London breaks blog http://londonbreaksblog.co.uk/

I’d definitely recommend London breaks in the summertime just as much as winter breaks. The weather is rarely uncomfortably hot and the likelihood of rain is far lower than anywhere else in the UK just about. You’re a long way from the westerly wet winds but close enough to the south east coasts for some cooling effect so you don’t get continental extremes of heat and cold. London these days is well geared up for outdoor dining and strolling, with little terraces of tables and chairs springing up all over the place, and grand riverside walks such as outside the Festival Hall South Bank centre, alongside the Tate Modern and by Tower Bridge. St Katherines Dock - London Breaks St Katherine’s Dock is well known to the boating fraternity but worth a visit for lunch or an summer evening meal alongside the water basin full of yachts and barges, with a good selection of cafes and restaurants to choose from. You can also catch the Thames Circular Tours boats from the pier by St Katherine;s Dock and Tower Bridge if you want to enjoy a leisurely cruise or simple take advantage of the best form of transport for visiting Westminster or Greenwich. But don’t forget the special ingredient for London breaks at any time of year – the show!

Some interesting ships can be seen docked in the Thames, such as the Greenwich warship a couple of years ago. This weekend brought a Spanish Navy training ship, the four masted tall ship called Juan Sebastián de Elcano which is one of the largest and oldest tall ships still operational.

The video was taken from onboard one of the Hurricane Clipper river boat catamarans which provide a commuter service as well as sightseeing on the river Thames and now accept Oystercard onboard for payment as well as pre-paid tickets.

Thanks for subscribing to Andy Roberts blogGreenwich Tall Ship – 4 Masted Juan Sebastián de Elcano

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This article by Andy contains a brief review of Enlightenment at the Hampstead Theatre. We’re always on the look out for new plays and venues for visitors here on London breaks to add to the possibilities for an extra evening out at the theatre, and it doesn’t always have to be in the West End by any means. There are theatre pubs, fringe theatres, off-west-end theatres and regional theatres all within the M25, many within central London itself. The play that was brought to our notice is called “Enlightenment” written by Shelagh Stephenson and directed by Edward Hall, Hampstead Theatre’s new Artistic Director. So Monday night took us to see the venue for the first time, right next to the Swiss Cottage roundabout and tube station. Arriving inside Hampstead Theatre felt more like visiting a leading performing arts centre for one of the major UK cities, like Canterbury or St Andrews, or Exeter. Not knowing anything much about ‘Enlightenment’ beforehand, I was able to deliberately keep an unprepared mind for the unfolding emotional drama as the plot weaved its way through the minefields of improbability. There was a small scientific thread in there somewhere, citing a theory akin to or possibly preceding chaos theory which needs further investigation but the big story was a classic human tragedy investigating the nature of identity and touching themes designed to disturb the audience’s sensibilities particularly poignant to parents. As a father myself, I feel particularly well placed to understand the two main characters anguish at not knowing the fate of their missing son.

The Hampstead Theatre is an impressive modern theatre venue, small enough to be intimate and with perfect acoustics and yet large enough to stage quality serious theatre productions, drawing in audiences from all over the capital, with excellent transport links on the fast Jubilee line and all the central connections just a few stops away, so this would be a sensible logistical addition to any London Breaks package. Enlightenment is a traditionally constructed play in two acts with a beginning, middle and end, realistic characters, a straightforward time line and just about believable events. There are moments where the sanity of everybody is questioned, but that is a reasonable thing for a play to do. The staging is impressively modern and effective with good use of additional sound and video, back projection and slick scene changes with transparent rising and falling furniture. Maybe it was just me but upstairs and downstairs became strangely confused, or was it deliberate? Nothing is quite as it seems with this play which has been running since September, so the acting should be well bedded in by now. There were times when I though the playscript was possibly a class above the performance, but in the second act I dropped that misgiving, particularly with all three female characters who worked well together, and the addition of a sixth character in the second act pulls the whole play together and leaves you on the edge. Cast: Daisy Beaumont Richard Clothier Paul Freeman Julie Graham Polly Kemp Tom Weston-Jones

