50 plus magazine Manchester Show 2012

MANCHESTER 50 + SHOW 2012

Len Goodman & Arlene Phillips celebrity faces of Your Personal Best Campaign inspiring millions to live and achieve a more active lifestyle

Rick Stein

Inside LEISURE

WIN A HOLIDAY FOR TWO WITH ROBINSONS HOLIDAYS

SHARES HIS FAVOURITE DISHES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

FINANCE

HUGH JAMES ARE THE LEADING NATIONAL EXPERTS IN RECOVERY OF WRONGLY PAID CARE HOME FEES

WIN

A TRAVEL VOUCHER WORTH £400

VALID FOR TRAVEL WITH i to i Volunteering

THE LOCAL MAGAZINE FOR THE OVER 50s

FREE

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ake on

e

Outstanding care in a magnificent setting Vibrant village centre - Belong

villages offer a range of amenities including bistro, hair and beauty salon, exercise studio, internet café and function rooms.

Expert nursing and dementia care - 24 hour care is delivered in

Visit your nearest Belong village to experience a radically different model of both housing and care.

family sized households by trained and qualified staff.

Actively chosen by older people who want the best for their lives, Belong’s award winning villages enable an active and independent lifestyle, while also being designed to support the needs of the most frail.

An award winning model • UK’s Healthcare Design Champion Building Better Healthcare Awards 2011

Modern apartments for independent living - One or two

bedroom apartments are available for rent or purchase.

• Dementia Carer of the Year National Care Awards 2011

• Best Elderly Care Design Award Design & Health International Awards 2010

• Lifetime Achievement Award in Dementia Care UK Dementia Congress 2010

• Sunday Times Top 100 Best Places to Work 2010 • Bronze in Elderly Accommodation Council Awards 2010

Locations in Crewe, Macclesfield, Atherton and Wigan.

Supporting you in your own home - Belong also has a registered domiciliary care service, providing flexible, expert support to people in the community.

Your life, your pace, your way.

Call 0800 032 2266 to find out more or visit www.belong.org.uk

Belong sets the standard in dementia care Belong villages are operated by the CLS Care Services Group – a not-for-profit organisation with over thirty years’ experience in delivering outstanding care.

Its villages offer a purpose-built environment based on leading edge design to meet the needs of older people, particularly those with dementia. Belong villages are attracting national attention for their success in delivering a radically different model of both housing and care. For one, they have been designed around the needs of the very frail, typically 85 plus, sector of the population.

Embracing the community

From independent living to complex nursing care

Moreover, Belong’s support services are not restricted to those living within the village. Members of the community can be supported in their own home through the organisation’s registered domiciliary service, Belong at Home, or invited into the village to take advantage of Belong ‘Experience Days’ – a refreshing alternative to traditional day care.

“We had successfully pioneered a new ‘household’ model of care in our traditional care homes, but could not take this as far as we wanted because of the limitations of older buildings. In Belong, we were given a blank sheet of paper and were able to create mixed village communities that, for the first time, are able to accommodate the full spectrum of people’s needs.”

Residents can choose to live independently in village apartments, or enjoy a high level of support in the households. Even then, the level of support varies according to residents’ needs, from residential, through nursing to high dependency dementia care. The idea behind this is that villages should offer a home for life, with flexibility for residents to access different services should their needs change.

Leading edge design The design of the villages takes the lead from the needs of older people who live in them. Smaller households of around a dozen residents mean a family atmosphere can be created, and that residents are well understood and known to their carers.

In particular, the open plan layout of these households supports easy orientation and ensures support workers are always visible to offer assistance in an unobtrusive way.

Residents have secure access to the outdoors from each household and can move freely in and out. At the same time, security is maintained between the households and village centre to ensure privacy within people’s own ‘homes’.

Nick Dykes affirms the importance of this aspect. “One of the criticisms commonly levelled at retirement village type communities is that they are very insular. What we have been able to achieve in Belong is a more outward looking facility that has succeeded in bringing people in from the local community, whether just for a coffee or to join in activities on offer. Residents are equally flexible in the extent they choose to join in village life. Indeed, privacy and dignity are frequently cited amongst the best aspects of life in one of our villages.”

Responsible finances Behind the scenes, the CLS Group runs its operation on a financially sound but also ethical business model, generating the surplus that is required to ensure stability and security for residents. As a not for profit organisation, any surplus is reinvested into its services, people and facilities rather than benefiting private shareholders.

VOUCHERS

Chief Executive, Nick Dykes, explains: “There are plenty of retirement villages out there for people over 55 who are able to lead reasonably active lives, but far fewer services designed for the growing population of frail older people.

Beyond this, strong links to other organisations have seen the village bring together a wide cross-section of the community, from toddler and baby groups through school teachers to memory clinics, creating a true sense of village life and, with it, opportunities for interaction with people of different ages and backgrounds.

Present this voucher at any Belong bistro to purchase one coffee and cake and get the second one FREE!

Present this voucher at any Belong hair & beauty salon and get £5.00 off your bill Minimum spend £10.

Retail products not included in offer.

Village locations - Crewe • Macclesfield • Atherton • Wigan

Graham Smith has a Tweet But what is he twittering about?

Monkey masterpiece Pockets Warhol, a white capuchin monkey, is selling paintings for as much as £250 from his home in a Canadian sanctuary.

Pockets, named after Andy Warhol, has attracted buyers from all over the world for his abstract works.

His keeper discovered his talents after introducing him to paints two years ago. Apparently Pockets does have an artistic temperament though and sometimes eats the paint.

An exhibition of 40 of his paintings takes place in Toronto soon.

I couldn’t possibly comment!

inside...

Dear Reader, Welcome to the latest local 50 Plus magazine special edition which we hope you will sit back and enjoy at your leisure. Our journalists Angela Kelly, Graham Smith and Sheila Alcock are continuing to keep you well informed with their celebrity interviews and up to date household tips.

If you know of an event which would benefit from free publicity please feel free to let us know and we can consider including it in our next issue.

TRAVEL & LEISURE 6-7 8-9 10-11 15 27-30

The Snows of Kilimanjaro Coach Tours 2012 from Robinsons Holidays The Timeless Island of Alderney Win a 5 Day Coach Holiday for 2 people Visit the Peak District for a great day out.

FOOD & DRINK

£60K garden shed!

A cream and blue wooden shack described as having open sea views on the beach in Suffolk is up for sale at £60,000!

21-23 Rick Stein shares his favourite dishes with us 21-23 Bury Markets a great place to shop 21-23 Free Cream Tea for two with tour of Middleton Towers.

FINANCE

Beach hut number 78 has to be removed from the beach between October and April because of storm risks, but a local estate agent honestly expects to get the asking price, in fact some have brought £100,000.

40-41 Law made easy 44 Making your money go further 45 5 Step Guide to retirement.

Now come on. I can get a half decent wooden hut for £500 and for £1,000 I reckon I could get one posh enough to live in. I could also be bright enough to position it somewhere safer than right where the winter tides come in.

HEALTH

Who do they think they are kidding?

46-47 Your Personal Best Campaign

McGrath Media.

Unit 6 | Moses Gate Workshops | Gladys Street | Bolton | BL3 2QG. T: (01204) 796 494 | F: (01204) 791594 e: mcgrathadmin@btconnect.com

4

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T R AV E L

The Snows of Kilimanjaro summit to enjoy sunrise from the top of Africa. This was a stirring moment but hardly compensated for the long cold tedious walk in the dark seeing only where to put your next footstep.

Poli, poli towards Kibo Soon after retiring a walking friend asked if I was interested in attempting to walk to the top of Africa. Mount Kilimanjaro is the crown of Tanzania and Africa’s highest mountain at 19345 feet. At this height there is about half the oxygen of sea level and altitude sickness has to be treated with care. An exciting prospect especially since I had not trekked or climbed to anything like this height before, and had not visited equatorial Africa previously.

Kilimanjaro is a dormant but not extinct volcano with three volcanic cones. Kibo is the biggest, tallest cone with Uhuru Peak at its very top.

There are numerous UK In based organizations with long experience of organising safe Kilimanjaro treks and we planned to use one of them. Then I happened to hear of a fellow called Conrad who had twice trekked Kilimanjaro.

He offered to meet to share his experiences and we benefited a great deal from this. His first trip with a group of friends was through a UK company who had a good reputation.

They delivered what they promised BUT this included the final ascent beginning at midnight, walking in the dark for hours and arriving at the 6

When they returned to their hotel on the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro he told us they made two discoveries which they put to good use. Firstly the owners have been sending people up Kilimanjaro since 1932 and have enormous experience, arranging climbs for around 1500 climbers every year. The UK company had simply contracted the hotel to organise the climb and it was the company who decided on the timing of the final ascent. Secondly you can book your climb directly with the hotel. The hotel will plan a trek according to the wishes of the group. Conrad booked the hotel to organise a better trek for his group the following year. He enthused about their second trek so much we booked for a similar adventure.

Seamus one of the directors of the hotel who had sent us detailed instructions about clothing and everything else, gave us an excellent briefing, answered all the questions we had and then discussed the various routes for climbing Kilimanjaro. We agreed on the one Conrad’s group had so enjoyed.

We would start the final ascent later than usual and camp overnight in the crater on Kibo. Altitude sickness featured as the biggest topic. He said the seven days we had allocated for the ascent would stand us in good stead. Too many folk try to do it too quickly and do not give their bodies time to acclimatise. He strongly recommended we drink at least two litres of water a day. This has consequences at night in a two berth tent-much undoing of the zip or packing a wee bottle!

We were next introduced to Gaudence our chief guide and his three assistants. 19 porters also accompanied us to carry all our equipment and food, put up and take down the tents and cook the first class meals. We only had to walk! By the time we had driven four hours to the entrance to the national park of Kilimanjaro the rain had stopped and did not return. Geographers do get it right! We started walking to our first camp site but not before Gaudence had given us a short lesson in Swahili. He said we walk “poli, poli” and nobody overtakes him to ensure we walk “slowly, slowly”. He explained the crater dwarfed by the glacier this will help us acclimatise. The walking was fairly gentle, always going upwards of course. We left Our party had expanded to six of us, our camp site each morning with our four over 60. We planned our trip for porters packing it up, and before too the end of October, towards the end long catching us up and overtaking us of the dry season according to our with anything up to 15kg balanced on geography graduate member. We their heads. They passed us with very booked our own flights to Kilimanjaro happy smiles and cheerful greetings.

International airport and were met When we had left the hotel there was by staff from the hotel late in the a large group of disappointed men evening. We woke to pouring rain! standing outside the hotel in the rain.

Never trust a geographer.

Disappointed because they had not got one of the converted portering jobs.

Three days into the trek we reached the middle sized cone of Mawenzi.

We camped in the crater for two nights and spent the day time slowly climbing the cone as high as Guadence considered safe. “Climb high, sleep low” is an agreed formula for helping your body to adjust to the high altitude. Towering in the distance and across a desert called the saddle was the big, big cone of Kibo. We had seen the white glaciers on its top glinting in the sunshine since the second morning. Poli, poli for six hours across the desert accompanied by a local - a white neck raven and its mate hoping for a free lunch. We camped among the rocks.

A number of other groups were there as well, most having used a different route to get to the base of this giant steep volcano cone. We were last off the following morning at 4am. The others left about midnight, hoping to achieve the summit at sunrise. The sun greeted us just before six. It was about this point the hard climbing started. We were on loose shale, it was a tad bit steep and the only way to advance was by zig zagging up the hillside. Gaudence did not have to tell us to go “poli,poli”! At 10am success; we reached the rim of the crater at Gillman’s Point, named after

a British government official who trekked this way when Britain took over Tanganyika after the first world war. The ultimate peak was further round was further round the rim of the crater and 300 metres higher. A gentle stroll after that climb, and to our great pleasure the route took us nearly alongside one of the glaciers we had admired from a distance.

UHURU PEAK. The top of Africa.

Nearly four miles above sea level. We were there.

After the photos we continued a little further round the rim of crater.

In it we could see three tiny dotsour tents. We “skiied” down the fine stones into the crater where afternoon tea awaited us. We walked across the floor of the crater to the regal and massive glacier that sits on the crater’s floor. We even sunbathed, but way before dark we were in our tents, and fully clothed were in our sleeping bags. Our aluminium drinking bottles filled with hot water were in our sleeping bags with us.

Seamus had warned us this would be a very, very cold night. But it did not live up to expectations. It was cold but not excessively cold. When we

got out of tents in the morning we discovered to our surprise why. We were covered in snow. In the early hours of the morning the snows of Kilimanjaro had fallen and the clouds that had given the snow had stopped the temperature falling as low as expected. It was still cold and a bit uncomfortable so we left as soon as breakfast was over. We descended in two days through ice cap, alpine desert, moorland and forest, the four distinct zones of Kilimanjaro.

Back at the hotel we enjoyed a celebration with all our crew and Gaudence presented us all with a certificate to say we had made it to the top of Africa’s highest mountain.

I cannot speak too highly of the owners and staff of the hotel. They organised an exhilarating, safe adventure for us. I am frequently reminded of this adventure because when I returned a friend asked me to speak at his Rotary Club about it.

I did a presentation which resulted in another and guess what it has snowballed into invitations to all sorts of groups. Most enjoyable.

7

Est.1923

Affordable peace of mind ..... Holidays

FULL 2012 BROCHURE OUT NOW

COACH TOURS 2012 LOCAL PICK UP POINTS

ABBEY LAWN HOTEL, TORQUAY

IMPERIAL HOTEL, EASTBOURNE

OCEAN VIEW HOTEL, ISLE OF WIGHT

Abbey Lawn Hotel, Torquay AAHHH Torquay is most certainly one of the UK’s Finest resorts and the heart of the English Riviera.

If you are looking to unwind in style, this elegant Georgian hotel is the place to stay. Located in the grounds of the former Torre Abbey, overlooking Torbay, there are superb facilities. These include indoor and outdoor swimming pools, gym, steam room, sauna and a spacious conservatory. As with all our own hotels a night porter ensures 24 hour reception service.

