Chelmsford The City Times July/August 2015

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Including: Boreham, Broomfield, Danbury, Great Baddow, Maldon, South Woodham Ferrers, The Walthams and Writtle 10000 copies distributed monthly

Issue Number 22: 17th July - 14th August 2015

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CT Welcome

Next Issue Deadlines:

Dear readers,

What a busy month it’s been with all the fesitvals (and there’s still Bay Days, the Prince of Orange Reunion and OG Fest to come locally).

We have two more competitions for you this issue! See page 26 for these. Hopefully many more to come, so if you are interested in running a competition then please email paul@ itsyourmedia.co.uk.

Thank you to Chelmsford City Council for having us at The Fling and Event Sound and Light and High Chelmer for your sponsorship - everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. See a few photos on page 16 and on page 4, Emma writes about the fashion at the festival.

Enjoy the sunny weather!

Paul & Nick

www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk | www.moulshamtimes.com

Advertising Editorial Nick Garner Paul Mclean 07970 206682 07595 949701 ads@itsyourmedia.co.uk editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

it’s your media Ltd Disclaimer: It’s Your Media Ltd publish Chelmsford The City Times. The opinion expressed in each article is the opinion of its author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of It’s Your Media Ltd. No part may be reproduced without the prior written permission of It’s Your Media Ltd. Registered offices: 15 Hayes Close, Chelmsford. Reg No 9154871. Printed by Imagery UK.

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Page 3

CT Fashion - Fling Festival Fashion

Chelmsford did itself proud with the fabulous Fling Festival at Hylands Park on the 4th July and the lovely festival goers looked amazing in some great outfits. I went to check out those ‘flingers’ that really stood out from the crowd.

Skirt - original 1950s Mexican circle skirt Top - 1950s crop top Seahorse Brooch - Bow & Crossbones Bangles - Bow & Crossbones Shoes - Primark

Top - Next Skirt - Next Earrings - Nairobi, Kenya Shoes - TK Maxx

Jade Marie, Chelmsford: Playsuit - Miss Selfridge Hair - set in old fashioned rollers Flower hair accessory Retro Festival Sunglasses - Retro Festival Gladiator sandals - not known

Shirt - Korea Trousers - Korea Tie - borrowed from brother-in-Law Birkenstocks - Korea Sunglasses - Korea Badge - The Fling Dress - vintage dress, eBay Bikini - Topshop Headdress - made herself Garlands - made herself Sunglasses - Ray-Bans Shoes - ASOS

Tom, Chelmsford: Trilby - Topman Ray-Bans - Chicago, USA Fred Perry polo shirt online Shorts - Chicago, USA Trainers - Vans from Chicago, USA

Top - H&M Top - eBay Skirt - Primark Shorts - eBay Shoes - New Look Hat - eBay Headpiece - Catherine made at The Fling Emma Smith lives in Chelmsford and is a style consultant. She offers personal shopping and wardrobe planning. You can contact her via her website: www.emmasmith.co.uk or email her at: emma@emmasmith.co.uk.

Hat - from The Fling Shirt & shorts - not known Shoes - Office

Page 4

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www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk Page 5

NOW ON

Bake n’Grape Opens Its Bakehouse, Bar & Grill In recent years, Chelmsford’s hospitality scene has significantly raised its game - from the fine food at The New London, to the inviting home-cooked feel of Olio Restaurant. Building on this, the end of July sees a new offering coming to the city in the form of Bake n’Grape.

Billed as a ‘bakehouse, bar & grill’, Bake n’Grape is promising to further enhance the dining and drinking options available in Chelmsford. Located in what was previously the Strada premises on Baddow Road, the property has undergone a 4-month renovation and fit-out programme. The result is a destination suitable for both business and pleasure. Whether it be breakfast or a coffee in the soft-seating area, dining in the classy yet relaxed grill, cocktails in the courtyard, or a lazy weekend brunch, BnG delivers on all counts.

Bright and modern, with the use of natural materials, the décor is stylish whilst complimenting the history of this lovely building.

Making the most of the rare outdoor space, BnG also brings the city its first indoor/outdoor bar. This is just one of the touches being employed to ensure customers receive the best service and attention. Fast, reliable, free Wi-Fi is a particular bonus for business customers. Toilet cubicles are spacious and equipped with shelves for handbags, rather than having to rest them on the floor. The babychange facilities have been designed with particular focus on both space and layout.

BnG is the concept of co-founders, Chris Windram and Martin Hobby.

Friends since childhood, they believe that Bake n’Grape fills a gap in the market in Chelmsford. Speaking to The City Times, they told us that “many residents of Chelmsford work in the City, enjoying and experiencing all that London brings. When they return in the evening, or at weekends, they find themselves with a more limited set of options. BnG seeks to provide another option… An option that evolves and matches people’s needs through the day.” They continued: “Our standards are not driven only by our friendly, service-focussed staff, but by our cutting-edge technology. Customers may take advantage of our bespoke system that allows them to place an order from the bar, bakehouse or courtyard via a smartphone - direct from their table.

This is perfect if you are alone with small children, in the middle of

a business discussion, or you simply don’t wish to waste your time queuing when you could be socialising with friends and family.”

Whether it be a leisurely breakfast; fresh coffee and cake from the bakery, a light bite, a sumptuous top-quality steak, or something else from the grill menu, BnG’s executive team has worked to create a range of menus with an appeal - whatever you’re seeking. There is also a diverse drinks menu, incorporating a range of signature cocktails and craft beers. There are also more grown-up alternatives for those choosing to avoid alcohol, but are looking for something different to the usual offerings.

In a world dominated by the big chains, Bake n’Grape makes a strong stand for independence in Chelmsford.

BnG opens 31 July, on Baddow Road, Chelmsford.

Chelmsford’s Busiest Beer and Cider Festival Yet At the biggest beer garden in Essex there was a great party in the park including celebrations for 40 Years of Chelmsford and mid-Essex CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale).

Attendance was up from 21,000 last year tp 22,600 people over the 5 days.It was the busiest Saturday ever with an amazing increase for the family fun day from 6500 in 2014 to 8500 this year.

8000 glasses were sold with lots of collectors keen to keep the souvenir glass. For only £2 you can buy a poster depicting the glasses from all 54 festivals the branch has held. Contact Claire Irons, Publicity Officer for the branch via www.publicity@ chelmsfordcamra.org.uk or phone 07773 093399.

Page 6

Poster photo by Katherine Rayne

www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

A World Run by ‘Wos’

by Simon Culleton

I watched the news this morning and noticed not one but three female presenters and a weatherwomen hosting the news without a man in sight and to be fair, we weren’t even missed. Is this the beginning of the end for us men? Are we now gradually to be replaced by more capable women?

Post workers, firefighters and police officers, to name but a few, are all work areas of previous male domination where now even the wording has changed to a ‘gender neutral’ title to exclude the word ‘man’. There is even a group of Californian feminists campaigning for the word ‘man’ to be taken out from the word woman, presumably women now being called ‘wos.’ Although strangely, we still refer to a ‘sewer inspection chamber’ as a “manhole’ - the word ‘person hole’ never taking off; it seems that no one wanted to fight for the equal right to climb down them. Yet it gets worse still for us fellows, with 853 of us men since 2000 opting for male to female gender reassignment surgery with only a fraction (12) of women wanting to change from female to male - although apparently the medical procedure from a woman to a man does come with free driving lessons (only joking, only joking ...see how scared I am?) So, joking apart, the struggle for women’s equality has been extremely hard fought: Emmeline Pankhurst, one of Britain’s leading suffragettes, endured numerous hunger strikes fighting for the right for woman to vote in the 20th century and some of the suffragettes died for the cause. 70 years previous, Florence Nightingale was a fore-runner, suffering ridicule and social exclusion before becoming the first woman with authority over men in the military. Before that you might have to look back to 14th century France and Joan of Arc to find a woman in charge of men, something that was extremely rare for medieval times (which coincidently, was the exact cooking instructions she endured being burnt at the stake - only until the male clothes of which she wore was burnt off to reveal that she was, after all, just a mere woman).

This is all a far cry from todays feminist struggle where the latest protest is ‘free the nipple’ which is a retro-style remake of the ‘burn your bra’ protest of the 1960s, where women fought against the perceived restraints of bras that would force women to cover their breasts to conform to modesty standards - which were set by men.

In the 90s in New York, there was a protest for women to have the same right as men to travel topless on the underground during the sultry summer heat wave, this too petered out (sadly) when it was discovered that the people behind the protest were men.

Today’s news headline is that Taylor Swift, the multi Grammy winning, 200 million record selling singer, was the youngest ever woman to enter the Forbes list (at number 65) of the most powerful woman in the world. Well, she fooled me (it’s not hard) when she sang the lyrics: ‘I stay out too late, got nothing in my brains...’ if you consider she’s worth an estimated 200 million. Other, more relevant women featured in the Forbes list are Hilary Clinton lying a close second behind the German chancellor, Angela Merkel. Our own Queen (if you are reading ma’am) - who is the figurehead of the free world and domicile over 2.2 billion people of the Commonwealth - surprisingly only comes in at number 45, which is curious prioritising, although it does go to show how powerful women have become in their continued march forward. Long gone are the days when you could buy a woman a surprise present of a vacuum cleaner and she’d be generally grateful, now she is more likely to want to own the company that makes them. One of the headings in the newspapers about the Forbes list made a joke stating that one day women would rule the world... after my research I am convinced that they already do. Yet, if there is any women out there still wishing to make a protest by sheading their clothing, you go for it sister, I’m right behind you. simon@limepad.com

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Page 7

CT Gardening by Tom Cole •

can’t be offered in the garden.

I love using containers and it’s an increasingly popular, versatile type of gardening suitable for indoors or outside. Containers may be used to enliven buildings and areas of hard landscaping, provide seasonal change, or offer a growing environment to suit plants that grow well in conditions that

Containers are a good way to experiment with planting combinations, can provide an instant effect and may be re-arranged to give dynamic interest to specific areas, either to disguise or as a focal point.