Next year’s biggest event for theatre breaks in London is likely to be the opening of The Wizard of Oz by all accounts. The full cast list has yet to  be revealed but we do know that Michael Crawford, the former Phantom from The Phantom of The Opera is to play the Wizard and of course Danielle Hope is Dorothy. With such a cast, and building on the interest from the TV show Over The Rainbow, Andrew Lloyd Webber looks set for a big hit but of course it will all depend eventually on word of mouth, and how well the new musical theatre show is produced at the London Palladium. Being a long standing favourite family show will hel as well for some kinds of London breaks with the children I suppose, but that’s not to say the Wizard  of Oz won’t appeal to grown ups and couples after a good weekend break in London. Tickets sales are reported to be brisk even at this early stage, and fans of the runner up in the competition, Sophie Evans have been booking up theatre breaks with hotel and travel deals to see Sophie when she plays the part of Dorothy herself at the London Palladium on Tuesdays and some of Danielle Hope’s holidays.

Sophie Evans

One of the most useful resources I’ve come across for planning London theatre breaks is the Theatre Breaks Wiki, a website that anybody can edit in a similar vein to Wikipedia, but all about London Theatre. I think this means that in the longer run, most of the information on the theatrebreaks.co site is going to end up more accurate and better kept up to date than anywhere else on the web, even some sites which have a team of people looking after them, to a fashion. At present there seems to be a bit of a mess on the front page, with one page for each new musical play and some old ones – plus a page for each of the West End and fringe theatres in London. I can also see some cope for pages about some of the better known singers and actors on the West End scene. Theatre Breaks Wiki The best thing about this site is how easy it is to make a correction or small addition if you see something that is wrong or needs updating or adding to. It’s pretty easy to cross reference everything too, so that should help the people who like fiddling with these kind of things to keep it on track for the purpose intended, helping people planning London breaks and theatre breaks but why just in London? Some of the best shows start out in other UK cities, or regional theatres. Ghost for examle, which may be one of the biggest new musicals next year, is starting out with a serious run in Manchester before moving to London. The there are all the plays which earn their spurs at the Chichester, Bath or Edinburgh festivals before being picked up for a West End transfer to one of the big London theatres. But I digress because this is the London Breaks blog and that has to be the main purpose in this space – to help people decide on, plan and book London Breaks which doesn’t always have to mean theatre breaks at all. There are plenty of other things to do in London, such as go to a concert or a large sporting event. Hang out in one of the trendy areas or go on a river trip. The museums and art galleries are second to none, well maybe Paris breaks if pushed. And then there are the parks and open green spaces, the fabulous world cuisine restaurants and the famous London shops and markets.

London Bridge Experience, hotel and ticket London break from £148 per family of 4 London Bridge Experience, hotel and ticket breaks from £148 per family of 4 Available until 12th September London Bridge Experience is a historical attraction in the excavated tombs of London Bridge using a gripping guided tour of London Bridge’s 2000 year history using a stunning combination of special effects, CGI, real characters and animation Voted the UK’s ‘best year round scare attraction’, the London Bridge Experience and the London Tombs are London attractions not to be missed. It’s two attractions – one price, and even greater value as part of a London break. London Bridge Experience, hotel and ticket breaks from £148 per family of 4 The London Bridge Experience & The London Tombs | London Break

London Breaks with Tussauds Marvel 4D and Hotel

Madame Tussauds & Marvel Super Heroes 4D, ticket & hotel London breaks from £191.50pp Available until April 2011 Marvel Super Heroes 4D will bring to life some of the world’s best loved Super Heroes through a mix of 4D animation, interactive themed areas and startlingly realistic Madame Tussauds wax figures. It’s a combination of two of teh most powerful brands in the entertainment industry: Tussaud’s and Marvel! There will also be a chance for you to behave like a hero yourself in a series of interactive experiences including walking on the ceiling with Spider-Man. This totally absorbing exhibition perfect for London breaks includes: SUPER HERO COMMAND CENTRE S.H.I.E.L.D (Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law-enforcement Division) The Incredible Hulk’s gigantic legs can be seen standing astride a massive plinth, his torso disappearing through a gaping hole in the ceiling.

