Tokyo Fox (東京狐)

TF Flashback: The Time I Watched New Zealand Vs England in a One-Day International Cricket Match

Posted on February 10, 2015 by tokyofox

The ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 begins on Valentines Day with Australia and New Zealand sharing hosting duties and England play their second game against the latter in Wellington on February 20th which has brought back memories of the one and only time I saw the England cricket team play live.

Flashback to 2002 and I was travelling around New Zealand for a few months and whilst I was in Auckland there happened to be a One Day International game between the New Zealand Black Caps and England on February 23rd and I was in attendance.

Before I left my hostel (Nomads Fat Camel Backpackers in Auckland) that morning I sprayed my hair red and when I got to Eden Park, which was about an hours walk away, I met three guys from Bournemouth called Dave, Pete and Matt who put some face paint on me in the form of a St George cross.

England won the toss and chose to bat first but as soon as they came out on to the pitch it began to rain lightly. Worse was to follow as Marcus Trescothick was bowled out on the third ball and a couple more wickets also fell in quick succession. Just as I thought England were doing really bad, things started to improve (almost unnoticed to me!) with Nick Knight scoring 38 and Michael Vaughan reaching 59 although a few silly wickets were lost too.

Graham Thorpe also scored 59 and was not out as England scored 193 in a reduced 40-over match due to the frequent rainfalls – one which was very heavy and meant the players were off the pitch for about an hour. In the meantime, I had to protect my hair dye and face paint from running by wearing a plastic bag on my head as well as partly sheltering under my inflatable hand.

Due to the Duckworth-Lewis method; a scoring system designed for weather affected matches, New Zealand had to score about 226 in 40 overs to win. However, they were bowled out for 189 in 38 overs with Chris Cairns getting a respectable 58 runs. This levelled the series at 2-2 (though the Kiwis would go on to win 3-2 a few days later!). Whilst celebrating the wickets we English fans were pelted by a load of missiles including plastic bottles, beer cups, tomatoes, water melon pieces and bits of meat!

After the match, I went with the Bournemouth boys to an English pub in the city for some post-match celebration drinks. Due to my tiredness, these celebrations were very tame and I arrived back at the hostel at around 1.30am receiving a few strange looks along the way as my face was still painted. I took a much needed shower before collapsing into bed.

Posted in Australasia Travel, Sport | Tagged 23 February 2002, Auckland, Eden Park, England, Graham Thorpe 59 Not Out, ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, New Zealand black caps, New Zealand v England Feb 20 2015, one day international cricket | 1 Comment

London Filming Locations: Sliding Doors (1999)

Posted on February 7, 2015 by tokyofox

Whilst back in England recently I watched this rom-com with Gwyneth Paltrow. Well, obviously not with her but I did view this 92 minute film and recognised many of the locations from the nations capital so when I travelled down to London a few days later I set about finding some of them.

The alternate parallel universe premise has been seen in TV and film many times such as in the fantastic 1988 German movie ‘Lola Rennt‘ (a.k.a. ‘Run Lola Run‘). As for ‘Sliding Doors‘, the scenes run side by side in this imaginative British-American rom-com drama which is based on the paths taken in life by Helen (Paltrow) determined by whether or not she catches her intended train which causes different outcomes in her life. The shooting locations are as follows:

* 62 Princes Square in Notting Hill is Helen’s house which she shares with two-timing Gerry (John Lynch).

* 25 Primrose Gardens is where Helen’s friend Anna (Zara Turner) lives and in one of the parallel narratives she goes to stay with her after catching Gerry in bed with his ex-girlfriend.

* Pattern House at 223-227 St John Street is the loft apartment where Lydia (Jeanne Tripplehorn) lives and is where she tricks both Helen and Gerry into coming (separately) to find out about the latter’s affair with her. Distraught by the deception Helen runs off and subsequently falls down the staircase whilst fleeing from Gerry.

* Bertorelli’s at 19-23 Charlotte Street is the restaurant where Helen works to support Gerry in one timeline and drinks with new love interest James (John Hannah) in the other.

* 6-8 All Saints Road in Notting Hill is the new restaurant of Clive which Helen organises the grand opening party for.

* The Blue Anchor on 13 Lower Mall in Chiswick, close to Hammersmith Station, is where James gets Helen fully involved in some post-rowing crazy dance celebrations.

