Third Age Matters • New Year 2014

WHAT WENT ON IN SOME SCHOOLS IN 1966 – AND WHY IT HAUNTS GRAHAM WILMER ISSUE 10 | NEW YEAR 2014 | WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

100 YEARS AGO – BUT IT’S AS THOUGH WW1 WAS YESTERDAY

Boulton, Watt and Wedgwood at the Lunar Society dinner in Dorridge Summer schools win sponsorship to make them more affordable

INthisISSUE

Third Age Matters — 92 pages of news, views and information AAUp front

4

AAWhat’s on

8

Summer schools boost Research Remembering WW1

AAPeople 29

AAArts 54 Novel failures Gielgud’s gaffes

AAIn my own write 59 AALetters 64

AANews 10

Choosing to die Missing men

Wales and water New U3As

AACoast to Coast

74

Frozen marathon Wattie’s website Mike is Monty

AAOpinion 35 Chairman’s new year All that jazz

AAThe way it was Philosophers’ Link Cuts and adult learners

AAFocus 21 Self-publishing The good old brain Online courses See the stars

Sixties child abuse From the trenches to the cold war On the rails Brief encounters

AACompetitions 49 Win tickets for Anton du Beke and new Sam Wanamaker theatre

Third Age Matters Third Age Matters is published by the Third Age Trust, the national organisation for Universities of the Third Age in the UK. Contributions can be emailed to the editor at francis@francisbeckett.co.uk Other enquiries and communications, re-advertisements and editorial should be sent to the U3A national office.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

40

U3A National Office Third Age Trust Old Municipal Buildings 19 East Street Bromley BR1 1QE 020 8466 6139 national.office@u3a.org.uk www.u3a.org.uk Resource centre Susan Radford 020 8315 0199 resource.centre@u3a.org.uk

Editor Francis Beckett francis@francisbeckett.co.uk Sub-editing and design Alan Slingsby editionperiodicals.co.uk Business and advertisement manager Gerald Brigg 01702 342573 geraId.brigg@talktalk.net U3A advisory editorial board Beth Butler, chairman; Gerald Brigg; Carol Green; John Leiper; Beryl Mellish; Leslie Stacey; Gwen Wright

Bridport blows glass

AACover

Dorridge U3A science group re-enacts dinner with Matthew Boulton’s eighteenth century Lunar Society (page 74)

WHAT WENT ON IN SOME

SCHOOLS IN 1966 – AND

WHY IT HAUNTS GRAHAM ISSUE 10 | NEW YEAR

WILMER

2014 | WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

100 YEARS AGO – BUT IT’S AS THOUGH WW1 WAS YESTERD AY

Boulton, Watt and Wedgwood at the Lunar Society dinner in Dorridge Summer schools win

sponsorship to make them more

Schedule Third Age Matters is published in January, April, June, September and November. Copy date for editorial and advertising: 1st of the month preceding publication.

The small print All rights reserved. Any reproduction without permission is prohibited.

The publishers cannot accept responsibility for any unsolicited material or for the views of contributors or for statements and claims made in any advertisements appearing in this magazine.

Third Age Trust Registered charity No. 288007 Limited company No. 1759471 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 3

affordable

FRONT

up

Grant will keep summer school prices down • U3A research • War anniversary

£30,000 boost for summer schools FEES FOR U3A national summer schools will fall dramatically for the next three years thanks to a £30,000 grant from the Educational Foundation for Lifelong Learning.

The foundation dates from the early 1980s and was originally designed to provide continuing professional development and known as The Continuing Professional Development Foundation.

In its first 30 years the foundation provided 100 lectures a year for the members of the property and allied professions at the Polytechnic of Central London (now the University of Westminster). These reached more than 10,000 people each year.

In 2011 the CPD businesses were transferred to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the name of the original

Jonathan Harris

charity changed to the Educational Foundation for Lifelong Learning.

It began to look for ways to help charities in the further educational sector which recognise and promote the importance of keeping up-todate as an integral part of lifelong learning.

The founder, Jonathan Harris CBE, a fellow of the RICS and its president in 2000/01, and his fellow trustees

approached the U3A at the suggestion of the foundation’s secretary and accountant Alan Topper, who had recently become a founder member of Radlett U3A. They hope that by supporting U3A summer schools programme to the tune of £10,000 a year for three years the Foundation may find other areas in which to support the U3A’s lifelong learning aspirations.

Prizes for region’s research proposals U3As IN Northumbria have won prizes for their proposals for academic research.

RITA (Research Ideas from the Third Age) is an annual competition for U3As in the Northumbria region. They draft outline research proposals, which are judged on their originality, feasibility, potential impact, and opportunity to involve U3A members.

The results of RITA 2013 were announced, and prizes awarded, at the regional meeting in October.

First prize of £700 went to Teesdale U3A for a proposal to study the demography of the U3A in the North East and the implications for a regional strategy.

Joint second prizes of £400 went to Tynedale U3A for a proposed study of older people’s perceptions of receiving support and care from neighbours and 4 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

to Ponteland U3A for an audit of one-off free services for older people, such as fire alarm installation or property security advice, that are not easily accessed from local websites.

Joint third prizes of £250 went to Boldon U3A for a strategic approach to membership retention and Seaham U3A which proposes to compare the provision of lifelong learning in Seaham and the German town of Gerlingen, which have been

Ruth Sansom of Teesdale U3A receives the RITA 2013 first prize from Dr Lynne Corner of Newcastle University

twinned for the past 25 years.

The quality of entries was high and several projects that did not win a prize have potential to be taken forward. The prizes were sponsored by Newcastle University’s Changing Age Initiative.

Entries are judged by researchers from Newcastle University.

More than half of Northumbria’s U3As have research ambassadors who promote interest and understanding among members and provide information about research-related events and participation in studies.

For RITA 2014, the U3A research network will cooperate with the Human-Computer Interaction Group at Newcastle University on the development and delivery of research projects across the region.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

23 NOVEMBER 1917 – the Cambrai offensive: An immobilised British Mark IV tank stands at the lip of a captured German trench at Flesquieres, in the bottom of which lie dead German soldiers. Flesquieres is now the site of a British war cemetery.

The village was attacked by the 51st (Highland) Division, with tanks, on 20 November, but held for a time by a German officer with a few men; it was captured on the 21st. It was lost in the later stages of the battle, and retaken on 27 September 1918.

From the Ministry of Information First World War official collection now held by the Imperial War Museums

U3As invited to join centenary partnership

U3As HAVE been invited to join the partnership established to commemorate the centenary of the first world war.

On the hundredth anniversary of the outbreak of the war, the Imperial War Museums (IWM) are leading the First World War Centenary Partnership, a network of local, regional, national and international cultural and educational organisations.

It already has more than 2,000 members – from museums, archives, libraries, universities, music and art organisations to special interest groups.

By joining the partnership organisations can work together to WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

commemorate the anniversary.

Members of the partnership can access a website that enables them to share ideas and expertise, update each other on their plans, ask questions, distribute resources and form local partnerships for planned activities.

The website also has free resources, including 100 digital items from IWM collections, a timeline showing all major events of the wartime period, downloadable DIY exhibitions and a range of useful guides on art, collections, research, learning and communications.

Members have access to a centenary logo which they can use on their

organisations’ projects and resources alongside their own.

They will have the opportunity to publicise any centenary events they are planning through the newly launched centenary events calendar (www.1914.org).

U3As interested in joining the Centenary Partnership should go to www.1914.org/partners for further information and for the “New Centenary members” form that should be completed before sign-up.

It is recommended that one person be responsible for signing up their U3A, and then as many individual users as wish to can sign themselves up and create personal logins.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 5

NEWS

NEWS in this issue 6 Silver Line 7 Masterclass 10 North Wales study day 11 Fundraising dog walkers

12 New U3As 13 Philosophy 14 National conference 14 FutureLearn

16 Help wanted 16 Northern Ireland 18 U3A video 20 RHS gardens offer

Everything and anything that’s new and interesting for members of the third age

SILVER LINE

Loneliness line gets 20 calls a day

At the Silver Line House of Commons launch: London Trustee Gwen Wright, Alex McMinn, the former U3A regional trustee who is one of Silver Line’s trustees, Esther Rantzen and U3A national chairman Barbara Lewis

SILVER LINE, the charity designed to combat loneliness among older people, took 8,000 calls – more than 20 a day – during a year-long pilot in Manchester and the Isle of Man. Founder Esther Rantzen launched the charity nationally at a House of Commons reception.

Chief executive Sophie Andrews said that 5% of calls received were reports of abuse.

UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE

The Paxman always sneers twice TAM EDITOR Francis Beckett was among the graduates of 16 universities who competed in a special Christmas version of University Challenge. He was on the Keele University team, having graduated in History and Philosophy in 1969.

The team also had Maggie Atkinson, Children’s Commissioner for England, Rear Admiral Ian Moncrieff and Professor Steve Jackson, founder of Games Workshop.

“I jumped at the chance when I was offered it, and only regretted my decision for a few brief moments while we were lining up outside the studio,” said Francis.

“You imagine it’s recorded continuously, and Jeremy Paxman must be terribly erudite, because 6 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

he has to make instant decisions about whether to accept an answer that’s not quite what he has on his card, but close.

“It’s not like that. If he’s in any doubt, they stop recording while JP phones the producer and, if necessary, the producer phones external assessors. Then you have to give your answer again, right or not. We’re told that if you give a silly answer, and JP sneers at you, you’ve got to repeat your silly

Francis Beckett and the Keele team with Jeremy Paxman

answer and listen to him sneer all over again when they restart recording. All you can do is, this time, make it sound as though it’s a guess.

“I was terrified of getting questions on subjects I’ve written books about, and getting them wrong. It didn’t happen – the starter questions on Prime Ministers, which I might have been expected to get right, went to Aberystwyth.”

Keele beat Aberystwyth by 140 points to 95. But only four teams could go to the semi-finals so, of the seven winners, only the four highest scoring winners went through, and Keele was the fifth highest scoring winner. The eventual winner was Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

TRUST ME, I’M A DOCTOR

Kissing dummies for the BBC TEN MEMBERS of Bicester U3A appeared on Trust Me, I’m A Doctor on BBC2 in October.

Earlier in the year, the BBC asked for volunteers from a walking group to be taught basic life-saving skills.

Those who took part expected to be outside, filming people being dragged from flooded rivers and learning resuscitation but everything took place indoors at a local village hall.

The morning was spent

learning how to throw ropes to a drowning person and use walking poles to drag people from imaginary streams.

Everyone soon became oblivious of the film cameras and by the time came to resuscitate dummies, the group were completely relaxed.

It was this sequence which appeared on the programme, together with a staged walk along a leafy lane, supposedly showing the group happily returning

Apart from bruised lips the next day they all enjoyed their brief moments of stardom

from a long walk. In reality they had done about 50 yards, which had to be repeated a couple of times until the cameraman was satisfied. Three hours of filming was distilled into four minutes on drowning.

Everyone looked as if they knew what they were doing and apart from bruised lips the next day from over-enthusiastic mouth-to-mouth on the dummies, they all enjoyed their brief moments of stardom.

LEGACY HELPS YOUNGSTERS PERFORM IN PUBLIC

Ruth’s bequest funds a masterclass for young musicians READING U3A organised a piano masterclass in November in memory of long-time member Ruth Ascher, who passed away in 2010 aged 97.

Ruth Ascher, who left Germany in 1933, left a legacy to Reading U3A and it was decided to use part of it to help five promising young local musicians to develop their skills whilst experiencing the atmosphere of public performance.

The masterclass was given

by Anthony Williams, head of keyboard and instrumental music WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

at Radley College in Oxfordshire.

It was attended by more than 100 people, including many members of Reading U3A, the

families, friends and teachers of the young musicians, U3A national chairman Barbara Lewis, and the Mayor of Reading.

Anthony Williams with the young musicians and guests

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 7

WHAT’S ON

Dates for your diary New Year 2014

National conference 9-10 September This year’s U3A national conference is called More Time To Learn and will be held at the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester. It will last two full days, starting at 11 a.m. on day one, which will be a mixture of plenary sessions, workshops and surgeries for key officers – a blend of work and fun. There are plans for education, development, communication and technology zones plus displays and the national office shop, as well as entertainment in the evening, possibly homegrown! Speakers will include Professor Richard Faragher, professor of bio gerontology and chair of the British Society for Research on Ageing. Prices to be announced – but conference organisers are working on making them as low as possible. Register now so that when the pack is ready you will be first to get it.

All-Scotland conference and AGM 22 May Perth U3A will play host to U3A Scotland's All Scotland Conference and AGM 2014 in Letham St. Mark's Church, Rannoch Road, Perth.

Guests will be welcomed by U3A in Scotland chairman Tom Berney and Brian Gall, chairman of Perth U3A. Doors will open at 10.00 for registration and coffee with the conference starting at 10.30. Entitled “Looking Back – Looking Forward”, speakers include Tom Devine, Professor of History at Edinburgh University, on “300 Centuries

William Hogarth, Marriage A-la-Mode: 4, The Toilette, about 1743 ©The National Gallery, London

of Anglo-Scottish Union – but is it coming to an end?” Application forms should be returned with the conference charge of £12 to David Thistlethwaite, 19 Cornhill Way, Perth PH1 1LJ. Further information from him at 01738 446886 or email thistled@btinternet.com.

National Gallery 27 March The National Gallery is hosting an exclusive study day for U3A members called Best of British: Exploring 18th-Century Painting through the National Gallery Collection. It will be in the Sainsbury Wing Theatre of the National Gallery, London, and tickets are £18. Speakers include Professor William Vaughan, author of British Painting: The Golden Age

8 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

and Jennifer Scott, Curator of Paintings, The Royal Collection. Booking forms available from national office.

Self-publishing seminar 24 April An all-day seminar for those intending to self-publish their books – including marketing and how to make your book available for Kindle – will be held in Central London. Cost will be up to £40, depending on numbers. Register your interest with Julie at the national office.

U3A national Summer School, Newport 14-17 July The first of the U3A’s two national summer schools will be at Harper Adams University, Newport, Shropshire. Courses include

Ancient Civilisations of the Americas; Cinema History; Creative Writing; Current Affairs; Drama through the ages; France; Latin; Philosophy; and Recorder ensemble playing. Details from national office.

Information can also be downloaded from u3a.org. uk/members area.

U3A national Summer School, Cirencester 18-21 August The second U3A national summer school will be at the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester. Courses include Digital photography; Drama; Gardening; Literature; Music; Poetry; Science; Singing.

Details from national office.

Information can also be downloaded from u3a.org. uk/members area.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

AUTA conference, Toulouse

North West summer school

NIMR 3 April

Science, technology and society seminar

2-4 June

26-29 August

The annual meetings at the

11-14 August

The fortieth anniversary

The fifth North West

National Institute of Medical

The seminar includes a

conference of IAUTA (the

Summer School is at

Research are to be resumed

mixture of talks on a wide

International Association

Newton Rigg College near

after a gap of a year. Booking

range of topics and a visit to

of U3As) will be held at

Penrith. The courses are

forms will shortly be available

the Wedgwood visitor centre.

the birthplace of U3A, in

Archaeology, Art, Creative

from the national office.

Speakers are from among

the University of Toulouse

Writing, Geology and History

Capitole. Details from Ian

of Ideas/Literature. There are

Funnell, funnellian@hotmail.

two new topics: A Musical

South East Forum summer school

com, or the national website.

Journey, Renaissance to

24-27 June

forms and other information

Romanticism and Digital

The South East Summer

from mid February at www.

planned for 2014 include an

Photography. The three

School at Chichester offers

u3ascienceseminar.org.uk, or

Asia Pacific U3A Alliance

day residential school

a baker's dozen of courses

email u3ascienceseminar@

conference in Kathmandu,

costs £300, with a £40

ranging from “Singing for

gmail.com to be added to the

Nepal, in October and an

“early-bird” discount if you

Pleasure” to “The Joy of

mailing list.

IAUTA conference in Iguacu,

book by 31 March; and a

Maths”; from Roman History

Brazil, in November.

day rate of £150, with a

to Jazz, through “Women,

£20 “early bird” discount.

Art and Society” to “Great

RoH production facilities in Thurrock

The prospectus is at www.

Houses and Gardens”

3 April

24 March

u3asites.org.uk/north-west

not forgetting m and its

What goes into creating

This year’s Royal Institution

or from David Joseph,

functioning; creative writing;

world-famous opera and

meeting will offer another

01625 861327, 07831 4731157

and life drawing. Contact

ballet productions for the

exciting programme: “The

or email davidbjoseph@

Helen Turner, 01622 817264

Royal Opera House? Find

conversational racetrack”

btopenworld com.

or Gillian Pitt, 01293 528943.

out about the fascinating

Other conferences

Royal Institution

the delegates (and offers are welcome.) Cost around £250 residential. Booking

(Elizabeth Stokoe), “Biological clocks” (David Whitmore) and “Bubbles” (Helen Czerski.) Tickets £20, including refreshments.

Details from national office.

world of artists, designers,

Information can also be

production staff and

downloaded from u3a.org.

scene-makers during U3A

uk/members area

workshops at the RoH Production Facilities in

Royal Society

Thurrock, 11.30 am to 3.30

21 May

pm. Cost is £18. Booking

This year’s meeting at the

forms from national office.

Royal Society, London SW1,

Queens Chapel concert

is Plug in, Switch On, Rewire!

30 April

Can technology rewire your brain for greater fulfilment?

Edinburgh Zoo

The U3A Spring concert at

The speaker will be Dr Paul

5 July U3A in Scotland will hold its fourth annual study day at Edinburgh Zoo hosted by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland. The event, Bird Cognition and Conservation, will include both native and exotic species. Further details will be available on the U3A in Scotland website (www.u3ascotland. org.uk). Applications open 1 March. The cost is £22 for the day including zoo admission.

the Queen’s Chapel of the

Howard-Jones, Reader in Neuroscience and Education at Bristol University. Booking forms from national office in February. Contact Philippa Bassett (philippa@u3a.org. uk) to register interest.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Savoy is at 2pm and features the Trinity Laban Choir.

Jewels of 20th century British choral music including Britten and Vaughan Williams.

Tickets cost £18, booking forms from national office.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 9

NEWS

NORTH WALES STUDY DAY

Secrets of the watery world THE SECRET Lives of Our Planet from Land to the Ocean was the theme of the twelfth annual North Wales Association of U3As’ study day, organised by Bangor U3A, at

U3As in Abergele, Anglesey, Bangor, Barmouth, Dyffryn Conwy, Flintshire, Llandudno, Porthmadog, Penmaenmawr and Wrexham were represented

Craig y Don Community Centre, Llandudno.

Nigel Brown, Curator of Treborth Botanical Garden, Bangor University, discussed the secret life of plants, focusing on their evolution from the oceans, structure and natural history.

Chris Freeman, Professor in the School of Biological Sciences, Bangor University, explained the secret life of wetlands, ranging from widespread man-made changes to their chemistry and their potential to influence climate change.

Maurice Lock, Honorary

Reader in the School of Biological Sciences, Bangor University, and a Bangor U3A member, delivered a presentation on the secret life of rivers and streams. He described the groups of stream animals and demonstrated how their food depended on microbiological and chemical processes of decomposition.

Peter Williams, Emeritus Professor in the School of Ocean Sciences, Bangor University, talked about the secret life of the ocean, stressing the overwhelming importance of small organisms in the economy of the oceans.

U3A SUBJECT ADVISERS

Here to help anyone starting a new interest group or to advise on problems in established groups AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY Maria Chester 01890 781500 marialiciachester@gmail.com ARCHAEOLOGY Ian Haynes 01268 779749 ian@bertemcam.me.uk ARCHITECTURE Martin Funnell 020 8946 7739 funnell@onetel.com ART APPRECIATION Olwen Hughes 01584 878418 davilwen@talktalk.net ASTRONOMY Martin Whillock 01347 821849 nitram82@whillock.me.uk AVIATION John Hindmarsh 01793 765215 john.hindmarsh@talktalk.net BRITISH HISTORY Ian McCannah 01707 870142 ijmccannah@aol.com CANALS & INLAND WATERWAYS Peter Brown 01630 652567 u3a@peter-quita.demon.co.uk CANASTA Roy Wilkinson 01205 360682 jessie.wilkinson@gmail.com CLASSICAL MUSIC Michael van Blankenstein 020 8449 6451 mvanblankenstein@waitrose.com CRAFTS (NEEDLE TYPE) Gill Beasley 01922 628081 davegill01@msn.com CREATIVE WRITING Marcia Humphries u3awriting@hotmail.co.uk CURRENT AFFAIRS Bill Garvey 020 8868 5030 bill.garvey@btinternet.com CYCLING (SOCIAL) Les Jarman 01730 261349 lesjarman@yahoo.co.uk DRAMA & THEATRE David Morton 01943 607826 davmort@blueyonder.co.uk 10 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

FILM Mike Johnson 01943 607566 johnsonsilkley@blueyonder.co.uk FOLK DANCE Roy Phillips 01225 420673 FRENCH Sylvia Duffy 01584 872807 sylviaduffy@uwclub.net GARDENING Anthea Lock 01568 612479 alock1@btinternet.com GEOLOGY Isabel Markham 020 8850 1337 HUMOUR Jean Bishop 01903 695215 JeanBs2@aol.com ICT AWARENESS Alan Bannister 01271 863093 alan.bannister@btinternet.com JAZZ APPRECIATION Mike Whitaker 01278 663492 mjo.whitaker666@btinternet.com LANGUAGES Heather Westrup 01923 283577 heatherwestrupu3a@hotmail.co.uk LATIN Trevor Davies 01925 261030 daviesmaplecottage@hotmail.com LIVING HISTORY Barbara Bond 01246 540765 barbara.bond641@btinternet.com LITERATURE Yvonne Oram 01752 201219 yvonne.oram@robano-resources.com LOCAL HISTORY Allan Whatley 01270 623360 allanwhatley@btinternet.com MATHS AND STATS Andrew Holt 020 8977 7465 draaholtco@yahoo.com MODERN POLITICAL AND MILITARY HISTORY Ian Philpott 01304 853008 ianphilpott@hotmail.co.uk MUSIC – SINGING AND PLAYING Diane Ford 01482 343199 ditoford@ditoford.karoo.co.uk

OPERA Arthur Tart 01604 721463 arthur.edward@talktalk.net PHILOSOPHY Edward Link 01337 827637 edl.perthu3a@googlemail.com PHOTOGRAPHY Peter Read 01722 501218 peterjread@ntlworld.com PSYCHOLOGY David Beck 020 8866 7181 RACKETBALL Terry Wassall 01274 617963 t.wassall@leeds.ac.uk RECORDER PLAYING Steve Marshall 01452 831654 steveandannmarshall@hotmail.com RUSSIAN Dorothy Newman 01844 274101 dorothyknewman@hotmail.com SCOTTISH COUNTRY DANCING Bill Sylvester 0115 9331948 bill.sylvester@sky.com SAILING & WATER ACTIVITIES Geoff Preshner 01992 581571 geoffrey.preshner@ntlworld.com SHAKESPEARE Ray Waterhouse 07808 928826 ray.waterhouse@btinternet.com SOCIAL SCIENCES Tim Bornett 01953 860388 timbornett@btinternet.com STORYTELLING Stella Porter 01903 713856 stella_porter@btinternet.com TEXTILE CRAFTS Julie Clark 01423 565647 THEOLOGY R eg Simmonds 01962 735838 reg.simmonds@virgin.net WALKING Neil Meek 01784 251590 neil.meek@talktalk.net WINE APPRECIATION John Grisbrooke 01920 438378 grisbrooke@hotmail.co.uk WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

NEWS

VOLUNTEERING

Walkers raise cash for air ambulance

David Brocklehurst and the Chesterfield U3A dog walking group after their Christmas walk

DAVID BROCKLEHURST of Chesterfield U3A has a special reason for fundraising for the air ambulance service. In December 2012 he was rescued by Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland air ambulance from moors in the Derbyshire Peak District after suffering a head injury.

He was taken to Sheffield’s Northern General Hospital where he was found to have no serious damage. Subsequent thank you emails and donations led to his group being invited to tour the air ambulance’s East Midlands Airport base and David becoming a volunteer.

He is co-ordinator of Chesterfield U3A’s dog walking group, all of whom are now firm advocates for the service.

They decided that, rather than send each other Christmas cards in 2013, they would donate the money they would have spent to DLRAA. Donations totalled £80.

AFTER READING a story in TAM, Miall James, a committee member at Witham and Braintree U3A, made contact with the Bangkok U3A in Thailand – and found himself addressing students and staff at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

He has been visiting Thailand since 2004 when his son relocated there. He became bored with lounging by the pool in November and, after seeing an article on the U3A Signposts website, got in touch with the newly founded Bangkok U3A. He arranged to meet Dr Archanua Ratana-Ubol at the department of lifelong learning and was told he was to give two talks: one to students and another one to WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

the research and development centre of the university.

Staff and students both spoke good English – which is often the language of instruction at Thai universities.

The students, all of whom had taken lifelong learning as an elective course were surprised to hear that the U3A did not have qualifications or prescribed areas of study.

Addressing the research centre was more intense, with Miall leading four hours of discussion. The audience included staff from several universities and a civil servant charged with developing lifelong learning in Thailand.

The university asked Miall to let them know when he returns to the country – so he may be about to do it again.

NE

From Reading U3A to university in Bangkok

W

OVERSEAS LINKS

The independent publishing company inspired by YOU

THIRD AGE PRESS

The Play Reader 2013:

yet more dramas by thirdagers

A NEW collection of 8 plays written by thirdagers . . . perfect for U3A groups A4 (copyable) 200 pages £10 plus £1.50 postage

All our publications are now available by direct mail order through our newly re-furbished website & blog www.thirdagepress.co.uk

BEST REMEMBERED TWO Cinema & Radio

by Eric Midwinter

U3A SPECIAL OFFER £9.50 incl p&p dianne@thirdagepress.co.uk Third Age Press 6 Parkside Gardens, London SW19 5EY

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 11

NEWS

NEW U3As

Islington bucks the gender trend

Islington’s mayor Barry Edwards displays his U3A membership card

ISLINGTON IN north London is the latest place to experience the excitement that accompanies the setting up of a new U3A – but there was something unusual about it too.

About 200 people came along to its start-up meeting at the Resource for London conference centre in Holloway Road and a long queue of people waiting to sign in snaked out of the building and across the pavement.

Gwen Wright, the national U3A’s London Regional Trustee, pointed out an unusual element.

“At some U3A meetings I go to there’s just one lonely man, and sometimes I never see one at all,” she said. “At Islington there were

FINANCE

Retirement income rises EXPECTED RETIREMENT incomes have increased for the first time in three years – but the increase is patchy, and in some parts of the country, expected retirement incomes are actually going down. And they are still lower than they were in 2008.

Prudential’s seventh annual “Class of” study, which tracks the future plans and aspirations of people planning to retire in the next 12 months, found that those retiring in 2014 expect average incomes of £15,800 per year – £500 higher than the class of 2013.

This is the first rise in three years and only the second rise since 2008 when Prudential began annually monitoring expected average retirement incomes.

The one previous rise was a negligible increase of £100 back in 2011.

12 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

But the rise of just over 3% in national average expected retirement incomes masks some significant regional variations across the country. Six of the 10 regions that Prudential reported on saw increases, with three showing declines and one unchanged.

And expected retirement incomes are still £2,900 lower than they were for the Class of 2008, when a typical person entering retirement anticipated an annual income of £18,700.

The real-term fall in incomes is even higher due to rises in living costs, as inflation has caused prices to rise by nearly 20% since 2008.

Someone retiring this year would therefore need an annual income of £22,400, to have the same buying power as the average Class of 2008 retiree.

plenty of them.”

Islington U3A chair Anne Weyman announced the first monthly meeting, with a speaker and time to socialise.

The speaker was Times columnist David Aaronovitch, who previewed the next general election and predicted “blood on the carpet”.

AAOther new U3As since we last reported are in Ewyas Harold & District (Herefordshire); Alfreton & District (Derbyshire); Hawkhurst (Kent); East Medway (Kent); Westerham (Kent); Thundersley (Essex); Edenbridge (Kent); Wadhurst (East Sussex); Tarporley & District (Cheshire); and Bearsted & District (Kent).

FUNDRAISING

Walkers raise cash for health centre

A WALK along the north bank of the Thames in Olympic year became a shared learning project between 15 U3As in the eastern region. It was also used to raise money to help build a health centre in Juri, a rural area in the Sylhet region of Bangladesh.

Walk organisers Jennifer and Ed Simpson, with the help of Adam Walton at national office, produced a booklet showing all the walk sections, maps and points of interest along the 60-mile route. They have taken the display and booklets around other U3As and given talks about the Thames Estuary to raise money for the Bangladeshi health centre.

