George's Marvellous Medicine

by Roald Dahl

At The Old Rep, Birmingham
Review by Pete Millington

Best known for his three celebrated tales of the unexpected for kidlets, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The BFG and James and the Giant Peach, it's fantastic to see one of our smaller provincial theatre companies take on this lesser known though equally Dahlesquely incredible tale, George's Marvellous Medicine for production at Birmingham's Old Rep Theatre.

Sir Barry Jackson's quaint little 383 seater 1913 theatre in the centre of Brum provided a fittingly intimate venue for this simple but engaging play which involved plenty of audience participation. As the families excitedly packed into the theatre, we were ushered into the stalls by a most charming Jamaican gent by the name of Norman who could almost have been a Roald Dahl character himself, so charming indeed that my wife ran back to offer him a Quality Street to which he very aptly responded by searching eagerly for the coconut eclair.

As the audience continued to shuffle along the rows of the Old Rep to their seats, the scene was already being set for us before the play had even begun with assorted farm noises and also by the wonderful set of George's tumbledown farmhouse on stage. The story is more straight forward than other Dahl classics, but was all the same most suitable for this family audience and featured plenty of eccentricity and some truly marvellous effects.

In a nutshell, George lives happily with his hard working parents on their farm when one day, much to everyone's disgruntlement, mum's very unpleasant mother decides to come and stay. An exasperated George is left to do the old lady's bidding, serving on her hand and foot, until his frustration gets the better of him and he decides to concoct a new medicine for his grandma made up of all sorts of extremely unlikely ingredients from pig pellets to lipstick. The resultant medicine proves to have quite unexpected affects, not least on grandma but subsequently on various farm animals including an 8 foot high chicken.

I won't give away any more of the story but suffice it to say that the ensuing onstage mayhem is wonderful. So much so that it wasn't just the kidlets in the audience that were shouting out at the players.

The production is by the Birmingham Stage Company, adapted by David Wood and directed by Phil Clark. George is played by young Scottish actor Clark Devlin, Grandma by Stoke born Erika Poole, Mum by Alison Fitzjohn, Dad by Tom Woodman and would you believe it the only other actor in this theatrical pandemonium is Jason O'Brien who plays the Giant Chicken. One is left to marvel at how O'Brien does not fall off the edge of the stage in the chicken suit... though if he ever does we can safely rest assured he will quite likely bounce back up.

Ingredients:

A charming and cleverly compact cartoon sketchbook set, astonishingly authentic Quentin Blake style characters brought to life, generous spoonfuls of fun, magic and humour along with some rather marvellous stage effects. Throw in a lively audience of kids of all ages (but especially the 4-10s maybe) and stir vigorously.

The result is entirely agreeable.


And if you are intending to go, make sure you take Norman a coconut eclair.


George's Marvellous Medicine is on at The Old Rep until the 6th February 2010.

Book tickets here:

http://www.oldreptheatre.org.uk/book.htm
l

New Year celebrations in Birmingham

There will be a five minute firework display over Birmingham City Centre at midnight on New Year’s Eve.

People already in the city centre will be able to see the fireworks over Centenary Square. The Birmingham Mail wheel will be open late until 1am to help celebrate the start of 2010 – access to the Birmingham Wheel is on a first come, first served basis.

The fireworks display marks the end of a busy year for the city council’s leisure, sport and culture services.

Some of the highlights include a record number of just under 3 million visitors to the Frankfurt Christmas market, more than 270,000 attending Artsfest events, over 60,000 people visiting Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery during the 19 days the Staffordshire Hoard was on display, over 13,000 runners participated in the World Half Marathon Championship and Birmingham Parks and Nurseries won silver gilt at the Chelsea Flower Show.

The Christmas programme at Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery has seen the hugely popular return of Father Christmas and national coverage following the new Archbishop of Birmingham’s praise of the Nativity Art Trail.

There was also the return of the much loved Aston Hall by Candlelight to the recently refurbished Manor House, as well as successful historical Christmas events at Blakesley Hall, the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter and Soho House.

In addition to this, roads around Birmingham’s Broad Street will be closed on New Years Eve in the run up to the annual five minute firework display at midnight.

The five minute fireworks display will be visible from Centenary Square and the Birmingham Mail wheel will be open late until 1am to help celebrate the start of 2010.

The vehicle access restrictions for this event will be as follows:

11.30pm – 12.30am – Broad Street from Paradise Circus up to Sheepcote Street.

11.50pm – 12.10am – Holliday Street from Berkley Street to Suffolk Street Queensway and the whole length of Bridge Street.

Vehicle access to pubs, clubs etc. will be permitted from Sheepcote Street down to Gas Street during the event. A phased lifting of the traffic restrictions will be carried out as soon as it is safe to do so. Taxis will be located at the rank by the ICC, and will have access along Broad Street via the usual Gas Street/Berkley Street loop whilst the road closures are in operation.

Cllr Martin Mullaney, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport & Culture said, “I would like to wish everyone a very happy New Year. Our diverse programme of events and exhibitions made 2009 a year to remember for local families and visitors alike. Here’s to a successful 2010!”

For further details please go to www.birmingham.gov.uk/christmas

Keep warm reminder

From Solihull Partnership

Elderly and vulnerable residents in Solihull are being reminded that there is help at hand to make sure that they can keep warm during the current cold snap.

Local organisations including Solihull Council, Solihull NHS Care Trust, Age Concern Solihull, Solihull Community Housing, West Midlands Fire Service, Citizens Advice Bureau, the Pension Service and Hestia, have all joined forces to try and make sure people have the help and advice they need to be warm enough in their homes.

The Winter Warmth Helpline has been set up on 0121 704 8080 for vulnerable residents who need urgent help such as:

• Finding a tradesperson for emergency repairs

• Help with an emergency heater if the central heating system breaks down

• An electric blanket if they cannot afford to heat their bedroom

• Warm clothing if they are struggling to afford it

• Emergency food supplies

• Debt advice and assistance to pay bills.

People can also get general advice about their energy bills, and the grants and loans available for installing insulation or replacing central heating by calling the Energy Saving Trust Advice Centre on 0800 512 012.

Cabinet Member for Health, Social Care and Partnerships, Councillor Bob Sleigh said: “As the current cold snap is set to continue we are aware that this can cause concerns for our elderly and vulnerable residents who feel worried about the costs of turning up their heating.

“We want people to know that they are not alone this winter and there is help on offer to make sure that they can stay warm and healthy in their homes. I would urge anyone with concerns to phone our new helpline and I would also ask other residents for their help in keeping an eye on their older and vulnerable friends or neighbours this winter,” adds Councillor Sleigh.

Anne Hastings, Chief Executive Officer of Age Concern added: “Age Concern Solihull wholeheartedly supports the Solihull Winter Warmth Campaign and urges older people and vulnerable families who find themselves in difficulties this winter to contact the Winter Warmth Hotline.”

Top tips for keeping warm this winter:

• Keep internal doors closed to stop draughts.

• Have at least one hot meal and hot drinks throughout

• Layer up-many layers of clothing are best.

• Do light chair exercises or move around indoors.

• Use an electric blanket or hot water bottle.

• Close curtains at dusk.

• Ensure your heating is 21C in your main living room and 18C in other rooms used.

• Keep your heating at 18C overnight.

• If you receive benefits, ring your energy supplier to check if they have a social tariff

• Pay your bills by direct debit to spread the cost.

• Join your energy supplier’s priority register scheme.

New Year's Eve

Nearly New Year on the Chatham Islands east of New Zealand. With less than an hour left to go, Chatham Islanders are preparing to go ballistic. Here are a few interesting facts and figures about New Year.

The advent of New Year's Day is determined by the International Date Line, an imaginary line on the Earth that separates two consecutive calendars. The date in the Eastern hemisphere, to the left of the line, is always one day ahead of the date in the western hemisphere.

In theory the International Date Line could be set anywhere in the world but it is widely accepted that it lies 180 degrees away from the defining meridian that goes through Greenwich in England. The area through which the International Date Line runs is mainly covered empty ocean, but it does zig and zag around certain areas of land.

