Ramsgate for the Easter school holiday- and what delights! We heard Palm Sunday Mass at the church of St Augustine, built by Pugin next to his home, The Grange. The great Gothic Revivalist and Catholic convert would have been delighted to know that it was in the Extraordinary Form: the old Latin liturgy, elements of which pre-date St Gregory in the 7th century.
There was Much Ado About Nothing at the Theatre Royal, Margate-admittedly, a touring production from the Globe, but all the better for being seen on Britain’s oldest stage. Turner Contemporary at Margate has a remarkable display of Turners, borrowed from collections around Britain; these are contrasted-thought provokingly- with works by the Abstract Expressionist Helen Frankenthaler.
The sun has shone and we’ve rejoiced in another boon, which is almost as essential: super-fast broadband, which we often don’t get in our London home, where we suffer the pity of friends. ‘Is it always this slow?’ they say. ‘I’ll use my dongle.’ BT, the one supplier, and Westminster City Council need their heads knocking together.
Ramsgate may be quaint, with lamp posts sheathed in oversized knitted legwarmers- an urban protest, gentler than graffiti-but, to use modern parlance, it’s sorted.
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