 or any batsman to stay after appearing to settle after the disastrous opening where four wickets were down for 44 runs. Middlesex then lost two wickets with 1 run on the board and third before steadying struggling to a lead of 25 on the Durham innings. Durham also struggled the second time round with three wickets down for 30 runs. Stokes looked in good form but then came down the wicket to spinner and was stumped and we were all out leaving the home team to get just under 150 runs to win. There were several appeals which fell on deaf ears including two where the visitors appeared certain but the umpires were resolute in resisting. Graham Onions did the prospect of being called upon for the Durham Test no harm by having a match total of nine for 102. While this now puts Middlesex 3rd in the table on 144 points they have played the extra game which means a Durham overtake is possible with their 132. Sussex on 148 but with 12 games now played were beaten by Derby while Yorks at present on 149 looks as if they will lose to Warwickshire only 147 for 7 in their second innings but where a draw is likely because of the weather.
As a consequence I had two extra days before the Northampton adventure begins.
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