Songs of Praise!

I had the opportunity recently to attend the recording of both the Christmas and 9th October editions of Songs of Praise, at the Albert Hall. My enjoyment of the event was heightened by excellent company and we were chauffeured there and back, so eliminating any problems with trains and lost tickets.
We had been asked to wear something Christmassy — I briefly thought of my (mock) fur coat, but quickly decided that would probably result in me spending the performance in the First Aid room! My polar bear jumper was quite hot enough.
Our seats were in the gallery and I was thrilled to be singing good carols and marvellous hymns, though the lengthy applause wanted for Aled Jones and David Grant was tedious. Also on stage were the song-writers Keith & Kristyn Getty, and Timothy Dudley-Smith was in the Royal Box. Keith Getty co-authored 'In Christ Alone' with Stuart Townend.
We took off our Christmas gear before the second half and ate our sandwiches post-haste in the interval.
Some of the hymns and carols had to be repeated for the TV recording, but they were so good I didn't mind a bit. It is a long time since I had last been to a TV recording and naturally technology had moved on. I was very interested in the remote control cameras — I was able to take a couple of photos with my own camera, but we were too far up for a good shot.
Would I return? Yes, yes, yes! It was a marvellous experience to sing God's praises with over 6,000 like-minded people.
Norma Duke