First place in the world to see 2010 will be:

Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati also known as Christmas Island is an island nation located in the central tropical Pacific Ocean. It is composed of 32 atolls and one raised coral island straddling the equator, and bordering the International Date Line to the east.

Did you know that at the stroke of midnight in Austria, people start to dance a waltz usually to that well known tune, The Blue Danube.

In the Ukraine, New Year is seen as a preperation event before the Eastern Orthodox Christmas which takes place on 7th January. So Ukraine children can expect to meet Ded Moroz on New Year's Eve, the east European version of Santa.

In Spain, New Year revellers will eat 12 grapes, one for each chime of the clcok Casa de Correos clock in Madrid. A similar ritual takes place across large sections of Spanish speaking South America.

In Australia some 2 million people gather around Sydney Harbour to watch one of the world's most incredible firework displays which takes place from the Sydney bridge.

Festivities in Scotland started on 28th December and will go on until the 2nd January with New Year sounded by cannon fire from Edinburgh castle at midnight tonight.

In Venezuala, people wanting romance in 2010 are encouraged to wear red underwear on New Year's Eve.

Saucy Italians also wear red underwear on New Year's Eve which is celebrated with a family dinner of lentils and sausage meat. Italians also have a ritual of dropping things they don't want out of their windows on New Year's Eve.

In Japan, Buddhist temples ring their bells 108 times at midnight, a meditational ritual which helps people to clear their minds for the New Year.

Every New Year's Eve in Sweden there is a showing on TV of the old West German cult classic Dinner for One with Freddie Frinton.

One Day Left of 2009

Wishing you all a happy New Year's Eve and a great night tonight, whatever you do!

Coming up at Arden Hall, Castle Bromwich in 2010

16/09/10 THE FORTUNES WITH ALAN LOVELL


Tickets: Price to be confirmed


17/12/10 BOOTLEG ABBA & NEIL DIAMOND TRIBUTE

Tickets:Price to be confirmed


For more info or to reserve seats call 0121 749 5089 or e-mail me back on this e-mail with your request!!!

egomongoose@hotmail.co.uk

All the best

Chris Beebee
Beebee Productions
0121 749 5089

2010 Midlands ABA Championship Finals

The biggest and best value New Yrs Eve event is at the Custard Factory... full line-up & tickets here!

Custard Factory New Years Eve Festival Key Points

Current ticket sales are beating the previous 6yrs of NYE Custard Factory ticket sales!

2 x Heated Marquees (will not go below a prefered temperature!)

L.E.D lighting and Visual Jockey's performing live

5 music arenas of Techno, Drum and Bass, Dubstep, House, Indie

Extra Bars, Cloakrooms, Food Stalls

VIP ticket just £5 more for queue jump, private area, comfy seating, private bar

Promoters: Stupid Underground, Atomic Jam, Bigger Than Barry, Break Thru, Eardrum, Brum
 
Tickets from 0844 870 0000
 

Fancy purchasing a nice piece of original art in the New Year?

My dad's cousin Terence Millington is an accomplished artist, printmaker and etcher based in Devon. Check out his website below to view his beautifufl work:

http://www.terencemillington.com/

Biography:

Terence was born in Birmingham in 1942. He studied painting at the Birmingham College of Art before moving to Manchester to attend a printmaking course. Since then Terence has taught at many art colleges around England. He has a long established reputation as an accomplished etcher and printmaker and has been regularly published by CCA Galleries since the mid Seventies. His painting and prints have been exhibited across the UK and overseas. His work is also included in public and private collections worldwide notably the Arts Council of Great Britain Tate Gallery and Victoria and Albert Museum. Terence?s favoured subject matters are landscape and still life. His work often follow a theme where one subject can hold so many different images for him that he will create a series of paintings or prints. Although working in the European still life tradition Terence does not set about imposing his specific artistic style upon his subjects. Each object has its own innate character and his skill is in identifying and expressing it independently. The result as always is a highly individual and jewel-like image.

Coming up in Wolverhampton

Listings of Civic, Wulfrun and Civic Bar and new venue events as at 23/12/09.


New Shows - confirmed in the last few weeks



NEW RESCHEDULED DATE - Kevin Bridges + Joe BOr – 16th April 2010

Levellers – 30th April 2010

Mercury The Ultimate Queen Tribute - 10th anniversary tour – 14th March 2010 (Re-scheduled from 8th October 2009)

Fear Factory – 17th February 2010

Dreadzone – 15th May 2010

Underøath – 15th March 2010

HammerFall – 5th May 2010

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – 28th April 2010

Joyous – 18th February 2010

POSTPONED - Shappi Khorsandi & Jon Richardson - 9th April 2010

NEW RESCHEDULED DATE - Shappi Khorsandi & Jon Richardson - 13th May 2010

Jim Davidson - If I Ruled The World – 25th April 2010

Mark Morriss & Ed Davies plus guests – 12th March 2010

The Nightingales + Hotpants Romance + Guilty Pleasures of The Snow Angel – 11th February 2010

Freddie Starr – 25th March 2010

Theory of a Deadman – 6th April 2010

BIGELF + Priestess – 24th February 2010

Chesney Hawkes – 19th February 2010

Heavens Basement/Dear Superstar - 7th March 2010

Good Shoes – 27th April 2010

DATE CHANGE - The Nightingales + Hotpants Romance + Guilty Pleasures of The Snow Angel – 11th February 2010

NEW DATE - The Nightingales + Hotpants Romance + Guilty Pleasures of The Snow Angel – 13th February 2010

Liberation Works EP launch – 2nd April 2010

Idiots of Ants – 6th May 2010

Ovation Music Management Showcase – 4th March 2010

Angry Vs The Bear – 16th February 2010
 
2010

Thursday 7th January 2010 – Civic Hall - £23.00, £19.00, £15.00, £10.00 + £5.00 (Under 18s)
CBSO Viennese Gala
Doors 7.00pm

Friday 8th January 2010 – Civic Bar - £10.00
City Of Fire (Fear Factory)
Doors 7.00pm

Saturday 9th January 2010 – Civic Hall - £2.00
V.I.P. Music Fair
Doors 10.00am

Saturday 9th January 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £11.50
Napalm Death
Doors 7.00pm

CANCELLED - Friday 15th January 2010 – Civic Hall - £tbc
Sky TV Boxing
Doors 7.00pm

RESCHEDULED from Thursday 12th November 2009 - Saturday 16th January 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £12.00 + £10.00 (concessions)
Stewart Francis – Tour De Francis
Doors 7.00pm

Tuesday 19th January 2010 – Civic Hall - £28.50
John Mayer
Doors 7.00pm

Wednesday 20th January 2010 – Little Civic - £7.00
Delphic
Doors 7.30pm

Saturday 23rd January 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £17.50
An Evening Of Spoken Word With Henry Rollins
Doors 7.00pm

Monday 25th January 2010 – Civic Bar - £9.00
Evile + Warbringer + The Fading + Necrotize
Doors 7.00pm

Friday 29th January 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £12.50
Emilie Autumn welcomes you to The Asylum Tour
Doors 7.00pm

Saturday 30th January 2010 – Civic Hall - £26.00, £20.00, £17.00, £12.00
Circus Of Horrors - The Day Of The Dead
Doors 6.30pm

Saturday 30th January 2010 – Little Civic - £10.00
Miles Hunt & Erica Nockalls
Doors 7.30pm

Sunday 31st January 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £17.50
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Doors 7.00pm

Saturday 6th February 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £14.00 + £12.00 (concessions)
Jo Caulfield Won´t Shut Up!
Doors 7.00pm

Tuesday 9th February 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £13.00
Cobra Starship
Doors 7.00pm

Wednesday 10th February 2010 – Wulfrun Hall - £12.50
Fightstar + All Forgotten
Doors 7.00pm

Thursday 11th February 2010 - Wulfrun Hall - £18.50
An Evening with Jimmy Greaves
Doors 7.00pm

DATE CHANGE - Thursday 11th February 2010 – Little Civic - £6.50
The Nightingales + Hotpants Romance + Guilty Pleasures of The Snow Angel
Doors 7.30pm

Villa 1957 FA Cup Final Programme

I had a nice unexpected Christmas present this morning when I took my mom and dad to visit their sister-in-law Iris. Aunty Iris is the widow of my dad's older brother Bill who died a few years ago. Bill was a lifelong Villa season ticket holder and when I was a lad in the 1960s and 70s he used to take me to Villa Park on a regular basis in the days of Chico Hamilton, Charlie Aitken, Willie Anderson and Bruce Rioch. I remember watching Villa get promotion back from the 3rd Division and a Villa youth team including Brian Little win the FA Youth Cup. In those days a nipper like me could be lifted over the turnstyles and I'd sit on Bill's knee in the seats to watch the game!

