Bridgnorth Journal - 27-Oct-2022

sue.austin@mnamedia.co.uk

Tackling drug dealing on thestreets,speeding andanti-social behaviour should be toppri oritiesfor thepolice in Bridgnorth,towncouncillorshavesaid.

Thetowncouncil welcomed community supportofficers to itslatest meetingand hearddetails of initia tivesthatare taking place.

Shropshirecouncillor Kirstie Hurst-Knightpraised officers for theirworkinclampingdownon speeding throughthe town

“Theyare really tackling the problemand the‘1,2,3action’ of ed ucation, warning, then vehicle seizure seemstobeworking,” Councillor Hurst-Knight said

Town councillorsagreedtheir prioritiesfor thepolicein thetown were tackling the problems of drugs beingdealt,particularlyinresiden tial areas, speedingvehiclesand anti-socialbehaviour in thetown centre in theevenings.

Councillor Alec Chetta said drug dealinginresidential streetswas making people feel uncomfortable andunsafe in theirown homes.

Councillor JuliaBuckley said that residents were worried not only aboutthe anti-socialbehaviour that drug dealingbrought butalso that theyoung people of thetown wouldbesuckedintousing drugs.

Shesaidthere were also concerns from olderresidents in thedays leadingup to Halloween.

Thecommunity supportofficers said they hadbeenintoschools talkingabout Halloweenissues.

Halloweenriders readyfor leapintothe dark!

KA

is real ly lookingforward to taking part.”

Theclear roundcompetition will runonSaturdayand is open to all ages andabilities

Bookingisnecessary to take part,and canbedonebycalling the centre on 07442095049.

999 crewsunableto save mantaken ill

Aman hasdiedaftersuffering a medicalepisodewhile travelling betweenBridgnorth andWolverhampton

Emergencyservicesattendedthe sceneat4.30pm on Sundayafter receivingreports of amedical emer gencynearBridgnorth Garden Centre,onBridgnorth Road at Shipley.

Crewsincluding two ambulances, aparamedic officerand an airam bulancefromCosford were called to thescene.The road wasclosed.

AWestMidlandsambulance spokesmansaidcrews hadbeenunable to save theelderlyman andhe wasconfirmed dead at thescene

Warm welcome for Rishiasnew PM

Bridgnorth’s MP PhilipDunnehas warmly welcomedthe arrivalofRishiSunak as primeminister, saying he wasconfidenthewould govern thecountry with “integrity,professionalismand accountability”.

Mr Dunne, whobackedMrSunak both this summer andlastweek, said he waspleased to see“thebest candidate” elected so swiftly

He said:“IamconfidentthatRi shiwill be backed by MPstodeliver hisprogramme in Parliament.”

Mr Dunneadded: “Heisbest placed to rebuildtrust in theCon servativeParty.”

l Opinion –Page8

Inflationblamedfor rise in parkingfees

Highways chiefs have blamed infla tion forincreases in chargeswhich will take placeatcouncil carparks in Bridgnorth andthe rest of the county from next week

ShropshireCouncilofficials have confirmed that the“smallincreas es”will come into effect on Monday

RichardMarshall, Shropshire Councilcabinet member,said: “Due to an increase in therateofinfla tion andthe cost of managing and maintainingour carparks andonstreet parkingareas,there will be smallincreases to some of ourparkingcharges.”

Defend –Page2

Centre, Alveley

Carvingout the restorationof ‘misty swamp’

Pictures andpoems couldform thecentrepieceofabridge as part of planstorestore awet land area at Stanmore Country Park in Bridgnorth

Restorationplansfor a‘misty swamp’and thelandaroundit to recreate apondfor wetland wildlife arebeing boosted by grantfunding from theSevern TrentCommunity Fund

Acompetition is beingheld forpicturesorshortstories in spired by themysteriousswamp to be carved intoabridge

ShropshireCouncilcountry parksand heritage manager Ed Andrews, said:“Hidden in themiddle of theparkisa ‘misty swamp’.Itwas once a pond thriving with wildlife,but thewater leveldropped andthe reeds crept out, chokingour the water

“Weplantobuildabridge acrossthe water.Onthe bridge we wouldliketocarve pictures or extractsfromstories that give aglimpse into themyster iesthatmightsurroundthis quietcornerofShropshire.”

Thecompetition is open until 5pmonNovember6and entries, picturesorstories no longer than 500words canbeemailed to edward.andrews@shrop shire.go.uk

Supportoffered on hearingloss

People whohaveissueswithhearinglossare beinginvited to visit Bridgnorth Libraryfor advice and support.

Thelibrary,inListley Street, stages asupport hubtwice amonth whereaudiology-trained volunteers areavailable

They offersupport with hearing aidtubechangingand batterycol lectionas well as generaladviceon hearingaid care

Thenextevents, whichare free, areonNovember1and 15 butappointments must be pre-booked by calling 01743342168oremailing shls@community-resource.org.uk

Town’s road base will be shut down forgood

Protests failto swaycouncillors from closing highways depot

PAUL JENKINS paul.jenkins@mnamedia.co.uk

ShropshireCouncil’s Cabinethas approved a proposal to permanently closeroadmaintenance depots at Bridgnorth andHodnet.

It comesdespite an objectionby Bridgnorth West andTasleycoun cillor JuliaBuckley,who questioned thedelaystoroads repairsand floodingdamagesince theclosures ayearago

MrsBuckley said theoverwhelming majority of residentsin Bridgnorth had“repeatedly and consistently raisedtheir concerns about thereduced servicefeltinthe Bridgnorth area sincethe closure” anda petition opposing closure hadattracted 2,000signatures. Sheclaimed thedepotswerebeing closedtopluga holeinthe council’s budgetdeficitand addedthatthere was“reducedpublictrust andcon fidence” in thecouncil as aresult.

ButCouncillor DeanCarroll,the portfoliofor Growth andRegen erationsaidthe £2mto£3m saved by theclosures of thedepotswould be invested in otherareas of the budget.

He said:“Thecontractorswho manage thedepotshavesaidthat five arenot needed andevidence hasshow that in theyearsince the Bridgnorth andHodnetsites were closedthere hasbeenno significant reductionin serviceortimes of re pairstoroads andother infrastruc ture in thoseareas.”

CouncilleaderLezleyPictonsaid they couldn’t justifyspendingthe moneytokeepthe depotsopenand suggested that alot of people in the areasaffected weren’taware thedepotsexisted

Shealso questioned whether Councillor Buckleywould be so concerned if thedepotswereinShrewsbury

Alterationsplannedfor pub

Acouncil is beingasked to approve therenovationofatowncentre pub in Bridgnorth

ShropshireCouncilwill make a decision on plansfor theWhite Lion at West Castle Street, afterthe sub missionofa proposalfor thepublic house

Theapplication requestspermission to carryout renovation work, including fire safety work, anew

first floorescapestair,and there placementofsmall extensionand canopy with anew oakstructure

Some of thepub’s windowswould also be replaced,along with some existing beams.

As part of theapplication list ed building consent is also being sought forthe work.

Planners will be askedtoconsider theapplication in duecourse

Councilbosses defend rise in parkingcharges

Highways chiefs have defendedincreases in charges at council car parksinthe county

Shropshire Council hascon firmed “small increases”incharges at carparks andon-street siteswill come into effect on Monday

Underthe plans–approvedbythe council’scabinet in July followinga publicconsultation–the majority of chargesinShropshireCouncil-run carparks areset to rise by between 10pand 20p perhour, with other carparks remainingfreeofcharge.

Thereare seven bandsofcar parksand on-street parkingareas managedbyShropshireCouncil, with bandsone to sixcurrently be ingchargeable, andbandseven be ingfree. Thenew pricinglevelswill seecharges rangingfrom40p an hour up to £2.80.

Cabinet member Councillor Rich ardMarshallsaid: “Due to an in crease in therateofinflationand thecostofmanagingand main tainingour carparks andon-street parkingareas,there will be small increases to some of ourparking charges.

“Wedoappreciatethatpeople arefacing financialpressures at themoment,and we have sought to reduce theincreases as much as possible.”

Theplanned fees were approved in February.The required statutory consultation hasnow been completed,witheight objections received

Trafficdelayed by M54crash

Trafficonthe M54inShrop shirewas backed up formiles afteramulti-vehicle crashdur ingrushhour.

Monday’s collision wason thewestbound carriageway betweenJunctions 3and 4, for Tong andShifnal. Shortlybefore 5.30pm,NationalHighways said traffic was backed up for aboutfourmiles.About 15 minutes later they said theroadwas fullyre-opened,but with “resid ualdelaysof20minutes on the approach”.

No onewas confirmed to have been injured.

TheWhite Lion in West Castle Street

Business confidencemustbePM’s‘toppriority’

Restoringthe confidenceofthe business communitymustbeatop priorityfor thenew primeminister, accordingtothe county’s chamber of commerce

ShropshireChamber of Commercerespondedtothe confirma tion of RishiSunakasprime minister–and theConservativeParty’s thirdleaderofthe year –bywarningthere must nowbea focuson stability

Thechamber’s chiefexecutive RichardSheehan said:“We cannotaffordtosee anymorechop-

ping andchangingofpolicies. The business communityneedstosee a viable,sustainable long-termplan whichitcan believein.”

He added: “Asthe BritishChambers of Commerce says,the politi caland economic uncertaintyofthe past fewmonthshas been hugely damaging to business confidence andmustnow come to an end.

“The newprime minister must be asteady hand on thetillertosee theeconomy throughthe challeng ingconditionsahead

“Thismeans settingout ful-

ly-costedplanstodealwiththe bigissuesfacingbusinesses;soaringenergybills, labour shortages, spiralling inflation, andclimbing interest rates.”

Mr Sheehan said businesses need to be abletoplanwithcertainty af teraperiodofextreme turmoil.

He said:“We know from theresultsofour latest quarterlysurvey that thereisarealnervousnessin theShropshirebusinesscommuni ty overinflation, energy costs, and interest rates. It is vitalwesee progressmadein these areas.”

Festivelunchschememakes move to newvenue in town

PAUL JENKINS newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

forTogetherAtChristmas is now greaterthanever.”

Theevent hasnot takenplacein person since2019due to Covid, al though volunteers managedtodis tributehot dinnersonChristmas Dayoverthe last twoChristmases

It is anticipated that people will welcome itsreturninpersonand thecompanionship it offers

hasprovedsopopular that it is moving to anew home at Bridgnorth EndowedSchooltocaterfor larger numbers.

whohas co-ordinatedthe eventfor thelast10years said,“We areindebted to thekindness of thenew head MichaelPenn to allowustouse theschoolfacili ties –including akitchen that can caterfor more guests whichwillenable us to welcome even more peo plefromthe Bridgnorth community whowouldn’totherwise have a Christmas dinner this year

“Althoughin an idealworld there wouldnot be aneed forsuchan event, giventhe currentcircumstances–postpandemicand with acost-of-livingcrisis– theneed

Mr Penn,who took up theheadship of theschoolinSeptember, said,“Bridgnorth EndowedSchool andHaloLeisure aredelighted to be supportingthisevent whichis such afantastic displayofcommu nity spirit in Bridgnorth

“Weare donating ourfacilities forthe eventwhich will benefit many people who, forwhatever circumstances andreasons, find them selves isolated or with asense or feelingofloneliness or nothaving themeans to celebratethisspecial day. We areverypleased to help.”

