Busy weekend

We had a packed -- and fun -- weekend last week.

First off, my husband returned home from a business trip to the US. Even after all these years together, it's still lovely when he comes home! We celebrated his return (and attempted to stave off his jet lag) by eating lunch out at Abingdon's newest cafe --  Annie's at the Boathouse. We enjoyed brie and cranberry sandwiches and coffee and walnut cake. It will be particularly pleasant here in the summer, when you can sit out at a table overlooking the Thames.

In the evening, we marked the 5th of November by attending the firework display at the Baldons. We attended this event a couple of years ago and enjoyed it both times -- we particularly like the huge bonfire, which is quite unusual at public events these days, and a really good addition to the fireworks.

On Sunday, we visited Abingdon's annual craft fair. This takes place in the Medieval abbey buildings and is a great opportunity to find unusual Christmas presents in a beautiful setting. Later on, we went to see "Murder on the Orient Express" at Cineworld in Didcot. I've been looking forward to this film coming out and we all thought it was very entertaining -- dramatic with good cinematography. We know the story well, so weren't surprised by the ending -- but you can't have everything!

Their Finest

We went to see new film "Their Finest" at the weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it.

The action takes place in 1940 London during the Blitz. The central character is a young Welsh woman (played by Gemma Arterton) who, as a result of all the young men being called up, is given the opportunity to write the script for a film aimed at lifting the British public out of the doldrums and persuading the Americans to join the war.

The film is a great success. Along the way, Gemma Arterton's character falls in love with a fellow scriptwriter (played by Sam Claflin). Predictably, this does not end well. Light relief is provided by Bill Nighy in his role as an ageing and eccentric actor.

"Their Finest" touches on some interesting themes, such as the rise of women in the workplace and the lack of meaning in life and death. It is moving and well acted. I would recommend it.

La La Land

We went to see 'La La Land' at the cinema last night. I wasn't quite sure what to expect -- other than that the film was a musical and was highly acclaimed. However, I found that I really enjoyed it.

It was lively, fun and quite a spectacle. The dancing was amazing to watch -- it's impressive that something can look so effortless, when you know full well that it's not. The music was very good too -- especially the 'funked up' jazz. And I found the two main characters engaging -- I actually did care what happened to them.

So, if you're looking for something fun, light and easy on the eye, then 'La La Land' comes highly recommended.

Half term fun

It was half term last week and we had some great family fun. Here are some of the things that we got up to:

• We visited Waddesdon Manor and really enjoyed wandering around the grounds in the autumn sunshine, playing on the adventure playground (the kids!) and having tea in the courtyard restaurant.
• We followed our time-honoured tradition of visiting Waterperry Gardens and doing the pumpkin hunt. The kids are really far too old for this now, but we've done it for years and they don't seem to want to let the tradition drop just yet -- plus it's a great excuse for a yummy treat in the tearoom!
• We went to see The Pantaloons' latest play -- Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde -- at the Cornerstone Theatre in Didcot. It was rather different from previous plays that we have seen by this company -- much less comic, which isn't surprising given the subject matter -- but still very good.
• Some of us went to see the latest Marvel creation -- Dr Strange. We really enjoyed the film. It wasn't quite all action -- there was a passing reference to some 'deeper' issues (for example, how do you cope if you lose the ability to do the one thing that gives your life meaning), which made it a bit more interesting, plus the cinematography was enthralling (views of Nepal and Hong Hong) and the special effects impressive. Tilda Swinton was also great!
• We popped into Oxford and wandered around Christ Church Meadow, which was very beautiful. We followed this with a browse through the books and a coffee at Blackwell's.
• We made our Christmas pudding and mincemeat. This is another time-honoured tradition -- a job that we have done during October with the kids since they were tiny. Now they are old enough that they can do the making themselves without any assistance from us! We use recipes that have been in the family for several generations and it's a great way to kick off the festive season.
• The kids carved a pumpkin -- we always have a lighted pumpkin on the dining table at Halloween.

It's been quite a busy half term. Now it's time to go back to school and relax!

Bank holiday weekend

We had a busy bank holiday weekend. Here are a few of the things that we enjoyed doing.

We tried out a newly-opened restaurant in our home town -- Wildwood Kitchen. This is a chain, we know, but not one that we have tried before, so we were eager to see what it was like. We were pretty impressed. The food was good -- fresh and tasty, our waitress was very pleasant, and as it was a Sunday evening, the restaurant was quiet -- we had the half of the restaurant in which we were seated entirely to ourselves! The only negative point is that Wildwood's menu is not great for veggies. There are very few veggie dishes on the menu, and the night that we went, the vegetarian risotto wasn't available, leaving an extremely limited non-meat choice.

On the bank holiday Monday, we visited relatives in London and were taken to see a film at the Everyman Cinema in Belsize Park. The cinema was amazing -- quite unlike anything we had seen before. The seats reclined, and you could order nuts and nibbles before the performance, which were delivered to you in your cinema seat on a tray by a waiter! Wow! Posh, or what? Rather a far cry from our local Cineworld, where you're lucky if they have cleared the floor of popcorn from the previous showing...