But this historical Villa programme goes back a few more years before I was even born, to 1957 when the Villa beat the famous 'Busby Babes' Manchester United side 2-1 in the FA Cup final at Wembley. Uncle Bill had apparently won his cup final ticket in a poety competition. Iris tried to recall a few lines from memory and has promised me she'll try to find the whole poem which is in a box or cupboard somewhere.

The programme is a great piece of football history. Costing one shilling at the time, it clearly leans towards the Manchester United side which is described as the season's "Team of the Century". A journalist named Albert Sewell suggests that the Babes can be the youngest cup winners, having become the youngest League Champions the previous season. Having said this, Sewell goes on to warn caution to Manchester United, citing Busby:

"So long as they remember that the medals have still to be earned, that Villa are not here simply to make up the number, Manchester United should justify their position as firm favourites. Manager Busby will have warned his young men against the risks of being Cup Final favourites and the dangers of over confidence. He was right half in the Manchester City side rated certain to beat Everton here in 1933. Instead they lost 3-0. He remembers how the eager young Wolves were shattered 4-1 in 1939 by a Portsmouth team who were given no time outside Hampshire. Last year it was Birmingham's turn as the favourites who failed at Wembley. The ball is at your feet, United. A year ago you were the youngest League Champions. Now you can add the "Youngest Cup winners" title, too!"

In a supposedly impartial Cup Final programme, it is interesting to note the beginnings of the Manchester United supporter arrogance which has only increased over the past 52 years!

Whilst not exactly calling it a 'right of reply' as such, later on in the programme there is an editorial from another journalist named Rod Davies, who does at least lay out Villa's own glorious history going back to the days of Scotsman George Ramsay when Villa first won the FA Cup against West Brom in 1887 at Kennington Oval. In fairness to the Baggies, Davies also recalls how the Albion took revenge by beating Villa in the Cup Final in 1892.

"Then began a golden era" says Davies "in which they were five times League champions and twice winners of the Cup in seven seasons. When they won the Cup in 1895, they lost it - literally. Someone stole it from a Birmingham shop window. In 1897 they equalled Preston North End's 1889 feat of winning Cup and League. It was a wonderful period in the club's history, marked in 1897 by the opening of Villa Park, still one of the greatest grounds in the country".

Davies goes on to remind readers that if Villa were to win the Cup today against United, they would set a new record of winning it seven times.

"Today they are represented by a team of eleven players who are sound footballers, good club men and battlers to the last ditch - very proud of their record of coming from behind with the odds against them!"

If you examine the scanned copy of my Uncle Bill's programme above, you may note that he was good enough to scribble in the final score next to the teams on the front cover with his fountain pen. And yes, Villa did of course go on to win the match 2-1 and just for all United fans all over Britain from Brighton right up as far north as Watford, here's a picture of the victorious underdogs.

I'm hoping that this is one late Christmas present which proves to be a good omen for the Villa in 2010.

West Midlands Open exhibition

For West Midlands Artists... The West Midlands Open exhibition

If you are an artist and would like to submit work or know anybody who may be interested, please return your entries by 3 January 2010.

West Midlands Open 2010


6th March - 2nd May 2010

Open is a biennial collaboration between Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery and Wolverhampton Art Gallery, celebrating the vibrant talent of the West Midlands Art Scene and allowing regional artists the chance to show their work at these major venues.

Open 2010 will be held in the Gas Hall, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery's most prestigious exhibition space.

Open welcomes submissions from all artists living in Birmingham and the > West Midlands Region, incorporating Staffordshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. Closing date for submissions is 3rd January 2010

A copy of the entry form is available to download below it contains all the relevant information about the Open including details of how to submit your work. Hard copies of this form are also available at the main reception of Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.

For further information please contact:

Tom Grosvenor
Exhibitions Officer
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery
Chamberlain Square
Birmingham B3 3DH

Email: tom.grosvenor@birmingham.gov.uk

http://www.bmag.org.uk/

GROUND BREAKING PROFESSIONAL ALLIANCE RAISES FUNDS FOR ST GILES HOSPICE

Professionals At Cathedral House is a unique strategic partnership of four professional businesses in Lichfield. On the 8th December they held a fundraising event along-side their monthly business to business networking meeting, which was supported by over 30 small businesses from the Tamworth and Lichfield area in aid of St Giles Hospice.


Professionals At Cathedral House was founded five years ago by four forward thinking professional services businesses in Lichfield. Their vision was to provide their clients with all the professional and financial services they need under one roof. Whilst all the four firms remain completely autonomous, by linking together they offer owner managed businesses a unique set of services including accountancy, legal, financial and insolvency help and advice.

Val Culley of Chartered Certified Accountants, Culley Lifford Hall said “Our four businesses offer separate but complimentary services that provide real value to our clients. They benefit from having their professional services all under one roof, as the client’s needs are understood by all concerned. This kind of strategic alliance is quite rare but in the near future professionals will be allowed formal partnerships between accountants, lawyers and others. So what Professionals At Cathedral House has been doing since 2004 has been truly ground breaking in the professional services sector.”

The four businesses of Professionals At Cathedral House not only share the same building in the centre of Lichfield, but also the added value that they collectively provide for their clients.

Linda Bridges of St Giles Hospice said “We are delighted to receive this donation from Professionals At Cathedral House. St Giles is totally funded by donations and it costs £16,000 every day to provide our services which helps around 3,000 people every year at the Hospice or in their own homes.”

St Giles Hospice is to become a permanent member of the Professionals At Cathedral House business to business networking group to build stronger ties between the Hospice and the local business community.

Frankfurt Christmas Market in Birmingham

Reported by Julie Chiswick

A special time in Birmingham is the opening each year of the Frankfurt Christmas Market which heralds the advent of Christmas festivities and fun. It is known to be the largest authentic Christmas market outside of Germany with almost 100 stalls lining Upper New Street and Victoria Square.

The tradition of the Chrismas market has been taking place since the Millenium and more than two million visitors are expected during its six-week run. This year it opened on November 12th and will close on 23rd December.

We chose a fine and sunny Thursday afternoon to visit, so we could be there as darkness came when everywhere takes on a magical fairytale appearance. As we emerged from New Street Station into the cold air, we were immediately drawn into the festive feeling of the market with hundreds of people milling up and down the pavements clutching bags of goodies and admiring the stalls.

Apart from the lights on each stall making wonderful warm colours as the afternoon shortened and the weather grew chillier, there were hosts of delicious aromas wafting into the crowds as we squeezed closer to see what was on offer. Pretzels and hot waffles, sweet sickly marzipan with almonds, honey and dried fruits and then a spicy smell as we approached the wonderful paprika sausages and salamis suspended from the ceiling and covering the counter.

Next on offer were handmade chocolates, chocolate tree decorations and cones of sweeties in every imaginable colour and flavour. Particularly pungent were the aniseed and fennel scents – wonderful stocking fillers.

Later on we passed numerous craft stalls, including wooden toys, knitted toys, handmade teddy bears, jewellery and crystal goods, brightly coloured candles of all shapes and sizes, paper lanterns in every imaginable colour, not forgetting the traditional lace wear.

