73.25hrs

Sunday, the first bus back to Stratford wasn’t until 11.10am. Plenty of people were stood by the bus stop on West Street, there were plenty of people around Chippy. The bus was late, Ah yes, Rememberance Sunday. The driver asked if things had finished in Chippy, I had no idea. The route taken to reach Stratford involved quite a few detours around housing estates avoiding closed roads, meaning I didn’t get back to the boat until at least 12:30. Breakfast was soon on the table.

A day off from work, updating the blog, then a zoom production meeting with friends back in Scarborough to sort things out for Franks celebration of life and funeral. Deadlines were suggested for photos and memories, which kept coming in through the week. The remainder of the day consisted of putting together a roast pork dinner and then sitting on the sofa with Tilly. We started to watch the first episode of the Irish Traitors, but I’m not too sure how much I actually managed before my eye lids shut.

Monday morning, up early to catch the bus back to Chippy, I’d not managed 24 hrs back home. But the 40 minute journey meant I could catch up on some messages from friends. I picked up some provisions on my way into the theatre, Sainsbury’s standard gf mince pies, these so far, are the best.

Gemma the Production Manager returned, so more jobs would get done today. For me it was time to get some paint on scenery that was still only primed to help the lighting designer when it comes to plotting each scene. Will worked over the top of whatever scenery was on stage, whilst I worked away on the throne scene and tavern in the wings. The sound was being set up, would this take all day? The dummer James and Jamie the MD were installed into their areas on stage, then the sound designer Matt started to go through each microphone in turn. Blimey my paintshop behind the backdrop was NOISY! Trumpet and drums blasting out, they did help to keep me awake.

Tuesday. The ensemble/understudies have joined rehearsals this week. They have parts in the panto, but should one of the leads be off then they will step up. It always amazes me, these actors arrive part way through rehearsals, are slotted into the show quickly and then it could be a matter of days before one of them has to go on playing a part they’ve only watched from the wings.

Today, the actors joined the sound mix on stage, microphones and a click track to be mixed in. Work continued elsewhere in the building, wardrobe busy sewing, Valerie one of the volunteers helped me by sewing some curtains for the set. I finished painting the Tavern set and other items got a coat of glaze to help them last the long run.

Toby worked hard on drilling holes and installing fairy lights in the candy canes, the rest of us worked hard on suggesting they shouldn’t be used during the majority of the show and saving them for the end. A well deserved drink at Checkers after work, it was strangely like walking into the set for the Tavern.

Wednesday. I sorted through my model pieces to see what was left to paint, the items left on my work table in the auditorium, not many things to go, one item that needed sorting sooner rather than later, the Song Sheet! I really don’t get on with song sheets, they take time, they need to be correct. I’d spent a bit of time last week back at my digs trying to work on it, but closing my eyes was far more appealing! Now it couldn’t be put off any longer. I got something together and got Caroline and Amy (Director and Choreographer) to check the wording. The script wasn’t correct. I needed to revisit it!

In breaks on stage I would pull out sliders that needed painting, aiming to get some paint on them before they’d be needed. Props kept being made in the bar, try outs for a lighting effect were put together and a solution using foil turkey roasting trays and the mechanism from a petal drop last panto were put together.

Thursday. The start of the technical rehearsals. This is where all aspects of the show start to be put together, music, set, props, costume, sound, actors, moving things on and off stage. It all takes time to get right. Extra music was added or tweaked. Lighting states could be finessed now that there were the right things on stage. I showed the song sheet to Caroline and Amy, yes that was good, I forwarded it to the Assistant Producer, I could now concentrate on what was happening on stage whilst working on other things.

The artwork was sent back to me, could I give them a bigger resolution. For some reason my graphics package wasn’t allowing me to add text how I wanted it, so I forwarded the artwork separate to the words. Please let that be the end of it. Unfortunately it wasn’t! It was checked with the composer, he said the last three lines weren’t in that scene! It was now too late in the day to contact the printers. I spent more time, learnt a few new things and managed to get a new version together. This was checked, triple checked. Please let that be that!

I finally got to work on other items out in the auditorium, head torch worn for much of the evening as I painted whilst watching things on stage.

