We're going to see the Lion King ...

[Mazzy]

... not at WDW but the Lyceum Theatre in London

Had a real job finding some decent seats. There was absolutely no chance of getting anything near the stage so we have ended up in the Royal Circle First Balcony which apparently have a better view than the rear stalls as they have more of an incline between each seat so hopefully DS Dan age 8 will be able to see! Just in case anyone else is thinking of going with children, they don't recommend the stalls seats for anyone under 5ft, I didn't find this out until I actually rang the theatre itself - the ticket sellers were saying the seats would be fine, so just thought I would mention that.

I got a really good rate from an advert in The Sunday Mail for Holiday Inn. Only £78 a night for a family room including buffet breakfast at Holiday Inn Bloomsbury which I thought was a great rate for London.

We go on September 1 - it is for my 40th Birthday really but as my Birthday is on Sept 4 and the children go back to school that day I will be celebrating (not sure that is the right word for a 40th though) a couple of days earlier.

DH has organised a 'surprise' the day after the show as his present to me, so I'm really looking foward to the trip. Hopefully it will make up for reaching middle age!

 

[ThumperThistle]

Sounds great, hope you have a great time and birthday when it comes.

There is always a head in front of you that you can't see past when you have seats in the stalls. I find that seats in the circle or balcony give you a better view of the stage.

 

[Hemelman]

You'll have a brilliant time, it's a great show (but just watch out for that merchandising, it will definitely remind you of WDW).

Mick

 

[drennan]

Lucky old you, my DH took me to see this for our 3rd wedding anniversary a couple of years ago and it took my breath away, the music, costumes everything in fact just reminded me of disney, I hope you enjoy it as much as me and my DH did.

 

[Janice]

Oh how lovely Mazzy - bet you cant wait?

That is an excellent price for the Hotel - are you staying just the one night?

Wonder what the surprise is?? You must tell us when you find out

 

[UKDEB]

I would love to see the show. You make sure you celebrate in style girl - it was my 41st last week and believe me it's a real anti-climax after the big 4-0! I'm almost looking forward to my 50th!

 

[Mazzy]

Thumper - I hope you are right and we have a good view!

Mick - it wouldn't be Disney without a bit of merchandising would it?

Drennan - glad to hear you enjoyed the show!

Janice - yes it was a good rate for the hotel for 4 of us wasn't it, I was quite surprised to see how low it was! So... originally the plan had been for one night but we may stay for 2. Not sure what we are doing yet, as it is a long journey for us, we are going to drive down to Stratford upon Avon on Friday evening, stay over 2 nights, then early Sunday morning drive down to London.

Now I have to decide whether to stay in London just the Sunday night and then break the journey again at Stratford on the Monday night, or stay in London Sunday and Monday night and drive straight home on the Tuesday morning! I have booked both options at the moment and will decide nearer the time. I am waiting to see how my foot is and whether it improves in the next few weeks, as I am limited in how much walking I can do, so maybe just the Monday morning will be enough (for my foot, not me!). Ideally I would stay both nights and have a good walk round London on Monday but unless a miracle happens in the next 5 weeks it won't happen! I don't want to over-exert my tendon as I have the BIG trip to WDW in December so I have to be sensible even though it's frustrating!

Debbie - I don't think I could look forward to being 50, it is bad enough with 40 on the horizon! Mind you, I feel about 90 at the moment the way I'm hobbling around, so maybe by the time I reach my 50th Birthday I will feel younger than I do at 40! LOL!!!

We are thinking of eating at Planet Hollywood or Hard Rock Cafe, unless anyone knows of a similar type of eating place. Just something different that is suitable for a veggie and 2 fussy children! Any ideas would be welcome!

 

[BevS97]

Mazzy

if you want to eat somewhere completely different, then you might like Wagamama's.(Japanese Noodle bar). We've been there a few times with my brother, and always had a good meal.

It's not a quiet relaxing place, it's loud and a bit crazy, but the food is good. Everyone sits at long tables, and they bring the food when it is ready, so not everything arrives at the same time.

They don't have a specific kids menu, but Katie has always been quite happy with the chicken raman, which is like a chicken noodle soup.

I don't think I would go there for a relaxing dinner, but it would be great fun for lunch.

bev

PS - The menu is a bit hard to find on the website, but you can see it here Menu and here Veggie options

 

[claireUK]

You'll love the show..it's brilliant...we've seen it twice, first time we were in the circle, and when I booked the 2nd time was determined to get seats in the stalls, as the start of the show has the animals parading down the aisles, and you can't really see this properly from the stalls . Had no problem with vision for the youngest [ 7 at the time] as we were on the end of a row.

We made a real Disney experience of the day and ate at The Rainforest cafe..which was good.

Have just returned from seeing We Will Rock You...any Queen fans , it's a must...and in January will be going to see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which we are looking forward to.

 

[Mazzy]

Thanks for the links Bev, it looks a great place, only problem is that I can't stand Japanese food so it's a no-no!

Claire - thanks for mentioning about the animals coming down the aisles as it prompted me to re-check on ticket availability and I couldn't believe it when 8th row of the stalls came up as available!

I rang the Booking Line at the Lyceum and after I explained about my hearing problem they very kindly said that I could get a refund on the Circle tickets if I sent them back, and could book the Stalls to replace them. I asked how they had these seats available now and didn't on Thursday and they said that they sometimes get tickets back from agencies who can't sell them and they put them back into the ticketmaster system, so it's always worth checking and re-checking if you can't get good seats!

So I'm really excited about it now, as we have great seats, one of which is an aisle seat, so bring the animals on!

 

[Hemelman]

Excellent news about your seats.

You're in for a great show, miles better than WDW. I just loved the costumes & scenery. You'll not see better.

I wish I was going again now after reading this thread.

Mick

 

[claireUK]

Mazzy...excellent news about the seats, you won't be disappointed.

We also have the CD of the show albeit the US performance, and are always playing it.

 

[janeossie]

Went to see Lion King and Chitty in April and both are Fab. Keep an eye out in the programme for the Chief Electrician "Humph" McDermott. He's my cousin that's how we got good seats for a Sun Mat! As a Michael Ball fan I thought Chitty was fab but I have to say that the Lion King has the best opening for a musical I have seen. I'm sure you will enjoy.

Jane