I STILL BELIEVE

This week I went with Martin (the boyfriend) to see Frank Turner play his penultimate UK gig of the Recovery tour.



We took the train from Milton Keynes to Birmingham New Street on Wednesday to see Frank Turner play that night.

When we arrived in Birmingham the first thing we did was head for the 02 arena so we could get our bearings and find our hotel. We were staying at the Ibis; Google maps had told me it was the closest hotel to the 02 being only 5 minute walk away.

Google must have been walking on its hands and backwards as the hotel was two minutes away if you strolled slowly! You could see one venue from the other.

Once checked into our hotel we unpacked our bag and made some plans for the rest of the day.
We decided on a walk around the Bullring and some dinner before coming back to the hotel and getting ready for the show. This sounded like a good idea to me but maybe not such a good plan for the bank balance!

‘Popping into’ shops like Selfridges and Forever 21 is never going to be cheap! I did restrain myself a lot better than I thought I would though.

I bought a lovely dress from Selfridges that I know I will wear A LOT! And I headed straight for the accessories in Forever 21 where I spent most of money. But I got a lot for it; I found such cute necklaces, earrings and a bag.

The boy also found a light at the end of the dark shopping tunnel when we went into JD (by mistake initially) and found Adidas Originals Campus trainers. Something he had been looking for ever since the Originals collection was released a few years ago.

We then went for dinner at the Homemade Burger Co. which was amazing with a capital AMAZE. Firstly the menu was extensive but really simple which screams out to a fussy eater like me! I ordered a plain beef burger (completely plain of course) with a side of chips and BBQ dip, Martin ordered a cheese and bacon beef burger (with everything) and a side of chips.

The first thing we noticed was the size of the portions – massive! But the taste was as big as the size and even my ‘boring’ burger was full of flavour. The BBQ dip had just the right amount of tang and when the waitress asked if she could get us anything else Martin actually asked for the recipe. (The waitress just laughed so I don’t think she knew he was being serious!)

With full bags and bellies we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the evening and headed to the 02. We were really lucky to get straight into the venue and after buying a t-shirt and find a good spot the first act came on.

We couldn’t hear anything he said or sang, and I wouldn’t even be able to tell you his name without looking it up. It’s safe to say he didn’t leave much of an impression of me and I was just praying the acoustics would improve before the next acts.

Second on the line-up was Larry and his Flask, the polar opposite to the first man who stood on the stage just him and his guitar, these were a 5 piece band who made sure you heard everything they said and sang. The drummer/frontman looked like he had been drinking Red Bull since he woke that morning and was all over stage and, more impressively, was drumming whilst standing.

There was then the long wait before Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls came onto stage. He didn’t disappoint, as I knew he wouldn’t. He played just the right mix of old and new songs and, unlike other shows I’ve been to, the songs weren’t played straight from the album.

One thing I did learn was that Birmingham breeds tall people as everywhere Martin and I moved we were pushed out of the way by a giant who then decided to stand directly in front of us! But my ears were fine and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

The next day we had breakfast at the hotel (all you can eat croissants was almost as beautiful to my ears as Frank Turner!) We then decided we needed some culture so went round the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, I would recommend it to you. It is a very big place so make sure you have enough time but there are some really great exhibitions there at the minute mixing modern and contemporary art with ancient artefacts and paintings.

Before we had to leave we made another trip to the Bullring to get me an ice cream float from the all-American diner Ed’s Shakes. I think they need to change the name on the menu as the girl who served me was miserable; looking at me with disgust because I had dragged her away from her phone, then made me an ice cream sink! To round up, I was left disappointed and annoyed that I’d spent more than £3 on half a can of Cherry Coke and a scoop of ice cream that didn’t even float because the girl didn’t know how to make it float!

However, one bad milkshake didn’t ruin the trip and I had a fantastic time in Birmingham and an even better time at the gig.

Click here to check out Frank Turner, if you haven’t done so before I strongly recommend it.
Click here to watch my mini haul from the Bullring.