Imperial Hotel, Eastbourne Robinsons HHH Eastbourne is an ideal holiday destination, it has one of the top sunshine records in the UK and has been awarded the Seaside Award for its clean safe beaches for the past eight years.

An impressive Victorian hotel, situated at the seaward end of Devonshire place, less than a hundred yards from the seafront, on a delightful tree-lined boulevard less than five minutes walk from the main facilities and town centre amenities. A night porter ensures 24 hour reception service.

Ocean View Hotel, Shanklin Robinsons HHH Take a short boat ride across the Solent and discover the Isle of Wight, an island of great natural beauty and superb weather, with a wealth of attractions for visitors of all ages. Shanklin, on the south coast of the island, is home to a variety of safe, golden beaches and a quaint collection of shops housed in traditional thatched cottages.

An elegant hotel commanding magnificent views across Sandown Bay, the balconies provide the perfect place to enjoy the sunset on summer evenings. Guests can unwind in the piano lounge before enjoying an evning meal in the spacious restaurant. A night porter ensures 24 hour reception service.

Freephone : 0800 0839086 8

www.robinsons-holidays.co.uk

Park Garage, Great Harwood, Blackburn BB6 7SP.

1501

8 Days/ 7 Nights Dinner Bed & Breakfast, includes at least 2 Excursions and FREE Insurance

5 Days/ 4 Nights Dinner Bed & Breakfast, includes 2 Excursions and FREE Insurance

Abbey Lawn Imperial Ocean View Mystery Tour Sat/Sun 28/29 Apr 05/06 May 12/13 May 19/20 May 26/27 May 02/03 Jun 09/10 Jun 16/17 Jun 23/24 Jun 30 Jun/01 Jul 07/08 Jul 14/15 Jul 21/22 Jul 28/29 Jul 04/05 Aug 11/12 Aug 18/19 Aug 25/26 Aug 01/02 Sept 08/09 Sept 15/16 Sept 22/23 Sept 29/30 Sept

£345 £355 £365 £375 £385 £389 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £389 £379 £359 £339

£345 £355 £365 £375 £385 £389 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £389 £379 £359 £339

£345 £355 £365 £375 £385 £389 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £399 £389 £379 £359 £339

£299 £315 £325 £335 £345 £349 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £359 £349 £339 £319 £299

7 Days/ 6 Nights Dinner Bed & Breakfast, includes at least 2 Excursions and FREE Insurance Abbey Lawn Imperial Ocean View Mystery Tour Monday 05-Mar 12-Mar 19-Mar 26-Mar 16-Apr 23-Apr 08-Oct 15-Oct 22-Oct 29-Oct

£219 £229 £239 £249 £275 £285 £279 £269 £259 £249

£219 £229 £239 £249 £275 £285 £279 £269 £259 £249

£219 £229 £239 £249 £275 £285 £279 £269 £259 £249

£195 £205 £215 £225 £249 £255 £249 £245 £235 £225

£249 £245 £239 £235 £229 £225

£249 £245 £239 £235 £229 £225

£225 £219 £215 £209 £205 £199

Turkey and Tinsel 05-Nov 12-Nov 19-Nov 26-Nov 03-Dec 10-Dec

£249 £245 £239 £235 £229 £225

Abbey Lawn Imperial Ocean View Mystery Tour Monday 06-Feb 13-Feb 20-Feb 27-Feb 05-Mar 12-Mar 19-Mar 26-Mar 02-Apr 06-Apr 11-Apr 16-Apr 23-Apr 30-Apr 07-May 14-May 21-May 28-May 04-Jun 11-Jun 18-Jun 25-Jun 02-Jul 09-Jul 16-Jul 23-Jul 30-Jul 06-Aug 13-Aug 20-Aug 27-Aug 03-Sept 10-Sept 17-Sept 24-Sept 01-Oct 08-Oct 15-Oct 22-Oct 29-Oct

£139 £145 £149 £155 £159 £165 £169 £175 £175 £185 £185 £189 £195 £225 £215 £209 £205 £199

£139 £145 £149 £155 £159 £165 £169 £175 £175 £185 £185 £189 £195 £199 £209 £215 £219 £225 £229 £239 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £245 £239 £235 £225 £215 £209 £205 £199

£139 £145 £149 £155 £159 £165 £169 £175 £175 £185 £185 £189 £195 £199 £209 £215 £219 £225 £229 £239 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £249 £245 £239 £235 £225 £215 £209 £205 £199

£129 £133 £135 £139 £145 £149 £155 £159 £155 £165 £165 £169 £175 £179 £189 £195 £199 £205 £209 £215 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £225 £219 £215 £209 £199 £189 £185 £179 £175

£199 £195 £189 £185 £179 £175* £169* £395 £375

£199 £195 £189 £185 £179 £175* £169* £395 £375

£179 £175 £169 £165 £165 £165* £165* £355 £335

Turkey and Tinsel 05-Nov 12-Nov 19-Nov 26-Nov 03-Dec 10-Dec 17-Dec 23-Dec 29-Dec

£199 £195 £189 £185 £179 £175* £169* £395 £375

* Unlimited Singles

Abbey Lawn and Ocean View Hotels Front facing/seaview supplements 7 Days £13 per person. 8 Days £15 per person.

5 Days £10 per person

9

Freephone: 0800 0839086 Park Garage, Great Harwood, Blackburn BB6 7SP www.robinsons-holidays.co.uk

10

the timeless island of

Relax and enjoy Alderney’s laid-back atmosphere.

Cliff walks with breathtaking views, uncrowded golden beaches and an abundance of wildlife.

Genuine hospitality and fine food and wine.

Short, regular flights from Southampton airport.

Tel: 01481 822333

Email: brochures@visitalderney.com

www.visitalderney.com/retired

H O L I D AY S

& T R AV E L

itishMemory & Continental Holidays Lane is a well established coach company offering a& high Short level of service.Breaks Our tour programme offers a

wide range of UK and Continental Tours to many destinations and represent good value for money. All our Tour coaches are air conditioned for your comfort and most tours include admission with hot and cold drinks available.

Our Diner Coaches offer extra leg room as they are full size vehicles. The on board hostess will offer Morning Coffee and Lunch on touring days. All service and coaches are of the highest quality.

Memory Lane Holidays & Travel

2012 BROCHURE OUT NOW

Heath Street, Golborne, Warrington WA3 3AD Tel: 01942 728 960 | Web: www.memorylanetravel.co.uk

British & Continental Holidays & Short Breaks Date

Destination

Days

Hotel

19 Mar 19 Mar 23 Mar 01 Apr 01 Apr 09 Apr 09 Apr 09 Apr 14 Apr 14 Apr 15 Apr 16 Apr 22 Apr 28 Apr 30 Apr 04 May 04 May 06 May 13 May 15 May 20 May 24 May 27 May 03 Jun 03 Jun 06 Jun 11 Jun 17 Jun 28 Jun 02 July 04 July 07 July

Llandudno Torquay Blackpool Dumfries Bournemouth Hereford Blairgowrie Bulbfields/Floriade Beamish Weekend Isle of Wight Bude Historic Chatham Northumbria Cornwall St Agnes Criccieth Carinthian Lakes Llandudno Extrava Dunoon Bognor Regis Jersey By Air Ostend at Anchor Isles of Scilly Ireland Titanic Trail Bournemouth Looe Norway & Denmark Sidmouth Cumbria Kintyre & Gigha Isle Hayling Island Isle of Man Llandudno

5HB 5HB 4HB 3HB 6HB 5HB 5HB 6HB 2HB 5HB 6HB 5HB 6HB 6HB 5HB 10FB 4HB 6HB 6HB 7HB 7HB 7HB 7HB 6HB 6HB 11HB 6HB 7HB 5HB 5HB 5HB 8HB

Queens Hotel Inglewood Hotel Park House Hotel Cairndale Hotel Hinton Firs Hotel Warner Holme Lacy Angus Hotel Van der Valk Honest Lawyer Burlington Hotel Hartland Bridgewood Manor Victoria Hotel Rosemundy House Lion Hotel Zanker All inclusive Queens Hotel Esplanade BW Beachcroft Mayfair Royal Astor Bell Rock Hotel Carlow, Midleton & Bray Hinton Firs Hotel Hannafore Point Various Bedford Hotel Gilsland Spa Gray Gull Warner Sinah Warren Rutland Hotel Queens Hotel

Price £189 £149 £139 £199 £298 £359 £279 £449 £80 £249 £390 £348 £349 £359 £238 £799 £199 £325 £329 £535 £370 £749 £495 £379 £399 £1179 £418 £399 £339 £369 £389 £419

Single

Diner

Door to Door

15 NIL NIL 40 NIL NIL 40 130 15 NIL NIL 75 NIL 25 NIL 159 10 40 50 NIL 50 20 115 NIL NIL 305 NIL 50 40 NIL 40 25

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO YES NO YES NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO YES NO NO NO YES NO NO NO NO

NO NO NO YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES

25/10/2011 09:26

HEATH STREET, GOLBORNE, WARRINGTON WA3 3AD.

08 July 14 July 16 July 22 July 26 July 28 July 05 Aug 10 Aug 11 Aug 20 Aug 24 Aug 26 Aug 01 Sep 02 Sep 09 Sep 15 Sep 16 Sep 19 Set 23 Sep 24 Sep 28 Sep

Tenby Torquay Scarborough Cumbria & The Dales Welsh Railways Sp Paignton Jersey By Air - Battle of the Flowers Edinburgh Tattoo Lake Garda Italy Cornwall St Agnes Edinburgh Tattoo Dunoon Eastbourne Torquay Bournemouth Isle Of Wight Dordogne, France Cyprus by Air Northumberland Blackpool Llandudno

6HB 8HB 5HB 5HB 5HB 8HB 8HB 3HB 11HB 6HB 3HB 6HB 8HB 6HB 6HB 8HB 8HB 8HB 6HB 5HB 3HB

Park Hotel Kistor Hotel Esplanade Hotel Shap Wells Hotel Metropole Hotel Marine Hotel Jersey by Air, Mayfair BW Kings Manor Hotel Sole, Riva Rosemundy House BW Kings Manor Esplanade Hotel Haddon Hall Hotel Corbyn Head Hotel Hinton Firs Hotel Burlington Hotel Royal Vezere, Le Bugue The Athena Hotel Victoria Hotel Park House Hotel Queens Hotel

£389 £399 £318 £299 £355 £479 £599 £249 £799 £376 £249 £395 £399 £419 £379 £399 £685 £946 £415 £249 £119

50 NO NIL NO 25 NO 60 NO 40 NO NIL NO NIL NO 45 NO 155 NO 25 NO 45 NO 40 YES NIL NO NIL NO NIL YES NIL NO 180 NO TBA N NO NIL DAY EXCEUWYES SI LEAF RNO NIL LET ON N O W O NO 10

UT

YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES NO

Summer Day Excursion Leaflet OUT NOW! visit our website our call into the office for your copy

EXTRA TOURS

RHINE VALLEY, BOPPARD and the Winefest 23rd-28th Sept 6 day tour By Coach and North Sea Ferries Great value for money at £390.00 Single Room & cabin is £75 BOPPARD is known as the ‘Pearl of the Rhine’ and lives up to its name.

There is a busy shopping area, where most of the shopkeepers speak English. There are the remains of the Roman City of Bordabrica which stood here before modern Boppard. Also the famous Sessel lift which takes you to the top of the Gorge and magnificent VierBlick Scene, with the river and its boat traffic, or sit in on the waterfront terrace with a leisurely drink.

Tour Price Includes: l All Coach Travel and excursions l Three nights dinner B & B at The Rhinelust Hotel, located on The Banks of THE RHINE l All rooms are ensuite l Most meals are Buffet Style l Two nights dinner Bed & Breakfast l Services of Professional Driver & Courier

Spend Christmas at the fabulous 3 star Cairndale Hotel in the centre of Dumfries, 5 days/4 nights With entertainment and day excursions, great value at just £359, door to door, SRS £59.

( 01942 728960 www.memorylanetravel.co.uk

Getting the most from your holiday ...

WIN

HOLIDAYS provide that get-away-from-it-all feeling that we all need at some time of Take a look at our full • Admire the Sussex Coastsimply as a change from normal routine. the year • Explore the wonderful South Downs • Visit charming Arundel 5 DAYS They rejuvenate us Dep: Jun 14 • Jul 19 • Aug 16

range of 2010/2011 and re-charge brochures…

the “body batteries” that create WAS £299 NOW £229 the spark that keeps us going for the rest of the Weston-super-Mare & year. But making Longleat the right choices for your holiday • Visit majestic Longleat House – and following some simple rules • Explore the awe-inspiring Cheddar Gorge beforehand - becomes far more 5 DAYS important when we get older and Dep: Jul 19 • Aug 9 are less prepared to go on largely WAS £329 NOW £279 unplanned trips which seemed so Loch exciting Lomond & when we were younger.

The Highland Line

• Journey on the West Line market, at home Today, theHighland holiday • Take in the views of Loch Lomond or further • Visit bustling Glasgow afield, offers a mass of choices and plenty of 5 DAYSpotential value. So the best way to start your planning Dep: Jul 12, 26 • Aug 2

is to decide whether you want to stay in the UK or £249 in the UK can vary from popular seaside resorts to sleepy villages, and from hotels bristling Great Yarmouth & with activities to remote country cottages with only the Norfolk Broads • Enjoywildlife the Norfolk Broads for company.

WAS not. £299Holidays NOW

a Weekend Break for 2!

Escorted A: 48coach B:tours 49are popular C: 50

with older people who prefer everything arranged for them.

Name: “There are plenty available,” says Carol, “from a tour around the ScottishAddress: Highlands to going through the Canadian Rockies. Cruises have also become very popular with older travellers, with adult-only ships if that’s what you prefer.”

