Doctor Who

I don’t watch a lot of teevee these days; indeed, at the moment the only thing I watch is my Doctor Who on Tuesday nights on CBC. After a hiatus of several years, the BBC has revived Dr. Who. It’s been worth watching too. The new Doctor has been excellent, his companions fun, and the stories well done. The BBC has even thrown some money at the special effects department; while keeping with the campy character of the original show, gone are the really cheesy props put together sometimes literally with duct tape and hangar wire.

When I was a kid, not quite in my teens yet, Saturday nights were something I really looked forward to; that was when I would get to watch Harold Lloyd followed by the Hardy Boys, right before which I would get to make myself a bowlful of popcorn with lots of butter and salt.

This long dormant pleasure of popcorn and teevee has been been revived on Tuesdays.

When I was still living in Victoria, I used to attend the Cinecenta cinema at the university; a place that showed many second run films as well as foreign and other unusual movies. I still remember seeing two of the earlier (1960’s vintage) Doctor Who movies there; the rookie projectionist leaving a black spot of silence for about a second or so between reels of the double feature. Brilliantly enjoyable and quite fitting!

Cinecenta distinguished itself in two ways with their popcorn. First, by having good old-fashioned popcorn – popped in coconut oil and seasoned with butter and salt. Just like it should be! Second, by having small quantities available for cheap – as far back as 1998, just before I moved to Vancouver, you could get a 32oz cup of it for a measly $2; not only delicious, but just the right size for a treat.

I still make popcorn this old fashioned way at home for my Tuesday evening decadence. I bought some coconut oil on spec at Famous Foods when I saw it on super sale, not knowing what I would use it for at the time. I still have the old aluminum pot I used as a kid all those years ago to make the popcorn in. I use premium Orville Redenbacher popping corn, popped on a hot burner in the coconut oil; then I add some European style cultured butter and salt. Then off to the comfy seat and the latest installment of Doctor Who!

An hour once a week in front of the teevee, watching a show I enjoyed in the salad days of my youth with perfect old-fashioned popcorn; in short, recapturing if only for an hour the carefree insouciance of an adolescent; this is one of life’s great pleasures.