Together at Christmas has served more than 1,000 mealssince it started.Local residentscan book aplaceatthe table, either forthemselves or forsomeonetheyknow whomay,for whatever reasons, find themselves aloneorisolated this year at Christmas. To book aplacepleaseemail ad min@bridgnorthbaptist.co.ukor call 01746768129or07732 566095

COUNCILLOR RACHEL CONNOLLY,BRIDGNORTH WEST &TASLEY

It hasbeenthree weekssince I waselected as oneofyourShrop shirecouncillorsfor Bridgnorth West andTasley.

Iamthankfultothose who have puttheir faithinmeand I hopetorepay yourtrust through hard workand acommitmentto speakupfor Bridgnorth.

Over thepastfew weeks, I have been fortunate to meet so many people whoshow such dedication to thetownand the people of Bridgnorth

At thestart of themonth, I visitedthe League of Friends coffee shop to meet thewon derful volunteers andtounveilthe newcourtyard foun tain.The followingday myself andRichard Southwellfrom theBridgnorthLitterPickers Groupattendedanafternoon tea hosted by theHighSheriff of Shropshire in recognitionof thefantastic work volunteers do acrossthe county

Irecentlyvisited Bridgnorth BaptistChurchtoreceive an up date from theCAP UK Project, whichprovidesfreedebthelpfor people in ourcommunity.More andmoreofus find that rising costscan lead to us borrowing moneyfor everyday essentials

It is goodtoknowthatthere are places andpeoplesuchas CAP UK to supportthose whohave fallen into debt

Ihad the pleasureofvisiting theInnageLaneYouth Club to be theirjudge fortheir bake-off competition. It waswonderful to seeour young people enjoying themselves in asafe, structured environment. Thestaff whorun theyouth club provideenergy andenthusiasmtooffer activi ties that not only occupy many of ouryoung people butalso help them to develop newskills.

It is agreat honour to be able to writethiscolumn forthe Journaland Ihopethatmyfuture contributionswill both in form andsupport you

Tel: 01746 765255

enquiries@perryandphillipsfunerals.com

4Underhill Street, Bridgnorth, Shrophire.

(01746) 765255

CowleyHouse, High Street, Highley,Shropshire.

(01746)

DerekBartlettand Michael Penn at BridgnorthEndowedSchool

Chamber boss RichardSheehan

Live jazz show withadifference

Ashow mixing musicwithdry hu mour will be thenextArtsAlive concertatavenue near Bridgnorth this weekend.

Much AdoAbout Jazz is atwo manshowfeaturing musicians Al Gurr andChris Gumbleythatis coming to ChelmarshParishHall.

Aspokeswoman forthe venue said it wasaimed at people who don’tnecessarily likejazz–and thosewho do

“Itisanirresistiblecombination of classicjazz– thinkGershwinand Brubeck– anddry humour,incorporatingplentyofaudience interaction,” shesaid.

“Highlyentertaining, while maintainingahighlevel of musical integrity, theshow offers an insight into how jazz musicians work.”

It starts on Saturday (29) at 7.30pm andticketscost£14

Thebox office number is 01746 862850.

Drugsseized in raidsbypolice

Shifnaland Albrightonpolice have carriedout awarrant and seized aquantityofdrugs from homesinthe area

Membersofthe SaferNeigh bourhood teamand West Mercia Police’s LocalPolicingPriority teamvisited anumberofproperties overnightonThursday last week

Officers seized an unknown quantity of illegal substances from properties

They tweetedonthe Shifnal andAlbrightonpoliceTwitter page anda spokesmansaidthey wouldcontinuetocrack down on large-scaledruguse andpos session.

Police haveurged anyone with anysuspicions over drug dealingactivitiestocontact them

TwocountyMPs vote againstbid

TwoShropshireMPs were among thosewho voted againstproposalstoenforce buffer zonesaround abortionclinics in Englandand Wales.

MP forShrewsburyand Atcham Daniel Kawczynski andMPMark Pritchardfor theWrekinwere amongthose whovoted againstthe plan.Under this proposed lawhar assing,obstructingorinterfering with an individual trying to attend an abortionclinicwould become acriminaloffence.Anyonefound guilty of breachingthe 150-metre buffer zone around thecliniccould face up to to sixmonthsinprison.

At aParliamentary votelast week themajorityofMPs backed theamendmenttothe Public Order Bill,with297 forand 110against WhileNorth ShropshireMPHel en Morganvoted forthe bill,no votewas recorded forTelford MP Lucy Allenand or Ludlow’s Philip Dunne.

Pubtoclose foramajor £420,000 refurbishment

Apub will be closedfor just overa month whilea£420,000 refurbishment takesplace

TheBellInn at Tong,aMar ston’s pub,isdue to receiveacom plete refurbishmentduringthe closure, with theend result set to emphasise its‘warm,timeless countrypub atmosphere’.

Thepub closedonMonday(24) andwill reopen on Monday, De cember 5. Thetransformationwill seeanew colour paletteintroduced into thevenue,alongside wall panelling andbespoke tiling

Anew homely ‘snug’ sectionwill be addedtothe bar, featuringcosy Chesterfieldseating.

Additionally,there will be up datestothe al fresco dining area.

Thepub’s transformationwill also seemajor changes to thefood offerasitmovestoamorepremi um menu

Sitting in theShropshirecountryside,yet closetothe M54, The Bell Inn is housed in a250-yearoldlisted building,markedbyan 18th centuryobelisk

TheBellInn’s orchard-stylebeer garden allows guests to drinkor dine alfresco, whilethe spacious andmoderninterior offers arelaxeddiningexperience Kate Harding-Jack,general managerofthe pub,said: “Weare

so excitedtoannouncethatThe Bell InnatTongwill be receiving arefresh

“Wehaveinvested over £420k into breathingnew life into The Bell Inn.The pubis much loved by itsregulars, andwecan’t wait to welcome everybodyback on De cember 5.”

Aheadofthe reopening, guests will be abletoenjoy 50 percent offfood as part of itssoftlaunch, availabletoguestsfromFridayto Sunday, December 2to4,withlim ited slotsavailable to book online shortly.

Formoreinformation visitbellpubshifnal.co.uk

Broadwelcome fortrialsof school road safety scheme

PAUL JENKINS paul.jenkins@mnamedia.co.uk

Councillorshavebroad ly welcomed approval of an 18-month streetsafe ty scheme trialatsix primaryschools across thecounty.

Thetrial will startshortly at two schools in theOswestryarea, one in Whitchurch, oneinShrewsbury, oneinMarket Draytonand another in Bridgnorth

It will seeShropshireCouncil enforcerestrictionsonparking and waitingoutside school gatesinpedestrianisedareas using ANPR (AutomaticNumberPlate Recognition)systems

Expanded

Councillor KirstieHurst-Knight, ShropshireCouncil’s Cabinet memberresponsiblefor children andeducation, said shewas delightedthat theschemehad beenapprovedand –ifsuccessful– it wouldbeexpanded even furtheracrossthe county

Shesaid: “There hasbeenalot of research done with highways officers –and Iwould liketothank them for theirexpertise andhelp–aswellas you canimagine,consultationwith staffand governorsofschools

“Wehaveworkedtirelesslyon this andIamexcited to seeithas come to fruition with therollout of thetrial acrosssix schoolsover 18 months whichwill hopefullysee ve hiclecongestion cutdownand safer spacesfor people to walk in andout

of theschools at thestart andend of theschoolday

“Researchhas showntrialsneed to be held over afull school year plus abit more to be able to analyse thefull results– we have already seen positive resultsatColeham School in Shrewsbury whichwill have ANPR addedand Ihopefor similarresults elsewhere.”

Progress

Councillor forLongden,Roger Evans, welcomed theprogressand said it wasgood progress in encour agingmorechildren to walk or cy cletoworkbut questioned whether thefunding should allcome from centralgovernment andwheth

er ShropshireCouncil coulduise theCommunity Infrastructure Levy (CIL)and whetherthe costs couldbereduced.Hesaid: “I have been involved in anumberofpar ishcouncilswhich have broughtin similarschemes buttheyhavebeen able to do it cheaperand Iam happy to sharethatinformation if it meansafurther roll outofthe pilot scheme acrossthe county.”

Councillor HurstKnightsaidthe use of CILmoneywould depend on thesuccess of thepilot scheme and theinitial cost didnot just include thecameras butinstalling signage andother associated costs.

Shesaidthe quickertheycould carryitout themorefunding might become available.

More than 70 school teams join forces forathletics challenge at college

Morethan70schoolteams from acrossthe boroughdescendedon TelfordCollege to take part in a three-day sports hall athleticscom petition

Thesportshallat thecollege’s Wellingtoncampushosted competitionsfor YearsFiveand Sixand YearsSeven andEight, plus Key StageOne andTwo pupils –with collegestudents on hand to ensure

everything went smoothly

Aselection of challenges were laid on during thesessionsincluding relayraces,sprints, obstacle courses andskills-basedactivitiessuchas throwing,jumping,and co-ordinatingactivities.

Theevent is designed to give pupils thechancetotakepartina blendofcompetitive andnon-com petitive events –putting physical

activity andcompetitive sportat theheart of schools.

It waspart of theTelford &Wre kinSchoolSportsPartnership programme,and wasalsoachancefor TelfordCollege’s sportand public uniformedservicesteamtoput theirorganisationaland communi cation skills into practice.Melanie Newbrook,learner managerfor sportand public services,said: “We

have hosted this eventinour sports hall forseveral years.

“Not only is it afantastic occa sion forthe pupils taking part,it is also awonderfulopportunityfor ourown students to gain valuable experience helpingtoorganise the activities.”

“The sports hall athletic hasrun at Telfordcollege forthe past few years.”

Revamp –The BellInn at Tong

Projects help architects post best ever year

JAMESPUGH

james.pugh@mnamedia.co.uk

agrand design

featured on TV have helped a Bridgnorth architects practice post itsbest-ever year.

JohnsonDesignPartnership (JDP)has seen ap pointments rise significantly by 30 percentover the last 12 months andcurrently hasmorethan130 live contractsunder management as clientsexplorein ventive designand amorepersonalservice Architects at theStation Lane firm have also iden tified itsability to deliver complex workthatpeers oftenturnawayand itsrecentParagraph 70 approv al that wasgranted withoutthe need forappeal–one of the firstin theUKtoget through.

