Cendrillon The opera; Free London adventures

Nelson's Column and the big screen

On Wednesday we saw the Opera Cendrillon (Cinderella), streamed directly from the Royal Opera House to a huge screen in Trafalgar Square. An excited hubbub hung in the air as people drank wine and laughed and spread out food on blankets and a cool, slightly exhilarating breeze blustered around the square. It was much more relaxed, and infinitely more preferable to going to the actual opera, in my humble opinion.

My mister arrived, we briefly queued, were given a plastic poncho and inflatable cushion each (which we were ridiculously excited about) and found a space in the already heaving square. We unpacked our blankets and extra layers and ate a delicious dinner of French baguette with chorizo and feta cheese. Then the screen flickered and it started. The powerful voices of the singers reverberated around the nearby buildings, the spine tingling was frequent and we were amazed at some of the range in the voices. We hadn't reckoned on the skill of the acting involved either, it was engaging and funny, quite camp at times too. The performance was only heightened, in our opinion, by the frequent farting noises emitted from the movement of inflatable cushions against the concrete... 

I liked this colourful outfit

"Art not Oil". It is a shame that BP sponsors these events.

Snug as a bug in a rug; wrapped in my favourite National Trust recycled wool blanket (only £12!)

A Poignant moment.... Parp!

This is the beginning of our explorations of free things to do in London this summer. I was a student here so Free London is an old friend, really, it's just that I haven't had to call on her for a while.

I'll be visiting the 'Watch This Space' festival on the Southbank which I've visited many times before and seen some incredible live performances (One year I found myself roaming down the Southbank amongst hundreds of people, acrobats, moving wooden sculptures, actors in rotating cages and flaming torches: Truly amazing) I'll be frequenting The Scoop too for free film screenings and theatre, and visiting some of my favourite free museums and galleries too. I'm gutted that I'll be missing the Barbican Weekender and the Trans Siberian Marching band- go if you can, it sounds brilliant.

If you know of any other free festivals, talks or events happening in London this summer, I'd be ever so grateful if you could let me know.



Thanks lovelies