- Red Bull Air Race - www.redbullairrace.com
London, 29th July (Bookings Open 17th May)
The world’s greatest pilots take to the skies in the hope of being triumphant. Flying against the clock, the pilots have to slalom through pylons, known as ‘Air Gates’ at speeds that can reach 400km/h and withstand forces of up to 10g. The pilots are using some of the lightest, most agile and responsive planes that exist, but ultimately it’s the pilot’s stamina and skill that determines who will be crowned the next Red Bull Air Race World Series champion. This year, the UK Stage will be held in London and with fast low level flying over a relatively compact course, spectators are guaranteed a treat.
- FA Cup Final
Wembley Stadium or BBC1, Chelsea v Man U, Kick-off 15:00
The FA Cup is in its 126th year and after a long wait it is returning to Wembley. Man United, newly crowned with their Premiership Title face Chelsea, desperate to pick up some silverware after a disappointing end to the season are out for revenge. The Cup Final, comes around once a year so enjoy it and get some mates round and enjoy the day.
- Buddha Birthday Festival - www.ibps.org.uk
19-20 May, Leicester Square Gardens, Free
Celebrate Buddha’s 2550 Birthday Party with a weekend full of Zen, Compassion, Wisdom, Beauty and Enlightenment. During the weekend check out the “Bathing of the Buddha” ceremony in which one can purify the mind, open the heart and beautify the body or take a journey of wisdom and watch the musical play “The Life of The Buddha”. There is also a Chinese Buddhist art exhibition, Chinese calligraphy rubbings and a Buddhist wishing fountain. However, for me the highlight of the weekend has to be the Annual Asian Vegetarian Food Fair, YUM.
- Star Wars Exhibition - www.starwars-theexhibition.com
County Hall, Westminster, 15 May- 1 September, £16.50
The exhibition unlocks the secrets of how the films were made. Whether you turn up to Jedi School, appear alongside you favourite characters or marvel at the life-sized Naboo starfighter you will be impressed. You can also appear in the sets using green screen technology or watch the documentary 30 Years of Visual Effects to uncover how the industry has evolved. May the Force be with you.
- The Drowsy Chaperone - www.novello-theatre.com
Novello Theatre, 14 May- 14 June, £35-60
Elaine Page returns to the West End to star in the Broadway smash-hit musical, The Drowsy Chaperone. The tale of a pampered star determined to get married and give up show-business and her ruthless producer’s struggle to sabotage it. Throw in a Latin lover, a dashing groom, a couple of pastry chefs (gangsters) and an inebriated chaperone, and the result is a world of entertaining high-kicking comical mayhem. (When booking Quote “Email Offer” to get a discount on limited seats)
- The Unknown Monet: Pastels and Drawings - www.royalacademy.org.uk
Royal Academy, Sackler Wing, Green Park, 17 March - 10 June, £9
“This exhibition is the first devoted to Monet’s drawings and pastels. It offers a ground-breaking exploration of the role of draughtsmanship throughout the artist’s long career, overturning the conventional notion that Monet painted his impressions of nature directly onto the canvas. New light is shed on Monet’s working methods by presenting a significant body of his preparatory studies, finished drawings and pastels, alongside representative examples of his paintings. In demonstrating the relationship between his works on paper and in oil, Monet’s hidden talent as a draftsman is revealed, a gift that he publicly disavowed.”
- Horniman Museum Aquarium - www.horniman.ac.uk
Horniman Museum, Forest Hill, Free
Let yourself become immersed in the wonderful underwater world. Visit ecosystems from around the world, from the familiar British pond life and rock-pools, to the mysterious mangrove swamps, tropical Fijian coral reefs and the underwater rainforests of South America. There are myriad fish, jellyfish, seahorses, frogs and more. The exhibition is so good it has been long-listed for the prestigious Gulbenkian Prize for museums and galleries, the largest single art prize on offer in Britain.
- Lyttelton Flytower - www.nationaltheatre.org.uk
National Theatre, Platform 21 May, £3
The exterior of the Lyttelton flytower will turn green over the next few weeks as the artists (Ackroyd and Harvey) along with a team of twenty assistants will plant the north and west face with nearly 2 Billion grass seeds. They hope to transform this landmark of the London Skyline into a living installation. You can see Ackroyd and Harvey discussing Flytower in a National Theatre platform on the 21 May, or just walk by the National and watch the building transform.
- Big Bang - www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/
Science Museum, 03 March – 07 November, Free
This exhibition focuses on the attempt to recreate the condtions of the universe at the time of the Big Bang. It looks at scientific research taking place at Cern and the use of their Large Hadron Collider (27km ring). If that does not whet your appetite then there is plenty more on offer in the Science Museum.
- Paul Chan - www.serpentinegallery.org
The Serpentine Gallery, Kensington Gardens, 15 May – 1 June, Free
Reflections on a variety of topics in Paul Chan’s presentation of the “sacred and the profane, and temptation and renunciation, in relation to the world” with “large-scale digital projections and drawings that ‘hallucinate’ the seven days of creation from dawn to dusk”.
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I’m looking forward to the Red Bull Air Races. It should be a very impressive spectacle in London.
There were some free tickets available for local residents (boroughs of: Greenwich, Newham and Tower Hamlets).
Comment by Noddy — July 4, 2007 #