I get it. As the weather turns cooler, the lure of the sofa at the weekend can be powerful and not everyone enjoys a long hike in the Sussex countryside. If that sounds familiar, what about trying one of these mini adventures that comes with large servings of both sofa and Sussex, and just a smidgeon of the great outdoors.
Vintage reels, picnic meals and seaside feels
There is a very specific weekend on which you have to try this mini Sussex adventure and that is the first weekend in November.
Curl up on Saturday afternoon and watch the absolute classic film, Genevieve. Filmed in 1953, it’s about two friends taking part in the iconic London To Brighton Veteran Car Run which still takes place. The annual event is for owners of pre-1905 veteran cars that make the journey from Hyde Park in London, through Sussex to Brighton seafront. Although not much, if any, of Genevieve was filmed on location, the film is packed with 1950s nostalgia, is fun and light hearted and gives you a real sense of the car run. It comes with an Oscar-nominated music score and stars that include John Gregson, Diana Sheridan, Kenneth More and Kay Kendall. Of course, in the film, all sorts of mishaps befall the drivers!
Genevieve is in fact a 1904 Darracq motor car and after a long history that includes spending 30 years in Australia, she is still going and still races in the London to Brighton. She is owned by The Louwman Museum (a Dutch motor museum) which also owns Spyker, Genevieve’s ‘rival’ in the film. As you watch the action from the comfort of your sofa, you might want to tuck into some typical 1950s fodder, like spam fritters and tinned fruit with evaporated milk.
On Sunday, pack a flask, a picnic and a picnic chair, or book a table at somewhere like The Victory or the Jolly Tanners in Staplefield or the Red Lion in Handcross. Because it’s race day and great places to watch the old cars go through are Handcross, Staplefield and Cuckfield or in Brighton.
Cars leave Hyde Park at 7 am and the first ones trickle through Crawley at about 10 past eight. So pick your viewing spot and unpack your chair to enjoy the fun and action. Genevieve is racing this year so see if you can spot her.
From reel to real with Michael Caine
Back to the sofa on a weekend of your choosing, watch the 2023 film, The Great Escaper featuring Michael Caine. The film is based on the true story of Bernard Jordan, who in 2014 staged a “great escape” from his care home to join fellow war veterans on a beach in Normandy, commemorating the D-Day Landings 70th anniversary. Jordan passed away later that year and it’s a moving and evocative film peppered with subtle humour.
Caine did in fact start his acting career in Horsham although the film was primarily filmed in East Sussex including at Camber Sands and the seafronts of Hastings and St Leonards.
After an afternoon in front of the TV, why not head down to the coast for a perambulation in some of the settings you will have spotted in the film. What about a walk on Camber Sands followed by lunch at The Gallivant or a walk along Hastings seafront (and while you’re in Hastings look out for the home of Detective Chief Superintendent Foyle (of Foyle’s War) followed by a fish and chip lunch?
A wicked little Sussex adventure
Another 2023 film, Wicked Little Letters is a marvellously funny yet thought provoking and poignant film based around a true story that took place in Littlehampton in 1920. When an apparently respectable local lady starts receiving obscene letters, suspicion falls on her neighbour, single mother and Irish immigrant Rose. Of course, life is rarely as it seems and the film includes superb performance from Olivia Coleman, Timothy Spall and Jessie Buckley. Perfect for some Saturday afternoon viewing.
Wicked Little Letters centres on Littlehampton but was filmed out and about in Worthing and Arundel. So why not book yourself lunch in one of Arundel’s eateries, and head down there for some Sunday shopping and film scene spotting. Look out for the blue building in Arundel (a rather fabulous butchers) which is very visible in one of the scenes.
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