The choice of shape, style and material of containers helps to establish or reinforce the style of a garden. Plants tend to do better in larger containers where there are greater reserves of water and nutrients and there is less temperature variation.

Siting Containers • Site containers where they won’t be a trip hazard and where they can’t topple over. Consider securing containers to - or within - a permanent structure.

• Safe and convenient access for maintenance is essential.

• Place containers away from wind tunnels - for instance, between buildings.

• Consider the effects of radiant heat from paving and buildings.

This may help to over winter a plant of borderline tenderness, but will also increase evapotranspiration.

• Containers often look most effective when grouped together.

Growing Medium • Specially formulated container composts contain controlled release fertilisers and water-retaining gels, but these may also be added to standard composts.

• Soil-less composts are lightweight, an important consideration

• •

for a balcony or roof terrace.

Soil-less composts are difficult to re-wet if they dry out completely.

Permanent plantings may benefit from soil-based composts, such as John Innes No. 3, which retain water and nutrients well, maintain their structure, and are easier to re-wet.

Heavier soil-based composts aid stability if growing tall plants which are prone to blowing over.

Or consider a hydroponic system - growing plants without soil.

Plants have constant access to oxygen and as much water as they need. The plant decides on what it needs, all you need to do is supply food, lighting and possibly heating: an ideal system for indoors!

Plant Choice • Seasonal planting is relatively easy to manage provided plants are fed and watered regularly.

• Permanent planting, or a mixture of permanent and seasonal planting may offer opportunities to grow plants with specific requirements, for example, ericaceous plants, or alpines.

• Plants of similar vigour should be selected to ensure a balanced display.

• Combine plants with different colours, texture, form and habit or use several plants of one species to create a visually interesting display.

Maintenance • In addition to the incorporation of controlled release fertiliser at planting, plants may be given a dilute feed during the growing season if growth is slow.

• A balanced feed is suitable for permanent or foliage plants, but a high potassium feed such as tomato food is best for floral displays.

• Regular and sufficient watering is essential if plants are to flourish in containers. Water daily, or twice daily in hot weather, preferably in the evening and consider a timed trickle or drip irrigation system.

• Dead-head regularly to promote flowering and remove damaged leaves and shoots.

• Monitor pests and diseases and treat promptly. Closely planted containers are particularly prone to fungal diseases in wet weather.

• Re-pot permanent plantings, or replace the top few centimetres of compost annually.

Permanent Planting • Bamboos and tall grasses are good for exposed sites. Camellias and rhododendrons grow and flower well in containers.

• Trees such as Acer palmatum, box (Buxus sempervirens), bay (Laurus nobilis), birch (Betula spp.) and fruit trees such as cherry and fig are all suitable for container growing.

• Alpines and rock plants such as house leeks (Sempervivum spp.) are good for shallow pots and pans, and require little maintenance.

• Evergreens such as Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Gaiety’ provide year-round interest.

Summer is here don’t delay call today!

My pot of choice is terracotta, they are widely available in a range of shapes and styles and age attractively and are relatively inexpensive.

They are robust and stable, porous (so drain well), aesthetically pleasing and associate well with other materials. However, they may crack in frost, or break on impact and are heavy to move - particularly when planted. They also dry out faster than some other materials.

Good luck and happy gardening!

For any gardening tips, contact Tom Cole, Head of Faculty for Land & Environment, Writtle College, Chelmsford, CM1 3RR by post (include SAE), or by email at: tom.cole@writtle.ac.uk.

Page 8 www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

Essex Entrepreneur and the Future of Gardening...

Changing the habits of gardening enthusiasts is a nigh on impossible task.

If only there was a local champion of modern agricultural methods to bring us up to speed on new technologies... Cue Daniel Roberts from Future Garden, a Chelmsford entrepreneur bringing the future of gardening to your doorstep.

I’m sure you have read the usual tabloid articles scapegoating hydroponics as an act only performed by criminals. What the papers tend to ignore is that the vast majority of the fresh produce you find in supermarkets is grown hydroponically.

Not just for the obvious reasons like faster, bigger and tastier crops, but also for the less obvious ones too: Fewer problems with pests/diseases and fewer resources used throughout the process as a whole.

The seasoned gardeners out there are likely thinking, ‘my harvests already taste miles better than anything I’ve had from the supermarkets, I’m not convinced.’

Well my stoic friend, the varieties you’ll see gracing the chain store’s shelves will have been bred and grown solely for their production and storage values, not for exceptional taste like the heirloom varieties that your grandad has passed down to you have been. Even you hardcore organic growers can save yourselves the aches and pains from the usual back-breaking labour right in the comfort of your own home - all year round. Growing with hydroponics can be easier, less expensive and much more productive than traditional growing methods, and Dan of Futuregarden in Chelmsford (and Chigwell) has been teaching people how to grow with hydroponics for almost 20 years.

We caught up with Dan to see exactly why he is so passionate about hydroponics: “I’ve

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There’s a whole host of unfamiliar products waiting for the gardener to explore...

always been a keen gardener, but since I’d discovered hydroponic gardening and realised I could grow tastier fruit and veg at home than I could buy from the shops I’ve never looked back. Now with the affordable and more reliable products I’ve brought to the market, I’ve been helping everyone I can to do the same ever since. Growing using hydroponics might seem a little daunting, but our staff are very knowledgable and always on hand to offer bespoke advice to our customers”.

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Just one of the many tents containing hydroproduce at the Chelmsford store.

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Page 9

CT Cooking

by John Jacobs

Parents, it’s that time. Inevitable, unavoidable, unstoppable and galloping towards you like the blazing hooves of the horsemen of the apocalypse. A tortured metaphor I know. Indulge me. In the words of the great American poet, Alice Cooper: “School’s out for summer.” The travel industry has ensured that it would be less expensive to simply buy Greece than to pay for a holiday there outside of term time and the realisation rapidly dawns that your entire itinerary of childcentric activity designed to keep them entertained and out of the criminal justice system totals roughly 12 hours out of the 6 week break.

engage them without ruining the kitchen. Toppings can be wildly imaginative and a great opportunity to introduce young palettes to new flavours. We decided to go with mozzarella, cheddar, black olives, fresh basil and chestnut mushrooms anchovies being perhaps a step too far.

I have remained largely unconvinced by any ticking clock yearn to produce offspring, considering them to be an Illuminati plot created by the retail industry to cost us money and increase the incidents of ridiculous neck tattoos for parents who presumably can’t remember their names. Couple this with the fact that the American custom of the high school prom has arrived on our shores - which seemingly, they can’t turn up to unless dressed in Christian Lacroix and riding a Griffin. Summer can be an expensive time. However, I accept some of you have them, feed and nurture them and in many cases, treat them like members of the family.

Easy Pizzi Dough 375g (13 oz) plain flour 2 tablespoons olive oil Pinch of salt 1 tablespoon caster sugar 7g sachet dried yeast 300ml warm water

Readers of the City Times, as you are my favourite people on the planet, I am offering a simple, inexpensive and largely nervous breakdown-free way to entertain junior over the extended season.

Not being a parent myself, my intention to purchase a couple from Amazon proved unsuccessful and regrettably led to some police involvement, so I have borrowed two carbon

As always, I look forward to your entertaining and illuminating emails, so please keep them coming to: cctfood@gmail. com. My enormous thanks to the endearing Paul and Sasha for the use of their blimphanger sized kitchen. Now, did I remember the air holes?

Method Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl followed by the olive oil and warm water. Allow the kids to mix it all together using their fingers and then proceed to threaten each other with handfuls of gooey dough.

Roll the dough out onto a floured surface, rotating 45 degrees periodically to get a nice round shape, then encourage them to try and stretch this by throwing it into the air pizzeria style.

Be prepared to make more dough. based child units from Brad and Angelina on the proviso that I remember to pop some air holes in the box when I courier them back to LA. Choosing what food to make was easy. I could have elected something Guardianesque; aubergine houmous, salmon

tatare or lentil bake perhaps.

However, I intended on the kids to actually eat the food we made so opted for a simple favourite...

Fold in the rims of the pizza dough creating a neat edge and then spread tomato passata over the top.

Pizzas are easy to make, the dough part needing very few ingredients - a colourful, tactile and fun way to learn about food and just messy enough to

Add your topping of choice with oodles of stringy cheese.

Bake at 190 degrees, or gas mark 5, for 20 minutes.

View all of our magazines online at www.issuu.com/itsyourmedia Page 10 www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

Summer Beer Festival by Simon Tippler of roundtowerbrewery.co.uk It was great to see so many people at the Chelmsford Summer Beer Festival in Admirals Park. Everyone seemed to have a great time and enjoy some fantastic beer. One of the great things about a large beer festival like the one in Chelmsford, is the range of beer available. My two favourite beers were #100 (our celebratory 100th batch) and Something Something Darkside by Weird Beard. Both beers being quite strong, dark and also rare. Apart from the chance to meet so many people, sample so many different beers, one highlight of the beer festival for me was meeting Jayne Peyton, Des DeMoor and Mellissa Cole. All three are well known and respected beer writers and the tutored tastings that they ran during the evenings of the festival were a real treat for all who attended.

It has been a busy time for us at Round Tower, as not only did we staff our bar at the beer festival, but we have recently taken delivery of a new piece of kit and are just getting used to how it fits into the brewing process. Although this will not increase our output, it will increase the styles and types of beer that we are able to brew. So expect to see a few stronger and more adventurous beers from us in the future.

We have also been enjoying experimenting with different hops and if you attended the beer festival over a few days, you would have been able to sample the Ella & Rakau beer dry hopped with different hops and tasting markedly different out of each new barrel.