On reaching Victoria Square, we were greeted by a huge red and yellow helter-skelter ( a very good place to meet if you should get lost in the crowd, which I did at one point!). The children love this entertainment as a bit of light relief from the madding crowds.

In the Square there was a different selection of stalls – this time many of an eating or drinking nature. Aromas of hot food hit us and we suddenly felt somewhat peckish. Due to the huge amount of people there, one had to show a degree of patience waiting in the food queue. One of the specialities is hot cheese served in batter – sometimes a touch sickly for my constitution, but nevertheless, intriguing to watch it being prepared. Fried potatoes with a creamy mushroom mixture looked very tempting, but Frankfurter sausages were the order of the day for the others in my group and they all agreed they were the best they’d ever tasted. These sausages were about twice the size we would normally expect, but twice the flavour too.

With food having satisfied us, it was time to try some glűhwein or possibly a German beer. By now the sun had disappeared and the darkness was descending. Lights from the stalls twinkled like stars and the whole scene was a winter wonderland. Whilst some had a German beer, two of us opted for a warming and delicious cherry glühwein and an apple glühwein. The crowds around the stall were packed to the edges, but after about ten minutes my husband emerged with hot cup in hand and we all stood happily for a while enjoying the drinks and savouring the atmosphere.

After that welcome pit-stop we were off again along the other side of the market to finish off our visit. Leaving all the hot food and drinks stalls behind we stopped to view many more delightful craft stalls. One very intriguing stall was of hand made metal sculptures, intricately crafted and beautifully displayed. More toy stalls followed next and glassware with crystal window hangings sparkled in the lights.

The men in our party then spotted the doughnut stand. All types and flavours of doughnuts, some with vibrant pink and green icing stood on display (not to my taste!), but a custard doughnut and a bright pink one were happily devoured by our menfolk whilst my daughter and I amusedly looked on.

Now by six o’clock, the temperature dropped considerably and we decided to wend our way back to the station. We all agreed it had been a wonderful start to the Christmas celebrations and despite the vast crowds, we were pleased to have made the visit – and we’ll no doubt be back again next year.

If you haven’t yet been, then make a note in your new 2010 diary – it’s really worth a visit!

Merry Christmas from Spaghetti Gazetti

It's Christmas Eve babe

I always remember this song because many years ago my wife Theresa and I visited her mother in Ireland for Christmas with a friend of ours named Hajinder Kaur who was a disabled woman. I have many happy memories of that Christmas spent with Hajinder, who sadly died a year later. We still think of her as even though she was a Sikh, she really loved Christmas and when she died her family gave us her Christmas tree!

But my biggest memory of that Chrsitmas was driving to Galway from Athlone and back on Christmas Eve and having a curry at what must have been the only Indian restaurant in Galway Bay at the time. As we drove to Galway, this came on the radio and every time I hear it, it still sends shivers down my spine.

So Jindy, this one's for you... happy Christmas.

We could even be related!

Over the Christmas holiday period I have decided to try to get some of my family tree research online and have created another blog to pilot this format for family history material.

I have in the past written two documents about my father's paternal and maternal lines (Millington and Clayton) and have started posting up sections from the latter research onto my new site at:

http://brummiefamilytree.blogspot.com/

Because of the sequential way that a blog is formatted, i.e. most recent material stays at the top of the page, I am working backwards through my research in terms of posting it up, so that it reads from the start to the end of each particular piece of research. I hope that makes sense - fellow bloggers will understand what I mean - it is difficult to write a narrative if the start of your story gets pushed to the end!

When I eventually finish posting up these documents I will add a memoir that my mother wrote completed earlier this year about growing up in the Irish community in Birmingham in the 1940s and 1950s.

If you are interested in family history, please check out my new website A Brummie Family Tree and feel free to contact me - especially if you spot a connection to my family. I come from a line of big families with connections all over the West Midlands region and Ireland, so you never know!

Lost in Music

Michael Styles and Philip Brookes

Seven adults with learning disabilities have been experiencing life in the music business after producing their own CD called ‘Life sounding live’.

The project, which was funded by the Warwickshire County Council’s Arts Service, enabled seven budding musicians from North Warwickshire and Nuneaton to compose their own songs that were put together to produce a CD.

The project was run over 10 weeks at Zoo studios, Gallery Common, Nuneaton.

The participants from North Warwickshire and Nuneaton Community Support Services got the opportunity to take part in the music project after they received funding from Warwickshire County Arts Service. The money was used to pay for rehearsals in the studio and to produce and package the CDs.

Paul Cooper from North Warwickshire Community Support Services, who worked with the group said: “It’s been a fabulous experience for everyone involved. The project was for people who do always not use words to communicate.

Music can be so inspiring and liberating, and people certainly used it as a different way to communicate.

“The project was a lot of fun, it encouraged creativity and it was amazing to see how the participants grew in confidence” he added.

The 10 sessions were held every Wednesday. People had the opportunity to experience being in a studio, to use a variety of instruments and try out different vocal techniques.

My fave Christmas record - what's yours?

Simon & Garfunkel - Silent Night / 7 o clock news

BASIS WMSIP News Alert

Young black people and the criminal justice system: second annual report

Second annual report to the Home Affairs Select Committee on progress made in taking forward the recommendations of its inquiry.


The Home Affairs Select Committee published on 15 June 2007 the report of its inquiry 'Young Black People and the Criminal Justice System', which considered how to tackle the over-representation of young black people in the criminal justice system.

The government published its formal response on 18 October 2007. Detailed proposals for the delivery of improved outcomes for young black people were published on 13 December 2007, which set out the governance and reporting arrangements for delivering the government's commitments.

One of the commitments made was to provide the committee with an annual report of progress in each year up to 2011. The first annual report was published on 16 December 2008. This is the second annual report.

Please click on the link below to access the PDF copy of the report -

http://www.justice.gov.uk/latest-updates/young-black-people-cjs-dec09.htm

 
Regional Action West Midlands
Email: simonh@rawm.co.uk

Web: http://www.rawm.org.uk/
Tel: 0121 359 9115

Hall together now…

Community and village halls play a crucial role and are often at the heart of activities within many of the rural towns and villages across Herefordshire.

Now, thanks to Herefordshire Council’s community regeneration team, it’s never been easier to find your local community hall and book it for an event thanks to the recently launched a community halls webpage on the council’s website.

“The site provides details of community halls across the county, with at least 100 out of the 150 halls having provided details,” said Natalia Silver, head of economic and community services.

“The aim of the site is to widen access to information on the halls, increase bookings and provide a database of halls for use in cases of county emergencies,” added Natalia.

For each hall the site gives a map, directions, access information, facilities, details of each bookable room, regular activities held, booking contact details and a photograph.

The site can be found at www.herefordshire.gov.uk/communityhalls

Halls can be searched alphabetically, or by capacity. Using a free text search visitors to the website can also find halls by name, or regular activities e.g. Keep Fit or Parish Council meetings.

“Most of these buildings are run by volunteers who provide a valuable service to their community. If anyone is involved in running a community building and the details are not yet on the site, but would like to be included, please contact the community regeneration team,” said Natalia.

“There is no charge for this and will provide an opportunity to promote your hall to a wider audience. If you want a form to get your local hall added to the site, please ring Cathy Arthurs on 01432 260753 or e-mail communityregeneration@herefordshire.gov.uk.”

Moseley Folk Festival News - December 2009

Moseley Folk Festival 2010

Acts being booked and festival dates announced

As is always the case the plans for the festival start pretty much as soon as the previous years has finished. You have to get in early to make sure you book the best acts.

Moseley Folk Festival 2010 is no exception and we've been busy behind the scenes hunting out and chasing acts that we think could fit the bill.

We have already booked one headline act who we know will be a firm favourite as well as a hand full of other top acts.

We're always happy to hear who you think would be a great addition to the festival and encourage you all to make your voice heard by posting on our message board

The dates for Moseley Folk Festival 2010 have also now been set and were thrilled to announce to say that we'll be back in the park on ...