JDP, whichhas also been behind theredevelop ment of Bishop Percy’sHouse in Bridgnorth,has takenonthree newstaff to cope with demand FounderVic Johnson said:“We’vealwaystried to be differenttoyourlarge,citycentre practices, pre ferringtolistentowhatthe client wantsratherthan forcingthe latest design trend on them.”

JDPwas chosen by production companyAvalonto be featured in itsExtraordinaryExtensions, hosted by rapper TinieTempah. TheChannel 4programme charted theprogressofEvenhayFarmnearLudlow, astunning£250,000‘angular’ conversion of athree bedGradeIIlisted cottageand barn,featuring a newglass fronted annexe andglazedwalkway

Urgent

An urgent appeal to raise up to £20,000 hasbeen launched by amuseum because of aslow return of visitornumbers followingthe Covid-19 pandemic andsoaring energy bills.

Thetrusteesatthe Museum of Carpet in Kidder minsterhavelaunchedthe appeal in adesperate bidtosecureits future.Guestsinvited to thetenth anniversarycelebrationsofthe museum were told that it wasimportant that themoneyshouldbe raised inthe next sixmonthstocover costswhile an action plan forthe future wasput in place.

VickyBagnall,chairmanoftrustees, told guests that thecomingyearwas likely to be “amongthe most difficult”.

Driver in hospitalafter histruck rollsover

Thedriver of atipperlorry carrying sand needed hospital treatment after thevehicle rolled overnearBroseleythis week

Paramedics and firefighters were mo bilisedfromTelford Centraland Tweed alestationstothe incidentinCalcutts Road in Jackfieldjustbefore7am on Monday

Fire crewsmadethe vehicle safe and ambulancestaff assessed thedriver.

AspokespersonfromWestMidlands Ambulanceservice said:“We were called at 7.01am to reportsofanover turned lorry on Calcutts Road in Jack

field. Upon arrivalwefound thedriver of thelorry

“Hehad sustained non-life threaten inginjuries.

“Hereceivedtreatment at thescene before beingconveyedtoPrincessRoyal Hospital forfurther assessment.”

Two fire appliances,one ambulance, a paramedicofficerand twocriticalcare cars from theAir AmbulanceService at tended thescene

Adiggerand arecovery truckwere used to remove thetoppled lorry from theroad, limiting access alongthe road, whilethe task wascompleted

Theteam at JDPinBridgnorth

Thecrash scene. Pic: Josh Dhillon

Conceptcar on road to hittingits target of 200mph

An AstonMartinconcept cariswellon theway to hitthe dreamof200 miles an hour,despite atestrun marred by bad weather.

Three-time Le Mans 24-hourclass winnerDarrenTurnerput theBulldog,which hadbeenrestoredinBridgnorth, through itspaces at theRoyal NavalAir Station at Yeovilton, hitting 176miles an hour in horrendousdriving conditions.The test drivetookplace inheavy rain butMr Turner saidithad performed reallywell “WhenIheard that thecar wasbeing restored,Iwanted to driveititwas a dreamcome true,” he said AjubilantKeith Martin,the project leader whooriginallyworkedonthe car when it wasbeing builtatAston Martin, andwho accompaniedTurneronthe test run, added: “Itwas justmagic,and Ijust wish my colleagues couldhavebeenhere andwitnessed this.”

Thecar hasbeenfully restored by Clas sicMotorsCarsofBridgnorth in Shrop-

shireand wasmakingits second visitto theRoyal NavalAir station.

At the firstattempt,itreached 162mph last year as part of aprogramme of events

with theRoyal Navy.The carwas un veiled at theHampton CourtConcourse andwon theRAC Restorationofthe Year award.

Friday’s test drivewas watched by PhillipSarofim, theowner of thecar,and RichardGauntlett,the sonofthe former chairman of AstonMartin.

TheBulldogwas billed as AstonMar tin’s200mphsupercarwhich hitspeeds of 191mph during testingin1980.

Mr Sarofimsaid: “The carisonits way to passing200 mphwhich it never quite did. It just managed191 before thecom pany wasforcedtoshelvethe project. I cannot thankthe teamatCMC enough forthe workthattheyhavedoneand the RoyalNavywho have allowedustovisit theairfieldand runin betweentheir op erations, when they areextremely busy.”

RichardGauntlett said he wasconfi dentthe projectwould succeed andadded he wassurehis fatherwould have been delighted.

Internet star revved up and readytotakeondealership

LAUREN HILL lauren.hill@mnamedia.co.uk

Ayoung cartraderand internetstarfromWolverhampton will be moving to Bridgnorth to setupshop.

DineshRai,aged23, will be taking his talentstoabaseinFaraday Drivetosell used cars underthe business name In-Line Performance.

TheformerBMW apprentice,who told howhe once sold 36 used cars in one month, believes that hisbusinessiswhatis missingfromthe county

“WhenIwas working in Wolverhampton, alot of my customerswerefromShropshire andBridgnorth, andstill are,”hesaid.

“TheytellmethatthisiswhatShrop shireneeds as thereare barely anybusinesses likeminethere.”

Hisdealershipwill seemainlypremi um andGermancars, with ‘theoccasional Land Rover Defender’.

Dineshisno stranger to Bridgnorth, having attended Oldbury WellsSchoolfor ashorttimeasachild.Hesaidhavinghis owncar dealership hadbeenhis dream ever sincehestarted secondaryschool.

“Ithas always been my goal,” he said.“It justshows that with hard work, anything is possible.”

He is nowinthe processofmovinginto thenew unit,which is soontobedecked outwithmodernusedcars, mainly German-made.Sincebecominga BMWappren-

tice at theage of 18,Dineshhas shared his journeytosuccess with his45,000 TikTok followersand fellow carenthusiasts, andis building awebsite to go on hisInstagram page @in_lineperformance. Theyoung businessmansaysheis‘bringingthe opportunitytoShropshire’

“About 75 percentofmy customers are from Shropshire andIreallyget alongwith

alot of Shropshirepeople,”hesaid. Dinesh introducedhis slogan,‘Bringing pure passion to Shropshire’,withcustomersatisfaction at theforefront of hisbusiness.

“MygoalistomakeBridgnorth have one of thebestperformance dealershipsinthe country,”headded. “Myexperience allows me to deal with customers andprovide them with atop qualityexperience.”

Ex-Bankgovernorwarns of higher taxes Chance to learnabout, andtaste apples at event

Significantly higher taxesonthe average person wouldbeneeded to financehigher publicspendinginthe UK,accordingtoa former Bank of Englandgovernor Lord King of Lothbury said there“isn’t enough money thereamong the rich to getitback” when it comestomeetingthe “strong case”for extra spending in certain areastohelprecover from thelockdown.

He addedthere wasalso aneed forpoliticians to “front up”and explainthe conse

quencesofsoaring inflation, thereduction on living standardsand helpingfuturegen erations cope with theincreased national debt

He said:“If we want European levels of welfare payments andpublicspending, you cannot financethatwithAmericanlevels of taxrates.Sowemay needtoconfront theneed to have significantly higher taxes on theaverageperson. Thereisn’t enough moneythere amongthe rich to getitback.”

An expert on apples will give atalkto Bridgnorth Horticultural Societymembers next week

Wade Muggletonwill speakabout apples at Bridgnorth LibraryonTuesday evening (November1)at7.30pm

Therewillalso be an opportunityto tasteapplesat theevent organisedbythe society

Dinesh Rai,who will be settingupshopinBridgnorth, alongsidetwo BMWcars

TheBulldogisput throughits paces

Topstars to take stagewhenvenue reopensits doors

DAVIDBANNER newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Musicstars Robert Plant andBeverleyKnightwill be soundedout aboutplayingWolverhampton Civic Hall when it reopens.

Themove comesafter thenew oper ator of theCivic,AEG Presents, con firmed thevenue wouldstart hosting showsagain in June 2023 afteran eight-year revamp costing£48 million.

Thevenue,now knownasThe Civ ic at TheHalls Wolverhampton, will holdaseriesoftesteventsnextspring. Thereare also plansfor “small-scale communitypreview events”before Christmas

Stourbridge-bornAEG Presents CEO SteveHomer, said:“Having host ed artistsfromThe Clash, Bowieand Nirvanatothe ManicStreet Preach ersand Morrissey,it’sincredibletobe able to bringaniconicvenue back to life andasa locallad, thisisall the more special “Wecan’t wait to open thedoors of TheHalls Wolverhamptonand bring theworld’s best artiststothe West Midlands stage.”Wolverhampton Councilisset to hand thekeystothe CivictoAEG Presents on November 21,whenthe promoterwill startwork

on completing finalrenovations to the frontofhouse bars, kitchen, sound andlightssystems

Bosses say thereopening will see “world class” artistsreturntothe 84-year-oldGrade II-listedvenue, whichwillfeature more comfortable seats, extra bars andimprovedtoilet facilities andanew balcony.

CouncilleaderIan Brookfieldsaid thereopenedvenue wouldhelpshape thecitycentre by “creatingjobsand boosting localbusinesses”.

Once open theCivic’scapacitywill be 3,404,whilethe Wulfrunwillhold 1,289.

Lownumber of hate crimes pursued

An LGBT charityhas said police must do more to investigatepotential sexual orientationhatecrimes, as just onein20led to achargeinWest Mercia last year

Figuresobtainedthrough aFreedomofInformation requestshow therewere351 sexual orientation hate crimes recorded by West Mercia Police last year.Just16– five percent –led to achargeorsummons.

At least48–14per cent –were droppedbecause asuspect couldnot be identified,and thevictimdid not

supportfurther action andafurther 52 –15per cent –werecloseddue to evidential difficulties.

Data from the32forcesacross England andWales that provided in formationoninvestigation outcomes showsonly1,648 –nineper cent –of the17,824offencesrecordedin 2021 ledtoachargeorsummons.

Stonewall’sRobbie de Santos said society must do more to “combat anti-LGBTQ+violenceand call out abuse, harassment andanti-LG BTQ+ sentimentwherever we seeit”

Councilwarningabout ‘sophisticated’ frauds

Fraudsters aretargetingthe publicbyposing

courtenforcement

ficers andbailiffs viaphone callstoresidents andbusinesses.

Telford&WrekinCouncil –and

thosewithout adebt arebeing

Thecouncil says it hashad reportsofthe crimeactively taking place. Fraudsters claimthe personorbusinessowesmoney,and demand

transfer fundsdirectly into abankaccount

Councillor RaeEvans, cabinet member for finance, governance

andcustomerservices, warned: “Scammersare becoming more andmoresophisticated andcom ingupwithnew ways to steal moneyfromhonestpeople, so it’s vitalyou stay vigilant

“Ifitfeels suspicious, don’tbe afraid to endthe call andinvesti gate.Wepride ourselves on exem plarycustomerservice andwould neveract in an unprofessional or threateningmanner.”

