The Grand Connaught Rooms have a long connection with Freemasonry, whose headquarters are in the magnificent Freemason’s Hall adjacent. It means you quite often see men dressed in suits and ties, carrying square shaped briefcases, arriving on Great Queen Street, disembarking from mini-buses that have ferried them to headquarters.

They speak of elegance and grandeur, which contrasted sharply with the sight of a man standing outside the Grand Connaught Rooms this afternoon, holding a pint glass and lighting a cigarette, all whilst wearing a superhero onesie.

Matt Perrins enjoying himself on the rail

Then there’s the man on the rail trying to speak “drunk” to the straight-edged Ole Schemion. The German smiled and listened as this new friend made a series of elaborate noises and hand gestures. He was attempting to ask Schemion how he’d got so tanned whilst staying in rainy London. Schemion, possibly listing this question as one of the least likely he’d ever have to answer, didn’t really follow. But he smiled anyway.

Ole Schemion and Artur Koren. Come to think of it, how did he get that tanned?

All this gives you a clue as to the general mood of the rail. While you may expect spectators to be glued to the action, the opposite is in fact the case. There are groups of them, gathered together by allegiance, chatting to each other. They’re having a ball. But the noise you may hear as they cheer and shout is usually a beat or two late, a reaction to something they suddenly notice, and think would be rude not to acknowledge. So they make some gruff noises. Then they return to their drinks and conversations.

Follow the action from the EPT London Main Event this week on the PokerStars. You can also watch live coverage on the EPT Live webcast between October 14-18 on PokerStars.tv.

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Stephen Bartley is a staff writer for the PokerStars Blog.

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