Nigello

Happens more often than you may have thought, especially when you buy the "orange sticker" reduced items. I've had a fair few problems in Co-Op, fewer at Tesco and never at Iceland (RIP!)

Cathay has a sale on at the moment so it may be that the fares from HK are similarly low. No idea about Philippine Airlines but if there is a stopover it will add a couple of hours to an already long flight.

Was it an even older person doing the swearing? I think even a back-handed/unintentional compliment when delivered with a swear word somewhat takes away from the pleasure.

Banh Banh (Vietnamese restaurant near to Peddler/Rosie's) says on its Twitter feed that it will be in open by mid-April.

020 7525 2000 is the number to call. Generally, Southwark is good at removing dumped items and clearing up mess, etc.

I increasingly think that walking (or using a wheelchair/mobility scooter) is a better option than any other. Yes, it is time consuming and sometimes unpleasant if it is too warm/cold/wet but packed buses (yes, with people eating on them!) and busy roads (which may put people off cycling) mean that being under your own steam is preferable and not that much slower at times. What is Southwark doing for the pedestrian (apart from painting double yellows around corners)?

Powder, near Sainsbury's at the Plough end of LL, is now open, selling cosmetics (and perhaps more, but I couldn't see in when I passed quickly).

Penguin68 I wrote to our MP and asked precisely that. I got a reply saying it would be looked at so when I get the full response, I will let people know. I pointed out that with more people living on bus routes that feed SE22 (the new developmentsin and around Camberwelll will add hundreds of new residents) then overcrowding would get worse.

It's your money that's going to waste and I really would prefer the ever-slimmer resources to be used more realistically. Three police officers walking together chatting to each other (and not therefore necessarily taking note of what's going on around them) is reasonably common to see. Why would anyone - including a cretin - think that it is good to have such a waste of resources? Why would stop at nine? Go the whole hog and send twenty! Again - it's your money that's being used poorly so when your car is broken into or your wallet is pickpocketed and the police tell you they can't justify coming out to you, you (plural, not anyone in particular) may think differently.

9 vs 1? Hmmm. ANother example of emergency service overkill.

Eating food of any kind on a bus or train is not good sense, let alone good manners. Things spill, not everyone is likely to do the right thing and dispose of food and packaging correctly and some foods and drinks do smell unpleasant. Neutral behaviour ought to be the name of the game in public spaces like transport. (I've had to pull people up from dropping freshly-sucked peach stones on the bus floor and eating a ketchup-enhanced chiili burgers in a packed Tube train and would do it again.) Nobody needs to eat on a bus, except perhaps a very young child/baby or a diabetic every now and then. If you are hungry, go to Le Chandelier and eat your food in the correct place (to get this thread back on track!)

Mick Mac - It wasn't a go at you at all. It was just a general thought. My point was that sometimes it's OK to bring in a buggy/bulging rucksack/kitchen sink, but not always (which is not what plenty of people think). Proprietors are put in a very difficult position so I would prefer it if people just thought a bit before thinking it's always OK to do what they want. I can't say I hold out much hope.....

It is common sense that not everyone can accommodate a pushchair so I think it is fair for cafes to (sometimes) say no, politely - in the same way they would to someone who was carrying large amounts of luggage, for example. Nobody is going to run off with a buggy, especially if it is being eyed from the inside by the owner so it's not too much of an ordeal to be asked to not bring it in. People shouldn't take it as a slight or an assault on their (or their baby's) sense of self (but I have seen reactions that fit that description, alas).

Keep washing your hands and do it more often than you think you need to. I know it is not going to stop everyone from catching bugs, but it does help. (Anti-bacterial gels kill some bugs; washing your hands gives them - including viruses - nowhere to stick.) Rub your eyes with the back of your hand; push the bell on the bus with your knuckle; do same with cashpoints or in the lift; get a flu jab; sleep as much as you can. All of these can help but we all fall ill eventually.

Seconded.

I cannot believe it is so ??. Mine is under the stairs and I think that that is where it will stay! Thanks all.

I assume the gas company has to move it. If so, does anyone know how much it costs? Has anyone moved his/her meter from one location to another recently?

I agree re "pretty things", into which those god-awful yellow A4 pieces of plasticky paper tied to lamp posts by Southwark do not fall. (Just pull them off after the three/whatever weeks have expired because Southwark don't have anything to do with them once they've put them up, which I find contradictory from a body that has its own environmental department that fines other forms of littering.)

I have an old Amex card No as my standing order with my online bank. I still pay into it and my new card (a completely different kind of Amex) still gets paid. Must be all automatically linked. Oh, and I have had my lost wallet found and returned three times, always intact! People are often honest, it seems.

Barry Road is a long, long road with only three crossings, two of those close together (nearer the Rye end). I have seen motorists speed along there at more than 40mph, often not slowing down for the zebra at Goodrich Road. Take care!

I have been to both and prefer the Delaunay. The prices are broadly similar and the acoustics in the Delanunay - though not perfect - are better and there's natural light. I found BZ to be way too loud and busy and I don't like the fact there's nary a window in sight (if I remember correctly). Another place to consider is the German Gymnasium but I think it may be a little bit more ?? and not best suited to such large groups.

Potager (on the corner of FHR and Dunstan's) is coming along: there are workmen in there often and what looks like a counter is in place. The old laundry (sounds like a posh restaurant) is meant to be something foodie, according to one of the workmen I asked several months ago.

I would recommend The Delaunay at Aldwych. It has good food, great service and big tables. You can have a good brunch and feel like you are treating yourself without breaking the bank. The seats/booths are big and comfortable, there is a cloakroom as well as coat hangers in the dining area (so no need for that dreadful coats-on-chair-backs busines)and there is a good mix of locals and tourists.

How much?