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What’s On In Chelmsford July Friday 17th Bassment - Scarlet Echo, Loose Joints + Edison Square Civic - Les Misérables - school edition Cramphorn - Larry Berkovitz and Zak Barrett Fleece - Charlie’s Aunt (10pm) Hylands House - The National Flower Show 2015 Saturday 18th Asylum - The Offspin + Blinked 182 Bassment - Saturdays Alright For Dancin’ City Centre - Acrobatic day Civic - Les Misérables - school edition County Hotel - 100 Years of Sinatra Cramphorn - Larry Berkovitz and Zak Barrett: Sizzling Summer Jazz Special Fleece - Circa Fall (10pm) Hyde Hall - Cactus and Succulent Show Hylands House - The National Flower Show 2015 Keene Hall - Wine & Wisdom quiz evening Star & Garter - Rewind The Three Elms - Equal Opportunitues Band and Steak Night Sunday 19th Chelmsford City FC - bingo Civic - 40 Years On: Essex Dance Theatre Annual Showcase Hyde Hall - Cactus and Succulent Show Hylands House - The National Flower Show 2015 Tuesday 21st Civic - BAFTA Shorts 2015 (15) Essex Records Office - Discover: Parish Registers (1538-present) Wednesday 22nd Asylum - Comedy Night Bassment - Leef + The Kastro’s + guests Cramphorn - Lunchtime concert Cramphorn - Merchant of Venice The Three Elms - Blackmore Morris Men Thursday 23rd Asylum - Alex Fox (EP launch) + Red Kadett + Pete Gardiner + Alice Fowler Bassment - Club Static presents: Rhiannon Mair + Joseph & Maia + Rachel Brooks + Roisin O’Hagan Fleece - Quiz Night (9pm start) & Bay Days silent disco warmup in the garden from 10pm Friday 24th Asylum - No Matter + Demon Smiles + Forever & Out Bassment - Rowntree Records Bassment Takeover Cramphorn - The Falling (15) Fleece - Bay Days - Live music from 6pm - **** & The Gang, Crème De Chevre, The Midnight Barbers + more - silent disco Saturday 25th Asylum - Prince of Orange celebration Bassment - The Delta Jacks EP Launch + The Southern Generals + guests Civic - Tides and Tunes - a charity concert Page 12

Saturday 25th continued Fleece - Bay Days - Live music from 2pm - New Town Kings, The Jellycats, Bearfist & many more - Silent disco till 4am too.

Hylands Park - Heavy Horse Experience day Sunday 26th Fleece - The Bluebird Sessions Chelmsford City Centre - River Day Chelmsford City FC - Family Fun Day Tuesday 28th Wednesday 29th Asylum - Inexitus + Annuciation + Helldown Bassment - Indie rock Chelsmford Museum - I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside Hylands Park - Scrapbook Safari Thursday 30th Asylum - LooseJoints + Mandeville + Thinktank Bassment - Lianne Kaye + Red Kadett + guests Fleece - Quiz night Hyde Hall - Flower Show Friday 31st Asylum - Five String Dropout Band + Pogo Assault + Drop Dead Fred + The Tickturds Bassment - Rubber Soul with The Dead Formats Sound System Fleece - The Outlines Hyde Hall - Flower Show Saturday 1st Asylum - Intense Records Night - High/Low + Deniers + Luke Gambling Bassment - Saturdays Alright For Dancin’ Danbury Farmers Market Fleece - The Nook Hyde Hall - Flower Show Old Court Theatre - Midsummer White Horse Bar & Lounge - Too Much Pressure Sunday 2nd Chelsmford City FC - Antiques Fair Hyde Hall - Flower Show Hylands House - Farmers and Crafts Market Hylands House - Robin Hood Family Theatre Show John Seeley’s Jazz and Saxophone Group: Bandstand Priory Park, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-Sea (3pm to 5pm) Sandford Mill - Big Biology Day Woolpack - GC’s Jazz Club - Zak Barrett with the Dan Banks Trio Writtle - Car boot sale Wednesday 5th Bassment - Jazz Funk with Jason Rebello Chelmsford Book Club - Admiral J McHardy (7.30pm) Chelmsford Museum - Medievil Nun Thursday 6th Asylum - Counties + Two Faced Serenade + Short Tempus Bassment - Bassment Blues Jam Chelmsford Museum - Medievil Nun Fleece - Quiz night

Email us your events to editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

Friday 7th Asylum - Shakey’s Sessions - Suburban 100 + Velettes + Eyelid Movies Fleece - Barney & The Rubbles Bassment - Craig Charles - Funk & Soul Club Saturday 8th Asylum - Counties + Two Faced Serenade + Short Tempus Bassment - ICYMI presents Longy + Eddie Temple Morris + Frett Fleece - Mushroom Clown Hyde Hall - Chelmsford Art Society Exhibition Marsh Farm - Kids Fest The Three Elms - Jamie Williams & The Roots Collective Sunday 9th Hyde Hall - Chelmsford Art Society Exhibition Marsh Farm - Kids Fest Sandford Mill - Water Day Monday 10th Hyde Hall - Chelmsford Art Society Exhibition Play in the Park - Great Baddow Recreation Ground (1.303.30pm) Tuesday 11th Bassment - Blues In The City with Robbie McIntosh + Steve Wilson + Joel Fisk & Geoff Johnson Wednesday 12th Bassment - Rock ‘n’ Roll bingo Chelmsford Museum - Up, Up and Away Thursday 13th Bassment - Acoustic Underground Chelmsford Comedy Club - Lion Inn Chelmsford Museum - Up, Up and Away Fleece - Quiz night Friday 14th Asylum - De-Railed + Cold Suspects + See You in Reno + As Sirens Fall Bassment - The Electric Jam with Paolo Morena & friends Fleece - Fleeced Play in the Park - Great Baddow Recreation Ground (1.30-3.30pm) The Three Elms - Beer Fest - Clive And Simone Saturday 15th Asylum - Broadway Clash Bassment - Frere’s ‘A Night At The Roxbury’ fancy dress party Fleece - LAMZ The Three Elms - Beer Fest - Connor Sleby Band + Indies + Koolkatz + Gunrunner Sunday 16th Three Elms - Beer Fest - One Tree Hillbillies + Dave Warrren’s Quartet

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Please note, all events are subject to change. Please visit the relevant websites or Facebook pages for more details. Please send us your events for the next edition (for events between 14th August and 20th September) to: editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk.

Discount applies to metered fairs only.

The voucher must be given to the driver to receive the discount. Expiry 31/8/15 The City Times

www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

Email us your events to editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

Page 13

CT Business

sponsored by:

Essex Wine School by Hannah Cornish - www.hannatalks.uk I don’t know anything about wine - I’m more of a spirit lover, double malibu and coke kinda gal - but that was all about to change, as I’d been invited along to a red wine tasting evening with Essex Wine School at Chop Bloc in Chelmsford.

wine tasting events, the company also hold champagne, white wine, whisky, gin and many more events!

The venue itself was a new feature to the wine school as the class usually takes place at the university. We were taken up to the top floor cocktail bar, and taken to a room just outside the bar. The atmosphere felt relaxing and somewhat rustic - exposed brick walls and looping hanging lights. My friend Charlotte attended the event with me, and we sat at a table with a ham, cheese and bread spread on. Once a few more couples joined us, the class began. We were taught how to taste wine - properly.

With global weather changing frequently, does this affect the areas that produce wine? Will it force them to specialise in other varieties?

First step, look at the wine. Is it clear? Is it bright? The depth of colour and body of the wine differs between cheaper and dearer ones. If you tip the glass to a 45 degree angle against a white background, you will be able to tell the depth of the wine. Cheaper wines have a watery line, as opposed to dearer wines which are deep in colour throughout.

Second step, swirl. Swirling the wine will add oxygen to the wine.

Third step, smell. From just smelling, you can sniff out the primary, secondary and tertiary scents.

Fourth step, slurp/taste. Take a sip of the wine and inhale with your mouth slightly open. You’ll be able to pick out the flavours and scents of the wine. I almost coughed my wine up first time, takes a little practice... ahem.

We worked our way through 6 different wines, varying from cheap supermarket wines to a dearer wine from a wine store. We learnt where each wine was from, how it was made, the flavours inside it, the price and what foods would be perfect to pair it with. I certainly took a lot away from the class. Did you know that wine kept in oak barrels gives it a vanilla scent?

We did a little group exercise, which involved tiny little bottles of liquid and we had to guess what they were. They were all essences that can be put into wines. My favourite? The cocoa one! I’d love to try a red wine with cocoa in.

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and it was nice to learn something new! The host, Neil Bull, was a fantastic host and certainly knew his stuff. Neil is a life-long wine enthusiast and is one of 500 people in the world to be able to provide level 1, 2 and 3 programmes.

The wine school family run courses in 20 other locations in the UK. As well as red

Neil was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

“Global warming is having a big effect on the wine makers. Two areas in particular are being affected. In Champagne they rely on the really cold temperatures of northern France to give their wines a high level of acidity which is an important part of the end product. With the advent of global warming they are actually buying up large parts of Kent and Sussex, where the soil is very similar to that in Champagne, as they think it will become increasingly difficult to grow grapes to the right quality in France. Being even further north, the south of England offers an opportunity to grow grapes that have the right levels of acidity.

“In Bordeaux they use a traditional blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec. However, experts say that the region may be unsuitable for wine-growing by 2050 and the growers are already looking at different grape varieties as a precaution. It could mean the end of this much loved wine in the style that we know. Already the harvest starts about three weeks sooner than it did 100 years ago.”

What wines are worth investing in?

“As with all investments you should only spend what you can afford to lose - or to drink! The experts suggest that you need to spend a minimum of £10,000 to make the investment worthwhile.

“The best investment possibilities are in the great wine of Bordeaux. Bordeaux Grand Cru Classés account for the largest part of the investment grade market. As long as you choose a vintage and provenance correctly then, over time, you are likely to make money. It is mainly down to supply and demand. Bordeaux wines take many years to reach their full potential. So, if you can afford to buy some of the most highly regarded wines each year, store them correctly for at anywhere between 5-20 years you stand a good chance of making a healthy profit.”

What have you learnt from running these courses?

“I have learnt that there are a lot of people out there who love wine as much as I do. It is also interesting to introduce my guests to different grape varieties and some unusual

wines. By studying with the Wine and Spirit Education Trust I tried many different wines and it was this variety that led to my passion.”

