Pure Gold. Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh - A review

PURE GOLD

Celestial and goose-pimpling, the greatest archaeological find in history, Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh exhibition allows you to leave reality and look beyond our world to another time entirely.

Moving from gallery to gallery, you can't quite take it all in. The art is simply staggering. The fact that what you are looking at; the unveiled mystique of so many intricate wonders which laid buried with the boy King in his Valley of the Kings tomb for over 3,000 years, are all so perfectly preserved, and now here in London on display for the visiting public. Only until 3 May 2020 though, when it makes its way back to Egypt for good. Knowing this, adds a great sense of urgency to behold the treasure.

The canopic jar which guarded King Tutankhamun's liver 

It is a  wonderfully insightful tour, and the audio set is brilliant at £6. The Saatchi space and layout make the exhibition accessible to all. You can take your time and enjoy all you've come to see. Why not spend all morning gawping at for example, the splendour of the gold inlaid canopic coffinette - its first time ever out of Egypt? And revel in the stories that accompany these fascinating relics; such as the eerie tale of conflict relating to the silver trumpet - which every time sounded, was followed by an outbreak of war.

This exhibition is a chance to revel in wonder, and as such, should not be missed. Children will be as captivated as the adults, and families really ought to take advantage of the holiday deal offering a unique glimpse into an intriguing world which has all but disappeared. Mind blowing.





"Mummy, come see. There's something unbelievable." Here my 8yo and 11yo are enjoying the family friendly audio tour of the Tutankhamun exhibition at London's Saatchi gallery which wowed us all at the weekend. It was the launch of the Family Holiday Pass Deal.

Tickets are on-sale now via www.tutankhamun-london.com and Family Holiday Passes are also available for a limited time only, where a family of 4 can visit from £70 + booking fees.

FAMILY HOLIDAY PASS:

• Cost: £70 + booking fees when paid for in advance online OR £80.50 from the Box Office
• Includes entry for 2 Adults and 2 Children OR 1 Adult and 3 Children
• Valid only for the 9am time slot on weekdays from Monday 16 until Tuesday 31 Dec
• Children this pass applies to are aged 16 and under
• Children aged 3 and under go free
• Limited availability, so book now to avoid disappointment!

GENERAL LISTING INFORMATION:

• Exhibition: TUTANKHAMUN: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh presented by Viking Cruises
• Venue: Saatchi Gallery, Duke of York's HQ, King's Rd, Chelsea, London SW3 4RY
• Dates: Saturday 2 November 2019 – Sunday 3 May 2020
• Opening Times:
• Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday – Open from 09:00 with last entry at 17:30
• Thursday, Friday, Saturday – Open from 09:00 with last entry at 20:30
• A timed entry system is in place, with tickets allocated every half hour
• You may spend as much time as you like enjoying the exhibition but please note that the gallery will close 90 minutes after last entry
• The average length of stay is between 60 and 90 minutes
• N.B. The gallery is closed on Christmas Day (Wednesday 25th December)

Emma Oliver was gifted this press trip in exchange for a post on LIFE AS IT IS 

Paddington 2 - The feel good movie of the year - Film review

Paddington 2 - LIFE AS IT IS Film review... so what did we make of it?

TOP TEN LIST OF THINGS TO DO THIS OCTOBER HALF TERM

HALLOWEEN is coming, so let’s hope it’s a dry half term as there’s nothing worse than soggy trick or treaters! Although we’ve plenty of ideas for keeping the troops occupied indoors - here’s our top ten list of things to do over the holiday week…

FRAMED - Wimbledon - centrecourt

Despicable Me 3 - A parental rite of passage

Sunday LIFE AS IT IS was invited to the preview of the new Despicable Me 3 movie at Leicester Square Odeon. It was of course completely brilliant and a great family day out. Parents, I'm pretty sure you'll be going... expect to laugh loads! #TakeYourMinions #InForATreat Here's me and the gang...



And here's Gru and Drew... not giving anything else away!

A World Like Nowhere Else - A poem

A World Like Nowhere Else

Spinning on its own Axis, where seas of silk lap graceful shores,
A world like nowhere else exists
Where quintessential currents run and elegance and power converge,
And tales of timeless greats are spun and showstoppers emerge
A world for all to celebrate; light years away from ordinary
A world which deftly radiates its realm; and bows to the extraordinary
Where earthly rigours found outside and lived outside are left outside
And wishes wished are realised through all the finer tastes this land will grant
To let its spell enchant; to walk its walk once through those golden gilded gates
To gaze at beauty styled and beauty stitched on graceful form adorned
To know that bay imperious Horse immortalised and cast in bronze is Yeats
That headlines here accomplished render sporting moments starred
This Kingdom... smiling Green Coats kindly guard; this universe beyond three centuries old
Such elements, such pieces of a jigsaw wrought to mould this multi-coloured globe
A blazing beacon to the most majestic sport of all where heroes rise and heroes fall,
And Royal Ascot's world stands tallest of the tall

Henry F Birtles

FRAMED - Ladies Day at Royal Ascot

35/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...