* Fatboy’s Diner – The scene for Helen’s date with James after her disastrous break-up. This classic 1950s-style chrome-and-neon diner with counter stools is located out on a limb a bit as it’s across the river from The 02 Arena. The address is 64 Orchard Place, Poplar and it’s a 12 minute walk from East India Station on the DLR Line.

* Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on Fulham Road is where Helen ends up in both timelines and loses her baby with two different outcomes following in the wake of that devastating news. In one of the timelines she sees brief visions of her alternative life.

For other London filming locations click on the links below:

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace Trainspotting Mission: Impossible Lara Croft Tomb Raider The Bourne Ultimatum Harry Potter & The Philosophers Stone James Bond About A Boy Quadrophenia Bridget Jones’s Diary Goodnight Sweetheart Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels Basic Instinct 2 Batman Begins/The Dark Knight The Italian Job Snatch Rom-Com Special Skyfall Notting Hill The World Is Not Enough Paddington Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (Re-Visited) Entrapment

Posted in London Film Locations | Tagged Bertorelli's London, Gwyneth Paltrow house, London movie locations, notting hill london filming locations, parallel universe films, primrose gardens, princes square, sliding doors movie locations | 18 Comments

A Tour Of The BBC Radio Leicester Studios And Watching The Football Forum Show

Posted on February 4, 2015 by tokyofox

As a lover of the wireless, the highlight of my trip into Leicester earlier this year came when I popped into the BBC Radio Leicester studios which are located at 9 St Nicholas Place adjacent to the medieval Guildhall and Leicester Cathedral as featured in my ‘Sightseeing In Leicester‘ post last month. Following a text conversation with the station’s football commentator Ian Stringer around the New Years period I was invited to see the studios as he knew I was a bit of a radio geek.

Naturally I jumped at the chance as it would fit in well with the other stuff I had to do in the city and so I agreed to meet him at 3pm for a studio tour of the station which my parents are avid listeners of. Ian was in Tokyo last February to run the marathon and we hung out a fair bit during his time in the capital and he kindly let me interview him for the inaugural Tokyo FoxCast podcast. (The second podcast is still in the pipeline!!)

Right on the dot he appeared and greeted me (the only person who calls me Tokyo Fox in person!) and took me on a 30 minute tour starting of course with the main two studios which are used for the daily output on the station. I got to sit in the main hotseat at the control desk and where the guests sit whilst he showed me what some of the knobs, buttons and faders do. Very exciting stuff for me!

Other things which I got to see included the outdoor broadcast vehicles, the newsroom, the record library, the unused studios vacated by the Asian Network (which used to share the building) and the staff office where I met Jason Bourne (no, not that one!) and Political reporter Tim Parker who I spoke to for quite a while as he previously lived and worked in Japan. I even tried on his BBC jacket which probably saw me reach optimum level of nerdiness!

What seemed to be very apparent from my time at the studios is the protocol and procedure to follow if (when?!) the Queen eventually departs this world. There are notices everywhere stating what should and shouldn’t be done in the case of that happening.

Ian had to do the preparation needed for that evenings Football Forum show so there wasn’t too much time to hang out but as I was leaving I asked about meeting ex- Leicester City captain Matt Elliott, who is the regular expert guest on the show, and he said that if I came back later he’d let me in to meet the former foxes legend.

(You can read more about when I met Matt Elliott here)

Having killed two hours in the City centre I headed back to the reception area where I waited patiently whilst watching legendary Radio Leicester presenter Ben Jackson present the teatime show through the window when one of my City heroes arrived. I had a quick word with Ben when he came off air and, like everyone else at the station, he was very friendly and nice to speak to.

Earlier in the day I had bumped into Jonathan Lampon (who was the presenter on the breakfast show back then that played out the interview Ian did with me at Meiji Shrine) by chance. I arrived a bit early so was just smartening myself up in the window of an empty shop a few doors along when I saw him appear in my reflection. I ran after him and introduced myself as we had never ever met despite the odd bit of communication here and there on Twitter. I thanked him for reading out a fair few of my tweets last year as well as the dedication he kindly read out on our wedding day back in July.

