The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, and tells the story of Nick Carraway and his associations with a mysterious millionaire named Jay Gatsby. The novel depicts the roaring twenties with glamour and intrigue and the title has become synonymous with raucous parties, overindulgence, and flapper dresses. The 1920s were a time of economic prosperity and had a defined culture of excess.

The 2020s have by contrast so far been less party filled and economically far removed from the prosperity enjoyed a century ago. However, we have not forgotten how to enjoy ourselves and to celebrate life and the many wonderful things in it.

I have not lived at Priors Hall for very long, none of us have but we have settled in and are becoming accustomed to a quite different way of life. The outside world may be a little worse for wear following the last couple of years but inside we are having a ball. We have enjoyed entertainment and games, we have taken up new hobbies and we have partied, we have partied to celebrate birthdays, bank holidays, national and international days, we have partied for good reason, and we have partied for no reason other than we can.

This week we were treated to an afternoon of glamour and cocktails, Gatsby style in our Sky Bar. The scene was set for an afternoon of glitz, there was a roulette wheel, cards, cocktails, and feather boas. We chatted, we laughed, we sang, and we drank more fruity cocktails than we perhaps should have. It was marvellous.

In general, this decade may have been, so far, a little less fun in comparison with its twentieth century counterpart but here at Priors Hall we are making the most of every day and although our Charleston days are now behind us, our partying days are just beginning.