After a long day at Hampton Court we don’t want to stray too far from the hotel. We’re staying the Covent Garden hotel in, you guessed it, Covent Garden. We’ve stayed a few times before but not for many years [we’ve saved up]. It’s a great location, good cocktail bar and simple stupendous breakfasts. They do little fruit, yoghurt and granola pots – we’d recommend 2 or 3 each if no-one is looking. We’re in the cheapest room but, again, four figures for two nights – but we were upgraded. Whew.

We spend the day at Hampton Court. We’re real Hilary Mantel fans and have watched all three series on the Beeb. Better still, we think, was the RSC production starring Ben Miles. He had just the right amount of arrogance tinged with bringing out the humour from Hilary’s books. The BBC version had Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell. Now we know he’s a great actor, but he played it very low key and humble, with a long miserable face most of the time. He didn’t cut an impressive figure.

So we saw all the characters’ portraits at Hampton Court. What a strange time – elegance, literature, courtship, learning – with some pretty dreadful violence and murder thrown in.

So dinner tonight is a Café Murano, one of four in the capital as second strings to Angela Hartnett’s bow. We like Murano, her Michelin Starred version in Mayfair, but this is [1] local [2] simple italian and [3] not outrageously expensive. Ideal then. Excellent simple bean starter – they gave us the recipe for the dressing.

Cocktails at the Lobby Bar at One Aldwych to start. Negroni and Negroni Zero. Original is always better.

Restaurant Café Murano Covent Garden

…PS so we stayed at the Covent Garden Hotel. It used to be the place of choice 10-15 years ago but we hadn’t been back. The location is great, the rooms indulgent [we were upgraded too] and the breakfasts – if ever it was worth paying for a hotel breakfast, it’s here. Fabulous. Absolutely fabulous. 

…and One Aldwych. We went with our boys years ago when they were 19 and 21. They looked suitably scruffy as they approached the front door quite purposefully, but the doormen opened the doors when they realised they were intent on going in – residents after all. Could have been a Boy Band [we shared a lift there with S Club 7 once – whoever they are…Ed].

Hampton Court – the kitchens