I wasn’t actually expecting to hang around for the the Monday night Football Forum (which airs between 6-7pm) but Ian said it was fine to do so and so I watched the whole show through the glass in the bit where Jason and fellow Broadcast Journalist Namrata (who also works on the programme from time to time) sit. This was a little bit surreal at times but I really liked it and was really pumped for it from the moment I heard the Kasabian theme tune (‘Eez-eh‘) kick the show off at 6:05pm. The content of the show included post-analysis of the FA Cup win over Newcastle, a few callers and some interviews with experts about potential new signings in the transfer window.

Jason was very kind to me and showed me stuff like the running order, script and the incoming tweets and texts on his computer. I was actually expecting a few more people like producers and broadcast assistants to be around but there was only five of us in the whole building whilst it was on air.

I had a quick word with the guys once the show went off air at 7pm, got some photos with them and left the place shortly after that and was buzzing as I made my way back to the station and headed home.

Posted in Leicester City | Tagged bbc radio leicester studio tour, ben jackson, football commentator, football forum, ian stringer, Jason Bourne, jonathan lampon, matt elliott, tim parker | 5 Comments

Tokyo Daytripper: Yokohama Yamate Museum Of Tennis

Posted on February 1, 2015 by tokyofox

The first Grand Slam of the 2015 tennis season has concluded and we’ve witnessed two fantastic finals contested by four great players but ultimately it was Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic who deservedly reigned supreme against Maria Sharapova and Andy Murray respectively. As a fellow Brit I was naturally rooting for Murray in a final which was so closely fought in the first two sets in particular. One other guy I’ve been following quite closely at the Australian Open has been Japan’s Kei Nishikori and at one stage I was even thinking the U.S. Open finalist may get to the final for a rare face-off against Murray. However, he fell a little short this time round and lost in straight sets in the quarter finals.

Nishikori is very much part of modern-day tennis in Japan and one might think the sport is relatively new to these shores but it actually has a history dating back way over a hundred years. The ridiculously named Ariake Collosseum in Odaiba may be the contemporary heart of Japanese tennis as that’s where the major Japan tournaments on the seasons calendar take place. However, the true origins of tennis belong in Yokohama and whilst my wife and I were wandering the bluff area last December we came across the small Yamate Museum of Tennis.

Entry is free and one of the first things to catch my eye was the Wimbledon ladies Championship brass replica plate which was won a record nine times by Martina Navratilova (USA) but was last won by a Brit in 1977 when Virginia Wade won it.

There is a section showing the history of women’s tennis attire explaining the evolution of the outfits from long skirts and hard collar blouses with ribbons on their sleeves and flower-decorated bonnets (end of 19th century) to rolled up sleeves (1904) and sleeveless one piece dresses and bandanas (1919). All very different and a world apart from the modern era where shorts skirts, all-in-one spandex catsuits, visible knickers, exposed midriffs, lace dresses and so on have donned the courts.

The museum also explains about the popularisation of tennis in Yokohama and its growth around Japan. In 1878 the land in Yamate park was leased to Ladies Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on the condition that they manage the park in lieu of residents and things have run smoothly ever since then.

Around 1300 foreigners were living in the area towards the end of the 19th century when the tennis club opened. The majority were English with a fair few Americans and some French and Germans too. According to one of the signboards in the museum, playing tennis and chatting over a cup of tea in Yamate Park was a great pleasure for these foreign ladies living abroad.

After the war, Yamate Park was requisitioned by the U.S. occupation forces but returned in 1952 and 12 years later the club started to accept Japanese members eventually leading to the park being returned to the local citizens as a place of international friendship.

Displays of balls and racquets through the ages take up the majority of the space and for a tennis fan it was interesting and pretty comical to see the old-style wooden racquets and the balls which they played with way back in history.

Visiting Japan’s second largest city just to visit this museum is probably a step too far but combined with a day or two in Yokohama it may be worth a little detour and the rest of the Yamate area is definitely deserving of your time.

You can read about my trips to watch the Toray Pan Pacific tournaments in Tokyo by clicking on the following links:

TPP 2010 TPP 2012 TPP 2013 TTP 2014

Posted in Japan Travel, Sport, Tokyo Daytripper: | Tagged ariake tennis no mori, australian open 2015 melbourne, kei nishikori, tennis in Japan, Tokyo Daytripper:, Yamate Museum Of Tennis, Yamate Yokohama | 2 Comments

London Filming Locations: Entrapment (1999)

Posted on January 29, 2015 by tokyofox

This Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones heist movie was most memorably set in Malaysia but the majority of the locations were shot in Britain with Duart Castle on the Isle of Mull in Scotland very prominent. As for London, a few places feature in the opening 20 minutes.