Postcode:

“Plan your holiday right from leaving home to reaching Order your your destination at the other end of your journey,“ Carol. “There are lots of services on offer copiesadvises that are aimed at making your travelling experience comfortable, but one basic is to check luggage today!more £359 Decide first of all exactly what you want from your allowances beforehand as these vary with airlines.”

• East Anglia’s transport museum • Explore historic Norwich 8 DAYSAnd if you want to go outside the UK, well, as Arthur Dep: Jul 3 • Aug graphically 7, 21 • Sep 4 Daley put it “the world is your lobster!”

WAS

accommodation becomes even more important if you have health and/or mobility problems. “Is the resort flat or is it going to be hilly?” adds Carol. “Some hotels For your chance to WIN a Weekend Break for 2, mayin not have easy for the staying a Shearings hotel, access simply answer question below and in the entry form below: someone withfillwalking difficulties and you need to know about this beforehand.”

How many hotels do Shearings own?

£439

NOW

rogrammeholiday and sightseeing excursions.that because

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We may occasionally pass your details onto selected 3rd parties, if you do not want this to happen please tick here

If you do not want to receive any future brochures or special will influence both the destination offers from Shearings Holidays please tick here and the type of accommodation you choose. Carol “If you’re flying and are worried about struggling with Allenby-Carr from Travel Counsellors advises being bags at the airport, most UK airports now offer a Fast Holidays are operated by Shearings Holidays Ltd and are subject to availability, amendment charges and terms and conditions of Shearings Holidays Trading Charter. 2.5% handling fee om quoting NRL022 careful about when you travel, too.

“For example, if Track service for a small cost where you will be met on applies to credit card transactions. Prices are per person, per stay based on two people sharing a standard room. Insurance is not included. Additional supplements may apply. All you want to go to a Mediterranean country and you arrival at the airport, escorted to the check-in desk and quoting NRL022 prices are valid on new bookings only made between 24/05/2010 – 30/06/2010 and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Details are correct at time of going to press. Prices don’t like it too hot, then don’t go in July and August,” through the queuing process and security.” will be confirmed at the time of booking. Shearings Holidays reserve the right fast-tracked to withdraw any ent offers and prices at any time and without prior notice. she states All airlines also offer airport assistance, like use of a wheelchair or help boarding the aircraft, and if you “And if you want a bit of peace and quiet on your dislike crowded places you could check in at the holiday, don’t choose a hotel that’s geared up for executive lounge where for a small fee you can relax families. Fortunately, there are plenty of adult-only with refreshments in a quieter area before boarding properties now on offer throughout the world.” your plane.

Selecting exactly the right destination and Age UK, formerly Age Concern, which runs its own comprehensive holiday service in the UK and Europe

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Send your completed form back to: Retired and Living in… Competition, Marketing Department, Shearings Holidays, Miry Lane, Wigan, WN3 4AG

Eastbourne & Sussex Coast

offers plenty of useful advice about early planning to make the most from your break, especially if it’s abroad.

any vaccinations you need in good time before you go.

• Check if there are cultural, language or local laws about alcohol or drugs and keep the local dress code in mind.

• The cost of living may be higher in some places than the UK so allow for this, especially if you’re self-catering.

• If the holiday involves a different type of activity, prepare ahead. For example, for a sporting holiday you may need to build up your physical fitness.

• Decide whether you want to arrange it all yourself or use a travel agent. An independent holiday

may be time-consuming to arrange but it may

provide exactly what you want.

• One helpful way to find holiday information

about accessible accommodation and other tourism services for older people and those with disabilities is to contact Tourism For All, a national registered charity. Go to www.

tourismforall.org.uk write to: Tourism For All (UK) Holiday Care, c/o Vitalise, Shap Road Industrial Estate, Kendal, Cumbria LA9 6NZ or tel 0845 124 9971.

• To find out about the political stability, health risks etc of a particular country (although not for visa-related inquiries), try the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s travel advice helpline tel 0845 850 2829 or go to www.fco.gov.uk

• Whichever organisation you book your holiday

with, ensure they’re members of ABTA The Travel Association or the Association of Independent

Travel Operators (AITO).

• Any UK company selling package holidays must comply with the Package Travel Regulations 1992 which cover areas like the brochure description and what the contract must contain.

• If you’re buying over the internet, or flight and accommodation separately elsewhere, ensure that each is covered otherwise you could lose your money. Credit card payment offers some protection. Holiday insurance is vital.

• Make sure your passport is up to date – some

countries insist on there being at least six months remaining. If you’re a British citizen and were born on or before September 2, 1929, you are now entitled to a free 10-year passport.

Contact the Passport Agency tel 0300 222 0000 or go to www.ips.gov.uk If mobility problems prevent you from actually getting to a travel agent, incidentally, there are some – like Travel Counsellors – who come to your home.

If you’ve got a medical condition and need medication, it’s worth sorting this out at least six weeks before you go. Your GP may also have advice on managing your condition while you’re away, and don’t forget to have

A European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) means you’ll be able to receive necessary healthcare during a visit to a European Economic Area country or Switzerland.

And these are individual so you and your partner – or all members of a travelling group – need one each. Get application forms from main post offices, apply online at www.ehic.org.uk or call 0845 606 2030.

Leave travel, destination and contact details with someone at home, and ensure you’ve got enough money for your trip. If you have a mobile phone, check with your network provider that it’s enabled for international roaming. Check that your handset will work in the country you’re travelling to, and look at the costs to use it abroad for phone and text messages.

Make sure your home is safe and secure by cancelling any milk or newspaper deliveries, that your building and contents’ insurance are up to date and that valuable items like computers and TVs are out of sight.

Ask a neighbour to collect your mail, mow your lawn, open and close your curtains and switch lights on and off. If the latter isn’t possible, invest in time switches on your lights.

Lock and secure your windows, doors and garden sheds; don’t leave spare keys near the house. Check that the house is free of hazards and blockages in case of bad weather – and have a great holiday!

!

Est.1923 Affordable peace of mind ..... Holidays

WIN A 5 DAY COACH HOLIDAY FOR 2 PEOPLE Choose either Eastbourne, Torquay or the Isle of Wight.

Prize includes 5 day/4 nights half board accommodation at your chosen Robinsons own hotel in either standard twin or double room, excursions as per tour itinerary, coach travel to/from standard pick-up point, and entertainment as per itinerary and FREE INSURANCE Please fill in the form opposite and send to Robinsons Competition McGrath Media. Unit 6, Moses Gate Workshops, Manchester Road, Bolton BL3 2QG.

Name:............................................................................

Address:........................................................................

Postcode:.......................................................................

Telephone:.....................................................................

Prize must be redeemed before 5th December 2012 and excludes Easter.

Non-transferable and non cash redeemable. Draw will take place on Monday 2nd of April 2012.

15

Door to Door Coach Holidays from

Why not join us this year on one of our Quality Door to Door Coach Tours?

Our passenger numbers grow year on year because we offer a type holiday that takes away the stress and angst encountered on many other forms of holiday.

Firstly, we pick you up at your front door at a prearranged time in a minibus or taxi. You are then transferred to a central meeting point where the coach is waiting for you. Within 15 to 30 minutes you’re on your way aboard our luxury coach travelling directly to your holiday destination, making suitable stops en-route. The hotels that we use are of a 3 or 4 star standard or occasionally a good quality family run 2 star hotel.

However, if you prefer another type of holiday you could travel abroad by aeroplane but remember the taxi to the airport, the queue at check in, the queue at the security check, the removal of your shoes, belts etc., the wait in the departure lounge and the queue to board the plane. Then the cramped conditions on the plane, the queues at the destination airport, need I go on? Oh yes I will – the cost of living once you are there!

Or perhaps a none Ellen Smith coach holiday. A taxi or bus to a local picking up point, a wait for the coach to arrive, then off to the interchange to swap coaches, and eventually you’re on your way, about 2 hours behind the Ellen Smith coach!

16

Or why not go by car, but calculate the cost of fuel and parking charges. Also not forgetting the busy motorways, fractious driving and expensive hotels.

It makes sense to opt for an Ellen Smith door to door holiday!

We pick- up at your door in most of the Greater Manchester area. We visit every part of the UK from the Shetland Islands to Cornwall. Our drivers are very experienced mature individuals with a wealth of knowledge about our wonderful country. We do city breaks, historic adventures, scenic tours, train rides, boat rides, canal trips, not forgetting our numerous costal resorts.

We offer a price guarantee – everything noted in the brochure is included in the price. No surcharges, no charges for the use of credit or debit cards, we also guarantee that if we reduce the price of a holiday every customer gets the same reduction.

INTERESTED? Call our reservations office on 01706 648126 and request a copy of our 2012 brochure, you’ll be surprised at the variations of tours we operate.

Or visit our website

www.ellensmith.co.uk www.retiredmagazines.co.uk

Ashton Ashton

Portland Basin Portland Basin Ladysmith Shopping Ladysmith Centre Shopping Centre Setantii

Museum of the Manchester Regiment Setantii Museum of the Manchester Regiment

, Chiquitos, Harvester Ashton Moss and Eat Inn Chinese Buffet • Award winning Farmers Market held on the last Sunday of each month

Arcades Shopping Arcades Centre Shopping Centre Old Town Old Town Outdoor Market Outdoor and Indoor Market Market Hall and Indoor Market Hall

Day

TOWN CENTRE MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE TOWN CENTRE MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE

20/4/11 15:39:57 20/4/11 15:39:57

Peter Cook: Genius at Work At BFI Southbank in March 2012 BFI Southbank

Belvedere Rd

BFI Southbank celebrates the mercurial comedic talent of Peter Cook throughout March with a season of his work for both film and television. From the legendary Beyond the fringe (BBC 1964) and Not only but Also (BBC 19651966, 1970) TV programmes, to the supernatural big screen comedy of Bedazzled (1967), there will also be an opportunity to view a rare selection of rarities and oddities from the archive including sketches, interviews, adverts, chat show appearances and also a visit with Derek and Clive.

Arguably the brightest star of a remarkable generation of brilliant comedy practitioners to emerge from the Oxbridge fringe tradition, the rakishly handsome Peter Cook cut quite a dashing figure, often using a drag on his ever-present cigarette to act as punctuation to his acerbic comments and surreal flights of fantasy. One of his great strengths was his ability to extemporise on any unlikely subject, rambling wildly in all directions, but always somehow managing to find the humorous kernel at the centre.

Frequently his musings led him to conjure up absurdist takes on a given situation, holding it up to scrutiny and finally finding the flaw that rendered it ridiculous. He was a prolific writer and excelled at impersonating character types who sported strange speaking voices, often delivering their words in a trademark monotone. But it was with his sparkling partnership with Dudley Moore that Cook achieved his greatest success, the pair reinventing the double-act dynamic and inspiring each other to greater heights. Their sketch series Not Only But Also (BBC 1965-1966, 1970) was one of the most revered shows of the 1960s and one of the evenings in this season will be dedicated to that show. Elsewhere we present a rare screening of the Beyond the Fringe stage show which first brought Cook and Moore to the fore (as well as those great talents Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller), and also look at some of Cook’s solo TV work. Finally an evening of oddities and rarities will bring together snippets from all areas of Cook’s career, including material never before seen anywhere! The TV treats will be supplemented 18

South Bank London SE1 8XT by a couple of Cook’s big-screen appearances, in the political satire The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer (1967) and the evergreen supernatural comedy Bedazzled (1970).

Beyond the Fringe BBC 1964. Dir Duncan Wood. (Extended version) 116min.

This famous stage show launched the careers of four of the generation’s brightest humorists, as Jonathan Miller, Alan Bennett, Dudley Moore and Peter Cook combined their skills to present a scintillating series of sketches, skits and satirical shenanigans. The show proved a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic and brought the new comedy of the emerging Oxbridge generation to a wider world. It almost single-handedly kick-started the satire boom that was to dominate TV comedy for much of the 1960s. The BBC originally screened only a 60-minute version of this historic telerecording.

Thu 8 March 18:10 NFT1

Not Only But Also BBC 1965-1966, 1970. Compilation c100min The Cook and Moore double-act reached its zenith in this brilliant TV sketch show that was a big success for the newly launched BBC2. The pair played perfectly off one another, often seeming to stray off-script or to incorporate ad-libs in an attempt to faze each other. Moore’s near corpsing, as Cook fixed him with a laser-like stare following some deftly delivered comic time bomb, became a much-loved feature of the show. We are delighted that this evening’s bespoke compilation will be introduced by one of the show’s original producers, Joe McGrath.

Mon 12 March 20:40 NFT3

Peter Cook and Co ITV 1980. Dir Paul Smith. With Peter Cook, Rowan Atkinson, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Beryl Reid, Paula Wilcox. 55min The dream supporting cast for this one-off special illustrated the high esteem in which Cook was held by his peers. Although critics at the time thought it patchy (a term perennially applied to sketch shows), it can now be viewed as a wonderful snapshot of Cook at the time, with the sketch spoofing Road Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected

particularly memorable. Plus a full supporting programme of Cook TV appearances (total r/t c100min).

Fri 16 March 20:40 NFT3 Oddities and Rarities Sketches, interviews, adverts, chat show appearances and comedy monologues from the master himself. Tonight’s specially compiled pot pourri will bring together fascinating fragments from all periods and areas of Peter Cook’s career. Be warned – this screening will include adult material definitely unsuitable for those of a tender disposition, since within the programme we will be reacquainting ourselves with the notorious Derek and Clive!

Wed 21 March 18:20 NFT2 The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer UK 1970. Dir Kevin Billington. With Peter Cook, Denholm Elliott, Arthur Lowe, Harold Pinter, John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Ronnie Corbett. 102min. 15 A biting satire, underappreciated in its day, which has since gained cult status. The ruthless but charismatic Michael Rimmer (Cook) barnstorms his way through the world of advertising before setting his sights on higher office – running the country itself. Cleese and Chapman had the original idea, though the final screenplay also credits Cook and director Kevin Billington, and the result is a wild fantasy, with various comic vignettes linked by Rimmer’s irresistible charge to the top.

