The 2012 Olympics Effect

Meadowbank Recreation Groun, Dorking, Surrey
July 2012:

Watching the 2012 Olympics Road Race on the big screen in the park,

next to Meadowbank Stadium, the home of Dorking F.C.

 

The Road Race went through Dorking and round nearby Box Hill

December 2012:

Nice weather for ducks in the park after the rain.

Xmas Trafalgar Square

In Trafalgar Square, the Christmas tree from the Norwegian people in front of the National Gallery.

 There is also have a crib or Nativity scene in a display case

with an angel, shepherds anfd farm animals represented

Meanwhile in Elizabeth Street, Belgravia they have chandeliers as Christmas lights,

2012 Christnas Lights over the Southbank

Christmas lights over the Southbank, next to the Royal Festival Hall, at the start of Advent.

Christmas lights to cheer us in the cold weather

The lights stand out against the dark sky

Geese Grazing in Dorking, Surrey

A autumn day in Meadowbank Recreation Ground, Dorking, Surrey, with grazing geese. It was colder than it looks.

Canada geese grazing on the grass

Canada geese grazing by the lake

Shop Window captions, Oxford Street, London

Shop windows in Oxford Street, London: 

I am sure we have forgotten something

No! I am not going to wear those shoes.

Let It Be

"Let It Be", the musical tribute to The Beatles, opens at the Prince of Wales theatre in Coventry Street, London.

 It is 50 years in October since the release of "Love Me Do", the first single by The Beatles.
  

September 2012

 November 2010
It replaces Mamma Mia which has moved to the Novello theatre in the Aldwych.

Update:
The Spice Girls musical is on the way:

Viva Forever. a new musical based on the songs of the Spice Girls, 
previews at the Piccadilly Theatre, London, on 27 November 2012, with the opening night on 11 December 2012.

So that was Summer !

Outside the Southbank Centre, London

So that was summer 2012 - the Olympics were great, Wiggins won the Tour de France, Murray won the US Open but it was cloudy most of the time and rained too much.

Evening over central London in September

Southbank Centre boxes, London

 Outside the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre in London,
there are some hanging boxes with apparently random letters.

 It provides a puzzle for passers-by.

From a certain angle a phrase begins to appear.

 DREAM BIG is the message

although the boxes to the left seem to saying something different

From the other direction the other boxes say "ASK WHY".

Flags in Dorking for 2012 Olympics Road Race

Dorking gets ready for the cycling road race in the 2012 London Olympics.

Mark Cavendish from the Isle of Man is a favourite in the mens' race, hence the Isle of Man flag with the three legs.

The two races will pass through the town centre on the way to nearby Box Hill, the men on Saturday 28 July and the women on Sunday 29 July. The races will also go past the Denbies Wine Estate.

See  also previous entry of  pictures of the road race route through Dorking.

Colours on the Southbank, London

Colours on the Southbank in London:

"Poured Lines" by Ian Davenport under a bridge in Southwark Street

Coloured Lights slowly changing, under a bridge in Southwark Street,

On the promenade outside the Royal Festival Hall and the Queen Elizabeth Hall, a sandpit has been created with strips of coloured sand:

Orange

Green

Inevitably some sand strays onto another strip:

A patch of yellow sand has strayed onto the blue sand

Some blue sand has crossed over onto the red sand,
creating a purple effect.

Even the rocks are coloured

 The beach on the Southbank

Anyone but Germany ?

A pub outside Dorking Station welcomes supporters of all the countries in Euro 2012, except Germany?

After the semi-finals, things were simpler, Italy or Spain!

Swans Scratching

Swans preparing themselves for the evening in Hyde Park, London.

You need a long neck to scatch in those awkward places 

if you have no hands.

Puddles of London

There are strange things you see in puddles:

A large puddle in London Fields, E8

Cecil Court, West End

(the white marks are on the pavement)

London Eye and Southbank Centre

Recently there have been a lot of puddles in London.

Central St Giles

New buildings at Central St Giles by Renzo Piano. The facades of the buildings are decorated with yellow, orange, green and red glazed terracotta tiles. The development includes offices, apartments and shops.

Orange tiles

Green tiles

Red tiles

Green and yellow tiles

Central St Giles website

Bankers plan new defences for City of London

HMS Belfast on the River Thames near the City of London

Easter Chocolate Festival, Southbank, London

Expensive but tempting:

Easter is coming so the food market had chocolate delights on sale at the Chocolate Festival at the Southbank, London.

Saturday evening, Southbank Centre, London

Real Food market outside the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London, on a Saturday evening.

Some travel in style. A tour bus outside the Royal Festival Hall with a satellite dish placed by the front entrance. Joan Baez was performing at the venue that evening.