Thecouncil warnsthatenforce ment agents acting on theirbehalf wouldnever call people to askfor bank detailsortomakea bank

transferusing asortcodeand ac countnumber.

Thecouncil says it maycontact people by phonetodiscusstak ingcontrolofgoods if they have an unpaid debt.But aspokesman insisted:“This wouldonlybethe case afteracourt summonshad been obtained andyou hadreceived remindersby post andmay involvetakingdebit or credit card payments over thephone.”

People areadvised if they geta suspicious call to endthe conver sation andcontact Telford&Wre kinCouncil on 01952383838.

Writeyour will for free

LedZeppelin’s frontman Robert Plant

Beverley Knight during theBirmingham 2022closing ceremony

COMMENT

If LizTruss had an unen viable in-traywhenshe en teredNumber10, RishiSunak’slooks even more of a challenge.

That,innosmall part,is down to theveryshort-lived butchaotic period of LizTruss’s premiership, whichhas cost the UK tens of billionsofpounds.

Allofthe challenges shefaced remain,but with addedinsta bility in themarkets that has alreadyled to high mortgage ratesfor millions

So whilethere arefactors in play,not leastthe warin Ukraine, whichare conspiringtomakelifedifficult forall countriesinthe West,many of theConservatives’woesare self-inflicted. Mr Sunakwas outspokeninhis opposition to LizTruss’s tax-cutting agen da and the criticism he voiced provedtoberight.

He accurately forecast the dangersofhis predecessor’spol iciesand must nowbegin to un ravelsome of themess created.

Mr Sunak hastodeliver the sense of stability andcertainty this countryneeds. Spiralling energy costs, inflation, thecostof-livingcrisisgenerally,strike action on ascale notseenfor many years– plus of course the conflictinUkraine –are among thechallenges facinghim.He must deliver,and deliverquick ly.Itwill notbeeasy. He must govern aToryParty that has been describedasbeing ungovernable. He is viewed by asmall butvocal cohortofBoris Johnsonloyalists as beingthe man whobrought down theirprime minister.Hewill be associated by Labour with theeconomic challenges that have left Britain in aparlous state. Andhewill face afurther roundofausterity as he seekstoreassurethe marketsand getBritain on track

Level

Mr Sunak must levelwiththe Britishpublicabout theterrible trade-offsweface. If we wish to maintain thecurrent level of publicspending, taxeswill have to rise.Ifwewishtoavoid taxrises, spending will have to be cut, whichwillmeanpoorer publicservices–and some of thesealready appeartohave been paredtothe bone.The ideaofwagerises forpublic sector workers that keep pace with inflationappears to be anon-starter.There areonly hard decisions ahead.

Even so,MrSunak’s appointment brings theprospect of much-needed stability at thetop of government

TheConservatives have amaximum of twoyears to straightenthe UK’s financ es.The manifesto that un derpinned the2019election triumphislargely irrelevant –itwas writtenpre-Covid and pre-Russia’s warinUkraine, both of whichhavehad apro foundimpact.

Thepledges made to redwall seatsare goingtobehardto keep,whileuniting the ConservativeParty mayeven prove thehardest task of all.

New PM isfacingan in-traylike no other

Newprime minister RishiSunak will face a daunting setofchallenges,exacerbated by the chaoticlegacyleftby Liz Truss.

Here aresome of themostpress ingissuesinthe No 10 in-traybefore RishiSunak

THEECONOMY

Inflationisrunning at a40-year high of 10.1 percentaccording to thelatestconsumerpricesindex figures, causing a significant squeezeonhousehold finances

Theenergypackageput in place by Ms Trusswill help to ease the pressure on bills and should pre ventinflationreachingthe peaks that hadbeenpredicted,but Mr Sunakwillneed to decide what help will beonoffer beyondApril

Thebiggest task facing theincoming primeministerwill be reas suring the financialmarkets, after sterling and the price of government bondssaw wild fluctuations during theshort-livedTruss ad ministration andthe mini-budget fiasco.

Ms Trusshad gambledeverything on boosting economic growth, but insteadher successor will inherit acountry headingfor apotentially prolonged recession.

STRIKES

Therisingcostofliving, andthe failureofwages to keep pace,has ledtoawaveofindustrialunrest.

Strikeshavealready hitthe transportnetworks andfurther ac tion couldbetaken by public sector workers,including nurses, teachers andcivil servants

UKRAINE

Theshift in Russiantac targetingcivilian in andcitycentreshas un enduring threat posedb Putin.

Theriskofa nuclea is beingtaken seriouslyi andthe risk of an acci triggering awider confro underlined when amis leased in errorbyaRus aUKspy planeover theB

CHINA

Thesweepingreviewo eign anddefence policy ried outunder BorisJoh labelled Chinaa “sys competitor”, whileN newstrategicconcept brandedBeijing a“ch lenge” to “our intere security andvalues”

ButChina’s econom ic cloutmeans it will necessarytobalance tradebenefits with cau tion over Beijing’spoliticalmotivations

Therisk of tensions betweenChina and Taiwan boiling over will also feature

highly in thenew primeminister’s foreignpolicyconcerns.

Xi Jinpinghas nowtightened his grip on powerwithanunprecedent ed thirdtermin office,something whichcould embolden himintak inga more assertiveroleagainst theWest.

Theclashes betweenChinese offi cials andprotestersoutside thecon sulate in Manchester showsthere is adomestic impact to Beijing’s approach

HEALTH ANDSOCIAL CARE

Covidbacklogs, recordwaitingperiodsinA&E,and unprecedented pressuresonambulance services arejustsome of thechallenges in theNHS in Englandfacingthe new primeminister.

Mr Sunakwill also have to overseethe introductionofthe newsocialcaresystemfromOctober 2023, intended to seethatnobodypays more than £86,000 forthe person al care they need,whilealso coping with an ageing population andrising demand.

BREXIT

Mr Johnsonmay have campaigned on theslogan“GetBrexit done”to winthe 2019 election butthe reality is alongway from that Pushingahead with theNorthern IrelandProtocolBill,allowingthe UK Governmenttooverride elements of theUK-EU deal is likelytoprovoke a fierce parliamentarybattleinthe Lords–Torygrandee Lord Heseltine warned it wouldbe“massacred” –as well as outrage inBrussels.

Thereisalsothe prospect of fresh

electionsinNorthernIreland if the DUPmaintains itsoppositionto joiningapowersharingexecutive at Stormont by Friday

TheDUP is refusingtonominate ministerstoformanew executive untilthe Westminstergovernment takesdecisive action on theprotocol.

CLIMATECHANGE ANDENERGY

Thespike in gaspricesfollowing the Ukrainewar hasfocused at tentiononthe waythe UK’s ener gy is generated, whilemeeting the commitmentonnet-zero emissions by 2050 will also demand major changes.

Supportfor renewables andnuclearpower areseenas ways to both improve energy security and meet commitments to reduce carbonemissions

Butitremains to be seen whether Mr Sunakwill risk apolitical row overfrackingtoboost domestic en ergy security in theway Ms Truss did.

MIGRATION

Thenumberofpeopleriskingthe dangerouscrossingofthe English Channelhas alreadyhit more than 38,000,around10,000 morethanin theentiretyof2021.

Butaswellascoping with the smallboats issue, thenew prime minister will also have to deal with industry demandsfor more migrant workers to be given visastocome to theUK, with labour shortagesone of themainconcernsvoicedbyemployersacrossarange of sectors.

Thedispute within government overmigration contributed to the exitofSuellaBraverman as home secretary, oneofthe factorswhich destabilisedthe Trussadministra tion

ARTY

twomonthsillus unruly theTory

thebitterleadereenLiz Trussand rthe summer are ethe turmoilofher ce hasaddedtothe within Conserva-

dhehad thesup ired to runand he couldhave ck in No 10 by the he week tdespite hisconfi einhis ownabili dpopularitywith ers, he didnot whis hatintothe

Managing Mr Johnn– whoclearly still rbours adesireto turn to Downing Street –will be a furtherchallenge

PHILIP DUNNE

They saya week is alongtime in politics,but thelastweek hasbeenarollercoaster.Last Thursday,Liz Trussannounced herresignation as it became ev identthatshe couldnolonger commandthe supportofCon servativeMPs followingavol atileperiodsince shebecame PrimeMinister.

Whileher policy directionhad broadappealtoConservative Partymembers, thespeedwith which shewishedtoact ledto adverse reactions in financial markets, whichwithhindsight demonstrated that themini-budgetwenttoo far, toofast. Theneedtorestore market confidence became apolitical neces sity during such achallenging time forthe country, whichis whyitwas critical that theleadership contestwas conducted as quicklyaspossible.

Having declared my supportfor RishiSunakboththissummer andlastFriday, Iwas pleased to seehim elected swiftly on Monday as Leader of theCon servativeParty andour Prime Minister.Rishi wasthe best candidatewiththe experience, skill andaptitudetoleadthe countrythrough theinterna tional crises, thecost-of-living crisis, restoremarket confi denceand take thedifficult de cisionstomeetthese challenges decisively,while commanding supportacrossthe Conservative parliamentaryparty.

IamconfidentthatRishi will be backed by MPstodeliver hispro gramme in Parliament andhas alreadyswiftly builtateamof talented,experienced Ministers to serveinhis government. He is best placed to rebuildtrust in theConservativeParty anddeliver ourambitiontomakeour countryafairerand better place to live.As aparty andacountry, we can’tgobackwards,wehave to move forward. With aclear majority in Parliament,there is ahugeopportunitytodeliver on thepublic’spriorities: from helpingfundenergycosts and tackling inflation, to making it easier forpeopletoaffordtheir ownhome andimproving both oureconomicprospectsand the environmentinwhich we live

With aresponsible approach to balancingthe public finances, aRishi Sunakled Conservative Partywillfocus on delivering the2019manifesto,whilerec ognising thetumultuousevents whichhaveoccurredsince.With strong leadership underRishi Sunak, committed to “integrity, professionalismand accounta bility”, Iam confident we shall swiftlyreturntoproviding the countrywiththe stability and soundjudgement thepublicdeserves

DAVIDHUGHES PressAssociation

Help us to raise theprofile of ovariancancer

Womenare still beingoverlooked as ovariancancercon tinues to devastateand claim lives. Progress is notbeing made quickenough, andasone of thosediagnosed with the deadliestgynaecologicalcan cer, Iknowwedeserve more I’dbeensuffering with a bloatedtummy, feelingfull quickly, andmisdiagnosedwaterinfectionsfor over ayear. Ivisited my GP,but my symp toms were confused as other things,soIkeptputting up with it

In themeantime, my husband wasdiagnosed with bowel cancer.Thiswas ashock to us both, butitmademeconsider my ownhealth, andafterdoing some research IrealisedIhad the classicsymptomsofovari an cancer.Persistentbloating, feelingfull quickly, tummy pain,and needingtowee more often. Iwentbacktothe GP but thought“no,wecan’t be that unlucky”

ButIwas diagnosedwith stageIovarian cancer,anothershock in ourlife. Iwent from caring forsomeone with cancer,tobeing someone with cancer.Since my diagnosisI’ve realisedsomuchmoreneedsto be done to save lives. If diag nosedatthe earliest stages 9in 10 women will survive. Buttwo thirds of womenare diagnosed late,whenthe cancer is harder to treat

Together with Target Ovar ianCancer, we’recalling fora combination of national symp toms awarenesscampaigns, more training andsupport for GPsand urgent investment in theClinical Nurse Specialist workforce

We’recalling on readersto help us.Email yourMPtellingthemthaturgentactionis needed to raise theprofile of ovariancancer. Find outmore by visiting targetovariancan cer.org.uk

DianeBoothby on behalf of Target OvarianCancer

Advice on how to keepwarm

Some yearsago my late wife andIusedtogotolocal book fairs, andatone Iboughta 1912 editionof‘Punch’,and as most people know,itknocks

PICTURE FROMTHE ARCHIVE

thewelltodo, rich andfamous.