Sun 18 March 18:20 NFT2 Wed 21 March 20:40 NFT

The BFI Southbank is open to all. BFI members are entitled to a discount on all tickets. BFI Southbank Box Office tel: 020 7928 3232.

Unless otherwise stated tickets are £9.50, concs £6.75 Members pay £1.50 less on any ticket. Website www.bfi.org.uk/southbank

50 BLACKPOOL Holidays

visit: www.50plusholidays.co.uk email: sales@50plusholidays.co.uk

The New Mayfair Hotel is Situated in the enviable position of South Beach on South Promenade Blackpool, the hotel boasts 45 En-suite Bedrooms some with spectacular panoramic views of the sea and miles of golden sand.

The hotel offers a first class hotel experience where you can be rest assured your every need is catered for, in a fully accessible environment with caring & dedicated staff.

One of the highlights of your visit will no doubt be a meal in the accessible South Beach Restaurant. We understand that good food is an important factor of your holiday and that is why we have our own in house chefs with over 35 years’ experience At selected times throughout the season we will be offering some fantastic evening entertainment featuring some of the best cabaret artists the North West has to offer.

WITH 25 SINGLES ROOMS AVAILABLE THERE IS NO SINGLE SUPPLEMENT TO PAY !

Prize must be redeemed before 31st March 2012.

Non-transferable and non cash redeemable

Safehands at The New Mayfair, 673 - 677 New South Promenade, Blackpool, Lancs., FY4 1RN

19

The perfeCT seTTing To improve your cooking skills welcome to cheshire cooks, where inspirational teaching and a love of food is at the heart of all we do Cheshire Cooks is a unique venue offering a fresh approach to cooking with exciting classes that emphasise hands-on cookery and inspirational teaching, using top quality seasonal, local produce.

There are few things more enjoyable in life than gathering around a table with family and friends – good food, good wine and good company are a perfect combination.

Whether your aim is to cook for pleasure or as a professional, or to enjoy a team building exercise with colleagues or a group event with friends, our tutors can offer one-day or two-day courses designed to suit the complete novice through to the experienced enthusiast.

get in touch to find out more about the Cheshire Cooks bespoke group courses!

a selection of our courses: One or two day culinary courses International cuisines Tasty vegetarian dishes and many more… group classes corporate Events Team-building exercises gift vouchers

Located 12 miles, into the Cheshire countryside, from its sister company the greenbough Hotel, ‘cheshire cooks’ is the ideal learning environment which can be combined with a City break in Chester.

www.cheshirecooks.co.uk | enquiries@cheshirecooks.co.uk | Tel: 01244 325 025

F O O D

&

DR I NK

Rick Stein's French Odyssey Rick Stein’s passion for fresh well-sourced food has taken him from continent to continent, across magnificent shorelines and to the very best produce the coast has to offer. Rick remarks “My greatest enthusiasm in life has been finding dishes that change my perception of cooking, that reveal a whole new vista of flavour combination. I think we all enjoy that.

I’m just someone with an enthusiasm for food and a curiosity that’s sent me sniffing around all over the place looking for lovely dishes in all corners of the globe” Taken from his book ‘French Odyssey’ (BBC Books, £25) here are three of Rick’s favourite recipes inspired by flavours from France.

Warm mussel and potato salad with pistou Peel the potatoes and put them into a pan of cold salted water (1 teaspoon per 600 ml). Bring to the boil and cook for 12-15 minutes until tender. Drain, return to the pan, cover and keep warm.

For the pistou, put the basil, garlic, tomato and Parmesan cheese into a food processor and blend. Then, with the machine still running, gradually add the oil to make to make a mayonnaise-like mixture.

Season to taste with 1/4 teaspoon of salt and some black pepper.

Put the mussels and 2 tablepoons of water into a medium-sized pan, cover and place over a high heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice, until the mussels have just opened. Tip into a colander set over a bowl to collect the juices, and when they are cool enough to handle, remove all but a few of them from the shells.

Cover and keep warm. Return the mussel-cooking liquor to the pan and boil rapidly until reduced and well flavoured.

Put 4 tablespoons of the pistou into a small bowl and stir in 2 teaspoons of the reduced mussel cooking liquor to loosen it slightly.

Mix the frisée with the rocket and divide between 4 plates. Slice the potatoes and arrange them in among the leaves with the mussels.

Drizzle over the pistou, squeeze over a little lemon juice and serve straight away, while the potatoes are still warm.

SERVES 4 350g small waxy potatoes, such as rattes, pink fir apple or Anya 750g medium-sized mussels 50g prepared frisée (curly endive) 50g wild rocket 1/4 lemon, for squeezing FOR THE PISTOU: 50g fresh basil leaves 3 fat garlic cloves, peeled 1 x 75g vine-ripened tomato, skinned, seeded and chopped 75g Parmesan cheese, finely grated 150ml olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper

JOIN US FOR A FREE CREAM TEA FOR 2 OR LOCAL POTTED SHRIMP AND THEN DISCOVER OUR BEAUTIFUL VILLAGE MIDDLETON TOWERS (SEE PAGES 36 & 37) Offer ends 30th April 2012

SERVES 4 4 x 175-225-g pieces of thick, unskinned cod fillet 15g melted butter, for brushing Salt and freshly ground black pepper FOR THE POMMES SARLADAISE: 1kg floury potatoes such as King Edward’s or Maris Pipers 4 heaped tablespoons goose or duck fat 3 garlic cloves 25g flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped 1 teaspoon truffle oil FOR THE TOMATO AND CAPER SALAD: 6 medium-sized vine ripened tomatoes, thinly sliced 1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced 2 teaspoons nonpareilles capers, drained and rinsed 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar Pinch caster sugar 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley 22

Grilled cod on pommes sarladaise with truffle oil For the pommes sarladaise, peel and thickly slice the potatoes - about 5 mm thick. Heat 3 tablespoons of the goose or duck fat in a large, reliably non-stick frying pan. Add the potatoes and some seasoning and fry over a medium heat for about 5 minutes until the bottom layer of potatoes is golden. Then turn the potatoes over and leave until another bottom layer is golden. Some of the potatoes will remain unbrowned, and as they cook the slices start to break up a little, but don’t worry, this is how they should be. Repeat this for 15 minutes, making sure not to turn the potatoes before the bottom layer has browned. Then turn the heat down, cover and leave to cook very gently for another 10 minutes.

Chop the garlic and half the parsley leaves together to make a persillade.

Uncover the potatoes and mix in the persillade and the truffle oil. Cover and leave to cook for another 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife.

Meanwhile, brush the cod on both sides with the melted butter and season with some salt and pepper. Put skin-side up onto a baking tray and grill for 8-10 minutes until cooked through.

For the salad, arrange the sliced tomatoes over the base of a shallow serving dish and scatter over the sliced red onion and capers. Whisk together the red wine vinegar, sugar and a pinch of salt and pepper and then gradually whisk in the olive oil. Drizzle this over the salad, scatter over the parsley and set to one side.

Now uncover the pan of potatoes, turn up the heat and add the last tablespoon of duck fat. Fry for 2-3 minutes until the bottom layer is crisp and brown, then add the remaining chopped parsley and turn over briefly.

To serve, spoon the potatoes onto 4 warm plates and rest the cod on top.

Serve with the tomato and caper salad.

SERVES 4 12-16 cooked langoustines or 100g large freshly cooked peeled prawns 2 medium-sized squid, cleaned, to yield about 250g 450g small mussels, cleaned 2 tablespoons dry white wine 300ml Chicken stock 150g dried linguine 4 tablespoons olive oil 25g plain flour Small pinch crushed dried chillies 25g butter 2 vine-ripened tomatoes, skinned, seeded and diced 1 garlic clove, finely chopped 20g fine herbes leaves parsley, tarragon, chervil and chives, finely chopped 1 teaspoon lemon juice Salt and freshly ground black pepper

A little ragoût of seafood

with fines herbes, white wine and linguine Peel the langoustines if using. Cut the squid pouches across into thin rings and separate the tentacles into pairs. Set aside.

Bring a large pan of well-salted water (1 teaspoon per 600ml) to the boil.

Heat a medium-sized pan over a high heat, add the mussels and the wine, cover and cook for 2-3 minutes, shaking the pan every now and then, until the mussels have just opened. Tip them into a colander set over a bowl to collect the cooking juices, and, when cool enough to handle, remove the meats from the shells, cover and set aside.

Pour all but the last tablespoon or two of the mussel cooking liquor (as it might be a bit gritty) into a small pan, add the chicken stock and bring to the boil. Boil rapidly until reduced to 180ml, then turn off the heat and keep warm.

Drop the pasta into the pan of boiling water and cook for 8-9 minutes or until al dente. Drain well, return to the pan with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, toss, cover and keep warm.

Season the prepared squid, toss with the flour and shake off the excess. Heat a large frying pan over a high heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, half the squid and a few flakes of the dried chillies and fry over a high heat for about 1 minute until just cooked through. Transfer to a plate and repeat with another tablespoon of oil, and the rest of the squid and chillies.

Now pour the mussel liquor and chicken stock reduction into the frying pan in which the squid was cooked and add the butter and the last tablespoon of olive oil. It will immediately boil. Add the tomato, garlic, fines herbes, langoustines or prawns and lemon juice and toss together very briefly until the prawns have heated through. Add the cooked mussels and squid, and toss together once more for about 1 minute. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from the heat so that the fish doesn't cook any further.

Divide the ragoût between 4 small, warmed soup plates and twist some of the pasta into a pile in the centre of each bowl.

Serve straight away.

Each one or two day course at Cheshire Cooks is designed to provide you with all the skills you need to translate your love of food into imaginative cuisine. As part of a small group you will spend a fascinating day cooking dishes designed to be easily created in your own kitchen using your cookery school folder which is full of recipes, skills and techniques covered on your course. See page 20 for details.

23

An Award Winning Food Market Bury’s World Famous Market was voted UK Coach Awards ‘Most Friendly Shopping Attraction’ 2011, the most recent of a series of awards including; NABMA - Best Market Attraction in 2009, BBC Radio 4’s Food and Farming Awards - Best Food Market in 2008 and NABMA – Market of the Year 2006.

Bury Council operate the Market on its current Angouleme Way site, where it has been located since 1971, but the original charter to hold a weekly market dates back to 1440 when it was granted to Sir John Pilkington by King Henry VI. The format of the current market dates back to 1999 when the purpose built Fish and Meat Hall was completed and the Markets connection with the adjacent Mill Gate Shopping Centre was, literally, cemented as it was extended to join the two buildings together.

Bury’s World Famous Market, “……. is a shoppers’ mecca, a retail nirvana rich with exotic bargains, a fabled bazaar, a veritable souk of the north”.* So said Stuart Maconie in his 2007 book ‘Pies and Prejudice’, and anywhere there is a “shoppers’ mecca” you’re sure to find canny traders servicing their needs.

So what is the big attraction of Bury Market Today?

With over 300 stalls on the Open Market, 62 in the Market Hall, 8 in the Meat and Fish Hall and the 28 shops on the perimeter, most would have to agree that it would be far easier to list what couldn’t be bought here. The aromas, the hustle and bustle, the non-regimentation of the layout, all combine to draw shoppers to Bury Market - and not just local shoppers. Bury receives over 1400 coaches each year, with visitors arriving every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. The Market site is all on one level and fully accessible to all.

After visiting the Market you can stroll to the adjacent MillGate Shopping Centre or take the 5 minute walk to The Rock which is Bury’s newest retail offering hosting such high street giants as Debenhams, Marks and Spencer’s and Next along with a mix of small independent retailers, Vue Cinema and AMF Bowling.

Bury town centre is also home to the Fusilier Museum, East Lancashire Railway, Bury Transport Museum and Bury Art Gallery making Bury the ideal venue for a great day out mixing culture with shopping.

If you like your markets more intimate Bury now hosts a Sunday Food and Craft Market on the third Sunday of each month, with 20 to 30 local traders selling their wares.

24

Bury Market Hall open everyday except Sunday “Winner BBC Radio 4’s Food and Farming Awards” Best Food Market “Winner NABMA’s” Best Market Attraction Full Markets Open Wednesdays Fridays and Saturdays

An Award Winning Market Bury Market’s huge selection of fresh food and produce has been praised the world over…but the only compliments we really want are from our customers!

At Bury Market you’ll discover over 350 stalls selling everything from fresh food to the latest fashions – and a whole lot more!

Bury Market’s easy to find and even easier to enjoy.

The world famous Bury Market located off junction 2 of the M66 – every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

Why not visit our Food and Craft Market on the third Sunday of each month?

ProArgi-9-Plus ProArgi-9-Plus is a 100% Natural, ‘Clinically Proven’ Food Supplement using Nobel Prize Winning Science.

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ProArgi-9 Plus uses Nobel Prize Winning Science to increase Nitric Oxide levels within the body, an Essential element to all life. L-Arginine and L-Citrulline are Vital amino acids contained within that convert to Nitric Oxide, increasing Longevity by improving artery and blood vessel flexibility & reversing many other ailments. ProArgi-9 contains many other Vitamins essential to good health, Including: Vitamin D3, B6, B12, Pomegranate, Ribose, Xylite.

If you take medication for any of the above please consult a doctor prior to use .

See Independent Distributor website for full details

www.lust4life.org.uk call: 0800 080 7058 Enjoy your Life & Turn Back Time with ProArgi-9.

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Until 30.04.12 you can save £55.95 and get the XL3 upright for just £199 plus p&p. Try at home for 30 days. Satisfaction or your money back. Interest free payments available.

Call 0800 869 669, quoting RM123F. For details, visit www.oreck.co.uk/RM123F or write to ORECK FREEPOST, EXETER. OK2448

26

Reach for the Peak for your perfect escape Located right at the centre of the UK, the Peak District is the perfect place for a relaxing or rejuvenating short break.

