Chris
A little bit of London鈥檚 Red Carpet Magic made its way up to the Midlands on Thursday 25 October when a Regional Premier for Skyfall took place at the Odeon Cinema in Nuneaton.
Johnsons Jewellers of Nuneaton arranged the black-tie event to raise money for The Mary Ann Evans Hospice which works in the town to provide day care, hospice at home services lymphodema care and bereavement support.
Bond fans hungry to see the film a day before its general release had two ticket options to choose from – a Gold Ticket which included a meal at Frankie and Bennies and a Silver Ticket which was just for the showing of the movie. Unfortunately due to work commitments I had to opt for Silver Tickets for my wife and I.
On the evening as I donned my Tux (alas Moss Bros. not Tom Ford) and my wife slipped into a dress that made her look every inch the Bond Girl we started our drive to Nuneaton and were really looking forward to seeing the film. This was the first time that I had not gone out of my way to find out all the plot details I could before I saw Skyfall. And I am glad that I did this because with all the twists and turns shocks and surprises in Skyfall I really was on the edge of my seat from the roar of the MGM Lion to the end credits.
Despite my Sat. Nav. with its faux Sean Connery voice seeming to lead us a merry dance we soon arrived at the cinema and we where greeted by one of 007鈥檚 automotive co-stars – Zao鈥檚 Green Jaguar XKR from Die Another Day – displayed alongside two newer Jaguar models.
For me it was a great chance to have a close up look at the car that features in the vehicular duel to the death with Bond鈥檚 Aston Martin Vanquish. I managed to have a chat with the Jaguar representative that was keeping a cautious watch on the cars (no doubt wanting to ensure that no over-zealous Bond fan started to fire rockets into the cinema foyer). He advised that several Jag鈥檚 used in filming had to be converted to 4-wheel drive so that they could be driven on the ice. Because of the modifications the one on display was the one remaining legally roadworthy car. He also explained that the car also had a Midas touch as the sparkling green paintwork shimmered because it contained actual flakes of gold.
I did manage to sit behind the wheel of the Jag – but someone had the foresight not to leave the keys in the ignition – so I sadly didn鈥檛 get to take it for a spin!
Shortly before the film started we managed to meet up with some friends who鈥檇 travelled from nearby Derby and not-so-nearby Ireland to see the film. Comparing notes afterwards I think that we all agreed that it was certainly different to what had gone before but Skyfall was a rip-roaring success and an amazing celebration of 50 years of Cinematic 007.
Since attending I have read on Johnsons Jewellers website that the event raise 拢4000.00 for the Hospice. No doubt they will use the money to keep offering such vital no-so-secret services to those that need them.
Chris is quite right in his piece about the evening. An excellent film, a fine evening and something that should be done every Bond release time.
How much were tickets – I’m originally from Nuneaton and gutted that I didn’t know about this – hope they do something similar for Bond 24
I have a couple Bond experiences. They aren鈥檛 big and grand but they are small. The first was in early 2001 in Fishers, Indiana. I was helping my mom find a car at a local car dealership. I don鈥檛 remember which Raymond Benson James Bond novel it makes its first appearance in, but Bond droves a Jaguar XK-8. I saw it on the lot and one of the salesmen let me sit in it. It was a wonderful experience imagining myself as Bond cruising in the Jaguar.
The second small experience was having a medium dry vodka martini shaken not stirred at a coworker鈥檚 wedding Fall 2006.