AACopies of the booklet cost £2.50, including postage, from Jennifer and Ed on 01702 712 922 or Edward.simpson@alexlive.com.

Sales benefit the health centre – details at www.proshanti.org.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

NEWS

CONCERTS

Christmas at Queen’s Chapel

Ed Link with Marianne Talbot PHILOSOPHY

Right, wrong and work-life balance THE PHILOSOPHER who led the second U3A annual philosophy day has herself had the sort of life which would test anyone’s philosophy.

Marianne Talbot, Oxford University Director of Studies in Philosophy, led discussions about the study of right and wrong, and critical reasoning. The day was held in Perth’s Letham St. Mark’s Church of Scotland, and chaired

by U3A philosophy subject adviser Ed Link, who is also Perth U3A’s vice-chair.

Marianne has held her current position at the university since 2001, and previously taught at Pembroke and Brasenose Colleges for 26 years.

Her own education changed direction when she was thrown out of school at the age of 15 for truancy and disruption.

An Open University foundation course led her to philosophy, and she achieved a first class degree at London University’s Bedford College before entering Corpus Christi College, Oxford, WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

to do postgraduate work.

In 1996 she was appointed chair of the National Forum for Values in Education and Community, with responsibility for promoting the spiritual, moral and cultural development of children in English schools.

Marianne has had to balance her profession with her home life, looking after parents who both suffered from dementia.

During the five years that her mother, who had Alzheimer’s, lived with her, she wrote a very popular blog for Saga Magazine Online, later published as a book – Keeping Mum: Caring for Someone with Dementia. She is currently awaiting publication of her first ebook, Critical Reasoning: A Romp Through the Foothills of Logic.

Podcasts of two of her lectures have achieved the global numberone position on iTunesU, having been downloaded over 4 million times.

AA Ed Link and David Beckham: Brief Encounters, page 48

300 U3A members attended two festive concerts at The Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy over Christmas. The Grove Singers of London, conducted by Brian Newman, performed seasonal pieces, old and new.

During the interval the Reverend Professor Peter Galloway OBE described the life and times of the unique Tudor chapel and the audience enjoyed mulled wine and mince pies.

The concerts were organised by the Brandenburg Choral Festival (patron Howard Goodall).

AAFor details of the 2014 Festival visit brandenburg.org.uk/festival ADULT LEARNERS WEEK

Nominate a learner

U3As ARE invited to nominate a learner or project for an Adult Learners’ Week Award – but you will have to be quick, the deadline is 5pm on 30 January.

Adult Learners Week, sponsored by the adult learners’ organisation NIACE, is from 14 to 20 June. It offers an opportunity to encourage people from all walks of life to engage in new learning.

There are four main categories for the awards: individual learners; learning projects; apprentices; and employers.

AATo nominate someone, go to www.alw.org. uk/awards/2014. The ALWA website also has contact details for the regional outreach coordinators.

Enjoy an evening of Jacobean revelry: Competitions, page 50 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 13

NEWS

EXPERT ON AGEING TO ADDRESS U3A NATIONAL CONFERENCE As this issue of TAM went to press, the first definite speaker for this year’s national U3A conference was booked.

He is Richard Faragher (right), Professor of Biogerontology at the University of Brighton and chair of the British Society for Research on Ageing.

He will speak to the

conference on 10 September.

The title for this year’s conference at the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester will be More Time To Learn.

The conference will be held on 9 and 10 September, starting at 11am on 9 September.

There are plans for zones

for education, development, communication and technology as well as displays.

The conference will also run breakout groups. The policymaking AGM will be on the second day.

U3As can register straight away, and the conference fee will be announced soon.

ONLINE COURSES

How seven U3A students joined with 10,000 others FUTURELEARN – which has featured several times in recent issues of TAM – is a collection of free online courses prepared by different universities and administered by the Open University. Seven West Bridgford U3A members decided to study the course on England in the time of Richard III. They report that the course, designed and presented by Leicester University, was divided into six weekly sections, each one designed for two hours study.

The weekly topics were: Medieval battles and the Wars of the Roses; Peasants and farmers; Books, literacy and printing; Death and commemoration; Food; and The road from Bosworth.

The material was presented online and consisted of text and audio and video presentations. Students were encouraged to participate in online written discussions and there was a weekly feedback by the course tutor.

The West Bridgford seven were surprised to learn that there were another 10,000 students worldwide studying the course.

Although it was designed for individual study and did not require previous knowledge, the seven members felt their weekly meetings to be useful.

AADetails of FutureLearn courses may be found on www.futurelearn.com.

14 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

The Cloisters (left) and River Wensum

PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION

Revealing a fine city THE THEME for the Norwich U3A photographic competition 2013 was ‘Norwich, a fine city”. It was won by Michael Claridge with his picture “The Cloisters, Norwich Cathedral”.

Second prize went to Mary Robertson for The Royal Arcade.

Other fine pictures included Michael’s “River Wensum from Fye Bridge” and Mary’s St Catherine’s “Chapel Norwich Cathedral”. The judges also liked “Norwich Windows” by Carol Breen, “Vaulting to Heaven” by Paul Nevens, and “Barge at Anchor” by Jean Tait.

CONFERENCE REPORT

Bercow didn’t say that REPORTING JOHN Bercow’s speech to the U3A conference, we quoted some trenchant words about his relationship with Conservative whips – but failed to make it clear that he was talking about a time, many years ago, when he was a new, young Member of Parliament. He was NOT talking about how he relates to them now, as Speaker of the House of Commons.

TAM apologies to John Bercow for this – the last thing we want to do is

cause embarrassment for so good a friend to the U3A. This was the most serious of a few mistakes in the last TAM, which was plagued by technological and other problems. One more ought to be mentioned. In Profile, we had Len Street being born in 1931 and joining the navy in 1938. Even then the navy did not take seven-year-old recruits; he was actually born in 1921.

Francis Beckett, editor WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Tailor Made Tours exclusively for your U3A ✓ Every tour tailor made to

your U3A’s exact requirements

✓ Your U3A’s tour will be yours and yours alone

✓ Up to 1 free place for every 10 paying

✓ Fully escorted with a full

programme of included excursions

✓ Free personalised colour brochures for your members

✓ Hassle free booking in a way that suits you best

✓ Complete financial security

Tailor Made World War I 100th Anniversary Tour

In Flanders Fields & The Battle of the Somme ✓ Fully escorted by a specialist battlefields guide

✓ Full programme of included

April to October 2014 4 days from £229 or 5 days from £299

excursions and guided tours

✓ 4* central hotel Do not use larger than 270mm on longest side Full colour version 75% tint shadow

To discuss your U3A’s tailor made World War I or any other U3A group tour or for our Group Traveller brochure call

020 7064 4970 or visit www.tailored-travel.co.uk

NEWS

HELP WANTED SURVEY OF MEMBERS. The newly formed Islington U3A wants to run a regular survey of members on issues such as organisational efficiency, likes/dislikes, ideas for improvements, group functioning, and any comments at all. They would be glad to hear from other U3As which have already done this sort of thing or have been thinking about it so as to learn from their experiences, and would of course reciprocate. Contact chris.bulford@blueyonder. co.uk” GREECE. Horsham U3A has launched a Philhellenic group, which describes itself as “a meeting place for those interested in Greece – its people, its language, its culture, its history – and Greek holidays.” Are there any other similar U3A Groups with whom they might share ideas? Contact John Bromhead, john_ bromhead@hotmail.com.

thought there must be other U3As interested in population topics. He’ll be glad to forward enquiries: rmaylan@ntlworld.com.

TRIGEMINAL NEURALGIA. Brenda Brewer of Dorchester U3A attends quarterly meetings of the Wessex Trigeminal Neuralgia Support Group at Southampton General Hospital, and she appeals for other TN sufferers to join them.

This excruciatingly painful and little known condition affects 10 people in every 100,000. It is characterised by intermittent, sudden and severe facial nerve pain.

There is currently no cure.

The meetings, says Brenda, are a lifeline, but numbers are declining and they risk closing, so she is appealing for TN sufferers to come along. For more information, contact David Rogers, dhgrogers@totalise.co.uk.

POPULATION. Richard Maylan of Harrow U3A has been running a sustainability study group. A couple of years ago they had an excellent talk and discussion led by two people from Population Matters, a charity he supports. The charity is now looking to talk to more audiences, and Richard

PITMAN SHORTHAND. Having learned Pitman Shorthand New Era in the 1960s, Mrs F Whitaker of Grantham U3A wonders whether anyone wants to correspond with her about “the occasional perplexing or interesting bits of theory” in it – or can help her find textbooks from the 1960s.

Write to her at 24 Hazelwood Drive, Grantham NG31 8GZ.

PITLOCHRY. A small item in TAM from Pitlochry and District U3A offering to guide visiting members of other U3As round their beautiful town (above) brought a

party from Tamworth, eager to be taken for a scenic walk. Anyone else like one too? Contact Catherine Holmes, c.p.holmes47@ btinternet.com.

16 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

NORTHERN IRELAND

U3A’s Christmas CLAIRE KEATINGE, Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland, was one of those who went along to Foyle U3A’s annual Christmas carol service.

The commissioner’s role is to safeguard and promote the interests of older people in Northern Ireland – and only Northern Ireland and Wales have their own Commissioners for Older People.

For the second year running Ms Keatinge had asked the members of Foyle U3A to design her official Christmas card and she was there to present the winning artist, Rosemary Moore, with the first printed copy of the card (above).

As well as the performance from the Foyle U3A singing for fun group, there

Keep your eye on the sky – it’s National Astronomy Week in March: See page 26 WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

NEWS

SIGN POSTS

Commissioner Claire Keatinge with Rosemary O’Donnell, chair of Foyle U3A, and members of the school choirs

card for the commissioner were also choirs from two local schools, The Model Primary School and Oakgrove Integrated College.

More than 150 members and guests came along, and mince pies and mulled wine were served at the end of the service.

AAFoyle U3A has become one of the first entries on the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland’s new register of charities.

It was one of 20 organisations that took part in the commission’s pilot registration phase, helping to test drive the new online registration system and processes.

Christine O’Kane of Foyle U3A said: “We are delighted that our application for charity registration has been successful, particularly as we are now one of Northern Ireland’s first

registered charities – a fact which will go down in our history books.”

AAIf you are a carer aged 60 and over in Northern Ireland, the Commissioner for Older People in Northern Ireland wants to hear from you.

Commissioner Claire Keatinge has developed a survey to help understand what older carers want and need. “We will use the results of this survey to inform our policy and hope to announce the results later this year” she said.

You can complete the survey online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/KPPL6W3, or you can go to www.copni.org/news/ and print off a copy to send back by post. Surveys need to be completed by 31 March.

LEARNING AFLOAT

DIY is order of the day for cruise ship U3A NOT ALL cruise ships have a U3A group – even when they say they do. That’s the lesson learned by Geoffrey Chapman of Ashford, Wye and District U3A, whose ship’s Daily News listed a WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

U3A meeting. He went along,and found that no event was planned.

Apparently the company automatically inserted such a note.

So he arranged a further meeting, by which time more

people were aware. He writes: “We were astonished at the gratitude shown and, quite obviously, it had helped meet the needs of U3A members, particularly those travelling alone.”

“My name’s Lizzie Bennet and this is my life.” That’s the start of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a startling new take on Pride and Prejudice, which is one of this month’s discoveries from the editors of Signposts, a regular newsletter from the WorldU3A Service., sent to U3A and similar groups every month, everywhere.

To Lizzie, her suitors are all “sleazeballs and scumbags” and other undesirables. Her mother, on the other hand, is convinced that “every young, rich, single guy is put on this earth with the sole purpose of impregnating her daughter.”

Jane Austen’s Mrs Bennett might not have put it like that, but it’s not a bad summary of her approach to life.

You can keep track of Signposts at worldu3a.org/ signpost. It’s run

by Tom Holloway, secretary of U3A Hyderabad, India, where he lives for eight months of the year working in a slum community, living the other four months in Oxford.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 17

NEWS

AUDIO VISUAL

U3A has help to get on screen HESWALL U3A has produced a short film with the help of 18 year old Sophie Price, a former pupil of West Kirby Grammar School and now a film and television production student at the University of Westminster.

She had made a centenary film for her school as part of her A level film studies course, which was shown at Liverpool’s Philharmonic Hall, and volunteered to help with the short film about the U3A. A group of Heswall U3A members agreed the structure for the film, assembled archive and new photographs of U3A activities, both stills and movies, and wrote the words. Sophie chose the music and background and did all the technical work.

The resulting film has been shown at one of the monthly meetings and at a members showcase event.

Sophie Price with the completed film

It is now at www.Heswallu3a. org.uk and will be shown to all future prospective members.

Karen Rees, deputy chair of Heswall U3A, said: “Sixth formers are studying film for A

level, and there might be university media students near you. For us, bridging the generation gap, working together and sharing knowledge and skills proved to be mutually beneficial.”

AGEING

Training the brain aids performance

In search of my father’s war: Page 43

A SPECIAL “cognitive training” course helped older adults retain reasoning skills and processing speed for 10 years after the lessons ended, according to reports.

The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society reported on the government sponsored trial of 3,000 older adults, known as the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly study (Active).

It looked at processing speed, memory and reasoning ability

18 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

and how it affected adults with normal cognitive abilities as they aged.

Subjects, with an average age

How the ageing brain improves: Focus, page 35 of 74, were involved in 10 to 12 training sessions each lasting one hour or an hour and 15 minutes.

After five years, it was found that those who had the training

performed better than those who had not. After the five year mark, gains in memory begin to drop off, but gains in reasoning and processing speed were consistent 10 years after the training.

Those who took part in all three training groups reported that they found it easier to get on with daily activities such as managing medication, preparing food or looking after their finances than those who did not take part in the scheme – although standard testing found no differences.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Hear again with nothing in either ear If you have a problem with your hearing but would suffer discomfort with a fitting in your ear then the La Belle could be the digital answer La Belle comes from Bruckhoff, experts at putting hearing aids onto glasses. Now they can fit a digital hearing aid onto your glasses!

This incredible hearing aid is suitable for people suffering from a mild to severe conductive hearing loss.

And their hearing aids are nearly invisible because they are hidden in the arm of your spectacles.

The glasses are attractively styled and few will guess that they contain a high quality digital hearing aid.

Their precise technology is tried and trusted and they have refined it even more with their latest generation of the digital La Belle.

And if you don't wear glasses then there is a selection of attractive ladies and gentlemen's frames available.

For more information and a FREE brochure freephone

0800 740 8680

And there's nothing in the ear to irritate you or be seen.

So if you feel you are missing out when you are watching TV or going to the theatre, cinema, meetings or out shopping then take a look at the La Belle, it could bring the joy of living.

Please post me free and without obligation details of the La Belle Digital Spectacle Hearing Aids.

Mr/Mrs/Miss

First name

Surname Address

please quote reference EVOP5311

or text ‘hear’ to 64446 Or go to www.specaids.co.uk and enter EVOP5311 Hidden Hearing Ltd Maidstone ME14 1HL

www.hiddenhearing.co.uk

Postcode Tel No

(in case we need to confirm your address)

Phone or send coupon today (No stamp required) to

Hidden Hearing Ltd, Freepost MA117/003, Medway Street, Maidstone ME14 1BR

EVOP5311

NEWS

RHS GARDENS OFFER FOR U3A GROUPS

Following the interest in our RHS competition (TAM Spring 2013) the Royal Horticultural Society is offering U3A groups in England and Wales discounts for visits to their gardens and some of their flower shows during 2014. A colour leaflet with booking information has been sent to U3A secretaries and can be downloaded from the members’ area at u3a.org.uk. Copies will also be available from national office. It is hoped to extend the offer to U3As in Scotland and Northern Ireland in the future.

FURTHER EDUCATION

Cuts ‘will hit adult learners’ PROPOSED CUTS in further and higher education will hit hardest those adult learners with the lowest levels of qualifications and from the most disadvantaged backgrounds, the adult learners’ organisation NIACE has told ministers.

NIACE chief executive officer David Hughes wrote to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg saying that cuts in recent years had put “enormous strain” on progression routes and that there had already been signs the impact.

“Good examples of this include the drastic reduction in part-time adult higher education.”

POLITICS

Age UK warns on benefits THE FATE of universal benefits for older people is still uncertain, Age UK has warned. Prime Minister David Cameron is under pressure to abandon his party’s 2010 election promise to protect benefits, other than pensions, which older people currently get regardless of income.

Chancellor George Osborne has suggested they might be vulnerable in a new round of austerity.

Labour has already announced that it will take winter fuel payments away from the wealthiest older people, and the Liberal Democrats say they will means test for benefits.

Mr Cameron, in an interview on the Andrew Marr Show, pointedly did not rule out a squeeze on such benefits as winter fuel payments, free bus passes and TV licences for the better off.

THEATRE

Joining up the generations A THEATRE company, Up In Arms, is seeking to make new connections between generations by asking audiences of its new play Visitors by Barney Norris to work with them in writing a collective self-portrait of the towns they tour to.

The idea is to get people to send a postcard from their home, saying something about the place where they live. People can send anything – a photo, an oil painting, a poem, a quick note, a recipe, a song. They will collate all the postcards to make a larger self-portrait, and organise discussion events at the theatres where their new play Visitors is

20 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

performed.

The idea of appealing to U3A members came to playwright Barney Norris because he remembered being at school in Salisbury, and attending a U3A debating society.

Barney tells us: “I went along, and had my eyes opened and my assumptions challenged in the most positive way imaginable by spending time with people whose life experiences were different from mine.

“That experience fed into the writing of my play, and then into the planning of this new project, The Visitors Book, and now I’m hoping to start conversations

with members of the U3A once more.”

Visitors starts its tour in February. It is a story about care, rural life and the distances and silences within families. It is going to Cheltenham, Bath, Guildford, York, London, Bury St Edmunds, Oxford, Ipswich and Salisbury between 10 February and 8 April. For full details visit www. upinarms.org.uk.

To be part of The Visitors Book, email visitorsbook@ upinarms.org.uk, make contact via Twitter @upinarmstheatre or Facebook, or write to The Visitors Book, 17 Manor Road, Andover, Hampshire, SP10 3JS. WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

FOCUS

A look in more depth at issues, events and third age matters SELF-PUBLISHING

‘It became almost a full‑time job’ Self-publishing is not just for novices. Established writer and historian Merrilyn Thomas of Canterbury U3A chose selfpublishing for a particularly precious book

I AM the author of several books, the most recent being The Cold War: A Beginner’s Guide published by Oneworld in 2009.

But this was the first time I had published a book myself – self-published. It’s a collection of poetry and prose, the poetry being the work of my daughter Megan Young, an equine veterinary surgeon and poet who died of cancer four years ago, aged 32.

I had spent three years assembling Megan’s poems and other writings and providing the work with context. The book is called Wordsmith: The Gift of a Soul.

Three main factors influenced my decision to self-publish.

First, I wanted to retain control. It was extremely important to me that this book should be a beautiful object in itself.

Second, I wanted the book published quickly, and conventional publishing is very slow. I was fortunate to find a book designer, based near me. I was able to hand the manuscript to her in February 2013 and collect the finished product from the printers the following July.

Third, although it has cost quite a lot of money to produce the book, the proceeds of sales are not swallowed up by a publisher.

Authors receive very little from the sale of a book, somewhere between 5% and 10% if they are lucky. This was important WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

because I had been supported by a cancer charity, The Cancer of Unknown Primary (CUP) Foundation – Jo’s Friends, and am making a donation to it from each sale.

So far I have been able to send more than £2,000. The book was launched at a fund-raising race night attended by about 100 people, including members of Canterbury U3A.

Learning curve Self-publishing has been a huge learning curve. I have had to learn about design, technology, paper quality, printing, promotion, book-keeping, the way the book trade works, and marketing.

In the spring of last year, I attended a day-long seminar in London run by the national U3A called Marketing Self-Published Books. This was enormously helpful.

I have a suggestion for a follow up course – Understanding the Way Amazon Works. I am still grappling with the complications of the company’s many online systems. The Society of Authors, of which I am a member, says on its website that authors should remember that Amazon is not a bookselling company, it is a technology company. Too true.

I was delighted when a columnist on The Times, Melanie Reid, wrote that it was “a beautiful, lyrical gem of a book.”

This is the kind of quote you need to attract the attention of booksellers – and readers. The same goes for reviewers who are constantly overwhelmed by the number of books they receive. I put it on the cover.

Fulfilling the resulting demand for the book became almost a full-time job as I dealt with the paperwork and online administration, packed up books and stood in Post Office queues to ship them.

Orders came from Amazon, independent bookshops, trade distributors and individuals. Christmas was put on hold. I spent the week before Christmas visiting my printer to arrange a reprint.

Around this time, my daughter’s old school in Cambridge, The Perse School for Girls (now known as the Stephen Perse Foundation), decided to organise a poetry prize and event as a tribute to Megan and with the aim of inspiring and encouraging other young poets.

The event, to be called A Celebration of Poetry, will be held in Cambridge on 2 April. The former poet laureate, Sir Andrew Motion, has agreed to be a judge and present the award.

I set out on the self-publishing road not knowing where it would lead. My aim was simply to see the book become a reality and share my daughter’s poetry and my own words and thoughts with others.

With the launching of the poetry prize in my daughter’s name, Wordsmith is now taking on a life of its own. I could not have wished for more.

AAWordsmith: The Gift of a Soul costs £9.99 from www.wordsmiththebook. com or bookshops and Amazon.

Information about the poetry event is at www.stephenperse.com/events/acelebration-of-poetry-2-april-2014.

AAFor information about The Cancer of Unknown Primary (CUP) Foundation – Jo’s friends, go to www.cupfoundjo.org.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 21

LY EARKING BOOFFER o t O

up Save 0*

8co9uple ￡ r pe

FOCUS

Brains: Use ’em or lose ’em Research shows the ageing brain gets better in many ways, says Alan Morris of West Bridgford U3A

NICK UT/AP/PRESS ASSOCIATION IMAGES

WEST BRIDGFORD U3A psychology group chose to study Gene Cohen’s book The Mature Mind (Basic Books 2005) earlier this year. At the heart of the author’s arguments is the subtitle: The Positive Power of the Ageing Brain.

Cohen’s views have been formed from large-scale research projects he has directed about the ageing brain, from cutting-edge neuroscience research, and from his 35 years experience as a psychiatrist treating older adults.

The idea that “successful ageing” amounts to nothing more than slowing the inevitable decline of body and mind, he dismisses as “rubbish”. It is based, he says, on false reasoning, insufficient research and a preoccupation with disease and pathology.

He accepts the reality of illness (such as dementia) and considers only healthy minds. He acknowledges that ageing brings challenges, and quotes Bette Davis: “Getting old isn’t for sissies.”

Of course, we all have notions of “forgetting” names, and asking “why have I come upstairs?” But Cohen emphasises the evidence for positive growth with age and argues that such growth can be nurtured.

That is where I get interested from a U3A perspective. The adage “use it or lose it” is relevant: the brain grows stronger from use and being challenged.

The brain is, Cohen says, much more flexible and adaptable than once thought.

Not only does it retain its capacity to form new memories, it can grow new brain cells and make new connections.

The brain continues to develop

throughout life alongside our personalities, creativity and psychological selves. Recent research shows the increased cooperation between the “left- and right-hand brains” leading to the development of the capacity for wisdom (deep knowledge used for the highest good) as we grow older.

Crucially for us in U3A, Cohen sees five categories of activity which, if practised regularly, can significantly boost the power, clarity and subtlety of the brain and mind: AAExercise mentally AAExercise physically AAPick challenging leisure activities AAAchieve mastery AAEstablish strong social networks.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Bette Davis, seen here at 74, said: ‘Getting old isn’t for sissies’ You will see immediately how U3A can contribute to achieving all of those, for example through our interest groups.

Mental exercise includes learning a foreign language, engaging in philosophy, playing scrabble, painting, learning a musical instrument, and engaging in discussions about literature.

Physical exercise includes walking groups. Cycling is becoming more popular. Let’s not forget country dancing, badminton and yoga. Cohen points to aerobic activity being particularly

important to circulate oxygen round the body and to the brain.

And there are challenging leisure activities like starting bobbin lace making, learning to use a computer, sailing for pleasure, and learning to play mah jong. The burgeoning interest in playing the ukulele is a superb example of, at least, an approach to mastery. Engaging in blind wine tasting presents its own challenge and frisson.

As for establishing strong social networks, all our interest groups, in my experience, contribute here. One can see that dancing, jazz appreciation, lunch clubs and play reading, among others, naturally help engender social networks. Of course, social networks can be developed in other ways than through interest groups, for example visits to the theatre and places of historical interest, picnics in the park, and taking holidays together.

We all know the tough and irritating things about ageing, but there are good aspects to the second half of life, as Cohen describes it.

We need to cast aside the wholly negative views and open our minds to some of the amazing new scientific evidence becoming available about growth in later life. We need a new way of thinking about the mature mind: a positive and optimistic view based on modern research and experience.

In particular we need to cherish the ways in which we can boost our minds through U3A activities. We need to proclaim those wonderful things which U3A does for individuals, communities and the nation.

U3A is a wonderful creation. We should share what we have with many more retired people. Some of you will have heard former U3A Regional Trustee for the North West Alex McMinn say: “U3A is good for you; it should be free on prescription”. And so it should.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 23

FOCUS

ONLINE COURSES

More participation, More U3A online courses are on the way, writes Ian Searle OVER THE past two years we have been reinvigorating and expanding the online courses which the U3A nationally produces for members.

To produce and promote new courses we need people to provide the material.

A few talented and dedicated members have produced a relatively narrow range of courses including art history and aspects of writing.

As a result of coverage in TAM, we have recruited more contributors in a wider range of subject areas: two social history courses; a course about the Vikings; and one on Anglo-Saxon poetry.

In preparation is material about fairy tales, Renaissance garden design, mathematics and psychology. Apart from the last, they run for about eight

24 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

weeks and, so far, we have charged a nominal £5 for anyone wishing to enrol.

The numbers registering for online courses can still be counted in their hundreds.

Anecdotal evidence suggests more than half our members can use a computer well enough to enjoy our online courses.

Many people have assumed that online courses were provided so that individuals, often those who cannot attend a local U3A for some reason, would use the courses as a substitute for face-to-face group meetings.

That is certainly a valuable use for them.

But they have many other uses.

Group leaders have used the material for their own groups. At least one U3A

Tutors will not give constant one-to-one tuition from now on, though they will be available to answer questions and to explain obscurities has set up an “online courses group” in which the members gather as usual but choose to work through the material of one course after another.

I should like to see more group leaders taking advantage of the material on offer; it avoids some of the hard work of finding material.

A number of people have told me they would like to see some specific online courses.

These include Italian, French,

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

FOCUS

less tuition German and how to read music. These proposed Chaucer’s England, a minimum all require a platform that enables the of 16 enrolments will be needed for the user to listen as well as read the material course to run. presented and we are struggling to find In April we hope to provide moderated one that is appropriate. courses in Other requests are for approaches AAMaths (Six Impossible Things) to architecture, economics, Egyptian AAPsychology (All In The Mind) hieroglyphs, philosophy and maths. I AASocial History (Just Before Victoria; am pursuing possible writers for some of First World War on the Home Front) these areas.

AA Garden Design (Renaissance Gardens We already plan at least one mathematiof Italy) cally based course, and Australia’s U3A AALiterature (Fairy Tales; Anglo-Saxon Online provides two or three courses Poetry; England at the time of Chaucer) related to philosophy. The other subject Details will be available from the U3A areas need volunteers to provide suitable national office. There will be a strict material. Two volunteers have offered cut-off date for enrolments in future. If courses in creative writing – and I shall you have not registered your intention to explore the possibility of expanding our participate by March 21, you will not be range in that field – and in cosmology and able to take part this time. quantum theory, which we are discussing.

