Watford

Party Time

Oh my goodness. I have never seen such a party as I saw on Tuesday. The person who booked me warned me that the roads may be a little busy. I was told that it may be a little crazy. That was the most beautiful understatement I have ever heard. The booking was for a private party in a house where I dutifully arrived over an hour early. At first I thought that all the drivers in the area were in a terrible hurry as there was a cacophony of bibbing car horns…… Little did I know of what was to come. There were cars everywhere but I manage to get parked on a grass verge that I’m sure on any other night might have sent a traffic warden twitching for his ticket machine.

Fancy Dress

The children I was expecting dutifully arrived, all in fancy dress. We had clowns, old men and air stewardesses. After a supper of sausages and chips, they were keen for the magic show to get started. We were part way through the show when I could hear music outside the house. We all went to investigate. This quiet cul-de-sac had turned into Ibiza. There was a flat back truck loaded with lights and speakers with dancers jumping up and down on the back to some traditional pop music. Those not on the truck were following behind, jumping singing and dancing.

Entertainment

We finished the magic show and went on to making balloons. Something was now kicking off inside the house. We had new visitors. First was a group of children dressed as clowns. They treated us to a song, then in came a dance troup to add to the entertainment. Money was being collected for, I believe for a local school.

The purpose of this blog entry is to talk about the amazing atmosphere created by this celebration. It was a mix of a Christian Christmas and the Treat and Treat of Halloween, along with the partying of New Years Eve. Every thing was good natured, very little alcohol was being drunk, and everyone was having a good time.

The best thing for the children was to have the next day off school to recover.

Hopefully the winter chills are behind us and we are looking forwar to some warmer weather. It’s been a busy time for Auntie Julie. The new year started off with a family party in Chiperfield. I met up with a large set of grandchildren whom I had met in the summer at their Grandads 70th Birthday party. . January seemed to be a month of repeat bookings. I paid another visit to the Croxley Green Baptist Church where the boys and girls brigades enjoyed a circus session, followed by juice and crisps. I was a member of the girls brigade when I was young as were my children. The leaders and helpers have hardly changed. Always nice to see old friends.

The POD hospital shows are coming back now. Auntie Julie regularly visits Watford Hospital and Northwick Park along with a trip further into London to The Whittington and Great Ormond Street Hospital. We are still wearing masks on the ward, but after the ‘Covid Years’ we seem to be finding to a new normal.

The next big event is Purim, a very important Jewish festival all about a lady called Esther. The great thing about it is that school finishes at lunch time and then families gather to celebrate. Even better, I get invited along to get the party swinging.

Congratulations to our dear Queen, Queen Elizabeth the second, on her 70 years on the throne.

To be honest, though the achievement is record breaking, the number doesn’t really matter. What matters is that we were all told that we could celebrate in style, and Auntie Julie certainly did.

Things kicked off in Hatfield on the Wednesday with Auntie Julie’s wartime show. She was performing to adults living with dementia. Luckily for her there were two lovely children helping their mum serve the dinners. I persuaded them to stay for the show, and they really were the stars.

On Thursday morning Auntie Julie helped Ema celebrate her 7th birthday with friends in her garden in Northwood. That was a lot of fun with everyone having a go at making bubbles.

Thursday afternoon was a little different. This time it was Auntie Julie’s turn to run her own party. With the help of Heather and Monika, neighbours from either side of the Auntie Julie House, the road was closed and a lovely street party created in an hour. For three hours, there was music, quizzes and bingo. Thomas and George, the young boys were the bingo callers. At one point most of the bingo balls landed on the floor so a few numbers were called twice.

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The afternoon ended with everyone standing for the National Anthem.

Saturday brought a lot of driving and a bit of worry about the weather. Somehow, neither party was affected. Auntie Julie went to Letchworth Golf Club to entertain after a BBQ lunch then drove 60 miles to Medmenham to see some familiar faces at the Danesfield Arms.

Sunday began with her usual morning at Signature Care Home in Chorleywood with an exercise class and Jubilee Church Service. After lunch it was the final jubilee show at The Meriden playing fields in Watford.

