My friend Meghan is a fan of The Beatles, so got us tickets to see the new Ron Howard documentary Eight Days a Week at the Bloor Hot Doc Cinema on Saturday afternoon. The movie was immediately followed by a half-hour screening of remastered footage from the Beatles concert at Shea Stadium in 1965. This show was was attended by 55,600 people, and goes down in history as the world’s first ever major stadium concert.
Both the movie and the concert segment were really good, featuring lots of previously unseen footage focusing on The Beatles’ touring years.
↑ I’m not sure if these signs are vintage and original to this 76 year old theatre but they were nice looking nonetheless. ↑
The show let out just as the sun was setting on the remarkably warm for the end of October evening.
The theatre, (located just east of Bloor Street West and Bathurst), was very near the soon to be dramatically changed Mirvish Village, so we decided to walk over there for something to eat.
(Meghan and I had been in this neighbourhood in the summer, when I got some shots during the day. If you’d like to see them, that post is here.)
We took advantage of the balmy weather and chose a table on the outdoor patio at The Victory Cafe, brushing the fallen golden leaves off the chairs before sitting. (Follow-up : Mirvish Village is being completely changed with much of it under construction. I’m not sure if The Victory Cafe will reopen once everything is finished, but it’s closed, at least for now.)
According to the photos showing the plans for the neighbourhood (seen here), the historic house occupied by The Victory will still stand after the redevelopment, but it looks like it this restaurant will have moved by then. At the very least, it will have closed down for a long time while the transformation of the block takes place. So, we were glad to have what will probably be our last visit to the “before” version of Mirvish Village.
Meghan had just returned from a two week immersive holiday throughout Eastern Europe. Also, the following Monday she was beginning a brand new job. So, it was an exciting time for my friend, and we had plenty to talk about over a shared half litre of red wine and a tasting platter of delicious dips and hors d’oeuvres.
After that, we walked south on Bathurst.
This was the Saturday just before Halloween, so it was a night that many would be in costumes and partying. There were people dressed up all over the place. It was fun to see.
When we reached College Street she asked me if I’d ever been to the bar called “No one Writes to the Colonel” (now closed permanently) that’s situated just west of Bathurst. I had not, so we decided to pop in and have another glass of wine.
It was still early for the festivities at the bar when we were there but they were clearly getting ready for a good time.
I really liked this place and look forward to a future visit. Meghan said she particularly likes their happy hour, so we plan to go for that sometime soon.
After our drink we walked together until our paths diverged.
I got this shot of an excellent sugar skull costume. She had done the make-up herself.
Thanks for reading. Wishing you a good weekend,
xo loulou
