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Monday 29 June 2015

TWICKENHAM ….. A POST THAT WON'T INSPIRE !!!! ……….

My husband likes rugby ….. I like watching sport and watch rugby but it's not my favourite ! This post probably won't bring me many Brownie points or comments and will probably lose me some followers. It won't appeal to many ….. it didn't really appeal to me much ….. BUT, we went on a tour of Twickenham Stadium, the Home of England Rugby …… AND …..
it was a really good day out. 




Even though Twickenham is quite a long journey from where we live, it was a beautiful day and we had friend's to chat to.


Twickenham Stadium is located in the London Borough of Richmond-upon-Thames in South West London.



Guarding the gate is the golden Lion. It is a Coade stone lion { like the one at Westminster Bridge } and came from the old Lion Brewery on the South Bank.


Twickers, as the rugby faithful call it, seats 82,000 people and is the largest dedicated rugby union venue in the world. The pitch had just been re-seeded when we went so that's why it's brown !!
The first game was played in 1909 and, 100 years later, is still going strong.
The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Rod Stewart, Genesis, Lady Gaga and Rihanna are just some of the acts that have played there.



……. and, those faithful rugby fans { and me !! } got to see Sir Clive Woodward who was a former England rugby union player and coach. There was some 'do' going on on the day we went and we got to brush shoulders with many sporting dignitaries.  Sir Clive Woodward was the coach of the England team from 1997-2004, taking them to victory in the 2003 Rugby World Cup.


These are a couple of the original baths that have been left at the players request. They are used for ice baths now. I asked where the communal bath was but was told that there has never been one …… slight disappointment !!!!


….. the changing rooms. Each cubicle has the names of every player who has used it. I sat in Billy Beaumont's !!


….. the tunnel …..


….. and me on the edge of the pitch !


The historic venue of Twickenham began life as a humble cabbage patch, hence the name of the pub that we went to where I had ……


a really lovely tomato and basil linguine.

SO, the moral of this story is go on any trip that is offered …… they usually turn out to be worth it.

Regular readers to my blog will know that our son is a music producer and has done the music for the London New Year fireworks and, when we got back from Twickenham, he informed us that he is doing the music for the Rugby World Cup's glittering Opening Ceremony which starts on the 18th September 2015 !!!!

Apologies to anyone who isn't interested in rugby but will be back to flowers next as we are going to RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show this week !!

Beautiful weather is forecast for Wimbledon and I shall be glued to the tele for the next fortnight, rooting for Andy Murray !!

XXXX



images 1 - 11 via ME. image 12: via perfect pint, image 13: via gastronomers guide

Jackie

36 comments:

  1. Oh, congratulations to your son!!!
    I am saturated in Rugby here in Oz, due to husband's fanaticism! I tend to switch off...
    More interested in how beautiful your hair looks and your fab silver cuffs! :D xxx
    Lovely to hear from you though!

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    1. Thanks Flora. It's funny …. I wear that silver cuff practically everyday { my husband bought it for me years ago } and, whenever I put a photo of me on my blog, I always get lovely comments about it !! I'm sure that your husband will be watching the World Cup so, listen out for our son's music !!!! XXXX

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  2. I once went on a corporate invite to Lords. I could certainly see others in my department who'd have been better placed and would have enjoyed it. Still it was my job and I had an interesting but confused afternoon. Ascot on the other hand. ...

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    1. Lords is pretty interesting too ….. my husband is going on a tour of Lords soon. As long as I get lunch and a glass of wine, I'll go anywhere Anna !!!! XXXX

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  3. Being an ex-school and club player, I've been many times. Yes, it's mostly known as 'twickers', but to us it's always 'head office'.

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    1. Hi Cro ….. I knew that I could rely on a comment from a rugby player like yourself !!
      ' head office ' ……. a perfect description. XXXX

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  4. I didn't know what rugby was until recently tuning in on the TV. Those guys are tough. Congratulations on your son's success. I remember he did the July 4th or fireworks show. I think we are prouder of our children's success more than our own.

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  5. Hi Donna and many thanks for commenting !!
    … and, yes, we are very proud of our son and your right, we are always prouder of our children's achievements aren't we ? XXXX

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  6. I like the statue of the bloke goose-stepping with his arms folded. In case you didn't know, 'Coade Stone' is a ceramic which used to be made in Lambeth, and it was run by a woman - Mrs Coade, actually. (And you thought your post was uninspiring...)

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    1. Thanks Tom …… I didn't know that about Coade Stone and, they didn't tell us that on the tour { I think that the tour guide needs to brush up on his facts !! } I think that I learn at least one interesting fact everyday from blogging. Enjoy the sunshine. XXXX

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  7. So Nice a good game and delicious food...what Will have you more ?...love from me Ria...x!

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    1. As long as there's food Ria then I'm OK !!!!! XXXX

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  8. Jackie, our grandson introduced us to Rugby when he played high school club rugby in northern Indiana. Being from the south, it was all new to us, but we learned to really enjoy the game. Hubby even went to Salt Lake City to watch the team play in Nationals. I made posters for grandson for two years for their end of season banquets. "Elegant Violence!" So, I really enjoyed seeing the home of the sport. Also, congratulations to your son. We will look forward to hearing the music.