On one of theblack and whitephotositshowsalaird on agrouseshootingevent day. He waswarmlydressed in a Tweedsuitand hehad adeer stalkerhat on.Hewas having aminutedrinkingspirits from ahip flask.

Hispoorbrother wasthinly dressedand shiveringfrom head to foot with an icicle form ingonthe endofhis nose

Thelaird called outtohim to jump up anddownand swing hisarmsaroundtokeepwarm. Ithought with therisingcosts, we will allhavetojumpupand down andswing ourarmsto keep warm

Heyday is over forcountry pubs

Isee sadly, that yetanother Shropshirepub is closed dueto lack of trade.

Most people in therural ar easjustcannot afford to get a taxi forthe sake of afew drinks, anditisnot safe to walk to a pub nowadays

So they either drinkat home or they don’tdrink at alland save theirmoney fortheir en ergy bills!

Soon therewill be no pubsat all. Theheydayofthe country pub filled with happy, smoking andbeer-swigging farm workersisover, Iamafraid.

It is apity.

WFKerswell, Shropshire

Unsung mother was inspiration

In tributetoall thosemothers whose wonderfulefforts go un heralded in themedia;theyare farmorenumerousthanthe fa mous, forthe most part,offar more worth

Iwould liketotellreaders of oneresplendentladywho.

Livedall herlifeinold houses,workedveryhard, Hadakindface, awelcoming smileand aready laugh.

Connected easilywithpeo ple, andtheywithher, Wasself-denying,and always giving to others

Wascourageousin widowhood, andinill-health, Wasmuchrespected,and verymuchloved.

Hernamewas Elizabeth Daisy Elizabeth Shewas my mother,myunsung mother,still shiningfor meinmy86thyear.

JimCrate,Kinlet

If you couldchoosetohave anyone in theworld to be yourfriend, whowould that friend be?

What if that person were to askYOU to be their friend?

Wouldn’t that be just great?

Jesus once said to Hisdis ciples:“Youdid notchoose Me,but Ichose you .Icall you My friends”

It’s pretty amazingthat theSon of Godislooking for us andwants to call us HIS friends.

So,weneed never feel lonely andabandoned Jesus invitesustobeHis friends.

Prayer: “Thank YouJesus that I canhaveYou as my Friend, forever.

“Helpmenot to forget this “And mayIbeafriendto others “Amen.”

Writeto:

Wolverhampton,

Lettersmustinclude

We knowthat this picture is of childrenaroundamaypole in Shifnal..and that’s about it.Thisisa postcardfromthe collection of Bridgnorthpostcardcollector RayFarlow. Thereisnodateorother information on thebackapartfrom ‘Shifnal’inmodernhandand astamp saying ‘Copyright Photo, Thurtle, Shifnal.’About 1912 maybe?

LesHall, Highley

BY RETIREDCHURCHOF ENGLANDMINISTER SIMON BOXALL,OFBRIDGNORTH

PRAYER OF THEWEEK

Museum showsitis asoaraway success with topaccolade

TheRAF Museum at Cosfordhas takena gold awardina nation al tourism competition.

TheShropshireattractionhas achieved thehighestaccredita tion awardedbythe VisitEng land VisitorAttractionQuality Assessment Scheme

Thehonours aredesignedto celebrateexcellencewithinthe visitorattractionsectorand areavailable to membersofthe scheme whorepresent awide rangeoftourism experiencesin England

RAFCosford’s museum is one of only 30 visitorexperiencesto receivethe highesthonourinthe 2021-2022awards, whereatotal

of 97 businesses acrossthe coun trywererecognisedfor goingthe extra mile to provideahigh-qual ityday out.

Accoladesare given for five cat egories: Welcome,BestToldSto ry,Quality Food &Drink, Hidden Gem, andGoldfor theoverall winners.

To achievethe newgoldstatus, the RAFMuseumscoredconsist entlyhighlevelsofvisitor experi ence acrossa wide rangeofareas, includingwelcome,cateringand orientation, followingthe annual VisitEnglandVisitorAttraction QualitySchemeassessment.

Alan Edwards, RAFMuseum Midlands operations manager said: “Weare thrilled to have been presented with theprestig ious gold awardinthe VisitEng land VisitorAttractionAccolade 2021-22.

“It’shugelygratifyingtohave this endorsement andrecognition of theefforts we make to provide a first-classday outfor ourvisi tors.”

He added: “Thisaward will spur us on to continue making improvements to theoverall mu seum experience,ensuringthat we remain atop attraction for many yearstocome.Ican’t think of abetterway to celebrate our 50th anniversary than with a gold award.”

Rail firm offers festivefun ideasacrossthe region

West Midlands Railway is offer ingahelping hand forChristmas planning,offeringideas forfestive days out.

Thereare plenty of events in andaroundShropshirethatare accessible by train,withsome thingfor everyone.

Some of thefestivities being held in Shrewsbury includeCar olsinThe Square,Nativity: The Musicalatthe Theatre Severn Auditorium andthe Christmas lights switch-on.

In Telfordthe Town Park is one of themainlocations forseasonal events, andwill soonbehosting

themagical Winter Wonderland from Novemberuntil December Visitors couldalsoget theirskates on at theice rink

Meanwhile, Wolverhampton’s GrandTheatre will be putting on showsinthe run-uptoChristmas, likeAladdin andPeter Pan, and hostingcomedianssuchasJon Richardson andDaraOBriain.

Birmingham,the nation’s sec ondcity, will be hostinganumber of Christmaseventsashort walk away from NewStreetstation,in cludingthe FrankfurtChristmas Market andaChristmas carol sing-along at SymphonyHall.

Alittlefurther afieldthere is Worcester, with itsmagnificent cathedraland picturesque county parks, visitorswho visitWorces ter overthe next fewweeks are in foraVictorian ChristmasFay re,WinterGlowlighttrail,and aSanta Safari at West Midlands Safari Park

West Midlands Railway is also encouragingthose lookingfor fes tive funtovisit Hereford fora live show of TheGrinchand Santa’s grotto

Ticketstoall these destinations canbefound on westmidlands railway.co.uk.

PAUL JENKINS

Alan Edwards, RAFMuseumMidlands operations manager,with staffLouise Hammond andCharlie Cooper

Counciltakes legal advice in 10-year historic wall saga

DAVIDTOOLEY

david.tooley@mnamedia.co.uk

Councillorshavemet be hindcloseddoors to consideradvicefromabarrister aboutthe collapse of twosectionsofLudlowTownWalls nearly 10 yearsago.

Theprecise nature of thediscus sionsheldlastMondayhavenot been revealed butcalls aregrowing foraction to be takensoonerratherthan laterasvegetationhas been seen growingout of therubble.

Former town councillor Andy Boddington, whorepresentsthe town on Shropshire Council, said:“Iam shockedbythe stateofthe collapsed area. Thereare sycamores andabud dleiagrowing outofthe rubble.All vegetation needs removing as amatter of urgencytoprevent furtherdamage to thewall.”Headdedthatthe securi ty fencingispartly collapsedand the site is an “eyesore”.

“That’snot fair on nearby residents. It should be tidied up immediately.”

Councillor Boddington added: “There issecurityfencing blocking offpart of theGarden of Rest above thecollapsed wall.Thisareahas been allowedtogowild. It should be awild-

flowermeadow. Buteven wildflower meadowsneedtobemaintainedwith mowingonceayear.”

Thecouncillor addedthatitistime foraction.

Councillor Boddington,asaformer councillor,was excluded from Mon day’ssecretsession.But newly-elected Ludlow town councillor Darren Childs wasthere.Hesaidhe couldnot reveal theprecise nature of thediscussions with thebarrister

“Ludlow town wallsare an important part of thetown’shistory and should be protected forfuturegener ations,”hesaid.

“Iamdisappointed that theissue hasstill not been re solved after10years

“I wasatthe meetingonMonday butcouncil rulesmeanthatwehave to keep detailsofwhatwas discussed completely confidential.

“Itisfairtosay,though, that talks areongoing andweasa town council aimtoworktowards asolution.”

Ludlow Town Councilhas been askedfor an officialcomment

Thecollapsewas followed by a wrangleoverwho wasresponsible for paying to repair thehistoricwalls, with Ludlow Town Councilagreeing to lead theworkin2015.

Thewalls were originally builtto protectthe town from thethreatof Welshattackand civilwar.It is be lieved they were builtin about1270.

Newairlineisrecruitingcabin crew

Anew airlineplanningtostart flying from Birmingham Airportishiring cabincrewtowelcome itspassengers.

Hans Airwaysisplanningtorun regular flightsfromBirmingham to Amritsar,which is in theNorthwest ernstate of Punjab,India

Recruitmenthas begunfor cabin crew,with20roles available.

Thecompany is welcomingappli cantstoapply fortheir advertised roles, buttheydohavea list of man datory requirements, includingthat thecandidate must be aminimum 5ft

2ins anda maximum6ft 2ins and flu entinbothspokenand writtenEng lish,Punjabi,Hindi (desirable)and Gujarati (desirable). They will need to be willing andabletospend peri odsoftimeawayfromhome

Thejob listingstatesthatfull trainingwill be provided,and those interested should applybyemailing: ccrecruitment@hansairways.com

Hans Airwaysisthe UK’s newest hybrid,long-haul airlineventure, with several very experiencedboard membersjoining

Newtrainstohit tracks in £700moutlay

Newtrainswill be introduced on alineconnectingthe West Midlands andShropshire“very shortly” as part of an almost £700 millioninvestmentinthe network.