Existing courses, including those which Meanwhile we have in the past been wish to give better tutored on a one-toGroup leaders who have notice of what one basis, will still be courses are to be available in downmore or less exhausted made available. loadable form. It is their own resources Apart from a final hoped that group might consider offering run of Short Stories leaders will use such which will, in future, the material for use courses and act as be made available tutor within their as an online course only in downloadown group. able form if group Group leaders leaders would like to make use of it, all who have more or less exhausted their courses will begin or restart in April 2014. own resources might consider offering the There will be more emphasis on particimaterial for use as an online course. pation and less on tuition. Tutors will not Converting resource material that has give constant one-to-one tuition from been used in a face-to-face group may now on, though they will be available seem difficult, but it is far from impossible. to answer questions and to explain If you have potential resources of this kind obscurities. tucked away somewhere, why not contact In future they will be known as “moderme and find out if they could be of use? ators” and their role will be to oversee the AAEmail me at ian.searle73@btinternet. contributions and answer questions from com or contact the national office on up to 30 registered members. national.office@u3a.org.uk putting For Anglo Saxon Poetry and the “Online resources” in the subject line.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

I thoroughly enjoyed it …

I recently completed “Just before Victoria”, covering the years from 1800 to 1837 – not a long period, but eventful: rapid expansion of the railways fostering uncontrolled growth of industrial towns, labour unrest in both town and country (Dorset’s own Tolpuddle Martyrs are a striking illustration), early Parliamentary reform, and reforms to Labour and Poor laws.

By 1830 the Industrial Revolution had been going on for more than half a century and society was changing more rapidly than at any time since the Black Death.

The course didn’t require a great deal of writing – no essays or exams, but each of the units directed me to research particular topics, and asked me for my reaction to what I discovered. I thoroughly enjoyed it – our tutor, David Hopker, had produced a fascinating and challenging course. The exchange of views with other students added another dimension. I recommend it to anyone with an interest in the history of our industrial society.

Carol Green

It has been wonderful …

My grateful thanks for the Anglo Saxon Poetry course. It has been wonderful and I hope that you will continue with online courses.

Val Bannister is a really great leader. So knowledgeable, unassuming and encouraging us all to come up with our own ideas.

I hope that I will be able to do further courses with her.

Shirley Sanderson THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 25

FOCUS NASA, JOHNS HOPKINS U. APL, SWRI

ASTRONOMY WEEK

Turn your eyes to the heavens National Astronomy Week is coming in March to a venue near you. And a U3A astronomer is on the steering group, writes astronomy subject adviser Martin Whillock HOW WOULD you like to look through an astronomical telescope at the mighty planet Jupiter? Or the Moon, star clusters, gas clouds and galaxies? During National Astronomy Week, 2014, you can.

The first National Astronomy Week was in 1981 and they have been held every five or six years since then. They are always timed to celebrate some important astronomical event. The first was to celebrate the bicentenary of the discovery of Uranus

by English astronomer William Herschel.

The last was in 2009 and was geared to the 400th anniversary of Thomas Harriot’s telescopic observation of the Moon in July 1609 – another English astronomer, who beat the more famous Galileo by several months.

Planning is well under way for the next NAW and John Axtell, who runs a thriving 40-strong U3A astronomy group at Woking Area U3A, is a member of the national steering group. Astronomical societies and others are being encouraged to mount events so that the public can be shown interesting night sky objects and learn something about astronomy.

This year Jupiter will be very high in the night sky and will provide an excellent focus for NAW 2014 – hence the week’s title: “Target Jupiter”.

The planet will be higher than at any time since 2002 and the next occasion will not be until 2026.

Jupiter is bright, easy to find and makes an impressive sight, through even a small telescope.

The Woking U3A astronomy group is planning to run its own event during National Astronomy Week.

This will not be aimed at the general public, but the 1,200-plus members of the U3A. The group will be setting up a variety of astronomical telescopes outside their normal meeting venue. Cloudy skies are a huge risk so they will also be mounting something in their meeting room to 26 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

In this montage of images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, Jupiter was captured in infrared light making the Great Red Spot look white. Its moon Io is digitally superimposed in natural colour.

A plume is emanating from Io’s volcano Tvashtar and red-glowing lava is visible beneath the blue plume.

The New Horizons spacecraft is due to reach Pluto next year

provide fallback. This will also act as a bolthole for attendees in which to warm up with a hot drink.

Group members plan to have an astronomically themed video projected onto a screen and PowerPoint presentations playing on laptops as well as static display panels.

“I hope that the many U3A astronomical and stargazing groups will consider mounting their own similar events if they have the resources,” said John Axtel. “I’m more than happy to discuss what we’re doing if that will help.”

You could ask your nearest astronomical society for help and I know that most would be keen to give it. Most astronomical societies are members of the Federation of Astronomical Societies, so to find your nearest amateur society go to www.fedastro.org.uk/fas/ members to see a membership list grouped by county.

Even if you there is no U3A event near you, there will be plenty of other public opportunities for you to see Jupiter and the other objects I have mentioned.

The NAW website at www.astronomyweek.org.uk lists all the public events by location and date. It also has plenty of useful downloadable material and further resources for event organisers. You can follow NAW on both Facebook and Twitter (@NAW2014).

AAIf any U3A astronomy groups run an NAW session then please tell both me and John.

John Axtel: astronomy@wokingareau3a.co.uk Martin Whillock: nitram82@whillock.me.uk.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

You have the power to change his life

Free cleft surgery which takes as little as 45 minutes and costs as little as £150, can give desperate children not just a new smile – but a new life.

Donate online: www.smiletrain.org.uk Call: 0300 303 9630

I want to give a child a second chance at life. £150 towards surgery for one child £75 could cover half the cost of one surgery

£30 towards an overnight hospital stay £ We’ll gratefully accept any amount

Mr/Mrs/Ms Address Postcode Email Charge my gift to my: Valid From

Telephone

■ Visa ■ MasterCard ■ Maestro Exp. Date

Issue No.

Card No. Signature

■ My cheque is enclosed, made payable to The Smile Train UK Use Gift Aid to increase your donation by 25%

■ YES! I would like Smile Train to claim Gift Aid on any donations I have made within the last 4 tax years (6 April to 5 April) and on all donations I make in the future until further notice. I confirm that I have paid or will pay at least as much UK Income tax and/or Capital Gains tax for each tax year as Smile Train UK and all other charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for that tax year. I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council tax do not qualify. I understand that the charity will reclaim 25p of tax for every £1 that I have given/will give.

Send this coupon with your donation to:

The Smile Train UK, PO Box 910, Northampton NN3 0BG

■ NO, I am not a UK taxpayer.

These details, including your email address/telephone number, may be used to keep you informed about our future developments. If you do not want to receive such information please tick this box ■ Registered Charity No. 1114748

Registered Company No. 05738962

Z14011U308FEX2U

© 2014 The Smile Train UK

A healthy diet during pregnancy can help prevent birth defects and clefts. Eat a healthy diet that contains lots of fruits and vegetables and foods fortified with folic acid. The U.K. Government recommends women should take sufficient levels of folic acid (400 micrograms/day) during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy to help prevent neural tube defects and reduce the risk for cleft lip and palate. When folic acid is taken one month before conception and throughout the first trimester, it has been proven to reduce the risk for neural tube defects by 50 to 70 percent. Be sure to receive proper prenatal care, quit smoking and drinking alcohol and follow your health care provider’s guidelines for foods to avoid during pregnancy. Foods to avoid may include raw or undercooked seafood, beef, pork, poultry, delicatessen meats, fish that contain high levels of mercury, smoked seafood, fish exposed to pollutants, raw shellfish, eggs, soft cheeses, unpasteurized milk, pâté, caffeine and unwashed vegetables. For more information, visit www.smiletrain.org.uk

PEOPLE

In PEOPLE this issue 29 Greenland half marathon 29 Country skills 30 Honour for editor 30 Quaker walks

30 31 32 32

Funny photos Paras reunited Playing Monty and Rommel Travelling life

Running on ice • Country skills • Editor honoured • Paras’ website • Being Monty

Doug’s half marathon on mile-deep ice Redditch U3A member Doug Richards celebrates after finishing an Arctic half marathon in Greenland.

Doug, 65, one of just 98 runners from 24 different countries around the world, needed to fit spikes to his running shoes to

A

stay upright on the slippery polar ice-cap where the ice is up to a mile deep.

“The weather was fairly kind to us,” said Doug. “Although temperatures were well below zero, the wind was relatively light, so we soon warmed up once we

got moving. The scenery was simply stunning, passing glaciers, frozen lakes and Arctic desert. It was a run I will never, ever forget.”

AADoug was raising funds for the Royal Air Forces Association (RAFA).

Bridging the age gap Amy, granddaughter of Penrith U3A member Stan Knafler, crosses stepping stones placed by the Lake District National Park over the beck at Stoneycroft Gill in the Newlands Valley, Cumbria.

Stan feels proprietorial about those stones, which is why he took the picture.

He was the Lincolnshire Ramblers area footpath officer and still keeps an eye on obstacles. The

A

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

stones were replaced after a campaign to help walkers use the paths, gaining safer access to the countryside.

Stan says it is important that youngsters are encouraged to take part in the activities offered by centres such as Penrith and that the skills passed on to fellow retirees in U3A could also be handed down to youngsters, an idea that came to him whilst watching Amy cross the stones.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 29

PEOPLE

Honour for U3A newsletter editor A

Anne Bickmore, Five Deans U3A magazine editor and leader of its walking group, received the British Empire Medal from the Peter Field, Lord Lieutenant in East Sussex, representing the Queen.

Anne was awarded the BEM for setting up and running the Anne Bickmore Children’s Fund charity.

It has raised thousands to help with the relief of poverty, hardship and distress among children, young people and their families or carers, particularly those with disabilities or special needs.

It also pay for trips and treats for disadvantaged children and their families within the UK.

These pictures were among those taken by Keith Hughes, Epsom and

Ewell U3A photography group leader during a U3A holiday to the Isle of Man.

Valerie Coast of St Albans U3A discovered a few years ago that at one time a quarter of the population of the City of London were Quakers.

So she put together a Quakers In The City Of London walk for her own U3A and is now offering it free to the wider U3A community on the third Wednesday of every month.

The walk focuses on Quakers who were in business in the City from about 1660 – goldsmiths,

apothecaries, clockmakers, architects, bankers – as well as social reformers.

It starts at the Bank of England and takes in Lombard, Worship and Gracechurch Streets, Leadenhall Market, Bishopsgate, Spitalfields and the Bunhill dissenters burial ground (right) and Quaker meeting house.

After lunch, it goes to the Guildhall Clockmakers’ Museum and Library to see examples of a Quaker clockmaker's work.

30 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

AAEmail londonquakerwalk@ gmail.com.

JON BENNETT

Follow in Quakers’ footsteps A

They are now in the Daily Telegraph’s most recent book of amusing pictures.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

PEOPLE

Bill’s website reunites old comrades A

Bill “Wattie” Watts has set up a website with the aim of reuniting and telling the story of the 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, which served in Palestine from 1945 to 1948. Bill, a member of Bishop’s Stortford U3A, was a sergeant in the battalion.

At the age of 76, and with no previous experience, he enrolled at the local learning centre where he took a course in “building web pages”.

Just two months later his fivepage website with 20 black and

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

white photographs taken with his Kodak Box Brownie was up and running. By the end of the year he had started his reunion group and attracted his first two members.

Since then his website – www.3para1945-48palestine. com – has had more than 37,000 visitors and Bill has traced over 60 members of his battalion, with about 40 being reunited with old

friends they had not seen for 60 years since leaving Palestine.

He has also received hundreds of emails from relatives wanting to find out about their father or grandfather’s service career.

Bill is hoping that U3A members will visit the site to see the hundreds of photographs and pages about the birth of military parachuting in the UK.

Bill Watts, second from left, standing, with comrades at an annual reunion

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 31

PEOPLE

At the double!

Mike Batten of Charnwood U3A can play the part of either Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery or Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in World War II enactments.

Mike, who has always been interested in the history of the Second World War, came to the rescue of the Great Central Railway at Loughborough when it was looking for someone to portray Montgomery for a 40s wartime event.

He had just finished reading Monty’s biography and put together his own uniform getting hold of a tunic, medal bars and insignia.

Since then he has covered most of the wartime events within a 50 mile area in the East Midlands, where Mike does some of Monty's speeches including addressing the 8th Army prior to El Alamein.

Events vary in size and some are

A

“home events” only. Larger ones include representations of Axis forces with a mock battle and displays staged by the RAF’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Other displays include military vehicles, artillery and medium sized tanks. Re-enactors represent airborne troops, the Home Guard and ARP; with men and women from the three services, and of, course, the NAAFI. Some events include a remembrance service supported by the Royal British Legion and local dignitaries.

Travelling life Denise Piddington, a former maths teacher who joined Bushey U3A in 2009, has been responsible for setting up a travel group, organising more than ten tours of over four days to places as far away as Norway.

Denise had planned to spend her retirement travelling. She decided to set up the travel

A

group when she discovered that although there was a “home and away group” that organised day trips, no one was organising longer trips.

Taking advice from other U3A groups she organised her first tour, to the Dutch bulb fields, in spring 2010.

Trips since then have been

32 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

organised to the Yorkshire Dales, Cardiff, Liverpool and Birmingham.

In April 2012 she organised a seven-day tour on the Marco Polo, operated by Cruise and Maritime Voyages, to Norway.

A cruise down the Rhine and a trip to Cornwall are the latest tours planned.

Denise Piddington in Switzerland and on the Marco Polo

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Greatdays Music Hall Price £29.00 including Show, Song and Supper

2014 Dates and Venues SOUTH EAST, KENT AND LONDON REGION St Albans Music Hall 4 star Thistle St Albans £29 Midweek lunch or dinner show 15, 16 April; 3 June, 25 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £32 pp Dartford Music Hall 4 star Thistle Brands Hatch Hotel £29 Midweek lunch or dinner show 4 June; 23 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £35 pp

W

NE

Kent Music Hall, Maidstone 4 star Mercure Great Danes Hotel £29 Midweek lunch or dinner show 24 June Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £40 pp

The Music Hall tradition in the UK dates back to the 1850s. The 'halls' replaced the public houses as places to go and drink, eat and above all have fun! We aim to recreate this wonderful tradition at our Greatdays Music Hall, with tunes made famous by iconic performers such as Marie Lloyd, Max Miller, Gracie Fields and George Formby.

Sing along with our fantastic performers to all the old classics and allow us to entertain you!

Our Music Hall Programme Lunch show 10.45am

Dinner show 5.15pm Arrive for tea, coffee and biscuits (am) or sherry (pm).

11.30am

6.00pm

Enjoy the first half of the show.

12.30pm

7.00pm

3 course meal followed by tea and coffee.

2.00pm

8.30pm

Enjoy the second half of the show.

3.00pm

9.30pm

Depart for the journey home or stay overnight.

Best Dressed Competition We are hoping that many of our visitors will once again get into the spirit by dressing up and participating in our fancy dress competition. There is plenty of scope for imagination; from Victorian gentlemen, pearly kings and queens, Edwardian show girls, barrow boys and flower girls. Prizes will be awarded to the best individual and there will also be a prize for the best group effort.

Although we do encourage you to let your creative side out please do not feel that this is compulsory, you may just wish to enjoy the outfits on show or perhaps just make one entry from your group?

THE SOUTH WEST, BRISTOL AND BATH Bristol Music Hall 4 star Thistle Grand Hotel £29 Sunday dinner show 22 June; 21 Sept Monday lunch show 23 June; 22 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £30 pp THE MIDLANDS AND COTSWOLDS Warwick Music Hall 4 star Wroxall Abbey Hotel £29 Lunch or dinner show 9 June; 15 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £30 pp Brandon Music Hall, near Coventry 4 star Mercure Brandon Hall £29 Sunday dinner show 8 June; 14 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £29 pp NORTH WEST, CHESHIRE AND LANCASHIRE Chester Music Hall (opposite the train station) 4 star The Queen Hotel £29 Sunday lunch or dinner show 27 April; 1 June; 7 Sept Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £37 pp Manchester Music Hall Holiday Inn Wilmslow Midweek lunch or dinner show Optional overnight bed and breakfast

£29 29 Apr; 10 Sept from £35 pp

Pendle Music Hall, near Blackburn 4 star Mercure Dunkenhalgh Hotel £29 Sunday lunch or dinner show 18 May Optional overnight bed and breakfast from £26 pp

Price includes • • • • •

On arrival: tea, coffee and biscuits (am)/sherry (pm) Premium 2 hour show with top variety performances 3 course meal with choice menu and tea or coffee Optional fancy dress with prizes Charity raffle

Pictures shown are from are a previous performance and don’t depict what will be seen at the events listed here. Coach hire not included, please ask for details.

For more information please contact Carol Crook or Jennie Reynolds

T: 0161 928 2001 E: daytrips@greatdays.co.uk www.greatdays.co.uk

OPINION

In OPINION this issue 35 Chairman 36 What is jazz?

The principle of self help • Jazz wars

Chairman’s column What makes U3A unique A AB A R B A R A

H

L E W I S

ello 2014! And HAPPY U3A NEW YEAR to everyone. Traditionally, the start of a new year gives us an opportunity for reflection – a chance to look back, a chance to look forward and finally a chance to remind ourselves what makes U3A unique.

So I’ll start by looking back for a minute. 2013 brought us a new national website (have you had a look yet? www.u3a.org.uk); all the possibilities of MOOCS – massive open online courses – (have you had a chance to check out FutureLearn yet? www.Futurelearn.com); a great AGM and Conference in Nottingham(the WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

free DVD is ready – call the national office 020 8466 6139 for your copy); 42 new U3As (giving thousands more people the U3 A experience), and a wonderful commemorative Founders Lecture.

This success is based on so many people: our wonderful office, our dedicated Trustees, the many volunteers who coordinate shared learning projects, regional volunteers, subject advisors, the TAM team, the Sources team, the Resource Centre team, the online team and of course everybody who has contributed to your own U3As. As I said at conference: “U3A is what it is, but YOU can make it what is becomes”. And that is exactly what all of you are doing!

So what next in 2014? Look out for developments in FutureLearn and BBC learning projects for valuable learning resources.

I’ve started my weekly Chairman’s blog in the members’ section of our national website (www.u3a.org.uk).

I hope you will take a look, follow along and contribute as topics evolve.

Consider and plan NOW to go to our 2014 Conference and AGM in Cirencester on 9 and 10 September.

New this year will be a “Question Time” session and nearer the time we will be asking you to submit questions.

And under the banner of “More Time to Learn” prepare for lots of

The self-help principle of ‘Those who teach will learn and those who learn will teach’ is fundamental to our organisation ideas to take back to your U3A in the Learning Zone, the Management Zone and the Communication and Technology Zones.

Finally, as the NEC grapples with the many issues in putting together a three-year plan, it is a good time for all of us to remind ourselves what makes U3A unique as a movement and as an experience!

The self-help principle of “Those who teach will learn and those who learn will teach” is fundamental to our organisation.

How proud we should all be that we do not need an “expert” to show the way; that we do not need a paid employee to teach. It is what makes U3A unique.

Not only should we live up to this ideal, but our Founders knew we could . And so do I. Make 2014 your best ever U3A year!

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 35

OPINION

The ever-spreading tree ARGENTA

Jazz has a long and distinguished history – but musicians cannot be shackled to it, says Mike Whitaker

A

t a concert in Birmingham Town Hall in (I think) 1953, Humphrey Lyttelton included in his band the alto saxophonist Bruce Turner. An enraged fundamentalist in the audience waved a banner bearing the slogan “Go home, dirty bopper” – an event that has now entered jazz history.

In 1960, at a festival at Lord Montagu’s Beaulieu, fighting broke out between devotees of Trad and those of a more modern bent. But we’ve moved on since then, haven’t we?

Well, I’m not so sure …

Bob Jones, my predecessor as U3A jazz adviser, reflecting on this (Autumn TAM), asked why these divisions still exist.

A number of you have responded – about 40 so far and responses are still coming in. Most confess to a broad range of musical tastes, from Louis Armstrong to John Coltrane, but I detect a resistance to anything beyond Coltrane – Ornette Coleman was mentioned by some as being the point at which the train hits the buffers.

Bob likens jazz to a tree – a good analogy. Jazz has many different roots: folk music, gospel and spirituals, the rhythms of Africa and Latin America, western European

We cannot go on endlessly replicating the music of the past.

Jazz is a spontaneous, living and informal art form that draws its influences from the world around it classical music, dance music, military bands and so on.

It threw out branches early on, as it travelled from Louisiana to Kansas City, Chicago and New York. Different styles emerged – boogie and stride piano, Western Swing, bigger bands playing scored music. It moved from the dancehall to the concert hall. Musicians morphed from selftaught to conservatoire-trained. That evolution continues.

Different genres have emerged – jazz-rock, acid jazz, smooth jazz, free jazz. Scandinavian jazz is melding with classical forms; take Jan Garbarek or the Hilliards. Look at 36 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Hot jazz: Lord Montagu looks on as firefighters play hoses on a fire that burned the vintage car museum at his Beaulieu estate following disturbances during the 1960 jazz festival. About 40 people , mostly teenagers, were injured in fighting how jazz is blending with folk music – June Tabor, Burton Bradstock. And with pop – listen to Melody Gardot; consider the popularity of Caro Emerald. Someone may say, “Ah, but that’s not jazz.” No? Courtney Pine said recently, “The first rule of jazz is to stand up to the jazz police. We can’t let these geezers keep trying to control what jazz is. They’re a group of very negative individuals who want it all one way …”

It has been said that you can condense the history of jazz into four words:“Louis Armstrong – Charlie Parker”.

Those of us who love jazz will never overlook or diminish the importance of the great masters, nor stop listening to them. But I am convinced that we cannot go on endlessly replicating the music of the past. Jazz is a spontaneous, living and informal art form that draws its influences from the world around it.

I wonder – are other U3A appreciation groups confronted with similar issues? Do opera appreciation groups embrace Alban Berg as well as Mozart? Do art appreciation groups look at Rothko as well as Rembrandt?

AA Mike Whitaker is the U3A’s jazz subject adviser. Contact him at mjo.whitaker666@btinternet.com.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE

Venetian & Venetian Stripe - Claret/Gold

Reupholstery Restoring & renewing the furniture you love Is your favourite furniture looking and feeling tired, or do you simply want a new look?

Something that you could consider is to have your existing furniture reupholstered. As well as repairing and recovering your furniture so it is like new again, reupholstery can take the stress out of buying new furniture.

You may have already invested in good quality furniture that fits your home.

Plus you would be doing the environment a favour in not sending your furniture to landfill.

Reupholstery is also the ideal solution to refreshing the look and adding comfort to your favourite furniture. All types of furniture can be reupholstered, the existing upholstery is stripped back so that internal repairs can be made.

These include repairs to the frame, springs and mechanisms.

Once all internal checks are made, new seat cushions will be fitted and the furniture will be reupholstered in a brand new fabric. There are over 600 fabric options, including many from leading design houses such as Crowson, Swaffer and Sanderson.

Plus now available is a fabulous ‘Prestige’ range including fabrics from Jim Dickens, Clarke & Clarke,

Linwood and many more. Cottons, velvets, textured weaves, linens and chenilles can all be used in reupholstery, so a truly bespoke piece of furniture will be created for you.

The reupholsterer will ensure your furniture is lovingly restored so it is returned to its former glory.

Owing to the complexity and enormous skill involved in the reupholstery process, ensure you use a trusted firm with skilled craftsmen, such as Plumbs. Offering numerous years of experience, plus with the reassurance of a quality Guarantee.

So you can rest assured that your faithful furniture will be returned to you looking and feeling brand new again.

FREE Reupholstery

FREE Replacement Seat Cushions for Reupholstery orders

†

FREE Arm Covers or Scatter Cushion Covers

Get 3 items reupholstered for the price of 2

for Reupholstery & Traditional Loose Cover orders

for Fabric & Workmanship on all Plumbs Reupholstery & Traditional Loose Cover orders

Specialists in Reupholstery and Loose Covers The Sales are here! At Plumbs we’ve been in business for over 50 years and right now we are delighted to be offering FREE Reupholstery! Reupholster 2 pieces of furniture and get a third item reupholstered FREE† in a selection of top designs! We reupholster and produce hand tailored loose furniture covers for the finest furniture including: • Ercol • G Plan • Christie Tyler • Parker Knoll • Buoyant and many, many more.

Totally handcrafted, they are available in a beautiful selection of fabrics from leading design houses such as Crowson, Swaffer and Sanderson, most are also available as curtains and blinds. Plus the 'Prestige' range gives you even more choice on the most fabulous fabrics from Jim Dickens, Clarke & Clarke, Linwood and many more.

When you request our reupholstery service, our expert craftsmen, often local to your area, will inspect and repair your furniture, before reupholstering it to its former glory.

Call Plumbs today to arrange your FREE local Home Consultant Visit, including a FREE no-obligation Quotation, FREE Measuring and expert advice on how your furniture can be re-vitalised by Plumbs.

OFFER ENDS NEXT 21 DAYS Arrange your FREE Home Consultant Visit today

Call now:

01772 83 83 33 Lines open 7 DAYS A WEEK Quote Dept No. A705 UND

Or post this coupon to Plumbs Covers, Dept No. A704 UND Old Lancaster Lane, Preston, PR1 7PZ PLEASE TICK APPROPRIATE BOX Yes please, I would like your local Home Consultant to contact me to arrange a free visit. My Consultant will show me large fabric samples, measure my furniture and give me a free no-obligation quotation for my Reupholstery, Covers or Curtains. I understand that this visit is purely advisory and puts me under no obligation to buy.

Yes please, Send me a Free Colour Brochure and further details of Reupholstery, Made-to-Measure Covers and Curtains.

MR/MRS/MISS

Reupholstery offer on selected designs, cheapest item is reupholstered free. Antique furniture and Prestige range excluded from offer. Terms and Conditions apply.

Plumbs Covers, Old Lancaster Lane, Preston PR1 7PZ.

Dept No. A704 UND

BLOCK CAPITALS PLEASE

ADDRESS GIVE HOUSE NAME/NUMBER

or visit www.plumbs.co.uk/reup † Free

British Made by a Family Firm

POSTCODE YOUR POSTCODE WILL HELP SPEED UP OUR REPLY

TELEPHONE PLEASE ENTER AREA CODE WHEN REQUESTING A VISIT

EMAIL Available to over 98% of UK households (inc Isle of Man, Isle of Wight, Jersey & N.Ireland).

Please call to confirm availability.

WAYitWAS

the

In TWIW this issue 40 Lost childhood 43 In search of a father’s war 44 Surviving a nuclear war 46 Railway memories

Abuse at school • A father’s war • Nuclear madness • On the railways

Cut adrift and cast out Today child abusers face justice, but in 1966 most of us did not know about the dark side of some of our schools.

Graham Wilmer did, though

IN SEPTEMBER 1963, aged 11, I passed the entrance exam to an independent Catholic grammar school for boys in Chertsey, Surrey, run by the Salesians of Don Bosco, a religious order that had a number of schools in England and one in Scotland.

For the next three years, I enjoyed school, made good friends and continued to do well academically. Then, in September 1966, a new teacher joined the school, Hubert Madley. Within a few weeks, he started to befriend me, taking me home after school and working his way into my family. Then it began, and for the next two years he sexually abused me, as often as he could and wherever he could, ensuring my silence through a variety of threats and dire consequences if I told anyone.

In February 1968, following the death of my closest friend, Martin Allen, the trauma and grief overwhelmed me, and, despite Madley’s threats, I decided that I would tell someone, in the hope that, regardless of the “consequences”, it would all stop.

So, I told my housemaster, Fr Madden, during confession. Fr Madden warned me that what I had told him was “very serious”, as if I didn’t already know that, and he would “have to inform the headmaster’” Fr O’Shea, which he did, later that day. O’Shea then informed the Rector, Fr Gaffney, who then informed the Salesian Provincial, Fr George Williams, who arrived the following day to interview me.

But, instead of helping me, he swore me to silence, and a few weeks later, he moved Madley to the Salesian College in Battersea, to protect him and the school’s name. Unlike Madley, I was left to fend for myself, without any support 40 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

from the school, or from anyone else for that matter, as Williams had told me that, under no circumstances should I tell my parents what had happened, so I remained silent.

Not surprisingly, then, when I sat my GCSE O-level exams a few months later, I failed them all; but rather than arranging for me to re-sit them, Fr O’Shea refused to allow me back into the schoold. I had been cut adrift and cast out by the very people whose only task was to educate me. They would pay a heavy price for their betrayal, but it would take many years before I could hold them to account.

The abuse I had suffered created deep-seated, psychological problems in my mind, which would continue to plague me for years to come. The damage manifested itself in different ways, as I developed a range of harmful Graham Wilmer: behaviours, known as “coping mechanisms”, in order to For the next 30 years I stumbled block out the past, including alcohol abuse and self-harm. on through life, I also developed an addiction but the legacy of to casual sex, as it was the only way I could feel loved; guilt, confusion meaningful relationships and anger was proving very difficult to form.

Over time, my character never far from changed, as I tried to pretend the surface that it had never happened. I buried the memories deep in my mind, and for the next 30 years I stumbled on through life, but the legacy of guilt, confusion and anger was never far from the surface. Then, in 1995, the hidden memories began to re-emerge. A trickle at first, then more and more, each time becoming sharper in focus and more detailed.