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    1. Good to hear that rugby is spreading all over the world Elizabeth. I am looking forward to hearing the music too !! XXXX

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  9. Great post, really enjoyed reading it. Hubby and I are huge fans, but for the boys in red! Jane x

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    1. Haha Jane …. we are great rivals !!!! The World Cup should be really exciting. XXXX

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  10. The name Twickenham would have encouraged me into a
    "look and see." I liked seeing a glimpse of you . . .
    Such fun . . . I could never stop following . . .

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    1. Hi Lynne,
      I think that, even if you didn't like rugby, it was still very interesting. I was suprised at how much I enjoyed it. XXXX

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  11. What a wonderful post. My daughter played rugby in college in Chicago. She never played any sports in school and of all things decided to try rugby. My son played American football most of his life and has now decided to try rugby as well. Rugby isn't as popular here in the states but I think it's starting to pick up. We got to see the New Zealand All Blacks play USA last year. It was an embarrassing defeat but a fun day. It would be a treat to see Twickenham! Congrats to your son!

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    1. Hi Debbie,
      That's amazing that your daughter played rugby { and your son } It originated in England in the first half of the 19th century and is a great tradition here.
      To have seen the All Blacks must have been wonderful { who cares who won !! } I hope that they did their Mauri greeting….. a great thing to see. XXXX

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  12. Dear Jackie, thank you for this interesting post! And many congratulations to your son!!! To be that successful in a difficult field of work, where many excellent people are competing, is great (and I know what I'm talking about, husband being a professor for popular culture makes me meet a lot of artists). So: congratulations! Britta XXX

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    1. Thanks Britta. Our son, Daniel, was musical in the womb !!!!! haha
      After working for the BBC for over 10 years, he is now freelance. It really is a difficult field to get into but, he has managed it !! XXXX

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  13. Dear Jackie
    I'm not a sports fan I'm afraid but if I was then it would be rugby - the men are just all so, so 'butch' - but it is always interesting to see what happens behind the scenes and you seemed to enjoy the guided tour. The linguine looked very tasty - simple meals are often the best aren't they. I was more interested in what was hanging off your shoulder - an ancient water carrier perhaps - lol. And what an honour for your son no wonder you are proud of him.

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  14. I always think that most things are interesting Elaine and any excuse for lunch and wine is good for me !!!!!
    I was waiting for someone to mention my HUGE bag !!!!!! I got it from Ebay. It''s well worn, bashed up and I LOVE it !! Unusually, I'm not into shoes or designer bags but I love plain, soft leather and it holds so much. A good buy from Ebay.
    …… and, yes, we are very proud of our son. We're also proud of our daughter !!!!! XXXX

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  15. Hello Jacqueline,

    You must have turned some heads strolling along the edge of the pitch. Love your hair.
    I know little of Rugby but sincerely found your post very interesting. Twickers has a great ring to tit.
    Enjoy Wimbledon and go Andy Murray
    Helenxx

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    1. Hi Helen,
      It actually was interesting ……. I'll go anywhere if I'm asked !!!!!! XXXX

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  16. So happy to hear there will be flowers next week :-) Glad you enjoyed visiting the stadium Jackie! Enjoy the tennis!

    Madelief x

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    1. Yes Madelief …… flowers next post …. you would have loved Hampton Court Palace Flower Show !! XXXX

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  17. Even though I was CheerLeader and Majorette in High school I never really like football. Seems
    like Rugby is a close match. Great photo's. Food looks great. yvonne

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    1. The food was my favourite part Yvonne !!!! haha XXXX

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  18. Jacqueline I think that anything that brings people together for fun and joy is wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing your event!

    xoxo
    Karena
    The Arts by Karena
    Gallery Opening!

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  19. Hello and sorry for the late comment, Jackie: What wonderful news re: your son!!
    And re: rugby - I played two games back in the early 80s, but I didn't quite understand the rules so I stopped, but just recently started watching what I could on TV - what a fast game it is. Today is the Women's World Cup Final - go USA! xo

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  20. I'm not too up on Rugby but it looked like a lovely day and tour. Like you, I'll go anywhere for lunch and a cocktail! Haha......we just got back last week from our UK road trip with our friends. We stayed up at a West Yorkshire in Halifax at a beautiful hotel and went to a lot of lovely places as our friends are from there. From there we went to Manchester, Southport, Liverpool and then down to London. So much fun - lots of visiting with old friends, new friends, lots of very late nights or shall I say we were going to bed when the sun was rising. Such fun - but we needed to come home to get some sleep! Congrats to your son - so exciting for you all!!! Lots of love to you and Mr. H! Xxoo

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  21. That is so awesome that your son will be doing the music the RWC's opening!!!! I also loved seeing the stadium, but especially because I spied a beautiful one standing out there :)))))))))!!!!!!
    Hey, I will go on any trip you take us on my friend. My daughter just got back from 2 weeks in your beautiful country and so did a close friend of mine, so needless to say, I'm feeling a little jealous over here! My friend and my daughter brought me some lovies from there so I'm getting over it a bit. But only a bit!
    I hope you have a great week Jackie!
    much love...

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  22. Hi Jackie, I haven't been able to comment the last few weeks as my internet's been playing up, so I'm just catching up in Blogland. Fantastic news for your son, congratulations. I love your bag too.xx

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