Personal

A Coastal Christmas

Of course I should have expected it. Woodbridge may not look out to sea, but it's a coastal town none the less. It therefore submits to the rules of tacky tourism when it has to.

Today was the Christmas Street Fair. The Thoroughfare (we are too posh to use the term High Street out here) was packed with stalls selling porcelain replicas of local landmarks and at least a dozen tombolas offering nothing more exciting than a bottle of cheap plonk as the top prize.

This was all to be expected, along with the charity shops, the cheap Christmas cards, the 'make an angel' kits and the bacon butties.

But Mr Punch came as a surprise.

Arts

Film: Timeline

Today I corrected yesterday's error and walked into the right screen. I shouldn't have bothered. Timeline was a trashy book, but compelling enough for a transatlantic flight. Now name one novel that fits into that category and has made a good film. Can't? Exactly.

And Anna Friel was totally unconvincing as a cocky fourteenth century French lady. Maybe that's why she had the sum total of about two lines of dialogue.

Avoid.