What do you enjoy most about running the courses? What inspired you to take up hosting them?

“The two things I most enjoy are talking about wine and meeting new people and my courses give me the opportunity to do both at the same time. My courses give my guests the chance to try some wines that would never had tried before and it’s always rewarding to see how much they love them.

I formed an interest in wine many years ago.

I did not realise how many different grape varieties from which wine is made there actually were. Once I started looking into it further I became hooked. I love looking at what it is that influences the character of a wine, from the grape variety, location, weather, soil, climate, vinification and maturation there are so many things that can impact on the final product. It is quite fascinating”.

bestofchelmsford How do reviews help your business?

It’s an amazing statistic but a whopping 88% of consumers look for business reviews online before they use a company’s services.

At thebestofchelmsford we want every one to know how good you are at what you do.

We will host and showcase your business and reviews to thousands of locals and most importantly, we will monitor them so there will be no nasty surprises. We have even created a brand new reviews widget which sits on your website showing your potential customers all thebestof reviews you have acquired.

This is just one of the tools we give you to enhance your business when you join thebestofchelmsford. We know that in our area there are some great businesses - not just at what they do, but the way that they do it. These are the businesses we want to know about and work with, so send us your recommendations and let us know who are the best.

So if you’re great at what you do and want to let the locals know how good you are, then thebestof Chelmsford could be for you. Why don’t you contact us for more details and organise a meeting? We’ll come to you - it won’t take hours, just around 20 minutes.

Take a look at our website at www.thebestof. co.uk/chelmsford, or give us a call on 01245 701020 and remember to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Go ahead and take the first step to getting your business noticed.

It may be the best thing you do today. Think different!

Page 14 www.chelmsfordthecitytimes.co.uk

Georgina Beauty Rooms - by Linda McNeill This month I interviewed the owner and manager of the hugely popular Georgina Beauty Rooms. Georgina opened her gorgeous premises in Little Baddow in April 2013 and her salon has been incredibly successful - after visiting her beauty rooms and spending time with Georgina, it is not hard to see why.

Georgina has created something really special. Her salon is accessible in that it is not crazily expensive but she has made it a tranquil retreat - a place to have a welcome rest from the hectic pace of life for an hour or two. It is calm and quiet. Gentle music soothes you. It smells gorgeous. The staff are wonderfully attentive but not overly familiar and it is all housed in a lovely building set in the countryside just outside of Chelmsford.

I loved it! I really felt that Georgina had tapped into what every busy woman needs - a relaxed environment with a little luxury thrown in but not in an intimidating way.

I was very intrigued to find out more about Georgina’s back story, as she is clearly not only a talented beautician but a very smart business woman. “I knew from a young age that I wanted to be a beautician, but when I ventured to tell this to my dad he strongly advised me to carry on with my education. I listened to him and went on to do my A-Levels at the Girls High School, but I found it a struggle - I have never been hugely academic.” Georgina decided not to go to university but enrolled at Secretarial College instead. From here she went to work in the City in recruitment and loved it: “I started as an office junior and worked my way up to become team secretary, then up to account manager 7 years later. I worked hard and partied hard, it was a great lifestyle for me in my early twenties.” At this stage, Georgina realised she wanted to do more and experience more, so she decided to jack it in and go travelling for a year. She set off with her backpack to New Zealand and went on to explore Australia, Fiji, Hawaii and San Francisco - sounds pretty great to me!

However, when she returned she did not know what to do.

“I went back to the City and into HR, but it never really suited me. I changed jobs a couple of times and ended up back in recruitment but I never really found my way again.” At the same time, Georgina was given a huge wake-up call in her personal life: “At a time when all my friends were getting engaged and married, I had my heart broken and then I was burgled a week later.”

Ouch! With so many challenging experiences it turned out this way the catalyst that she needed to make a change: “This was definitely the incentive I needed. I decided

finally that I WAS going to be a beautician.”

Georgina had to make huge lifestyle changes in order to pursue her dream: “I moved home with my very supportive parents and got a job in a salon in Chelmsford. I worked for a year to get experience, but knew I wanted to set up on my own. I found a small room in Writtle and my business went from strength to strength.”

After a year, Georgina found she was just too busy and recruited another beautician Jo - who has become her right-hand woman.

They soon found that even with two of them they were struggling to deal with the volume of clients. This proved to be a turning point: “The reality of working for yourself had hit home - EVERYTHING falls down to you - admin, laundry, tax, cleaning etc etc. I realised I did not want to work on my own. I either had to stay small, or go for it.”

Georgina started looking for some new premises. She found rooms available in Little Baddow and decided to go for it. “I was petrified that I had bitten off more than I could chew. I absolutely could not have done this without my parents - they let me live at home with them for 3 years. My dad helped with my books and admin and mum did all the washing for the salon. They were completely amazing.”

Georgina opened up the salon in Little Baddow in April 2013 and it has flourished.

They are always busy and have a waiting list in case of cancellations. She now has 8 on the team and is always on the look out for good people. “I ask a lot from my staff and I have very high standards but I look after them and I appreciate them hugely.”

I asked Georgina what her vision was with regards to the kind of salon she had wanted to create. “My ethos is all about natural beauty. We do not do spray tans or false nails but concentrate on gentle, natural skin care - we use great products without harsh chemicals. All treatments are tailored to the individual.

Everyone’s skin is different. My personal favourite is our hot stone massages and we do a wonderful non-surgical face lift.

“I really believe in high quality and we use the best products. We work a lot with aromatherapy oils - we have a number of oils blended for different purposes. We ask clients to tell us how they are feeling and then we narrow down the oils to 3 scents and then they pick the one which most appeals to them... I want my salon to be a luxurious treat but also value for money - I want all clients to think it was worth every penny.”

When I visited Georgina Beauty Rooms I certainly witnessed the efforts Georgina has made to make a visit to her salon a lovely experience. She expects extremely high standards from her staff. When they welcome clients to the salon it is with the same hospitality you would expect when visiting someone’s home. Your coat is taken, you are offered a drink and made to feel comfortable. A proper consultation takes place and the clients are really listened to.

“I want the clients who visit us to feel really special and individual. They are never rushed - if they book an hour treatment, 1.5 hours is allocated to them so they feel relaxed and looked after.”

It was really interesting chatting to Georgina - she clearly has a great instinct for what she does and has tapped into what local women want. She was very modest about her achievements: “It’s not rocket science - look after your clients and run a clean and tidy ship.” With this sentiment, she has actually hit the nail on the head - ensuring the key expectations are met is vitally important.

However, it takes guts, determination and sheer hard work to demand and maintain high standards and Georgina clearly has these qualities in spades. Her experience from working in London has also really aided her: “I am so glad I did 10 years in the City - the skills I learned there have proved invaluable; running and motivating a team, knowledge of finance and management...”

Finally, I wanted to know what it was that had ‘called her’ to beauty... “I am passionate about beauty. It has always been in me. I don’t do it for the money or the hours. It is absolutely lovely to treat other women - it is a very thankful job and I am well appreciated.

There are no treatments I do not enjoy doing, I really see it as my calling - I love it!”

If you fancy a visit to Georgina Beauty Rooms (and you would be mad not to!) you can book online via the website: www. georginabeautyrooms.com, or get in touch on 01245 467 389/07852 317 290 or email salon@georginabeautyrooms.com.

If you are a woman who has reinvented her career and would like to be featured in my column, please get in touch at: linda@ bunintheovenbirthing.co.uk.

For events and places to go, check our What’s On guide on pages 12 and 13.

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Page 15

A Gorilla Playing Saxophone and Fire Eaters - It Must Be The Fling

A fantastic day of sunshine and entertainment

We told you there was a gorilla playing sax! Papa Shango on our stage

The Moustacheo Club recruitment drive!

Ledra Chapman playing a set on the grass after a power problem

Hats were made!

Say Cheese! Two of our writers pose for a lovely photograph!

Fire show to end the evening

Balancing act in the cabaret tent

Page 16

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Policing Roads Fun Day a Success Families came along to South Woodham Ferrers Police Station for a special open event on road safety.

The event opened up the town’s police station to all, where officers and staff from the Casualty Reduction Unit offered fun and games regarding what the unit does, as well as passing on vital information on how we can all work together to keep our roads safe.

Residents were greeted by officers from our Special Constabulary and Essex Street Pastors, who welcomed them to the event as well as promoting our volunteer work.

Museum stand, as well as get their faces painted throughout the day - some even took on the challenge of the Whack a Rat challenge, led by our own Burglar Bill with his bag of swag!

Children and adults alike also said hello to PD Boo and his handler PC Mark Needham, finding out more about the crucial work taken on by the force’s dog unit.

Partners from the Safer Essex Roads Partnership (SERP), including Essex Highways and Essex Air Ambulance, were on hand to talk about road safety. This ranged from advising on blind spots, to visitors taking part in activities on how your concentration is affected if you’re distracted whilst driving.

April Westcott, who attended the event with her family, said: “This is such a wonderful event, it is the second year that the police have run it and it is always well received. It’s a great day out for the children and they really enjoy having the chance to see the cars and find out more about what the officers do.”

A regional presence from Norfolk and Suffolk Roads Policing gave onlookers the chance to try out a Lotus driving simulator, spreading the word about bad driving behaviour and how to remain responsible on the roads.

Adam Pipe, Essex Police’s Casualty Reduction Manager, said: “The day has gone really well. When the Casualty Reduction Unit came to South Woodham Ferrers, there was always an objective to be part of the local life in the town.

Attendees could also take on simple challenges, which were made much harder with the addition of drunk simulation goggles! The exercise showed the dangers of drink driving.

“There are a lot of local people here today, seeing what we and our partners do in order to keep Essex safer. I’m incredibly pleased as to how the event has gone. Community remains important to us, particularly working with residents on road safety and helping us to take people who commit motoring offences off our roads.”

