pumpkinstrokemarrow

Yesterday afternoon to the 'Derby Arms', a place which used to be a proper pub (with real gypsies on Derby days. I also know of someone who claimed to have driven his motor bike into the public bar when young) and which is now, after at least two refurbishments, a gastro pub. Fair amount of trade yesterday lunchtime, not all seniors. Staff struck us as a little inexperienced with the bar maid committing the solecism of putting the beer into glass before the lemonade when making up the shandy for BH. They had the usually excellent 'Landlord' from Timothy Taylor: this particular sample was OK but nowhere near as good as that which had been served in the 'Salisbury' in St Martins Lane the previous evening. But then, that was a proper pub with the fancy woodwork and fancy glass to prove it. Starter very good: a very thin round of warm pizza bread with a bit of oil, dressing and rocket scattered on top. Simple but effective. BH main course good - a heap of some sort of salad leaves with a couple of goat's cheese fritters on the side; my main course not so good. Calves liver with bits and pieces which I think would have been fine had someone not seen fit to include far too much vinegar in the sauce. Something I don't much care to taste in my meat and two veg. at all. Or fish and chips. Two large, shiny, round white plates in two varieties for the two meals, as one expects from any self respecting gastro pub. Bill entirely reasonable.

Yesterday evening was taken up with the second showing of our DVD of 'The Remains of the Day'. Part of the course work for our MPhil's in Media Studies with the university of the fourth age. This came about because while investigating whether Bourne Hall library had a copy of a book by Ishiguro about an odd school - which I now know is called 'Never Let Me Go' - I discovered that he was also the author of 'The Remains of the Day'. Took it out and for the first time in a long time bought a new DVD from HMV for the modest sum of £5. Fortunately the sales girl worked out that I was far to old to find my way around such a shop and she went and fetched it for me. Saw the film, then read the book (an easy read) then saw the film again. Now into my second read.

As always, interesting to see how the book has been adapted to make the film. Not done the leg-work yet, but I think the film takes some liberties with the framing story, the motor trip to the west country. Most seriously by omitting the episode very near the end of the book when the butler meets another butler on a pier. An episode for which the book is named. Most of the humour has been lost in translation. And most of that part of the book which is about the trade and craft of butlering has been lost, leaving the film freer to focus on the romantic angle. Including the bits about a version of the Junior Ganymede Club which Wodehouse had created perhaps 60 years previously. Most of the key incidents have been retained, although some of them got a bit distorted during compression. A bit puzzled as to why the housekeeper might have thought of the butler as a marriage prospect; the ages seem too different despite the mutual professional respect, although I suppose that younger women marrying older men was commoner then than it is now.

Lastly, I do not think the DVD is quite the same as the film we saw, probably near the time when it first came out. At least, I have a memory of a scene which does not seem to be there. Need to work out somehow whether it is a fake memory. Perhaps the DVD contains some of those extra scenes which the wrappers of some DVDs tell one about.

Good book and good film for all that.

PS: bread 6 day.