I recently rejoined the local library of my childhood, and have been rediscovering the joy of borrowing DVDs and glossy magazines, all for free. (Apart from when said DVDs are returned late…)

Having had a few days off work sick recently, I decided to borrow a few films, and couldn’t resist one of my childhood favourites, Splash. (Note: spoilers ahead, but you have had since 1984).

Starring a baby-faced Tom Hanks as the overworked Allen Bauer, the legs-to-the-sky Daryl Hannah as Madison the mermaid and the late, young John Candy (may he rest in peace) as his brother Freddie, Splash is a fish out of water (sorry) love story to warm the cockles (sorry) of your been-single-too-long heart.

Madison and Allen first meet as kids, when she saves him from drowning after he falls off a ferry while on holiday in Cape Cod. He dismisses it as his mind playing tricks on him and returns to dry land and ‘reality’. Years later, we meet Allen again in adulthood. Freshly single after yet another relationship goes awry; he decides to return to Cape Cod to recuperate. Yet again he takes a tumble off a boat, and wakes up on the beach to see our Madison, who has again rescued him. She gives him a kiss and dashes back into the water, leaving Allen to wonder who this mysterious woman is.

He isn’t left clueless for long, as Madison soon arrives in New York, in a rather distinctive fashion, to reunite Allen with his wallet. A sweet, idyllic love story unfolds. Madison’s childlike enthusiasm for daily life on dry land is infectious – who doesn’t think there’s a bit of magic in watching dough being tossed in the window of a pizza place?

At one point, Allen tells Madison the story of being rescued by a mermaid as a child but stops short, saying “nothing. I was just a stupid kid” – but the recurring motif of fish tanks in Allen’s home and office, showing his lifelong connection to all things aquatic, shows us this is a love that’s meant to be.

However, Dr Walter Kornbluth, a scientist determined to reveal Madison for who she really is, is an ever-lurking threat. Madison initially hides her true self from Allen, but when she’s captured in the name of science, her secret is uncovered. Dr Kornbluth has a change of heart when he learns the truth of the government scientist’s plans for Madison, and together with Allen and Freddie, sneaks into the lab and sets her free. Fleeing from the threat of recapture, Madison and Allen dive in the harbour and leave New York for an underwater metropolis.

Verdict: A childhood encounter with a mermaid, John Candy as an obnoxious older brother, Daryl Hannah rocking crimped waist-length hair and a men’s suit, some seriously dated technology, 80s New York New York, an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay – what’s not to love? Splash is a childhood pleasure definitely worth reclaiming.