The Renaissance Ball at the V&A

I adore the V&A Museum here in London.  It's everything a museum should be - it has fascinating, intelligently curated collections; it makes an effort to attract people right across the social spectrum; it has free admission, (always amazes the tourists, that one!) and it's open 7 days a week.

On the last Friday of every month the museum has a themed, late night event.  The theme always coincides with an ongoing exhibition or collection at the Museum.  Last Friday the museum held a Renaissance Ball to celebrate the opening of it's awe inspiring Medieval and Renaissance Galleries.  I love the V&A Lates so I dragged my lovely friends T.D., J.C and J.C.'s boyfriend along.  

Wow, what an incredible evening!  I was wearing a nice pair of black trousers and a blue jumper but next to these amazing people, I was horribly underdressed.

These are some of the guests...

At first I assumed that this bloke was a performer but it turned out that he was just a regular guy.  He told me that the hat was his own and that it was an 18th century guardsman's hat.  I love the fact that I share the planet with a man who has an 18th century guardsman's hat amongst his going out clothes.

This child was enchanting.  She was telling her mother off here because she was worried she'd miss the puppet show.

Naturally, there was a bar.

The whole museum is open on these evenings so that people can go and view all the collections.  You used to be able to take a glass of wine with you and walk around the museum but sadly they've stopped that.

As you wander around the place, you come across events like this puppet show.

Towards the end of the evening the DJ started playing waltzes - it thrills me just to write that sentence - and the whole crowd started waltzing.  All very 'Eyes Wide Shut'.  I did take some photos but they weren't very good because I was quite drunk by that stage.