The most noticeable locale from the nations capital is The Savoy (below) which appears on the 10 minute mark and is where Gin (Zeta-Jones) is waiting outside in her car ready to tail Mac (Connery) who takes a taxi from there.

Mac gets out at the ‘Cryptonic’ Building where Gin spies on him riding the escalator up (and later down!) Tower 42 at 25 Old Broad Street (below) which is a few minutes walk from Liverpool Street Station.

Not too far away from there is the 88m high architectural wonder known as the Lloyds Building. It’s on 1 Lime Street and was innovative for its exterior possessing the staircases, lifts, electrical power conduits, water pipes and so on thereby leaving an uncluttered space inside. This place became the “New York” high-rise which gets robbed in the films opening scene and much later on it doubles up as the entrance to the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur on 76 minutes.

On 15 minutes Mac and Gin park up in erm, Park Street (below) where the latter is sent into Haas Antique store to steal a vase which unknown to her has something very important inside it. This same street, near Borough Market, also featured in ‘Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels‘ (1999) as the gangs hideout.

After that they fly on up to Mac’s hideout in Scotland to train for the complicated theft followed by the trip to Kuala Lumpur for the final heist.

You can see ‘Entrapment’ filming locations in Malaysia here.

For other London filming locations click on the links below:

Posted in London Film Locations | Tagged 25 old broad street, Duart Castle, entrapment filming locations, Lloyds Building Lime Street, lock stock filming location, London movie locations, Park Street, Sean Connery, the savoy london | 21 Comments

Trainspotting On The Great Central Railway Pt II: Loughborough

Posted on January 26, 2015 by tokyofox

On a bitterly cold morning, it was still very misty when my parents and I arrived at Loughborough Central railway station about 15 minutes after we left Rothley Station. I guess the conditions all added to the mystique of the place which seemingly sits fairly isolated in this University town.

Like the station at Rothley, this one is an island platform that also opened on the same date in 1899 and is a great way of travelling back in time without fear of anything you do altering and affecting the present! It’s no wonder that its retro aesthetic has appealed to so many production companies who have used the station as a backdrop for recreating scenes from a bygone era.

In terms of movies, the likes of ‘Buster‘ (1988), ‘The Secret Agent‘ (1993), ‘Shadowlands‘ (1993), ‘The Navigators‘ (1999), ‘Enigma‘ (2001), ‘The Hours‘ (2002) and ‘Cemetery Junction‘ (2010) have all taken advantage of Britain’s only perfectly preserved mainline steam facility,

Unlike the one at Rothley, the heritage railway at Loughborough has a facade, is under a canopy and possesses all kinds of props like trolleys of old suitcases, an old-style pram, red telephone box, vintage posters, signs, advertisements and a retro-style WHSmiths kiosk. Even the staff are dressed in traditional railway clothing which is something workers love to do in Japan but I never thought I would see it back in my home country.

TV credits over the years have included a range of lifestyle programmes, period dramas and documentaries such as ‘She’s Out‘ (1994), ‘Woof‘ (1995), ‘Goodnight Mr. Tom‘ (1998), ‘Take A Girl Like You‘ (2000), ‘The Cazalet Chronicles‘ (2001), ‘Casualty‘ (2001 & 2014), ‘Hawking‘ (2004), ‘The 4:50 From Paddington‘ (2004), ‘E=MC2‘ (2005), ‘The 39 Steps‘ (2008), ‘Central Steam‘ (2010), ‘South Riding‘ (2011), ‘Top Gear‘ (2011), ‘Heston’s Fantastical Food‘ (2012), ‘Our Story‘ (2014) and ‘Great British Railway Journeys‘ (2014). Furthermore, the music video by Welsh rock band ‘Stereophonics’ for ‘Indian Summer’ (2013) was also filmed here.

Our final stop was the Great Central Railway Museum which occupies two interconnecting rooms under the steps leading down to the platform. There are over 500 objects on display which evoke memories of days gone by and the atmosphere of travelling or working on the railway. The free museum collects, preserves and displays a wide range of railway-related paraphernalia telling the history of the railway. Featured items include cast iron plates and enamel signs from stations, wagon plates, signal box boards and diagrams, printed materials, pictures, posters, maps, photos and a short film that plays on loop every few minutes.