THE HALL OF HEROES Incredible Hulk, Spiderman, Wolverine, Iron Man, Captain America, Ms Marvel a cleverly inverted office scene means you can literally “hang out” with Spiderman on the ceiling. HEROES GALLERY The Heroes Gallery is a futuristic gallery space with Super Hero artwork and a mutant mirror wall that will show some very alternative images. SUPER HERO TEST AREA Full of high tech equipment, Iron Man’s work room. MARVEL SUPERHEROES 4D – THE FILM One of the biggest highlights in your entire London break will be the 4D film of Marvel Superheroes that is shown right inside the exhibition space. It’s a new 360º animated 4D cinema attraction, complete with high impact special effects. Screened in the famous old domed auditorium, once the planetarium. The Super Heroes arrive in London to receive special bravery awards from the Queen only to find The Capital under threat from evil genius, Doctor Doom. The deadly Doctor is intent on destroying the Super Heroes and their secret command centre and has created an army of lethal robotic accomplices to help him. Using the entire 70m circumference of the planetarium dome, Marvels Super Heroes 4D unites amazingly realistic 3D animation with state of the art digi-star projection and then adds in an extra-sensory fourth dimension. The action will spill out of the screen over the audience and thrill-enhancing special effects – from water and smoke to tremors beneath the feet – will touch every sense, drawing you right into the heart of the adventure. As the story unfolds the London skyline is vividly brought to life and you will literally feel the impact of the villain’s invasion and the force of the Super Heroes’ strength as they do battle. And it’s all part of the admission price, which is included in your London breaks with hotel deal! Madame Tussauds & Marvel Super Heroes 4D, ticket & hotel London breaks from £191.50pp Marvel 4D London Breaks

Short breaks in London with a show are a great choice for mid-week or weekend holidays. Here are my top 3 recommendations for shows this coming Spring.  Couples who just want to see a show as part of a trip to London, perhaps as part of a special occasion have lots of choice when it comes to shows and things to do.  London is a great place for  short breaks and there is a lot for couples to do and see. There are all the art galleries, lots of classy shops and, of course, the sights of London. That’s the thing about the capital it’s still fun even if you’ve seen it all before. When you are choosing the show for your short break I’ve got three top recommendations for you at the moment. Choose Your Show Les Miserables In your position I’d go for Les Miserables as a first choice. Tickets have got a little bit trickier to get hold of due to the SuBo effect but the theatre break agencies still have plenty of availability. If you can be flexible about your dates and can travel mid-week there are some brilliant deals for Les Miz. Traveling mid-week also gives you a good choice of 3* and 4* hotels at very reasonable rates.  Les Miserables is one of the longest running shows but it still remains one of the best. People always seem to enjoy it and it still seems as fresh as it ever was. Dress Code: best frock or jeans, this is London – no one cares! Hair However if semi-classical score is not to your taste you could try revisiting the 60s and trying something brand new but re-cycled. Hair is coming to the West End in April and it’s going to be huge. This is the full Broadway revival production, all singing, all dancing, full of colour, life and energy, just like time traveling back to those days. They say if you remember the 60s you weren’t there but Hair is all that you might have missed and more. There is flower power, hippies and The Age of Aquarius, not to mention a bit of nudity and other, rather innocent naughtiness! Dress code: Afghan waistcoats, bell bottoms and patchouli (only kidding!). Though it might not be a bad choice of costume if you want to join in with the onstage party at the end of the show:

Jersey Boys Maybe  Jersey Boys is more your scene, sing along as you watch the story of Frankie Valley and the Four Seasons unfold. Walk Like a Man, Sherry Baby, and a host of other tunes you’ll enjoy discovering you still know all the words to are woven into the story of five young lads from New Jersey.
Dress code: Very snazzy Trilby hats available in the foyer of the theatre So there you are three top shows to choose from, all of them ideal to fit in with your short breaks in London with a show. a

Happy New Year for 2010 from all at London Breaks. This year is going to be the best ever for London visitors, as we begin the ramp up to the 2012 Olympics. There’s also a possibility of a London Festival starting up as a regular event in the summer. In the West End, we’re looking forward to Love Never Dies the Phantom sequel, and Wizard of Oz later in the year. Good luck planning your best ever London break in 2010!

