14th - 15th December: London

Friday
In spite of Finners not having had any work from NBAT since April we were invited to their Christmas weekend party in London.

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Looking out of the window in our hotel room, the Post Office Tower was dramatically lit up against the night sky.

While waiting in the foyer to be taken by taxi to Primrose Hill, a dozen pirates raced in through the doors waving cutlasses shouting "Aha Jim lad!" After a few minutes they appeared again and made for the exit without the waving and shouting.

"Wrong f……. hotel" a swarthy buccaneer sheepishly muttered.

There was champagne and excellent food at The Queens and we had a great time joking with some of Finners’ colleagues who we had not seen since last year’s party. Then back to the hotel in the early hours where we sat around chatting with the next generation of NBAT staff.

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Saturday

The next morning, we decided to make the most of our stay in London by going to the National Portrait Gallery – we saw the Hockney self portrait, a recent acquisition which I had been keen to see, and many more.

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There were loads of other interesting portraits in the main gallery. Virginia Woolf, and others of the Bloomsbury set. Lots of writers and politicians and a very good one of Mo Mowlem - well worth the visit!