It seems that this place isn’t just one for trainspotters and people on a nostalgia trip but kids and families are very much on the mind with events held throughout the year such as meeting Peppa Pig & her little brother George at Loughborough (March 7-8) for a photo opportunity along with funfair rides, face painting, a bouncy castle and so on.

You can read ‘Trainspotting On The Great Central Railway Pt I: Rothley’ here

Posted in Family, Movie Locations | Tagged Britain's only double track mainline heritage railway, Buster filming location, cemetery junction movie location, Great Central Railway, heritage steam service, Loughborough central railway station, single island platform, UK heritage railway station, where was stereophonics indian summer filmed? | 4 Comments

Trainspotting On The Great Central Railway Pt I: Rothley

Posted on January 22, 2015 by tokyofox

As a movie locations geek I usually look at the fairly limited info in the filming locations section on IMDb whenever I watch any film. That certainly happened when I watched ‘Buster‘ (1988) over the holiday season which brought back memories as it was one of the first films my family ever rented on VHS in the late 1980’s and I was quite surprised to discover that the great train robbery scenes were filmed on the Great Central Railway in Leicestershire.

‘Buster‘ was just one of many films and period drama’s to have been shot along this heritage railway which only runs for a total of 8.25 miles (13.28 km) between Loughborough and Leicester North. There are only two stops in between; Quorn & Woodhouse and Rothley.

Growing up as a child, trains were very much part of my upbringing as my dad was a railway model enthusiast who had converted the loft into a spectacular miniature railway. Those days are very much behind him now but he’s still very keen on the old locomotives and thought that visiting one of these stations would appeal to both of us a relatively close place to spend a bit of quality time together. Little did I realise that it would turn into a family day out!

My initial idea was for us to just drive over to Loughborough Central Railway Station to see the station and a train and then return home! However, my dad expanded on it and suggested driving to Rothley and then taking one of the steam trains to Loughborough and back. A nice idea but typically when we got up on the Sunday morning it was icy and very misty outside meaning that nothing could be seen from the train anyway so we just settled for a quick look at each station.

First up was Rothley railway station which originally opened on 15 March 1899 and it consists of a single island platform on which the station buildings sit. Original access to the platform comes from the road passing above but as we had used the car park we could enter by just crossing the tracks.

The station has been restored to its late Edwardian-era condition (circa 1910) to represent the line during Great Central days. I was quite taken aback at how few (if any!) signs there were of modern life which all adds to the atmosphere. There are a plenty of props around the place too so as well as the old signs there are also trolleys of old suitcases and an old bicycle propped against the waiting room.

Right on time the steam engine pulled into the station and it really did feel like I had been transported back into a bygone era. I surprised myself by how much I had enjoyed seeing and photographing the spectacle. Not enough to regularly stand in the cold but enough to move onto Loughborough Great Central Railway Station.

Click here to read ‘Trainspotting On The Great Central Railway Pt II: Loughborough’

Posted in Family, Movie Locations | Tagged Britain's only double track mainline heritage railway, Buster filming location, Edwardian era station, Great Central Railway, heritage steam service, Rothley, single island platform, UK heritage railway station | 4 Comments

Dining Out: Japanese Food Stall In Market Harborough!

Posted on January 19, 2015 by tokyofox

When I have gone back to the UK in recent years I’ve been quite surprised by the number of Japanese restaurants and bento (lunchbox) shops that have popped up all over London as well as a few in Leicester too. During the time I’ve been living in Japan, sushi has grown and grown in popularity but I never really expected to see it on sale in my hometown of Market Harborough!

Located in a corner of the market hall, Oori Sushi is owned by a very nice Korean lady called Won Hee who is originally from Seoul. She is helped out from time to time by her son so its very much a family-run stall.

Up until last August I had never eaten Japanese food outside of Japan and unperturbed by those experiences I was keen to sample what Oori Sushi had to offer so one lunchtime I met up with my friend Ben who has been something of a regular at this place since it opened in July 2014.

It felt only right to start with a cafetiere mug of green tea (£2.25) whilst we perused the menu. As you can see below there were only two things on the menu so that didn’t take too long! The menu may be fairly sparse but its important to remember that this is a market stall and not a restaurant!