Esme was born on her great grandmother's 90th birthday, and this year they turned 8 and 98. The cake was decorated by the GraceFaith girls, and is the art project that we have most enjoyed this week in August 2016.

The Olympics (then and now)

On the day that Rio held its 2016 opening ceremony, we are excited. In our house we love the Olympics. We love the chance to enjoy the world's greatest sporting extravaganza, and to settle back together in awe of the 10,500 athletes from 206 teams competing in sixteen days of world class sport.

Warwick Castle Maze - A review

WARWICK CASTLE'S NEW HORRIBLE HISTORIES MAZE IS OPEN

Warwick is a castle that thrills and delights, leaving you in no doubt of the mighty battles it has borne, those that fought and fell, those that lived like kings, not forgetting those that suffered such horrible histories. Of course, if you've visited Warwick Castle, you couldn't fail to know all of that. It is magnificent, and with so much going on you could easily spend multiple days there... amongst other things, watching the Birds of Prey show, visiting the Knight's Village, seeing the Trebuchet in action (flying fireball), touring the castle, or mingling with its inhabitants (meet the marvellously informed poo man, and the entertaining, if slightly bonkers, Countess Greville: I live here. I'm loaded). 

However, if you haven't visited for a while, you might not yet know about its most recent reason to return... its fabulous brand new attraction that opened at Easter: 
The Horrible Histories Maze...

The ballet - A joy for ALL to behold

MY first ballet happened to be the Christmas classic The Nutcracker. I took Esme Grace - my delighted 7YO - with me. Rather wonderfully, both of us were totally unaware of the magic we were letting ourselves in for.

Annual Easter Egg Hunt at West Dean Gardens - Easter with the kids

All children big and small love Easter Egg hunts and the idea of being rewarded with a small handmade chocolate treat, don't they? Well let the family join in the fun at the simply beautiful West Dean Gardens in West Sussex daily over the Easter, for they are offering Easter Egg trails from the 25th to the 28th of March from 9am – 5.00pm (last entry 4.00pm). 

INFO
Normal Adult gardens’ entry applies. 
Children’s entry to the gardens FREE although there is a small additional charge of £2.50 per child for the Easter Egg Trail, including two children’s activities and a small, handmade chocolate treat for completing the trail.

Free parking
Fancy a spot of afternoon tea? There's a shop and restaurant on site
Dogs welcome, on leads

The Nutcracker - Our first ever ballet

18/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

A trip to the fabulous Haslemere Museum, just isn't complete until you've seen Arthur!
(He looks very much like this).

Shaun the sheep, Southbank & Supper (& Best Western hotels)

Friday already and as our half term holiday draws to a close, on reflection it has been a totally relaxing week of family, fun, friends, and now film - for yesterday we were invited up to town to watch a screening of the new Shaun the Sheep movie, sat in the very beautiful surrounds of the One (and only) Aldwych Hotel. In the private cinema room. Blimey. How nice was that? And with as much popcorn as we wanted - salt or sweet. Mmm, tough choice. The girls were on great form. So was Shaun. And if you haven't seen it yet, it's well worth a watch. I laughed out loud a lot - and rather wonderfully, so did the girls. The whole thing was hosted by Best Western Hotels - clearly a child friendly brand offering breaks with personality - and like Shaun - resulting in a feel good family experience. 

A trip to the airport...

Heathrow Airport... and where Daddy works

Usually when we arrive as a family at Heathrow, it is to check in and fly. Today however, we went for a look behind the scenes at the hub where hub works. A day out which was very different. We had fun - the girls in particular had a great time - I was desperately wishing for an anorak to match my husband's by the end of it. I jest. There were bits of the airport that were really interesting. Bits that were even exciting. And bits that were brilliant (these included coffee and food). Perhaps the best bit of all though, was the look on Daddy's face, when he asked Esme and Sofia if they wanted to see another terminal and his girls both shouted yes, after already having been on a bus, two trains, and trudged around for what felt like forever. Love that! Here is our time in pictures so that we always remember the day we went to Daddy's work.