Atotal of 26 trains–known as Class196s– will replacethe 20-year-old fleetoperatedby West Midlands Railway with moreroomand additional seats forpassengers.

The firstofthese will en terservice on thelinebetween Birmingham andShrewsbury,

Drop in on Santa at garden centre visit

Shropshiregarden centresare set to celebrateChristmas in style from next month.

Dobbiesisgearing up to create aChristmas to remember forcus tomers in itsTelford andShrewsbury stores.Visitorswillbe greeted by Santa’selvestowalk throughthe snowywoodland

They canalsospend time with Santaand receiveaspecial gift to take home.Familiescan optinto purchasea photographwithSan ta.

Santa’sGrottoeventsstart on November24withpricesfrom £11.99 perchild.

To find outmore, visitdobbies com/book-with-confidence.

whichcalls at Wolverhampton, in thecomingweeks.The trains boastaround15per cent more seats, and25per cent more ca pacity,also taking into account standing room, than theexisting Class170s fleet.

Themove comesdespite wide spread strike action affectingthe networkwithunion chiefs locked in arow with theGovernment over pay, with more action set to come.Ian McConnell, man agingdirectorofWestMidlands Trains whichrunsWestMid

landsRailway services,saidthe companyhad invested £690min totalwiththe newtrainsand re latedinfrastructure.

Thenew dieseltrains, con structed by CAFwill be intro duced on thelineahead of afur ther roll-out on theBirmingham to Hereford line next year

At an unveiling in Wolver hamptonrailway station, which featured atriptoShrewsbury andback, it wasrevealedthe firsttrain in the fleethas been namedCharles Darwin

Craftgroup marks its first anniversary Terrorvision’s Tony givesSweet support

Glam rockveteransSweet will be playinginWolverhamptonjust before Christmas.

Theband’sUnlockthe Rock tour visits KK’s SteelMill in FrederickStreetonDecember 17

Supportwill come from Tony Wright,the one-timefrontmanof thebandTerrorvision.

Sweetstill includes guitarist Andy Scottfromthe band’s classic line-upofthe 1970s.

Bass playerLee Smallisfrom Bloxwich andhas been afull-time member of thebandsince2019.

Sweet’ssingles hits include BallroomBlitz,Coco, Blockbuster andFox on theRun

Acraft groupiscelebrating its firstanniversary

TheWellingtonCrafters was setupbycommunity members last year andhas gone from strength to strength, attracting newmemberswithasharedinter estin crafting

Thegroup,which hasbenefit tedfromCouncillor Pridefunding from ward councillor Grahame Cook,meets on aweeklybasis to learnnew crafts, socialise with others, shareskillsand support positive emotionalwellbeing

They meet everyMondayfrom 10am-noon at Creative Training Spaces,DukeStreet, Wellington. Fordetails,call07707 725797

Councillor Andy Boddington next to acollapsed section of Ludlow townwalls

Asportingvenue which is celebrat ingits golden anniversary is getting a£750,000investmentintothe re furbishmentofthe centre

TelfordSnowboard andSki Cen tre is markingits 50th birthday this year andTelford &WrekinCouncil hasannounced it will refurbishthe centre,withworktakingplace from spring 2023

Theinvestmentcomesasapart of thecouncil’s widercommitment forleisure services whichwas an nouncedlastyeartohelpmakethe boroughcleaner,greener,safer and moreenjoyable

Councillor KellyMiddleton (Lab) Cabinet Member forLeisure,public health andwell-being, equalities andpartnerships, said:“We are extremely proudofall of ourcoun cil-ownedleisure facilities across theborough andwewill continue to invest to ensure they arethe best they canbefor residents

“Telford Snowboard andSki Cen tre is abrilliantfacility,ahidden jewel tucked away in Madeleyand we areveryproud people travel from afar to usethe skislope.”

During ahalf-term celebration eventonThursday, October27, all activities will be basedon1970s pricing.

Doorswill open from 12noon un til9pm to encourageasmanypeople as possible to popalong throughout theday

To book sessions, visittelfordski. co.uk/50thbirthday

Skicentreset to get£750k refurbishment Property prices seeslightdrop during summer

Housepricesedged down in the region during thesummer, ac cordingtoGovernmentdata.

Thesituation in Shropshire is notseparated from theother partsofthe West Midlands in theUKHouse PriceIndex for August 2022 butthe region as awhole sawwhatisdescribed as the“lowest monthly price growth, with amovementof (minus)-0.2per cent.

In theyearfromAugust2021, however,homeowners across theregionhaveseenanear14 percentincreaseinthe average valueoftheir homes, to aprice of £255,202.As farasreposses sionsgo, thereweresix in the region in August 2022

In Walesaveragehouse pric es roseby0.2 percentinthe month from July 2022.Anan nual pricerise of 14.6 percent takesthe averagepropertyval ue in Walesto£220,059. There were five repossession salesfor WalesinAugust2022.

Acrossthe countryasa whole thereare signsofaslowdown.

Aspokesman forthe Land Registry said:“On anon-sea sonallyadjusted basis, aver agehouse prices in theUKin creasedby0.9 percentbetween July andAugust2022, down from an increase of threeper cent ayearearlier.”

Warningissuedatinquiry into Post Office scandal

Thechairmanofthe inquiryinto thePostOffice IT scandalhas warned he will nothesitatetoat tributeblame to anyparty which failstodisclose importantand nec essary documents.

SirWyn Williamsinsisted he will “use allthe extensivepowers at my disposal”toensuredocu mentsare obtained,inthe face of either accidentalordeliberatefail uretodisclose them

He spokeasthe second phase of theinquiryintothe scandal –which sawworkers wronglyac cusedoftheft,fraud andfalse ac counting dueto flawswithinthe Horizoncomputersystem–got

underway in London.

Between2000 and2014, more than 700subpostmasters andsub postmistresses (SPMs) were pros ecuted basedoninformation from theaccountingsystem.

Some were basedinShropshire. However,inDecember 2019, a High Courtjudge ruledthatthe system containedanumberof “bugs, errors anddefects”and therewas a“material risk”that shortfalls in Post Office branch accounts were in fact causedbyit. SincethenmanySPMshavehad criminal convictionsoverturned.

PhaseTwo of theinquiry, which wasestablished inSeptember

2020,isexaminingthe procure ment,design, pilot, roll-out and modificationsofHorizon

At thebeginningofproceedings, SirWyn heardsubmissions to ad journthe probeafteritwas stated that therehad beena majorlack of disclosure of documentsonthe part of thePostOffice Theinquirywas told thePost Office hadnotified theinquirythat it was“undertakingasignificant organisation andreviewofa large number of boxesofhardcopydoc uments and filesheldatvarious Post Office locationsthroughout theUnitedKingdom”.

Counseltothe inquiryJason

Beer KC,saidsome of therecent documentdisclosuresrelated to requestsmadeasfar back as a year ago, andthatthe “limited in formation” on when thePostOffice mighthavefullycompleted itsdis closure “putsthe inquiryinavery difficultposition”.

Buthearguedthat, whileitpre sentsachallenge,there was“not sufficientreasontointerrupt good progress that this inquiryismak ing”,ashesaidwitnesses canbe recalled at laterstages if needed

Afterhearing submissionsin fa vourofanadjournment from law yers forvictims,Sir Wynsaidthe inquiryshouldproceed as planned.

Sculpturetakes prideofplace afterclosure of oldfoundry

Former foundryworkers have been amongthose to welcomeanew sculp ture markingpartof Shropshire’svital indus trialheritage.

Astrikingironsculpture,made up of an anvil, aworker’sboots and avisor, hastaken pride of placeon theCokeHearthinCoalbrookdale

Thesculpture wascreated to commemoratethe Coalbrookdale Foundry, whichclosedin2017, after more than 300years.

Theideafor theartworkcame from theCokeHearthImprove mentsGroup –aresident-ledbody whichhas made it amission to im prove thearea, andcommemorate itsvital history.

Triggered

TheCokeHearth, isacentral part of thearea’sindustrialherit age, as theplacewhere Abraham Darby firstcreated thecokethat triggeredthe Industrial Revolution JeanWright, vice chairofthe Coke Hearth Improvements’Group, explainedthatthe sculpturewas createdusing actual itemsrescued from thefoundry on itslastday When it closed in 2017 workersat thesitehungtheir bootsand visors on thegates at theend of their final shift

MrsWrightrescuedapairof boots, avisor,and ajacket,which were allusedaspartofthe sculp ture,sculpted by ChrisWright, and cast by RogerFewtrellatBlists Hill. She said thegroup wasdelight

DOMINICROBERTSON newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

ed with thesculpture andadded that thepiece had metwithahuge ly positive response from thepublic, visitors and, crucially, some of the foundry’sformerworkers

“Weare verypleased becauseit hastaken us quiteafew yearsto gettothispoint,” said MrsWright. “The idea actually came pretty quicklyafter thefoundry shut in 2017.”

Sheadded: “The response from theresidents andpeoplewho work at theDaleworks hasbeenvery positive.”

MrsWrightsaidthatthe sculp ture wasa fitting reflection of the historyofthe foundry.

“I thinkitverymuchdoeswhatit is meanttodointhatitdepicts the idea,almostofthe abandonmentof theworks

“Whenthe works closed Iwent down andIgot an actual pair of boots, avisor andaworker’sjacket andthe sculpturewas cast from the real thing.”

Thefoundry’s centralroletothe area over around 300years means that thesitehas memories forfami lies acrossthe borough

MrsWrightsaid: “Lotsofpeople in Coalbrookdaleand widerTel ford hadfamilymembers whowere involved in theworks.Ithad been here for300 yearssoitwas very much an importantemployer.”

Thesculpture waspaidfor throughlocal fundraisingand ase ries of donationsand grants

One of country’smostsuccessfuldirtbikeridersisconfirmed forshow

Adirtbikeshow taking place in Shropshire next year hasan nouncedamajor star to appear at next year’s event.

Organisers of theClassic Dirt Bike Show,which will be taking placeatTelford InternationalCen tre,haveconfirmed thethree-time world championand 1980s and90s racing icon Dave Thorpe will be star guestfor theshow

As Britain’smostsuccessfulmo tocrossracer,withthree 500cc WorldChampionships, aVeteran’s Worldtitle andmultipleBritish Championships to hisname, Thor pe is thelastBritish ridertohave wonthe premierdivision of world motocross

Thorpe beganhis successful ca reer in theUKKawasakiteam, before moving to theHonda racing

team in 1983.The switch sawhis firstGrand Prix winin1984and he gained his firstworld titlethe fol lowing year,which he retained in 1986

Thrilling

Histhird world title came in 1989 followinganongoing,thrilling bat tleagainst Belgianmotocross leg endEricGeboers.

