The window of Hatchard's

Rained all day. Thank goodness for my umbrella, though it kept blowing inside out. I've snapped a bookshop window because photography is not allowed inside the theatre. CleanSteve would probably like the letters of Le Carre.

Caught bus to Cheltenham, met D there. We had lunch in a 'good plain cafe' (Revival) and then went to the Everyman theatre for the pantomime, Dick Whittington. As it was a Saturday afternoon near the end of the season, lots of children were there, but we managed a coffee and got to our seats (back of the stalls) with ease.

To my surprise, I loved the panto. We hadn't managed to see one since 2019 (our show was cancelled in January 2020, because the musical director was taken ill, and then the pandemic arrived). Tweedy the clown, who played Dick Whittington's cat, has just been awarded a new year's honour, and it is richly deserved. He has his own show coming, too.

I couldn't get a bus straight afterwards, so went to s few shops with D. He has agreed, to my surprise, to a coach holiday in Co.Dublin and Co. Donegal in June. In fact he even said something about 'maybe Belfast next year'. I thought that would never happen. Let's have this year first!