Countess Cora is mother of yet another bride; and funny goings-on at the Comedy Store

Alice Jones' Arts Diary

Cheerful Weather for the Wedding

From one pushy mother to another. Elizabeth McGovern, aka Downton Abbey’s Countess Cora, stars in Cheerful Weather for the Wedding as the mother of a bride who gets cold feet.

The British period drama, set in 1932, also stars Felicity Jones, Luke Treadaway and Mackenzie Crook and is the directorial debut of Donald Rice, son of the composer, Tim.

Rice, 35, who started out assisting Stephen Poliakoff, has a track record for attracting high-profile stars. His first short film, Traffic Warden, starred David Tennant; for his second, I am Bob, he persuaded Bob Geldof to play himself, entering a Bob Geldof-lookalike contest.

Well-connected he may be, but for Cheerful Weather, which premiered at Tribeca in April and is released in the UK next month, Rice eschewed easy family connections. The soundtrack is composed by Michael Price, best known for his work on Sherlock and Tinker Tailor, Soldier Spy.

Comedy at the Cinema

Opera, ballet and theatre have been on the bill at cinemas for some time. Now the Comedy Store is linking up with cinemas to screen four shows from 22 February, with Doc Brown and Adam Bloom among the acts on show. There’s one crucial difference, though, “The Comedy Store: Raw and Uncut” will be taped “as live” at the London club. Surely a live stream would be more in keeping with the artform’s anarchic roots?

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