With the superbly varied and speciallyprotected landscapes of the Britain’s first National Park at its heart, the area enjoys the best of all worlds – thriving towns and vibrant cities, windswept moorland and sheltered river valleys, picturesque villages and some of the finest scenery in the country.

Our compact, yet varied area encompasses everything from the rugged moors of the Dark Peak in the north to the lush meadows and woodlands of the National Forest in the south. Not to mention the largely undiscovered countryside of the Peak District’s Historic Border Country in the east and Macclesfield Forest and the Staffordshire Moorlands in the west.

Boasting excellent rail, bus and air links, the Peak District couldn’t be simpler to reach. Within easy striking distance of the UK’s main motorway network, served by the M1 and M6, it also enjoys excellent mainline rail services from London and comprehensive public transport routes.

In a ‘Golden Triangle’ bounded by Buxton, Edale and Bakewell, you’ll find some of the most beautiful landscapes you’re ever likely to see – the ideal location for a huge variety of outdoor activities, from walking to rock climbing and home to some of the country’s most splendid historic houses, such as Chatsworth and Haddon Hall.

There’s no finer setting in which to chill out and recharge your batteries, amid stunning scenery that you’re bound to recognise as the breathtaking backdrop for a host of Hollywood blockbusters and famous TV series.

Just a stone’s throw away are the scenic Derbyshire limestone dales, including famous Dovedale and nationally-significant sites for wildlife, such as Lathkill Dale. Further east,

Amber Valley includes historic gems such as the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, where the Industrial Revolution really got into gear.

And quality shopping, eating out, real ale trails, ghost walks and cultural gems offer a taste of Metro Peak in Derby, the southern gateway to the county, or in Sheffield, in the north, a third of which lies within the Peak District National Park – making it one of Europe’s greenest cities. Here you’ll find first-class sporting venues, museums, theatres and shopping.

OLD HALL HOTEL BUXTON OLD HALL HOTEL

Welcome to the oldest Welcome to the oldest hotel in England

BUXTON

hotel in England

Built by Bess of Hardwick’s 4th husband, the Earl of Shrewsbury for Mary Queen of Scots when she came to take the waters in Buxton.

Welcome to the oldest hotel in England

Have you visited the

White Lion

Built by Bess of Hardwick’s Relax, unwind and enjoy our fine 4th husband, the Earl of hospitality.

New restaurant & wine bar menus Shrewsbury for Mary Queen of PreBuilt & postby theatre dinner Hardwick’s 4th husband, the Bess Scotsbar when sheofcame to take Theatre Earlwaters ofteas.

Shrewsbury Afternoon the in Buxton. for Mary Queen of Scots Open 7 days a week. Booking advisable.

when shethe came Just across from Pavilion to take Relax,and unwind andHouse. enjoy our Gardens the Opera

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the waters in Buxton.

Food service times: Monday Friday 12 - 3pm & 6 - 9pm | fiRelax, ne hospitality. unwind and enjoy our fine hospitality.

The Old Hall Hotel, The Square, Buxton, SK17 6BD. 01298 22841 Saturday 12 - 9pm | Sunday 12 - 8pm ww w.oldhallhotel buxton.co.uk New restaurant & & wine bar menus New restaurant wine bar menus Pre & post theatre dinner Pre & post theatre dinner Theatre bar Theatre bar Afternoonteas. teas.

Afternoon Justacross across from Pavilion Just from thethe Pavilion Gardens and Opera House.

Gardens and the the Opera House.

The White Lion, Main Street, Great Longstone Bakewell, Derbyshire DE45 1TA

The Old Hall Hotel, Square, Buxton, The Old Hall Hotel, TheThe Square, Buxton, SK17 6BD. 01298 22841 Tel: 01629 640 252 SK17 6BD. 01298 22841 www.oldhallhotelbuxton.co.uk www.whiteliongreatlongstone.co.uk www.oldhallhotelbuxton.co.uk 28

DOME HIGH RES.pdf

Here are just a few ideas to help you make the most of your visit in 2012:

10:42

Buxton

“A truly remarkable building” HRH Prince Charles The Dome is a stunning example of heritage regeneration, a Grade II listed landmark dominating the skyline of Buxton in the heart of the Peak District. Now home to the University of Derby it also boasts a busy restaurant, relaxed café quarter, modern hair and beauty salons and a wonderful Spa.

Built in 1779 the 5th Duke of Devonshire commissioned great Gerogian architect John Carr of York to build an impressive stable block to accompany the famous Buxton crescent.

The University of Derby took ownership in 2001 and the renovation project began, craftspeople were engaged to work on joinery, roofing and specialised glazing installing hundreds of panes of glass hand blown in Poland. The original Baltic pine floor has been re-laid and the walls painted with paint painstakingly blended to match the original colours.

30/01/2012

THE DEVONSHIRE DOME

• The Devonshire Dome is a stunning example of heritage regeneration, the full renovation of a Grade II* listed landmark dominating the skyline of Buxton in the heart of the Peak District. Larger than the Pantheon in Rome and St Paul’s in London the Dome is a “must see” on any visit to Buxton.

In the 19th century the spa’s success made accommodating the sick poor more difficult and in 1859 the Duke was persuaded to give part of the stables for a hospital and it remained a hospital until July 2000.

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THE RESTAURANT

THE CAFÉ

AT THE DOME

AT THE DOME

The restaurant at the Dome serves contemporary freshly prepared dishes to suit all tastes. Bar facilities and an open style kitchen similar to that in many of the top London restaurants offer a unique and relaxed atmosphere.

To reserve you table call 01298 28345.

An informal dining experience set under the roof of the breathtaking Dome.

Open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 3.30pm for breakfast, morning coffee, lunches and afternoon teas.

All our food is freshly prepared each day.

The building was complete and opened in autumn 2005, and has transformed Buxton into a University town.

The Devonshire Dome is open to the public and has a vibrant café quarter, popular restaurant, state of the art hair and beauty salons and a wonderful spa. Students working in these areas are guided by their tutors to provide a quality experience for their customers and offer excellent value for money.

Devonshire Dome, 1 Devonshire Road, Buxton SK17 6RY.

• Visits Buxton’s underground Treasures. Poole’s Cavern has attracted curious visitors to this underground treasure house in the High Peak town of Buxton for thousands of years.

Once the home to cave dwellers the cavern has been visited by Romans, Royalty and robbers.

Our guides lead you through beautifully illuminated vast Limestone chambers on accessible paved walkways to view the crystal stalactites and explain the story of the cavern formation.

Back above ground explore the beautiful country park woodlands and complete your day with a stroll to Grin Low and Solomon’s Temple viewpoint with superb views of the Peak District.

Y NER E C ABOVE AND A R S BELOW L GROUND U TA C C E SP

Our new visitor centre hosts the Cafe@ the Cavern with tasty locally produced meals and light bites served all day with fair-trade coffee and homemade cakes a speciality.

The Cavern Rock shop has gemstone and jewellery from around the world and Peak District local produce.

Poole’s Cavern is open every day, come and see us soon.

• Limber up for one of our popular walking festivals, which run throughout the spring and autumn. Lace up your boots for the Peak District Walking & Outdoor Festival 2012 from April 22 to May 6, offering more than 120 walks and events for all age groups and abilities – many of them free of charge. www.poolescaver n.co.uk

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This year the event includes the first Jane Tomlinson’s Walk for All Peak District Walk, on Sunday April 29, when you can put your best foot forward for charity on a choice of three walks in the Hope Valley. For more details, visit www.forallevents.co.uk.

This year’s Walking & Outdoor Festival also coincides with the 80th anniversary of the Kinder Scout Mass Trespass on April 24 – catalyst for our ‘right to roam’ Britain’s countryside – and the 30th anniversary of the National Trust’s acquisition of Kinder. For further information, visit www.kindertrespass.com or www. peakdistrict.nationaltrust.org.uk.

Get into your stride during the Chesterfield Area Images courtesy of Walking Festival from May 12 to 20, The National www.visitpeakdistrict.com.

Forest Walking Festival from May 19 to 31 and Autumn Footprints – The Autumn Footprints – Amber Valley and Erewash Walking Festival, from September 8 to 23. For a full programme of events and television series, ranging from Pride & Prejudice and throughout the year, visit www.visitpeakdistrict.com.

The Duchess to The Dam Busters and Jane Eyre.

• If you enjoy being moderately active, don’t limit yourself to walking – our new Active Peak campaign will introduce you to a huge range of ways in which you can enjoy the great outdoors. You don’t have to be super-fit – just enjoy any one of a wide variety of pursuits at your own pace.

One of the best ways to enjoy the area’s superb scenery is on a bicycle. Our impressive network of traffic-free trails – many of them former railway lines – makes it a sheer pleasure to pedal along as you admire our beautiful countryside. Bring your own bike or hire one from a network of centres across the area. If you feel you need a helping hand, the Peak District was the first area in the UK to have an Electric Bicycle Network, available on many of our scenic routes, where you can sit back and let the bike take the strain.

The Peak District is also a fabulous location to linger over a leisurely round of golf or laid-back session of fly-fishing.

And don’t limit yourself to outdoor pursuits – there’s also plenty to do indoors, from bowling to swimming. For lots more inspiration, visit www.visitpeakdistrict.com/ activepeak.

• Celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee in style at Renishaw Hall & Gardens in north east Derbyshire, starting with an outdoor screening of the award-winning film The King’s Speech on June 1 and ending with a Horse Carriage Pageant on June 5. The five-day extravaganza includes the lighting of a Jubilee Beacon on the roof of the house and a big Jubilee Lunch Party.

Make Diamond Jubilee year your excuse to explore some of our many regal connections over the centuries, with visits to some of our best-loved, and other not-so-wellknown historic houses and landmarks. Or step into the shoes of your favourite movie star or television actor. The Peak District is the beautiful backcloth for numerous films

CAFE

&

C YC L E H I R E

Cafe, cycle hire, bookshop & gifts on the scenic Monsal Trail, 1 mile north of Bakewell.

TO SHEFFIELD & CHESTERFIELD

A6020 TO BUXTON

A6

WE ARE HERE

ASHFORD IN THE WATER A6

B6001

A619

Monsal Trail

Open 9am-5pm, seven days a week One mile north of Bakewell on the A6020 / B6001 roundabout DE45 1NW

BAKEWELL A6 TO MATLOCK

WWW.HASSOPSTATION.CO.UK Tel: 01629 815 668

WWW.MONSALTRAIL.CO.UK Tel: 01629 810 588

Book for the first-ever Summer Nights Film Festival 2012 to feast on classic and contemporary films in stunning outdoor settings, from Elvaston Castle near Derby to Hardwick Hall near Chesterfield – visit www.derbyquad. co.uk/summernights or call 01332 290606.

In the Peak District, you’ll be amazed at the wealth and variety of our awesome attractions, wide choice of accommodation, unique traditions, fascinating history and heritage, glorious gardens, mouth-watering food and drink and fabulous festivals. We look forward to offering you the warmest of welcomes during a holiday or short break you’re sure to remember. For full details, including plenty of inspired ideas about where to stay, visit www.visitpeakdistrict.com.

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CASH & CARRY MEMBERSHIP WAREHOUSE CLUB

Sign up for Membership with this advert and e receive a FREE bottl ! of wine

You may be eligible for

Costco Membership You qualify for Individual Membership if you receive a pension from specific employment groups – please see below for details of qualifying categories. To join Costco and start saving please provide of qualifying pension, PLUS a current utility bill (gas, telephone, electricity) or a bank statement addressed to your home.

The annual membership fee for Standard Individual Membership is ÂŁ25 (plus VAT), which includes a complimentary card for your spouse or partner.

Individual Members Eligibility Criteria: RETIRED EMPLOYEE OF: Banking/Finance, Civil Servant, Education, Fire/Rescue, Insurance, Local Government, Medical/Health Service, Police Force, Post Office, Airline.

Other companes may also qualify; please call to enquire.

Use this

PREVIEW PASS to view your nearest Warehouse

Name : Address : Postcode : Tel : email : Identification for eligibility required. Purchases may only be made once full membership is obtained.

COSTCO USE ONLY Authorised by:

Date :

Please contact your nearest Membership Department for further details

Costco Manchester - 0161 749 4360 Costco Haydock - 01942 868 604

Costco Oldham - 0161 684 2000

Membership must be obtained before purchases can be made.

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Manchester Road, Werneth, Oldham Tel: 0161 287 4141

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Manchester Road, Castleton, Rochdale Tel: 01706 654 424

www.omcford.co.uk

Opening Hours:Mon-Fri: 9am-7pm, Sat: 9am-5pm, Sun: 11am-5pm

*Only available as part of a Motability contract hire scheme.

Do you or someone you know get the higher rate mobility allowance of Disability Living Allowance?

If the answer is YES then you could simply swap your Higher rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance (currently ÂŁ46.75 51.40 per week) to lease a brand new car every 3 years with insurance, servicing, RAC breakdown cover, tyres and road tax all included.

Currently 493,000 people enjoy peace of mind motoring with Motability and this figure is growing rapidly.

available in either petrol or diesel, manual or automatic.

Choose from our range of cars which include the Ford Focus, C-Max, Fiesta, Fusion, S-Max, Galaxy, New Mondeo and the all New Fiesta and 2011 most Kuga from Summer Autumn 2009,

We look forward to helping you get mobile with Motability.

Already got a car? No problem, we can buy your car, so you could get money in the bank, a brand new car and most importantly peace of mind motoring with Motability. Our experienced Motability specialists are waiting to help you in a warm, friendly. non-pressurised environment.

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Manchester Road, Werneth, Oldham Tel: 0161 287 4141

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Manchester Road, Castleton, Rochdale Tel: 01706 654 424

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Opening Hours:Mon-Fri: 9am-7pm, Sat: 9am-5pm, Sun: 11am-5pm

*Only available as part of a Motability contract hire scheme.

