Paddington

One of the pleasures of having grand children is that you can do things that might be a little awkward for a retired couple. So today we were able with an easy conscience to visit the cinema with said grand children to see Paddington 2. It is a lovely story about the eponymous bear and his adventures after being framed for a burglary by the delightfully dastardly Hugh Grant.

The film achieved that difficult balance of being entertaining for young and old alike. Millie who sat next to me certainly had to be consoled as she was in floods of tears at one particularly dramatic point. For us oldies it was an opportunity to spot all the leading British actors who had cameo roles. I was surprised to see that Judy Dench was not amongst the cast!

I was also a lovely cinema experience at the Everyman in the centre of Leeds. As it was an early showing the cinema was not very busy and the settee like seats were very comfortable. It was also be great to be accompanied by Paddington who was brought along by Martha. He must have been the one who ate all the popcorn.

Although it was only five shopping weekend before Christmas we had a smooth journey into Leeds thanks to the new park and ride scheme on the Eastern outskirts of the city. It saved a lot of hassle and a considerable amount on parking fees. A model of how driving into cities should be discouraged.