They pervaded my mind during every moment of every day, and haunted my dreams at night. Eventually, at the beginning of 1997, I broke down, unable to cope with the force of these awful images, which totally overwhelmed me and took me to the brink of self-destruction.

AA This is the opening of The Devil’s Coachmen – Child Abuse and the Men in Black by Graham Wilmer MBE, a survivor of child abuse who founded The Lantern Project to help others to survive it. It describes his struggle to come to terms with his lost childhood, and force the order of priests to accept its responsibility. www.lanternproject.org.uk WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Change your old, uncomfortable bath for the revolutionary, all new Princess shower module from Bathing Solutions in under a day* – it’s that EASY! 1

Low threshold tray makes getting in and out safe and easy.

2

Optional sliding glass doors or splash guard make showering safe and secure; no splashes on the floor either!

3

Fold up seat – for even more comfortable and safe showering.

4

Easy-clean, tile-effect walls – so there’s no messy grout and keeping it clean is simple.

5

Fits where your existing bath is now.

4

3 2 5

Get rid of bathing difficulty

1

24 HRS

* dependent on fit

For a free copy of our 44 page brochure call free now on

0800 783UA1114 1912 Please quote reference

EASY for us to install, EASY for you to look after and best of all, EASY on your budget; the new Princess shower module has it all.

Please send me a free brochure on your range of easy-access showers and walk-in baths.

Title

First Name

Surname Tel No.

Clear Screen’s coating repels lime scale and soap scum, keeping the glass clean and smear free. A simple quick wipe with a cloth will keep the glass on your shower sparkling, with more than 20% better brilliance.

www.safebathing.co.uk

Bacteria growth is reduced by over 99% with Microshield integrated into the Princess shower. Microshield will not wash off or wear away; it keeps the shower more hygienic and therefore fresher and cleaner.

Address

Postcode We may use this information to contact you about our products and pass it to suitable third parties to contact you about their products and services. Please tick the box if you do not wish to receive information from us or third parties . Please refer to our privacy policy for further details www.bathingsolutions.co.uk/privacy-policy

Post coupon to: FREEPOST BATHING SOLUTIONS (No further address details required).

UA1114

WAYitWAS

the

My father’s war 2014 is the hundredth anniversary of the outbreak of the first world war. Neil Munro of Merton U3A drove through France to see what his father saw as he fought in the war

ON A grey windy day in September 2011, interspersed throughout with rain, my brother Alan and I drove away from the Calais terminal of the Channel Tunnel. Our immediate destination was Casteau, a Belgian village astride the main road from Mons to Soignies.

During a spell of much finer weather 97 years earlier, a train left Boulogne to travel to a little French railway station at Hautmont, a few miles from the Belgian border. From there the cavalry regiment that the train carried, the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards, moved across the frontier and on 22 August 1914, made the first contact between the British Expeditionary Force and the German army.

Richard Gordon Munro on the retreat from Mons, The junior subaltern in the 4th Dragoon Guards, or 4DG, probably 28 August 1914 at Le Plessis-Patte-d’Oie was 19-year-old Richard Gordon Munro. He was my father.

My brother and I had come to Belgium and France to the Somme at St Simon, where the regiment crossed, retrace his footsteps, from August 1914 until, wounded and headed for the little village of Le Plessis-Patteand battle weary, he returned to England in August 1918. d’Oie where the regiment arrived on 28 August.

My father’s main worry was that he would be Here he was able to wash and shave for the first time considered too young – only in June had he become for several days. The regiment was billeted in farms 19 – or too junior and inexperienced to leave for and there is a photograph of my father during the France with his regiment on the outbreak of war. retreat, taken while his troop was preparing to mount, He told me that there really had been enthusiasm apparently in a farmyard. He is dishevelled but smiling bordering on fanaticism in favour of that war. broadly, with his cap at a jaunty angle.

Richard Gordon My father was in B Squadron of 4DG, and although Munro in a formal My brother and I looked at a number of farmyards his squadron was not involved in the action at Casteau, portrait around Le Plessis Patte d’Oie. Although we could it was in action for five hours during a larger battle at not identify the one in the photograph, there seems Audregnies on 24 August. Two troops of B Squadron little doubt that this is where it was taken. The quiet took part with the 9th Lancers in a cavalry charge farmyards we saw would then have been bustling with on the German positions, with the other two troops all the activity of troops of cavalry. fighting dismounted in the village to hold back the On the back of the photograph my father has written advancing Germans; my father’s troop was probably to his mother that he is shirtless as he had no more part of the latter group. shirts, and we know that shirts, socks, greatcoats and My brother and I followed the line of the retreat, laundry were all dumped “to ease the horses’ burden”. past Casteau where on 26 August part of 4DG covered Only a few days after this photograph was taken, my the British right flank.

Neil Munro at father received the wound which was to plague him We by-passed St Quentin, where in 1914 Major Bassevelle, 8 August for the rest of his life, and I believe that the picture in Bridges of 4DG, despite being badly knocked about 2011. The church the farmyard shows him at the peak of youthful energy at Audregnies, had with his trumpeter rallied infantry tower may have and even happiness. I also believe that in the long term exhausted after Casteau by playing The British hidden the sniper the war robbed him of much of that early ability to Grenadiers on a toy drum and tin whistle. We crossed who shot his father. enjoy life.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 43

WAYitWAS

the

Secret horrors Edward Davies of Stourbridge U3A recalls government duplicity about how many might survive a nuclear war

44 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

ALEX GRAY

DECLASSIFIED SECRET 1955 government papers show that the effect of a nuclear strike on the UK would be beyond imagination. Official estimates of the number of dead varied from 15 million to 45 million. These figures did not include numbers dying later from radiation poisoning, disease and starvation.

But we were not told. Reassurance about survival became part of Cold War propaganda.

The Cold War between Nato and Warsaw Pact countries began at the end of World War II and ended in 1991. Had nuclear war broken out, retaliation to a first strike and the resulting cataclysm would have ensured that neither attacker or nor defender could claim victory.

The result would be mutual assured destruction (MAD).

Circulars This formed the basis for the indicated theory of nuclear deterrence. that flagrant MAD and its variants led anti-social to a massive build-up of behaviour might nuclear arsenals. The UK government had no illusions need ‘harsher as to what a nuclear strike on penalties than would generally this country would mean. be acceptable in The 1955 documents say that the effect on dense civilian peace time’. In short: execution. populations would be “beyond imagination”.

During a 1980 television interview, Lord Belstead, former head of civil defence affairs at the Home Office, said the outlay to build a national system of shelters was unaffordable. Consequently, no civilian shelters were provided. It was suggested people should buy their own, available from a few hundred pounds to about £12,000. Even then survival was not assured.

But civil defence policy needed to persuade the population that survival was attainable. In 1956, a Home Office pamphlet, The Hydrogen Bomb, said that families could protect themselves by lying under a table or bed. A 1963 training publication for civil defence, police and fire services said the public were to be assured that survival depended on the actions individuals could take.

People were to stay at home, having built a fall-out room and inner refuge, stocked up with enough food for 14 days,

water, warm clothes, toys for the children, a portable radio with spare batteries and other essentials.

A BBC TV Panorama team followed the Government’s instructions for building a refuge at home. It showed that the householder would require to fill about 100 bags and containers of earth and sand.

It said nothing about the horrors that would face the residual population in the days and weeks following an attack, with or without civil defence – radiation sickness, disease, malnutrition, untreated wounds, profound psychological shock, life in a semi-barbaric society and living with the stench and sight of the dead.

Restricted government advice did not mince its words. Of the millions of dead, many bodies would be

The early-sixties satirical review Beyond The Fringe mocked government propaganda about nuclear war and the effectiveness of civil defence. Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller watch as Peter Cook puts on a giant paper bag to protect himself against fallout unidentifiable. And even for those who could be identified, resources would be wasted in registering burial. Work parties would be formed to incinerate or bury the dead.

Operation Square Leg, a 1980 home defence exercise, made it clear that the preservation of law and order involving the military and police was of prime importance.

Other circulars indicated that flagrant anti-social behaviour might need “harsher penalties than would generally be acceptable in peace time”. In short: execution.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

ADVERTISEMENT

Finally, an End to the Struggle with Computers, Laptops and the Internet

A

re you interested in using your PC... but struggling with how complicated & frustrating it seems?

What do you think of PC books?

I have to admit, most books that claim to make PCs easy are, well, rubbish. Half of them leave you more confused than you started! Well, give me 2 minutes & I’ll tell you about two books that are different.

It all started with my Dad. He’s 74 and has a PC. And these books (Computers One Step at a Time and The Internet One Step at a Time) began as notes I wrote to help him.

Dad was tearing his hair out, frustrated by jargon & worried he’d “mess it up” He wanted to do things like email my sister in Melbourne and create an advert with photos for a car he was selling. Dad wanted something easy to follow, with pictures of the screen and arrows to show what to do. He asked for plain English… as if I was explaining it to him in person.

Is this what you’d like from a computer book?

1. Plain English – not full of jargon and gobbledegook.

2. Step-by-step instructions making it clear how to use the PC. 3. Plenty of pictures of the screen showing you exactly what to do, with arrows & pointers.

4. Each new topic explained properly before going on to the next one.

If you agree, picture yourself using your PC with complete confidence. Once you start to learn the basics any fear of PCs will start to disappear. You’ll love the feeling of being fully in control of your PC. Imagine your new-found confidence with your Computer and on the Internet.

difference between a file and a folder. Or had instructions for the wrong version of Windows. It’s not complicated - not once it’s been explained properly.

Once I’ve explained the basics, I go on to other things you might want to do with your PC - and it all becomes much easier!

Windows 8, 8.1, Windows 7, Vista & XP Windows 8 is very different – confusing if you’ve used a previous version. But the latest edition of the books clearly explain Windows 8 and 8.1 from scratch.

Or have the version specifically for Windows 7, Vista or XP. Up to you (ring us if you’re not sure which you need).

Can 30,000 people be wrong?

Now used by over 30,000 people. The letters I get saying how much help the books have been are so enthusiastic you’d think they’d all been written by my family... but I don’t have that many close relations! Some letters are from complete beginners, some are from people who’ve had a PC for a while and struggled with it.

3 free bonuses for you (including a “secret weapon”)...

When you order your free trial copies today, you’ll also get 3 free bonuses in the package: Videos that show you what to do on the trickier bits, free useful software that you might pay a fortune for otherwise and one more “secret weapon” that helps you “put what you learn into practice”.

That way, you remember what you learn... and that’s the real secret!

The price? Each book is just £11.97 plus one lot of p&p at £2.99. You could easily pay that or more for a book in a shop. But here you also get all the bonuses – videos, free software and the

Struggle with your PC? Read this...

“secret weapon”. But there’s even more: Get more for your money: Choose both books (the Computers & the Internet book) and I’ll also give you a copy of “Staying Safe on the Internet”.

Crucial infomation in this day and age.

Free Trial: send no money now You can have the books on free trial so you can check them out. Pay nothing until you’re happy that they’re worth it.

But hundreds who read this won’t bother. “It’s no use” they’ll think. “I’m just no good with computers” (thousands thought the same and now find PCs easy).

Or they’ll think “maybe” but never get around to it. For them, PCs will stay hard.

Don’t be like them. Act now, while it’s fresh in your mind. It’s quick & easy: Just fill in the coupon below & send it to: The Helpful Book Co., 8A Devonshire Rd Est, Millom, Cumbria LA18 4JS. Or call 01229 777606 to speak to Laura or Louise (or one of the others if it’s busy).

We’ll get your books in the post for you to inspect straight away.

PS: don’t worry, we won’t pass your details to anyone else. Don’t risk putting it off & forgetting. Why not order right now?

The “key” that makes everything easy...

Once you understand the basics properly, everything becomes easier. Most books skip past the basics, assuming you already know them or aren’t interested.

But I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve helped who were having trouble because, for example, they were clicking the mouse wrongly. Or didn’t know the

UA0114A

WAYitWAS

the

How the London Underground got its map 2

Watford

7

Croxley

The first U3A London region summer school studied, among many other things, the pioneering 3 4 fares apply role ofSpecial London Underground in using design to Watford Junction promoteWatford itsHigh brand and services. Stephen Halliday Street tells the storyBushey of its iconic map

8 7 6

5

5 6 7 Portrait of Harry Beck with his map by Ken Garland, whose book, 8 Epping Mr Beck’s Underground Map, is the definitive work on the history and Theydon Bois High Barnet Cockfosters Debden design of the map Totteridge & Whetstone

Carpenders Park

Moor Park

Woodside Park

Loughton

Oakwood

Buckhurst Hill

Southgate

HARRY BECKHatch joined the signal engineers’ department of the was a happy augury for the new London Passenger Transport Rodin End Mill Hill East Valle West Finchley Arnos Grove Edgware Headstone Lane London Underground Group as a temporary draughtsman in Board, which came into being in July of the same year.

Bounds Green Stanmore Finchley Central Harrow & islip Manor Pinner at the age 1925 of 24. His employment overBurnt theOaknext six years By this time Harry Beck was once again a temporaryWoodford Wealdstone Wood Green Canons Park Colindale East Finchley Harringay Harrow Eastcote South Woodford Kenton Turnpike Lane in which Queensbury wasNorth punctuated by dismissals prompted by economic crises employee of the Board, Green Laneshazardous status he Hendon Central Crouch HarrowHighgate Northwick Preston South Tottenham Hill on-the-Hill Kingsbury Park Road of the kind that characterised the period and he wasBrent actually remained until 1937 when he Seven was given aBlackhorse permanent Snaresbrook post in Lane Cross Manor House Archway Sisters Road Gospel West South Kenton Golders Green Oak unemployed when, in 1931, he sketched a diagram which, the press advertising section.

Since he had technically been Harrow Upper Holloway Hampstead Neasden arrow Tottenham Walthamstow North Wembley Heath Hampstead Hale Central Wembley Arsenal when Tufnell Park Finsbury after manyWembley additions and amendments, became his famous a freelance designer he submitted his map he was paid Wanst Dollis Hill Park Leytonstone Central Park Finchley Road Holloway Road Walthamstow Leyton ry Hill Kentish Willesden Green & Frognal Queen’s Road schematic Stonebridge map ofPark the Underground network. the Town princely fee of 5 guineas for the design, in return for whichLeyto Kentish Midland Road High Town West Belsize Park Highbury & Kilburn Harlesden Caledonian Road Dalston Islington Kensal Brondesbury It was based on three design principles.

First, the Central he assigned the priceless copyright to the board.

Leyton Kingsland Chalk Farm Town Rise Park West Hampstead Willesden Junction Camden Stratford Hackney Road International Line was used as a horizontal axisBrondesbury around which the Over the years that followed the map Finchley Roadmap was Caledonian Centralevolved. Clearer colours Wans Camden Town Kensal Green Road & Canonbury erton Cottage Queen’s intersected Park South Kilburn built. Second, where lines or where Swiss they diverged Mornington were adoptedBarnsbury for the separate lines and Beck made further Stratford Dalston Junction St. John’s Wood High Road Hampstead Crescent Homerton Hackney Wick King’s Cross from a straightKilburn line,Parkhe used only 45-degree and 90-degree improvements to its layout, the Circle Line appearing for the Woo St. Pancras Haggerston Edgware Great Maida Vale Marylebone Paddington Stratf Road Portland Euston angles. Third, inWarwick spacing the stations, no regard was Baker first time as a separate unit in its bright yellow in 1949.

High Avenue Street Street Pudding Angel Hoxton Royal Oak Mill Lane paid to the true distance between them.

In Old 1947 Harry Beck left London Transport to Abbe ane Road Bethnal Street Euston Westbourne Park Warren Street Mile End Green Edgware Square In the centre of London stations are more becomeLiverpool an instructor at the London School of Road Farringdon Bow Road Royal Regent’s Park Shoreditch Ladbroke Grove Russell Bayswater HighGraphic Street generously spaced thanLatimer geography requires PrintingStreet and the Arts. His final years (he West Square Barbican Road BromleyBow Church Ealing Goodge by-Bow Moorgate Shepherd’s White East Chancery Lancaster Bond Notting Oxford Street in order to give space for station died in 1974) were clouded by a dispute with Bush City Acton sufficient Lane Gate Street Hill Gate Circus Devons Road Stepney Green Star L Aldgate St. Paul’s Tottenham East about modifications Holborn Marble North Holland are Queensway West names.

In the outer area, stations much London Transport to his Langdon Park Whitechapel Court Road Bank Arch Acton Park Acton Wood Lane Covent Garden closer to each other on the map thanHighthey design.Aldgate He believed he had made anAll Saints agreement Cannin Town Street are Shadwell Green Park Westferry Blackwall Leicester Square Acton Central Kensington Shepherd’s Bush mmon on the ground. that any changes to the design would be made Market Piccadilly Hyde Park Corner Cannon Street Poplar Kensington Limehouse East Circus Monument Tower South Acton (Olympia) India Mansion House Hill when a new version, designed by Road The mapGoldhawk is reminiscent of an electricalKnightsbridge by him.

So Tower West Wapping Charing Gateway Blackfriars India Quay Gloucester Barons Cross St. James’s Acton wiring Town Road that Hammersmith diagram and it isCourt no coincidence a publicity officer called Harold Hutchinson, Temple Park Victoria ng Rotherhithe Canary Wharf much of Beck’s work in the signal engineers’ appeared in 1960, Beck engaged in a long and angry Westminster West Chiswick Sloane Emirates Turnham Stamford Ravenscourt Embankment South Earl’s Canada North London Bermondsey Greenwich Brook Park Kensington Park Green Kensington Square Court Water Greenwich Bridge Heron Quays Peninsula department involved drafting just such diagrams for correspondence with the company.

West Brompton Waterloo South Quay Surrey Quays signalling circuits. In March 1937 he produced a spoof The Hutchinson map did not long survive criticism, but Gunnersbury Crossharbour Southwark t Pimlico Fulham Broadway version of his map for a London Transport staff magazine in the argument was not resolved to HarryMudchute Beck’s satisfaction Kew Gardens Imperial Green which the references toParsons a wiring diagram and subsequent designs, incorporating the Victoria Line, the Wharf are explicit.

Lambeth Island Gardens Borough North Richmond Putney Bridge At first the publicity committee chaired by Frank Pick Jubilee Line and the Docklands Light Railway, were prepared Cutty Sark for East Putney Maritime Greenwich (managing director of the Underground Electric Railways by other artists.

Queens Road Vauxhall Elephant & Castle Peckham Southfields Greenwich New Cross New Cross Clapham Company of LondonWimbledon and aPark design pioneer in his own right) Towards the end of hisGatelife Beck became rather bitter Junction Deptford Bridge Wandsworth Brockley Rye rejected the diagram, believing it to be too novel for the public Oval Kennington aboutPeckham this episode, but his map remains one of the icons Road Wimbledon Elverson Road Stockwell Honor Oak Park High Street Lewisham to accept. But in 1932 it was reconsidered. Some Clapham 750,000 of twentieth century industrial design.

Today it is printed Denmark Hill Forest Hill Clapham North copies of the map were ordered in January 1933.Clapham Common on surfaces as diverse as Sydenham aprons, computer mousemats and Brixton South Any anxieties the management may have hadClapham about the articles of clothing, souvenirs Penge Westtaken home by tourists from Balham wisdom of placing such a large order were removed when all over the world. It has Anerley often been copied, not always Tooting Bec Crystal Palace Norwood Junction the following month they had to order another 100,000.

The successfully, by other transport systems.

Tooting Broadway West Croydon maps had been quickly taken up by an enthusiastic public not AATaken from Underground to Everywhere by Stephen Colliers Wood South Wimbledon in the least perturbed by the innovative design.

Its popularity Halliday (The History Press, £24.99).

Morden

4

Northwood Northwood Hills

4

3

3

2

2

2

2

1

1

Fenchurch Street

River Thames

4

2

3

2

1

3

2

3

2

3

46 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

4

4

5

6

5

This diagram is an evo

7

8

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

WAYitWAS

the

Forty tons of coal a day Jack Turner of Bedford U3A served the British railway industry, in one job or another, for 46 years, a career he recalls in affectionate detail in his recently published autobiography

WHEN I first entered the railway industry in 1947, working as a junior clerk in the goods department at Aylesbury High Street, virtually every station in the country had a goods and coal yard. There were also many large marshalling yards, dealing with thousands of wagons.

In addition to the freight services traversing the main lines, local pick-up goods trains called daily at country stations, where all kinds of material would be dropped off for conveyance to their destinations, or picked up for sending on to shops and markets.

Many gasworks received up to 30 or 40 wagons of coal daily. Long-distance coal trains, along with others carrying produce such as brick traffic, beer, fish, milk and cattle, were to be regularly seen sharing the tracks with the passenger services.

Although passenger services have always been seen as more glamorous and, as a result, attract publicity, railways were originally designed and built for freight traffic, and much of their revenue has come from it.

Nowadays, despite heavy congestion on our roads, the only freight traffic

carried is a mixture of what are known as “block trains”, company trains (vehicles dedicated to carrying loads for a single company), Freightliner container workings and, in the case of coal, “MerryGo-Round” trains, which take the coal from the original source of supply to the power stations.

During my time on British Railways, the most visible change was the final abandonment of steam locomotives during the late ’60s, and their replacement by mainly diesel locomotives which, in turn, were superseded in many areas by electrification, particularly the West Coast and East Coast main lines heading to the north of England and to Scotland from their London termini at Euston and Kings Cross.

The old-fashioned commuter trains, too, gave way to shiny new diesel multiple units. The Midland Region main line from London St Pancras received a fleet of these trains in the late ’50s, which put in many years of sterling service until they were replaced in the early ’80s by electric multiple units.

Now many of the main line services are operated by a variety of these multiple units, diesel and electric, many of which are capable of speeds up to 125 mph.

AAJack A. Turner’s My Life on British Railways: From Nationalisation to Privatisation is published by Jacett Publications www.jacettpublishing.co.uk.

Jack Turner at work with his driver and footplate inspector WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

The sadly misunderstood axeman Dr Richard Beeching was not the revolutionary figure he is made out to be, writes Tanya Jackson

THE BEECHING cuts in Britain’s railways system of the early sixties gained their infamy as a result of Beeching’s laudable but unnecessary honesty: his decision, against good advice, to list all stations he had scheduled for closure, and all the passenger services to be discontinued, at the end of his first report.

It was a public relations disaster and turned the doctor into the great bogeyman of the railways he has been ever since.

The term “Beeching axe” has become a generic term for railway closures regardless of the period being referred to, yet railways were being closed long before nationalisation.

More passenger stations were closed prior to Beeching than during his time in charge of the railways. From 1947 to 1960, 1,808 stations were closed, and more than 700 ceased operation between 1955 and the end of 1960; only 1,691 were closed during Beeching’s time in office from 1960-65.

So, in terms of the station closures, much of the work had been done before he set foot in a railway office.

It is really in sheer reduction of route mileage that the Beeching era excels. From 1948-60 only 1,230 miles were cut; from 1960-65, 3,448 miles were closed.

AAThis extract is taken from British Rail – The Nation’s Railways

by Tanya Jackson (The History Press, £18.99).

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 47

BRIEF ENCOUNTERS

Encounters with David Beckham, episode 2. Ed Link can cap Beth Butler’s meeting with David Beckham in a Manchester department Store (last issue)- Beckham signed his retirement card. Ed, a member of Perth U3A and the U3A’s subject adviser for Philosophy, tells us: “My retirement party in October 2001 was in Alderley Edge in Cheshire and ended at the local night club.

After a drink or two, one of my colleagues said that David Beckham had just arrived. I had only a vague idea who Beckham was – I’m a rugby supporter – but at the time he played for Manchester United and was captain of the England football

PA PHOTOS

BECKHAM’S ROLE AT ED’S RETIREMENT DO

team. He was barricaded in a corner by a ring of chairs and his minder, apparently to keep adoring ladies at a distance.

“We were allowed into this charmed circle and, despite my expectation, Mr. Beckham turned out to be a modest and charming young man. I didn’t know it at the time but it later turned out that my new friend David had signed my retirement card.”

And here’s his signature, to prove it.

PHIL SCOTT/WIKIMEDIA

BRITISH RAIL’S LAUGHING STOCK In 1988 new rolling stock units (above) on the British Rail Bournemouth line acquired the nickname of “plastic pigs” among the staff, perhaps because they looked like pigs, writes Tanya Jackson in her new

book The Nation’s Railway (The History Press).

The spread of the nickname resulted in an infamous memo in which staff were instructed not to use this name on pain of dismissal. This was

a tactical error as it spread the name further and gave it the kudos of being forbidden.

One staff member produced plastic piggy badges to celebrate the new units. The perpetrator was sought but never identified.

SUPERMAC GETS AWAY WITH IT AGAIN In 1980 Nicolette Jones was the only woman on the Oxford Union committee when Harold Macmillan came to speak there. He was, she told TAM, frail but fluent and amusing.

Afterwards she said to him: “I suppose in your day there were no women on the Oxford Union committee”.

He said that was true and went on to say all the correct things about what a good thing it was that women were starting to take their proper place. “So splendid”, he said.

Then Oxford Union President Nicholas Prettejohn started to guide him out, and he confided to him: “Glad to see you’re keeping the women under control, only one of them on the committee.”

WHEN LIFE WOULD BE TOO SHORT TO DRINK WARM WINE In 1975 Carol Green of Weymouth & Portland U3A moved with her husband and young family to a small village just outside Geneva, where the company found them a modern house to rent.

In their basement, next to the playroom and utility

room, she found a small room, with a very heavy, footthick door.

This, she was told, was the family’s nuclear-bomb-proof shelter.

Carol tells us: “Apparently, all Swiss houses built after the Cuban missile crisis were

48 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

legally required to have one. We were also given a detailed list of what we should store in the shelter – so many litres of water, so many kilos of pasta, tinned and dried foods.

“Sleeping bags were suggested, though the

non-existent sanitary arrangements were not mentioned.

“My Swiss neighbour told me: ‘it’s a perfect temperature for keeping wine’. She was right. In the event of a nuclear holocaust, we would have died happy.”

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COMPETITIONS Ballroom glamour • Be first at the Wanamaker

DANCE AND SONG

Win tickets for Anton Du Beke – Ballroom To Broadway!

ANTON DU BEKE is touring a spectacular new production, Ballroom To Broadway, throughout the UK from January to March 2014, and TAM has tickets to give away for six of the venues.

Ballroom to Broadway celebrates musicals through a programme of dance and song. Witty, charismatic and a natural entertainer, Anton Du Beke’s skills in front of an audience extend far beyond his exceptional dancing talents.

The show will see him present and perform a collection of showstopping numbers that epitomise the glitz and glamour of ballroom magic including classic hits like Anything Goes, Rhythm of Life, Impossible Dream, Hushabye Mountain and Begin The Beguine.

Anton will be joined on stage

by special guest West End star Summer Strallen (Top Hat, Love Never Dies and The Sound of Music), singer Lance Ellington, ensemble dancers including Faye Huddleston (Burn The Floor) and the Raymond Gubbay Big Band Orchestra conducted by Richard Balcombe.

For a full listing of Ballroom To Broadway dates and venues and for the opportunity to sign up to Raymond Gubbay’s monthly newsletter informing you of concert tour announcements and special offers visit www.raymondgubbay.co.uk.

To win a pair of tickets, tell us who wrote the song Begin The Beguine: a) Andrew Lloyd Webber b) Cole Porter c) George Gershwin.

Send your entry to Sharon@ u3a.org.uk (putting “Ballroom to Broadway” in the subject line of your email) or Sharon Ahtuam, Third Age Trust, Old Municipal Building, 19 East Street, Bromley, BR1 1QE. Remember to state your preferred venue with your entry. The first correct answers opened on 17 February will win.

A

We have a pair of tickets to be won for each of the following performances:

GATESHEAD 2 March 7.30pm The Sage 0191 443 4661 EASTBOURNE 6 March 2.30pm Congress Theatre 01323 412 000 READING 8 March 7.30pm The Hexagon 0118 960 6060 WATFORD 12 March 7.30pm Colosseum 0845 075 3993 YORK 15 March 7.30pm Barbican 0844 854 2757 CROYDON 28 March 7.30pm Fairfield Halls 020 8688 9291

WORDS FOR THE WOUNDED

Writing competition for military charity MARGARET GRAHAM is not only the chairman of High Wycombe U3A – she is also one of the founders of a charity, Words for the Wounded, which raises money for the

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

rehabilitation of wounded soldiers by organising writing competitions.