OUT & ABOUT Tony Christie + Support Sat 7th April Nantwich Civic Hall Now aged 67, Tony Christie is a golden-throated national treasure recognised by fellow Sheffield brethren Jarvis Cocker, Richard Hawley and Alex Turner – not to mention über-comic Peter Kay – and as his new album attests, he’s not resting on his well-deserved laurels just yet.

Matthew Bourne's Nutcracker!

20 March 2012 - 24 March The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AZ. One of the most popular dance productions ever staged in the UK, Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker! returns to The Lowry to celebrate its 20th anniversary for one week only.

This delicious theatrical feast has family-sized helpings of Matthew Bourne’s trademark wit, pathos and magical fantasy. Nutcracker! follows Clara’s bittersweet journey from a hilariously bleak Christmas Eve at Dr. Dross’ Orphanage, through a shimmering, ice-skating winter wonderland to the scrumptious candy kingdom of Sweetieland.

Tickets are £19.00 - £37.00.

0843 208 6000 www.thelowry.com/event/matthew-bournes-nutcracker1

50 years in the business Tony Christie sings his greatest hits “Is this the Way to Amarillo” and a whole lot more.

Doors open 7.45pm Unreserved seating Tickets: 01270 628633

The Cavern Beatles Confirmed as part of our Easter Monday outdoor festival programme on Nantwich Square are The Cavern Beatles.

Forty years on, and the music of The Beatles remains as fresh and uplifting as it was back in the “swinging sixties”. The classic songs that have now inspired and influenced generations are performed with passion and reverence by The Cavern Beatles.

Drawing on an extensive repertoire of hits and album tracks, the band perform totally live, and produce a fully authentic representation of the music with careful attention to detail.

The Cavern Beatles are all accomplished musicians, but it is their vocal abilities that have most impressed critics of the group over the years. They are all born and brought up in Liverpool, and this gives them their seemingly effortless accuracy in their interpretation of the Fab Four’s catalogue.

“They have studied the mannerisms, gestures and expressions of their superstar subjects and they are accomplished singers and instrumentalists who manage to capture the musical feel of the original Fab Four” Former Beatle Press Officer – TONY BARROW “Like a scene from A Hard Days Night – Amazing.”

THE SUNDAY TIMES

Coronation Street - Street of Dreams with Paul O'Grady 21st - 22nd March At the Manchester Arena Street of Dreams - a major live musical event in celebration of Coronation Street - will debut in Manchester this March for a spectacular world premiere starring faces from the street, past and present, alongside host Paul O'Grady.

Book your tickets. www.ticketmaster.co.uk

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West Kirby Light Operatic Society present Titanic - The Musical 5th – 9th June Liverpool Empire West Kirby Light Operatic Society returns to the Liverpool Empire to restage its Award Winning Production of this spectacular show. Titanic - The Musical is a joyous, breathtaking yet heartbreaking musical, that captures the scope and humanity of the events surrounding the ships historic maiden voyage.

Regular attractions include a fell race, vintage cars, bikes & engines, duck race, charity & commercial stands, craft fair, fun fair and canoes.

We shall have a wide variety of food outlets and a beer tent, wine bar and soft drinks.

Admission prices £4.00 Adults, £3.00 Concessions £2.00 Children, £10.00 Family tickets include 2 adults and up to 3 children, We are happy to report that this has been the first increase for the past 10 years.

We would like your help – and in turn we would like to help you in telling our 5000+ visitors about your business support for the show.

Tatton Park Biennial 2012 begins to take flight!

Something extraordinary was taking shape near Golden Brook, in the Japanese Garden at Tatton Park.

A huge, inflatable winged head could be seen billowing and expanding near the still waters of the 100 year old garden at the historic estate in rural Cheshire East.

The Oldham Chronicle (our main sponsors) regularly features the show in their paper and provides an eight page show supplement in which all sponsors are promoted. The show programme contains sponsor details and you will be invited to the hospitality tent.

I hope that you will be interested enough to contact me – Brian Fort – tel 01457 874118 or e-mail brianfort@ talktalk.net

This was a prototype for a six metre inflatable artwork by artist collective Brass Art, one of a number of major works featuring in Tatton Park Biennial 2012, a leading contemporary art event, which will be open to the public from Saturday, May 12th to Sunday, September 30th 2012.

The Saddleworth Summer Show 9th and 10th June LOCATION : Saddleworth School The organisers of the Show would like to thank the people of saddleworth and the surrounding areas for making the last show so successful.

The Saddleworth Summer Show returns with a bigger and better selection of acts, side shows and events.

One of the stars of this years show will be Meirion Owen’s Quack Pack Meirion Owen’s Quack Pack provides hilariously entertaining duck herding demonstrations. Our Quack Pack team of border collies and comical Indian Runner ducks provide entertaining, educational and interactive displays.

Our animal attractions include donkey rides, donkey derby, falcons, llamas, sheep shearing & beekeeping There will be a living history show by English Civil War Society where you will be able to experience the sights & smells of the 17th century with demonstrations.

Our musical entertainment includes historical and country dancing, the popular Saddleworth Morris men and local Brass Bands performing throughout the day.

Pink Ribbonwalk 2012 Escape to the countryside for a day of breathtaking views and an amazing atmosphere. Our team will support you around a beautiful 10 or 20 mile route so you can cross the finish line in style in front of friends and family, with a medal, massage and celebratory BBQ. Scone Palace 12 May 2012 Blenheim Palace 19 May 2012 Petworth House 26 May 2012 Cholmondeley Castle 9 June 2012 Marble Hill Park 16 June 2012 Registration fee £30 Fundraising target £175 Choose either a 10 or 20 mile countryside walk* Create a team and invite your friends *Marble Hill Park is in London so the walk follows the Thames Path and takes in some Royal Parks

Walk to help us support people living with breast cancer www.breastcancercare.org.uk

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Middleton Towers

discover new horizons ...

M

iddleton Towers Retirement Village nestles in the heart of some of the most lovely countryside that Britain has to offer - it’s one huge playground.

Middleton Towers is situated on a verdant plain overlooking beautiful Morecambe Bay in Lancashire, renowned for spectacular sunsets, clement weather system, wonderful birdlife and invigorating, refreshing effect. Nearby is the seaside resort of Morecambe and it’s fascinating sculpture trail along miles of scenic, flat promenade and famous, the newly renovated Midland Hotel. Equally close by is the lively City of Lancaster, with plenty of shops, eateries and entertainment.

Explore a tiny bit further and you’ll discover the gentle green Lune Valley, dotted with welcoming villages, and the wild, unspoilt Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Only slightly further afield are the stunning Yorkshire Dales and Lake District.

All this to hand, yet the area around Middleton Towers itself is a have of peace and tranquillity - a safe and beautiful hideaway ...

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and retire in style.

APARTMENTS FROM £135,000

your choice, your lifestyle ....

At Middleton Towers, we believe that freedom of choice will enable you to continue your lifestyle independently and live life to the full.

Designed for the active over 55’s, at the heart of the Village there are well thought out leisure facilities which include a • Pool & Spa swimming pool, games room, function room, gymnasium, • Health Clubon our all café, lounge and guest suite. After a game of bowls weather bowling green (designed to play flat or crown), • Bowling Green enjoy a glass of wine or a cool beer on the patio area overlooking the • Library sea, watching the ship go by or the magnifi cent sunset.

• Private Lounge

Being part of a community with like minded people means • Function Room you’re never alone. With a wide variety of activities organised • Restaurant by our residents, boredom won’t be a problem - here’s just a few to tempt you: • On-site Management • Bus Service ■ Card Art classes ■ Walking club ■ Book club and social evenings ■ Wine tasting ■ Quiz nights ■ Regular day trips ■ Monthly dining club visiting different restaurants ■

RY YOU BUY’ OFFER RY BEFORE BEFORE Not for you? - don’tYOU worry - youBUY’ can choose OFFER to be on your own

to read a book, just relax, or take a stroll and enjoy the gardens - the choice is yours.

Village runs a dailyTowers bus service to all important places ould The be at Middleton Retirement Village including doctor’s surgeries, local supermarkets and town shopping centres.

Your families are not forgotten either. Children, grandchildren and friends are welcome to visit you and can use the facilities* and stay in our guest suite* When that all important family celebration is called for, why not book the function room? we can even organise the catering*.

Overlooking Morecambe Bay, Middleton Towers is close to the Lake District and thevery Lunewelcome Valley, boasting PS: Pets are too! an enviable position in an area of outstanding natural beauty. *All extra services will be charged at the current rates.

Fantastic Coastal Location

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SECURITY INDEPENDENCE xs CHOICE SECURITY sx INDEPENDENCE CHOICE Carr Lane, Middleton, Near Lancashire, LA3 3FN www.middletontowers.co.uk A selection of bungalows and apartments for xlsale starting from £135,000

ers.co.uk 01524 855309 s.co.uk Tel: Tel: 01524 855309

To speak to a sales advisor or arrange a viewing call 23/2/11 13:21:24

01524 855309

12/03/2010 13:00 12/03/2010 13:00

... your independence.

Finding Your Perfect Property is Our Passion The County Homesearch Company specialises in finding dream homes for clients just like you across the country.

Acting in the interests of the buyer, unlike estate agents who act for the vendor, they lend their local knowledge and expertise to a search for a home and provide help on a practical and emotional level – sifting out unsuitable properties and helping you achieve what you want from your new life.

Lisa Green, Director of The County Homesearch Company in the northwest, explains how the company is developing services to meet increasing demand from older clients who may no longer find rural life practical, find themselves in a large property that no longer suits them, want to move closer to family, or are simply daunted by the thought of moving house.

“Take two of our current clients for example. Having retired to Snowdonia 16 years ago and completed an award winning conversion of an old school, they know that a location over 6 miles from the nearest town won’t be practical for them for much longer. But now in their late 80s, the prospect of selling up, travelling to view properties, moving and starting afresh in a new town was quite off-putting. Instead, they instructed Lisa to do the hard work for them and to find their perfect property in one of Cheshire’s many market towns and larger villages.

With children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren who visit from across the UK and the US, they were also adamant that they didn’t want to downsize to a typical elderly persons bungalow or apartment. So, once they have sold their current property, “Yr Hen Ysgol” (above right), moving to another in a more accessible location is their top priority.

For another couple from the south coast, downsizing and releasing equity from a property is the beginning of an exciting new chapter in life closer to their daughter and her family in Cheshire.

Once we have found the right property our clients really appreciate the way we manage the entire process from price negotiations through the move itself, helping them settle-in and even sorting out those essential admin tasks. We can even bring in the relevant expertise to advise on domestic or domiciliary care if required” For more information about how The County Homesearch Company can help you please see our advert for contact details.

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“Yr Hen Ysgol”, Snowdonia 19/1/12

County_Homesearch_Ad_Retirement:Layout 1

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16:02

A focus on renting in retirement in the North West suite for visitors’ use. Both the residents’ lounge and the guest suite can be used as an extension to a residents’ home to entertain guests, offering both companionship and independence.

Girlings lets its properties out on a life-long (assured) tenancy, which allows the tenant to stay in the property for as long as they wish.

Girlings co-owner and CEO, Peter Girling said: “A Life long (assured) tenancy offers great security and long-term peace of mind. In the private rental sector, it is common for properties to be let on an assured shorthold tenancy basis which enables the landlord to regain possession of the property after the initial agreed fixed term.

Choosing the perfect location in which to settle during retirement can often be a challenge, particularly when trying to find the right property that offers long-term security, comfort, and a host of friendly neighbours.

The North West of England is an attractive location for property buyers and is a hotspot for a growing number of retired people deciding to move against the grain of home ownership and soak up the benefits of renting in retirement.

Contrary to popular opinion, there are clear benefits to renting in retirement. Residents are not constricted by house prices and are free to move wherever they like, whether it’s closer to family and friends or to another part of the country. Renting also allows homeowners to sell their property outright in order to release capital.

By avoiding equity release schemes and selling on the open market, retired property owners can ensure they receive the full market value for their home.

The recession has had a detrimental effect upon house sales and now savvy retirees are finding alternative ways to move into their chosen retirement property by simply letting out their larger homes, either privately or through a social housing provider, thus creating an income to enable them to rent a more manageable, purpose built, energy efficient retirement property.

If you are thinking about renting a retirement property, which is more suited to your needs, Girlings has a number of properties available in Cheshire and Lancashire, including Chester, Knutsford, Oxton, Blackpool, Lancaster, Lytham St Annes, Morecambe and Southport.

The majority of developments feature a communal residents’ lounge in which residents are welcome to socialise and relax; communal laundry and a guest

“Renting on a life long tenancy basis offers the same security of tenure as most social housing providers, only without the associated waiting lists. What’s more, service charges and maintenance are included in the monthly payments.”

For more information, please visit www.girlings.co.uk or contact the lettings team on 0800 525 184.

“W Witho h ut dou o bt b the best property decision we have made.”

Discover the freedom renting in retirement can bring...

55+? Did you know you can rent private retirement property on a Life Long Tenancy which gives you the right to remain living in the property for as long as you wish, with service charge and maintenance included in the rent?

• Peace of Mind • Flexibility • Independence • Choice

Freedom in Retirement

Call: 0800 525 184 or visit www.girlings.co.uk 39

LEGAL & FINANCE

Law Made Easy Dealing with the law still makes many older people feel uncomfortable and concerned these days in spite of the legal system trying to make itself more easily accessible ... reports Angela Kelly The potential cost, likely consequences and a lack of knowledge and understanding of the laws of the land can deter individuals from seeking the help they may often need.

And as we get older, we may have specific needs where the law can be a helpful friend.

It’s very important, for example, that we give real thought to making a WILL in order to ensure that our wishes for our assets and possessions are honoured after we’re gone.

“No-one likes to think about dying,”said solicitor Judith Bromley, who specialises in wills and probate at North-west firm Russell & Russell.

