Day 58 - From Blade Runner to Bonfire of the....

I laughed at love 'cause I thought it was funny
You came along and moved me honey
I've changed my mind, your love is fine
Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire

It has been sometime since I have introduced lyrics to a song, and once again you must guess the title, although this should be an easy one!

It is also the theme song for today's culminating event. But before we get to that, I want to step back and chat about our day's earlier event: our visit to the last daytime showing of Blade Runner 2049 at the Regal Cinema in Evesham.  We have talked about this cinema in earlier blogs. We settled down to lunch in our two-seater and watched the film. Excellent cinematography and an interesting follow up to the original although one might confuse the title as Blade Runner 2049 minutes long, as it does run on a bit. Angela scored it a 3 and I score it a 4 out of 5.

Can you see our flat?

Our matinee finished in time for us to catch the train back to MiM and a quick cup of tea before heading over to the Fire Service College for the annual Guy Fawkes Bonfire and Fireworks. Yes it is supposed to be celebrated on the 5th of November, but since there are so many of these events at this time of the year, MiM's was chosen to happen today. The Fire Service College sits to the east of town and was formerly the Royal Air Force Station - MiM.  Built during the Second World War, it was a training airfield for Vickers Wellington bombers from 1940 to 1945. These were planes flown by the Royal Canadian Air Force too, so perhaps some Canadians made their home here . It was abandoned as an operational airfield in 1948. Today it is a college for training officers in the UK's fire service brigades in advanced operations management.

Tonight the College was putting on the bonfire and fireworks event. It is free to all, but they do collect donations for the purpose of giving to a selected charity. This year, it was for the Meningitis Now charity. It was a 25-minute walk in the dark from our flat to the College, although there is a sidewalk/path combination to get there. When we arrived we found a fun fair with children's rides, food vendors, and music. In an open field adjacent to the large paved training area where the rides were located was a large pile of scrap wood and wood pallets.

At 7 p.m. sharp the firefighters light the pile and within minutes the flames were 50 feet plus in height and we could feel the heat from about 60 meters away. Then at 7:30 p.m. the fireworks started along with co-ordinated music. A spectacular show with some unique fireworks especially the finale (to the tune of Pomp and Circumstance) where the final bursts left a hanging red image for about 20 seconds, something I have never seen before. When we turned to leave, the place was packed with people, so all in all a successful event.

Ale of the Day: Brakspear Oxford Gold, Wychwood Brewery, Witney, Oxfordshire