Stockard Channing, who stars in a film called Sparkle. Photograph: Graeme Robertson
The last August edition of the Edinburgh film festival is up and running - although I'm feeling distinctly down and crawling after the opening night party.
The festival is moving to June from next year and people up here don't seem to know if that's a good or bad thing. The consensus seems to be neither, that, you know, it just is. Personally, I fear that the June dates will mean clashes with major football tournaments, like the European Championships and World Cup every other year - although as Scotland don't usually feature too much in these, attendances at the cinemas may not be too badly affected.
Anyway, the opening party is always a bit raucous up here. Of all the festivals, this one is like a massive student bop and lord knows what they put in the drinks. That said, the party was great fun, Franz Ferdinand (two of them anyway) played three great acoustic songs, John Waters and Irvine Welsh were there and Tilda Swinton was dancing along.
John Waters is charming fun. He's here with a concert film, of him doing his stand-up routine - it's called This Filthy World and it's very funny. I was very pleased to have him on the show this week.
I've also got Stockard Channing, who's in a film called Sparkle and is doing a talk up here, filling in for Bob Hoskins. She was happy to talk about Grease, but I got the feeling that it's not the biggest thing in her life - in fact, she seems not to understand what any of the fuss is about.
But I kick off with Jamie Bell, who's a frighteningly assured 21-year-old. He gives a great interview and clearly isn't heading for rehab. He's great in Hallam Foe, which opened the whole shebang in one of the best match-ups of film to festival I can recall.
What are your favourite examples of watching a film in the location where it was actually filmed? When you come out of the cinema and walk bang into the place you've been watching on screen?
Let me know and enjoy the show
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