Gardens: celebrate Bastille Day by playing petanque at Chelsea Physic Garden

Celebrate Bastille Day in style with a seriously chic petanque tournament at Chelsea Physic Garden this Saturday.  Ricard (the leading brand of Anise), are throwing their annual petanque tournament accompanied by cocktails, a jazz band and delicious French food with a gourmet BBQ.  Experienced players are invited to enter into the official tournament, whilst those new to the game can try their hand on the ‘have-a-go’ pitches. And if petanque isn’t your thing, there are plenty of other activities including croquet, giant jenga, a treasure hunt and there are prizes for the most creative outfits (the dress code is French vintage).  We went a couple of years ago and had great fun, even if we didn’t, ahem, shine at petanque.  The crowd is young, chic and friendly (my, those French boys are handsome!) and best of all, the tournament costs nothing to enter.  All you need to do is register by 11am and you’ll receive a complementary cocktail and with the gates open between 11am to 6pm, you can have a wander around the garden without paying the usual £9 entrance fee.