What there is on offer is freshly cooked and prepared and I guess after previous experiences I was quite surprised how good it tasted. Ben and I both had the karaage-don (£4.50) which is basically Japanese fried chicken on a bed of shredded cabbage and rice with Japanese-style Worcester sauce. Of course it’s a little different in style to what is usually on offer in Japan but I’m not one to turn my nose up at such British-Japanese fusion.

For the record, there is often a third ‘special’ dish on the menu and a quick scan of the stalls twitter page (@OoriSushi) reveals that these have included such delicacies as pork cutlet on rice, miso ramen, Korean style meatballs on rice and teriyaki chicken.

As for the sushi, there are five sets on offer; smoked salmon (£4.50), teriyaki chicken, marinated tofu, tuna rolls and crab-stick rolls (all £4 each). I splashed out on the salmon one which was made up of nine pieces and certainly didn’t disappoint. Really good stuff and as good as anything I’ve had in Japan!

There are a couple of tables in Oori Sushi or you can order it all as a takeaway. The final cluster of photos below show some of the oriental snacks available for purchase though it seems like they change all the time.

Personally, I’m not sure when I’ll next be back in town but when I am I will do my best to visit this place which I sincerely hope prospers.

Oori sushi can be found at Market Hall, Northampton Road, Market Harborough, LE16 9HB. It is open from Tuesday till Sunday (0900 – 1630) and is closed on Mondays.

Posted in Food & Drink | Tagged buy japanese food, japanese food, karaage-don, korean food, market hall, market harborough, northampton road, oori sushi, st mary's place | 1 Comment

Star Wars Traveller – Naboo Revisited (a.k.a. Watford, UK)

Posted on January 16, 2015 by tokyofox

Four years ago I visited Whippendell Wood in Watford which was used in ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace‘ to portray the forest of Naboo. Back then I was fairly satisfied with my visit but heavy snow in the area meant that it looked more like the remote ice planet of Hoth! As a result, I was keen to return one day and see it in its more normal setting. However, there was still a light frost on the ground but with a bit of Winter sunshine there was actually some greenery to be seen.

This time I walked to and from the wood with the former journey being the most difficult but thankfully there were a few people along the way to point me in the right direction. My aim was the Grove Mill Lane Car Park as I wasn’t going to bother with the actual forest scenes this time which really are like looking for a needle in a haystack. The two pictures below include a screenshot and my photo from 2010. There is a marking on the tree on the left indicating its the same place.

My mind was focussed on the golf course just across the road where a few scenes were filmed. These are far easier to locate by exiting the car park, turning right and walking for about 50 metres where there is an entrance on the left which then takes you on to the outskirts of the course.

Enter and walk back towards the car park and you’ll soon come to the trees which were used in the first prequel in 1999. They are all in one place but just shot from slightly different angles.

This is where Amidala and the rebels make plans to attack the city of Theed (the capital of Naboo) towards the end of the film.

‘Star Wars episode VII‘ is released at the end of this year and we will have to wait till then to see if Naboo features and if it does then it will be interesting to see how similar Puzzlewood in the Forest of Dean (Gloucestershire) is to that of Whippendell Wood.

How to get there: Be aware that if you’re using public transport this place is not the easiest to get to. From Baker Street Underground station (zone 1) take the Metropolitan line to Watford in zone 7. Once there, the easiest option is probably to take a taxi to the Grove Mill Lane Car Park but of course that’s more money spent! Walking is an option but please note that you probably do need to allow nearly an hour each way! A good map (traditonal or mobile phone style) and a good sense of direction is needed. Trains are not quite so regular in these parts of Greater London so if you do decide to walk and need to return to central London then you should probably allow for around five hours. Good luck and may the force be with you!

You can see other Star Wars Traveller entries by clicking on the following:

Naboo (a.k.a. Como, Italy)

Naboo (a.k.a. Villa del Balbianello, Italy)

Naboo (a.k.a. Seville, Spain) Naboo (a.k.a. Caserta, Italy)

Tatooine (a.k.a. Tozeur, Tunisia)

Tatooine (a.k.a. Matmata, Tunisia)

Tatooine (a.k.a. The Ksours, Tunisia)

Tatooine (a.k.a. Djerba, Tunisia)

Tatooine (a.k.a. Death Valley, USA)

Yavin 4 (a.k.a. Tikal, Guatemala)

Episode IV: A New Hope

Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Episode II: Attack Of The Clones

Posted in London Film Locations, Star Wars, Star Wars Filming Locations | Tagged Grove Mill lane car park, how to get to whippendell wood, naboo, Star Wars filming locations, the phantom menace filming locations, Watford star wars, whippendell wood | 25 Comments

Sightseeing in Leicester! Yes, really!