This year it is fundraising for the Creative Arts Unit of the Tedworth House Recovery Unit in the garrison town of

Tidworth in Wiltshire which is one of four recovery centres run by Help for Heroes.

It invites entries of up to 400 words on the theme of The Journey in poetry, fiction or non-fiction. The fee is £4.50.

First prize is £250, second prize £100 and third £50.

The competition closes on 11 March. Winners will be announced on 6 June, D-Day. For details see www. wordsforthewounded.co.uk.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 49

COMPETITIONS PETE LE MAY

UPROARIOUS PROTO-POSTMODERN ROMP

Burn your pestles at London’s new Jacobean theatre THE NEW Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London opens its doors to the public for the first time in January. The Jacobean-style theatre’s handmade oak structure will be lit by hundreds of candles.

One of its first productions will be Francis Beaumont’s uproarious, experimental romp The Knight of the Burning Pestle. TAM readers can win two tickets to this surreal, genredefying, proto-postmodern caper.

Opening as a bourgeois comedy of manners,

The Knight of the Burning Pestle quickly disintegrates when two members of the “audience” invade the stage and start to rework the play to suit their tastes. It was one of the first madcap comedies to hit the English stage.

The production promises to be a hilarious take on a Jacobean satire that is radically modern in conception and construction.

AAThe Knight of the Burning Pestle is at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse 20 February – 30 March. Tickets cost £10–£60.

Box office: 020 7401 9919.

To win two tickets, tell us who wrote The Knight of the Burning Pestle. Send the answer to exhibition2@ shakespearesglobe.com by 12 February. One entry per email address. Some date restrictions will apply.

Competition winner will be contacted by email.

SINGLE TRAVELLERS! 15 days Deep South, USA £2,995

This holiday encompasses the music, history and unique culture of a part of the USA that cherishes and respects its history. Fulfil a lifetime dream of indulging in the rhythms of the south, soul, country, blues, rock ‘n’ roll and jazz where you will be welcomed by warm, friendly folk with wonderful southern accents.

Day 1 – Fly to Atlanta Fly to Atlanta the ‘the gateway to the south’ and home of ‘Gone with the Wind’. Welcome dinner and drinks.

Day 2 – Atlanta sightseeing City tour of Atlanta, including the Martin Luther King Memorial and Ebenezer Baptisit Church, CNN Center and the World of Coca Cola.

Day 3 – Chattanooga You will spend two nights at the famous ‘Choo Choo’ the former railroad station, now converted to a hotel. In Chattanooga we visit the Lookout Mountain attractions on the Appalachian Ridge.

Days 4-6 – Nashville In our three night stay in ‘Music City USA’ we include a fascinating visit to RCA Studio B, the Country Music Hall of Fame, a performance of the Grand Ole Opry and a live dinner and country music show as well as an opportunity to visit the Jack Daniel’s distillery. The live music bars of Broadway are all very close to your downtown hotel.

Days 7-9 – Memphis The Birthplace of the blues and Rock ‘n’ Roll Memphis where you will stay three nights and spend an afternoon at Elvis’ Graceland Mansion.

You will also tour Sun Studio where Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Johnny Cash recorded. The city tour also encompasses the home of W.C Handy, Cotton Row, the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated and famous Beale Street where we include dinner and live Blues.

Day 10 – Private Blues Concert Travel through the heart of them “ole cotton fields back home” in Mississippi to Indianola and the BB King Museum for an included lunch and private blues concert in the famous Club Ebony.

Days 11-14 – New Orleans We include a city tour that takes in the historic French Quarter, Garden District, St Charles Avenue, Lake Ponchartrain and the Superdome.

There will also be opportunities to take a fascinating swamp tour with a Cajun captain and visit a splendid plantation home. We include dinner with live Cajun music, Jazz dinner as well as a farewell sternwheeler cocktail cruise on ‘Ole Man River’ the mighty Mississippi.

Day 15 – Arrival in the UK Farewell to new found friends after a once in a lifetime holiday.

2 departures in 2014: April and November.

SPECIAL 16 DAY NEW ORLEANS MARDI GRAS DEPARTURE 19 FEB 2014

To book or request a brochure call 01760 or visit www.onetraveller.co.uk 50 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

722 011

All our holidays include: Your own spacious room ■ Knowledgeable local guides ■ Small group sizes ■ Scheduled flights ■ Fully escorted by expert ■ Meals, excursions, porterage Tour Managers and extra touches Our small group escorted holidays are put together with mature single travellers in mind and you are never left on your own (unless you so choose). We lead holidays to Europe, Russia, Thailand, China, Sri Lanka and the USA. ■

9718

BOOK WITH 100% CONFIDENCE Fully Bonded | Fully Protected

One Traveller Ltd, Swaffham, Norfolk PE37 7FD

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Boost children’s brainpower!

AQUILA children’s magazine

20 years old this year, AQUILA is produced by a small team of writers and artists. It is advert free, and comes recommended by parents and teachers worldwide.

“She has loved and kept her magazines over the years, and now at 14, still uses them for her homework.”

Make a difference to children’s education

is perfect for lively 8-12 year olds who like to ask questions. Using a fun mix of science, arts and general knowledge this unique publication will capture children’s interest and offer friendly companionship as they learn about the world and how things work.

There are so many things competing for their attention these days, but here is a magazine that is different – one that aims to educate and inspire.

Mrs D. McNeight The magazine will also nudge children’s awareness in the right direction with thought-provoking articles that sometimes include elements of philosophy, health and well-being.

✔ Exciting new topic every month

Wave a massive hello to 2014 with our Giants issue

See sample online

✔ Encourages reading and writing ✔ Nourishes bright minds ✔ Inspires achievement

Explore the natural wonders of the Giant’s Causeway, learn all about how we grow, make yourself a hilarious pair of giant hands and join our resident philosophers Philip and Phoebe as they think about how much of what we see is created by the brain.

Coming up next in AQUILA: Scandinavia, Emergency Aid, Reptiles, Painting.

For puzzles, facts and fun every month, start a gift subscription now!

THE PERFECT GIFT An AQUILA subscription makes a great birthday gift, and we can post with your own special message.

You will not find it in the shops, so visit our website for more details. No quibble refund if you are not delighted with the first magazine.

Call 01323 431313 www.aquila.co.uk

Purchaser’s Name ____________________________________________ Address ____________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________

£45 Annual subscription Europe £50

Rest of World £59

________________________________ Postcode _________________ Phone number ______________________________________________

Please send AQUILA to Child’s name ________________________________________________ Address (if different) __________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________________ Gift message (20 words max) __________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________

■ I enclose a cheque made payable to AQUILA (Name and address on the reverse, please.)

CARD PAYMENT DETAILS

■ Please charge my Mastercard / Visa / Maestro Card no: _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ Expiry date _ _ / _ _ Post back to

Security code _ _ _

AQUILA, 67A Willowfield Road, Eastbourne, BN22 8AP

U3A14

BRAIN GAMES

U3A members provide food for thought CROSSWORD By Geoffrey Mayer Orpington U3A Cryptic Crosswords (1) group 1

2

3

4

5

6

BRIDGE by Michael Harris Eastbourne Meads U3A

Eight ever, nine never

7

8 9 10 11

12

14

13

15 16

18

17

19 21

Dummy (North)  AJ73

20

You (South)

22

23

24

25 26 27

ACROSS 3. Military unit turned tail holding baton. On the contrary (9) 8. Front line support in the field (4) 9. Divided into four when safely billeted (9) 10. Operatic aria found when this leads a type of window, say (6) 11. Recovery process shortly in spare habitation (5) 14. A pest originally hid another pest (5) 15. Grammatical personal modifier to a noun which is not belonging to me (4) 16. The girls rejected dried cassia leaves (5) 18. Colourlessly loses heart at the proper time (4) 20. Flier backward in pen, nib or ballpoint will do (5) 21. She may be found in chains (5) 24. Two rivers initially discovered when it rained heavily (6) 25. Glitzy publication found in Wales (9) 26. As a cup bearer should she be seen inside? (4) 27. Revived herds with free mixture possibly (9)

DOWN 1. Paris and son make up with the nationals in Barcelona (9) 2. Domestic unit formed by building a cargo space (9) 4. A strange name for Lily (4) 5. Is brief and to the point during the winter season (5) 6. Room to manoeuvre a manner after having shelter (6) 7. A loose box encloses and pens cattle (4) 9. Natal set briefly making an entrance (5) 11. As liquid is sounding like money but may go with honey (5) 12. Assailed persistently in a drab demob suit (9) 13. He could be in a 3 ac of the 2 dn division and 9 ac in barracks (9) 17. Inert gas in cargo not securely covered (5) 19. Sweet potato merely left the city to chatter on (6) 22. Segregates and types, found when everyone leaves the sweets (5) 23. This club should be full of happiness (4) 24. Beyond this the outlook is colourless (4)

SOLUTION: page 57 52 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

THIS HAS been a jingle for many years and relates to declarer having to make a decision when a Queen is missing in a suit.

Assume these holdings:  K842

As declarer, do you play small from the King and finesse the Jack or play the Ace followed by the King and hope the Queen drops in two rounds?

First, let us go back to basics.

Should there be five cards missing in a suit, the odds (67.8%) are that they will break 3:2, so that with eight cards held between you and dummy you should finesse the Queen since it is more likely to be with the hand holding three of the missing cards. Hence “Eight ever”.

There are, of course, always exceptions. Should East have opened the bidding before you and your partner reached a fourheart contract with a combined 27 points, then it is most likely that opener holds the remaining 13 points, including the missing Queen. In which case, play the Ace followed by the King and pray.

Let us now change the holdings slightly: Dummy (North)  AJ73 You (South)

 K1042

You now have a two-way finesse situation. You can either finesse the Jack or the ten. So if East opened the bidding, play the Ace and then finesse the ten. If West opened, play the King and then finesse the Jack.

We now look at the position where you and partner have nine cards between you in a suit.

Assume these holdings: Dummy (North)  AJ73 You (South)

 K9652

Four cards are missing and, although the likely break is 3:1 (49.7%) or 2:2 (40.7%), it is generally accepted that the Queen is likely to fall if you cash the Ace followed by the King.

Hence “Nine never”.

And so we have our general rule. But please remember that this is all it is and should be complied with subject to you taking care to consider some other factors.

Always recall any bids made by opponents before deciding which way to take a finesse. Should an opponent have opened four Hearts before you finish in a four Spade contract, then you know of eight cards held by opener and this fact may well influence how you choose to take a finesse.

Caution should also be exercised where an opponent has made an overcall which is announced as showing a minimum of 5:5 in two other suits.

An informative double made by an opponent could also assist you.

Count how many points are missing and decide where they are likely to be between opponents.

Defer taking a finesse – particularly in a side suit – until you have safely discovered as much information as possible about the other hands.

Becoming a Miss Marple or Sherlock Holmes will pay dividends.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

p ee u Fr gro ts A efi U3 ben

GROUP CRUISES It’s better all together on a Fred. Olsen cruise

With Fred. Olsen, you and the rest of your group can relax, happy that every aspect of your cruise has been taken care of, so all you have to do is enjoy it. Our more intimately sized ships suit group travel particularly well. In no time everyone feels right at home and able to make the most of the wonderful destinations we can take you to. For your convenience, our fleet sails from ten regional ports around the UK – and with transport options available too – your group holiday can start with ease from the very beginning. Why not try one of the cruises below and experience the Fred. Olsen difference for yourself?

Fjords, Mountains & Waterfalls

T he Seine & t he Cit ies of France

Waterways & Cit ies of Europe

In Search of the Northern Light s

From Dover

From Southampton

From Southampton

From Liverpool

Departs 17th Aug 2014 7 nights Braemar– M1423

Departs 3rd Oct 2014 7 nights Balmoral – L1414

Departs 24th Oct 2014 10 nights Balmoral – L1416

Departs 8th Nov 2014 16 nights Boudicca – D1420

£799pp Outside cabins from £899pp

£699pp Outside cabins from £799pp

£799pp Outside cabins from £949pp

£1,299pp Outside cabins from £1,499pp

Dover, scenic cruising (Lysefjord, Karmsundet, Akrafjord, & Langfoss waterfall), Flam (Norway), cruising Naeroyfjord, Olden (Norway), cruising Nordfjord, Bergen (Norway), Dover.

Southampton, scenic cruising River Seine, Rouen (for tours to Paris - France), cruising River Seine, Honfleur (France), La Rochelle (France), Southampton.

Southampton, Oslo (Norway – overnight in port), Amsterdam (Netherlands – overnight in port), Antwerp (Belgium – overnight in port), Southampton.

Liverpool, Alesund (Norway), inter-coastal scenic cruising, Tromso (2 days and 2 nights in port - Norway), Alta (2 days and overnight in port Finmark - Norway), Leknes (Lofoten Islands), inter-coastal scenic cruising, Kristiansund (Norway), Liverpool.

Inside cabins from

Inside cabins from

Inside cabins from

Inside cabins from

Group Leaders Travel Free or exchange for Free Onboard Spend Credit for your group.* • FREE car parking at the port or funding towards coach transfers to/from port.* • FREE U3A group drinks party on board.* • Private use of public areas on board for U3A meetings & activities.* • All inclusive drinks upgrade £10 pppn.*

• Group Dining Service* • Private U3A group shore tours on request.* • Assistance with U3A cruise promotion events & free promotional materials.* • Ship Visits in UK ports.*

2014/15 Worldwide brochure

out now!

For group bookings and enquiries, contact the award winning group sales department

01473 746169 or email group.sales@fredolsen.co.uk N WIN ER

Bringing the world closer to you

2013

Be

st

n C r u is e L i

e

Standard terms and conditions apply as per our website. The free place is allocated once the group passenger target is achieved, which ranges from 10 – 20 passengers depending on the cruise chosen, this is a free berth not a free cabin, free place terms and conditions apply. The value of the free place can be exchanged for free on board spend credit for your group, however cannot be offered as further discount. The free car parking relates to one free car parking voucher per cabin. The funding towards coach transfers relates to either National Express or Eavesway coaches or funding towards your own private coach transfers, subject to quotations. The free group drinks party on board is for hosted groups only.

Private group shore tours are charged at an additional fee and must be pre-arranged prior to departure. The group dining request must be arranged prior to departure.

ARTS

In ARTS this issue 54 Novel advice 54 Anne Boleyn’s places 56 Gielgud’s gaffes

57 Dame Laura Knight 57 Art and exhibitions

How not to write • Footsteps of a fated queen • Tactless tales • First woman RA

AABOOKS With her head tucked underneath her arm …

Don’t write this novel How not to write a novel by Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman (Penguin, £9.99.)

ASPIRING WRITERS of fiction often assume that because they have something interesting to say, or an interesting character to write about, they will write a good novel.

Not true: the key element is a gripping story, according to this useful and entertaining book, which all creative writing MA students at Bath University are instructed to read.

Subtitled “200 classic mistakes and how to avoid them”, it starts with the commonest mistake made by all would-be creative writers: lots of atmosphere and characterisation, not enough plot. A good novel, it says, begins with a sympathetic character who wrestles with a thorny problem. The character and his friends strain every nerve to solve the problem, with shocking developments and startling new information.

The plot of a novel that won’t get published, according to the authors, “introduces a protagonist, then introduces her mother, father, three brothers and her cat, giving each a long scene in which they exhibit their typical behaviours one after another.”

And you have to take the reader straight to the plot. This is the most important lesson any writer, in any medium, learns. Something must happen right at the start, or you lose your reader.

I was told it on a playwriting course at the City Lit; I was told it by editors when I wrote for newspapers. Even advertising copywriters must have it drummed into them.

This book offers illustrations of what happens when you get it wrong, in the form of extracts from novels which disobey the simple rules it lays down. These extracts are often hysterically funny in their sheer awfulness, much like a William McGonagall poem. If you are honest, your laughter is mixed with 54 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

In the footsteps of Anne Boleyn by Sarah Morris and Natalie Grueninger (Amberley, £20)

embarrassment, for every aspiring writer has written passages like some of these.

Where this book misleads its readers is in the underlying assumption that, so long as you follow the rules, your novel will get published by a mainstream publisher. Publishers and agents still see themselves as gatekeepers, and are still thoroughly inefficient gatekeepers, and the best thing about the growth of self– publishing is that it relieves them of that duty.

Still, this is a reliable and enjoyable introduction to the craft of writing fiction.

Francis Beckett

The plot of a novel that won’t get published introduces a protagonist, then introduces her mother, father, three brothers and her cat, giving each a long scene in which they exhibit their typical behaviours

GOING FROM “archetypal harlot, whore and homewrecker” to religious reformer and unfortunate victim of court power struggles, Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII and Queen of England for just a few years, met a tragic end yet left an unforgettable legacy on English history.

This queen has fascinated historians and history lovers – from her love story with Henry, his desire to divorce his first wife to marry her which was so strong it led to the creation of the Church of England; her unlucky pregnancies and birth of Elizabeth I; to her end, beheaded at the Tower of London in 1536.

This book is a visitor’s companion to the places where Anne lived and stayed; palaces, castles and houses as well as artefacts connected to her.

The book follows Anne’s life chronologically. Each location has its own entry which tells of its link to Anne as well as some history of the place, its current status and visitor information if relevant.

It has been meticulously researched to separate proven links from myths and anecdotal evidence, yet remains very readable. It includes places which WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

no longer exist as well as those that do, albeit often altered, and is accompanied by two sections of useful images and illustrations.

Every entry gives information about Anne’s connection to the place, when she visited and any important events which occurred there. Maps are provided at the beginning of the book. The book can be read as a timeline of Anne’s life or dipped into for individual properties, and would be useful to anyone with an interest in the Tudor period, not just Anne Boleyn. It also covers some

churches close to the sites listed.

This book is not confined to England. “In the summer of 1513, a young Anne Boleyn took leave of her parents in England, boarded a ship from Dover to Calais and in the process set out on the adventure of a lifetime”.

The book follows Anne in Europe before her return to the English Court. 500 years after Anne set off from Hever Castle, the reader can follow in her footsteps, but be warned – this book could easily start you travelling!

Susan Radford

GO/CTE

JOIN US in the Veneto next September Visit our websites

w w w. c t e s p a i n . n e t

w w w . c t e i t a l y. n e t

Our month-long programmes are known for their “content” and “lots of things to do” in four-star locations at reasonable prices, including both cultural, educational and physical activities

Vicenza Verona

Venice Padua

Phone: 01228-523724 01228-526795 Mail: 76 Croft Road, Stanwix, Carlisle CA3 9AG Email: sierasgold@hotmail.com WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 55

ARTS

pcoming art events U around the UK

AABOOKS The ugly one with the big nose

TATE BRITAIN

Gielgoodies – The Wit and Wisdom and Gaffes of John Gielgud compiled

by Jonathan Croall (Oberon, £8.99)

5 February – 27 April 2014

“HE’S ALMOST as big a bore as Eddie Knoblock,” said John Gielgud airily, before looking with horror at his lunch companion and adding: “I don’t mean you, of course, Eddie, the other Eddie Knoblock”.

That’s the most famous of the notorious Gielgud gaffes, for the great actor was an inveterate talker and the most innocently tactless of men. From anyone else, his advice to Nora Nicholson, who asked him during the run of Forty Years On where she might take a friend to dinner that night, might have been unforgivably snobbish: “There’s a local Chinese restaurant that’s very good for second class people,” he said, forgetting that he had taken her there the previous night.

Only so guileless a man have been forgiven for his instruction to Jill Bennett while he was directing Much Ado About Nothing: “You, girl, move to the right. No, not you. The ugly one with the big nose.”

But my personal favourite was to the actress Phyllis Calvert, to whom he called out across a crowded dressing room: “Goodbye, Phyllis. So glad the hysterectomy went well.”

This delightful little collection by Gielgud’s biographer Jonathan Croall includes not just the gaffes but the dreadful putdowns, the cleverness, and the sheer vulgarity of much of Gielgud’s conversation. No one who ever admired John Gielgud should be without it.

Francis Beckett 56 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Millbank, London SW1P 4RG Richard Deacon

Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech-ring

by Dame Laura Knight, 1943 © Imperial War Museum

AAART Dame Laura Knight 3A members heard at U first hand from an expert on the acclaimed artist

ANYONE WHO was not fortunate enough to visit the Dame Laura Knight exhibition at the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle-upon-Tyne or the National Portrait Gallery in London should note that the exhibition moves on to Plymouth in February and is well worth a visit.

During the Laing exhibition, U3A Northumbria region members enjoyed a talk by Dr. Barbara C. Morden who has just published her book Laura Knight, A Life. (McNidder & Grace ISBN 9780857160492) I recommend Barbara’s book to all lovers of Dame Laura Knight and her works as well as students of British art of the twentieth century.

She was a prolific painter during her long life. She was born in 1877 and died in 1970. In 1936 she became the first full woman member of the Royal Academy.

The exhibition at the Laing gave us an insight into the many diverse aspects of her painting. She specialised in children, landscape, ballet, gypsies, circus and was also a war artist at the Nuremberg Trials.

Laura Knight immersed herself in her work to the extent that she made friends and lived with her subjects.

Joyce Watts

Turner Prize winner and leading British sculptor Concession: £8.60 Ruin Lust 4 March – 18 May 2014 The use of ruins from the 17th century to the present day including works by Turner, Constable, John Martin and Rachel Whiteread.

Concession: £8.60

TATE MODERN Bankside, London SE1 9TG The EY Exhibition – Paul Klee Until 9 March 2014 One of the great innovators of 20th century art Concession: £13.10 Richard Hamilton 13 February – 26 May 2014 First retrospective for one of the founding figures of pop art whose works depict Mick Jagger, Marilyn Monroe, and Bing Crosby as well as Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair in Treatment Room and Shock and Awe Concession: £11.30

NATIONAL GALLERY Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DN Strange Beauty: Masters of the German Renaissance 19 February – 11 May 2014 Focuses on works by Hans Holbein the Younger, Dürer and Lucas Cranach the Elder Full price: £7.00. With a ticket to the Veronese exhibition – £5.00 Veronese: Magnificence in Renaissance Venice 19 March – 15 June 2014 One of the most significant, influential and beautiful artists of the Italian Renaissance in an exhibition of around 50 of his paintings.

Senior: £13.00. Only £7.00 on Tuesdays between 2.30 and 6pm WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

ARTS

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY St Martin’s Place, London WC2H 0HE The Great War in Portraits 27 February – 15 June 2014 Exhibition looking at the different roles, experiences and destinies of those caught up in the conflict as well as how a range of artists, such as Orpen, Rosenberg and Epstein, responded to the war.

Free Bailey’s Stardust 6 February – 1 June 2014 An exhibition of portraits by David Bailey, one of the world’s most famous and distinctive photographers Seniors: £13.00 or £12.00 on Wednesdays.

DULWICH PICTURE GALLERY Gallery Road, Dulwich Village, London SE21 7AD

Hockney, Printmaker 5 February – 11 May 2014 Concentrates on etching and lithography and includes A Rake’s Progress and Illustrations for Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm Senior: £10

Mondrian and his Studios: Abstraction into the World 6 June–5 October 2014 Concession: £7.50

PLYMOUTH CITY ART GALLERY Laura Knight Portraits 1 March to 10 May 2014 Free

TATE LIVERPOOL Albert Dock, Liverpool Waterfront, L3 4BB Art Turning Left: How Values Changed Making: 1789-2013 Until 2 February 2014 Examines how the production and reception of art has been influenced by left-wing values from the French Revolution to the present day Concession: £6.

KELVINGROVE ART GALLERY

Argyle Street, Glasgow G3 8AG Jack Vettriano Until 23 February 2014 The first major retrospective of his work ranging from 1992s Concession: £3 Gwen Wright

NATIONAL ART PASS

This pass can entitle to you free or discounted entry to many museums and art galleries around the UK. For full details of current membership prices: http://www.artfund.org

CROSSWORD SOLUTION ACROSS: 3 Battalion 8 Prop 9 Quartered 10 Nessum 11 Rehab 14 Aphid 15 Your 16 Senna 18 Duly 20 Robin 21 Daisy 24 Poured 25 Glamorgan 26 Hebe 27 Refreshed DOWN: 1 Spaniards 2 Household 4 Arum 5 Terse 6 Leeway 7 Oxen 9 Quads 11 Runny 12 Bombarded 13 Grenadier 17 Argon 19 Yammer 22 Sorts 23 Glee 24 Pale

Forever loved For being your best friend.

For making home feel like home.

For being there when you feel down.

For every stroke and every hug.

For all the love they give.

For Battersea.

Forever.

Please remember Battersea’s dogs and cats in your Will.

Send or call for your free information pack about leaving a gift in your Will.

Mr/Mrs/Ms/other Surname Address

First name

Postcode Telephone Please return to: Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, 4 Battersea Park Road, London SW8 4AA

or call 020 7627 9300

battersea.org.uk/forever

!

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Registered charity No. 206394 AA14

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 57

in

MYownWRITE

A roundup of some recent books by U3A members NON-FICTION Bronte acrostics Appeal Of Bells is a new book of puzzles by Watford U3A member June Arnold. It is based on the work of the Bronte sisters. The answers are in the back. Available priced £5.50 from the author at 89 Rickmansworth Road, Watford WD18 7JB. Ending the affair The latest guide by Tim Cornish of Liphook U3A is essential reading for anyone faced with divorce or separation. Lifeholder, Ending A Relationship contains comprehensive, jargon-free information on how to unravel a personal relationship.

Available at £9.95 from FastPrint publishing or from Amazon as a hardback or as an ebook.

Cemetery residents Norwich Lives; Selected Graves From Earlham Cemetery

by Françoise Donovan of Norwich U3A tells the story of people buried at Earlham cemetery in Norwich, between 1856 and 2010. It has 112 illustrations, costs £12 and is available at Waterstones or from the author: granouche40@gmail.com Hints for parents Dudley Jones of Maidenhead U3A has written Grandad’s Tips For Bringing Up Kids based on 40 years’ teaching in schools, university teacher training departments and experiences as a parent and WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Ian Saunders (right) with editor Bill Shannon at the launch of his book at the Lancaster University Centre for North-West Regional Studies

HISTORY OF MAPS Ian Saunders of Lancaster and Morecambe U3A has collected maps for 30 years. Enthusiasm for his topic and his adopted county shines through Printed Maps Of Lancashire: The First Two Hundred Years, a beautifully illustrated book packed with information about the physical creation of maps. Available from www.lancs.ac.uk/users/cnwrs at £19.95

grandparent. Available as an ebook for £3.42 or paperback for £4.99 from www. positiveparentingpress.co.uk

Village history Sweet Winston charts the history of a Teesdale village from Norman times.

Illustrated with maps and photographs including a Spitfire flying under Winston Bridge, the book is by Brian Clarke of Teesdale U3A and is currently supported

by The Heart of Teesdale Landscape Partnership. Sold

in aid of St. Andrew’s Church Roof Fund and available from 01325 730434 or sweetwinstonhistory@gmail. com, it costs £10 with £1.25 postage.

Convict’s stories When David Clark of Worcester U3A was mayor of the city he became interested in the people who had passed through the Guildhall cells.

Sentenced To Beyond The Seas is the true story of eight female convicts transported to Australia. Available from

davidkclark@sky.com for £8 plus £1.80 postage.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 59

in

MYownWRITE

Cultural history Peter Young of Crawley U3A has published Donkeys, Mules & Asses.

It deals mainly with the four-legged species with some references to the two-legged. Available as an ebook from Smashwords. com or other major internet retailers at £3+postage.

Children’s problems Ruth Brooks of Totnes U3A worked as a home tutor for 35 years. She uses her experience to illustrate some of the educational and social problems faced by countless children and their families in the first decade of the 21st Century. Nine Lives is available from Pen Press Publishing Ltd priced £9.99.

Evolution theory David Pitts of Elmbridge U3A has compiled an anthology of more than 100 questions based on the writings of scientists about the theory of evolution.

It’s called Test Questions on the Theory of Evolution and Associated Geo and Cosmo Chronology. It costs £3.50 plus postage and can be ordered from www.lulu.com.

Maintaining relationships Women & Relationships Made Easier discusses the difficulty of relationships between men and women.

Written by Dr Barrie Murray of Woking U3A, the book emphasises the importance and difficulties of remaining connected.

Available from Amazon for Kindle at £2.55 or in paperback at £6.75.

Elaine Bastable with Eleanor Bastable and Grace Bastable when she launched Recipes and Rhymes at Devonshire Primary School in Sutton, south London

CAKES AND VERSE Recipes And Rhymes is a highly unusual children’s cookery book by Elaine Bastable of Sutton U3A. It was first written for her children in 1975. All the recipes are thoroughly tested by children and involve real cooking skills. Illustrations by the late Margaret Gordon, who drew the Wombles. Available from Amazon for £12.99.