Youngsters were able to see and sit on the motorbikes, in the cars and even a lorry that officers use on patrol to help reduce crashes on the county’s roads.

Volunteers from our Community Speedwatch scheme were also on hand to talk about how to join in the town’s scheme.

Kids also had a chance to dress up in uniform at the Essex Police

Find out more about the Safer Essex Roads Partnership on their website: https://saferessexroads.org.

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CT History

With this year being the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, I thought it would be fitting to write an article linking a device found in your domestic microwave oven with a successful hi-tech Chelmsford company and the code breakers at Bletchley Park. The one thing all these have in common is a device called a Cavity Magnetron which sounds like something out of a 1950s science comic, but the invention and mass production of this device in Chelmsford really made a difference to the outcome of the war.

The concept of the Cavity Magnetron can be traced back to 1920 when a man called Albert Hull invented the device and slowly over the years its performance improved. The real breakthrough came when two engineers at the University of Birmingham, named Harry Boot and John Randall, combined a number of then current ideas and placed their device in a solid block of machined copper.

This enabled the device to handle a greater amount of power and generate microwaves efficiently. To tune the device, they surrounded it with a large magnetic field, hence the name ‘magnetron’. This was at a point in time when previously, no one knew how to produce the highpower microwaves needed to build radar sets that could ‘see’ over a distance of many miles.

So Boot and Randall had really solved the problem.

In Chelmsford, research into the new magnetron had been going on for some time in the vacuum laboratory at the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company in New Street. There were, however, commercial restrictions on this work between Marconi, GEC and EMI, but soon after the outbreak of war in September 1939 these were lifted. With the importance of work concentrated on radar, the laboratory was transferred to Great Baddow where the first Cavity Magnetrons were produced in August 1940. During those early experimental days the production encountered many difficulties and as a result, by the end of that year only around 20 devices were being produced each week.

The Secret Wartime Device Made in Chelmsford By Alan Pamphilon

The defeat of France in mid 1940 brought an added menace from German U-boats, which had easy access to the Atlantic from their new bases in the Bay of Biscay. At that time Britain was dependent on imports for half of its food and all of its oil.

These important commodities were coming across the Atlantic from North America in shipping convoys which soon became the targets of the German U-boats.

The use of convoys had been developed back in World War 1 and gave British merchant ships a much greater chance of surviving than a lone vessel.

The Germans countered this with their submarine ‘Wolf Pack’ offensive using a number of U-boats spread across a wide shipping lane.

At Bletchley Park, Alan Turing and his team had been working hard to develop a way of cracking the German naval Enigma coded communications used by these submarines. The codes were more complex than those used by the German Luftwaffe as the naval machines had four code wheels instead of three. Working in shifts day and night against incredible odds, it took until August 1941 before these codes could be read and deciphered on a fairly continuous basis.

In late 1941, the Telecommunications Research Establishment (TRE) at Swanage used the Cavity Magnetron to develop a revolutionary new airborne, ground-vision radar codenamed H2S. The project was in part developed by Alan Blumlein and Bernard Lovell.

The aim was to build compact, efficient radar sets that could spot enemy planes, ships, and even submarine periscopes from miles away, even in the dark.

The story of the naming of the project goes back to when Lord Cherwell, then Churchill’s science advisor, visited the establishment and was first shown the idea. The development team at the time formed the impression that Lord Cherwell expressed little interest in the idea, so the team instead concentrated their efforts on other projects. However, on his next visit he enquired how progress was coming on with the new radar system. When

he was told that little effort had been made, he was heard to say that ‘it stinks.’ This prompted the team to relaunch the project under the new name of H2S, the chemical formula for the gas associated with rotten eggs.

A very clever code name that would not easily be understood by the Germans.

Back in Great Baddow, it was realised that more space was required for production of the new Cavity Magnetron device and in May 1942, production was moved to a former Marconi van garage on Waterhouse Farm in Waterhouse Lane. Although the farm land had been sold off, most of the original farm buildings remained and these were considered as useful camouflage against attacks from the air. The large single story building near the front of the site known as B building was used for the magnetron production, while the farmhouse and the old barn were also put to good use. The road to the farm, Waterhouse Lane, was then a narrow lane with high hedges and grass along the middle. The lane had potholes and being near the river would frequently flood in wet weather, especially near the old army bridge. Most of the work force at that time travelled to the site by bicycle, so the journey to work could prove somewhat difficult in the winter months.

Inside B building, there was some 9,000 square ft (800 sq m) of floor space dedicated to production of the Cavity Magnetron and before long, several hundred Cavity Magnetrons were being manufactured each month.

Two men were responsible for this remarkable production achievement at Waterhouse Lane, these were Dr Serge Aisenstein and Jim Young.

Aisenstein came from Marconi and was a pioneer in the field of electronics and in 1901 was a student at Kiev University. When war broke out he was sent to the valve laboratory at Great Baddow and later to Waterhouse Lane.

Jim Young was 25 years younger than Dr Aisenstein and he joined the vacuum laboratory in New Street early in 1934. Together they were assisted by Maurice Esterson who started at Marconi

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straight from college. He had a real passion for microwaves and eventually joined the magnetron group at Great Baddow. The joint technical knowledge of this team ensured the workforce maintained the high production figures set by TRE. These devices were then carefully transported to the Marconi radar factories to be incorporated into the H2S radar sets which were for airborne use.

In 1943 England was still heavily reliant on supplies being brought across the Atlantic by the shipping convoys from America. The Germans realising the significance of this supply line employed their U-boat ‘Wolf Packs’ to destroy these vital convoys. The tracking of the German vessels was achieved by deciphering the naval Enigma communications which could be achieved by this time at Bletchley Park in a number of hours. Planes armed then with the new H2S radar were dispatched to the locations and were able to sink the submarines. This technique of discovering the submarines was completely unknown to the Germans. Keeping this a secret was of the utmost importance as discovery would have resulted in a major setback and eliminated a key advantage. Therefore the British high command ‘leaked’ a number of deceptions to the Germans. One of these was centered on the false idea that their submarines were being detected by an infrared signature from the hull. It was carefully made known that the British were using talented pilots who had the unique ability to see infrared traces in the water at night. The Germans took this hoax very seriously and over a short period of time their scientists developed a special paint containing tiny glass balls which they sprayed on the outside of the submarine.

The brilliant idea did indeed make it infrared invisible, but needless to say it did not make any difference to detection of the vessel by radar.

So how does all this history link to the microwave oven? Well, the hi-tech company that mass produced those early Cavity Magnetrons went on to become a major worldwide supplier of

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microwave technology. They are still in existence today and still based in Waterhouse Lane in Chelmsford, these days they are known as e2v. So next time you decide to warm some food in your microwave, just spare a thought for those remarkable men and the way that their technical expertise helped change the course of the war and gave you an easy way to cook your dinner.

It is intended that the information in this article will form part of an industrial heritage walk of Chelmsford to take place as part of the Ideas Hub Festival in October, details of which will be published soon. In the meantime, historical walks of both the city centre and Moulsham Street are run regularly through the summer. Details are available by sending an email to cityhistorywalks@gmail.com or calling 01245 609778.

Heritage Open Days in Chelmsford in September The Chelmsford Civic Society is co-ordinating this year’s Heritage Open Days in the city. These are taking place from Thursday the 10th September until Sunday 13th of September. A wide variety of tours and talks will be taking place over at least seventeen sites in and around the city. Venues vary from the Salvation Army building and the YMCA, to RBS in the High Street, which includes the robing room for the judge at the Assize. Many of these sites are not normally open to the public. The Essex Cricket Museum for example, is open on two non-match days to non members of the cricket club. Apart from the cathedral and Guy Harlings (The Diocesan Office), three churches are participating.

For full details about each site, especially those that require booking, please see our extensive advertising in the local media in late August and early September. If you are making a special trip into the city centre, it will be possible to visit a number of venues on the same day.

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Have you ever wanted to look around a building you cannot usually access?

This year Chelmsford Civic Society have been tasked with organising Heritage Open Days on behalf of Chelmsford City Council.

This years event takes place over 4 days from 10th - 13th September! Save the date. This year venues include: The Salvation Army, Chelmsford cathedral, Hylands House, Moulsham Mill, County Hall, Galleywood Heritage Centre and many more! More details of timings in the local press in August and early September.

This years event is kindly sponsored by

and

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Hypnotherapy

by Jenny Hartill As this article goes to press, Cloud9 Counselling and Hypnotherapy now offer hypnotherapy and relaxation services in London! This is an additional practice address, based in the heart of the city of London. The premises are located just 5 minutes from Liverpool Street Station at Longcroft House, 2-8 Victoria Avenue, London EC2M 4NS. The therapy room is incredibly relaxing, with soft leather chairs and a comfortable atmosphere. It may be handy for those seeking therapy who work in London, perhaps on their lunch break or after work.

I am also now working with Essex Mediation as their in-house counsellor. Essex Mediation are a charity and an excellent organisation dedicated to helping clients to communicate effectively, discuss practical matters calmly and reach a fair agreement. As a registered charity, which holds a Legal Aid contract, they are specialists in mediation and conflict resolution and have no financially motivated or vested interests, meaning their only loyalty is to their clients. I am very much looking forward to working with them!

They are located just off Moulsham Street on Hall Street, for more information please see www.essexmediation.co.uk.

Now let’s look at today’s topic! I am finally going to leave the subject of memory techniques behind as I have been banging on about memory for the last few months. Today I’m going to look at anxiety because this is a common problem that I see in practice. In this article I’ll give some background and explanation to anxiety as it does link to other conditions such as stress, phobias and panic.

Anxiety is a set of feelings we experience when we feel apprehension or fear. The subconscious is responsible for our survival. It ensures our survival by employing the ancient ‘fight or flight’ mechanism, however the subconscious does not recognise the difference between someone trying to mug you and being called up in front of your boss; it just wants to rescue you from the situation to ensure your safety. In the modern world we are expected to rise to certain social expectations. This means that the following scenario could happen in extreme situations: You are called up in front of your boss and you respond by avoiding the meeting (‘flight’). This exacerbates the situation and you end up with a disciplinary, which you also avoid, so you end up with no job, no money, and feeling more stressed and anxious than you have ever felt in your life. The flip-side to this situation is that if you successfully avoid a stressful situation and this makes you feel better and the consequences are not negative, avoidance could become a habit and issues are rarely dealt with head on, this is what we call an Ego Defence Mechanism in Psychodynamic psychology.

