Easter Holiday 2010 - Brutons Do Butlins!

DAY 1 - POCKLINGTON TO OXFORD

Up way too early for a holiday day, a blast down to Oxford for our overnight stop-over before heading down to our holiday destination.

We are spending 5 days in Butlins, Bognor Regis. Almost more of a hijack than a holiday. Our friends and their children have always talked about us all going on holiday together and last year, midway through a Butlins holiday, Louise got a phone call telling her that if we booked up now we could get a big discount. Yes, why not, says Louise. (She would like me to point out here that she definitely did ask me at the time!)

So the deed was done and we're off to Butlins. Hardly my idea of a holiday destination, more my idea of minimum security hell, where the heat is replaced by rain and cold of an English Easter and the demons and hellspawn replaced by Burberry wearing, lager-swilling delights whose children run riot through the complex from morning till way too late at night.

Yes, I know Molly will love it, and some of the activities look great; high ropes course, rock-climbing, massive pool and leisure park, fencing, archery etc etc. But I'm dreading the people we have to do these things with, all overseen by ever smiling redcoated drama students determined to get everyone as involved as possible. "Fuck Off, I'm Reading" may become a catch-phrase.

Anyway, day one. Off we go, car laden, we pitched up in Oxford around midday, dropped the stuff off at the hotel and headed to the glittering spires of academia. Thankfully, given it was Easter Sunday, it was mercifully free of Oxford students to annoy me with their private school demenour and Oxford-student-ness.

We had a good look round and lucked into a visit to New College. Did you know it has a 14th C Cloister that was the location for the bit in Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire where Moody (well, Barty Crouch Jr, but you know what I mean) turned Malfoy into a ferret? Neither did we. Although after the ticket attendant told us, Molly was desperate to go in. Who would have thought walking round a courtyard could be such fun - or take over an hour?

And then it was back to the hotel, early night for all. Although my early night and the girl's early night does differ by a good 4 hours or so. In the morning we're off to Butlins. Oh dear.