After the excitement of Christmas and the New Year, the long stretch up to Easter is marked by January blues, miserable weather and a dearth of bank holidays. It’s hardly surprising that the Easter weekend is one of the most eagerly awaited breaks of the year. Easter signifies the start of spring, an excuse to eat as much chocolate as you want and for many of us, four wonderful days away from the office!
If you’re thinking about what to do with those precious days off, forget about starting the break stuck in a traffic jam or departure lounge as you attempt to flee London with thousands of others; the capital has plenty to see and do this Easter.
Blooming Lovely!
Kew Gardens, is a beautiful place to visit in spring time. With an incredible 5 million bulbs, including daffodils, crocuses and narcissus, bursting into bloom during the season, it makes a fantastic place to spend a day over the Easter weekend. Adult admission is £12.25 but accompanied children under the age of 17 get in free and with 300 acres of gardens and stunning historical buildings and glasshouses you certainly get your money’s worth. This Easter, children can enjoy a prize winning bulb trail and have the opportunity to meet the Continental Giant Bunnies which can weigh in at a whopping 18 pounds! There is a traditional Easter egg trail on Easter Sunday.
A mouth watering 1.5 million Easter eggs have been hidden around National Trust, www.nationaltrust.org.uk, properties across the country. Easter Eggstragavanza events are taking place in London locations including Ham House and Garden in Richmond, Osterley Park and House in Isleworth and Fenton House in Hampstead which all make for an interesting and enjoyable visit.
Easter Egg Hunts
For an Easter egg hunt with a difference, go to the Cabinet War Rooms in SW1. The Golden Eggs trail has an espionage theme and secret agents have to solve clues scattered around the War Rooms or St James’s Park in order to obtain a golden egg. For more details log on to www.cwr.iwm.org.uk.
If you would like to attend a special Easter service over the weekend why not visit one of London’s beautiful places of worship such as Westminster Abbey or St Paul’s Cathedral. Everyone is welcome.
\n\nThe Purcell Room on the Southbank is the venue for a concert, ‘Words and Music for Good Friday’, to celebrate the start of the Easter weekend. The Navarra Quartet will play music by Mendelssohn and Haydn and there will be a variety of readings related to the day. Tickets start at £9 and can be booked online at the South Bank Centre here: www.southbankcentre.co.uk.
Handel
The Royal Choral Society will be performing their highly acclaimed annual production of Handel’s Messiah at the Royal Albert Hall also on Good Friday. The oratorio was first performed on 13th April 1742 but is still one of the most popular choral works today. The performance will take place at 2.30 pm and ticket prices range from £5.50 to £33.
Indie Easter
If you prefer indie to Handel, why not justify that really long lie in on Good Friday by starting the weekend on Thursday night with the Insomniacs Ball at SE One? The theme of this year’s all night event held in the vaults under London Bridge is ‘faded grandeur and cheap aristocracy’. For details of the full line-up and to purchase tickets priced at £21 log on to www.virtualfestivals.com.
Sporting Highlights
One of the highlights of the traditional sporting calendar is the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race and the 153rd event takes place on Easter Saturday. Around 250,000 spectators are expected to line the banks of the Thames between Putney and Mortlake and there is always a great atmosphere. After the exertion of watching the race, you can enjoy a pint or two at a riverside pub. See All In London's Club, Pub and Bar Guide to check out the nearest boozers to your location along the Thames.
Easter Films
If you fancy spending Saturday afternoon at the movies and need a reminder of what happened to Augustus Gloop to stop you overindulging, the National Film Theatre, www.bfi.org.uk, is showing a matinee performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on April 7th. Tim Burton’s 2005 imaginative representation of the popular book stars Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter. Children’s tickets are available for just £1.
\n\nPeople in the UK are the chocoholics of Europe and on average each person consumes 10 kilos of chocolate a year costing around £70! If you want to splash out on an Easter egg for someone special (or yourself), a visit to one of the big department stores such as Selfridges or Harrods is a safe bet but be warned, their tempting displays are hard to resist. Fortnum & Mason is selling a Dark Chocolate Madagascan Egg for £39 or try the Milk Chocolate Egg with Champagne Truffles at £25. If you’re still not satisfied, nip into the gorgeous La Maison du Chocolat, www.lamaisonduchocolat.co.uk, also on Piccadilly or Charbonnel et Walker, www.charbonnel.co.uk, just around the corner in Old Bond Street.
If your chocolate desires reach beyond the common egg, pay a trip to the Surreal Dreams in Chocolate event at the Victoria & Albert Museum. On Good Friday between 2 pm and 5 pm, Choccywoccydoodah ‘an art and design focused chocolaterie’ will be demonstrating the sculpture of surrealist fantasies from chocolate!
While you’re at the V&A, don’t forget to check out the Kylie exhibition, it’s free and after seeing the diminutive size of her clothes, you won’t ever want to eat chocolate again!
Happy Easter!