Stress can lead to anxiety as anxiety can lead to stress because they are both connected to the fight or flight response that aims to ensure our safety. Hence, when I treat someone for anxiety I more than likely will also treat them for stress. The spectrum of anxiety includes mild/ generalised (‘free-floating’) anxiety, anxiety attacks through to severe phobic reactions. There are various causes of a phobia: Severe stress, a series of negative experiences building up to severe anxiety, fear of fear (you could have a fear you will panic in a certain situation, this is actually incredibly common, especially in those suffering with an anxiety disorder). You can learn a phobia from someone else, eg: a parent passing on their fear of spiders to their children. Anxiety is a manifestation of an underlying issue and the best way to get rid of the anxiety is to deal with the underlying disturbance. Anxiety can have it’s roots in a traumatic event, for example from childhood, but the client may or may not be aware of this event or be able to recall it. A severe past trauma can also cause a phobia.

Some people are more susceptible to anxiety than others. Over time the subconscious can start linking other situations that are similar to the one that causes anxiety and this can cause people to experience

anxiety and not know the cause. for example, a driver that is involved in an accident may then feel anxious when they start driving again.

This is the subconscious linking the physical symptoms of the crash with the action of driving. This means that anxiety is an avoidance mechanism used by the subconscious to ensure you avoid dangerous situations. This is also why we have phobias. John Broadhus Watson is largely connected to phobias because of his experiments on a child called ‘Little Albert’. He conditioned him to have a phobia of a white rat, but Little Albert became afraid of almost everything white and furry - including John’s beard! Little Albert’s subconscious had linked the experience of being frightened when seeing the white rat to other white and furry things. However, it would be unethical not to take into account that some phobias are more normal, for example, someone from South Africa or Australia probably needs to be scared of certain spiders if they are living there!

When someone feels anxiety all the time this is called Generalised Anxiety Disorder, it can be a debilitating condition leading to other symptoms such as panic attacks. A panic attack is out of control anxiety and can come on for no apparent reason, they can be triggered by your subconscious recognising and linking a situation to something it sees as threatening from a learned experience and they are typically characterised by several symptoms. As I have myself experienced many a panic attack (I suffered from Generalised Anxiety Disorder, hence I became a therapist), I can tell you it’s not an experience you forget in a hurry! So from the top of my head, here is a brief run down of your typical panic attack: • • • • • • • • • •

Start to feel anxious, don’t know why, this makes you more anxious Heart palpitations Sweaty hands Breathing deeper and faster but even trying to control it doesn’t make any difference. Feel nauseous Anxiety increases Chest pain starts Negative thoughts start - generally along the lines of ‘I’m going to die’ Feel very hot Feel light headed ‘I’m going mad’

Panic attacks can last from 5 minutes to 2 hours, the time limits differ widely, but typically your body cannot physically keep up a panic attack for longer than about 20-40mins. Some scientists and psychologists claim they can last for up to an hour, but to be honest in my experience, if the panic attack is as long as an hour it’s likely you’ve suffered a couple in tandem, calming down to anxiety level and then going back up to panic level. However long the attack lasts, it can feel like a lifetime. Panic attacks can be a common symptom when dealing with phobias. If your subconscious wanted to tell you something was an extreme danger, a very good way to do this is to make you panic so you run away from the situation or fight it off.

For more information on hypnosis or counselling you can go to my website: www.counsellinginchelmsford.co.uk.

Please note: from the 1st Aug 2015 my private practice based in Chelmsford will be moving to Perception House near the train station.

We will have a beautiful new therapy room that will be relaxing, tranquil and the perfect place for therapy!

I really enjoy writing articles on counselling and hypnotherapy for Chelmsford the City Times and Moulsham Times - I have had some wonderful feedback and clients that have come for therapy as a result of these articles have said they found the information incredibly helpful. I’m so glad these articles are making a positive difference for some people, be it that they understand the nature of therapy a little better, that they have better understanding of certain issues or even that they decide to change their lives by having therapy themselves.

My aim for writing these articles was always to give a better and more positive understanding of the psychotherapeutic profession and I hope these articles continue to inspire and help those interested in human psychology and behaviour for many moons to come!

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Rotary Treats the Kids

When I was a child growing up in the East End of London, once a year the London cabbies gave the less fortunate children a trip to the seaside, usually Westcliff. I was one of the excited youngsters who never had a ride in a car let alone a taxi and a trip to the seaside was indeed a treat. For years these special days out continued and when I became an adult, I remember watching the convoy passing through Danbury on their way to Maldon with children waving from the back seats and coloured balloons flapping in unison.

I don’t know if the cabbies are still doing this for London children, but I know that up and down the country Rotarians are providing KidsOut days along similar lines.

Here in Essex there were a number of different destinations. 48 children from Thriftwood School in Chelmsford which caters for those with special needs were accompanied by 12 teachers and a gaggle of Rotarians to Southend. The day began with a visit to the Sealife Centre and then everyone enjoyed a picnic lunch followed by a great time at Adventure Island. Exhausted but thrilled, the children returned to school and the next day wrote thank you letters and compositions about their special day. In all, 650 children from various schools enjoyed the day in Southend and Rotarians from clubs throughout Essex brought joy to their faces.

Rotarians who haven’t really grown up. Lunch followed, which included jelly and ice cream - another successful day for all ages.

To give another example of a Rotary KidsOut, local children using SNAP (Special Needs and Parents) were treated to a fantastic day out at Legoland. These are all unforgettable treats for young children from disadvantaged backgrounds or with special needs and I know I have never forgotten what it meant to me all those years ago.

If you would like to find out more about what Rotary does and how you can be part of it the visit: www.chelmsfordrotary1240.org, or phone me on 01245 260348 (office hours).

Enjoy the sunshine. Stan Keller

Coach loads of very excited youngsters spent their KidsOut day at Colchester Zoo. Hats were distributed and the children were divided into groups to see the animals, with the meerkats being a particular favourite. Silly photographs were posed for by the children and to be able to share the same stage with a legend like Robbie Music News by Nick Garner rare McIntosh.”

It has been a great and very busy month with Walthamstock, Leighon-Sea Folk Festival, the 3foot People Festival - and The Fling, where we ran a great stage. Thanks to all the acts and helpers and all of you for making it a great day. The acts and the Blues Jam made our stage truly amazing.

We had this feedback from Martin Joy: “Pieface were the highlight of The Fling for me. These guys have to be the best Small Faces/Faces tribute band around. Caught them last year as well, never disappoint.

Superb!”

As we go to press, it’s Brownstock next, where Blues in the City and It’s Your Music are hosting the Saloon Bar stage with 17 great acts.

Last month, we had ladies night at the Bassment and they were just great. Both Sheri Kershaw and her band and Lexie Green with her band - two acts who will be having back to play again for sure.

Next month we are honoured to have one of the world’s greatest guitarists, Robbie McIntosh, playing for our monthly Blues in the City at the Bassment - and for one month only it will be on a Tuesday 11th August. Robbie is not only one of the very best guitarists and a great singer songwriter, but he is also one of nicest people you could ever wish to meet. He will be playing with his best friend, another great player and singer, Steve Wilson. They will be supported by two of Essex’s finest in Joel Fisk and Geoff Johnson. This was by special request from Joel who said: “Nick, I just have to play support to Robbie as he is as good as it gets and an opportunity like this is very

Well where do I start with Robbie, with him being mainly a session player, you may not know him by name, but you will know many of the songs that he has played on. He joined The Pretenders in 1982 after the death on his friend James Honeyman-Scott until 1987, then he joined Paul McCartney’s band from 1988 to 1993. Robbie also played with - and for - Roger Daltrey, Norah Jones, Joe Cocker, Cher, Chuck Berry, Thea Gilmore, Talk Talk, John Mayer and many more and he is still often requested to play with many of those mentioned.

While Tom Jones is the main touring band for Robbie at present, he is in constant demand to play session with many others, one of those being Mark Knopfler who Robbie has been working with recently. It is a shame he is not doing more with his own music as he is a great songwriter and he has such a good voice and a wonderful band, as you might expect.

So make it a date on Tuesday 11th August at the Bassment, doors open at 8.00pm. Joel Fisk and Geoff Johnson are on from 8.30pm and Robbie and Steve from 9.45pm. It’s only £5 entry and tickets are on the door only and limited to 150 maximum, so do not be late for this very special night of live music.

Remember, help keep music live by going out and watching as much as you can. Follow us on Facebook at ‘Blues in the City Chelmsford’ or on Twitter: @bluesinthecity1 and our website: www.bluesinthecity. co.uk.

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Page 21

Take Off Your Watch and Run by Keith Porter

My dad ran the Great Baddow 10 mile race a few weeks ago. As usual, it was a great race - well organised, a really nice course and hot!

Anyway, as my dad crossed the finish line, he checked his watch and the digits let him know that he’d gone a lot slower than expected, recording one of his worst ever times for a 10 miler.

Dad’s assessment of the race?

Rubbish.

The thing is, once we actually got talking about the whole experience of running that morning, he’d actually had a really nice time. His son-in-law had run the race with him, and his daughter and grandson had taken part in the fun run. The course went through some lovely countryside and he didn’t go off too fast - one of his downfalls.

So, originally, dad had based his assessment of whether or not the race was good entirely on his watch readout. Which got me thinking: If you’re judging the success or enjoyment of a race by the digits on your watch at the end, you’re doing it wrong.

So why would I say that? Well, imagine you’re doing the Chelmsford Marathon later this year. You’re running around your home city (something pretty amazing, really) in a fantastic event. The roads are closed, the crowds are out to support you, and you’re getting a unique perspective on our beautiful city.

