Go: Vauxhall Village Summer Screen

YOU CAN'T SIT WITH US!!!

Well, actually you can sit anywhere you can find a spare bit of grass for your blanket down at the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, but you better get down there early!

Yesterday, I headed down to the the gardens for a free summer cinema screening put on by Vauxhall Village. They are showing films every Tuesday for 6 weeks on a large projection screen - perfect for a summer evening.
However, I don't think the organisers anticipated our generations love for cult film Mean Girls. Thousands of people turned up and the facilities were overwhelmed.

Only one of the food vendors advertised turned up and the cider bar ran out pretty early. The queue for the 2 portaloos was as you can imagine, ridiculous. People were advised to arrive at 7pm to get a good spot but when I rocked up with my pal at 7.15 there were already hundreds of people there and the main green where the screen was located was full, leaving us trying to seek higher ground to see over the heads of people. The sheer amount of people who streamed out of Vauxhall station and into the park meant that the sound wasn't great in the middle of the crowd and it didn't get dark until almost 10pm so we couldn't see the film clearly at first.

That said. I still loved it! People all around joined in shouting out "You go glen Coco" and "She doesn't even go here!" and loads of us put our hands up when asked if we had ever felt personally victimised by Regina George. There was a great atmosphere, people drinking and laughing at all the best bits.

Coco queued for an hour for this burger from the Korean BBQ stall. She did say it was worth it!

There are 4 more screenings over the next few Tuesdays and I doubt any will be as rammed as Mean Girls was, so why not head down? Here are my tips for how to enjoy.

1. Get there early! 7pm should be fine for most of the films but going straight from work is probably the best idea.
2. Bring your own food and drink. The vendor queue was an hour long and the cider ran out so don't be caught short! I picked up a Nando's take-away from over the road (there was even a 45minute wait for that) and there's also a Sainsbury's nearby but I saw people with full on picnics so whatever floats your boat!
3. Bring a jacket and a blanket. As the sun sets it does get cold and you'll need them. However, don't leave them unattended as people nicked ours. I confronted them and got them back you'll be pleased to know but learn from my mistake!
4. Be prepared for Vauxhall station to get packed as soon as the credits roll. Consider getting a bus or going to another station, Oval isn't far away at all.