Thorpe’s career highs andlows will be revealed to visitors as com mentator JohnMcCrink quizzes themotocrossstarwhentheytake to thestage at Telford.

Forfurther detailsabout The ClassicDirtBikeShow,which is sponsoredbyHagon Shocks,see classicbikeshows.com

Theeventtakes placeonFebru ary11and 12 next year

Housingteam putonpinkto raiseawareness

StaffataShropshirehousing asso ciation have gone pink foraday as part of anationalcampaigntoraise awarenessofbreastcancer.

Andthere wasextra motivation forthe team at ShropshireRural Housing Association to join ‘wear it pink day’,withone of theirown having recently experienced breast cancer

Taking placeduringBreastCan cerAwareness Month, thousandsof peoplewearitpinkintheir communities,schools or workplacesfor the UK’s largestbreastcancercharity, Breast Cancer Now.

JohnGreen,chief executiveof ShropshireRural HousingAssociation, said:“We were really keen to getinvolvedtohelpraise awareness,especiallyafter amember of theteamhad herown battlewith breast cancer earlierthisyear.

“Weare delightedthatshe is now back at work, butitreallybrought home theimportanceofknowing what to look outfor because early diagnosisisvital

“Itwas greattosee everyone in theteamdeckedout in pink,and we even hadanextra addition as one of ourschememanagersisaGuide Dogtrainer,she broughther latest doggyrecruitalong to join in.”

Wear it pink dayhas been running formorethan20years, rais ingmorethan£37 million in the process.

Formoreinformation,visit wearitpink.org

Newmental health nursing degree on offer

University CollegeBirming hamhas launched anew mental health nursingdegreewhich will help tackle themassive shortage of staffin theNHS

Students on theMental Health NursingBSc (Hons) de gree,which welcomesits first cohortin September 2023, will go on arange of diverse placementstoexperience care across thelifespanand different fields of practice to broaden whothey canhelp.

Registered Nurse andsenior lecturer HelenEldridge, who wasonthe frontlineofmental health support for22years herself,willbeprogramme leadfor thethree-yeardegreecourse

Shesaid: “FollowingCov id-19, mental health problems have gotten alot worse, globally andin theUK, butespecially so in theWestMidlands,”saidHel en,who supportedpeoplewith complexmentalhealthneedsas aclinicalleadata Childand Ad olescentMentalHealthService (CAMHS)and is aspecialistin Learning Disabilities nursing.

“Around20per cent of the vacant nursingpositionsin theNHS areinmentalhealth nursing, adesperateshortageof qualified nurses with specialist expertise in this field.”

Staff devastated as bikes worth thousandsstolen

Staffata cycleshopinthe county have been devastated by thetheft of thousandsofpoundsworth of bikes.

Saturday Cycles,inWellington, wasbrokenintoovernightonMon dayand thetheft wasdiscovered when ownerDaveTayloropenedup last Tuesdaymorning Twelve bikesweretaken,amix ture of newonesand customersthat

were duetoberepaired. Thevalue is thoughttobearound£10,000

Amongthe itemstaken wereaBianchiImpulso road bike, aFocus (White)MTB largeframe bike andaspecialisedchildren’sMTB with frontsuspensionand 20 inch wheels.

Theshoponlyopenedearly this year at aunitatMarketApproach

afterpreviouslytradingfromthe market itself.Owner Dave,who was made redundantfromhis full time jobin2020previouslyonlyopened onaSaturdayhencethe name.But he founddemandmassive andtook on theunitnexttothe market in January.

He provides repairs, servicing andmaintenance of alltypes of bike

as well as selling them

Dave said:“They gotinthrough a side passagedoorbecause we have a bigfront window with steelshutters behind it so even if they managed to smashthe windowtheywouldn’t have gotin. Iam devastated more forthe customers whohavehad bikestaken becauseyou don’texpect to havethathappen.”

Toptrufflesnuffler Oscaris sniffing outprizeddelicacies

Mike Collison andhis trusty partnerOscar are on amission to sniffout valuable truffles.

Thedelicacyisinhigh demand by high-end restaurantsfromacross thecountry.And,ifyou look hard enough,theycan be foundright un deryournose

ShropshireTruffles is afamily business in Stapleton, near Much Wenlock.

Truffles arecollected from a ‘truffleorchard’ with alittlehelp from Oscar,who thinks sniffing them outisjustone biggame.

Theenterprisehas takentimeto grow andhas developedasanoff shoottothe treeseed business

Mikeexplained:“In 2006 we purchased aseven-acre fieldtorun our newlyestablished trees seed busi ness andnursery from.Weprovide treeseeds to nurseries through outEuropeand trees andhedging plants to UK customers

“One of ourFrenchcontactswas producing‘TruffleTrees’–trees in oculated with trufflespores.

“Aftervisitinghis nursery and seeing howtheywereproduced, we decidedtobethe UK distributors forhis plants

“Initially these Truffletrees were sold as singleormultiple trees,we then beganproducing gift box’sand imported ever more plants

ED THOMAS newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

“In2008wedecided to plant some four acresofour fieldtotruf fles.Amixture of specieswas se lected –mainlyhazel andoak.We undersowed theorchard with wild flowers andleftittonature, unsure if it wasanexpensive folly, maybea bit of funoranew venture forthe future

“Finally, in theAutumn of 2018,webegan truffles,but were able to collectthe withoutatrained dog. We bought atrufflehunt ingpuppy and in 2019 discovered that puppieswant to play andnot hunt fortruffles!

“The follow ingyearOscar th trufflehound be torepay ourfai himand hasturned into atruffle findingmachine,of ten findingtruffles quickerthanwe cancollect them.”

Thetruffles have transformed thenatureofthe business andit even offers experiencestovisitors, includingtasting thedelicacyas part of athree course meal

Mikeadded: “The truffles are sold retail,torestaurants anddelicatessens, or to wholesale suppliers. We make some into trufflebutter.

“Weare very much afamily business with variousmembersof ourfamilyhelping on show days, producingtrufflebutterorplant ingand maintainingour truffle orchard. Thetruffleorchard is a source of interest both locallyand nationally,due to itsexceptional performanceand ourstory from the pl ti of the firsttrees ughtotryingtosell uffles in themiddle of apandemic

“Wehaveappeared on international news, whichwe find amusingaswe were notsure if ourorchard mightjustturn outtobeanexpensivewood!”

Theplantingisin le rows,withvarietiesmixed up

Mikeinterplanted faster grow ingnon-truffled trees to encourage shadeasearly as possible in theestablishmentofthe wood

Adding more shadeisgood forthe truffles as they want aniceshaded spot,not toowet,but nottoo dry, with leaf cover, or thin grass. Mike

irrigateswhenitgetsveryhot and also makessurethe wood is well managedand healthy, so it is well pruned andthe grassiskeptneat andtidy.

Everything is geareduptoencouragethe spores to worktheir magicand produceasmanytruffles as possible

Butit’sa fickle game.Itwas an orchardplanted second that yielded firstand whyisa mystery. It’s precisely that mysteryand intrigue that createsthe scarcity of theproductand drives high prices.Now, with both of hiswoodsproviding truffles,itishoped they will provide aconstantcropfor up to 30 years.

Oscar,aLagotto Romagnolo, loveshis joband theexercise he gets.Lagottosare an Italianbreed that were originally bred as retrieversand used as gundogsoverthe marshesofRomagna,but with the draining of themarshes theiruse changed andnow they areconsidered pre-eminenttruffledogs.

Nose to theground, tail wagging, watching Oscarworkitisclear that he is taking things as seriouslyas you cantakeany biggame, whichis exactlyhow he sees it

Notonlyisheatrufflehunter,he is also afamilypet,muchloved by Mike andhis family.

Visitshropshiretruffles.co.uk to buyonline andto find outmore about itstasterdays.

Mike Collison andhis Lagottodog Oscaronawalkthrough Mitheorchards ke Collison takesalook at someoftruffles sniffedout by Oscar

Oscarsniffsout truffles

Funeralofpriestwho served villagefor 29 years

Thefuneral hasbeenheldofthe RevRoger Balkwill,who wasthe parish priest forthe Albrighton area for29years

Mr Balkwill,who was81, moved to Telfordonhis retirement in 2010.HediedonSeptember 17 and hisfuneral took placeatStAndrew’s Church, Shifnal.

“Twenty-nine yearsisalong time fora parish priest to ministerinone place, butit’snothing compared with oneofmyVictorian predecessors, theRev George WindusWoodhouse,who wasvicar of Albrightonfor 58 years.”

raise £250,000 beinglaunchedin 1992,he helped modernise theinterior of the12thcentury St Mary MagdaleneChurchinAlbrighton, whichwas closed forsix months whilea large-scalerestoration took place.

Fearsoverlong term ill health

Almost 90,000 sick notesweregiv en to patients in Shropshire,Telford andWrekinlastyear, new fig ures show

RevRogerBalkwillin1992

Speaking at thetimeofhis re tirement,hesaid: “In2010Ithink my proudest achievementisthe formationofthe United Bene fice of Albrighton,Boningale and Donington–three distinct church communitiesall working collabo ratively together

In 1981 he oversawthe formation of Churches Together in Al brightonand area. “Thisbrought together Anglicans, RomanCatho lics,Methodists, Baptists andIndependents,toprovide aunited Christianfront to thecommunity andafocus forpractical co-opera tive ministry together.”

Andfollowing apublicappealto

Asecondphase of work was completedin2001, providingmore space forthe SundaySchool, acre cheand counselling room.

In 2005 Mr Balkwill movedinto localpoliticsafterbeing elected as acouncillor on Albrighton Parish Council’s NorthWard. Mr Balkwill leaves hiswifeJosie andchildren David, Victoria andDaniel.

Take trip backintimetowhen

CubanMissile Crisis brokeout

DOMINIC ROBERTSON newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Re-enactorsatthe RAF Museum Midlands will explorehow theCuban MissileCrisisinOctober 1962 broughtthe world to thebrink of Armageddon.

Theweekend event, from October 29 to 30,will reflectonthe Cuban MissileCrisis, 60 yearssince the politicaltension betweenthe So viet Union andthe United States broughtthe twocountries close to waroverthe presence of Soviet nu clear-armedmissilesinCuba.

In aseriesofworkshops, demonstrations, andobject-handling sessions, visitors will discover more aboutthe tense 13-day political stand-offbetween thetwo superpowers, andthe impendingcount down to nuclearwar,astheystep back in time with re-enactorsfrom Up an’at‘em!History

On ajourney throughthe Muse um’s National Cold WarExhibition, visitors can find outhow members of theCivil DefenceCorps, RAF V-Bomber Pilots, RoyalObserver Corps, BritishArmyBerlinBrigade andUSAir Forcedealt with thecri sis.