“We all think we’re immortal and it’s difficult to think about a time when we’re not here. But there are many reasons why it makes sense to make a will – and, once it’s done, then you don’t have to worry about it any more.”

If someone dies without making a will, there’s a real risk that their assets will be distributed as they might not have wished. Figures show that only one third of people in the UK have a legal and valid will, leaving many vulnerable to strict Intestacy Rules.

“Families are also more complicated these days,” commented Judith.

“People worry about money and assets going to the right relatives, but this can easily be arranged.”

A professionally drafted will by a solicitor takes changes to the Intestacy Laws into account; no-one wants flaws in a will to come to light later, causing difficulties for loved ones trying to sort out matters.

“Older people come to solicitors like us often for two main reasons: they are concerned about the cost of care, and they worry about making a will,” said Judith.

“A solicitor can explain the care options objectively and in an informed manner, and if they want to make a will we can listen to what they want specifically and advise on how to do it.”

There is also the matter of dealing with the paperwork and legal procedures involved in administering someone’s estate and, again, a solicitor can help with PROBATE. 40

Stated Judith: “In order to administer someone’s estate you may be required to obtain a Grant of Probate where there’s a will, or a Grant of Letters of Administration where there is no will.

“As the person responsible for the administering of someone’s estate. you are personally accountable to all beneficiaries and the Inland Revenue.

As Executor or Administrator you have a duty to act with reasonable care and skill and to ensure that the full value of the state is realised.

You may be held personally liable if beneficiaries feel you have not fulfilled your duty and seek compensation from you.”

Here, a solicitor may be able to help and guide you – from simply preparing the relevant inheritance tax documentation and obtaining the Grant of Probate to having a more hands-on approach and helping you find out exactly what assets and liabilities there are.

“Choosing a solicitor carefully is important because you want someone who is prepared to listen and to be objective with their advice,” added Judith. “It’s always best to go on personal recommendation if you can.”

Sometimes, when clients go to a solicitor on one matter, another comes to light. As Judith explained: “Mr A came to see us to provide instructions on the preparation of a simple will.

“The solicitor took the appropriate instructions with the knowledge that Mr A’s wife had died a few years previously and they had no children; Mr A had just an older brother and a niece.

“In conversation, he mentioned that he was going into hospital shortly afterwards for a routine operation on his knee. The solicitor suggested that it would be advisable to make a LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY not only in case the operation was unsuccessful but also if, during his old age, he ever suffered from a stroke or dementia in the future.

Established 1887

“His wife had died of dementia and Mr A looked after all their financial affairs because everything was in joint names. Now that everything was in his sole name, no-one else could have access to them.”

The solicitor explained that if he made a Lasting Power of Attorney for Property and Financial Affairs in favour of his niece (whom he had appointed as Executor under his will) she could be responsible for all his finances. This would include running his bank accounts, moving investments around, paying bills and selling his property should Mr A have to go into residential care.

“The solicitor also advised that Mr A should make a Lasting Power of Attorney for Health and Welfare,” stated Anita. “This would include the attorney making decisions about where Mr A should live – the type of residential care home and who visited him.

The Health and Welfare Power of Attorney could not be used until Mr A had lost capacity.”

Mr A decided to make the Lasting Power of Attorney, and a few months later, his niece rang the solicitor to sadly inform him that Mr A had been left braindamaged by the operation and asking for advice.

“Fortunately, because Mr A had, months before, made the Lasting Power of Attorney for both Financial and Welfare, his niece was able to straight away be in a position to help her uncle,” concluded Judith.

These days, with cases of dementia increasing – and when Parkinson’s Disease or a stroke could also affect mental capacity – a Lasting Power of Attorney may be very useful and reassuring. You must, though, have the mental capacity to understand what this is and what it enables your attorney to do.

Under a Lasting Power of Attorney, your solicitor can open, close or operate any account containing your money. He/she can claim or receive on your behalf – for example, all pensions, benefits, allowances, services, financial contributions, repayments or rebates to which you might be entitled.

He/she can also make all tax returns and adjust and settle any claims of tax, pay household expenses, buy, sell, lease or otherwise deal with any of your interest in your property, and pay for medical care and residential care costs. And there is also an option for your attorney to make decisions about lifesustaining treatment. * For more information contact your local branch opposite.

HOW WE CAN HELP YOU We have a specialist Wills and Probate department who provide a friendly and caring service which ensures peace of mind and freedom from worry.

WILLS / LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY / COURT OF PROTECTION / PROBATE HOUSE SALES / PURCHASES/ REMORTGAGES / LIFETIME MORTGAGES / TRUST AND INHERITANCE / TAX ADVICE For further information contact your local branch: Bolton Churchill House Wood Street Bolton BL1 1EE t: 01204 399299

Farnworth 86 Market Street Farnworth Bolton BL4 7NY t: 01204 707926

Horwich 21 Lee Lane Horwich Bolton BL6 7BP t: 01204 699432

Middleton Colmar House Middleton Gardens Middleton M24 4DB t: 0161 653 6200

Bury Belgrave Terrace 10 Manchester Road Bury BL9 OEB t: 0161 762 2888

Emergency telephone number t: 07919 591416 available 365 days a year

www.russellrussell.co.uk

Should the NHS be paying your care home fees?

With care home fees rising families can find themselves paying on average a costly £36,000 a year for individual care.

Residents are currently funding their own care with many not aware that the NHS could help.

If you or a relative are in a care home because of physical or mental health needs you may be paying fees that should have been funded by the NHS. This is the case even if the individual has sadly passed away.

Hugh James are the leading national experts in recovery of wrongly paid care home fees. Our nursing care legal specialists have successfully recovered over £20 million for families like yours.

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What is NHS Continuing Healthcare?

The NHS is responsible for meeting the full cost of care home fees for individuals whose primary need for bring in the care home is because of their health. This is called NHS Continuing Healthcare and is often described as ‘fully funded care’.

Every person should be properly assessed for NHS Continuing Healthcare. Initially this should look at the medical and health needs only and not the individual’s ability to pay.

The McConnell family received over £117,000 in wrongly paid fees Following a seven year fight with the help of Hugh James nursing care, the NHS admitted that their decision on care fees was wrong and the family of Mrs Evangeline McConnell was reimbursed £117,000 in wrongly paid care home fees.

At the age of 88 Evangeline McConnell suffered a severe stroke and was admitted to hospital.

Evangeline could not return home as she needed 24 hour nursing care and was admitted to a care home in April 2003.

Due to Mrs McConnell’s capital and income, the family were told that she would have to pay for her own care home costs and was found not eligible for NHS Continuing Care, despite her obvious health needs.

The family then found themselves having to pay fees of £2,000 a month and were forced into selling the much loved family home to help fund this cost.

Mrs McConnell had suffered a catastrophic stroke which resulted in her being immobile, incontinent, unable to communicate and swallow. She was totally reliant on two to three carers to attend to all her needs. The family, helped by Hugh James, had to prove that her health and living needs meant she should never have had to pay her own care home fees.

Finally, in January 2008 Mrs McConnell was assessed as meeting the criteria needed and all her future fees were to be paid by the NHS. Fortunately Evangeline and her family later received all the money that they had wrongly paid for her care home.

Hugh James are the leading national experts • Our specialist Nursing Care team have recovered over £20 million in wrongly paid care home fees • Our success and client stories are regularly featured in the press as we are recognised as leading the way • We have represented thousands of individuals and families across England and Wales • We work in partnership with many of the leading older peoples’ charities • Unlike many other companies we are a firm of solicitors regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) and comply with the solicitors code of conduct • Our team is the most experienced in this niche area and each case is dealt with by lawyers specialising in reclaiming care home fees • In recognition of our expertise and work in this area we have been awarded an excellence award from the Law Society

How Hugh James can help you...

There are lots of reasons why NHS continuing healthcare decisions may be wrong. If you or a relative have been paying for care since April 2004 then you may be able to reclaim these fees.

Contact us for a free and confidential assessment and we can let you know if you have a claim. Our free assessment will help you decide whether to challenge the decision on your care home fees and there is no obligation to proceed.

Contact the team Call

029 2039 1108

Email

nursing.care@hughjames.com

Website

www.hughjames.com/nursingcare

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Money Household Insurance Travel More

Planning on retiring in 2012?

Once you have made the decision to retire the initial excitement and joy is usually followed by concern about how to go about it? You don’t need to worry anymore as TheRetirementCentre.com can help you to navigate the retirement process, and save you money. We have prepared this quick 5 step guide to help you through the key points.

Step 1 - Set out a budget

Step 4 - Complete the Pension Coding form

One of the most important things is to make sure you have enough money to live on comfortably. If you haven’t already done so, you will need to work out all of your monthly outgoings and record these against your forecast retirement income.

The HMRC will send you a Pension Coding form (P161) one month before you reach state pension age. You will need to complete it and send it back. If you don’t do this you may not be considered for increased age associated tax-free allowances. If you haven’t received this form - or have misplaced it contact HMRC 0845 300 0627.

Step 2 - Claim your state pension You will receive, a letter from The Pension Service outlining details of your state pension, if you haven’t received this letter a month before you reach state pension age contact The Pension Service on 08456 060 265.

Step 3 - Notify Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs This is an important step as HMRC need to be able to make a few adjustments so that in most cases you stop paying National Insurance, pay the right level of tax and receive the tax free allowances that you are entitled to.

Step 5 - Shop around for your Pension Income When you have a Company or Personal pension you may receive a letter from your pension company offering to convert your pension into an Annuity. An Annuity; this is the name of the product that turns your pension into income for the rest of your life. The amount you will receive depends on a large range of factors for example your age, health and where you live. It is very important that before accepting your pension company’s offer that you shop around to see if you could receive a higher level of income from another company. By shopping around you could find that you increase your income by up to 40%.

TheRetirementCentre.com can help you through the whole retirement process and through our Annuity Service we can compare quotes from the whole market for free. To find out more visit www.TheRetirementCentre.com or call 0800 652 7696 (Mon - Fri 9am to 5pm).

At TheRetirementCentre.com, we understand that retirement can be a complicated time. With so much to think about, wouldn’t it be great if you could find all of the help you need in one place?

Well now you can – TheRetirementCentre.com has done the hard work for you, bringing together vital information and huge cost savings to help you make great choices, both before and during retirement.

To find out more visit www.TheRetirementCentre.com

Diabetes, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),

Are you aged 55 or over and living with a long term health condition?

Find out how to improve your quality of life and get involved:

www.yourpersonalbestcampaign.co.uk Your Personal Best website is a national awareness campaign developed and funded by GSK, official laboratory services provider for London 2012, in association with NHS London. It aims to inspire the 7.78 million people over 55 with long term health conditions in the UK to lead a more active lifestyle.

Keeping active can be a challenge if you have a long term health condition, but it can make a significant difference to your health and wellbeing and may also ease your symptoms.

If you feel like your condition is holding you back from leading a more active lifestyle and you are over 55 years old, then the Your Personal Best campaign, inspired by the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympic Games, is here to help you with simple advice on how to become more active.

Did you know that keeping active can help manage your condition?

Keeping active can be a challenge if you have a long term health condition, but it can make a significant difference to your health and wellbeing and may also ease your symptoms.

Even relatively small increases in physical activity are associated with some protection against chronic diseases and an improved quality of life for everyone but in particular for older adults.

TV personality and dance coach Len Goodman and TV presenter Arlene Phillips are the celebrity faces of Your Personal Best.

Supported by ten patient and healthcare professional groups across the UK, the campaign encourages everyone aged over 55 with long term health conditions to set personal and realistic activity goals in order to lead a more active lifestyle and help you to achieve your personal best.

About Len Goodman

Regular physical activity helps to prevent and treat many diseases and conditions, including coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, stroke, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, obesity, cancer, mental health problems and musculoskeletal conditions.

Len Goodman is known to millions as the head judge from Strictly Come Dancing and the USA version of the show, Dancing with the Stars. His vast knowledge of Ballroom and Latin American dancing - gained over a lifetime of competing, judging and teaching all over the world - has made him one of the most respected characters in the dance fraternity.

The Your Personal Best campaign asks you to consider your current levels of activity and incorporate more into your daily routine wherever possible. We are not expecting people to become Olympic athletes - just to do what they can. Talk to your doctor, nurse, pharmacist or physiotherapist about the right activity levels for you.

Physical activity can mean different things to different people. As well as exercise, everyday activities that require a degree of physical exertion such as walking, gardening and housework can be classed as physical activity.

Born in Bethnal Green in the East End of London, Len started his career relatively late in life. He actually wanted to be a footballer and it wasn’t until the age of 20 that the ex-docker started dancing. Having retired after a successful competitive dancing career, which included winning Dual of the Giants, British Rising Stars, The British Exhibition Championships (four times) and the World Exhibition Championships in the early 1970’s it was a natural progression for him to start up his own dance school in Kent.

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Parkinson’s, arthritis, osteoporosis, heart disease or depression?

Len has received various awards in the UK, including a Life Achievement Award for his work in dance and a Carl Allen Award (the equivalent of the Oscars of the dance world). His work on Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing With the Stars has ensured nominations and awards aplenty and in 200607 he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his work on Dancing with the Stars.

About Arlene Phillips Arlene first came to the attention of the British public as choreographer of dance group Hot Gossip in the 1970’s. Arlene has choreographed numerous West End, Broadway and worldwide musical theatre productions.

Arlene choreographed the 1982 film, Annie, and the Duran Duran song The Wild Boys which was named Best British Video at the 1985 BRIT Awards.

From 2004-2009, she was a judge on the BBC1 show, Strictly Come Dancing and commented on the acts in Eurovision: Your Country Needs You for the BBC in 2009. In 2008, she created, produced and choreographed a new British television serial Britannia High. She was also the creative mind behind hit BBC shows DanceX and Strictly Dance Fever.