Theatre Breaks Agents Theatre breaks agencies come in many shapes but here at the London Theatre Breaks blog we like to work with three in particular. We get a small commission from each reader who books a theatre break through our links and that helps to fund our blog. The theatre breaks agents offer somewhat differing services and the best one for you depends on what you are looking for when you start searching for a theatre break package. You need to decide what your priorities are first before you look at the various deals on offer because you are not really comparing like with like. (If you need help with this have a look at this post on our sister site Theatre Breaks Magazine.) The agencies specialise and offer various options, they often work with particular hotels or a particular level of ticket. Some agencies have offers on rail fares which you can bundle in with the cost of your tickets, other optional extras like meals can also be added. Often agencies offer discounts on London attractions when they are booked with your theatre break. We only work with reputable agencies where we can be sure that not only will you get a good deal but that your tickets and hotel room will be honoured. Some of the other theatre breaks companies add lots of hidden extras, like booking fees, on to your final bill. We think this is not acceptable so we only recommend the following package deals: Show and Stay Theatre Breaks

Show and Stay is a long-established theatre package company. They are part of the larger Holiday Extras group and we have been working with them for the last 2-3 years. Feedback from customers has been very positive and we continue to recommend them. Show and Stay really specialise in getting you top quality tickets at a good price and combining them with a good choice of 3 or 4* hotels. They also offer a very good deal on rail tickets, with up to 40% discount as standard. Show and Stay often has the hot tickets that no one else has. For example when Jodie first appeared and Oliver! London was the hottest ticket in town, Show and Stay was able to offer Saturday night, best seats, when there was no other way to get them and everyone else said the show was sold out. Now despite what I’ve said about them offering top quality tickets don’t assume that Show and Stay only do expensive theatre breaks. Their breaks are very competitive. For example someone just booked a midweek evening at Oliver! and 1 night in a 3* hotel for 2 people for only £213.96.

Superbreak Theatre Breaks

Superbreak is where you go for bargains. They offer a range of ticket prices so if you don’t mind being in the Upper Circle you can get a very good price indeed. They have more limited availability sometimes, than Show and Stay but if you are looking for particular dates rather than a specific show they can be very good value. The hotels they work with are just as good as Show and Stay and are usually 3 or 4*. Superbreak are a large company and they do all sorts of London breaks and breaks to other cities too. They are less specialised than Show and Stay but they still offer a good service. Their web site can be a bit harder to find your way around, as it is so large, but if you persevere you can definitely get some great deals. TheatreBreaks.com

TheatreBreaks.com is a smaller company established thirty years ago. They’ve been online for over ten years. They have pretty good availability, work with good 3 and 4* hotels but where they really excel is in their personal touch. They are they people to go to if your needs are at all outside the ordinary. Maybe you want to do a large group with an odd number to see Dirty Dancing on a specific weekend. Perhaps you have limited mobility and need to know that your hotel, and your theatre seats, are fully accessible. They are the best people to help you. You just phone them up quoting your reference number from the website and they will go out of their way to make sure your problems are sorted out. a

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Breaks in London London seems such an industrious city with working people rushing about all the time and yet on any one single day there are probably tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of visitors taking some kind of breaks in London. In this blog we mainly concentrate on theatre breaks in London because that’s the name of the blog but within that whole idea of city breaks with a hotel and theatre show combined in one package, there are many different ways of putting it all together, so that comes down in the end mainly to individual choice. Hotel breaks in London can of course come with or without theatre tickets, and the attraction of a top musical show isn’t what brings everybody to the West end even. Some might come for sporting, shopping or concert breaks in London. And then there’s the question of whether weekend breaks are better than midweek breaks in London when the show tickets might be for better seats but the hotel room have less availability. The same parent might choose to bring the kids for family breaks in London to meet one purpose but on another occasion just a partner for romantic breaks in London with a fantastic meal at one of the numerous smart restaurants in the city.

