Free, half price and discounted in London

It doesn't get any more free than that.  That was the view from my bedroom window on Sunday morning.  I had been woken up by the sound of seagulls.  We live quite close to the Thames River and are downstream from the Thames Barrier - I never tire of hearing seagulls!

I've decided to start a new series called "Free, half price and discounted in London" because while London can be an extremely expensive city it is amazing how much you can do for free.

Free

Thanks to this amazing article I signed up at See Film First. I received an email last week about a free film premier. Your have to be quick - shows at Odeon Greenwich were already sold out but I managed to secure tickets at Odeon Chatham. I caught a train out of London Bridge at 5pm and the trip took an hour. Luckily Stephen was there on the other side to pick me up and take me to the venue though as it gets a bit tricky after that and can take 30 minutes to walk.

We made it for the prompt 6.30pm start and there were no trailers and no other marketing. All I had to do was fill in a voluntary questionnaire the next day and you choose at time of booking whether you would like to be contacted for that purpose. All in all, it was definitely worth the £6 addition to my Zone 4 travel card and we will definitely do it again (even if we have to go to Chatham again). There are also lots of restaurants by the cinemas to eat at afterwards.

We saw Get Smart.  I guessed that the show had received horrible reviews in the States and they needed to test market it here before spending resources on the wider market.  Stephen enjoyed it and had a laugh.  While I didn't expect much I still found they pushed the limits of probability a bit to far a bit too often.  Still, I would rather go to the cinema for free and see a bad film than not go at all!

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Half Price

I have Google to thank for this.  I googled "2 for 1 Doctor Who Exhibition" and came up with a link to the Evening Standard / Eros Card special offer.  You have to sign up for an Eros card (which they actually post to you, it is not just an online thing) but all that does is get you more special offers in the future.  I'd say it is definitely worth the opt in.  The booking experience was easy with the phone being answered in one ring and the agent friendly and competent.  (I only mention it because I have never before experienced all three of those features in an English call centre).

The special ends on the 17 August.

Discounted

One of the best kept secrets in London England is the Bite Card.  The Bite Card gives you 20% off any food or drink purchase at any main line railway station.  That is a massive savings and I have never had trouble using the card.  If you travel frequently, keep it with your Oyster card and you'll find the two make very worthy travelling companions.  (Okay, that was corny).  Today I went to Delice de France and I had a leek and chicken pie for £1.40 after discount.