Internationally, Phillips is most noted as a jazz and musical theatre choreographer, having worked on some of the biggest selling musicals in West End and Broadway theatre and a number of successful films. Most notably, Phillips is a multiple Olivier Award winner and Tony Award nominee. In the 2002 New Year’s Honours List Arlene was awarded an OBE for Services to Dance.

Len says “I know from personal experience that once you are over the age of 55 it is harder to stay active, especially if you have a long term health condition. Your Personal Best aims to inspire people to do simple lifestyle activities in order to stay more active. You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to get involved!”

Len and Arlene’s Top Tips 1. There are plenty of things that you can do to stay active in and around the home such as DIY, housework or simple stretching 2. Why not get together with other people in your local community and organise group walks to explore the area 3. Play active video games using a Wii or other console as a great alternative to a gym 4.

Take up a new activity such as dance classes in your local area. Don’t be worried about having a partner; there are plenty of solo dance classes on offer in the UK, as well as dance groups with partners that you can pair up with. It is also a great way to meet new people!

5.

If you have nephews, nieces and grandchildren, playing with them is a fun way to stay active – there are plenty of activities that you can all do together such as gardening which is not only fun but can be educational too!

Arlene says “I’m really passionate about encouraging people aged over 55 to stay more active. My first love is obviously dancing but it doesn’t have to be dancing, it could be gardening, playing with your grandchildren or doing house work. Just as long as you are staying active in some way, that is the key thing.”

Medal-winning Paralympian Tanni GreyThompson comments “The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are the perfect opportunity to inspire people to be more active than they ever thought possible. My sporting achievements prove that perceived limitations need not hold you back from being active. Even increasing your everyday activity by a small amount can make a big difference to your health so good luck in going for Your Personal Best.”

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Wake up and see clearly Life is Sweet for Goodwood’s Master Cake Maker.

Professional cake maker and confectioner Julie Orton has been given a new lease of life by an advanced eye procedure.

Ms. Orton, from Bognor Regis, took up cake decoration as a retirement job, and quickly turned her hobby in to a successful second career. Her work includes regular commissions for the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and counts the Duke and Duchess of Richmond amongst her clients.

Amongst other triumphs, Julie, 60, has also overcome poor vision with a liberating new procedure. Finding that her reliance on reading glasses was hindering her highly detailed work, Julie looked for an alternative.

“I was permanently taking my glasses on and off and they were coated in sticky layers of sugar, then I would forget where I had left them.

I have some allergies so often my eyes stream and this was another issue with my glasses,” she explains.

After weighing up the options and researching on the internet, Julie finally took action and booked in for treatment at Optimax. In a quick, painless procedure, the natural lenses of her eyes were replaced with Multifocal lenses. Within minutes her distance and intermediate vision was good and she no longer needed reading glasses for near work.

“Having replacement lenses is the best thing I have ever done. It has made my work so much easier and I can thread a needle now without glasses. Recently my husband and I went out for dinner and as he had forgotten his glasses I had to read the menu to him!” she recalls.

Dr Manzar Saeed MBBS FRCS, who treated Julie at Optimax, explains; “We can effectively wind the clock back with our eyes’ functionality.

By replacing the lenses in Julie’s eyes she now has excellent near vision as well as good distance and intermediate.

But the benefits do not end there; “The additional good news for Julie is that now her tired natural lenses have been replaced she will not develop cataracts, as so many people do as they age.”

Call today for your FREE Information Pack 0845 408 5494 or visit optimax.co.uk

Optimax was founded in 1991 and quickly grew to be one of the UK’s leading Laser Eye Surgery Specialists.

Since then Optimax has carried out more than 350,000 treatments, including alternative treatments.

Since 2004 Optimax also offers alternative treatment for those unsuitable for Laser Eye Surgery.

People choose Optimax for its unbeatable combination of quality, experience and patient care, all at the best possible price.

If Laser Eye Surgery isn’t right for you, you should consider alternatives like Intra Ocular Lenses.

Optimax has a wide range of vision correction options to suit your needs and achieve good vision without glasses or lenses.

Intra Ocular Lens Treatment may be suitable for you if: You are looking for total freedom from glasses You suffer from Cataracts or Presbyopia Your prescription is beyond the range of laser treatment or not suitable

Enjoy life without out glass sses es FREE Consultation FREE Lifetime Aftercare Interest FREE Credit

Book a FREE consultation, call 0845 408 5494 and quote “50+Ad” or visit optimax.co.uk Clinics Nationwide

If you are 60+ don’t leave your health to chance.

BOWEL CANCER SCREENING

CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE.

Bowel Cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK. The earlier it’s found, the more effectively it can be treated.

If you are aged 60-69 and registered with a GP, you will automatically be sent a free kit that can detect early signs of bowel cancer. If: • You are over 70 years old • You have misplaced or lost your kit • You want information in a different language • You want information in easy read or DVD formats

Call free phone

0800 707 60 60 to request a free kit Check us out in the Health Arena www.cancerscreening.nhs.uk www.bowelscreening.org

Bowel Cancer Screening Programme

Smile and the world smiles with you!

If you are embarrassed by your smile, or the lines and wrinkles on your face, it can severely affect your confidence. We can help.

Whether your teeth are discoloured, unsightly, stained, crooked or missing, let us discuss the latest techniques to give you a beaming smile, including smile makeovers, dental implants and orthodontics for adults.

Please don’t let being nervous put you off as we can help with that too.

In addition we have treatments to help smooth wrinkles and decrease lines around your mouth and face to help you look younger and feel more confident.

Call us for a consultation on

01706 632661

Dr Pamela Coates is recognised as one of the country’s leading dental practitioners and has featured in “Harpers and Queen” magazine as one of 12 “A1” dentists in the country.

She is a member of the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentists, The International Academy of Advanced Facial Aesthetics and the British Dental Bleaching Society and has achieved a masters diploma in cosmetic dentistry after studying in New York.

Gentle Dental Care to Help You Smile with Confidence WAT E R S I D E D E N TA L C A R E

Dr Pamela Coates BDS VU (Manc), LDSRCS (Eng), MGFGDP (UK) 330 Yorkshire Street, Rochdale, Gtr Manchester OL16 2DS T 01706 632661 M 07725 553719 E practice@waterside-dentalcare.co.uk

www.waterside-dentalcare.co.uk

Same Day Smiles TM Implant replacement now available

St Vincent’s Retirement Livin St Vincent’s Retirement Livin Creating Independence w Creating Independence w All of St vincent’s Sheltered All of St vincent’s Sheltered Schemes are happy and Schemes are happyoffering and safe environments, safe environments, accommodation for offering people accommodation people of retirement agefor who want of retirement living age who independent andwant support. independent living and support.

People under the age of 60 and People under the age Living of 60 and in receipt of Disability in receipt ofcan Disability Living Allowance also apply.

Allowance can also apply.

So, what’s on offer?

So, what’s on offer?

• • • • • •

Resident Scheme Managers Resident Scheme Managers 24 hour Central Control Service 24 hour Central Control Service Constant Heating and Hot Constant Heating and Hot Water Water

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Door Entry System Door Entry System Communal Gardens Communal Communal Gardens Lounge Communal Repairs andLounge Maintenance Repairs Service and Maintenance Service Laundry Laundry Lift Lift Social Events Social Events

What our Scheme Managers What offer our Scheme Managers offer General support and advice General support and advice to residents regarding to residents regarding benefit entitlement, property benefit entitlement, property maintenance, rents and maintenance, rentsagencies. and accessing outside accessing outside agencies.

The Scheme Manager The Manager givesScheme a morning call the 5 gives a morning the 5 days they are oncall duty. days they are on duty.

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ng ng with Support with Support Weekend calls are Weekend calls are provided by County provided County Care-line by Response, Care-line Response, who also provide outwho alsoemergency provide outof-hours of-hours emergency cover during the week cover the week and atduring weekends. and at weekends.

Where are St Where areSchemes?

St Vincent’s Vincent’s Schemes?

Located across the Located across North West, we the have retirement North West, we have retirement schemes in Manchester, schemes Manchester, Rochdale,inBolton, Salford and Rochdale, Longridge. Bolton, Salford and Longridge.

Give us a ring today to get Give a ring today to get moreus information about more information about St Vincent’s Retirement St Vincent’s Retirement Living Schemes, or Living Schemes, discuss you own or discuss you own circumstances. circumstances.

Call 0845 606 6565 Call 0845 606 6565 or email or email jane.sutton@svha.co.uk jane.sutton@svha.co.uk

www.svha.co.uk www.svha.co.uk 53

Local firm helps recoup financial loss

Financial claims company has recovered over £300,000 of mis-sold investment for clients - and it’s just the tip of the iceberg...

Financial claims company Credit Claims in Bolton which has already reclaimed millions of pounds for its clients for mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) is now turning its attention to the mis-selling of Investments. The company first established in 2008 has recovered over £300,000 for clients in only 6 months. Joint owner and Director Ajaz Khan and Senior Financial Claims Specialist Mike Jordan, who has worked in senior banking positions for 20 years, head the team of fully qualified professionals.

Mike said “We look at the advice given to clients when they first invested their money and assess whether the financial loss they have suffered was in fact based upon this advice being inappropriate.

“A claim may come in if the investment has been sold without a prior full investigation of the client’s circumstances, leading to significant financial loss for the investor.”

One successful claim was for 64 year-old William Thornley of Bolton.

Proactive investigation When Mr Thornley received a cash windfall from his late mother’s estate he wanted to invest it wisely and safely. At the time he was working as a driver and his wife Frances, then 54, was unable to work due to ongoing and severe health problems.

Mr Thornley contacted his bank and a financial adviser they suggested he invest a lump sum over five years.

Mr Thornley said: “I explained to him that we definitely didn’t want to gamble with this money as it was very important to us, being from my mother’s estate. It was meant to secure our future.’

The financial adviser assured Mr Thornley that it was not a gamble, and not in stocks and shares, but in ‘commercial lettings.’ He also promised interest every quarter and that the capital would grow.

As Mr Thornley was approaching retirement he felt this was a safe move and invested £50,000.

However, when the couple got their statement 12 months later, they realised that their investment

had fallen in value by £4,000.

When he went back to see the financial adviser. Mr Thornley was reassured that the investment would ‘come back up again’, so he left it for another 12 months.

He said: “After a further 12 months we were shocked to discover that the value had now fallen to just over £31,000. We just couldn’t believe it.” Unable to get hold of the financial adviser for a further fortnight, SATISFIED the couple who were extremely William Th ornley upset decided to cut their losses happy he fo und CreditC was and cash in their investment rather laims than lose more money. By chance, Mrs Thornley spotted CreditClaims’ Business Development Director Ajaz advert in a local magazine and Mr Khan concluded: “It really is the tip Thornley rang the office. Mike Jordan of the iceberg, there are thousands explained that the couple have a of bank customers who have lost claim and started investigations. The money through bad investment result was that the company was advice. HSBC was recently fined able to arrange a refund of £21,624. £10.5m for failings in this area and that follows on from fines for “Needless to say, we were Barclays & RBS. The banks need to absolutely overjoyed,” said Mr look more closely at the risk profiling Thornley. “Without CreditClaims we of clients and cross-check the advice would have had to just write of the being given by its advisers.” money for good.”

HAVE YOU LOST MONEY ON AN INVESTMENT PRODUCT? Was it sold to you by Abbey, Barclays, Alliance & Leicester, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, RBS or any other bank?

Investments sold by major banks can be very risky, if you’ve lost money and the risks were not properly explained, you could be due £000s in compensation even if you no longer have the investment.

FOR A FREE ASSESSMENT CONTACT US NOW ON

01204 363979

We’re already helping many people claim back an average payout of £15,000

308 Manchester Road, Bolton BL3 2QS www.creditclaimsonline.co.uk Credit Claims Limited is regulated by the Ministry of Justice in respect of regulated claims management activities.

It’s registration is recorded on the website www.claimsregulation.gov.uk

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l

No Upfront Fees

l

No Win No Fee

l

Advisers with specialist experience in Investment Advice

OPENING SOON !!!

The 5 Westbourne Care Home î ?

Cricketers Way, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 7EZ. Nestled in the heart of the Cheshire countryside, the picturesque village of Holmes Chapel is the perfect setting for our exclusive new care home, The Westbourne. Our superior care home will provide luxurious, ďŹ ve star accommodation for 50 elderly people. The home will offer a combination of nursing, residential and dementia care. Respite and holiday breaks will also be offered (subject to availability).

For Your Personal Invitation to the Open Day in March and to ensure that you don't miss out on viewing this superior retirement development, please email viewings @mmcg.co.uk or call head office on 0113 2382690.

Quote GMEX/03 /12 when making any enquiries Adjacent to The Westbourne are Westbourne Villas, a select development of 12 close-care 2 bedroomed luxurious apartments. These are available for private sale through the Holmes Chapel branch of Reeds Rains (Tel: 01477 533575).

MISSION STATEMENT: to be the best quality, most highly regarded care provider in the United Kingdom

www.mmcgcarehomes.co.uk

WIN a £400 travel voucher at stand A19 or enter by post on the form below or call 01892 886 255

Become part of our volunteer network and do something extraordinary in Africa, Asia, Central or South America.

www.i-to-i.com

Community development | Care for wildlife | Building projects | Conservation | Teaching Terms & Conditions: Competition ends on Sunday the 11th March 2012. The winner will be announced within 7 days of closing date by telephone and email. Voucher only valid on trips over the value of £1000. Offer excludes flights, extras and any other ancillary product sold by i to i Volunteering. Only redeemable on travel departing before 31st September 2012, on new and direct bookings. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer. No cash alternative available. Subject to standard booking terms and conditions.

WIN A TRAVEL VOUCHER WORTH £400*

Enter by post! Fill out your name and contact details to be in with the chance of winning a £400 travel voucher, valid for travel with i to i Volunteering.

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1 MEADOW ROAD TUNBRIDGE WELLS KENT TN1 2YG