Friday 3rd till Sunday 5th September 2010

Add me to the mailing list - http://www.moseleyfolk.co.uk/mailing_list


Visit the Moseley Folk Festival web site - http://www.moseleyfolk.co.uk/


Lunar Society @ The Hare & Hounds



Featuring Dan Walsh, James Summerfield & Abie Budgen


Friday 5th February

After a short break The Lunar Society returns on 5th February 2010 with a fantastic headline act in the shape of banjotastic Dan Walsh.

"The best banjo player I've seen in Britain" - Don Wayne Reno of Hayseed Dixie

"Dan is just about as rock and roll as you can get with a banjo" - Leon Hunt

"The most remarkable musician I've ever seen" - Anthony Simpson, BBC

Touted as the finest banjo player in the UK, Dan Walsh is an eclectic and exciting musician with a unique style taking in folk, funk, bluegrass, jazz, rock and even Arabic.

Also a singer and guitarist, he has performed throughout the UK at festivals, theatres and folk clubs including the Southbank Centre, the Sage in Gateshead, Broadstairs Folk Week, Solfest and Towersey and a busy year ahead includes appearances at Sidmouth Folk Week and London's Barbican.
His debut CD 'Tomorrow's Still To Come' is out now on all major internet outlets.

Supporting Dan on the night will be Moseley Folk Festival veteran James Summerfield and new lead guitarist of Little Sister, Abie Budgen

Friday 5th February

The Hare And Hounds
106 High Street
Kings Heath
Birmingham
B14 7JZ


Doors Open 8pm

Admission £5.00

http://www.myspace.com/danbanjowalsh

http://www.myspace.com/jamessummerfield

http://www.myspace.com/abiebudgenmusic

Moseley Folk Festival News - December 2009

The Imagined Village @ Birmingham Town Hall



Interweaving trad folk & the sounds of today’s multicultural England

Thursday 21st January

Our friends The Imagined Village are performing at the Birmingham Town Hall on Thursday 21st January.

Englishness is the final frontier of world music! The Imagined Village is a stunning project interweaving traditional folk with the sounds and voices of today’s multicultural England.

An outstanding line-up includes Martin Carthy, Eliza Carthy, and Chris Wood backed by a band featuring Grammy Award-winning musician and producer Simon Emmerson, Johnny Kalsi, Ali Friend, Andy Gangadeen, Simon Richmond, Sheema Mukherjee and Barney Morse Brown.

Traditional instruments are interwoven with the sounds of today. Fiddles and squeezebox sit alongside electronica and ambient effect, with the line-up completed by members of world beat troupe Transglobal Underground and live electronic band, The Bays.

This tour marks the release of the second Imagined Village album Empire & Love due for release in early 2010, recorded in Emmerson’s garage, converted to a studio by the band.

The basic concept remains the same: traditional material interpreted by a band who are not the usual suspects and a front line of English folk musicians.

The album includes famous tracks like Scarborough Fair alongside little-known gems such as Ewan MacColl’s Space Girl.

Thursday 21st January

Birmingham Town Hall
Victoria Square
Birmingham
B3 3DQ

Tickets available online or from the box office £16.50


Mostly Jazz Festival 2010



Including Sun Ra Arkestra, Courtney Pine, James Taylor Quartet


Saturday 3rd & Sunday 4th July 2010

As Moseley Folk Festival veterans we thought you should be the first to know about a great excuse to spend another weekend in Moseley Park next year.

Mostly Jazz Festival is the UK’s newest jazz festival and the only open air, one site festival dedicated exclusively to contemporary jazz, funk and soul.

Celebrating the dynamic grooves, innovation and excitement of the modern jazz movement Mostly Jazz is about showcasing the diversity of contemporary jazz in all it’s forms. From avant-garde, free and modern jazz through to vocal, song based jazz, jazz-fusion and future jazz. It’s also about considering jazz’s influence and relationship to other black music art-forms such as latin music, funk and soul.

For our inaugural year we have invited pioneering artists such as the Sun Ra Arkestra, Courtney Pine and James Taylor Quartet to perform alongside leaders of the new wave of British talent such as Polar Bear, Led Bib and Portico Quartet.

Set in the lush surroundings of Moseley Park, Birmingham’s eleven-acre woodland glade only two miles from the city centre. July 3rd & 4th 2010 is set to be a weekend to remember, we hope you can join us there.

Tickets will be on sale from February 1st

Mostly Jazz Launch Event @ The Rainbow

Featuring Led Bib

Wednesday 27th January

To launch the all new Mostly Jazz Festival we'll be hosting a very special evening with Led Bib at the Birmingham Jazz 'Jazz Club which is held at The Rainbow in Digbeth.

Led Bib are one of the original torch bearers for the revitalized young British jazz scene. Hailed by The Times as ‘the future of jazz’. Relentlessly dodging definition, they are both a maverick jazz band and an unlikely rock quintet with a band name that was taken from a protective garment used during dental treatment.

Led Bib’s first album was released in 2005 to widespread critical praise. Since then they have climbed from strength to strength including winning the 2005 Peter Whittingham Jazz Award, previously awarded to the likes of Soweto Kinch, Tom Arthurs and Empirical. The fourth and latest album ‘Sensible Shoes’ stays true to the Led Bib style by being a riot of unusual ideas. For example the sounds of a deranged waltz and Tom and Jerry chases are mixed with more traditional jazz structures. Their individual references peer out via Metallica like riffs, Northern Soul licks and downtown New York influenced improvisation. ‘Sensible Shoes’ was nominated for the 2009 Mercury Prize.

The band members can usually be found in one another’s homes drinking tea and discussing the merits of different types of biscuit. Led Bib offer an honest comment on the struggle, drama, losses and loves of life whilst delivering their sound with an element of playfulness.

Wednesday 27th January

Birmingham Jazz
The Rainbow
160 High Street, Digbeth
Birmigham, B12 0LD


Doors : 9pm

Price : £4.00

Visit Herefordshire Board has shadow visit

Members of the Visit Herefordshire Board were able to put county on the map when they were visited by Tobias Ellwood, the shadow culture minister.


He attended the meeting to hear how tourism is fairing in Herefordshire and the kind of issues the tourism industry faces.

“It was real coup for Visit Herefordshire to welcome the shadow minister,” said Jane Lewis, Herefordshire Council’s tourism, food and marketing manager.

“It gave Visit Herefordshire Board members a real opportunity to put forward the issues that are facing the tourism industry from the grass roots and he was very keen to listen to us and take these issues back with him,” added Jane.

“It was very encouraging as he acknowledged the importance of tourism in the county’s economy. It was a real opportunity for us to put Herefordshire on the map.”

Wardens Tooled up to Help Motorists Suffering the Winter Blues

Parking attendants in Stafford Borough are coming to the rescue of motorists in the town.


The attendants will act as a ‘fourth’ emergency service for drivers on borough council car parks who have problems with their vehicles during the cold winter weather.

They will be armed with tools to help de-ice frozen locks and windscreens, as well as having information on emergency breakdown and recovery services, and locksmiths.

Leaflets provided by the county’s road safety partnership will be available to motorists on the 17 council run car parks in Stafford and Stone with information such as driving in severe weather and what to do if you breakdown.

The wardens have already received praise from visitors and residents for help they have given to motorists, for example changing a wheel for an elderly man and providing medical assistance to someone who collapsed in the street, as well as finding a vehicle when a visitor had forgotten where he had parked. They have even helped police catch shoplifters and a street robber.

Councillor Doug Davis, cabinet member for planning and regeneration at Stafford Borough Council, said: “These men and women do a difficult, and not particularly popular, job. But what people do not see is the assistance they are giving day in, day out to visitors, residents and motorists in our borough.

“The winter can bring more problems for those with cars and it will be reassuring to know our wardens can now help in many wayss.”

For more information on car parking in the borough go to the ‘Streetscene’ pages of the council’s website at http://www.staffordbc.gov.uk/ or contact 01785 619310 for assistance.

Spaghetti Gazetti - updated every day - including Christmas Day

Nobody likes an out-of-date website and at Spaghetti Gazetti we try to update every single day of the year which includes Christmas and New Year's Day.

