Challenge

The three eldest Coles ventured to the Guildhall Arts Centre's compact and bijou cinema last evening to watch Starter For Ten, a quaint and warming British romantic comedy not starring Hugh Grant and not written by Richard Curtis. We really enjoyed it. I loved the 1980s setting and the well-rounded and believable characters. Admittedly, the plotline involving the University Challenge episode was a bit unusual but I appreciated the tender evocation of 80s student life. I wore those clothes, listened to that music, went to those parties, attended those lectures and went on those demos. The soundtrack was splendid indeed. I counted at least three songs by The Cure which must be a record and certainly kept me grinning. Ace of Spades by Motorhead featured in a scene set on the Southend-on-Sea front, a song that also appeared in Bambi, the Young Ones episode which also includes a fictional appraisal of the University Challenge format. I might write to IMDB and suggest they use that nugget on their 'Trivia' section for Starter For Ten. I'm sure they'd be most grateful.