Chattering Chough: A Gothic Mansion and the Opera.

Yesterday we trained up to London and took the tube to Temple Tube station. It was just a short walk to 2 Temple Place. This striking building on the embankment has a crenelated roof and gargoyles, tall chimneys and wrought iron, and is topped off with a shining bronze weather vane in the shape of Columbus's Caravel. It is built from Portland stone that has been beautifully carved with intricate designs.No photography is allowed inside, but there are a couple of websites with some photographs showing the attention of detail the creators of the building demanded.
The house was commissioned by William Astor, later the first viscount, in 1895 as his office and London residence. We overheard some visitors gossiping, suggesting that Lord Astor put his mistresses up here. Whatever, the house has been built to the highest standards with lots of oak panelling, stonework, stained glass windows and magnificent ceilings. The house has been beautifully restored, having suffered severe damage during a bombing raid in WWII. That came through the roof, causing lots of damage to the library, with the loss of several books. Now the house is owned by the Bulldog Trust and they have opened it to the public, offering gallery space to specifically showcase publicly-owned art from UK regional collections.

Taken from a postcard bought from The Bulldog Trust

A hurried view of 2 Temple Place before we were inundated by a walking tour

The front door with details below

A little wrought iron

This first exhibition is called William Morris: Story, Memory, Myth and runs from 28th October 2011 until 29th January 2012. It looks at how William Morris told stories using his poetry and design patterns. Most important to him were the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, Norse saga, Arthurian legend and Greek myth. One of the main features we saw were the five panels Morris designed retelling the French Medieval tale, Romance of the Rose, which Chaucer had translated. There were also books on display that William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones illustrated, and were printed by Morris' private press.Stained glass and wallpaper designs were also on display, all in partnership with the William Morris Gallery that should be opening in William Morris's house in Walthamstow in July 2012. It was a beautifully presented exhibition which we enjoyed enormously.

Then we were off to dinner with friends at the National Portrait Gallery. They do beautiful meals pre- theatre from 17.30, and we were very prompt as the opera began at 19.00. With lots to catch up on, we chattered over our excellent two courses and made it round the corner to ENO at the Coliseum in time for the first bell!

A view from Portrait Restaurant

Inside the lovely Coliseum

It was The Marriage of Figaro, directed by Fiona Shaw and designed by Peter Mckintosh with Paul Daniel conducting and playing pianoforte. Iain Paterson took the lead with Devon Guthrie as Susanna supported by a stellar cast. This production was full of humour and the audience were immediately bound up in the bizarre and complicated tale. At the end of the four hours, there was huge and prolonged applause for all the cast and orchestra in recognition of this superb performance. Peter McKintosh's set was very clever and based on a series of mazes according to the programme interview of Fiona Shaw. It seemed to be built from white corrugated plastic sheets, with corridors glimpsed through doorways and staircases coming into and out of view as the stage revolved and the characters moved through the set. We loved it.