Centenary Square, Birmingham

I love coming out of a play or an opera into beautiful daylight.

I chose this photo because the curves of the newly refurbished Birmingham Rep seemed to go well with the magic of our new Birmingham Library.

The Royal Opera House visit Birmingham Symphony Hall from time to time, and Sir Antonio Pappano brought "Ariadne auf Naxos" by Richard Strauss this year.

A delicious Sunday lunch (at Opus in the business district) and then a gentle stroll to our wonderful concert hall.

The production was partly staged and partly a concert. Puzzled ? Yes. The orchestra were in the main part of the stage but they had pulled the front apron out as far as it would go (we were on the front row - SO close) and had an acting space behind them. The characters were dressed in concert dress, more or less, and they acted round the orchestra.

The big star was Karita Mattila, the Finnish soprano - and sitting within six feet of her as she produced magical sounds and explored the full volume of her repertoire was an unforgettable experience. All of the cast were superb (even the critics have agreed on this).

You could never sit so close at Covent Garden (and these tickets were £31 instead of £250)

And coming out at 6.15 was a real bonus. Especially when I heard that Lewis Hamilton had won....