BIOGRAPHY

respected by criminals, used muscle to build his London ice-cream empire and became a millionaire. Available from Pomegranate Press at £7.99 inc p&p.

Rise of a Lady Jane Spencer of Rufford is the true story of Jane Spencer, the daughter of a Rufford tenant farmer who inherited vast wealth. Lynda Bond of South Lakes U3A sets the tale against a background of religious unrest in 17th century Lancashire. Available from Amazon at £7.70.

Street-level history Haddenham U3A member Geoffrey Pimm’s autobiography, The Giggle Band, tells of growing up in London after the blitz.

Available from Amazon as ebook and paperback.

60 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Gangster life Johnnie Johnson of Lewes U3A has written the life story of Eddie Blundell.

In Top-Drawer Villain he records how a businessman and gangster, much

Actress stories In 1958 U3A member Nina Rootes was living in Rome and working as an actress.

Adventures In The Movie Biz describes her adventures and misadventures with David Niven, Peter Ustinov, Joan Collins and others.

The book can be obtained from the author at 23 Clifton Court, Old Street, Ludlow SY8 1TZ. for £9.50 inc. p & p.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

2014 FREE GUIDE OUT NOW!

The Consumers Guide to Stairlifts!

Never a dull day Douglas J Findlay of Carlisle U3A reports on life as an Edinburgh taxi driver in his memoir Taxi. He encounters an extraordinary range of colourful characters and ends up in some very bizarre situations. Available from Amazon at £7.95.

Belief in the future Sarum U3A member Patricia Ann Blake moved from India to England and experienced family disloyalty, poverty and betrayal, always believing a better life was possible. Her autobiography, Footprints Of My Life is available from Baskerville Press, Salisbury, priced £9.99 Diary extracts Hazel Bell of Welwyn Hatfield U3A has published sections of the diary she wrote in 1949.

Aged Thirteen In Felpham 1949 is available at £6 from HKB Press, 139 The Ryde, Hatfield, Herts AL9 5DP. Jazz and history Drawing on a twin passion for jazz and books, award-winning literary historian Peter Keating of Edinburgh U3A traces his involvement with the jazz revivalist movement in 1950s. Autobiographical Tales costs £12.50 and is available from YPD Books, or from www.pjkeating.co.uk.

1950s sanatorium Bishop’s Stortford U3A member Chris Dell describes his experiences as a teenage patient in a tuberculosis sanatorium, taken from his daily diary entries, with over 100 photographs. His medical, social and personal record WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

INSIDE: Everything you need to know about virtually every Stairlift in the U.K.

A

t last. The UK’s first truly independent guide to stairlifts. Inside this 28 page colour booklet you will find everything you need to know about stairlifts, including :-

of the 1950s sanatorium experience is published by Stortford Documentation Services and available from Amazon and Waterstones at £7.99 (paperback) or £14.99 (hardback).

The huge difference a stairlift can make to your enjoyment of life (& those that live with you) How easy to operate and reliable the new modern stairifts are

NOW FREE

How neatly the new designs fit in and can be adapted to harmonise with your home’s surroundings

TRAVEL

STRAIGHT

Life on board East Dartmoor U3A member Margaret Marsh spent ten years travelling the world as the wife of the medical officer on a cruise ship.

Her book contains stories and photographs of her experiences on board and of some of the many places she visited. Tales Of A Cruise Ship is available from Matador Press priced £8.99

CURVED?!

Travels in Africa Adrienne Brady of Poole U3A set off in a 4x4 from a base in Dubai to explore the mountains, deserts and remote coastal regions of the Emirates and Oman.

Way South Of Wahiba Sands: Travels With Wadiman is published by Austin Macauley and available as a paperback for £12.99, or ebook at £3.99.

WAS £4.99

OR

What design features are available in terms of Safety, Comfort, Accessibility, Compactness and ease of operation How quick and easy it is to fit a stairlift – no matter how complex the stair layout The traps to avoid when buying a stairlift A comprehensive listing of all the major makes and models in the U.K. along with design options and special features How and where to get the best deals inc. reconditioned & renting options

For your FREE Stairlift Guide FREEPHONE

0800 074 3961

Lines open 8am-8pm Monday - Friday & 10am-4pm Weekends (Quote SL546EV)

OR POST TO: Mobility Aid Information Service (SL546EV) FREEPOST LON15651, London SE1 1BS or request details at www.mobinfo.co.uk

Please send me my FREE Consumers Guide

THIS BOOK WILL ONLY BE SENT TO THOSE APPLICANTS WHO SUPPLY THE CORRECT INFORMATION TO ALL SECTIONS MARKED IN BLOCK CAPITALS

MR/MRS/MISS ADDRESS

D.O.B D D M M Y Y TELEPHONE/MOBILE NUMBER (we cannot despatch without all details)

POSTCODE

PLACE THIS COUPON IN ENVELOPE & FREEPOST TO: Mobility Aids Information Service (SL546EV) FREEPOST LON15651, London SE1 1BS

The information we send you will be from our authorised associate for your area. If you do not wish to receive additional information by mail, phone, or otherwise please advise.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 61

in

MYownWRITE

Views of Norwich Aspects Of Greater Norwich is a collaborative project

by Norwich U3A. Lavishly illustrated, the book showcases many interesting and unusual views of the city. It can be bought from Norwich U3A.

Ireland on horseback In Dingle Peggy Hilary Bradt tells the story of a part of her 1,000-mile journey by horseback. She meanders across Kerry, Cork, Waterford and Limerick, reporting on the wild and beautiful landscapes of western Ireland and the generous, hospitable characters she meets. Written with warmth, humour and unflinching honesty, this is a wonderful story for those interested in Ireland, horses or travel writing. The book is available from the author (www.bradtguides.com ) priced £9.99.

FICTION Malayan story New Beginnings is a novel set in the mid 1800s during the Opium Wars and Taiping Rebellion. Written by Chan Ling Yap of Princes Risborough

U3A, it tells the story of one man’s plight and rise in fortune in British Malaya. Available from on-line distributors and bookstores at £9.99.

Life on Hope Richard Cullyer of Monks Brook U3A has written The Mysteries Of Hope – part police investigation and part science fiction. It is a story about how ordinary lives are distorted by extreme circumstance and the unstoppable tides of history.

Available as an ebook from Amazon for £2.80.

Georgian romance Jay Margrave of Guildford U3A proposes the idea of an early and controversial love affair that may have coloured Jane Austen’s life and writing.

Love And Loyalty is available direct from Goldenford Publishers Ltd, www. goldenford.co.uk, Amazon or local bookshops, price £7.99 Children’s story Pabi Beats The Burglars is written in English with a strong Welsh feel for children in the 7-11 age group. Magical and packed with excitement, it is available from the author, Ann Caryl Fisher, a member of Cowbridge, Garth Olwg and Bridgend U3As, at 10 Heol Isaf Hendy, Miskin, Nr. Pontyclun, Mid Glam, CF72 8QS. Cost £3.99 with free postage.

Coming home M. E. Metcalfe of Oban U3A has written Homecoming, a novel based broadly on his own experience transitioning from northern England to Scotland. It is available from orcabookservices.co.uk, priced £7.99.

62 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Future Worlds Hessle U3A member Robert Middlebrooke has written A Political And Economic History Of Teleportation. This science fiction novel explores the impact teleportation would have on a future world.

Available as an ebook on Amazon Kindle.

Complicated romance The Contessa’s Last Dance

by Barnet U3A member Irene Panter is an endearing historical romance drawing heavily on a conversation with Dame Barbara Cartland.

Available from Janus publishing, priced £9.99.

Cats for children Three Cat Tales is written

by John Staley of Malvern U3A, with illustrations by Liz O’Sullivan. The stories are written for children aged three to five and each story reflects the behaviour of a real cat.

Illustrated in full colour and available from the publisher (www.aspect-design.net), from bookshops, or via Amazon at £6.

POETRY Wartime poems The poems of Kay Macaulife have been edited and collated by her daughter, Hazel Bell of Welwyn Hatfield U3A. Verses From The ’Forties is available at £5 from HKB press, 139 The Ryde, Hatfield AL9 5DP.

Spirit of amazement Sandcastles Do Not Fall is a collection of poetry by Chesterfield U3A member Godfrey Holmes. The poems are inspired by his return to East Yorkshire and are illustrated by his own photographs. Available from Nethermoor Books for £4.50, with all proceeds going to St Patrick’s Church, Patrington.

Comic verse Paul Fox of Stafford U3A has published his fifth book of poetry. Strangled Egg And Dalek Bread is a mixture of farce, tragedy and some of the worst puns in the English language. It is available from Abbey Books at abbeyboo@hotmail.co.uk at £3.99. Profits will go to the Katharine House Hospice in Stafford.

Senior collection Odes And Prose For Older Women explores life experiences and observations in a funny and light-hearted way. Written by Diana Wells of Milton Keynes U3A, the book is available from www. fast-print.net/bookshop, bookshops or direct from the author dianewells@ btinternet.com.

A life in verse Tewkesbury U3A member Robin Norton has chosen verse as the medium for his autobiography, Songs Of Life And Love. Copies are available for £10 plus £2 p&p from the author at 1 Laughton’s Cottage, Moorend, Hartbury GL19 3DG or robinpnorton@ btinternet.com WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

LETTERS

In LETTERS this issue 64 Choosing to die 66 Resuscitation 68 Missing men 69 Ladies and language

70 Cover picture 70 Prisons 70 Music 71 Drink

END OF LIFE DEBATE • TO RESUSCITATE OR NOT • THE LADIES ARE NOT AMUSED

Whose life is it?

Readers continue to respond to Marion Bolton’s letter about choosing the time of her death, and to other views it elicited.

A FAMILY STORY Because of our family history I have followed the debate about “assisted dying” with much interest. I would like to reply to Wenefride Nelson (Letters, Winter).

Your Catholic faith tells you that God alone decides when we should die. However, the world and our views about “assisted dying” have changed and will continue to do so.

About 90 years ago my great-uncle George, after killing hundreds, possibly thousands, of other human beings, came back to the village where he was born, pinned his medals on his shirt and blew his brains out.

In those days suicide was a crime. The village was deeply divided.

Religious folk upheld the law and condemned George as a criminal.

Ordinary folk thought he was a hero and the law should be changed, and began to campaign for that.

Some 60 years later, my sister-inlaw, suffering from unemployment, drowned herself. By then suicide was no longer a crime and, unlike George, she was allowed to be buried in an ordinary graveyard.

More and more places now treat “assisted dying” as a human right for the terminally ill. One day, despite the opposition of some churches and 64 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

a minority of the population, people will not have to go to a room in Switzerland to die in dignity.

Until then, perhaps you and your church may be able to soothe the troubled brow of John, my son-in law. You maintain that “the

longer than it would have been if we had left it to God? So why can doctors not give help at the end of life, if it is requested by the person they have been keeping alive?

JUDY JAMES WIMBORNE U3A

direct and voluntary killing of an innocent human being is always gravely immoral.”

John lives in the USA. His job is to send drones to Afghanistan. They kill hundreds of innocent women and children. Should John give up his job?

Authority or argument?

The end-of-life debate has been of an extremely high standard. Arguments were well reasoned, acknowledged their own shortcomings, and were made sensitively and at times poignantly.

However, I make an exception of Wenefride Nelson’s contribution.

It consists of a list of statements without any evidence or argument to substantiate them, instead relying on the authority she sees in the Catholic Church, “The Commandment” and “God”.

I find the analogy with “the lives of criminals” disingenuous. Would it not show more respect to allow people to make their own choice?

Ms Nelson is perfectly entitled to her views, to live her life in accordance with them and indeed to air them.

However, there is no authority for them to be imposed on others.

ROBERT SMITH SHEFFIELD U3A

GORDON AGNEW FIFE U3A

Why have doctors?

Wenefride Nelson states: “God alone has the power over life and death”, which prompts the question: why do we have doctors? How many of us take medication to make our life

Change the law I wonder if the U3A as a national body could lobby for a change in the law beyond Lord Falconer’s bill to give individuals the right to bow out when they feel ready.

Drones kill hundreds.

So if direct and voluntary killing of an innocent human being is always gravely immoral, should members of the armed services give up their jobs?

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

I think the risk of offspring trying to polish off their elderly relatives so as to inherit sooner is greatly exaggerated, and this seems to be the only serious counter-argument.

Imposing religious beliefs on those who do not share them is unacceptable.

ANNE ANDREWS SE LONDON U3A

A counsel of despair Euthanasia, the intentional ending of a person’s life in order to prevent suffering, seems to me a counsel of despair and a miserable, negative way to end one’s life.

Various correspondents have painted a picture of family members serenely standing by while someone is peacefully killed. I wonder how people would really feel about partaking in such an event – watching someone who is helplessly demented or in pain being put to death. Would they not feel that they had failed in some way?

I can envisage a situation where a family would be divided about whether this is the way to treat one of its members.

Euthanasia is contrary to what doctors and allied professionals are trained to do, which is not to kill but

to support life. “Right to die” laws will surely reduce that commitment, as well as require them to be retrained: killing someone must be done tidily and in response to specific indications.

Perhaps there should be a new speciality in medicine, with doctors knowledgeable enough to ensure that all social, legal and medical conditions have been met.

MARGARET SEALEY DORRIDGE U3A

Euphemism not euthanasia Why are so many people jumping on to this terrifying bandwagon of euthanasia? I for one will not have

We don’t give short-term aid but give people the resources and knowledge to help themselves and to grow their own food.

By providing livestock, seeds, training and support we help families leave poverty and hunger behind for good.

Challenge yourself this year - with every step, you’ll be fighting hunger across Africa

56 or 100km 24/25 May

25, 50 or 100km 28/29 June

56 or 100km 23/24 August

25, 50 or 100km 13/14 September Registered Charity Number 299717

www.sendacow.org.uk/hungerhikes WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 65

LETTERS

the discussion until honest language is used, but I suspect that, if it were, people would think very differently.

Killing another person is not “assisted suicide”; it’s killing. It is not the right to die that is being called for but the right to kill; at present, the right to murder.

The right to commit suicide was enshrined in English law in 1961. If one is too incapacitated to commit suicide by taking pills or whatever, one still has the right and ability to refuse food. “But how horrible,” people say and, in effect, they are calling for the right to die in a manner of our choice. Why? We have no right to be conceived, born, brought up and educated, to get married, have children, not get cancer, etc.

We should always be concerned about euphemisms. Look where the

DO NOT RESUSCITATE

“Final Solution” ended up.

Does Edgar’s urgent plea to Gloucester in King Lear no longer have any meaning? “Men must endure/Their going hence, even as their coming hither” – and this in Shakespeare’s most despairing play.

ALISON R NOYES SHEPWAY & DISTRICT

Those left behind Thank you for all the letters you published on the right to die. I found them very interesting. However, none of your correspondents took into account the feelings of those members of the family that are left behind.

Remorse and guilt, I should imagine, would probably be with them for the rest of their lives.

LIZ FELDMAN HARROW U3A

I am anxious about routine defibrillation, from which I was able to protect my late husband on several occasions.

Years ago, suffering from an erratic heartbeat, he was transferred to Killingbeck Hospital in Leeds, where doctors stabilised him within a week. He was sent home to await an operation in about six weeks and, in the meantime, was referred to our local Warfarin clinic.

He had been told that the operation would stop his heart and start it again, so he asked: “Now, when your heart stops you are dead. Is that right?” The doctor agreed. My husband said, “Right, that settles it. I’m not going to die twice.” He rang Killingbeck and refused the operation.

Got a new toy for Christmas?

Let the U3A book series show you how to get the most out of it

978-1

-119-9

4155-2

978-0

-470-6

8702-4

978-0

-470-6

8596-9

978-0

-470-6

8640-9

978-1

-118-8

3329-2

For more information and to see all of the Older & Wiser books, and for support with any tech issues, go to www.pcwisdom.co.uk e-books also available online

66 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

LETTERS

Times have changed and defibrillation has become routine.

Jennifer Worth of Meet the Midwife discusses DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) in her book In the Midst of Life but it is not a topic of general discussion. I believe the frail and old stand a better chance of a sweet release if they are in a nursing home. There the GP and others concerned can agree to endorse the nursing record DNR. Some people have made living wills, stating that, in the event of illness, they do not wish to be snatched back from a natural death. Where are these

TM

documents deposited? If someone who has made such a will collapsed while in town, he would be defibrillated though he was unable to protest.

Even if his GP had marked his records DNR, who would check that at the scene of collapse?

I knew an elderly lady whose frail ribs were broken by resuscitation. She died in great pain three days later. I know a man, now 90, whose health is a continual source of suffering.

Following a critical relapse he was revived and a pacemaker fitted. Why? If he cannot die of heart failure,

Call FREE 0800 014 9895 or 0116 242 5533

the future is electric

TM

www.fischer-futureheat.co.uk Wirelessly Controlled

The unique Fischer 40mm chamotte clay core for extended storage, reducing energy wastage.

Warmer 10% OFF

Buy NOW Pay NEXT

Exclusive 40mm Clay Core

Quality German Product

Controllable Heat

Slimline, Low Input, Smart Heaters

Complete Satisfaction Guaranteed*

10 Year Manufacturer Guarantee

†

SUMMER

Fischer is unique - BEWARE of imitations Fischer-Future Heat UK, The Waterfront, 19-20 North Mills, Leicester, LE3 5DH

• Direct from the manufacturer • Economy 7, Solar PV compatible • Feet, castors or wall mounted • Instant heat for one room or the whole house • Modern 110mm slimline design • Control your room temperature with our modern, wireless, intelligent room thermostat for total comfort

* If our heater does not heat your room to the desired temperature, we will replace it free of charge. † Subject to status ‡Refers to energy usage when used with our electronic thermostat over a 24 hour period as per independent tests in the UK, conducted by BSRIA.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

LOUIE CARR CHARNWOOD U3A

Replace your night storage heaters with LOW INPUT modern, instant, Smart Fischer Storage Heaters.

Take control of your heating for total comfort with the most efficient German storage radiator on the market.

Winter

what further complications must he suffer while other parts of his anatomy struggle on?

The NHS and public opinion have been in a state of confusion for over a generation. We intervene on incomplete tiny babies and arrange for them a lifetime of disability and unknown suffering. We would not do this to our pets. We complain about old-aged bed-blockers, whom we rarely nurse in our homes. We have come to expect someone to keep them alive, even if it is painful and distressing.

If defibrillation was imminent, would emergency staff search for a card indicating choice? I suggest a permanent message on the chest and perhaps the wrist. DNR would suffice.

To request your free catalogue...

Simply complete your details below, cut out and pop into an envelope with this address: FREEPOST FISCHER FUTURE HEAT. No stamp or address required. Or call us on FREEPHONE 0800 014 9895, quoting U3A15JAN Name: Address: Post Code:

Telephone/Mobile:

Your information will not be sold or exchanged to a third party.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 67

LETTERS A man’s place

Why do fewer men than women join the U3A? asked Catherine Ware

WHERE ARE THE MISSING MEN?

and above by a ratio of seven to four.

The answer to why there are fewer men than women in U3A must be, at least in part, that the “missing” men are either still at work or dead.

MALCOLM BURN GLOUCESTER U3A

Your correspondents discussing why there are fewer men than women in the U3A (Letters, Winter) appear to assume that there is a “natural” ratio of one to one. This ignores demography.

Women on average live longer than men and consequently at age 60 and above there are five women for every four men.

Moreover, people do not normally join the U3A until they have finished paid employment and started retirement. On average, men retire later than women. Women aged 60 and above outnumber men aged 65

Who needs them?

Men are not “joiners-in” or “doers”.

Ladies are out there attending meetings, going to the theatre, concerts, get-togethers and so on. Who are conspicuous by their absence? The male of the species.

They only seem to be comfortable where it is a “men only” situation. Is this a hangover from Victorian times?

Have men not moved on?

One will find men on the golf course – mainly in male groups – and men attend exercise classes. As for

European & Worldwide Escorted Tours for Groups 2014 Why choose Riviera Travel?

Join the clubs – men are to be found in male groups on the golf course anything else – forget it!

So why expect many men in the U3A? VERA TURNBULL REDBRIDGE & DISTRICT U3A

Targeting the right men Arnold Edward hit the nail on the head when he identified two kinds of men whom we should target – successful career types and those widowed or divorced.

In York U3A we have an excellent group called “Science and Society” which is very largely made up of the first type (retired engineers and academics, etc.) and attracts a

Unbeatable Value, such as four days in Bruges from only £259pp Personally selected hotels delivering the quality your group deserves An extensive programme of excursions included in the holiday price No hidden extras and a ‘No Surcharge’ guarantee Regional flights & rail departures for your convenience Award Winning tours with unbeatable service A friendly, professional and knowledgeable tour manager escorts every tour Full financial protection through ABTA and ATOL Independent for 30 years

A short break? A longer tour?

Travel Awards 2013 Best Large Operator Runner-Up Riviera Travel, New Manor, 328 Wetmore Road, Burton On Trent, Staffordshire DE14 1SP

68 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Call today and see just how your next group adventure could be a Riviera Travel escorted tour.

Call 01283 744326 Visit www.utariviera.co.uk Email privategroups@rivieratravel.co.uk (QuoteU0114)

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

LETTERS The ladies aren’t retiring David LeFebvre wondered what “the ladies” made of bad language in TAM (Winter 2013.) Here’s his answer.

DON’T SPEAK FOR US I am amazed that you published the self-aggrandising and patronising letter from Mr Lebvre. I salute him for his military service but not for detailing it all to bolster his arguments.

He is entitled to dislike the language of another contributor and to say so.

But he is not entitled to refer to female members of U3A as Lady Members as if we were some alien species and he is not entitled to comment on our behalf.

He is quite right – he can’t imagine

predominantly male membership.

We also have a flourishing IT group with a lot of male members. I believe that some of the second type are also members of these two groups. So we are doing our bit to attract these types of men.

GRAHAM COLLETT YORK U3A

what we would think, and should stick to speaking for himself.

ANTHEA MAYBURY ELY U3A

Bless his heart I’m a 78-year-old woman (not “lady” – that’s someone who’s married to a lord) and was highly amused by David Le Febvre’s letter regarding bad language.

Bless his heart for being so concerned about female sensibilities!

If, like me, you’re a modern indie film buff, you become quite used to hearing profanity, and as long as it’s not inserted gratuitously but is in keeping with context and character, is it really so shocking?

I’m much more appalled by violence.

HELENA NEWTON REDBRIDGE & DISTRICT U3A

Enjoy Great British & Continental Railway Journeys with Railtrail Tours A selection of just some of our Railtrail quality escorted holidays by train...

Spectacular Switzerland Stunning lakeside & mountain hotels Departs: 9 & 22 June, 27 Sept 9 days from £2210

Florence, Pisa & Montecatini

Relax and discover magical Tuscany Departs: 12 Apr, 17 May, 7June 8 days from £1399

Lancashire - King Cotton, Coal & Canals Ships, towpaths, steam trains & trams Departs: 14 Apr, 14 May, 11 June, 13 Aug, 10 Sept 5 days from £499

Harz Mountains Steam The Jewel of Germany Glorious scenery & medieval folklore

Departs: 26 Apr, 19 July, 4 Oct 7 days from £999

Queen of Scots

St Tropez & Monte Carlo

Discover the glorious Highlands Departs: 19 May, 7 July, 8 Sept 8 days from £1095

The sensational French Riviera by rail Departs: 3 Apr, 1 May, 5 June, 25 Sept 8 days from £1115

Canals, Steam & Historic Chester

Amazing steam railways & lake cruises

Swiss Mountain Steam

Departs: 9 & 30 July, 13 & 27 Aug, 10 Sept 8 days from £1670

Roman to golden industrial heritage Departs: 17 Apr, 15 May, 19, June, 18 Sept, 16 Oct 5 days from £515

To request your Railtrail Tours brochure and to book …

Association of European Rail Agents

ASSOCIATION of EUROPEAN RAIL AGENTS

RTL U3A half Page January 2014 ad.indd 1

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

02/01/2014 14:06

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 69

LETTERS DRUMBEATS OF WAR The image of the veteran soldier on the cover of the Summer TAM continues to create controversy.

CHARACTERFUL AND CHEERY I thought the much-discussed cover was characterful and cheery, and loved it. We should have a wide range of images presented. I also do believe that the term “old codger” can be quite affectionate: certainly I might use it in that way in describing an elderly person, with due care for their feelings of course!

ANTHEA MAYBURY ELY U3A

A brave man Take a look at the old soldier pictured on the cover of the Summer issue. His medals are as follows: The 1939/45 Star, showing at least six months’ operational service; the Africa Star, with the clasp “8th Army”, for service in North Africa 1942/43; the Italy Star, for active service in the Italian campaign; the Defence Medal, which could also be awarded to civilians such as firemen.

Fnally, the Victory Medal – in this case with an Oak Leaf, meaning that he was mentioned in dispatches.

His cap badge shows that he served with the East Yorkshire Regiment, which took part in the battles at Mersa Matruh and El Alamein, where the enemy was Rommel’s Afrika Korps.

The regiment then took part in the invasion of Sicily in 1943, prior to the invasion of the Italian mainland.

He deserves our thanks for his, as do all old soldiers and members of the other armed services, for helping to fight tyranny in the 1939-45 war.

He must now be at least 90 years old, so thank you, old soldier.

RAY PEARCE CASTLE BROMWICH U3A 70 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Insult I consider the letter from Graham Osborn-King an insult to those who gave their lives and still suffer the effects of service in the Second World War. I too am one of his old codgers who gave five years in the service of my country, and judging from the medals worn by the veteran on the TAM cover, in the same theatres of war, North Africa and Italy. Mr O-K is able to live in relative peace, and not under the Nazis, because of the sacrifices of many men and women.

H. L. ANDERSON THORPE BAY U3A

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT I was interested to read the article Taking U3A into Britain’s prisons (Autumn).

I have been offering a course in Christchurch U3A for the past ten years on “Crime and society – human behaviour” with an average attendance of 35 members. I arrange presentations from various professionals and take the group on visits to prisons and courts.

Understanding the true causes of crime remains a difficult problem.

Why do crime rates rise and fall? Why are they higher in some areas than in others? Why are some groups more prone to crime than others? In short, why do people behave the way they do?

Members come to the group with strong opinions, obtained mainly through the media. The knowledge and experience gained in the group and shared with other members, modifies some of these attitudes.

NORMAN RICHARDS PRESIDENT, CHRISTCHURCH U3A

FOREGROUND MUSIC? I am a 77-year-old female, fit and well, living with my 80-year-old husband of 56 years. We watch more television now we’re older. I am very troubled by background music. It spoils the

programme, being far too intrusive. It’s often playing behind the commentary.

I know from letters in papers, magazines and TV programmes like You Say that other folk feel the same.

Nothing seems to happen.

Are there members of U3A who have worked in the TV industry and can say why background music is so loud?

Where in the chain of command is the music decision made? Is it the workexperience young person with his ears attuned to headphones from birth?

In the days of silent movies a pianist’s music was needed as a commentary on the film, and there is still great movie music. TV needs something different.

As we pan across the African savannah, or wonder at stunning carvings, high up in some cathedral, that we could never see when visiting in person, there could be several seconds’ silence.

Music is unnecessary; the words and pictures show it.

On the other hand, sometimes the music is so enjoyable that I start to listen, and forget the programme.

Has anyone any advice on the best place to send letters?

ANN PAYNTER RUSHDEN & HIGHAM U3A

AA Several members have written on this subject to the director general of the BBC, and had replies and promises of improvement; and former chairman Ian Searle took it up on behalf of the U3A. Recently a new DG has been appointed, Tony Hall, and you could do worse than make your case to him – EDITOR.

THE U3A IMAGE Why is the U3A movement growing so fast if the TAM image is wrong (Letters, Winter)? How are new members recruited? How many non-members read the magazine?

Everybody has to learn that one’s age bears no direct relation to one’s mental ability.

The letter from the 85-year-old WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

LETTERS

teacher bears this out and is reinforced by the article in the same issue reporting that regular volunteers in the 70-85 age group have younger biological profiles than those aged 58-69 who volunteer less often.

So, if someone is put off becoming a U3A member by the image, do we want them before they are mature enough to appreciate us?

DAVID FEATHER WEST WILTS U3A

THE ICEBERG IN THE DRINK A. A. Allsop (Letters, Winter) clearly does not know how alcohol affects old people. It is a hidden problem.

I worked for 15 years for a drug and

A U3A VOICE?

alcohol agency, and during that time an everincreasing number of middle-aged and old people referred themselves to us because they felt they had an alcohol problem.

