** Click here for Episode 136 **
Readers, Americans need your help to enjoy their jaunts to Britain! Firstly, Annie from Eugene, Oregon:
I’m going to London this summer, and as a huge theatre fan I figured I’d ask you: What shows should I see? What shows should I drag my non-theatre-loving boyfriend to?
Any ideas? Stick them in the comments below (unless those ideas are sending her to American shows that have arrived in London five years later with an inferior cast. Or Stomp). Then restoke the fires in your brain on behalf of Crystal from Baltimore:
I am going on vacation to England during the first week of June. When I asked my little brother what kind of souvenir he would like, he requested a smashed penny. In the U.S. there are these sort of machines in touristy places with big cranks, you put two quarters (for payment) and a penny (for smashing) into a slot, and then turn the crank. The machine sort of presses the penny flat and puts a little relief picture of the place you’re at or something iconic on it. He’s got smashed pennies from a lot of places in the U.S., but I’ve suddenly realized you don’t use our money in England.
Helen and Olly, answer me this: Are there smashed pence machines?
None that I’ve ever seen. Though there are quite a lot of smashed pennies on the pavement, if your brother doesn’t mind a souvenir covered in dirt and pigeon shit.
If not, what might be a nice England-y present for a five-year-old boy? I’m willing to spend slightly more than the equivalent of 51 cents, I love him that much.
That truly is love… It generally seems to us that abroadniks enjoy souvenirs which riff on classic Britacular stuff like the red buses, phoneboxes and black cabs (rather than the binge drinking and high teen pregnancy rates), and in places like museum stores you might find some excellent phonebox-shaped objects and toy wooden buses which would be ticklish to the average five-year-old. But it’s been a while since we were five, or were bought a souvenir of the city in which we live, so please deliver your own suggestions in the comments.
P.S. The tour of southern England we are taking involves spending an afternoon in Tunbridge Wells. Is there anything there we shouldn’t miss?
Well, I’d suggest missing Tunbridge Wells. But if you must insist upon going there, then after your inevitable trip to the Georgian wonderland that is the Pantiles, pay a quick visit to the nearby ancient bookshop where I used to work. If you suffer from dust allergies, take a breathing mask.
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Answer Me This! Podcast 
June 4, 2010 at 10:36 am |
Those ‘smashed penny’ things were really common in South Africa, I had quite a few from touristy places like the Cango (?) Caves and Zoos etc
(:
May 28, 2010 at 5:09 pm |
Beaten to it! I just got back from Bristol zoo and was going to mention the coin manglers there. Good spot, Hope. Made me think though, I once heard the same thing as David below, that ‘defacing coins of the realm’ was illegal, though I have no idea whether that’s true. Answer me this, would there be any legal repercussions from scratching a beard and moustache into a coin to make the Queen look like Martin the Soundman?
May 27, 2010 at 6:09 pm |
There’s a squashed penny thing in bristol zoo. If you can find one there I’m pretty sure you can get them anywhere.
Failing that (or on top of :P), buy some proper chocolate (cadburys) as I know you don’t have it over in the states (or proper bread, or any marmite, but they might not be such good presents).
Or you could get a policeman teddy bear 🙂 They’re really sweet.
May 27, 2010 at 10:16 am |
SMashed pennies definitely available in St Paul’s. I also always thought it was illegal to deface the currency, but perhaps this is no longer the case.
Theatre-wise I would recommend Enron. I know it flopped on Broadway, but it really is brilliant.
May 27, 2010 at 9:50 am |
@Annie from Oregon
You will LOVE the West End Whingers – http://westendwhingers.wordpress.com/ – they coined the ‘Paint Never Dries’ soubriquet for Love Never Dies and write excellent theatre reviews grading everything in glasses of booze. What they like, you can’t go far wrong with.
The one thing I would suggest that you may not have in the States (and that your theatre-denying other half will love) is The Woman In Black. It’s utterly terrifying and brilliantly done: perfect example of total theatre. The Young Vic and the Donmar Warehouse should be booked for regardless of what’s on, the Donmar always turns out impeccable shows and the Young Vic is very inventive. Steer clear of the Menier Chocolate Factory, it’s usually wonderful but it has Paradise Found on at the moment which is the biggest turkey ever.
My favourite thing on at the moment is a bit coals to Newcastle though – Legally Blonde. Two dogs! Two!
May 24, 2010 at 8:32 pm |
English food. There seem to be enough brits in the U.S.A wanting british food that there are websites selling british food. Just bring back loads of british brand food that you can’t buy in american and sell it. Give a cardboard box to the 5 year old, cardboard boxes are immensely fun at that age.
May 24, 2010 at 8:28 pm |
From other posts I gather that we have a few of the penny machines here, but would they not be illegal as they deface the Queen’s head? Or is that law an urban myth?
May 24, 2010 at 6:41 pm |
You can get smashed pennies from myriad CenterParks holiday camps. (Only two weeks cycling round and round Sherwood Forest on a hired bike n’ trailer does seem to be a rather high price to pay for them.)
May 24, 2010 at 1:30 pm |
Oh, as for theatre trips…
Billy Elliot – I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who didn’t enjoy this!
Les Miserable – it’s too amazing to not be liked.
Spamalot – very funny.
(These are all performances I’ve seen in the past few years, not sure how many are still being show down in London!)
May 24, 2010 at 1:31 pm |
Oh, and ‘The Mouse Trap’, definitely!!
May 24, 2010 at 1:26 pm |
Hello Helen & Olly and a special hiii for Martin the Soundman with some added reverb. I would like to reply to the question Annie from Eugene asked. I work at London Theatre Bookings and hopefully will be able to help. For the ladies who like and the boyfriends who don’t, how about The 39 Steps? It’s a hilarious farce based on the Alfred Hithcock thriller, as English as cucumber sandwiches and with 4 excellent actors playing the roles of 150 characters it is highly entertaining. A safer bet than a musical me thinks. Then again he may like a tune or two in which case go and see the rock musical Hair. Probably the best cast in the West End however they are straight from Broadway. Says it all really… We do large discount tickets on the day of the show so you can save quite a few pounds but I’m not sure I’m allowed to promote so delete if necessary! Have fun (p.s I used to love You Bet too Olly)
May 24, 2010 at 1:25 pm |
Hi Crystal from Baltimore, and also Helen
You can get squashed pennies at the London Aquarium, or at least you could a couple of years ago. And I have seen them in other places occasionally, though I can’t remember where. But they cost 50 pence plus the penny, e.g. roughly 73 cents, making them less good value than the US ones. Here’s a list of England penny-pressing ocations: http://www.pennycollector.com/Locations.aspx?area=92
Otherwise, maybe he’d like a plague rat glove puppet from the Museum of London? It’s a better place to visit than the Aquarium. Hope you have a great trip,
Rebecca
May 24, 2010 at 1:23 pm |
You can get squashed pennies here in London (I thought I remembered seeing them!). This site tells you where to find them:
http://www.pennycollector.com/Locations.aspx?area=92
May 24, 2010 at 1:13 pm |
Are you kidding me? There are LOADS of “Press-a-Penny” machines!
I remember getting them as a child, mainly from museums or aquariums, and I’m sure I had one with Blackpool Tower on it from a visit to Blackpool once…
I cannot believe that you’ve never seen them, Helen and Olly!
(ps. It will usually cost around 50p for payment, and 1p for pressing!)