An Olympic Afternoon

Another exciting trip to see the new Led Zeppelin documentary - for a second time - at another special venue, having been to the BFI IMAX in Waterloo on Wednesday evening for the preview screening and Q&A session with the film’s director.

Today, being a Sunday with engineering works on the line into Liverpool Street, it was quite a palaver to travel to the legendary Olympic Studios in Barnes, south-west London. I had to drive to Upminster, park the car, and then take three trains via West Ham and Waterloo Station to get down there. Happily all the connections worked perfectly and I arrived in good time.

Olympic Studios is where Led Zeppelin recorded and mixed much of their music. This includes the first two albums featured in the film “Becoming Led Zeppelin”, which is about the band members’ musical journeys up to the formation of the group in 1968 and the phenomenal first 18 months as they rose to enormous global success. To watch this story in the very room where the first Led Zeppelin album was created in late 1968 was incredible to me, having been a big fan for 50 years. As you can see in Extras, once again I had the very best seat in the house - right in the central sweet spot for the surround sound! I also collected a limited edition A3 size poster from the box office which I had won - number 236 of 250 copies printed. I’m going to get it framed.

Many other top bands and artists, including the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Queen used Olympic Studios extensively during its heyday. Here is a link to the diverse history of Olympic and this particular building, which was constructed in 1906 - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Studios

Today it’s a small 2-screen cinema with a café, and is a really lovely little venue to visit - https://www.olympiccinema.com/

It was raining when I left Olympic Studios for the convoluted journey home. How I kept my prized poster dry and in pristine smooth condition is nothing short of a miracle, having had the forethought to bring a waterproof bag which was big enough to hold it safely. I have one more screening of “Becoming Led Zeppelin” booked on Wednesday evening in Colchester, once again I have a ticket for the seat in that sweet spot. Can you tell I love this film just a little bit? If, like me, you’re a big Led Zep fan this film is a must, and simply has to be seen on the big screen.