No post last week because I’ve been out and about doing some stuff and working hard. Emily and I have been enjoying ourselves, visiting some new places and some not so new places. It’s been a couple of weeks of introducing Emily to a few things that make up the history of my life. We went to the Northampton Saints to watch the rugby, we went to the Warner Bros. Studio Tour to wander around the Harry Potter film sets and behind the scenes and we went to see Othello portrayed by Masque Theatre in Northampton.
I do love watching the Northampton Saints play and they’ve been in a rich seam of form this season. I usually watch them on the telly box. I haven’t been lots in the last few years because normally I’d go with Dad and for some reason he hasn’t been around much lately. I went for my 40th with my lovely friends last season and that was fun, but the weather was horrible. This time Emily came with me and we thankfully chose a day with much better weather. And the Saints won both of those games, so I feel like we got our money’s worth. This time was a game where we never really got going but managed to nick a win at the end which meant we topped the league for the end of the season. Excellent stuff.
I cannot comprehend a more beautiful stadium. I’ve been to quite a few around the world, newer, larger, in more exotic places but this one on a picture perfect day just doesn’t get any better. The lift tower, eminent, looming in the background, Franklin’s Gardens is home. I mean look how stunning she is. Although the seats are really uncomfortable for someone who has had a ligament reconstruction on both knees. It’s still the best, no comparison. And when it’s jumping for the Saints, the atmosphere is incredible.
The Warner Bros. Studio Tour is really impressive. Now this isn’t really just part of just my past, we both have enjoyed Harry Potter. I thought we’d be there about three hours. Six went by without us really realising it. We got the headset so we were listening and looking at everything. And over the years they’ve made it so there are small demonstrations that you can watch and small amounts of interaction. I think I was most impressed with the sense of scale of it all. Having never been involved in a major movie (I mean, why would I have been?) I just didn’t realise how much time, effort and person power went into ensuring what you see on the screen is the best it can be. It was fun and we had butter beer ice cream. And on the way home we went for Italian which always makes us happy.
Last but by no means least we went to see some friends in some theatre. Othello by Masque Theatre was really good. Othello is one of my favourite Shakespeare’s and the character of Iago is the one I’d most love to to play. As local theatre goes it was up there with one of the best I’ve seen in quite a while. My awesome friend Bernie played Emilia, the only female character in the show that really gets stuck in where Desdemona can’t and rips into both Othello and Iago, loved it. She was a force. The show warmed up into the second half and the pace was better after half time. Understanding that the gent who portrayed Othello was his first time on stage, he was strong. And the gent who played Iago, was sinister and playful and devious and loyal, all at the same time and not. There’s an emptiness about Iago, a gaping hole where morality should be and this was portrayed well on stage. A damn good show. And it was on at the Holy Sepulchre Church in Northampton, a place I’ve performed in many times and I was glad to be back. Strange to say that about a church, but if you forget the religion bit, it is an impressive building.
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