Shadowlands

For some reason, I have been a fan of CS Lewis (who apparently preferred to be called 'Jack', since childhood. Mrs maytrees and I having recently watched Shadowlands on BBC iPlayer, I can see why his works are so  appealing.

Interestingly,  for his days at Oxford University, the film depicted a university of white, largely male and presumably Christian, students at the time, well before large scale immigration to the UK and also years before Tony Blair's encouragement given to all, to study  at university and polytechnic, almost irrespective of the worth of the courses selected. 

Thus the professors' attendances after work  to chat together at Oxford public houses, almost universally  depicted male professors, drinkers and students though there must have been some  female students, as my late mother was one.

One scene I found  almost amusing was when CS Lewis who was signing books at Blackwells, spotted a student stealing a book and departing hastily from the bookshop.  Upon attending upon the student's room later that day and enquiring if the student was short of cash, the student declined any offer to assist. On another occasion I think  at Oxford Station, the student ridiculed the idea of going to Oxford simply to become a teacher like CS Lewis, although the student's own father was said to have been a school teacher.  Much later and again on a train, the same student now a little older and wiser, signified to CS Lewis that he was a teacher.

But the main story concerned the two 'marriages' of CS Lewis  to Mrs Joy Davidman Gresham who came from the USA presumably to escape her difficult husband. CS Lewis married her the first time ostensibly for convenience after her divorce though whether the convenience was hers or his was not clear to me. On the second time when she became very ill with cancer,  the motive was love. She had been diagnosed with cancer but came with her nine year old son, to live in the Lewis  family home during a time of remission as regards the cancer.

A wonderful film, beautifully filmed though at a time as I have mentioned, when the UK was far more insular and far less cosmopolitan than it is today.

A great work about a great man, his wife, profession and family yet despite the in many ways beautiful, age in which he lived, so far at least  I prefer C21.