Saturday 2nd from 6.00pm: Cheese and Wine at Welwyn. Bring along a bit of cheese, the more unusual the better; Rowena and Mark Lawrence will provide the craic and the crackers. Family friendly event. Contact Rowena on [Email] or [Phone Number] for details.
We're off to Nottingham Playhouse on Monday 4th for the Reduced Shakespeare Company's "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)". It's hilarious whether you are au fait with Shakespeare or not. The performance starts at 7.45pm and tickets range from £10-18 so reasonable for a quality show direct from the West End. Please let me know as soon as possible if interested so we can try to make a group booking.
The following evening we have our regular get together at the Vat & Fiddle pub on Queensbridge Road. Join us any time from 8.00pm on Tuesday 5th for a chat, or sometimes debate, over a drink. New faces always welcome. There's free parking right outside or buses from nearby Broad Marsh station.
Join me from 10.30am on Wednesday 6th for informal conversation and coffee. We are going to try a new venue - The Cape on Station Road in Beaconsfield. It describes itself as a Grand Café and Restaurant and has a South African theme. A full cooked breakfast menu is available as well as many varieties of coffee, tea, cakes and biscuits. For further venue information see http://www.the/capeonline.com
Thursday 7th November from 8.15pm: FThOTM at the Millstream, Hitchin Tuesday
It's a quiet month for us, just our pub discussion at the Adam and Eve on Lindum Hill on Saturday 9th. We will be chatting about 'When will geo-political boundaries end?' We usually arrive just after noon and start the debate at about 12.30 but feel free to join us when you like for as long as you like. Some join in, others just listen. There is pub food available and a free car park. Contact me for further details.
Our first event in November is Sunday lunch and a walk in Newport Pagnell on Sunday 10th. This is Remembrance Sunday, so I will check nearer the time which restaurants have availability. We will aim to meet at 12.30pm but this might also need to be adjusted slightly. After lunch we will follow the town heritage trail and take in some of the historic sights of this old coaching town.
On Thursday 14th we have our other regular get together at the Beekeeper pub/restaurant on Meadow Lane in Beeston. The current tram works should not interfere with reaching the venue and there is a large car park. Find us beyond the food order point with a yellow Mblem on display any time from 7.30pm until closing. We are usually the last ones to leave! You are welcome to have a meal or just a drink. Please note that next month's event on Thursday 12th December will be our festive meal and requires pre-booking at £9.99 for two courses or £12.99 for three courses.
Finally on Friday 15th we return to Nottingham Greyhound Stadium in Colwick to take part in the finals of a charity tournament. Tickets have been donated by the stadium and we are selling them for £5 (normal admission and race card is £6) and all money goes to Cancer Research UK. Gates open 6.00pm with the first race at 6.28pm and the last race finished by 10.30pm. Food and drink are available at the venue as is ample free parking. You may arrive and leave when you like and under 18s are free with an accompanying adult. A further cash prize and trophy are up for grabs so fingers crossed our allocated dog wins again! Feel free to invite your family, friends and work colleagues as we have been given 100 tickets.
On Monday 18th we continue our Third Monday of the Month quiz meetings at The Barge at Woolstone. We meet from 8.30pm in time for the quiz at 9.00pm - cost is £1 per person. See www.vintageinn.co.uk/thebargewoolstone/ for location and, if possible, let me know beforehand if you're coming so we can reserve a big enough table.
Our "3rd Wednesday" event falls on 20th November and you'll find us in the low ceiling area at the rear of the Standing Order pub on Irongate in the city centre. This is a Wetherspoon venue so good value food and drink and you are welcome to join us for one or both any time from 7.30pm until 10.30ish. Look for a yellow Mblem on the table or contact me beforehand and we'll look out for you. New faces always welcome!
Sunday breakfast will be at 10.30 am on Sunday 24th at Wetherspoons on Midsummer Boulevard West, and not far up from the railway station. Come for a full breakfast, a snack, or just a drink - look for the Mblem on a table.
At 7.30pm on Tuesday 26th our "eating meeting" will be at Bluey's Australian Steakhouse on Nottingham Road in Alfreton. The restaurant comes highly recommended and there is opportunity to sample a range of exotic meats such as kangaroo, wild boar, crocodile, water buffalo, camel and much more. See www.blueys.org.uk for full menu. Normal steaks are also available as are vegetarian/vegan dishes upon request.
Please book your place with me by 19th latest stating if you'd like any of the exotic steaks as these need to be ordered in specially by the restaurant. It should be a bonzer night!
26th November at 8.00pm: the play "Anne Boleyn" at the Little Theatre, Balfour Street, Hertford. Barry Grossman writes, "I will be appearing at this play which features the life and tragic death of Anne Boleyn. Cost is £12.50; please contact me on [Phone Number] for further information. The venue is on the north side of Hertford, about ten minutes' walk from Hertford North station. If you want to book, please send a cheque by 8th November to me at my home address: [Address].
Please include an email or phone number and I will confirm receipt. Tickets can then be collected at the theatre foyer. Don't worry, the foyer is tiny, you will find everyone and find the tickets. The steward or front of house manager will help you with any problems."
Ever since Neanderthal times, November has been the traditional month for shopping for Christmas presents, double-checking the festive wine is still drinkable and, in my mother's case, putting on the Christmas Day sprouts for a nice, long boil. Given this hive of activity, there'll be just one meeting this month: our usual "Fourth Thursday" at The Craddock Arms (http://www.thecradock.co.uk/) on the 28th at 8.00pm. Look out for the Mensa magazine, the yellow Mblem or a table covered in cake crumbs, and you'll have found us! Alternatively, give me a call or email me for a chat/directions/etc.
Friday 29th November from 8.00pm: LFOTM at the Cowper Arms, Digswell
A Midsummer Night's Dream is coming to High Wycombe's Swan theatre on Saturday 30th. Mark Sandford will host this event and invites you to the afternoon performance starting at 2.30pm. Please contact Mark at [Email] or on [Phone Number] to let him know you are coming but buy your own tickets at www.wycombeswan.co.uk/Online/