UPDATE: Tickets for this event now available on the Square Chapel Arts Centre website: click here!

Now here’s an interesting concept… Aside from being an international star of the cycle touring writing world [are you sure?] and an acclaimed supply teacher [you are joking, no?], I spend much of time working at Halifax’s leading arts centre [that I can believe], the Square Chapel Arts Centre no less where I manage the volunteers, look after work placements and produce the town’s top-rated arts podcast. Hard to believe, but true. But that’s not the interesting concept. ‘Cycle to the Cinema‘, is, and it’s coming to [you guessed…] the Square Chapel Arts Centre in Halifax in August!

“Cycle to the cinema to watch inspiring films on biking, climbing, running and other adventurous sports. The concept is simple – we put on great films and you cycle to them. Have a drink and a piece of cake, chat, watch the film/s and cycle home… et voilà – exercise, entertainment and a social, all in one go.”

cycletothecinema.co.uk

In conjunction with Decathlon, the organisers provide secure cycle storage for the event and show a cycle-themed film. It’s no more complicated than that. The film being shown in Halifax on August 14th at 7.30pm is called The Bikes of Wrath [can you see what they’ve done there?]. Here’s the trailer…

…and here’s the blub:

” The Bikes of Wrath tells the story of five Australian friends as they attempt to cycle 2600 kilometers from Sallisaw, Oklahoma, to Bakersfield, California in honor of the mighty westward migration undertaken by ‘The Grapes of Wrath’s’ Joad family. With an inordinate amount of self-belief, the cyclists set-off on their 30-day adventure with no training, no support vehicle, and as one member puts it best, ‘no real idea’. Burdened with trailers, musical instruments, and camera equipment, the group set themselves the additional challenge of surviving on $420 (the modern-day equivalent of the Joads’ $18 in the 1930s) and whatever their musical performances can yield. Riding 90 kilometers a day, the journey along America’s iconic route 66 takes them from the farmlands of Oklahoma to the blistering Mojave desert and countless places in-between; the diversity of landscapes only matched by the assortment of characters met along the way. It is through these chance encounters with everyday Americans that the cyclists expand on the novel’s central themes: migration, inequality and the perceived land of opportunity. The group explores whether America has progressed since the book was written, discussing the wealth gap, immigration, and the American Dream. These vastly different small-town characters quickly become the central focus of the series, as well as integral to the groups’ success; letting the cyclists into their homes, lives, and demonstrating the startling parallels of ‘The Grapes of Wrath’ seventy-eight years after its publication. The Bikes of Wrath seven-part series uncovers a deep insight into the human spirit and shines a positive light on America at a time when the world needs it most; all rolled into a unique, funny and life-affirming observational documentary series filled with adventure, literature, music, and human connection.”

cycletothecinema.co.uk

Tickets are available from the Square Chapel Arts Centre website. I might see you there!

P.S.

” (In case you are wondering, yes we will allow you in if you don’t come by bike, but we hope you’ll enter into the spirit of things).”

cycletothecinema.co.uk