You finish the race and your time is 4:27, but you were aiming for under 4:15. Is the whole experience ruined just because you were slower? Would it have been different had you not worn the watch at all and just ran because you can?

And what did you miss because you were so focused on the time? Did you feel good? Did you

make it up a hill without stopping that you thought you’d struggle on? Did you overtake someone?

Did you notice the sunshine?

The cheers from the crowd? How awesome the Shire Hall looks now? The beautiful countryside villages around the city?

If you’re an athlete, you can live and die by the watch. That’s a little different. But, too often in life we’re striving so hard to get to the finish line that we look straight past the journey itself, with its beauty, struggle, and achievement.

Need help with your marathon training? To find out about personal training, drop me a line at keith@liveasimplelife.co.uk.

Retreating to Advance By Kellie Jones

So I promised to tell you all about my 3 week retreat in Australia and as I began to write this I wondered what does it really mean to retreat.

unpleasant)

Retreat : the act of withdrawing or going backward (especially to escape something hazardous or

Chelmsford is eating out and food shopping. Watch this space as I do the research and share the results...

In the meantime, don’t delay your own retreat to advance, take some time out even if it’s just for an hour. We can help you start your search for serenity at Hummingbird, maybe a Restorative Yoga class, a massage, or a beauty treatment. Give us a call and I’ll see what we can arrange.

Find us at www.hummingbirdpilates.co.uk, or call 01245 422556.

I didn’t realise until my mum left for Europe and I was finally in almost complete solitude, apart from the dog, that what I was really escaping or withdrawing from was people. This was definitely not moving backwards as I was forwards in time by around 9 hours!

To spend 3 weeks in anonymity where there were no preconceptions or expectations of me was a serious relief. When I’m in Chelmsford living a normal week, I quite often find myself rebelling against those expectations with lots of wine and late nights. Interestingly, left to my own devices I actually chose to become a serene, yogic, healthy eating guru! Without pressure or worries I slept like a baby, woke up early ready for my morning yoga class, walked the dog by the water, meditated every day and craved healthy food. Yes I did pour myself a glass of wine but actually found that I quite often forgot it was next to me as I read my book or watched a movie. I became an organic food tourist, driving around checking out places like The Raw Deli and the vegetarian, dog friendly, Bamboo Buddha cafe. I even started Zen doodling as I detoxed from talking. I met up with friends a few times and had my hair and nails done to get a gossip fix. In comparison to being here at home though I was practically a buddhist nun!

So the opposite to retreat is to advance.

Advance: move forward purposefully.

I’ve been back in Chelmsford for 4 weeks already and I can tell you with confidence that I am advancing! I am taking great note of what steals my serenity and doing my best to cut it out of my life. When it’s not possible I’m increasingly conscious of how long I spend in that environment and balance out indulgence with detox. After International Yoga Day in Central Park, a yoga tent at Walthamstock Festival, a wedding, my birthday and The Fling I am ready for the 10 day clean eating challenge ahead of me. Luckily yoga, pilates and meditation are easy for me to retreat to. It seems the challenge in Page 22

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Pilates, Yoga, Meditation Book your space online or call: Small Classes & 1-2-1’s www.hummingbirdpilates.co.uk Inspirational Teachers 01245 422556 Friendly, Community Vibe Reeds Farm Estate, Writtle, CM1 2ST

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Summer Holidays by Sarah from Blooming Felt The summer holidays are in full swing and if you’ve got kids you might already be fed up with hearing the words ‘I’m bored’. If you haven’t got kids but have decided to take a ‘staycation’ this year, you might be wondering what to do with your time (unlikely I know, but I expect there are one or two days when you might not have anything planned.)

Fortunately, there are a whole host of craft workshops available through the summer which will not only fill in time for the kids, but ensure you all come away with a brand new skill after having lots of fun!

So, this month I thought I’d do a quick round up of some of the workshops and events that have caught my eye and which I might well sign my daughter up for, and a couple that I’d love to take part in myself.

The Make It Room in Howe Green run all sorts of workshops including, felt-making, sewing, jewellery making, lampshade making, furniture painting, crochet and embroidery. They’re also running a number of ‘Mum & Daughter’ workshops - you can choose from owl cushion making, make a tote bag or printing & stitching. Most of the workshops are priced around the £30 mark and include all materials and refreshments. Visit www. themakeitroom.co.uk for full details.

If you’d love your child to learn to bake, but can’t stand the mess at home, then why not pay Bake It Make It in Mountnessing a visit?

They’ve got a whole host of holiday workshops available where the kids can learn to bake cakes, make pizzas or cookies. Visit www.

bakeitmakeit.co.uk for more details.

Barleylands in Billericay have a great craft village which is home to a number of crafty businesses. Most of them are offering summer holiday workshops which include art classes, glass art workshops and paper craft workshops. Visit www.barleylands. co.uk for full details.

If you fancy doing something a bit more outdoorsy, then the Essex Wildlife Trust have a number of events on at Hanningfield Reservoir.

For adults, there are photography workshops and wildflower walks.

Also on offer are a number of other events, including family events such as orienteering, scavenger hunts, family bat evenings and den building. All need to be booked in advance. Visit www.essexwt.org.uk to book.

Blake House Craft Centre near Braintree offers lots of different activities, a shopping village, a brilliant maize maze and refreshments from Timbers Restaurant. Full details are available at www.blakehousecraftcentre.co.uk.

Ceramics on the Hop is a fab pottery painting workshop hidden down a tiny little lane in the beautiful village of Writtle. They cater for both adults and children alike with daytime and evening workshops for adults and holiday club events for kids. Priced at £16.00 for a 2 hour session for children with a 10% discount for siblings. Refreshments are also included. Visit www.ceramicsonthehop.com for details.

So, I hope that gives you a few ideas to keep everyone busy in the holidays.

Have fun !!!!

CT Wildlife Corner by nick Green June, like May and April, has again proved to be rather cool with few days registering 20 degrees celcius which insects really need to become active, particularly bees - a bit of a worry. I hope the government has enough commonsense to vote against beekilling pesticides… But at least early July has suddenly produced some welcome seasonal temperatures. I have not recorded many butterflies, but the list includes species like brimstone, orangetip, small tortoiseshell, meadow brown, speckled wood, peacock, holly blue and painted lady...

Swifts seem to be in good numbers this year and are wheeling about and screaming their way above the roof tops of the streets of Chelmsford.

The painted lady, from North Africa, is one of the most widely distributed and attractive migratory butterflies in the world, but numbers vary hugely from year to year in Britain. The species has even reached Iceland. Peak invasion years included 1996 and 2009, the latter year was thought to have involved 11 MILLION insects in Britain!! It is thought that 2015 could trigger another invasion from the continent, so pray for southerly winds and high temperatures…

Important larval food plants include various thistle species, but my garden has attracted some examples thanks to buddleia and lavender. For more information about all British butterflies and food plants, please refer to the very informative Butterfly Conservation Society’s website: butterfly-conservation.org.

Forthcoming Chelmsford wildlife club events include: RSPB - Chelmsford and Central Essex Group www.rspb.org.uk/groups/chelmsford. The Essex Birdwatching Society website has all details: www.ebws.org.uk.

Essex Wildlife Trust - Chelmsford Group www.essexwt.org.uk/get-involved/local-groups/chelmsford.

Essex Field Club: www.essexfieldclub.org.uk.

Recent Essex Bird News The most noteworthy June news included 8 bee-eaters over Marks Tey on 26th and the black-winged stilt run continued with 2 at Fingringhoe Wick EWT reserve (near Colchester) from 30th.

Painted lady butterfly on fleabane (copyright: Mrs Trishia Blewitt) Page 24

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Page 25

Waxing Lyrical with Art - (Chelmsford Artist at The National Flower Show) Catherine Price is a local artist who works from her studio in the historical stable courtyard setting of Hylands Stables Visitors Centre at Hylands Estate. She will be exhibiting her unique style of painting at The National Garden Show (on the 17th, 18th and 19th July) in the craft and gift pavilion.

Encaustic Art is the name used for painting with heated tools and coloured beeswax. The wax blocks are melted directly on to the iron plate and spread on to the painting card. Different techniques are used to create texture and pattern to build the picture in layers. Catherine finds the medium expressive and enjoys the fluidity of the wax and the diverse images that can be created in this art form.

With practice and experimentation, her painting methods - and benefiting from a light and airy studio in the delightful and inspiring grounds of Hylands Estate - has lead Catherine to concentrate her work mainly on floras and landscapes.

Often work focuses on the centre of individual flowers. Though there may be many of the same flower type, each is unique, and this is how the artist approaches her work.

“I am really looking forward to The National Garden Show. This will be the first big event that I have shown my work and I am excited to

have the opportunity to engage with the public, sharing information and the inspiration behind my work and about this exciting, vibrant medium. It looks to be a great event with plenty of colour inspiration for me to take forward in to my future paintings. I love experimenting and always try to bring something, new, fresh and unusual to my work.”

More pictures by Catherine and that of the other artists at the studios can be seen on display and for sale in the recently refurbished Stables Bookshop and Gallery at Hylands Estate, which is open seven days a week. For more information see the artist’s web page: www.hylandsartists.co.uk, or give them a ‘like’ on Facebook: ‘Hylands Artist Studios’.

For more information on Encaustic Art, painting lessons and commissions, Catherine can be contacted by email at cp44@ btinternet.com.

For a chance to win one of Catherine’s original paintings (‘Heart of Flowers - Blue’ as pictured, mounted and framed in white, overall size 30x30cm), please answer the following: What is the name given to this method of painting?

A: Acoustic B: Encaustic C: Caustic Please email your answer to: competition@itsyourmedia.co.uk.

Email addresses will only be shared with Catherine and added to our mailing list for the e-version of the City Times unless you state ‘opt out’ in your entry.

Exhibition and Competition

As August draws near, Chelmsford starts to buzz with the prospect of the world’s stars descending on our new city to entertain the masses once more. In James Wilkinson’s studio it means the end of one year of preparation and painting and the start of another.

