Tuesday marked an event which students and staff alike had keenly anticipated since the start of the session: the trip to London to see a play at the West End! Still, this did not detract from a busy morning of lessons and students were as engaged as ever. With courses beginning to come to their conclusions, this was another big academic day for everyone on campus.

Students on our Summer Architecture Programme were particularly dedicated yesterday as they sketched throughout the morning. It is great to have seen this group develop their practical skills and we hope this programme has set them in good stead for futures in the architecture industry! Released from their classes, students gathered in the Garden Room where they registered in their coach groups (one for each of the three different theatres and plays) and grabbed a packed lunch. Then it was off to the coaches and away to London, stopping only to pick up our colleagues from Catz en route.

The traffic was mercifully light, and coaches touched down in London before 3, giving students the exciting prospect of around four hours of free time in the UK’s exciting capital. All theatres were in close proximity to vibrant areas, including Soho and Covent Garden, so no one was short of something to do.

Having shopped and eaten to their satisfaction, students reconvened shortly before 7 by their theatres and filed in. There were two musicals, Aladdin and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, and a comedy, the award winning Play that Goes Wrong. A London stage experience is one of the world’s great pleasures, and all three shows were certainly top notch.

After their conclusions, students were carried off home by their coaches. It was a late night, and all were tired, but none could deny that it had been a special day indeed.