So when the turkey weighs heavy and the television no longer does it for you ...pop by and see us!

editorialgazette@googlemail.com

24/7 every day of the year!

Brother Sister Day

A tale set in the West Midlands in 1979

http://brothersisterday.blogspot.com/

It is 1979 and Joe Finn is 16 years old. Joe lives in a council house in the West Midlands with his mom, Bernie and his step father Dave. Bernie is from Dublin and she works as a receptionist in a local college. Dave is a former police man who retired from the force after sustaining an injury at work and now works as a security man in the local shopping centre. Dave believes in working and playing hard and regularly gets drunk and violent in the house.


Joe belongs to a skinhead gang in his local working class area, Quinford. The gang models itself on a skinhead mob which existed in the area in the late 1960s, but this time around the movement has been inspired by the ska music revival of the late 70s. Bands like The Specials from Coventry, the Beat from Birmingham and Madness from London.

Joe primarily likes being a skinhead because of the fashion and the music. One day in the dole office, he is befriended by a local man named Eddie who is a veteran skinhead from the 1960s. Eddie shows Joe a decent little pub called The Crown which is very relaxed about it's age restictions and serves cheap food on dole days. As Joe gets to know Eddie better through their lunchtime meetings on dole day, Eddie begins to educate Joe about the original reggae music which had inspired the original skins in the local area. On a visit to a local reggae record shop, Eddie introduces Joey to his longtime friend, a rasta named Skanga.

But Joe's pals in the Quinford Mob mark 2 do not all share his love of reggae music and many of them are increasingly drawn to right wing politics and racist groups like the National Front. At first the gang members are cool about the fact that Joey seems to be increasingly mixing with Jamaicans, after all, this is all about Two Tone, but they are steadily falling under the influence of a local fascist politician named Gerald Osbourne who begins to discourage the gang members from mixing with 'the blacks'. In particular though, Osbourne's strongest hatred is for Asian people.

Joe begins to feel pulled between the easy going company of Eddie, Skanga and various of their friends and his gang mates who are now becoming involved in race related violence.

Visit my latest blogg to watch this story develop:

http://brothersisterday.blogspot.com/

Birmingham Disability Network

Bonzer fundraising idea for Harborne based charity

Focus Birmingham has come up with another crazy fundraising day which may need some translation. It’s an Aussie, fancy dress, Barbie (that’s an Australian barbecue) on January 30th 2010 at Lordswood Girl’s School. It’s open to everyone looking to brighten up a winter’s day and feel stoked (very pleased). Even Ed Doolan from BBC WM Radio will be joining the celebrations!


Fancy dress is optional but Charity Events Organiser Andy Kilminster is keen for everyone to at least get their summer shirts and shorts out but hats with corks and Aussie rules shirts would be welcome. Andy commented, “why not bring some Aussie summer into our winter, I lived there for 3 years so I’m missing the sun myself, so here’s a chance to get some traditional Aussie tucker (food). Focus support people with visual impairments throughout Birmingham with their daily living needs so the charge of £5 per ticket will help us carry on that work through winter and summer”.

The Focus’ Barbie starts no worries at 10am and goes on until 4pm when the sun goes down under. As well as some great Aussie gub there’ll be a famous Aussie fancy dress competition, a slang translation test so you can keep up with all the banter and the chance to try your skills on a surf simulator and learn to kockan Aussie rules football.

For more information contact Andy Kilminster on 0121 478 5229 or email andy@focusbirmingham.org.uk

Focus Birmingham support people with visual impairments and other disabilities, together with their carers, to live fulfilling and independent lives by providing services that reflect their wants and needs.

Food guru serves up his knowledge

ONE of the leading lights of the West Midlands Food Industry is the expertise available to boost minority ethnic business in the region.


Wade Lyn, founder and managing director of Cleone Foods has been recruited to the Board of the Minority Ethnic Business Forum.

Cleone Foods, supplier of Island Delight patties and slices has grown to become the largest manufacturer of Caribbean savoury products in the West Midlands.

Wade has grown the business whilst still remaining true to his ideal of making authentic Caribbean patties.

“Over the years I have sought advice from many experienced people in business that have been willing to share their knowledge and I feel that I want to put something back,” said Wade Lyn.

The Minority Ethnic Business Forum provides strategic advice to the regional development agency Advantage West Midlands amongst others on the subject of minority ethnic entrepreneurship.

Think enterprise for 2010 but learn hard lessons

THE worst economic collapse since the Great Depression was an avoidable act of human folly according to a West Midlands Business leader.


But Mohammad Nazir, chairman of the West Midlands Minority Ethnic Business Forum has made a call for a positive approach to 2010.

However, the man who leads the group that provides strategic advice to the regional development agency Advantage West Midlands and other partners has warned that the lessons of the past must be learned.

“FOR people of all faiths and indeed no faith the turn of the year is one of reflection, recuperation and renewal,” said Mohammad Nazir.

“It is more than two years since we first felt the chill winds of the economic downturn but at that time hardly anyone would have dared to predict how bad things were going to get.

“We are living through a time that history students of future generations will read about. Only the very fortunate few have not been affected in some way by the biggest economic collapse since the great depression of the 1930’s.

“A senior politician recently spoke about an “economic tsunami” – this is dangerous talk because a tsunami is a natural phenomenon – an act of God. This economic downturn is a wholly avoidable act of human folly.

“It is what happens when greed and arrogance combine with a regulatory system that completely failed. If we forget this then sooner or later it will happen all over again.

“Looking to the future there are some fragile and tentative signs of a recovery. Unless the economic forecasters have got it completely wrong - which would not be the first time - the UK is stumbling out of recession – but this does not mean that we are out of the woods.

“The coming year will remain challenging and our leaders will need to be very careful not to withdraw the economic stimulants too soon or the patient will surely relapse.

“As minority ethnic business people we will need to demonstrate the innovation and perseverance in the face of challenges that has become our trademark.

“Here in the West Midlands we have taken the brunt of the storm but this is the region that was once the workshop of the world and can make good again.

“We are blessed with a large and growing minority ethnic community with the youth and energy to take us towards better times.

“A year from now I do not expect us to be basking on broad sunlit uplands with all of our troubles behind us.

“But utilising our reserves of enterprise and innovation we can approach the New Year with real hope for the future.

“I wish people of all faiths an enjoyable holiday and best wishes for the future.”

Disability Arts in Shropshire (DASH)

Thanks to DASH - Disability Arts Shropshire for these news items taken from their email newsletter:

Opportunities in Shropshire


Don't forget to keep an eye on the DASH website to see the latest news and opportunities including:

Rob Tovey from Bethphage is looking for Disabled People with a talent for performance to audition for a 2 night show to be held at The Theatre Severn in September 2010.

The Telford and Wrekin Open exhibition. Artists from across Shropshire and Mid Wales are invited to bid for £1,000 worth of cash prizes by submitting artwork for a major exhibition.

Oswestry School is holding it’s first annual art competition open to the public The Peter Edwards Art Award - £2,000 cash prize .

http://www.dasharts.org/news.jsp

Merry Christmas

DASH would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.



What an Opener!


We would like to say a VERY BIG THANK YOU to all those who attended and made our Open Day a day to remember.

THE SPACE was packed! 75 people came through our doors last week and everyone left with a smile on their face.

We will be putting up images on our website and on Facebook so do keep a look out for those.

The day was such a success that we are already planning our second BIG SPACE party on the International Day of Disabled People next year.

We do hope to see you all again very soon. Don't forget if you want to take part in our workshops in 2010 we need your contact details and we would love to get to know you a little more http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/77TGJ2L xx

The photo above shows Sylvia Price cordially thanking the Mayor and Mayoress of Shrewsbury for officially opening the DASH SPACE, of course this was not until after getting us all to sing Happy Birthday to the Mayor's driver Robert. : ) The picture below shows artists taking part in the portrait workshop. Photographs by Jordan Pearman

DASH are proud to announce the Outside IN commissions for 2010 – 2011

Walsall New Art Gallery, Walsall, West Midlands

Sean Burns will be in residence at the Gallery for six weeks spread over the next 16 months in three blocks of two weeks.

