Our town an unexpectedly entertaining place to live

I have long said that Wanganui is New Zealand's best-kept secret ... and now I've found that many of Wanganui's charms are secret even from its own inhabitants.

Who would have thought of going to our museum to hear great music? Who would have thought that a world-class production of Les Mis could be staged at our own Royal Opera House? By our people? Who even knew it was on?

I found out about both of those things by chance and enjoyed them immensely.

Last summer Benny Koroheke and others put on some great nights of entertainment at our museum, complete with patrons dancing in the gallery upstairs. All for about $5.

As for the Amdram production of Les Mis - Christine and I won't be watching the film with Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman et al. We would far rather hold the memory of that powerful local live performance in our minds forever, thank you, than watch Russell try to sing (surely that would be as far-fetched as having Tom Cruise play Jack Reacher?).

There was Last Night of the Proms and then there was Crazy for You at the Royal Opera House, put on by the Wanganui High School. Yes, you read me right - the Wanganui High School.

I didn't see it. My loss, apparently.

The people who put these events on will say that they did advertise them, so it is my fault for being surprised by their happening. And they are right. I just didn't expect to see anything that exciting in our coming events.

Was I overcome by ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care but I have had to learn to "expect the unexpected" from Wanganui. Especially where local entertainment is concerned.

So I ought not to have been surprised to walk into a little pub just across the river and be mightily impressed by Richard Littlejohn's band doing their thing on Friday. I was even more surprised to see about 30 spare seats at 8.15pm.

I was with five or six of my cousins (I come from a large, fertile family) and while we got there early to a busy bar, patrons seemed to empty out around 8pm to go upstairs to the restaurant. I would have been happy with a plate of chips. In fact I was. What a great (and cheap) evening. Richard's talents are not limited to his practice as a local osteopath. Boy, that man can crank out great music from his guitar, or a mandolin when singing Copperhead Road. Oh yess!

And Fred Loveridge was playing both his usual lead guitar and the new pedal steel guitar he bought in the US last year. Is there any Wanganui band that Fred and/or his brother, the funny man Murray "Dusty" Loveridge (on bass) are not in?

With John Steedman on sax, and Mike McGrail on drums, the band plays their instantly recognisable soft-rock from the'70s (and just a wee bit from the'80s) at the Red Lion nearly every second Friday, and it guarantees a great night out for not much money.

It is a bit loud, so be warned, you can really only chat during the breaks.

I will be keeping a better eye on the "coming attractions" section in future.

Oh yess!