These were only the tip of the iceberg. Many men and women contacted us because an elderly family member was drinking too much. We could do little but offer advice. The person concerned has to recognise that they have a problem. We only treated those who admitted that.

We knew of many old people who were drinking much more than the recommended units but did not come forward.

I have always agreed that the U3A should not be involved in politics or religion, but a recent Parliamentary Outreach event, chaired by our conference speaker John Bercow, has changed my mind.

The focus of the meeting was to encourage both individuals and groups to use their access to MPs and parliamentary committees to influence issues being debated in Parliament.

I feel sure that the U3A, with its thousands of members and with the support and encouragement of the Third Age Trust, could be a powerful, though non-political, influence on behalf of the ageing population on such matters as the Care Bill and forthcoming debates on

DUSTY ROADES BUCKINGHAM U3A

SINGLE TRAVELLERS! 8 Days Moscow & St Petersburg from £1850

Experience the breathtaking wonders of Russia's two main cities staying in high class centrally located hotels and travelling by train between the two cities. Moscow’s imposing architecture of St Basil’s Cathedral, Red Square, the Kremlin, the ornate Metro system and the Circus. St Petersburg, the city of the Romanov Tsars; The Hermitage Art Museum, the suburban palaces of Pavlovsk and Peterhof and the opportunity to see the ballet.

Day 1 – Fly to Moscow Fly to Moscow for a 3 night stay in a 5 star hotel in the heart of the city.

Day 2 – Moscow city tour & State Circus See Red Square, Theatre Square, and the White House, Christ the Saviour Cathedral, Novodevichy Convent and the Sparrow Hills on the city tour.

Lunch is included then time on Red Square.

After dinner the Moscow State Circus.

Day 3 – The Kremlin and the Armoury, Red Square and Metro The Kremlin houses a unique museum complex with churches and bell towers. You will enter the Cathedral of the Assumption and have a guided tour of the Armoury where personal items of the Tsars (such as Fabergé eggs) are displayed.

Pay your respects in Lenin’s Mausoleum before an afternoon tour of some of Moscow’s most opulent Metro stations.

Day 4 – Moskva River cruise, high speed train to St Petersburg Morning scenic cruise on the Moskva River followed by a cookery class to make delicious Russian dumplings (Pelmeni) with lunch included. In the afternoon board the high speed Sapsan train to St Petersburg for a 4 night stay in a 4 star hotel.

Day 5 – Guided city tour, the Peter & Paul Fortress & St Isaac’s Cathedral Your city tour by coach will take in all the highlights of St Petersburg including the Peter & Paul Fortress (which houses the burial crypt of the Romanovs’) Dinner in a local city centre restaurant.

Day 6 – State Hermitage Museum A guided tour of the State Hermitage Museum with its elaborate interiors and lavish art and architecture. The afternoon is free in the Hermitage or to relax on the Nevsky Prospect (the main street in the city). After your evening meal there is the opportunity to attend a beautiful classical ballet.

Day 7 – Catherine the Great’s Palace and Amber Room A journey to the Tsars Village to see the Catherine’s Palace, including the breathtaking world famous Amber Room. This evening a farewell champagne dinner in a unique local restaurant.

Day 8 – Peter the Great’s Summer Palace Before flying home you still have a full day in St Petersburg which will be spent at the ‘Russian Versailles’ of Petrodvorets (interiors and gardens) before flying back to the UK. A fitting end to a wonderful stay in two magnificent cities.

4 departures in 2014: April, May, July and September.

To book or request a brochure call 01760 or visit www.onetraveller.co.uk WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

722 011

All our holidays include: Your own spacious room ■ Knowledgeable local guides ■ Small group sizes ■ Scheduled flights ■ Fully escorted by expert ■ Meals, excursions, porterage Tour Managers and extra touches Our small group escorted holidays are put together with mature single travellers in mind and you are never left on your own (unless you so choose). We lead holidays to Europe, Russia, Thailand, China, Sri Lanka and the USA. ■

9718

BOOK WITH 100% CONFIDENCE Fully Bonded | Fully Protected

One Traveller Ltd, Swaffham, Norfolk PE37 7FD

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 71

LETTERS

pensioners’ entitlements.

Northumbria Region is currently in discussion with the Parliamentary Outreach team about arranging a joint event in the North on the theme of “Intergenerational Understanding of Democracy” and/or “The Responsibility to Use the Vote”.

Such an event will hopefully give members the interest and confidence to be more involved in future issues, making their voices heard on behalf of the wider population.

GWEN DAWE WEARSIDE U3A NORTH EAST REGIONAL TRUSTEE

THANKS TO THE CALL-UP In reference to “Recalling the CallUp” (Autumn): my National Service was deferred while I was still studying then, at 23, I was called up. Most of us gained much from being in the services. For many it was the first time we had left home, and it made us stand on our own feet.

A few went into National Service with the firm intention of not liking the experience – and they didn’t. For them it was two years wasted.

For my part, I learned much. The Army paid for my evening classes so I could complete my studies for technical institution membership.

Indeed, I stayed on in the Army to do so, a total of almost three years’ service. I wouldn’t have missed the opportunity, but neither would I have wanted to sign on as a regular.

The country lost much when National Service ceased; those two years turned boys into men!

NORMAN RHODES RICKMANSWORTH & DISTRICT U3A

ACRONYM WARNING In the Chairman’s report (U3A AGM, Winter) I read that “The NEC had faced difficult times”. Why, I wondered, were the U3A concerned about the difficulties of the National 72 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Exhibition Centre? Over the page I found the answer in a picture caption: NEC stands for National Executive Committee.

One of our new members was also confused by this, and felt that the tone was not welcoming. However frustrating it may be to those in the know, it is useful to write a title in full when it is first mentioned.

KEITH THOMASSON TRING U3A

CLOUDS AND CONFIDENTIALITY Jack Luxon (Letters, Winter) appears to be boasting about his use of the cloud to save his data, except for his own confidential information.

He does not mention where he might keep the confidential information that others might share with him.

Unless he can convince me that he

I would prefer to keep the keys to my own filing cabinet, and not let the locksmith have them unless he asks.

ANDY PEPPERDINE BATH U3A

VOLUNTEERING: A TWO-WAY STREET Was it coincidental that your article stating that “people who volunteer regularly are healthier than those who do not” (News, Winter) was placed next to one on lonely older people?

In my experience if you volunteer for activities in your local community you make more friends. Should you be unfortunate enough to lose a partner or become housebound, you have the support and friendship of other volunteers.

It takes an effort to go out and join a volunteer group, but nearly all such organisations are desperate for volunteers and welcome newcomers.

There are a lot of people in the same position as you, who will understand your misgivings. It is a two-way process: you are giving something back to the community and in return you will gain new friends.

JENNIE HOLLINS EAST GRINSTEAD U3A

POPPIES AND EXPLOITATION would treat that with similar caution, I would be wary of him reviewing my new book before it is ready for publication; or collaborating on research involving personal medical histories; or having him on a sports team where tactics against an opponent are discussed; or working on a new commercial product before competitors hear of it.

There are numerous good reasons to keep things securely, and the cloud gives no real control over how the data may be used, whatever the terms and conditions may say now, because they often contain clauses that allow the cloud supplier to change them at will.

I agree with John Roberts (Letters, summer) about the advertisements by the Bradford Exchange on “poppy items” – and the fact that they ride on the coattails of or servicemen without contributing a single penny to the poppy appeal.

I was so enraged that I contacted the legal team of the Royal British Legion. They told me they are working with trading standards on the Bradford Exchange advertisements, and have asked me to send them all similar advertisement I see by the Bradford Exchange.

ANDUISE HAMILTON BRUCE MILTON KEYNES U3A (And secretary of the Royal British Legion North Bucks Group) WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

City

explore

esCape

tour

festive

COASTtoCOAST News from U3As. See more at www.u3a.org.uk/u3as-in-action

DORRIDGE “Imagine an 18th-century dining room.

Some gentlemen have just finished dinner. It is Matthew Boulton’s Soho House in Birmingham and the year is 1780 – the heyday of the Lunar Society.” Thus the science group of Dorridge U3A began their re-enactment (above) of the Lunar Society meeting to 160 members.

The aim was to bring back to life the science that helped to establish the Industrial Revolution. At the meeting were Boulton, Erasmus Darwin, James Watt, Josiah Wedgwood, Joseph Priestley and James Kier. Each character

demonstrated his inventions, using laboratory equipment loaned by local schools.

WORCESTER U3A’s audio-visual group assembles pictures and sound into narrative sequences. Andrew Gagg’s Men of Iron, about a building by the Spanish architect Gaudí, recently won the Central and East Midlands Region Institute of Amateur Cinematographers’ Rose Bowl trophy.

REIGATE & REDHILL U3A held a series of events called “An evening with …”, showcasing

74 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

the work of its groups, always with an element of audience participation. Leaders of the language and wine appreciation groups collaborated in events exploring the culture, food and wine of France and Spain. “On the Street Where You Live”, presented by local history groups, celebrated the 150th anniversary of the incorporation of the borough of Reigate and District. There were evenings of “Singing Together” and “Gardening Delights”. Creative writing groups presented work as a radio show, with poems, autobiography and a whodunnit play that the audience was

invited to solve. In an evening based on Desert Island Discs, audience members were asked to identify significant pieces of music from their lives, while the book groups, in “A Good Read”, called on members’ memories of lifelong reading.

EASINGWOLD U3A members, headed by organiser Angie Erskine McCoy, spent a weekend in Prague where they took in the astronomical clock, the Church of Our Lady of the Snow (whose height is greater than its length), the Castle, St Vitus Cathedral and the Jewish quarter with its cemetery. They also visited the WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

spa town of Karlovy Vary in western Bohemia. Members learned a great deal about the history of Prague, from the 10th century to the Velvet Revolution of 1989.

FURNESS U3A industrial history group members visited Derbyshire to see Arkwright’s Mill at Cromford and Middleton Top Engine House, followed by a walk down the Middleton Incline – the last part of the Cromford and High Peak Railway line powered by a stationary engine that was closed in 1967 – and a guided tour of the workshops at High Peak WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

railway junction and Leawood Pumphouse. The Arkwright Society gave the visitors an insight into the industries of the Derwent Valley and accommodation was at the magnificent house Arkwright built, Willersley Castle.

MINEHEAD & DISTRICT U3A expanded its monthly coffee morning into an exhibition, with stalls promoting the work of the different groups, so that members might be inspired to try something new among the huge range of activities and interests – from papercraft and creative textile work to science,

nature studies or armchair travel. The photographic group’s video of Somerset scenes can now be seen in the Porlock visitor centre.

TEESDALE Durham University cosmologist Professor Carlos Frenck gave a whirlwind tour of the universe to students from Teesdale School and members of Teesdale U3A, describing how the Universe continues to expand following the Big Bang.

The birdwatching group is monitoring three local sites.

After a crash course in recordmaking according to British Trust for Ornithology methods,

members observed mixed finch flocks, tree sparrows, pheasants, partridges, tits, redlegs, bramblings and a couple of linnets.

ISLE OF WIGHT U3A’s special general meeting heard chairman Adrian Ould recall a successful summer: “Not only have we enrolled another 30 new members, but the visit by National Chairman Barbara Lewis marked our twentieth anniversary.” The celebration cake made by members was sliced under the supervision of the island’s High Sheriff, Mary Case, at a tea party attended by 120 members.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 75

COASTtoCOAST KENNET U3A’s Italian language and culture group visited Siena for a course organised by La Scuola Leonardo da Vinci. It included language classes, cooking and wine tasting. Everyone was involved in making pasta (right) and forming tortellini, or making gnocchi or stirring sauces – all subsequently eaten with copious quantities of sangiovese. The group also visited Volterra, famous for its alabaster quarries, and San Gimignano, famous for its towers.

project funded by the Big HIGHBRIDGE U3A’s Lottery Fund’s Awards For All. photographic and creative Photographs were exhibited writing groups took part in in the gallery at the Princess aSuccess “TalkingQuarter Communities” Theatre, Burnham-on-Sea, Page Ad Sorrento_Dec13_Layout 1 16/12/2013

while the creative writers wrote and produced a play, Where Have All the Men Gone, that was broadcast on 10Radio.

08:28 Page 1

For Group Travel Organisers

The Amalfi Coast

HIGHAM & RUSHDEN U3A’s digital photography group was asked

by Rushden Town Council to record all the events in the town over 10 days, including a soapbox derby, a teddy bear parachute drop, art shows, concerts, static displays, fire brigade displays and the U3A’s own open day. The group presented the images in disc format, with music. Copies were given to the council and to the local history society for use on their websites.

ARNOLD U3A members took part in a walking tour of the Eifel region of Germany.

Others holidayed in Rome,

Francophiles Holidays to regional France

Would you like to explore hidden France?

7 days 6 nights

from £769 per person What’s Included l Return flights from the UK l Return chaperoned coach transfers from Naples airport to the hotel l Executive coach travel throughout the tour in Italy l Guided tours on all excursions l 6 nights half board accommodation at a good 4 star hotel along the Amalfi Coast l Full day excursion along the Amalfi Coast l Visits to Amalfi, Ravello and Positano l Excursion to the island of Capri l Excursion to Pompeii* l Visit to Herculaneum* and Mount Vesuvius* l Excursion to Naples and visit to the Naples Museum of Archaelogy* *Admission will apply to all European Union citizens below the age of 60

01225 764205

Email: sales@successtours.com Web: www.successtours.com

76 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Discover with us the special charms of the French regions on our escorted coach or train tours

2014 A LOIRE TAPESTRY (10 days) 24 May – 2 June DISCOVERING BRITTANY (10 days) 16 – 25 June RICHES OF PROVENCE (9 days) 31 August – 8 Sept SAVOURING CHAMPAGNE (10 days) 4 – 13 October

Rocamadour where pilgrims gathered in medieval times

Single places available. Couples and group enquiries welcome Rendez-vous points to join the tours are Norwich, Diss, Colchester, Chelmsford, Bristol, London (Waterloo) and Dover/London St Pancras

www.travelensemble.co.uk

If you would like a brochure please telephone 01603 418849 Email: sue@travelensemble.co.uk or write to: Sue Catchpole, Travel Ensemble Ltd 89 Drayton Wood Road, Norwich NR6 5BZ

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COASTtoCOAST

took a five-day break in the Lake District or had days out to Thorp Perrow arboretum and Melton Mowbray.

MIDHURST U3A’s first study day was on the cultural heritage of World War I – an ambitious venture for a rural U3A, small in numbers but large in enthusiasm. Three excellent tutors covered the era’s art, poetry and music.

OKEHAMPTON U3A’s singing group was formed two years ago by Sue Clark. It rehearses regularly – mostly two-part singing – and frequently entertains the residents of local care and ­residential homes.

WEST WILTS U3A members enjoy a tai chi class

Wydale Hall is a beautiful 18th century house set in fourteen acres of garden and woodlands We welcome groups and individuals for retreats, conferences, meetings and holidays www.wydale.org

meeting rooms seating up to 60 l 29 ensuite bedrooms, sleeping up to 60 l worship spaces l lounge, dining room and bar l extensive gardens, meadow and woodland l prayer labyrinth l separate accommodation for self-catering groups l sports pitches and adventure playground l

Wydale Hall Wydale, Brompton-by-Sawdon, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO13 9DG T: 01723 859270 / F: 01723 859702 / E: retreat@wydale.org

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Chenies Manor House Chenies, Buckinghamshire WD3 6ER

01494 762888

(M25 – Exit 18 – A404 towards Amersham)

Open From 2 April – October inclusive Every Wednesday and Thursday and Bank Holiday Mondays 2–5pm Visit this Historic House, a great favourite of Queen Elizabeth I and Henry VIII Five acres of enchanting gardens include a sunken, white and kitchen gardens Delicious Homemade Teas – Shop – Plants for sale 3 July BBC Antiques Roadshow

www.cheniesmanorhouse.co.uk

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 77

COASTtoCOAST BARNSTAPLE U3A supported the tenth birthday of the North Devon biosphere team by compiling a cookbook with a difference – providing environmental, cultural and social background for each recipe. Hunting for local recipes and photographs took two years. As the biosphere says in the introduction: “This book shines a light on the relationship between food and its environment.”

A North Devon Cookbook is available for £5 through the North Devon U3A Link Group and local organisations, shops and countryside centres.

All proceeds go to future enterprises.

STOKE-ON-TRENT SOUTH U3A was set up in September 2011 after months of planning by Bob Jones of Stone U3A and his steering group in Stoke-onTrent. It has progressed from an exploratory beetle drive to a membership of more than 270 and 27 interest groups.

Its team, The Wise Old Owls, entered Radio Stoke’s “Watts The Answer” quiz and won five hours of free publicity.

EMS VALLEY A group of 48 wine-lovers from Ems Valley U3A explored the Spanish winegrowing areas of Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Toro. Among their stops were the Bodegas Portia, a new winery designed by Norman Foster; the Museum of Human Evolution at Burgos; the cities of Valladolid, Salamanca and Segovia; and several other wineries for tours and tastings.

BRIDGNORTH & DISTRICT U3A visited Wenlock Pottery, where Christine Ford (above) and the other 15 members of the group, guided by potter Mike Fletcher, produced a pot on the wheel

YEALM Many are touched personally by dementia, but it is a growing problem for society as a whole. A group of parishes on the Yealm estuary in South Devon, with support from the Prime Minister’s initiative on dementia, are becoming pioneers of dementia awareness. At a recent meeting, Yealm U3A heard from experts about the nature and size of the problem and what the community can do to make life better for those with dementia and their carers. The U3A hopes to become involved as a control group in a research project in association with Plymouth University.

grab some friends and discover the unofficial side of the Lake District, Cumbria take advantage of walks, talks & behind the scenes group packages

start planning your trip at www.cumbria4coaches.co.uk 78 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COASTtoCOAST BRACKNELL FOREST Bracknell’s old High Street was demolished and replaced in the 60s and 70s and further changes are expected. So Bracknell Forest U3A’s local history and digital photography groups collaborated with Bracknell Forest Council on an exhibition

(below) at Bracknell Library.

It showed the history of the High Street from its original to its current form. Old photographs were pieced together to represent the old High Street, while the digital photography group produced a linear image of the current one. The exhibition will be permanent.

RADCLIFFE ON TRENT Five women (right) arguing over who found the euro, or members of Radcliffe on Trent U3A’s French conversation group measuring throw distances during a game of boules? A new petanque court hosted some of its first players, reading unfamiliar rules from a smartphone and giggling like naughty schoolgirls. A retractable steel rule will be brought to the next match, as the gnarled trouvée used at the first meeting was less than accurate.

BLACKWATER & DISTRICT U3A invited local U3As to participate in a petanque league. Basildon & Billericay U3A entered three

teams – The Flying Frogs, The Leaping Lions and The Pilgrim Wanderers – while Blackwater fielded The Pirates and The Swans. The competition was decided by the last game of the season, when The Flying Frogs narrowly beat The Pilgrim Wanderers. The 2014 season begins in April. Any local U3A wishing to join in should contact John Mundy: harrier5@btinternet.com.

“It’s the perfect place for a new start.”

Retirement Villages’ residents

Photographic model used for the purpose of this advert.

Come and discover Retirement Villages Private properties, superb village facilities, a readymade social calendar, potential new friends – nothing less than you deserve.

Over 30 years experience of building and managing some of the UK’s finest private retirement communities.

Call 0845 5211857 or visit www.retirementvillages.co.uk Cornwall • Devon • Essex • Hertfordshire • Lincolnshire • Oxfordshire Somerset • Surrey • Warwickshire • West Sussex • Wiltshire

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

3126GRP Third Age Matters

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 79

COASTtoCOAST ABERGELE U3A members attended a talk on “Europe – How Does It Work for Me?” Presentations were led by Elisabeth Sweeney of the European Parliament Information Office, London.

Vanessa Baldry of the Europe Direct Centre in Llangollen talked about outreach in the area. Welsh MEP Derek Vaughan described his role in the parliament and on committees dealing with budget, regional development and rugby. A question and answer session covered health, budget, jobs, freedom to work in other EU countries, fuel prices and new member states.

WETHERBY & DISTRICT Peals of laughter were heard from the parish rooms when Wetherby & District U3A held a Pride and Prejudice Evening, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen’s novel with readings from her letters and poetry, and dramatised passages that brought out the humour of the book. The performance – a joint effort by the literary group, playreading groups 1

songs by Pearly King John Knowles. It plans a 2014 programme of “Talks for All” with subjects including the London Underground and the Olympic Village.

WEYMOUTH & PORTLAND U3A took part in the Radipole reed harvesting project, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and organised by The Ancient Technology Centre (ATC) and the RSPB. Members helped to gather, dress, bundle and transport the reeds, which will be used for re-thatching the RSPB centre or possibly at Stonehenge, where the ATC will be constructing neolithic houses and 2 and the poetry group – was followed by refreshments similar to those enjoyed in Austen’s day, such as root biscuits and little savoury pies.

RAYLEIGH U3A organised a study day devoted to Victorian London, with expert speakers and a selection of Cockney costermongers’

HOWDEN & DISTRICT Eight members of Howden & District U3A’s “Learning About France” group visited Lille. They took in the arts museum La Piscine, the Palais des Beaux-Arts, the Vieille Bourse (17th-century stock exchange), the Cathedral Notre Dame de la Treille and other sights, discovering that Lille has much to offer – in history, architecture, museums, fine dining and shopping.

LEIGH ESTUARY U3A’s fashion group has visited London exhibitions, had a session with a makeup artist and a historical talk on fashion in the 20s and 30s. It has also organised tea parties at which everyone wore vintage clothes. If anyone is interested in starting a fashion group, contact fashiongroupleu3a@gmail.com.

● ● ● ● ● ● ●

80 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

Glorious Views Guided Tours 4-Star Comforts En-suite Cabins Delicious Meals From only £195 Call for Brochure

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COASTtoCOAST BRECON U3A celebrated its annual Rosemary Maling Lecture Day by inviting members of other Welsh U3As and students from Brecon High School to lectures by outstanding speakers from the world of linguistics: Professor David Crystal of Bangor University, author of the Cambridge Encyclopaedia of English and other books and Dr Mererid Hopwood, S4C presenter, lecturer at Trinity St. David’s, Carmarthen, and the first woman to be appointed Bard at the National Eisteddfod. Dr Crystal examined the development of English through dialects and local accents, while Dr Hopwood explained

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

how English developed from early Welsh. Dr Rosemary Maling was a retired child psychiatrist who founded Brecon U3A – the first in Wales – in 1983.

FAIRFORD & DISTRICT U3A members enjoyed a guided tour of London, including Buckingham Palace, where they saw the Throne Room, the Silk Tapestry Room and many other rooms, as well as the East Gallery with its exquisite collection of Coronation robes. Wonderful furniture and furnishings were displayed in all of the rooms, as well as photographs and films of the Royal Family.

WADEBRIDGE U3A Members on a visit to Wheal Martin clay museum and gardens, near St Austell BALSALL COMMON U3A members visited the studio of the distinguished sculptor James Butler at Radway in Warwickshire.

His works in bronze can be seen in many parts of the world, among them a

sculpture of Jomo Kenyatta that stands in the centre of Nairobi. The members learned about creating a sculpture, from the commission, through creating a model, to sculpturing the full-size version in clay, then creating a mould for the foundry to cast the completed work in bronze.

WINCHESTER With a population of about 42,000, the city of Winchester is a relatively small catchment area.

Yet Winchester U3A has just recruited its 2,500th member.

Its active membership stands at over 1,250, and it boasts about 120 interest groups. It celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2014.

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 81

COASTtoCOAST

CREWKERNE & DISTRICT U3A’s garden appreciation group held a competition to grow the tallest sunflower. The winner (Sue, pictured above) grew one that reached 13 feet. Refreshments on a sunflower theme were provided at the prizegiving.

BOURNEMOUTH U3A’s singing group The Penny Serenaders presented a cheque for £1,000 (right) to Heroes Haven, a holiday home for injured soldiers at Swanage. A further £500 was donated to Tedworth House, the prosthetic limb centre at Tidworth. The Penny Serenaders, founded in 1989, specialise in up-tempo songs from the 50s to 70s, and call themselves “yesterday’s teens singing yesterday’s hits”.

RUNNYMEDE U3A’s AGM heard 101-year-old

Alice Muller give a presentation about her early life in Austria, living in the UK and learning English in the 30s, and her return to Austria and

experiences under the Nazis during World War II, when she managed to prevent her husband being interned in a concentration camp.

Italian Residential Courses in Rome - Italy Italian Family Homestay (full board) in a Villa in the countryside of Rome.

Learn Italian and discover our region. We offer Italian courses (at 6 different levels) all year around for 7, 10 or 12 days.

Courses (from 2 to 5 students at a time) include in their prices: airport transfers to and from the school in Rome, accommodation , 3 meals per day, 4 hours of Italian tuition per day, excursions to Rome and surrounding areas, Italian cookery lessons and a full immersion in the Italian language, culture and life style.

We are specialised in 50 plus courses designed for English speaking students.

For more information and prices please contact Dr Francesca Valentini by phone 0039069625752 or via email at francesca.valentini@btinternet.com http://www.scuolaappiavecchia.com

CHICHESTER U3A gardening enthusiasts travelled to Guernsey for the autumn floral festival week, where they visited selected gardens on Guernsey, Herm and Sark.

SALTASH U3A organised a music and art study day, sponsored by the town council, the Co-op and local businesses. Guest speakers were conductor and lecturer Peter Clarke and Emma Philip, curator of fine arts at Plymouth museum and art gallery. The Mayor and Mayoress of Saltash were among the many visitors.

You can now submit news from your U3A via the new national website.

Go to www.u3a.org.uk/ u3as-in-action

82 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COASTtoCOAST

BRIDPORT & DISTRICT U3A “Isn’t That Interesting!” group members tried their collective hand – and puff – at glass-blowing at the studio and workshop of local glass-blower David Smith. “It was far more difficult than we thought it would be,” said member Alan Hobby. “But we managed to distort the piece of glass we were given without setting fire to ourselves.” The group was formed during a trip to Nicholson Engineering in Bridport, one of the largest specialist bell-hanging companies in the world. Several of the visitors remarked, “Isn’t that interesting!” – and so the group began and got its name.

In the picture Pat Grafton tries glassblowing, watched, from left, by Elfrida Savigea, Sue Jones, Diana Coleridge and glass-blower David Smith.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 83

COASTtoCOAST

EASTBOURNE & WEALDEN U3A members of visited Exceat in East Sussex as part of their research into “Lost Villages”, a project of the Sussex U3A Network. The stone, standing high on the South Downs overlooking the estuary of the River Cuckmere, marks the site of an old church that fell into disuse more than 500 years ago. (Left to right: Jane Epps, Judith Robinson, Reg Charlton and Roger Lee).

ST HELENS U3A’s entertainments group put on an Old Time Music Hall, complete with extravagant phrases from the master of ceremonies, songs, a touch of magic (“Marvo the Memory Man”) and a sand dance (left). Real tears of mirth were cried, people had difficulty remaining steady on their chairs, and the performance has been repeated twice in the surrounding district

Bordeaux,

San Sebastian & the Basque Country 8 days fully escorted from £799 Departing on selected dates in June & September 2014 Fly direct from airports across the UK at no supplement!

The vineyards of Bordeaux, the rich scenery and geology of the Basque coastline, the gorgeous beaches of San Sebastian, a scenic rail trip and a visit to the Pyrenean town of St Jean Pied du Port: these are just some of the treats in store on this tour of Atlantic France and Spain.

Individual and group travel.

Discounts for bookings of 10 or more. Private departures for bookings of 20+

Price Includes: • Return direct flights to Bordeaux • 3 nights B&B accommodation in Bordeaux • 4 nights half board accommodation in Zauratz on the Basque Coast • Visits to San Sebastian, Hendaye, St Jean de Luz • Scenic train ride in the French ‘Pays Basque’ • Services of an experienced representative For a free brochure call 0116 279 3929 quote XU318. email: mail@preferredts.com • www.preferredts.com

ABTA W3692

84 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

COASTtoCOAST

ANNIVERSARIES NEWPORT U3A rounded off its twentieth anniversary with a concert in the city’s Dolman Theatre. The U3A now has over 380 members and 230 attended, to be entertained by sketches and musical performances from some of the 32 groups. Swansea U3A’s ukulele band came along with a string of popular favourites.

LAUNCESTON & DISTRICT U3A celebrated its twentieth anniversary with a lunch. In attendance, along with many other current members, were six of the 11 people present at the first meeting: David and Sheila Brown, Stan Mincher,

mayfair HOTEL AA

Mary Reed and Les and Anne Richardson. They remembered the enthusiasm of founder Roger Hart. The U3A now has a membership of more than 330 and 42 interest groups.

