A Packed Sunday!

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Nope! Definitely not used to this! Pretty much OUT all day – although it was for all the right reasons! 😁. A longer walk, a new lunch venue and a movie! Yes, I know: ‘tough life!” 😜

The Kettering Walk

First off, we met Jo & Janet outside Kettering Library for the ‘Kettering Walk’ – a 90-minute affair that in addition to exercising our legs, taught us more about the history of the town.

We learned a lot about the buildings and the history that was on our doorstep. Kettering’s first Bank, the original Cinema, the Church, and the Manor House (in urgent need of funds to prevent it collapsing).

We finished where we had begun – the local Library. We learned that this had been opened by none other than Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie himself back in 1904 (one of only two where he actually got involved in the unveiling). Apparently, bus loads of people were brought to the town for the ceremony. Who knew!?!? We certainly didn’t!

It had been a really enjoyable tour of our town- but there was more! Whilst the official tour had finished, we were all invited to stay on for some extra information…

Sandwiched between the Library and the Gardens was the Memorial to the World Wars and next to that, a smaller plaque in memory of one of the Cockleshell Heroes: William Henry Mills. We were given a comprehensive and balanced understanding of the role he played together with the team on this ill-fated mission from WWII.

To kill some time before our lunch, we dropped into nearby Kino Lounge in the town. It was great, just sitting outside, soaking up the Sun – whilst doing our bit, supporting the local economy! 😁

Lunch

Lunch involved a new location for us – nearby Glebe Farm Tea Rooms.

Full Roasts all round, featuring pretty much one of every vegetable known to man (well, not quite, but it was close!) 😋

…followed by some very tempting Desserts!

In fact, the Roasts had been so enormous, even I contemplated NOT having a Dessert (for about five seconds!). Janet opted for the Apple & Rhubarb Pie whilst I took on the Black Forest Shortbread Stack. Ann and Jo observed the gluttony from a safe distance!!! 😃

Film – Elvis

After all of today’s activity so far, it would be tempting to fall asleep in the darkness of the local Odeon! But we didn’t plan to, as we took our seats to see the BioPic: “Elvis”.

YouTube player

Synopsis

No real surprises here. The movie charted the life of this iconic megastar. Comparisons with other recent Biopics – Bohemian Rhapsody and Rocketman were inevitable, and we certainly felt this one was different. The storyfocussed more about Elvis’ relationship with his Agent, Tom Parker.

My Verdict!

Actually, I didn’t enjoy as much as I thought I would! And that surprised me! Austin Butler, for me, certainly made for a convincing Elvis, but overall, the movie was all a bit bleak! Maybe it’s because I’m not a great Elvis fan (I don’t dislike his music, it’s just not in my top five musical-genres!). The first half, I found difficult to follow, where the occasional onscreen graphics got in the way, whilst the jerky editing style made it feel disjointed. The story was very intense and for the necessary emotional relief, it lacked any ‘lighter moments’ or any humour! I’ve also got used to Tom Hanks playing nice, loveable characters – and in this, not knowing his character’s relationship with Elvis beforehand – in this, he was just a horrible man! 😮.

On the plus-side, I learned a lot about EP’s musical roots and influences! Having now seen this latest pop biopic, the lasting impact will be one of sadness – I think I would have preferred to hear (even) more of his music. Definitely NOT one for finishing the weekend on a cheery note!! 😪

Cast and Creatives

Producers: Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin, Gail Berman, Patrick McCormick, Schuyler Weiss
Screenplay: Baz Luhrmann, Sam Bromell, Craig Pearce, Jeremy Doner

Main Cast
Austin Butler as Elvis Presley
Tom Hanks as Col. Tom Parker
David Wenham as Hank Snow
Natasha Bassett as Dixie Locke
Luke Bracey as Jerry Schilling
Kelvin Harrison Jr. as B.B. King
Alton Mason as Little Richard

Full cast list HERE

Runtime: 2 hours 39 minutes

We finally got home around 8pm! It had been a packed programme today that tested our stamina! (lightweights!). Just a bit disappointed that the Film didn’t ‘do it’ for me.

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