On Monday morning it was time to take down the bunting, and pack it away for the next celebration.

This was the first time Auntie Julie had been inviting to Watford Field Infants and Nursery school at Easter time. Normally she would come along at Christmas, but last year everything was a little different. The children had to have small parties in their class bubbles and Auntie Julie wasn’t able to join them. She busied herself in Santa’s workshop, making sure the Elves were behaving and working hard to get all the gifts out on time.

The weather man got all a little bit confused and the day started and ended with a snow storm. The photo doesn’t really do the scene justice but we did get a heavy fall of snow.

This year Auntie Julie took a break from the Easter Bunny’s Egg warehouse to come along to the school for a little Easter fun. We had a show about Eggs, Chickens and the occasional rabbit. As usual lots of fun was had by all. I can’t wait to see you all at Christmas

The Fancott

The weather was on our side when we went to The Fancott in Toddington this weekend. The pub is so much more than just a pub. The food looked amazing. The children at this party had huge burgers bursting with salad and a big plate of chips each. The trouble was that they were too excited to eat very much and it was doggy boxed to go home with.

The Fancott has its own miniature railway, and so with tickets booked for 2 pm, there was no time to lose.

As we were outside in a public area we invited all the children to come and join us. It made a great party atmosphere. The staff turned down the music allowing me to perform my show . The adults were brilliant and joined in the fun.

I thoroughly recommend you go and find this pub. The staff are friends and the food is great. Book your tickets in advance for the train ride.

Auntie Julie is back

Auntie Julie is back and so are her amazing parties. After a long and hard year it is time to book Auntie Julie for your spring and summer parties.

29th March – We have Garden Parties for up to six people

12th April – Garden Parties for up to 15 people

17th May – Garden Parties up to 30 people
                  Indoor Parties up to six people

21st June – No restrictions – Party time is truly back

So what has Auntie Julie been up to ?

Auntie Julie has been very busy during lock-down

Firstly she tidied up all her magic boxes. It is amazing how much magic you can accumulate in 20 years. Then it was time for some zoom shows with guests from America and Europe. Every Monday was tots story time with singing, dancing, and bible stories. In the summer smaller garden parties were allowed so it was nice to get back to doing shows with an audience you could reach. During the second lock down Auntie Julie was still able to entertain at one residential home for older people. That kept her busy with magic, singing and arts and craft sessions. Christmas shows did still happen in some schools, with socially distanced performances to year group bubbles of children. Some shows also happened on zoom

It is so nice to be able to book everyone in for this coming spring and summer. Don’t delay, it’s going to get busy

….. Just a little update – Christmas bookings are coming in quickly now, so if you would like Auntie Julie to come to your school or nursery this year please get in touch today.

Rule of six parties are here

Just when we were starting to get back to normal everything changed again. We had just got used to the new rules, when they became the old rules and new ones took over.

Let us not be downhearted . We have all learnt to adapt.
We can still have a party and have lots of fun.

Auntie Julie can still come to your home. We just need to keep the numbers down.
You can have two grown ups, four children and Auntie Julie who – as an outside trades-clown doesn’t count. The news gets even better. Why not Zoom all your friends into the party. It is so simple. Just open a Zoom or House-party room, face one camera to Auntie Julie and let technology take the strain. Now everyone can join in.

If you hire a venue – then we can have a larger event with social distancing. This would be a sit down, theater-style magic show, where guests stay strictly in their family groups. Food would need to be served to the tables, with no wandering around. It isn’t a perfect solution but has been working remarkable well. Some pubs and cafe’s may work nicely for one of these ‘sit down’ parties.

Auntie Julie Parties are Back

The news from the government is fantastic. We can all start to get back to normal. Ok, so it isn’t quite the same normal, but that doesn’t mean we have to stop having fun.

Auntie Julie is now booking parties for the summer. All you need to do is keep the numbers within current guidelines and have your party in the garden. If you don’t have a garden, then maybe a corner of a local park. A Gazebo should help with any shower or bright sunlight. As the parties are going to be a bit smaller, please ask Auntie Julie for a quote. It will be less than the current website prices.