Plan A

was to see 'The Last King of Scotland' last night, but after all these years living in a provincial town of very little consequence what on earth made me think a film tipped for multiple Oscars would be on in Northampton? Still, Plan B, seeing Notes on a Scandal worked out, and very watchable it was too. Judi Dench whilst being totally manipulative and creepy still managed to make me feel just a tiny bit sorry for her by subtly showing how lonely she was. She reminded me of a middle aged English teacher at my school, Miss W. Miss W's life was transformed when another middle aged spinster joined the school as deputy head. Within a few months of the two of them meeting they would be arriving at school together each morning in a bright red MG Sports car. What, we wondered, was that all about then?

It is a pretty close adaptation of the book, except as Reidski remembered and I did not, that they altered the ending. I am useless at remembering books I have read. Well, I know that I have read them, but the chances of me recalling with any accuracy what actually happened in the book are slim.I would blame my age but it was ever thus with one exception. I know 'Pride and Prejudice' so well that I can quote reams of it off by heart. I have finally persuaded Reidski to read it for the first time and as he said to me last night 'Oh, it's all kicked off in Pride and Prejudice by the way!' We do enjoy our highbrow literary discussions doncha know? He's got to the bit where Lydia elopes with Wickham. Two scandals in one evening for Reidski then! I feel quite honoured that having got to that part of the story he was able to leave his book alone to see me for a while.

We ended up in a pub that has been transformed from a back street seedy dump serving 13 year olds* into somewhere one might actually wish to have a drink.

*I know this for a fact as I was one of those 13 year olds once. We used to drink vodka with lime (as in lime cordial), rum and black (as in blackcurrant cordial) or whisky and orange (as in - you've guessed it - orange cordial). And then we wondered why we got sick.