Most of the time, channel surfing yields only reality television and an eventual settling on something on the Food Network or HGTV. But every once in a while, I get drawn into something good. Case in point: A Yank at Oxford.
You have to love TCM. Because once you get caught up in one of their classic movies, there aren't any commercials to break the spell. So when I caught a glimpse of this about 20 minutes in, there was no escape. I was in from Robert Taylor's ridiculous run around the track to his final bump against Cambridge.
It's a cute little classic, black and white, with plenty of Oxfordian quirks. Like loyal porters serving a student's every whim, dining hall food fights, and a good debagging. However, unlike an episode of Inspector Morse or Lewis, no one ended up dead. There was a scandalous Vivien Leigh, though. Apparently this role was part of the reason she ended up in 'Gone with the Wind'. Because when you're looking for a Southern belle, you look in an Oxford bookstore for the owner's philandering wife.
Seems that TCM was focusing on Lionel Barrymore for the evening, but I think this movie is more well-timed for being a perfect example of the British love of track and field, just in time for the end of the Olympics. So while NBC had their weird little pause in coverage between the daytime and prime time, I was still technically knitting on theme for Ravelympics.
Which I'm pretty much done with, actually. It's those pesky finishing details. I cast off my second dishcloth in the pair on Wednesday, they both just need to be blocked and have the ends woven in. And the monster has eyes, but he needs a mouth. Or, to be British about it, a gob.
So there's a random film recommendation for those who want to know why the British crowds seem so excited by
No comments:
Post a Comment