Mick's Monopoly challenge

  KYIV ROAD, W2     To mark the first anniversary of Russian's invasion of Ukraine a section of Bayswater Road between Queensway and Notting Hill has been renamed Kyiv Road. The initiative came from Westminster City Council who decided to erect the new road sign directly opposite the Russian Embassy. Nice one.       The co uncil's website diplomatically doesn't mention the significance of the location - something the Evening Standard  also failed to pick up on.      Whilst it's unlikely anyone (apart from me) would contemplate venturing into Central London to check out one road sign, Kyiv Road could be the start or end point of this splendid  walk .... Two  Russians are queueing for bread in Moscow. One says, "We've been here for three hours! I can't take it anymore! I'm going to go kill Putin!" and leaves. After a short while, he comes back, so his friend asks, "What happened?" "The queue there is even longer!"

Wednesday, December 15, 2021         Imperial War Museum, Duxford      I once met Douglas Bader, memorably being on the receiving end of a tetchy "I can manage!" when I asked him if he needed any assistance. Tuesday, August 30, 2022        Imperial War Museum, London RIP Mikhail Gorbachev      What a bastard. I blame him for our current predicament. If he hadn’t made the world a better place Putin wouldn’t be trying to reverse the legacy.         For many Gorby will be best remembered for his appearance in a genuine Pizza Hut ad:                                                  GORBACHEV PIZZA HUT AD  

THE WILLOW FOUNDATION       Our story     Willow was founded in 1999 by former Arsenal goalkeeper and TV presenter, Bob Wilson and his wife, Megs, as a lasting memorial to their daughter, Anna, who died of cancer aged 31.     Anna battled her cancer for five years. It was during these years that she, her family and friends, experienced some of their most memorable moments together.    What Anna called her ‘Special Days’ became a focus for quality of time and quality of life, providing a welcome distraction from the challenging realities of living with a life-threatening illness and restoring some normality back into all their lives. MAKE A DONATION

  Christmas Day, 2020           “Whitehall - the most overrated place in London – just extraordinarily dull” Michael Caine    The name was taken from the massive Palace of Whitehall that was the residence of Kings Henry VIII through to William III, before its destruction by fire in 1698; only the Banqueting House has survived.      As well as government buildings, Whitehall is known for its memorial statues and monuments, including the UK's primary war memorial, the Cenotaph  (above, right) .       Check out the smorgasbord of A-listers on the walls of the Foreign, Development and Commonwealth Office .....           More statues - Haig, Montgomery and Alanbrooke ….       Field Marshal  Douglas Haig was a senior office  of the British Army . His name has become synonymous with the madness of the First World War. He was nickna...

GO TO JAIL  updated with a report on The Mudlark pub, refurbished during the pandemic. EUSTON ROAD  updated with Dr Lydia Chang playing Lady Gaga at Euston Station. OXFORD STREET  - several updates including the fate of the HMV store. TRAFALGAR SQUARE  updated with Fourth Plinth latest. MARYLEBONE PART 1  updated following lunches at  Le Relais de Venise L’Entrecot   and The Sea Shell . WATER WORKS  updated with God's Own Junkyard. The story of the world's first traffic lights added to  FREE PARKING MARLBOROUGH STREET  updated with Vasco & Piero's Pavilion. A NEW ROAD SIGN ....        For the first time in the West End there are lights in  COVENTRY STREET  to celebrate Ramadan. FLEET STREET : Sadly, The Knight's Templar in Chancery Lane closed on March 18, 2023. This messes up my carefully crafted Fleet Street pub crawl as it was the only boozer open before noon so a good starting point. But it's n...