Are you looking for more information about London weekend breaks by rail? That’s actually a very good starting point because you’ve already made the best decision as far as transport goes for arriving in London. Go by train and you’ll not have to be worrying about things like car parking, how to pay the congestion charge or long motor way traffic jams holding up coach journeys. The fast inter city trains are also the quickest way to get from most UK cities into one of the central London mainline stations. London Breaks by Rail - Express Routes Weekend breaks can be for a West-end theatre show on any Friday, Saturday or Sunday night combined with a hotel stay of one night or more, including the show date. The most popular break tends to be a one-nighter including the big Saturday night out, but getting away early on a Friday makes a lot of sense too. Traveling on a Friday and Saturday gives a clear run through but Sundays can be fine for getting home too, depending on which rail line takes you back. All I’m saying is, check for regular Sunday engineering works if the service that relays between your city and London is one that may be prone to scheduled maintenance on a Sunday. Longer Weekend Breaks If your weekend break means going home on a Saturday of course, the traditional weekend has only just begun but then again I’ve noticed that for some people around here, the weekend definitely starts to ramp up on a Thursday night! London can be a very pleasant play to stay on a Sunday with less of a hurried atmosphere but still plenty of things to see and do so staying on for the whole weekend and then booking to get back on a Monday during the daytime can make for an extremely satisfying London weekend rail break, more like a mini holiday really. You could even make it a three or four night stay with the weekend theatre trip included, especially worthwhile if you have a long distance rail journey from one of the smaller rail networks that lie beyond the core inter city services. London Shows for Weekend Theatre Breaks One of the advantages with buying a theatre breaks package is that you can get good tickets for any of the more popular shows, even on a busy Friday or Saturday night. I tried to get an impulse ticket from the famous half price ticket booth the other day and after a lot of waiting around I came away without making a purchase. That was because the shows on offer didn’t include two that I was most interested in, and because the prices offered are not anything like half price at all. So supposing you’ve always wanted to grab a friend and go and see Hairspray, Dirty Dancing or Sister Act on a Saturday night but couldn’t find any available tickets except from the disreputable touts and so-called discount kiosks, well the answer is to do just a little bit of forward planning and organise a weekend break in London for just a few weeks down the line, then you can get on with life knowing there’s a fantastic treat in store for you to look forward to. London weekend breaks by rail are also perfect for really special occasions such as a big anniversary or celebration. Never mind seeing Les Miserables from the back of the upper circle, with theatre breaks packages it’s often possible to get best available seats with a competitive price guarantee, because the tour agents buy blocks of tickets way in advance and can therefore hold the best seats open for people who are booking the whole London weekend theatre package thing with the hotel stay and return rail tickets included. This is just one suggestion, but supposing you were a big fan of the Phantom of The Opera having seen it many years ago, and fancied repeating the experience in today’s West End. This gives you two possible shows for London Weekend breaks by rail because the new show with the Phantom opens in March 2010 and it’s going to be one of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s biggest shows ever, called “Love Never Dies“. By booking the rail tickets well in advance in combination with London weekend breaks, (that’s the show and hotel stay), you get the full discount on the rail tickets which can mean as much as a 70% saving off the regular return saver. If it appears as if the only shows on in London are the big musicals then that’s certainly not the case. There are always a number of serious plays also on in the West end, usually for shorter runs but not always, and these are also available for London weekend breaks by rail. In 2010 there will be more Shakespeare, Pinter and Becket as well as modern American playwrights, and some comedy plays too. So you’ve decided very sensibly to opt for London weekend breaks by rail, thought about which show you’d both like to see, and maybe opted for a Friday night or Saturday theatre ticket depending which suits you best and considered the best time and day for homewards travel. All that’s left is to balance the convenience of a central London hotel with the economy of staying a little further out, but there is always a good selection of options available when booking London weekend theatre breaks. Now let me see, what else is there to worry about? a

