This afternoon turned out to be surprisingly fascinating. I had assumed that it would be just an average, humdrum Saturday afternoon: I set out for my usual trundle at around midday, heading to Charlton and Woolwich, before hopping onto the Elizabeth Line to see what was happening in Canary Wharf.

I didn’t stay around there long as I was starting to get hungry. Before coming home, though, I decided to pop into the excel centre. There are usually one or two events going on there each weekend, but not often much to write about. This afternoon, however, I was in for a treat.

As I passed one of the exhibition halls, I noticed New Scientist Live was taking place. At first I didn’t think I would go in as I didn’t have the cash on me for the quite large entrance fee. But then my cheeky side kicked in: going up to the ticket desk, I asked whether there were any concessions for wheelchair users. To be honest I wasn’t very optimistic, but I thought it was worth a try. To my total astonishment, however, the guy just gave me a ticket for free and let me in.

My parents have subscribed to New Scientist magazine since I was little; it was always on the coffee table when I was growing up. Alongside, say, the National Geographic, it is probably at the forefront of popular scientific journalism. I thus knew roughly what to expect, and it was why I was suddenly so keen to get in. However, it quickly became obvious that I had stumbled into a real treat: there were all kinds of exhibits and stalls, about subjects ranging from climate change to space flight. I was even astonished to find out that the UK has it’s own space agency (who knew?) and I got talking to a very interesting guy from it.

I didn’t stay as long as I might have. It was all fascinating, and if I had got wind of it before I would have made a day of it. Time was drawing on, though, and I was still hungry. Yet the event spans the whole weekend, and I’m told the ticket I was given will still be valid tomorrow, so no prizes for where I’ll be heading after breakfast. I love how London can still produce the most wonderful surprises.