Before going to the film, we ate lunch at Chez Bob, which is right next to the Everyman. We had a good meal there, with pleasant service. The menu was wide-ranging and the food freshly made. We enjoyed it.

A perilous Sunday afternoon

We had a rather perilous Sunday afternoon out last week.

We decided to combine something for us and something for the kids. The something for us was a walk in the beautiful Shotover Country Park, which comprises a lovely open plain plus numerous paths that meander through beech woods. The something for the kids was a visit to the cinema to see 'Pan', a film that they were keen to watch.

The walk turned perilous when we were almost run over by an escaped Shetland pony! We were alerted to its presence by the sound of galloping hooves behind us and turned round to see the pony bearing down on us, followed closely by a horse ridden by a woman who was clearly in a state of panic. We hurried to the side of the path out of the way, while the woman shouted at us to grab the pony. We didn't, of course. What idiot would try to get hold of a pony that was galloping along full tilt?!

We never did find out what had happened. The pony and horse disappeared out of sight altogether, and we didn't see them come back again. I only hope things ended well and that no one -- passer-by, horse, rider -- was injured in the fray.

'Pan', by contrast, was quite uneventful. A perfectly pleasant but totally non-engaging (for adults anyway) film. Cara Delevigne had a cameo appearance, which made my oldest daughter very happy. (You see, I wouldn't even know who Cara Delevingne was, were it not for my kids!)

Boyhood

During the summer my husband and I went to the cinema to see the film ‘Boyhood’, directed by Richard Linklater. If you read my blog regularly you may remember that I am a fan of Linklater’s films, especially the ‘Before...’ trilogy.

‘Boyhood’ explores the notion of growing up, and filming took place over a period of twelve years with the same actors. The themes covered include how people change over time, how relationships develop, how people move on during the course of their lives, and interaction between the generations. So, as with the ‘Before...’ trilogy, Linklater’s interest remains with the passage of time, although this time he deals out a sustained study, rather than snapshots at nine-year intervals.

I really enjoyed this film. It is a considerable achievement to maintain momentum and focus over such a long, yet fragmented, period of filming, and this certainly strikes you when watching. It is also interesting to see how the actors themselves change over time—how they age or grow up, depending on their starting points. And there were a couple of points made in the film which certainly resonated with me. One, when the mother of Mason (the boy of the film's title) breaks down in tears as her son is getting ready to leave home for university, saying that she’s now passed all of life’s major milestones, bar one—her own funeral. And the second, where Mason comments that, although his mother has had so much experience and has worked really hard to get the job she yearns for, she still doesn't know what she really wants out of life and deep down is just as confused as he is.

So, eighteen or forty—it makes no difference to how you feel. Linklater is spot on, as usual!

A movie, and a concert in the abbey

We had an entertaining weekend last week.

Our youngest child was away at a sleepover and so we asked our oldest whether there was anything that she would like to do that her sister might not have enjoyed. She opted to go and see the film 'The Fault in Our Stars'. I had no idea in advance what I was going to see and assumed that it would be a kids' movie that I wouldn't much enjoy. I was wrong. It was a really interesting and moving story about two teenagers who have cancer and fall in love. It didn't end on a happy note. In fact, the whole film was pretty downbeat, really. But all three of us very much enjoyed it and were reduced to tears by the end. It's nice when your kids get to the age that they can show you really interesting stuff...

Then, on the Sunday (after the sleepover), all four of us went to see a classical concert at Abingdon Abbey. The abbey is fantastic--large parts of the original Medieval buildings remain standing and are used as  a venue for events throughout the year. We are very lucky to have it on our doorstep.

A cultural couple of days all round!

War Horse

We recently went to see an ‘as live’ showing of the play of Michael Morpurgo’s ‘War Horse’. For those of you who don’t know, the National Theatre Live is a scheme that broadcasts real-time performances of National Theatre productions to cinemas worldwide. The ‘as live’ extension is when those broadcasts (or films) are replayed at times after the live performance.

We very much enjoy going to the theatre, but when the show that we want to see is in London and we want to go en famille, it can be a very expensive pastime. For this reason we jumped at the chance of seeing an as live broadcast of ‘War Horse’ in our local cinema. We didn't know quite what to expect – would it be like being at the theatre or more like a standard cinema experience? Well, there was some attempt at making it seem like you were at the theatre – the cinema screen showed the audience and the speaker system played the sounds of the audience coming from the theatre auditorium before the performance started – but in fact, it really was just like being at the cinema. The view was not straight on to the stage, rather there were a number of different cameras and the view cut between these, much like watching a film. This worked well and must have been difficult to do technically, given the issue of having to work round the audience.

However, what I really enjoyed was the story. I haven’t read any of Michael Morpurgo’s novels before (although my kids have), assuming that they were aimed squarely at children only. ‘War Horse’ tells the story of (aspects of) the First World War through the experience of the horses who were put to work on the battlefield, and it resonates on many levels, highlighting the futility of war, the desperation of those caught up in it, and the effect that war can have on people’s sanity. All are issues very much worthy of adult attention. ‘War Horse’, rather to my surprise, is now on my to read pile.