The first period of residency will be from 4th – 15th January 2010. Sean will be exploring issues of Mental Health in his commission at Walsall New Art Gallery.

Sean will be working with and linking with, the diverse community in Walsall, the Gallery itself, DASH and with Mental Health groups. Sean also plans to be working with the Concrete Hippo Appreciation Society in Walsall.

Oriel Davies Gallery, Newtown, Wales

The Disabled Avant-Garde - Katherine Araniello and Aaron Williamson will produce ‘Camp DAG’: a 3-day-long Holiday Camp for disabled people on the shores of the River Severn. The work is a public performance of a fictional Holiday Camp as the camp will be entirely fictional since the ‘campers’ will be other artists (up to 12) invited to the Camp by the Disabled Avant-Garde. ‘Camp DAG’ will thus offer a visual conundrum: a highly visible holiday camp by disabled people who are more usually hidden away by society. In addition, candid cameras will capture the action and interview participants for their reactions and the final film will follow the style of ‘utopian’ 1960s holiday home movies.

Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton, West Midlands

Noëmi Lakmaier will create an object based installation using the gallery’s own collection as its starting point: chairs, stools, armchairs, sofas, etc – depicted within artworks from the collection, in paintings, photographs or sculptural pieces. Noemi will make a selection of objects, akin to the furniture they are based on, yet changed and manipulated in such a way that their original function is put into question. During the exhibition of the objects she will insert her body into the work by attempting to use the objects as furniture. Visitors will be encouraged to do the same. The audience’s and Noemi’s own active engagement with the furniture-like objects acts as catalyst to the work.

Duncan Speakman's immersive theatre commission - coming to Birmingham

Duncan Speakman’s "As If It Were the Last Time"


This cinematic theatre experience is presented by Duncan Speakman who invites the public to re-consider the everyday routines and re-examine the classic British street scene, whilst becoming part of a subtle mob.

Famous for his “subtle mobs” and cinematic style of theatre, Speakman is asking the people of London, Bristol and Liverpool to arrive at a secret venue at a specific time in November, armed only with an MP3 file and headphones. The audience, who can sign up to take part in the free event through the website www.subtlemob.com (which has received over 9,000 unique visits in the past month), will be sent an MP3 file to download onto their i-pod or mobile phone prior to the event, and asked to gather at a given time and location, put on their headphones and press play to begin their own simultaneous experience of the subtle mob. Following the instructions, each participants will be guided through a slightly different versions of the same events. A pattern of activity will slowly emerge as members of the audience see a plot unfolding through the events and information presented throughout the walk. Both spectators and participants, the audience members will see the street they walk down framed in a very different way as Speakman, with the help of a plethora of artists, actors, sound engineers and musicians, offers them an alternative view of their surroundings.

Duncan Speakman is a member of the Vauxhall Collective, an initiative sponsored by the car company. http://www.vauxhallcollective.com/

Skills for Care Annual Conference 2010

Thursday 25 February 2010 - Hilton Birmingham Metropole


Recruiting and retaining quality staff is one of the key challenges for any employer. Every organisation in our sector needs a skilled and flexible workforce capable of meeting the significant changes to service delivery in the future. This conference will use a mix of expert speakers, interactive workshops and fringe sessions to explore the best ways to recruit more people to adult social care and retain them for the future.

Skills for Care estimates that the sector will need a minimum of half a million extra workers by 2025 - up to an extra million if we use a personalisation model - so the conference will also look at how the sector can attract and retain those extra workers.

The conference will examine the vision, context and key drivers for recruitment and retention in social care to develop a clear understanding of how to make the transition to a workforce that is equipped to deliver a wide range of services and meet the challenges of the personalisation agenda.

Key speakers include:

Phil Hope Minister for State for Care Services

David Croisdale-Appleby, Chair, Skills for Care

To book your place visit www.pavpub.com/skillsforcareannualconference or call 0844 880 5061 or fill in the attached booking form.

Whose Story? Project Roles with the National Trust

National Trust's 'Whose Story?' project.


1. Community Ambassadors , part time (3 posts)

2. Project Assistant , part time (1 post)

3. Membership Recruiter - Off site , part time (1 post)

For more details and how to apply, please visit:

http://www.totaljobs.com/JobSearch/Results.aspx?Keywords='Whose+Story'


Best,


Sajida Aslam

Audience Development Manager, Whose Story?

West Midlands Region



The National Trust
Room 312
The Custard Factory
Gibb St
Digbeth
Birmingham
B9 4AA


T: 0121 753 7761

M: 07825 675 968

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/

Merry Christmas from Tim Applecart's artist network

Chesney Hawkes - Acoustic Tour 2009 - Wolverhampton Little Civic: Friday 19th February 2010

Born into a musical family (his father is the singer Chip Hawkes, formerly with the 1960s band The Tremeloes), Chesney Hawkes’ own career began at 19, when he appeared as the title character in the film Buddy's Song alongside Roger Daltrey. In March 1991, he released his biggest single "The One And Only," from the film's soundtrack. Written By Nik Kershaw, the song was later featured in the opening credits of Doc Hollywood (1991), starring Michael J. Fox. The single spent five weeks at Number 1. It has become part of the soundtrack of a generation, and still features on radio playlists, compilations and in DJ sets everywhere.


Subsequent singles also charted, including What's Wrong With This Picture? , his 2002 collaboration with Adam Schlessinger of Fountains of Wayne, Stay Away Baby Jane and his most recent release Another Fine Mess in 2006, which was a collaboration with Nik Kershaw and saw the pairing return to the charts, 15 years after their first success.

Chesney's number 1 love and main priority is songwriting and producing, so if he's not performing he's in the studio working on songs for himself and others. He also organizes an annual songwriting retreat in Iceland called Songfusion.

This is a chance to spend an evening with Chesney Hawkes the songwriter, as he leads you through his musical journey, performing his own songs, his collaborations with other artists and a few of his personal favourites.

Tickets priced £10.00 are available from Midland Box Office: 0870 320 7000 or online at http://www.wolvescivic.co.uk/

Propaganda: the only place to be this NYE in B'ham

Propaganda transform the O2 Academy into a spectacular big top for a New Years Eve Extravaganza where thrill seekers can marvel at daredevil fire jugglers, acrobats, fortune tellers and loads more from the countries best circus performers. Complete with an exclusive DJ set from The Cribs` lead singer Ryan Jarman.


The Big Top: Circus goers delight in an audio-visual feast of the best new and classic indie music juggled by The Cribs` Ryan Jarman and the UK’s most prolific indie DJs.

Room 2: Clowning around with an unashamed supply of pop and party tunes

Room 3: The spectacle continues with a treat of dubstep and electro.

Drinks From £2.

Propaganda is the UK`s Biggest Indie Night, with over 10,000 people attending Propaganda`s legendary indie club phenomenon across the country every week to witness its amazing audio visual extravaganza

The Ticket Sellers

24hr holine: 0844 870 0000

calls charged at 5p/min from BT land line

Anyone recognise this area of Birmingham / West Midlands?

Sybil Ruth asks if anyone recognises this street scene, probably taken in Birmingham:

"They were in a box of miscellaneous material/images amassed by John English who - during the 1950s - worked to found what is now the mac. But there isn't much documentation.

However it doesn't mean that the photos themselves are of the area near Cannon Hill Park".

Clever readers of The Stirrer.com have worked out that because of shadows on the chimneys we are looking at a Birmingham skyline looking from the north. My theory is it's the clearance of Gravelley Hill for Spaghetti Junction. There could be the glimmer of Salford Lake in the midground and plenty of tall buildings on the horizon to suggest late 1960s.

Can anyone shed more light on where these photos were taken?

Or visit the message boards of http://www.thestirrer.com/ to offer your opnion.

More stone sculptures feature on Arden Trail

Two completed stone sculptures by Castle Donington based artist, Graeme Mitcheson now have pride of place on the North Arden Heritage Trail. Both designs are the result of ideas put forward at stone carving workshops and weeks of consultation with local residents, groups, Parish Councils and volunteers on the relevant Design Committees.

