Today I was once again in Brighton, however this time I managed to wrestle control of the timetable with I must admit an ulterior motive. There were two things I had in mind firstly there is a Lego store in Brighton and secondly there is also a Games Workshop. So by arriving early and missing the rush hour traffic, it meant that the shops would still be open.
Now not wanting to trot out the tired old quote about children and sweetshops, but the Lego store really did have the look of a traditional confectionary vendor. There were acrylic spheres filled with coloured bricks, looking for all the world like tasty sugar treats and the assistants were all clad in long yellow aprons with the Lego logo embroidered upon them. I want to know where to get one of those aprons; in fact I’m seriously considering applying for a part-time position as long as they allow me to keep my apron!
Not that I actually bought anything, by the time I got into town I’d decided against doing any shopping. Yes, I felt guilty about my somewhat passive-aggressive shopping subterfuge. But there was no reason I couldn’t scope out the location of my retail quarries. Which as you might gather was successful with regard to the Lego store, but sadly not so much for Games Workshop.
However the primary reason for the trip was to see Lucy Porter performing her latest Edinburgh show. I’m certainly glad I ignored the advice of the member of staff ushering us into the venue, who suggested we fill up the rows closest to the stage and we needn’t worry because “There’s no audience participation”. But not being a Lucy Porter newbie I knew this wasn’t accurate and indeed some audience participation was nearly always mandatory. So while not seeing the need to sit in the last row at least 5 rows back seemed like a safe enough bet.
The show was over in a flash which is testament to the thoroughly enjoyable and engaging nature of a Miss (soon to be Mrs it seems!) Porter performance. She explained at the beginning that for various reasons it might be a little disjointed and that the performance had evolved. It did seem a little less smoothly flowing than so of her other work I’ve seen, but that’s not really a substantive criticism. She did rag on Dubai somewhat and I have to completely agree; although I suppose she comes from the advantageous position of having visited, I on the other hand chose not to. Also picking probably the tallest person in the audience to drag up on stage was comedy genius, assuming it was intentional but I can’t be sure how good Lucy’s height approximating in the dark skills are. I know if I was a comedian it’s the first skill I’d be sure to master.