Travelling to London to watch The Lion King | Harry's first trip to London

*This is a collaborative post. Please see my disclosure policy for details

First of all, I will apologise for the quality of the photographs in this post. They were taken in 2012 and probably on a Blackberry and have been downloaded from Facebook so they're definitely not the best. I still love them though and they hold really happy memories for me. 

Today I am re-living the memory of taking Harry to see The Lion King in London for his 6th birthday. It's a little crazy to think that this was almost 5 years ago now as I still remember it like it was yesterday. It's been a little tradition of ours that we travel to London with our children when they are 6. I think this is the perfect age to take them for the first time (at least when you are making the journey from they North East). On this particular trip we just took Harry along as a special treat - I did not fancy braving London with a 6, 2 and 1 year old.

We decided to book The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre as it was one of Harry's favourite films at the time. Tickets were a pretty penny and it was just shy of £300 for the three of us. Yikes! It was 100% worth it though as it's still very much a special memory for us all. 

Back then, Jamie's Italian was a big deal and we didn't have any branches in the North so we headed to Jamie's in Covent Garden for a pre-theatre dinner. I still remember that Harry ordered chicken lollipops and a salad shaker and this kind of children's menu was very innovative at the time. I also remember the carafe of house wine I ordered for myself. Happy days! After dinner we walked through Covent Garden to the theatre and Harry loved all of the street theatre. One of the performers was a Mr Bean impersonator and he was actually really good. Harry didn't take much convincing that he was the real deal and was absolutely over the moon to shake his hand. 

We stepped into the Lyceum theatre and there was a real buzz. We purchased an over-priced programme and took our seats in the 4th row. The atmosphere was honestly electric and I had not felt anything like it before. 

The show begins in a really special way. I won't ruin it for you but as 'The Circle of Life' is played by the live orchestra and you see the animals for the first time, it's actually really emotional. I think even more so for a parent watching with their own child. I don't cry often but I must admit to shedding a few tears during the opening scenes. 

The Lion King really did not disappoint and if you get a chance to watch the show, I would highly recommend. The music, choreography, costumes, staging.....it's all just the best and a real immersive theatre experience. I would go and watch the show again in a heartbeat (with or without kids). 

So.....fast forward to 2017 and the reason behind this post. Regular readers will know that we are huge Disney On Ice fans and I am super excited that The Lion King is going to feature in this year's show. In previous years I haven't taken Harry to watch the show as I've always thought he's probably a little too old and too cool now to be going to something like this but at age 11 years, he's going to come along with us this time and it's all thanks to The Lion King. We really can't wait to join Simba and friends in the African Pride Lands and re-live the precious memories Steve and I share with Harry. 

Of course, it's not all about The Lion King, this year's Disney On Ice presents Passport to Adventure will also feature stories and cast from The Little Mermaid (Heidi is super excited about this), Frozen and Peter Pan. You can find out more and buy tickets here. 

We have visited London on many occasions with H, H and J now but that first trip with Harry will always hold a special place in my heart. We visited Borough Market, joined a tour of Buckingham Palace (and paid £4 for hot chocolate in the palace gardens) and went a little wild in Hamleys too.

Have you taken your children to watch a show in London?