Our Boys, Childhood Characters and Wartime Stories

November 8, me, Autumn, and Tayler took a trip to Covent Garden to see an original British play called Our Boys. This play is about a group of six young army men recovering from traumatic war wounds in an army hospital during the 1980's. It starred Matthew Lewis, Arthur Darvill, Cian Berry, Jolyon Coy, Laurence Fox, and Lewis Reeves.
This is the poster for the production:

We wanted to see this play for a few reasons: one being the fact that Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter movies, and Arthur Darvill, who played Rory in the BBC show Doctor Who, were starring, another being that the reviews we'd heard had nothing but good things to say.

After seeing this play, I feel like I know more about the hardship soldiers go through recuperating from severe wounds, from having to amputate a finger, to recovering from a shot to the head and severe brain damage. It would have me holding my sides laughing at one moment, then one line would instantly change the mood from playful to heartbreaking. Seeing those men trying to cope with the fact that they might not be able to go back into the army, their only means of supporting themselves, and going through the pressure of keeping it together through depression and doubt really made a lasting effect on me. Once you see something like this, your view on war is completely changed. The ending almost had me in tears, I was so invested in these characters. The actors did a brilliant job, and Jonathan Lewis, the playwright, created a truly remarkable work.

Here's a trailer for the play, with reactions from the audience:

And here's a couple pictures of me with two of my favorite actors from my favorite show and movies!
Matthew Lewis:

 And Arthur Darvill:

It was a marvelous night for someone who loves geeky things like Harry Potter or Doctor Who, and for anyone who's interested in brilliant, compassionate plays.

Rachel Talaber

Shopping Around London

Over the past few weeks, I've been shopping around town. Here are some of the places I went:

Harrod's

Camden Town

Portabello Road Market

Each place is unique, and has its own fun things.

At Portabello, the best part (in my opinion) was this stall with these amazing doughnuts:

 Camden was my favorite place; there was an outside market, with lots of cool things:

That first one is me and my friend Autumn outside the market, showed in the second picture.

Here's a picture of Harrod's, all lit up:

Here’s a quick video about Portabello Road:

Harrod's is a giant building, filled with tons of high end stores and brand names. It's kinda on the expensive side, so I didn't get anything there. The middle section has a bunch of places to eat and buy food from all over the place. There was one floor that was just toys, and that was my favorite part because I am such a kid at heart and really love looking at toys.

Camden Town is essentially a long shopping strip, with every single kind of shop you could imagine. There's something for everyone: preppy, goth, hipster, tourist shops; you can find anything you want. I found a sweater with the British flag on it, that's really warm and cozy. There's also a Henna shop, which was, sadly, closed the last time I was there, otherwise I would've gotten something. It's a cute, fun little place, perfect for a group with lots of different interests to shop and be happy.

I hope you enjoy my thoughts on shopping in London, and if you ever get a chance to try out some of the places around here, I highly recommend it! Though, try to make it before the crowds, or you'll be doing the penguin waddle down the middle of the sidewalk :)

Rachel Talaber