A little reason to celebrate
Back to the Future Day
Fun ยท October 21
A day for the Back to the Future films, with their time-traveling DeLorean, Marty McFly, Doc Brown and a story that keeps folding back on itself.
Back to the Future Day falls on Thursday, October 21, 2027. That is 359 days away.
Back to the Future is a film series about Marty McFly, a teenager who gets sent through time in a DeLorean car that his friend, the inventor Doc Brown, has turned into a time machine. The day gives fans a reason to revisit the trilogy and the odd, cheerful logic of its plot.
The first film's problem is a tidy one. Marty accidentally interferes with how his own parents met, and he has to set things right before he fades out of existence. The sequels push the idea further, jumping forward and backward and sometimes landing in the middle of scenes from the earlier movies. Keeping track of which version of events is the real one becomes part of the entertainment.
Much of the series' charm sits in its objects. The DeLorean with its gull-wing doors. The flux capacitor, which Doc calls the thing that makes time travel possible. The hoverboard. A clock tower that matters more than any clock tower has a right to. Fans can often quote the rule that the car has to reach 88 miles per hour before it jumps.
People usually mark the day by watching one or all three films, sometimes in order and sometimes out of order, which seems fitting. Others dress as Marty in his puffy vest, or sketch out the timeline on paper to see whether it holds together. It mostly does, if you squint.
The soundtrack helps too. The theme music is the sort of thing people hum in the kitchen without noticing, usually right at the part where the car takes off.
Ways to celebrate
- Watch the trilogy in order, then argue about which film is best.
- Draw the timeline on paper and see where Marty overlaps himself.
- Dress as Marty or Doc using clothes you already own.
- Listen to the films' theme music and soundtrack.
- Look for a DeLorean at a local car show.
Dates
| Year | Date |
|---|---|
| 2026 | Wednesday, October 21 |
| 2027 | Thursday, October 21 |
| 2028 | Saturday, October 21 |
| 2029 | Sunday, October 21 |
| 2030 | Monday, October 21 |
All national days on October 21
Also on October 21
Categories: Fun days