At his studio in the stables centre at Hylands Park in Chelmsford James, who combines his portraits with important rock memorabilia, has finished the long process of putting together the exhibition for last year’s V Festival. Aside from the usual official portraits and candid photographs from V of stars such as Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith, James also persuaded them to do their own ‘Self V’ portraits which will be auctioned on the night to raise money for Little Haven’s Hospice. So far James’ exhibition’s have raised around £11,000 for local charities.

The evening at The Grand Pavilion Hylands Park takes place on Friday August 14th and includes live music from the Likes of Irie J, Just Millie, Bailey Whitnell and Michelle Leacy. The event has grown bigger each year providing a fantastic night of entertainment and art.

Tickets have stayed at the same price of only £5.00 and can be purchased at www.paintpop.com, where you can also see a video of James creating the exhibition.

If you would like a chance to win a pair of tickets to the night, answer this question. What is the name of Ed Sheeran’s latest album? a) X b) Y c) Z Email your answer to competition@itsyourmedia.co.uk. Email addresses will only be shared with James and added to our mailing list for the e-version of the City Times unless you state ‘opt out’ in your entry. You can visit James at his PAINTPOP studio in the Stables Centre at Hylands Park most days but normally on Saturdays and Sundays.

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Page 27 If you know a CLEAN joke email editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

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CT CHARITY The Samaritans Chelmsford and Mid Essex Samaritans are celebrating 50 years of service in the community this year and are very proud of the fact. Our volunteers support callers not only from Chelmsford, but worldwide. Isn’t it amazing what technology has done? From the humble beginnings of one telephone in one room in London, to now having 212 branches nationwide with over 2,000 volunteers talking, emailing, texting and reaching out to callers and supporters 24/7, 365 days every year.

We talk to many people who are struggling with the trials and tribulations of life and sometimes people have no one to talk to and nowhere to turn to get the help they need to work things out for themselves. That’s what we try and do, to support those struggling with various issues that sometimes can be worked through with a little bit of help from us.

If you need someone to talk to, or if you would like to become a volunteer, the support you will receive as a caller or as a training

Samaritan will be consistent and caring. Our volunteers are trained to a high standard, giving our callers all the time and support they need.

Sometimes it only takes one contact, other times our callers may need a considerably longer contact, somewhere they know they can call to be listened to without judgement.

Samaritans come from all walks of life, cultures, genders and age groups. Time is a precious thing and the time we give to our callers each day is important to us.

Our branch also supports the local prison and we also venture out into the community holding flag days in the High Street where we also sell second hand books. We take our SamVan to Essex Pride, Barleylands Country Fair and of course, the V Festival, where we meet some people year on year just to say ‘Hi, we know you’re here if we need you’.That’s what being a Samaritan is all about, just being there.

Page 28 To be our charity of the month please email editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

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01245 262082 Event Review by Stephen Alden I arrived at Unity in the Community arts festival on June 20th, having graciously accepted the kind invitation from Jenny Davies (co- proprietor of Intense Records/Get Customised businesses). This was a benefit event held in aid of UNICEF and Nepalese earthquake funds. The festival organisers, In Case You Miss It (ICYMI) and Staple Diet groups, hope to make Unity an annual event and this year’s activities were well attended.

Three West End venues were chosen by the organisers, Intense Record store and The Ale House public house - both of Viaduct Road - and the main performance area was a pop-up shop at Anne Knight project within Guinness Trust’s City Park West apartment block off Duke Street (facing Chelmsford railway station).

The day brought many exhibitors to the city for the festival, including contemporary artworks courtesy of the I Collective, and chalk artworks on the paving outside Anne Knight. Hip hop, funk and smooth soul music were the order of the day in the Transitions area, while Jon and Jenny from Intense, provided a record fair and demonstrations of the latest lines of personalised tee shirts and DJ accessories from Get Customised. No self respecting DJ would leave home without one of her slip matts for his/her hallowed turntables!

A funky vibe to proceedings were Lucy Can’t Dance (a bespoke vintage dressmaker specialising in pre-World War II fashion) and her friend Kirsty Ellis from KMacDesigns who gave a fascinating demonstration of yarn-spinning to make wool using an authentic spinning wheel.

Decorative pieces of homemade jewellery were another highlight.

Barbecue food was provided by Gavin Raynes and Natalie Clove outside Anne Knight and an oversubscribed pop-up bar was ably managed and run by our friends at the Bassment in Wells Street.

In conclusion, this was a chance to see the Chelmsford visual and

performing arts community at play and by the many smiling faces I witnessed, the festival goers found much to enjoy. A Roots reggae and ska themed after-party was held in The Ale House for those who did not want the party atmosphere to end. Looking forward to next year’s event!

Family Friendly Funnies When do you go at red and stop at green?

When you’re eating a watermelon.

What do you call a snowman in July?

A puddle.

What does the sun drink out of?

Sunglasses.

What is grey has four legs, a tail and a trunk?

A mouse on holiday.

What do you call a penguin in the desert?

Lost.

Where do cows go on their holidays?

Moo York.

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Stargazing with Mark Willis July/August By the time you read this, the New Horizons probe will have arrived at Pluto. If all the equipment switches on successfully, then the media will be ablaze with HD pictures of Pluto. More next time.

Noctilucent clouds are beautiful. What are they and what do they look like? They a rare form of cloud, probably composed of ice crystals and dust from meteor ‘smoke’, that occur at a higher altitude than any other cloud form, about 82 km (50 miles). The ice crystals form because this is the coldest level in the entire upper atmosphere. They are silvery or bluish white and they will be on view this month.

Meteor showers: Delta Aquarids: 15 July to 14 August. Not favourable as the Moon will be making a nuisance of itself for any decent viewing. This is best viewed a couple of hours before dawn.

Perseids: 25 July to 18 August. Very good! These will increase in frequency the later it gets. Fairly Moon-free from August 11, 12 and 13th, these combine with the Delta Aquarids to provide an impressive display.

Alpha Capricornids: 11 July to August 10, peaking 28-29 July. These

often produce bright fireballs although only about 5 per hour.

Forget the telescope or binoculars. Just get a deck chair, lay back, with some strong coffee and look up.

New Moon: July 16th and August 14th. These are the ideal times to get out those binoculars, telescopes, (and your naked eyes), to view those distant planets, open clusters and galaxies.

July 22 - 27 at 22:00 BST - Saturn: Looking south you’ll see the Moon and over to the right, (about 4 o’clock), you will see what looks like a very bright star - but this is not a star, it’s the planet Saturn.

Any questions? Contact me below and I will answer them on my radio show.

Next time in City Times Stargazing with Mark Willis - What New Horizons has found at Pluto.

Mark Willis presents Willis Wireless every Monday at 7pm on Chelmsford Community Radio.

Web: Tweet me: e-mail:

Meet Friends at the Museum This Summer

It’s school holiday time and many of you will be looking for interesting places for a family visit, in which case remember the rich potential offered by your city museum located in the attractive grounds of Oaklands Park. It has a range of exhibition rooms displaying thousands of fascinating objects and there are a number of special activities which have been arranged to take place over the summer period.

This summer, the Friends of the Museum will be again contributing to the fun of a visit by running an Object Handling Table which provides visitors with an opportunity to pick up and discuss a variety of items from the museum collections. The range is varied to maintain interest, but may include Roman pottery, Victorian coins, toys and household items such as irons, a shoe last, darning mushroom and stoneware hot water bottle, WW1 and WW2 medals and common objects from the 1960s which are now unfamiliar to many such as pre-decimal coins and an instamatic camera. Children particularly enjoy spending time at the handling table and are stimulated to ask questions or offer their thoughts on the original purpose of an object, but adults too are often pleased to see again things which prompt interesting stories and memories.

Road multi-storey car park).

Special activities for the summer include a craft drop-in-day, various family workshops and a Play in the Park day. In the special exhibition room the current display, World of Wallace, about the life and work of the important Victorian naturist, will end on the 19th July and be replaced with the opportunity to explore the style, design and inspiration of women’s swimwear in Beauty and the Beach. A number of recent art purchases will also be on view including a small bronze marquette (model) by Thomas Huxley-Jones purchased with assistance from the Friends. It was made in 1963 for the Joy of Life fountain, the full size statue is quite a prominent feature in Hyde Park. The artist taught at the Mid Essex Technical College School of Art and also created the Mother and Child statue which stands in the Memorial Garden (off Parkway and opposite the Victorian

In 2014, over 63,000 people visited the museum and some 1,600 spent some time at the Friends’ handling table. If you are one of the many Chelmsfordians who have never been to the museum in Oaklands Park, why not take the opportunity this summer?

If you have been before, come again for the special events on offer this summer. For information about the timing of various events this summer, visit: www.chelmsford.gov. uk/museums.

Love Your museum, be a Friend: www.friendschelmsmuseum.btck.co.uk

www.chelmsfordcommunityradio.com @WillisWireless mark.willis@chelmsfordcommunityradio.com

Chelmsford Art Society Exhibition at Hyde Hall The Chelmsford Art Society will be holding its summer exhibition and sale of paintings at RHS Hyde Hall on 8th and 9th August. There will be nearly two hundred pieces of artwork on sale. Normal Hyde Hall entrance fees apply.

Hyde Hall is located on Creephedge Lane, East Hanningfield, CM3 8ET.

Chelmsford Art Society was established over 50 years ago and has over 90 members, young and old. Meetings are held on a fortnightly basis at Trinity Methodist Church, Chelmsford (opposite the County Hotel). Our programme for 2015/16 commences in September through to April and involves demonstrations on a variety of techniques by visiting artists.

We welcome new members of all abilities.

For more details, please contact our membership officer, Philip Kyffin on 01376 793550, or see our website: chelmsfordartsocietyuk.weebly.com.

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Mc Cartney

Contact Chelmsford’s leading independent agent for your free, no-obligation quote Decades of experience and expert local knowledge 01245 266980

www.mccartneyestateagents.co.uk