As the end of 2024 was drawing to a close, we intended for one last day trip to London. We were looking forward to seeing London with its festive lights all aglow.

Sadly, we were not able to visit London to enjoy the festivities because mum became unwell again and was admitted to hospital at the end of November. Mum is not home yet but is being assessed and looked after in a care home.

Knowing that she is safe and being looked after meant that we could take time out for a day trip to London.

The train ran smoothly and we arrived in London in time for lunch in The Square Pig, Holborn. Several dishes including steak and pie were off the menu, leaving Mr C a little disappointed. However, we both found the fish and chips delicious.

Next, we visited the Sir john Soane’s Museum. Sir john Soane, one of the renowned English architects, built and lived in the house until his death in 1837.

“In 1833, Soane negotiated a private Act of Parliament: to preserve his house and collection, exactly as it was arranged at the time of his death, in perpetuity – and to keep it open and free for inspiration and education. Upon his death in January 1837, a Board of Trustees took on the responsibility of upholding Soane’s wishes – as they continue to do today.”

There were so many things on display in close proximity that it was impossible to take everything in although Mr C spotted all three commanders from the battle of Waterloo. This left us feeling rather overwhelmed. We found one of the exhibits, the sarcophagus of Seti I, particularly interesting. The sarcophagus, made of alabaster, is carved inside and out with Egyptian hieroglyphs showing the text of ‘The Book of the Gates’. The text describes the rituals needed to pass safely into afterlife. Drawn Inside the base of the sarcophagus is the figure of Nut, goddess of the sky, whose role is to guide and protect the dead.

Next, we walked the short distance to the Museum of Freemasonry. The museum displays artifacts with accompanying text that explores the origins of Freemasonry, which lie in the traditions of medieval stonemasons who built our cathedrals and castles. The guiding principles of Freemasonry are; Integrity, Friendship, Respect and Charity.

Part of the museum display shows the myths surrounding freemasonry and how these were made popular by news media outlets and popular novels promoting conspiracy theories.

We hope to go back and book a tour which takes visitors into the ceremonial areas of the Freemasons Hall including the Grand Temple, shrine and vestibules.

We had some time to spare before catching our train home so we walked to Foyles bookshop, hoping for tea and cake along the way. We entered Covent Garden but found the area loud, noisy, full of mundane shopping outlets and lacking in suitable cake opportunities (a shadow of its former self), I was reminded of why I don’t like cities.

We quickly continued our walk to Foyles, but decided not to indulge in cake there either. The café was full and the cakes were enormous, leaving me to wonder when a nice tasty sweet treat had turned into a full-blown meal option!

We both enjoyed browsing our favourite sections in Foyles; for Mr C that is the military history section and for me the religious and spiritual section, historical fiction and the board game section.

We eventually found ‘cake’ in a nearby Costa where the service was painfully slow and impersonal…

We took the tube back to Euston for our return journey home. We always purchase sandwiches from Pret before our return journey but the sandwich options were limited and we found the nearby M&S options in a similar state (almost sold out). After choosing the best of what was available, we made it to the platform just in time to catch the train home.

It wasn’t a classic day out in London compared to our previous day trips but our adventure gave us well needed down time.

After breakfast we set out for Durham in order to visit the cathedral and the Lindesfarne Gospels exhibition.  Unfortunately when we enquired at the visitor information centre about tickets to see the Gospels we were advised that the earliest time slot possible for that day was 7.30pm.  We didn’t fancy hanging around all day so we decided against it and chose to visit the castle instead.

When we arrived at the castle gates we were told that visits were by guided tour only and the last tour was in a few minutes due to a wedding being held there later that day.  The only snag was that tickets had to be purchased from the visitor information centre which is where we had just come from…  After some grumbling Mr C went back to purchase the tickets.  The castle tour was interesting and informative.  The hall and stairway reminded me of Hogwarts from the Harry Potter films.

After the castle tour, we visited the cathedral and had lunch in the undercroft.  I also spent some time in the book section of the gift shop.

We then made our way back to Newcastle where I went into M&S to quickly purchase a pair of trousers to replace the ones that had got soaked and muddy the previous day.  This was not to be.  The lengths looked different so I had to try them on.  The assistant reliably informed me that the lengths had been changed by what she called a ‘cuff length’!!  This means that M&S trousers no longer fit me as I am between lengths.

We returned to the hotel to freshen up before our evening meal.  The weather was fine and dry so we walked along the Quayside before settling on dining in Cafe Rouge.  After the meal we returned to the hotel for a cool glass of wine before retiring for the evening.

1893 – Michael Marks opened a shop in Manchester, and lived above it

1894 – Thomas Spencer – a cashier and book-keeper invested £300 to become Michael Marks’ partner

1930 – M&S’s flagship store opened at Marble Arch, London

1931 – M&S introduced a food department into its stores, selling produce and canned goods

1939 – At the outbreak of World War II, M&S had 234 stores.  By 1945, more than 16 had been destroyed by bombs

1954 – M&S carried out the first-ever comprehensive leg survey to improve the fit of its stockings

1959 – Marks & Spencer was the first major retailer to  introduce a no smoking rule in all its stores

1971 – M&S frozen foods were trialled for the first time

1989 – Organic fruit, vegetables and salads were introduced in selected M&S stores

1997 – M&S’s Bodysensor range of opaque tights was launched and won the Queen’s Award for Innovation

1999 – Online shopping at M&S is born

2001 – The Per Una range for women, designed by George Davies, was launched

2007 – Marks & Spencer began selling exclusive ladder-resistant sheer hosiery

2008 – A charge of 5p for food carrier bags was introduced, helping raise funds for local environment projects

2009 – M&S agrees to stop charging £2 extra for DD+ bra sizes

2009 – M&S is 125 years old

Since the demise of Hamells and C&A I am an M&S girl through and through.  Sadly they never did stock my bra size so the extra pricing never was an issue for me

PS: Most facts courtesy of the May/June edition of the M&S magazine