Author: suchasinistergame

It’s one week since I was spending my first day with the most amazing and wonderful @missoneminute. There’s that cliche about meeting someone and feeling like you’ve known them for years, but I know now that it’s true, because it really felt like a reunion with a dearest old friend. For days or even weeks I’d been thinking, I should be more nervous, especially because usually I would be – but the nerves never came, and from the very first moment talking and being together felt completely natural and comfortable and easy, and that never changed. Pictured above are just a few of the incredibly thoughtful gifts she brought for my birthday, including the most beautiful set of miniature vintage images of Margate, and an even more precious Arcadian locket, which are some of the most delightful and heartwarming gifts I’ve ever been given and I will treasure them. She put so much thought and care into making my birthday so special that I’m still not sure I can adequately describe how touched I was. 

It’s been a constant source of surprise and joy to get to know someone who shares so many of my really quite eclectic interests, and to get to enjoy some of them together last weekend – from the medieval village to the haunted hotel(s) to the festival to the shell grotto – was so special to me, and I wish we could have just carried on adventuring and seeing what else the surreal narrative would manifest! 

Not only that, but despite the fact that we’ve led very different lives, she understands me and my sometimes off-kilter mind in a way that’s always reassuring and comforting, and I’m so very grateful for that, and for her patience and support in helping me do things I never thought I would, or could! 

The best friends are those who not only enrich your life, but who actually make you grow and try to improve as a person, just by being who they are, and I know absolutely that that’s happened since we’ve known each other. I feel so lucky to have you in my life, Marta, and I hope you always are. Come back soon, because we still have so many miles to travel before we’re done to death in this town, or any other!

Actual Wheels & Fins notes

Realised I’ve talked about a bunch of random stuff that occurred but not the actual festival! Let’s see how much I can remember:

– first and foremost, the boys were on top form, energetic and chatty and cheerful and cheeky. Lots of stuff got thrown, including Peter’s guitar and several mic stands
– it was a cosy little festival, not too big a space, and the weather was lovely, and the fans were all so enthusiastic and all there for the boys, it was fab to see
– there was a video before they came onstage comprised of lots of photos and footage old and more recent, including some bits me and @missoneminute thought we hadn’t seen before, so I keep hoping they’ll put it up somewhere. An audience-filmed version is on YouTube anyway! 
– Peter came out singing Chas & Dave’s Margate: “behave yourself Carlos, or you won’t be going daaaaaaahn to Margate~”
– as other folks have said already, they sang several Chas & Dave and music hall songs, and what amazes me is how they have the harmonies absolutely down! I feel like they must have done these songs many, many times over the years, haha.
– they did a lot of bantery music hall-type routines, starring Mr Spaniel and Mr Spaniel: “we didn’t wish to know that, Mr Spaniel!” (Could be a Goon Show reference in there too with that “I don’t wish to know that!” but idk. That’s something to ask about next time!) Fortunately several of these seem to have been captured on video: “This is a charity gig so we can talk as much shite as we like!” 
– Peter mentioned the Big Lebowski several times but he never got very far, idk if it was a reference I wasn’t getting or what lol
– they sang What Became of the Likely Lads, but Peter seemed a bit reluctant – before they went into it he said, audibly, “Can we just go straight into Death on the Stairs?” 
– at the end of the latter, he gave Carl a big ol’ lick on the cheek which made Carl launch himself away and wipe his cheek exaggeratedly lol

– they brought out Viv, the toothless old cleaning lady from the Albion Rooms, haha. “This stage is a tip!”

– as @missoneminute said already, Carl had some excellent facial expressions throughout, like his cheeky raised eyebrows at the “still in love with you” line in CSMN. I feel like in general at the past few shows they’ve done, P&C have seemed to have a great connection onstage, lots of looks and communication and smiles, it’s lovely. Me and @missoneminute kept turning to each other with happy sighs!
– and of course, the moment at the end where Peter properly leapt on Carl and there were lots of kissies and cuddles and smiles (and one ~matey shoulder punch haha)

Honestly it was such a good show, there was no sense of wanting to hurry up and get to the end, it felt like a showcase for more than just their own songs, it was everything about *them* as well, and it felt like they were having fun and wanted to give themselves a good send off. I keep forgetting it was the last one until who knows when, but that’s because it keeps sustaining me, the whole experience around it was just so perfectly Arcadian. I felt like part of something, and I’ll keep that feeling until the next time. 

Another story from Margate that I’ve been meaning to tell is the Tales of the Painter, haha. When we were first outside the Albion Rooms on the Sunday morning, he was just finishing up the paintwork on the outside of the building. He was very friendly and happy to talk to us, and we chatted with him several times over the time we were there. We decided he was called “Steve” or “Dave” because they always are, haha, but we never learnt his actual name, sorry lad! He’s done the whole outside of the building in 23 days, and is about to start on the inside, which has all been plastered now. He’s been staying there too, in Gary’s room, but when Gary is there he moves into the attic, which is full of Peter’s artwork, with canvases all over, and he said when he sleeps up there he’ll wake up with a cat in his face, lol.

He said scaffolding should’ve been going back up on the Monday as they’re doing some alterations to the dormer windows on the top floor? But when we saw him at the party on Sunday, we weren’t surprised that no scaffolding was forthcoming the day after, lol. He told us on Tuesday that he’d got back to the Albion Rooms at 5am or something, fallen asleep on the sofa, gone out again to the pub the day after, and when he got back Peter was like, “Don’t you ever stop?!” I thought that was an amusingly wholesome Peter story, haha. 

We asked if the boys were moving back in to start work on the record etc, and he said, rather vaguely, “Eventually…” but I think they’re still hoping to open the bar by October, so he’d better get a shift on I guess!