The Royal Festival Hall

Jo, Sonia, Katie and I all went to see the Jesus and Mary Chain at the Royal Festival Hall last Friday. The band were excellent, in fact it was their first gig since they broke up very acrimoniously nine years ago. Jo was almost catatonic in ecstasy (that's IN ecstasy) for most of the show.

However, the venue....the RFH has just reopened after an eighteen month, £100M+ renovation. It's a listed building, so there have been no structural alterations. They seem to have run out of budget somewhere along the way though, as the place is still very tatty and dirty, with not even the carpet replaced. I'd be happy if they poured all of the money into the acoustics of the place, which I guess they have. Unfortunately though, that didn't extend to sending somebody around with a screwdriver to ensure everything was tightened up. The aircond vent above our seats gave off quite a vibrato rattle every time the band hit the bass! Not good. Have asked them for a refund or credit towards future tickets.

Still, they have managed to get in a couple of new posh restaurants and knock up a new building against the Hungerford Bridge which houses offices and, surprise surprise, more retail! I wonder where the bulk of that hundred mill really did go???