A Star at Christmas

Having toured all over the East Coast of North America for the past four and a half months, I am more than a touch jetlagged, but incredibly impressed with the modernity, beauty and excitement of some of these US cities. Although Toronto is not in the US, it still is to me American in flavour (although I’m sure I’d be lynched there for saying that). In the seven weeks that Legends played there, we stayed in a divine section known as Yorkville. This area has an eclectic selection of chic boutiques, cafés and restaurants to rival St Tropez, Covent Garden and New York City’s Village. Not only was it a pleasure to browse and dine there in fabulously balmy autumn weather, but there was no graffiti to be seen anywhere, the streets were litter-free and the citizens seemed less stressed, and better dressed, than in the UK. In fact, Toronto is one of the most beautiful cities I’ve visited, and its modern infrastructure and buildings blend in perfectly with their older counterparts. Truly the city planners knew their onions when they designed it. The only strange thing about Toronto is that during the entire time I strolled the city streets, I saw only one child, and that was in the building we were in. I wonder where they keep their tots?

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Philadelphia is another spectacular city, with more great shops and restaurants. The women were also all extremely well dressed, almost Parisian, in fact, and the city possesses a trove of museums, cultural centres, parks and squares; also very Parisian. In fact, our favourite hangout (and that of the rest of the denizens of the filial city, it seemed) was a Parisian-style bistro called Rouge. All it needs is some civil unrest and it could easily be mistaken for Paris.

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A Broadway icon died while we were in Philadelphia last month, and The Great White Way dimmed its lights for one minute in memory of the dazzlingly talented and adorable Betty Comden.