to a concert at 7:30 in the Albert Hall. I was working out how to juggle the timing: got to be there by seven, can’t get into London until 6 because of the congestion charge, when I realised that today is a bank holiday and went to check whether I would have to worry about that charge today. According to every site but one, I don’t.
I was disgusted to see that nowhere on the “Congestion Charge (Official) - Transport for London” website does it bother to mention that you have to pay the congestion charge for Central London between 07:00 and 18:00, Monday to Friday except on Bank Holidays.
I wonder how many pore bluddy tourists will pay the charge on their website today. I’m not going to try it, but I bet it doesn’t refuse to accept money just because today is a bank holiday.
I agree that bank holidays don’t seem to be mentioned there. There used to be a page which gave this information, but it’s been removed; still on archive.org though.
Unless you go a very long way round you shouldn’t go into the zone anyway - it starts at the eastern border of Hyde Park ACCORDING TO THE CURRENT SITE, WHICH IS LYING.
Joan Baez, Carinthia. Last chance ever: she is calling a halt to touring now she is 75.
According to Wikipedia “The Western Extension was officially removed from the charging zone beginning 4 January 2011, with charging on the Western extension effectively ended on 24 December 2010.” so if they are right, the TfL website has the map right.
I have seen her several times before, and tried to get to each concert tour since I have been living here in case it was her last. Her voice is not what it once was, but for God’s sake, she is seventy-five not twenty! and it is still a lot better than that of many twenty-year-olds who seem able to make a living by singing.
In 2013-14 she was afraid she’d lost it, and thought of giving up performing, but after some voice coaching from someone she trusted she decided to keep going, and when Sudden Daughter and I saw her in September 2014 it wasn’t the same but it was, as you say, interesting and good, and it is indeed a lot to do with her delivery.
The time before that I saw her in Bristol and she had a chaise longue on the stage, on which she reclined when she’d handed over to other performers for a number or two. That was rather splendid. She even sang from it, for one number.
So do I! Navi says 47 minutes to get there, so I shall allow double for traffic into London (though as it is a bank holiday, who knows) and parking and then walking to the venue.