Dear England

This is the stage of the Prince Edward Theatre in Old Compton Street, London at the close of tonight's performance of Dear England, a new play by James Graham that was first put on at the National Theatre. It's about the England men's football team under the management of Gareth Southgate, wonderfully well played by Joseph Fiennes, but it is really an allegory for the country - what is done to try to divide us and what can be done to  unite us. The play's title comes from the letter Gareth Southgate addressed to the nation before the 2021 Euros when we were emerging from the first set of lockdowns and there was a sense of unity (albeit subsequently shattered by the rule-breaking goings-on at 10 Downing Street). It was my 80th birthday present to Ron. I had to drive to London because trees had fallen on the lines in today's high winds and no trains were running from Waterloo, but I didn't want to let him down. It was a horrendous journey and I abandoned the car in Kennington to catch the tube to Leicester Square. We missed about 20 minutes of the start of the play but we were far from the only ones going in late. The play was excellent and Ron enjoyed it so, in the words of another play, all's well that ends well. The extra photo is of the ceiling at the back of the theatre stalls. Oh yes, nearly forgot, we've also had a power cut at home since midafternoon due to the strong winds presumably affecting overhead power cables, and the latest info is that it won't be back on until 4 to 5am.