Friday morning. Emails were sent to the Assistant Producer. Dimensions checked of the songsheet, the new artwork sent on. Little did I know at the time about the Microsoft problem. I don’t use Microsft for emails, so could send the artwork to the printers via a route unaffected. By mid morning I got news that it was with the printers. Phew, hopefully I could finally forget about it.

The technical continued, I worked in the dark. A mixture of painting, from puppet faces to limbs, to glittering snowflakes. Sweets arrived in the foyer, the bar became a workshop to carry on working on things no longer needed for the technical. It’s hard to think that punters will be drinking drinks in less than a weeks time in the bar!

The Pippins joined the technical rehearsal late afternoon, time for us to re-tech all the sections they are in, three times! Time to do jobs elsewhere as I really didn’t need to see all these scenes again. Plans for clouds. Plans of plans. A taste test on some more festive treats, my opinion, don’t bother with Lottie gluten free caterpillars they are rubbish!

By the end of the day, just about everything was now painted, shadowed, and ready to be hung or slid on stage.

Saturday, brrrrr a chilly start to the day, a good frost. Mick sent me photos from the boat, no condensation on our new double glazed windows. The marina this week had been rationing coal supplies, new stocks had arrived and Mick was allowed to buy two more bags, which saved him taking the bike to B&M for more bags of Blaze.

More technical rehearsals with the Pippins. Time to do more jobs in the auditorium whilst watching some sections. Alice, the costume designer lurked behind scenery to make sure some quick changes happened without a glitch, all the glitching needed to be in the action, which thankfully it was. I helped work on several bits and bobs for props, then discussed with Alice whether a puppet should have a comb-over hair do or not!

At 2pm, we got the stage back, time to work through a list of jobs to make it possible for me to work in the auditorium again next week in the dark. I finished a few things off, added some grey to a pipe and painted what I hoped would be the last candy canes of this years panto. Just time to use some pink tipex to eradicate a wrong word, only I couldn’t get to the right side, so I ended up using my phone to see. Being backwards and having a slight delay was a bit odd, but I got there in the end. I checked the time, just enough time to put a coat of glaze over the candy cane edge of the stage, then I was off down the road to catch the last bus back to Stratford. Or so I thought!

Earlier in the week I’d checked the timetable, I’d noted 19:10, two weeks ago I’d stood around waiting to get on the bus, today I still had time. I could see it sat on the bus stop, the driver most probably having a break before setting off back to Stratford. By the time I was crossing the road by Sainsburys, the bus was coming towards me! Hang on!! Wait for me!!! It was 18:50, the time of the last bus on a Saturday! Oh Bonbons!!

I tried calling a taxi firm I’ve used in Chippy before, no answer. Tried another company, tried logging on to Uber, never used it before, it wouldn’t send me a code. I really, really wanted to get home. One company called, no-one available. Tried the original company the first slot would be 8pm, the price would be £70. £70!!! Compared to £3 on the bus!

Mick helped with signing up to Uber, 15 minutes wait and £40, that was much better! I waited, the taxi scooted past me. They then came back and I managed to flag them down. A pleasant journey with a very chatty driver back to the marina. Mick had timed our meal for the arrival of the bus, so it all had to be put on hold, but he could see where the cab was.

I stepped in through the front door of Oleanna, surprised Tilly with my arrival, then sat down to a glass of wine and a plate full of kedgeree was put on the table in front of me. A costly way to get home, but I was home and we managed to watch Irish Traitors all the way through without having a snooze this time!

Mick here from now on.

Meanwhile back on Oleanna I’ve done a bit of reconfiguring of the electric cupboard. I have wanted to upgrade our 10 year old Victron Venus GX monitoring system for a while. With some of my birthday money I purchased a new Victron Cerbo GX. This is a newer version of the old Venus GX. It uses the same software but has more connections available and Bluetooth enabled. The state of our electrics cupboard had me cursing the boat builders for making everything SO tight. Of course all the connectors on the new box are different to the connectors on the old box which made life interesting. But I got there in the end. So now I can monitor all the original stuff, batteries, inverter/charger, solar controller etc. I have also connected two new Ruuvi temperature sensors connected via bluetooth and plan to connect a new shunt on the bow thruster battery bank (once I’ve got round to installing it).

I have also fixed our sticking bilge pump switch which had been sticking in the on position. While there I tightened the stern gland.

Next week I’ll fit the shunt onto the bow thruster bank.