Saturday. A leisurely breakfast in a nearby patisserie, then we’re off to the British Museum, a short walk from the hotel. This place is big! Entry is free, so no queues, thank goodness. The huge central space has a soaring, curving transparent roof covering a modern circular building.
What to see? We head first for Ancient Egypt – yes, the curse of the Mummies! Fascinating stuff from a very long time ago. The Medieval areas have some interesting displays of treasure found in bits of Britain, collections of silver coin and other valuables buried for safe-keeping.
We track down the Elgin Marbles just to make sure they haven’t been given back to Greece. Then it’s the Enlightenment, a long gallery built between 1823 and 1827 where the displays reflect the original museum layout, collections of natural history, botany, fossils etc. There’s a lovely brass Orrery I covet.
Walking back we see a small crowd by a university building watching people abseil down a tall tower – it looked quite scary. This was the University of London’s Senate House – 209 ft tall.
Around the corner on the pavement was an old green wooden hut – a refreshment stop serving tea and food for cab drivers. There are only a couple of these left in London.
In the evening we head north on the tube to visit an old friend of Jan, Neil Spencer. He’s another old Northampton Grammar School boy, also friends with Ant Knights. Neil has been a music journo all his life, working mostly for the New Musical Express, which he later edited. Now divorced, he’s recently moved into his house and his amazing collection of records and CDs is mostly still in boxes in the living room. He’s also an Astrologer and does readings! 
We chat over wine, then walk to a local Turkish restaurant/canteen. It’s a big, buzzing place with an ethnically-mixed clientele and a queue for tables. We’re seated after a short wait and enjoy some great food. Back at Neil’s place we listen to some music before heading home. The tube is closed when we get there so we take the easy way out and grab a black cab home. Luxury!