The North Arden Heritage Trail is a Heritage Lottery funded project to create a 25 mile circular walk through 12 parishes in North Warwickshire using existing pathways. The project also aims to celebrate the history and heritage of the various areas through themed art installations.

For the Fillongley family sculpture, schoolchildren at Bournebrook Primary School and members of the local Golden Years group worked alongside the artist to contribute their ideas. Each family member is holding an item relevant to the area’s history – from the lamb depicting farming to the loaf representing the ancient mill. The lantern commemorates the light which burned in the church as a memorial to the village dead, whilst the cloth banner remembers the silk weaving industry and the De Hastings family coat of arms.

Over at Ansley Village, the green opposite the Boot Inn is now home to an intricately carved boulder. Scenes represent everything about Ansley’s heritage and natural environment - from mines to railways and ribbons and from Great Crested Newts to conkers and brooks. The central image, showing a man torn between the dragon and the lamb, represents the struggle of good against evil and is taken from the Norman carving in St Laurence’s Church.

Jo Gordon, the Project Officer for the Arden Trail project said:

“ We hope that both sculptures will stand for many years as testament to the creative ideas from local people and as commemorative features along the walk. They are proof of the fantastic – but often hidden - history and heritage of both Fillongley and Ansley and will be enjoyed by generations of residents and walkers in the future. “

These latest sculptures form part of Year 2 of the project with Year 3 now concentrating on the parishes of Kingsbury, Maxstoke, Shustoke and Whitacre. The Arden Trail is scheduled for launch in May 2010.

World Cup boost for Birmingham and Villa

City Council Leader Mike Whitby today spoke of his delight as Birmingham secured a coveted place in England’s 2018 World Cup bid.


After a competitive process, and detailed inspections by the England 2018 team, Birmingham has been confirmed as one of the towns and cities selected for inclusion in the England 2018 Bid Book.

The news moves Birmingham a step closer to a potential £150 million jackpot as England bids to stage the World Cup for the first time since 1966.

Mike Whitby, Leader of Birmingham City Council, said: “This is terrific news and, as the UK’s City of Sport I think it should be no surprise that Birmingham is included in the FA’s bid to host the World Cup in 2018. We have so many qualities and will undoubtedly enhance the England 2018 bid.

“As a host city we have everything – transport infrastructure, excellent facilities, a reputation for successfully hosting some of the world’s biggest events and, of course a passion for sport.

“In Villa Park we have one of the finest stadiums in the country and as a multi-cultural city we can guarantee a warm welcome, and a home crowd, for any teams based in Birmingham.

“We already have a world-class track record of staging international sports events, and were successfully involved when Euro 96 was hosted by England. By 2018 we will also have the added experience of hosting some of the world’s biggest Olympic teams as they train for London 2012.

“The economic impact would be formidable, the reputation building opportunities are immense, and such a high profile event can only inspire young people from across the city, leaving a lasting legacy.”

Birmingham’s cause was championed by the City Council, Marketing Birmingham, Advantage West Midlands, the NEC Group, Aston Villa, Birmingham City FC, West Bromwich Albion and Walsall FC, as well as a host of West Midlands celebrities and sporting heroes.

Now, in addition to staging games at Villa Park and hosting training camps, the city can bid for the following World Cup events:

Preliminary Draw
Confederations Cup Draw
Final Draw
Team Workshop
Referees Workshop
Medical Workshop
Broadcast Workshops
FIFA Congress
FIFA Banquet

User Led Organisations Conference - What's in it for us? - 14 January 2010

Dear Colleagues,


We would like to invite you to our conference "ULO's whats in it for us"?

This will be a topical conference highlighting the relationship between the transformation of social care and the development of ULO's. Key topics of the day will include: ULO's and personalisation;

Consortiums and ULO's; Sustainability and Equality and Diversity. We will have key speakers from across the region and nationally as well as giving you the opportunity to share the experiences of ULO's from the West Midlands.

If you know of other organisations this conference may benefit such as those who have a Service Level Agreement with commissioners in Health, local authorities etc... could you please pass this information on. If you would like to attend what we believe will be a very topical and  relevant conference then email us on
dhwm.events@dh.gsi.gov.uk.

Kind regards


Marcia Richards

Transformation Lead - Department of Health West Midlands


Anthony Walters
West Midlands User Led Organisation Project Manager
Department of Health West Midlands
Government Office for the West Midlands
5 St Philip's Place
Birmingham
 B3 2PW

Email: dhwm.events@dh.gsi.gov.uk

Fax: 0121 352 5312

Third sector news update

A helping hand for Yardley


The BEST Network consortium comprising of Birmingham Disability Resource Centre, Cross Match, Cross Over, Tyseley and Greet ERC, Jericho Foundation, Enter Key and Bangladeshi Women Forum has launched the Working Neighbourhood funded Employment programme. The helping hand for Yardley programme will help the unemployed to return to work.

For further information contact BDRC on 0121 789 7365.


Commissioning & the Third sector

BVSC has published a study of the way in which third sector organisations are responding to the challenges and opportunities presented by new commissioning guidelines. Originally commissioned in 2008 as an internal BVSC document, the report (and its accompanying literature review), is now widely available and provides a range of recommendations to assist third sector providers and public sector commissioners in navigating this increasingly complex territory.

Hard copies are available from BVSC on request

BVSC The Centre For Voluntary Action, 138 Digberth, Birmingham, B5 6DR

0121 643 4343

ODI invites local authorities to become Right to Control trailblazers

The government is putting plans in place to give disabled adults more choice and control over the state funding or services they receive. From late 2010, the Right to Control will be tested in around eight local authorities in England.

The right to control scheme is about disabled people having control over services they receive from the local authority.

New Horizons: a shared vision for mental health

New Horizons: a shared vision for mental health is a comprehensive initiative that will be delivered by 11 Government departments. It also brings together an alliance of local government, the voluntary sector and professionals, as well as local communities and individuals to work towards a society that values mental well-being as much as physical health.

http://www.newhorizons.dh.gov.uk/  


Personalisation - the challenge for the sector

The Commission set up by ACEVO to look into personalisation has recommended that the Cabinet Office set up a dedicated unit to help VCS organisations become commission-ready. This report also highlights approaches that should be taken by the public sector to lead changes. A copy of the interim report is available to download from the website link below.

http://www.acevo.org.uk/Page.aspx?pid=1541


New equality commissioners appointed

The Chair of the National Centre for Independent Living has been appointed to the Equality and Human Rights Committee, the government has announced.

Mike Smith was one of the first appointees to the EHRC Disability Committee where he has led on legal matters, including the Equality Bill and social care. He now moves up to become a full commissioner.

Nine other commissioners have been appointed to the EHRC with backgrounds in minority issue strands, including Jean Irvine, a trustee and director of RADAR and Stephen Alambritis who was a commissioner with the Disability Rights Commission.

Fast track to citizenship in 2011

A scheme to fast-track citizenship applications from migrants who do voluntary work for charities will be in place by July 2011, the Home Office has pledged.

The Borders, Immigration and Citizenship Act, which was passed in July this year, contains the provision, which is expected to apply only to those who have volunteered with registered charities, rather than with smaller community groups.

The scheme will allow migrants who have been in the UK for five years to gain citizenship within one further year rather than three if they can prove they have been "active citizens" by volunteering.

Direct Payment Regulation

The Department of Health are currently holding a live consultation on Direct Payments in Healthcare proposals for regulation and guidance.

State of the Voluntary Sector survey

Third Sector and nfpSynergy seek views on the challenges facing charities. Amazon vouchers and champagne to be won

The views of charities and voluntary organisations on matters such as the recession and the forthcoming general election are being canvassed this week in a survey by Third Sector and research organisation nfpSynergy.

State of the Voluntary Sector survey is open now

The results of the survey, which closes on Friday 4 December, will be published in January next year in a special feature in Third SectorThird Sector Online.