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There are plenty of good reasons for choosing London breaks around Christmas and the New Year if you’re looking for a chance to get away and enjoy some real cultural entertainment. It’s the height of the show season for one thing, with comedy specials, concerts, plays, pantomime, Shakespeare and of course musicals.  During the festive season London really goes to town with the decorations and lights and puts on not one but a whole series of outdoor ice skating rinks for that special winter wonderland atmosphere, so there is no shortage of things to do in London in the  wintertime.  Then there’s the shopping, with all the big department stores putting on special displays and having ranges of goodies that you just cannot get hold of outside of the capital. People come for London breaks from all over the UK and abroad too, so whoever you are you never feel alone amongst Londoners because the chances are the people next to you in the theatre are from out of town too. Apart from the big winter wonderland exhibition at the O2 there are also festival type events going on in places like Hyde Park and the Southbank, Kensington and Carnaby street. Here is a list of some of the most popular musicals this season for London breaks : Oliver Dirty Dancing Les Miserables Phantom of The Opera Lion King Billy Elliot

Lion King Anniversary London breaks As you may well know by now, the Lion King musical is celebrating a tenth anniversary in London’s West End. It’s a great family show and we’d like to offer this special theatre break package from Superbreak of Lion King theatre tickets and a three star hotel for only £60 per person: The Lion King Celebrates its 10th Anniversary, London ticket & 3*, £60.00pp Show Available until August 2010 The Lion King London Theatre Breaks Disney’s marvellous musical about the young Prince Simba, his father King Musafa and evil Uncle Scar. An award-winning score with fantastic choreography continue to make The Lion King one of London’s favourite shows. Lion King London Video Click here to view the embedded video.

London Breaks to see Love Never Dies The date is set for October the 8th, that’s the day when London breaks news about Love Never Dies, the sequel to Phantom of the Opera with a mysterious announcement from the phantom himself. London breaks to see Phantom of The Opera have been a theatre goers favourite for many decades already, with many couples going to see the show more than once but soon there will be a chance to see a brand new musical based on the sequel to the original book, called “The Phantom of New York” or possible lending some of its inspiration to the Frederick Forsyth novel “The Phantom of Manhattan”

Love Never Dies theatre breaks in London

Ben Elton, the writer of Blackadder Rides Again has been hired to write the dialogue and playscript known as “the book” in the theatre world, so this will give Love Never Dies London breaks a chance of being just as possibel as We Will Rock You London breaks and Phantom of the Opera London breaks combined.

There’s a pretty good Free Hotel offer for London Breaks in July and August 2009. All you have to do is book a London theatre break to see one of these shows for a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between now and September 9th and your overnight hotel stay will be absolutely free. Free London Break Hotel Offer – Choose from 16 top shows! Book Now Here’s the deal – book a London break to see one of these shows for a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between now and September 9th and your overnight hotel stay will be absolutely free. You will only pay for your ticket and Show and Stay always have great tickets. The hotels in the offer are very high quality but if you want a more central location you can upgrade from just £10 per person. The shows Choose from any of these shows:

† Please note there is an additional supplement of £5pp on some shows, this is included in the per person price displayed above.

Book now – these London breaks will go fast!

One of the best London breaks in summer is to go and see Dirty Dancing with a bunch of mates. The music is just perrenial, the dancing sensational and you just know you’re going to have the time of your life. Here’s a couple from the London cast performing at West End Live recently, Click here to view the embedded video. video by theatre breaks

Wicked the global hit musical is an international phenomenon and if you’ve seen the Broadway, Shanghai or Melbourne version first you’ll be itching to get to London. Why London breaks to see Wicked? Because of the massive Apollo Victoria theatre, the thronging masses of Wicked fans there and the fantastic new cast who are taking Wicked to new heights. Here’s Alexia Khadime the new Elphaba. wicked witch singing “The Wizard and I” solo at West End Live London 2009.

video by theatre breaks

Wicked theatre breaks in London might be centered around the Victoria area, with the huge Apollo theatre for Wicked being located near London Victoria station as well as several top quality hotels nearby. Go before December and you’ll have a chance to see the new Elphaba, wicked witch perfoermed by Alexia Khadime who is surely making for a superb replacement for Kerry Ellis. This video is from the West End Live show last weekend, and gives a low key idea of what Alexia can do I think.

While in the Victoria area for a Wicked theatre break, I’d head south down to the riverbank and take a look at the Tate Britain art museum if that’s your kind of thing. It makes a nice change from the more popular Tate modern these days. On the day of the show why not have an enjoyable bar snack style lunch at Chimes of Pimlico Restaurant