Carley, Trustee for the North West Region, together with present and former members.

RYEDALE U3A in North Yorkshire celebrated its twentieth anniversary with more than 100 members attending a lunch to hear National Chairman Barbara Lewis speak on the theme “Live, Learn and Laugh”.

OBAN U3A, which has celebrated its fifth anniversary, has grown from 73 members to more than 120, with groups devoted to geology, walking, languages, books, films, arts and crafts, music, dancing, wild flowers and other subjects. Its most recent excursion was to Benmore Botanic Garden.

ROCHDALE U3A’s twentieth anniversary event was attended by the city’s mayor, Councillor Peter Rush, and Jenny

SOLIHULL U3A marked its 30th anniversary with a social event visited by the mayor, Councillor Joe Tildesley.

5 NTS

DBB FROM

£295

HOLIDAYS FOR MATURE SINGLES

SOUTH HILLINGDON U3A celebrated its tenth anniversary with cake and bucks fizz and a display of art, craftwork and information about the activities of the various groups.

“The First & Best Choice for a Painting Holiday” In the UK

5 Night Holidays including Day Trips

ainting

• A double/twin room for your exclusive use with en suite bathroom, colour TV and tea/coffee making facilities • Holiday hosts to ensure that you feel welcomed and included • Superb food & service • Ample free parking

oliday

www.themayfair.com | info@themayfair.com

DURHAM U3A celebrated its twentieth anniversary with a buffet meal in the hall where it meets, followed by a fun quiz. The anniversary cake was cut by John Clark and Shirley Mason, two of the founders of Durham U3A.

Alpha Painting Holidays

ovely

Call 0843 308 0250

Founder-members, now well into their 90s, shared memories of events and members of the early days.

dventure

Somerset, Exmoor, North Devon Coast, Isle of Wight, Wye Valley The Algarve &

Andalucia

01934 733877

● Paint beautiful locations with Britain’s Top Tutors ● Lovely hotels; All rooms en-suite, some on ground floor ● Non-painters activities inc Photography, Golf & Walking ● Any Media, All abilities welcome, inc complete beginners

27 Bath Road, Bournemouth BH1 2NW

Crudwell, Near Malmesbur y Wiltshire SN16 9EW

SPRING SALES: ‘With Dining’ from £49 pp 28 individual en suite rooms Taste the Cotswolds in our award-winning restaurant Come and explore ‘England’s most beautiful back garden’

* Prices based on two sharing a standard room

www.bywayholidays.co.uk

High quality all accompanied unhurried minibus tours around the UK. Small groups with excellent accommodation and knowledgeable, friendly guides.

Visit Cotswolds, Brecon, Cumbria, Northumbria, Somerset and many more places around the UK For your brochure: Call 01904 624700 E-Mail jan@bywayholidays.co.uk

reception@mayfieldhousehotel.co.uk 01666 577409 www.mayfieldhousehotel.co.uk

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 85

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK Byway_win12.indd 1

05/11/2012 11:46

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS Contact Tim Harris 020 8466 6139 | tim@u3a.org.uk

Copy to Tim Harris Third Age Trust Old Municipal Buildings 19 East Street Bromley BR1 1QE Email: tim@u3a.org.uk

Deadline for next issue: 20 March Rate £1.80 a word + VAT As soon as your order is accepted, you will be sent a formal invoice with the details of your order, and you will be asked to pay this before the deadline. Remittances should be sent to Tim Harris at the National Office (address above) and cheques made payable to the Third Age Trust.

Holiday ads Readers should ensure the offer complies with UK and EU regulations governing package holidays etc, if appropriate, before parting with any money. The Third Age Trust cannot be held responsible for this.

TRAVEL INSURANCE 4U Travel for any duration in Europe Flying or Cruising aged 89 and under Travel by Coach no age limit 5 Days in UK £11.80 5 days in Europe £20 UK Annual Travel Insurance £49.00 single person £79 per couple (aged to 90) Travel for any duration worldwide Flying or Cruising ages up to 85 Tel: 01753 400128 for a Quote www.travelinsurance4u.net

86 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

FOR SALE ANTIQUE SIDEBOARD – Jacobean. £95.00

ANTIBES (near Nice) Delightful towncentre air-conditioned apartment Short stroll to beach. Sleeps four. Balcony, TV and all modern facilities. U3A member. antibes4me@hotmail.co.uk

01792 794660

Tel: 020 8948 8780

FRANCE , Central Brittany, five weeks rotating annually. Shared ownership of fourbedroom traditional freehold property.

ANTIBES NEAR NICE Lovely two-bedroom apartment, next to beautiful sandy beach.

Large, sunny terraces, fabulous panoramic sea views. All modern conveniences Walking distance all amenities. email: saratdavies@hotmail.co.uk

07805 194374 NEAR BUDE , Cornwall. 2-bed holiday bungalow in well-equipped parkland site.

Excellent lettings history. Price £29,950 ono.

07973 111363 CLASSIC STEAM TRAIN /Diesel Engine DVDs www.railwayrecollections.com 0844 800 8818

GENERAL FREE to a good home in the U3A. We have a large number of books on military history, mostly WWII, which would be free to any U3A military History group/interested individual.

Email: bennett_house@msn.com

HOLIDAYS (FRANCE)

DELIGHTFUL VILLA with all mod cons in one of the Ile d’Oléron’s nicest villages. Family home of 170m2 boasts good-sized heated swimming pool, 600m2 garden with vue sur mer and boules. Two miles to the endearing village of St. Trojan and daily market. Two roomy terraces, large built-in barbecue. Five bedrooms accommodate ten persons on 3 double beds and 4 single beds. Oléron is 75 or 90 minutes from the TGV at La Rochelle.

Price July, August: €4,000 euro per week.

June, September, October: €2,000 euro per week. e-mail adddou@gmail.com. Telephone Annie at +33 66 41 33 88 5, GASCONY. Former railway station – elegant, spacious, comfortable, peaceful.

Glorious “old-fashioned” countryside rich with flowers and wildlife. Villages, markets, restaurants, vineyards and castles. Private pool. Sleeps 2-10 self-catering. www.gare-desos.com email anthony.heath@neuf.fr Tel: 0033 553 970 993 DORDOGNE. Village house to let in Perigord Vert. Sleeps 6 £375-£550 pw. s.depicarda@btinternet.com 020 8852 1188 / 07504 996386

Tel: 01273 304 307 ST REMY , Provence. Self-catering gite with swimming pool. Peaceful yet only 500m from centre of market town full of restaurants and shops. English/French owners. Convenient for Nimes, Avignon, Marseille airports. Payment in sterling in UK accepted. www.ungiteenprovence.com woodfordbeth@hotmail.com +33(0)629322216 BRITTANY – Plancouet. Peaceful 3-bedroomed well-equipped gite 10 minutes to amenities, sandy beaches and Dinard Airport. www.lesquatrevents.net Highly recommended on Tripadvisor. U3A discounts offered. Now arranging golfing breaks.

0118 973 5523 BEAUTIFUL BURGUNDY. Traditional house in historic village. Two bedrooms, living/ dining room, well-equipped kitchen, lovely garden. boulangerie and general store a few steps away. Delightful unspoilt countryside for walking, cycling etc. murielrobinson@tiscali.co.uk Tel: 01565 631410 BURGUNDY near Dijon. Quiet village house. Sleeps 5 comfortably. Good base for walking, cycling and wine tasting. www. thebarn.iowners.net 01428 609587 POITIERS – 20 minutes, excellent, comfortable villa, all facilities, sleep 2-6, www.holidayvillavienne.com 01725 512087 FRENCH ALPS. Modern apartment in Chatel. Skiing/summer walking. Sleeps 6.

Email: lizgarfield@hotmail.co.uk HOTEL BOATING in Champagne, France.

River Marne and tranquil canals, vineyards, regional ateliers, cathedrals, cities and villages. Six-night cruises inclusive en-suite single and twin cabins, good food, wines, WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

bar, tours. No single supplements. Call/ email for colour brochure and DVD or visit our website www.bargedirect.com email ukwh@bargedirect.com Tel: 01992 550616 WESTERN FRANCE. La Rochelle.

Delightful cottage sleeps 4/6. Quiet, central position near beach, oldport. Local airport nearby

JAVEA , Costa Blanca. 2bed/2bath apt in Javea Old Port www.puertoreal.co.uk 020 8892 2603 ESCAPE the winter weather and enjoy a holiday in Spain, taking part in U3A activities and making new U3A friends abroad. For more information visit www.activityholidays.weebly.com or

Tel: 01932 231150

Tel: 0034 96 285 5900

HOLIDAYS

COSTA DEL SOL , Torrox Park, near Nerja.

3-bedroomed villa, all amenities.

Possible long lets available. tonym5cbr@ btinternet.com

VENICE , Castello: Charming apartment with courtyard sleeps 2/4 www.ourveniceapartment.com enquires@ourveniceapartment.com

01784 256383

(ITALY)

Tel: 01242 243 693

HOLIDAYS

(SPAIN AND PORTUGAL) GUIDED WALKING and sketching off the beaten track. Art and cooking, stay in conquistador palace. www.finca-art.co.uk Tel: 01766 590638 ALGARVE , Tavira 2 bed 2 bath townhouse: excellent location www.casanautica.com pauline8evans@gmail.com

NERJA. Comfortable apt sleeps 2/4 near town and beach. Reasonable rates, warm all winter. U3A members.

Tel: 02392 483217 B&B halfway Bordeaux-Biarritz. Calm, comfortable, good food, pool, village in forest 10 min. ocean. French lessons possible. Well situated for bird sanctuaries. www.franceforestbeachbandb.com floinfrance@hotmail.com THE SPANISH EXPERIENCE. Perfect combination between holidays and learning experience. Discover Spanish culture outside the tourist trail in the heart of the country.

Try your conversational skills with special activities designed for it. Fantastic value with accommodation in 4* hotel. www.spanishexperience.co.uk

diane.senior@ntlworld.com FUENGIROLA , Southern Spain. Beautiful apartments in exclusive area. Car not essential. www.pueblalucia.com Tel: 07703 108742

HOLIDAYS

(SPECIAL INTEREST)

CENTRAL ANDALUCIA. 3-bed townhouse.

Great base to explore Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Malaga and much more.

Good walking, excellent birdwatching. www.estepahouse.com

FRENCH is fun in the Languedoc. Spring and summer 2014. Holiday language courses in wine-growing village. Highly experienced tutor, lively classes. Combine some courses with painting/cookery/wine appreciation.

Individuals, couples, all welcome. Come with a group or with friends (discount for 3 or more) See website: www.cslanguages.eu

Tel: 020 8800 3022

Contact: info@cslanguages.eu

01780 755333

IMPROVE your Spanish with Elisa in Salobrena. Skilled imaginative teacher, quality homestay. Excellent value, ideal for small U3A groups. www.lcsalobrena.com

HOLIDAYS

(SWITZERLAND) ANZERE , Valais. Self-catering apartment in alpine forest village. Sleeps 4/6. Fantastic views, walks, day trips to Geneva, Zermatt, Glacier Express and many more, Swim and Sun at 5,000 ft. Info from desbet@aol.com or 01825 733211

HOLIDAYS (UK) CORNWALL. Just for 2 Comfortable and well equipped. Free Wi-Fi. Village near Truro/ Falmouth. All year. No dogs/ smokers. www.cornwallallyear.co.uk Tel: 01209 860402

Croatia

Cook Walk Swim Relax Hotel Meteor, Makarska www.medfoodpower.co.uk 01923 824517

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

WALKING HOLIDAYS IN WALES Explore the spectacular scenery, history and wildlife of the Pembrokeshire Coast, Brecon Beacons or Welsh Marches

Daily guided walks with Welsh-speaking guide Full-board with home-cooked food, log fires, croquet, coracling.

Relaxed house-party atmosphere.

7, 6 or 4 night breaks Singles, couples & groups all welcome For brochure ring Richard: 07850 174875 or visit www.dragontrails.com

THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 87

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS LAKE DISTRICT , Cockermouth 3 miles.

Cosy and peaceful historic cottage, immaculately clean, sleeps 4. lorna.lappert@ntlworld.com

EAST YORKSHIRE. Selby/York. Within walking distance RSPB Blacktoft Sands. Tranquil village cottage for 2 www.reednesshall.co.uk

Tel: 01273 503661

01405 704555

ST AUSTELL BAY. Superb B&B or selfcatering properties close to Eden/ Heligan/Charlestown/ Mevagissey. In lovely surroundings, every comfort. All year. www.spindrift-guesthouse.co.uk mcguffspindrift@gmail.com

KEW GARDENS B&B. Lovely large double room with private bathroom £70 per night near tube, car parking. maura768@gmail.com

01726 65478 or 07546 895302

PEMBS Newport Parrog. Comfortable warm cottage, garden, on the coastal path.

Available throughout year. Dogs accepted. www.eastfieldpembs.co.uk

CANTERBURY , Kent (7 miles) Just for 2.

Unique barn conversion. Selfcatering. Rural area 3 star. email: rj.lockwood@btinternet.com Tel: 01227 700428 BATH mews house. 5 mins level walk city centre. Available weekly. Sleeps four. Private parking. Superbly equipped. WiFi. No smoking/pets. BathMews@gmail.com 07905 905333 S/C HOLIDAY , Central Southwold, Suffolk.

Sleeps 3 in 2 bedrooms. C/H, Linen, towels. Private garden and parking.

U3A members 15% discount, call Jan or Don www.suffolkchoice.co.uk/ lavendercottagesouthwold 07711 526252 A COTSWOLD GEM. Stouts Hill is a 17th century manor house set in 27 acres of parkland with fully stocked fishing lake.

October to March (excluding Christmas and New Year) self-catering apartments available at £200 a week per apartment; one bed (sleeps 4), two bed (sleeps 6). An ideal base for fishing, rambling, golf and visiting the Cotswold villages and gardens. For more information visit www.stoutshill.co.uk or

020 8948 0021

Tel: 0117 9745023 CORNWALL – Marazion (St.Michael’s Mount) 4 star self-catering for four in picturesque Marazion. Close to beach, causeway to the Mount RSPB nature reserve and coastal path. www.zennorcottage.co.uk 01736 711452 h or 07977 448113 m ISLES OF SCILLY – A walker’s delight.

Enjoy indoor pool & super food. www.bellrockhotel.blogspot.co.uk 01720 422575 LUDLOW. Member’s listed mews cottage.

Sleeps 3. Parking. WiFi. www.corvesideludlow.com 01584 891102

01509 881984

Local Charities Supported

LAKE DISTRICT quiet country cottage near Ullswater 2 www.lowtodrigg.co.uk 01768 483342 CAMBER SANDS , East Sussex, Park Resort site. Available all year. Privately owned 5-berth static caravan with veranda and 2 bathrooms. Small dogs allowed. 4 miles from Rye, near RSPB reserves. Discount U3A members.

Tel: 01525 237481 or 07780 765081 ISLE OF SKYE seafront cottage.

Spectacular views, plentiful wildlife, sleeps 4.

2 bathrooms. www.sandpiperskye.co.uk 01471 820243

88 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014

COWES. Isle of Wight – Luxury seafront apartment – one double and one twin room both en suite. Fabulous sea views, perfect for weekend or longer (min. 3 nights) www.cowes-seafront-apartment.co.uk Email: sdp@onwight.net 01983 245445 SOUTH LAKES. Spacious, well appointed barn conversion, sleeps 6. Near Cartmel. mawdsleyd@hotmail.co.uk 01625 427272 YORKSHIRE DALES. Luxurious spacious two-bedroom cottage in West Witton, Lower Wensleydale. Log-burning stoves, lovely views, linen and lots more. Sleeps 4. Prices start from £270. www.onegrassgill.com Tel: 07866 460784 WEST YORKSHIRE. Ilkley. 4 bed house for 8. Views of hills and moor. email: klane@lakeview.demon.co.uk

SCOTLAND , ELIE. Coastal village near St.Andrews. House sleeps 6-8 in four bedrooms. Perfect location on beach with spectacular views over Firth of Forth. East Neuk area renowned for picturesque fishing villages, golf, walking, and arts festivals.

Available all year, special rates for U3A members.

01903 723685

Open 30th Jan to 2nd March Wednesday to Sunday 11:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Closed Monday and Tuesday

01284 702848

01695 633376 NORTH WALES , Borth y Gest. Snowdonia, Lleyn Peninsula. Mountain and coastal walks.

Less than 5 minutes walk to the sea. Sleeps 5 adults. Short breaks available. Lydia Wright www.selfcateringborthygest.co.uk

www.welfordpark.co.uk

BURY ST EDMUNDS , Suffolk 4 Star selfcatering, semi-detached bungalow. Two bedrooms. Large secluded gardens. www.burygardencorner.co.uk

01737 767210

WEST SUSSEX coast: Riverside chalet, well appointed, sleeps 6, 2 baths. Easy access to beach, town and station. Holiday lets at reasonable rent

Nr Newbury RG20 8HU

01442 257205 or 07889 288567

LAKE DISTRICT. Windermere one mile. 2 bedrooms/2 bathrooms, superbly equipped cottage. Sleeps 4. Quiet location.

Great walking from the cottage. No pets/ smokers. Short breaks of 3 nights available. www.springcottage-windermere.co.uk

01453 860134

SNOWDROPS WELFORD PARK

MILFORD-ON-SEA , Lymington. Large modernised ground floor one-bed apartment with garden. 100 metres sea. Close to New Forest. Further information and brochure please ring

CORNWALL , St Ives. Attractive modern apartment yards from harbour, sleeps 2/3 01736 793057

email kingdomgolfer@gmail.com 10% OFF FOR U3A members, relax and enjoy Cornwall, comfortable self-catering lodge, ideally situated with lots to do, dogs welcome. www.cutkivewood.co.uk Tel: 01579 362216 SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS. Self catering apartment, sleeps 2. Near Inverness and Loch Ness. www.tsitika.com WINTER SPECIAL – Planning a residential for your U3A group? Peak Centre, Edale, Derbyshire. Comfortable, homely and welcoming. Catered or self-catering.

On-site sports hall, lounge areas, craft and meeting rooms. Instructed activities WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS available. Adult groups welcome for 2 or 4-night midweek bookings December – March. Only £14.50pppn (min group 10) sarah@peakcentre.org.uk 01433 670254

PERSONAL IPSWICH fellow seeks active lady for interesting contented times. BT number with photo. Please reply to

WE ARE LOOKING for individuals and couples with proven ability to carry responsibility to join a national housesitting company. You need to be good with animals, security conscious, drive and have impeccable credentials.

YORKSHIRE Dales. Unique, comfortable converted granary. Good walking, cycling, sightseeing. Sleeping 4.

01729 830291

Box No 27 at U3A National Office.

Tel: 08451 303100 for details

ATTRACTIVE , fit and active lady with many interests, WLTM similar gentleman (60s), who is kind hearted with a GSOH, for friendship and sharing days out.

WOODWORKING tools required. Complete kits or individual items. Modern or antique.

Michael

NORTH CORNWALL. 2 bedroom bungalow in holiday village. Ideal for family or couples.

From £185 pw. www.one-hillside.net 01483 730420 NORTHUMBERLAND. Cottage with two double bedrooms in quiet village near Alnwick, fully equipped, private parking. Well situated for exploring Northumberland.

Tel: 01423 202914 BAMBURGH , Northumberland. Luxury ground floor flat ideal for 2/3 people. Fully equipped, spectacular sea views, private parking,walking, birdwatching, relaxing.

Availability for 2014 please contact martin.bamburgh@btinternet.com Tel: 01835 823833 , 07858 386485 SWANAGE. Cosy Cottage, sleeps 4. Rural location. Magical views.

Tel: 020 8777 2641 CORNWALL , Member’s beautiful refurbished 17th C cottage. 2 miles coast/St.Michael’s Mount. Sleeps 4. Log burner. Views, parking, sunny garden. Quiet country lane. Golf nearby.

Email: sue.maytree@gmail.com Tel: 01483 479433

HOLIDAYS

(WORLDWIDE) TURKEY , Calis. Small complex, 2-bedroom apartment, separate living, full kitchen, air conditioning, private pool, 5 mins walk to beach/shops/restaurants. Airport transfers.

Booking.com (Mariner Apartment,Turkey) or tracey@ba-properties.com CYPRUS , near Paphos, Luxury 3 double bedroom detached villa with private solarheated swimming pool. Villa is a short walk to a quiet friendly village with tavernas and shops. For brochure telephone Anna 01452 723474 NORTH CYPRUS , (non EU) Large detached bungalow in 2 acres of land. 3 large bedrooms, fully furnished. Private pool (10m x 5m) 01277 656559 ALTINKUM BEACH , Turkey. Duplex penthouse sleeps 8. Panoramic Aegean views, pool 200m, U3A bargain. £50 per night. Adrian 01983 563674 WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

Reply Box No 23 at the U3A National Office WHAT DO YOU THINK we should learn during our lives? Retired lecturer would welcome your views – Please send s.a.e for his reply.

01923 771562 OLD MAPS , atlases, photo albums. journals, and manuscripts. U3A Member. hooksbooks@blueyonder.co.uk or Arthur 01179144673

Reply Box No 26 at the U3A National Office ACTIVE LADY 65+ seeks ladies/gents of similar age for outings, Staines/Surrey.

Reply Box No 28 at U3A National Office

SERVICES BOOK EDITING , Proofreading, especially for self-publishing authors.

Email: ajmeditorial@hotmail.co.uk PROOFREADING SERVICES. Reasonable rates. pmi2965@gmail.com

WORLD WAR II BINOCULARS 0161 4285188 MOTORCYCLES any age/condition jim.j.clifford@gmail.com. Cash Paid. Call John 07831 549430 ALL OLD BADGES bought, including both cloth and metal. Military, Boys Brigade, Scouts and Guides, Hunting, PSV etc. also Masonic and RAOB Jewels. Malcolm 01788 810616

07720-936175 YOUR FAMILY HISTORY researched by a professional genealogist. Competitive rates.

Friendly service. Free information pack.

4 Cox Grove,Burgess Hill, West Sussex www.ancestral-research.com Tel: 01444 248563 GET YOUR treasured video tape transferred to DVD for only £10 (U3A member) Tel: 01477 532751 NEED SUPPORT when travelling?

Fabulous English travel companion/carer.

Website: www.holistic-care.moonfruit.com

“All our environmental problems become easier to solve with fewer people and harder and ultimately impossible to solve with ever more people.”

Join our call for sustainable numbers!

135-137 Station Road London E4 6AG for a sustainable 0208 123 9116 Charity no. 1114109 future www.populationmatters.org

Tel: 07941 593082

WANTED MUSIC ARRANGER needed for band.

Phone 07785 585205 MAGIC LANTERN slides, stereocards, early photographs, Victorian optical toys. U3A member. Andrew Tel: 01706 600650 TOKEN COLLECTOR seeks to buy UK and British Commonwealth tradesmen’s tokens and Co-operative Society checks, in particular Yorkshire ones.

07824 723732

ASTRONOMY LECTURES for U3As

By Peter Bull mbe fras

Tel 020 8460 9638

U3A MEMBERS Many of these classified ads are placed by U3A members

Why not advertise here yourself?

It costs only £1.80 per word (plus VAT) Contact Tim Harris on 020 8466 6139 or at tim@u3a.org.uk THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 89

PROFILE

Sir Michael Jagger: Fan of Her Majesty The Queen and Margaret Thatcher

Jumping Jack’s flush LUMARPHOTO/AFF/EMPICS ENTERTAINMENT

Please allow me to introduce Sir Michael Jagger.

Don’t be ridiculous, that’s Mick Jagger. You know, jumps about, looks sexy, scourge of the establishment.

He’d tell them where to stuff their knighthood.

Sir Michael is to become a great grandfather in April.

Oh dear. This is quite a year for Mick, then, is it?

Indeed it is. He celebrates his seventieth birthday in July.

There you are, then.

Driberg was a socialist. He must have thought Mick was a kindred spirit.

Maybe. What Driberg actually said, looking at Sir Michael’s tight trousers, was: “What an enormous basket you have.”

Well, all right, but the revolutionary Tariq Ali wanted Mick in politics, too.

He saw that Mick was a – what’s the phrase I want?

Tax exile is the phrase you want.

Tax exile?

Didn’t he once sing “I hope I die before I get old”?

Sir Michael uses offshore trusts to ensure tax breaks. He’s thought to have paid less than 2 per cent of his income in tax.

No, that was Roger Daltrey of The Who. Well then, “Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m 64”?

Well, naturally, he’s got to keep it out of the hands of the bourgeois state, hasn’t he? Neo-Thatcherites, the lot of them.

Beatles.

Never trust anyone over 30?

Bob Dylan.

Sir Michael rather liked Mrs Thatcher.

I know! What a drag it is getting old.

He what?

Now, that really was Sir Michael.

The song was Mother’s Little Helper, and it says that once you’re no longer young, all that’s left is tranquilisers, and you might as well take enough of them to end it all.

Establishment we knew exists any more,” he said.

Sounds a hoot. Can we assume Mick doesn’t think that now he’s 70?

Sort of. He also said: “Apart from the Rolling Stones, the Queen is the best thing Britain has got.”

Sir Michael seems to be enjoying life.

That was his way of kicking the Establishment in the…

He’s still the scourge of the establishment, isn’t he?

Well, when he got his knighthood in 2003 he told the world that there was nothing to rebel against any more. “I don’t think the

All right, but he’s still the man who was so excited by the Grosvenor Square demonstration in 1968 that he wrote Street Fighting Man?

Knees?

Not quite what I had in mind, but it’ll do. Didn’t he once think about going into politics?

Tom Driberg once suggested it, yes.

90 THIRD AGE MATTERS NEW YEAR 2014 90

Sir Michael joined his friend L’Wren Scott at her Banana Republic fashion collection launch at the Chateau Marmont hotel in Los Angeles last November

He met her once. He said afterwards: “I was slightly surprised by all the people that were still so anti her and had all this residual resentment.”

So he wasn’t really a rebel even in the Thatcher years?

Not according to former girlfriend Marianne Faithfull. She held fast to sixties values while Sir Michael started going to debs’ parties.

Faithfull recalls his mortification when she, full of drugs, passed out at the dinner table of a duke.

The dinner table of a duke? Well, or course he was ashamed. I mean, rebellion is one thing, but dash it, there are limits.

WWW.U3A.ORG.UK

SPECIAL PRICES FOR U3A MEMBERS!* NOW TAKING ADVANCE REGISTRATIONS FOR 2015!

Please call for more details

ENJOY THE WONDER OF NORWAY’S MIDNIGHT SUN

ON A HURTIGRUTEN COASTAL VOYAGE Visit 34 ports-of-call on the 12-day Classic Round Voyage – many of which are inaccessible by road or rail. Hurtigruten ships are designed to be able to access small communities along this particularly scenic coastline unlike larger cruise ships. Small but beautiful is exactly what to expect on this voyage. The scenery is spectacular, the food on board superb by any standards and the service first class! This is truly the voyage of a lifetime. Please call the team at Northumbria Travel who will happily enthuse at length about all the advantages of this fantastic cruise.

MIDNIGHT SUN on the CLASSIC ROUND VOYAGE Departures: 26th May 2014 from Manchester and 17th June 2014 from Birmingham

12-days from £1875pp including return flights, Full Board & transfers! **

Sailing into breathtaking landscapes

A highlight of this voyage is the sailing into UNESCO-listed Geirangerfjord. Further north, first-time visitors to the Arctic Circle will be ‘baptised’ by Niord on deck. Shortly after arriving in the Lofoten Islands, enjoy a taste of ‘Troll Soup’ as we sail into the magnificent Trollfjord. You’ll also be enjoying the experience of 24-hour daylight.

And throughout your journey, the chef and his team will be working their magic with the freshest local ingredients picked up en route.

EXCITING SUMMER EXCURSIONS INCLUDE†: • Geiranger Panorama, including Trollstigen Pass • A Glacier Adventure to Svartisen • Whale watching, Risøyhamn • Midnight Concert in the Arctic Cathedral • North Cape – Europe’s northernmost point Stunning wildlife

The Midnight Sun at North Cape

Call Northumbria Travel on 01670 829922 Visit www.northumbriatravel.com or email us at info@northumbriatravel.com 82 Front Street East, Bedlington, Northumberland, NE22 5AB * Special prices are incorporated in the prices advertised. **Price displayed is for the Manchester departure (Birmingham is £1995pp).

Price based on two people sharing an inside cabin (I-grade) including flights from Manchester (26th May) or Birmingham (17th June) and transfers as applicable. Subject to availability. †Excursions available at extra cost. Hurtigruten’s full terms and conditions apply.