Posted on January 13, 2015 by tokyofox

I was born in Leicester, used to regularly go shopping there, worked there for a while and have been to watch Leicester City at home hundreds and hundreds of times so you’d think that I know the place well. Sadly I don’t, so this time while I was back home I was determined to do a walking tour of the city and see some of the parts that were still unknown to me beforehand.

Now Leicester is not exactly on the tourist circuit for visitors coming to Britain but whilst perusing a mates Lonely Planet Britain travel guide I decided to note down the “sights” which it suggested for this multi-cultural city. Topped up with some more up-to-date online info I started off at the station (with the Thomas Cook statue outside), headed down Granby Street and began my trip down memory lane.

My first port of call was Leicester Market which has existed within the heart of the city for over 700 years. I was just interested to see if Linekers pick your own fruit and veg stall was still there and of course it was! Leicester’s favourite son Gary Lineker would often help out on this stall during holidays as he was starting to make a name for himself in the mid-eighties. It was all still early on in the year so didn’t seem too busy and was not how I remembered it really.

Just a stones throw from the market on the corner of Humberstone Gate (pictured below) and Gallowtree Gate is the bronze Sporting Success statue which was built following successful seasons by the three local sports teams in the 1996-97 seasons.

The Clock Tower is the focal point of the city centre standing at the crossroads of pedestrianised areas which split off in all directions. I was hot on the trail of Richard III who was the King of England between 1483 and 1485. There is a statue of him on St Martins East, literally a few metres away from the King Richard III Visitor Centre which was sadly closed on that day.

Not much further along was Leicester Cathedral and the Guildhall which dates back to medieval times. This 14th century timber framed hall would have been a building of importance during the time of Richard III.

Doubling back on myself, I returned to the heart of the city to take a very quick look around what is now called the Highcross Shopping Centre. It used to be known as the Shires back in my day but now its much bigger and more developed.

I stopped off at the Showcase Cinema De Lux to watch the ‘Paddington‘ (2014) movie and as soon as I exited I saw two Japanese restaurants next door; Wagamama and Yo Sushi. I didn’t bother with either though! Maybe I was put off by my visit to the latter back in August of last year and the terrible reviews given to the former by some of my students.

More signs of Japanese culture taking over the city as back inside the shopping centre I went to SuperDry which over the last few years has just grown and grown in popularity. I do actually like a lot of the stuff in these stores (not the prices though!) but could never wear it back in Japan as the locals would just laugh at the strange Japanese used purely for fashionable purposes.

Beyond the very modern looking cinema and John Lewis building is St Nicholas Church and the Jewry Wall & Museum lying next to it which is believed to be one of the tallest surviving pieces of Roman masonry in the country.

The final few sights were ticked off in no time starting with the pleasant Castle Gardens (although I forgot to return to see St Mary de Castro Church which overlooks the castle and gardens) which were followed by De Montfort University, Jain Centre, Town Hall and some other interesting buildings of note.

A couple of places away from the centre which I visited two days earlier on my way to and from the Leicester City FA Cup game included Nelson Mandela Park and the Leicester Tigers Rugby ground more commonly known as Welford Road Stadium.

So there you have it! Sadly, the majority of tourists only ever pass through the UK’s tenth largest city as they go between London and Liverpool and/or Manchester. Up until last year none of my students had ever heard of Leicester or Resuta (レスター) as they call it. However, since September Princess Mako (a member of the Japanese Imperial family) has been studying museology at the University of Leicester which has resulted in some students actually being aware of my birthplace. Maybe, that will result in a few Japanese tourists stopping off in Leicester for a bit en-route to the more exciting British destinations.

Posted in Leicester City | Tagged clock tower, Guildhall, highgate shopping centre, Jain Centre, jewry wall and museum, Leicester cathedral, leicester market, St Nicholas Church, tour of leicester centre, Town Hall | 6 Comments

Tokyo Fox (東京狐)

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Tokyo Fox

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