Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made Of

I didn't realise when I booked a few months ago to see Dr Faustus at the Globe that I'd be seeing Arthur Darvill as Mephistopheles! What a versatile actor he is.

It's looking like it'll be a good weekend. I start with Kevin Spacey as Richard III at the Old Vic on the Saturday afternoon (24 July), then go on to an evening Faustus at the Globe. Next day it's All's Well That End's Well, also at the Globe, and on Monday 26 July I round it all off with Tennant and Tate.

As usual on these summer visits to the South Bank (this will be my third) I'll be staying at the LSE Bankside hall of residence, just behind the Tate Modern. It's very good value - £42.00 a night for a single room, and you're right in the middle of Southwark, my favourite part of London. Funny, but although I've made numerous visits to Stratford-upon-Avon, that's where I feel really close to Shakespeare. So close that occasionally I get shivers down my spine. I love the area - the views across the river, the Borough Food Market (foodie heaven, particularly the artisan baker De Gustibus, where they do the best toast ever), Foyles, the Tate, the Globe, the Golden Hind, Southwark Cathedral...you can keep the West End, as far as I'm concerned. It's the south of the river for me.

I just wish I didn't have to wait until the end of July. I want to go right now!