This is the first of the repeat gigs from last tour. Tony Beastie did such a great job last time and we had such a great time, that we are all looking forward to tonight. The drive was a leisurely affair, up the M1, and then East, through the flat expanses of Lincolnshire countryside. We found the Campanile hotel where we left it last year (!!). Funnily enough the same French guy was managing it, although this was, in fact, his last day at the job, and he was departing for his beloved France the next day! But he remembered us. I had a steak lunch in the restaurant, before settling down for a short rest before leaving for the gig, while Tony Read the rest of this entry »

Breakfast was a massive affair…. I pigged out….. Just as well, today’s drive is the longest by far! Sadly, we had to leave really early, because the hospitality was wonderful! We all piled into the trusty steed and set off, more than a little reluctant.

And a long journey it was, too. We got there in a light (but persistant) drizzle, which made off-loading a real pain. The Musician is downtown. Ticket sales have not been good…. hmmmmmm.

Another small gig…. another “unplugged” setup. Steve Jordan, Read the rest of this entry »

We all got up early…. and left the “hotel” as early as possible. By 9am, we were sitting in a Little Chef on the main road out of town, waiting for breakfast. We are following Alan in his Volvo wagon, back to Glasgow, so he can drop it off, then we are all in the same van – back on the road! After breakfast, we set off across country (no Motorways between here and Glasgow). We skirted Hadrian’s Wall for much of the way. In fact, we stopped off at a quaint little town called Halt Whistle for a coffee (Alan’s recommendation), where we enjoyed some strong caffeinated beverages, and then I bought a “Bob the Builder” doll from the local Post Office (It was Read the rest of this entry »

Up at the crack of dawn, and on the M1 motorway in our trusty band transport, suitably converted to suit our needs. We are meeting Alan and Jeff (who came over earlier, to do the tourist thing in Scotland and Liverpool) in South Shields, and Scott will be arriving into Gatwick and negotiating our wonderful train system up North…. poor thing.

We actually left way too much time for the journey, but you never know with the UK roads. We were in South Shields (a seaside suburb of Newcastle, by the way) by lunchtime. This allowed us to Read the rest of this entry »

Gatwick, lovely Gatwick! Actually, I like Gatwick – it’s just too far from anywhere useful to be thought of fondly…. having said that, it IS a good airport. John was outside with the van when I came through. My flight had arrived late, having encountered delays from Charlotte, so JJ had been waiting for awhile. The van is of the 16-seat (with windows) variety. We’ll have to do some “customizing”.

It being a Sunday, the drive to my parents’ place took less than an hour. My brother, Nick, was waiting to administer coffee and Read the rest of this entry »