Knowledge

Suitable forvisitorsofall ages, therewill also be theopportunity to take aclose look at theuniforms, kitand equipment used at pop-up stations dottedaroundthe hangar

Once people have brushedupon theirknowledge with there-enac tors, familiesare invitedtotake part in an interactive CubanMis sile Crisis strategy game

Deliveredbythe ForeignField Living HistoryGroup,the game re flects theeventsleading up to the CubanMissile Crisis

People will be challenged to seeif they have gotwhatittakes to make quickdecisionstochoosethe route throughthe diplomatic nightmare –orderingblockades,airstrikes, reconciliations,olive branches and

brinksmanshipwhiledoing their levelbesttoavoid theoutbreakof an unwinnable war.

Thegamecan be playedby allages either individually or in groups

Theweekend activities will take placeinsidethe National Cold War Exhibitionhangar, featuringair craft, vehicles,equipment,and peoplestories from theColdWar peri od, includinganimmersive audio visualCuban MissileCrisishotspot

Entrytothe Museum andpartic ipationinthe re-enactment activi ties is free

On Friday,October 28,the mu seum will also host afreelecture suitable foradults, entitled‘Cuban MissileCrisis–How closedid Brit aincome to Armageddon’

Commencing at 12.30pm,Bill Pyke, an independentair powerresearcher,will discusshow andwhy theCuban MissileCrisisoccurred, what preparations were in placein

theUK’stop secret ‘War Book’, and what lessonswecan take away from theexperience

The free lecturewill be hosted in themuseum’s lecturetheatre with a live audience

It will also be live streamed on line viaCrowdcast.

Formoreinformation aboutthe weekendeventsand to pre-book yourarrival time or aplaceatthe lecture, visitthe website at rafmuseum.org

The figurescome as ahealth charitywarns long-termill health is having profound consequenceson workers, employers, and the Gov ernment’s finances

Since2012, GPshavebeenableto give patients electronic‘fitnotes’, whichsay whetherthe patientistoo sick to return to work, or give other recommendations, suchasa phased return to work.

NHSDigital data shows88,964of thesenotes were given to patients in theformerNHS Shropshire, Telford andWrekinCCG area in the year to June –equivalentto30,993 forevery100,000 registered working-aged patients

These figurescover thenumber of individual notesissued, andpatients mayhavereceivedmultiple notesover thecourse of theyear.

AcrossEngland,the number of fitnotes roseto10.4million in the year to June,up8.6 percentfrom 9.5million in theyeartoJune2019.

Therehas also been asignifi cant national increasein fitnotes given forlongdurations –132,000 fitnotes were issued forleave of 20 weeksorlongerinthe year to June, up 42 percentfrom93,000 three yearsprior

It hasbeensuggested that ‘long Covid’ couldbecontributingtothe increase in workers beingsignedoff forlongerperiods,alongside longer waitinglists forNHS treatment

Tell public cost of relief road

Thepublicshouldbetoldthe expected increase in costsfor Shrewsbury’s NorthWestRelief Road,itwas demanded

LiberalDemocratCouncillor forCopthorne in thetown, Rob Wilson, said that he hadbeen frustrated at alackofanswers from Shropshire Councilover thepotential cost of theroad.

Thecouncil says it will not know thefull rise in theprice of theroaduntil it hascompleted itsbusinesscasefor theproject

ButShrewsbury&Atcham’s ConservativeMP, Daniel Kawczynskihas revealed he is seek inganother £27.5million forthe projectfromgovernment.

Mr Kawczynski’s letter to theDepartmentfor Transport (DfT)statesthatamountwould accountfor 75 percentofthe growth in costs.

That wouldleave thecouncil to find around £9.1 million.

Themostrecentpublicestimate forthe projectfromthe councilis£81 milion –with £54.4m coming from Government,£28.5 million from the councilitself,and £4.2 million from theMarches LocalEnter prise Partnership(LEP).

Therisingcosts come as in flationsoars andthe priceof rawmaterials,togetherwith workforce costs, go up.Council lor Wilsonsaid: “Justsayingwe have to wait forthe full business case,thatisnot acceptable.”

An interactiveCubanMissile Crisisstrategygamewill be available to look atfor thosevisiting themuseum

‘Notrickortreat’ posters initiative

Youngpolicecadetshavebeenout andabout in theirlocal community delivering‘no trickortreat’posters to residents.

TheWestMercia cadets visited homesinBrookside,Telford, de liveringthe posterstoelderlyres idents.While many children and families will be lookingforward to trickortreatingonOctober 31,the occasion cancause concernfor some elderlyresidents or people wholive on theirown

Thecadetswill be outagain in otherareas of Telfordacrossthe weekend. To download apostervisit westmercia.police.uk

Volunteer plea forliteracyskills

Read Easy ShropshireHills is urgently lookingfor avolunteer with goodliteracyskills.

Thegroup is asmall local charitywhich provides free, confidential,one-to-one coach ingfor adults whostrugglewith reading. Each newreadermeets theirtrained readingcoach at an approvedlocal venue,oronline,and they worktogetherat theirown pace

ContactAnnabel Stacey on 07960865564oremail shre cruiter@readeasy.org.uk

Fans praise Becky’s‘beautiful’ performanceonStrictlyshow

ELEANOR LAWSON Community News Reporter

Thechart-topping singer,who foundfameonThe Voice, performed CrazyWhatLove CanDo, My Heart Goes (LaDiDa),and Remember for Strictly audiences.

Strictly prodancers Giovanni Perniceand Luba Mushtuktookto the floorfor Becky’smedley.

Beautiful

It’s been abusyyearfor theBewdley-born singer,who hasperformed at theCommonwealth Gamesand theWomen’sEuro final.

Earlierin theweek, Beckysaid that shecouldn’twaittobethe first female guestperformer of the2022 series,afterpreviousperformances from Robbie Williams, Adam Lam-

bert,and George Ezra. Hundreds of fans took to Twitter to praise thelocal star.VeronicaRichessaid: “Becky Hill,excellent as always”, whileKaren Wiggpraisedthe “beautiful dancing” Debs Turner added: “I really en joyed it “Lovedthe themeand Becky’s

performance.”However,George Mackey added: “Becky Hill is the focusofmyattention,ratherthan thedancers.”

SweetPea tweeted:“Ienjoyed that,you werebrilliantand what a fabulous dancetoboot.”

AnothercalledJason added: “Amazing performancefromBecky

Hill on Strictly. Beautiful.”Comedi an Jayde Adams became thefourth contestant to leavethe BBCcompe tition aftera dance-off with Molly Rainford.

Strictly Come Dancingreturns on Saturday at 6.50pm forits Hallow eenSpecial,withthe resultsshow on Sundayat7:20pmonBBC One.

Rouen,France

NorthCape, Norway

Strictly Come Dancing viewerswereserenaded by Bewdley’sown Becky Hill on Sunday as she performedamedleyof hersongs in theresults show.

Becky’sperformanceonthe Sundaynight results showispraised

Shesanga medley of songs

Residentsgiven £30m to support them duringthe spendingcrisis

ShropshireCouncilsaysithas helped to delivermorethan£30 million to supportresidents with therisingcostofliving.

Themoneyhas supported awide rangeofpeoplewithfood costs, fuel grants, energy billsand other essentiallivingcosts.Thanksto Governmentgrants, Shropshire Councilhas been able to identify andprovide much-needed financial supporttothose whoneed it most Gwilym Butler,Cabinet member for financeand corporateresourc es,said: “Weknowpeopleacross Shropshireare struggling and many arereallyworried abouthow they will cope with rising costsof energy,food andfuel.

“Thisisatop priorityfor us, and we areworking closely with our partners in thevoluntary sector to ensure residentsknowhow to ac cess thehelpand supporttheyneed Since2021the council hashelpedto getmillionsofpoundstothose who need it most.”

Since October 2021, Shropshire Councilhas been allocated three separate grants of £2.089mbythe Department forWorks andPen sionsunder theHousehold Support Fund –atotal of £6.266m

This, thecouncil says,has enabled it to target low-income fami lies,singleparents, pensioners in receiptofcouncil taxsupport and hasalso provided around 7,500chil dren meal vouchersfor theschool holidays

Gymisworking outwaystohelpkeepfood

Kind-heartedstaff at agym are continuing to do alltheycan to help thefood bank in theirtown.

Thefood bank continuestostrug glefor supplies andhas hadtodig into itsparentcharity Crisis Support’s ownfundattimes this year to make sure it is fullystocked Nowstaff at AnytimeFitness in Telfordhavelaunchedtheir own annual appeal foritems that can

PAUL JENKINS

paul.jenkins@mnamedia.co.uk

be delivered inthe run-up until Christmas

They arealsodonatingsupplies to acertain amount of money for everymember whosigns up fora gymmembership during October.

Currentlythe totalstandsat

around 20 buttheyare hoping to getitupto50bythe time Novemberarrives

Tables in receptionattheir GreshamDrive premises arealreadyoverflowingwithtins, boxes of driedfood andother itemsmuch in demand at thefood bank,which opensits doorsatFruit of theLoom House, Halesfield10MondaytoFri daybetween 9amand 5pm.

Scheme forbusinessunits is approved formaternity site

DAVIDTOOLEY david.tooley@mnamedia.co.uk

cern hadblown up around ‘incor rect information’ that theunitwas beinglined up forhousing

TheShropshireCouncil planning department hasuseddelegated powers to allow Godrich& Bergius to create thenew unitsfor small businesses.Oppositiontothe plan centredonthe loss of some 18 park ingspacesatthe site offGravel Hill Butthe planning officials saythisis an operationalmatterfor thehealth trustwhich agreed to theplansand is thereforenot in theremit of plan ners to decide

Meanwhile, councillorshave spoken outtoquell fearsthat apart of theLudlow Hospital site couldbeusedfor housing. Thesiteofthe former maternity unit at thehospitalinGravelHill hasrecently been sold –subject to contract –but accordingtocouncil lorsthere is no chance of it being turnedover to housing.

CouncillorsAndyBoddington andTraceyHuffersaida lotofcon

In theirreport, Shropshire Coun cil’s planning officers said:“Ob jections have been received on the basisthatthe loss of theparking spacestothe development andthe impact that this will have on ex isting andfutureservice provision from thesite.

“Noobjectionshavebeenreceived on this basis by thehealth boardwho it is understood sold the building includingthe carparking spaces. Anyfutureplansfor theadjacent hospital site arealsoa matterfor thehealthboard.Assuch theseare issues/arrangementsare matterswhich go beyond themerits of theproposalsubject to this plan ning application.”

Thecouncil’s highways section wasreported to be “content”with theplanningapplication on high wayand pedestrian safety grounds.

Planning officers saythere are residentialpropertiesnearthe site

anditisacknowledged that theexisting useasa maternityhospital wouldhaveimpacted on theameni ties of occupantsofthese dwellings. Buttheyaddedthatthe activities have conditions to mitigate impacts on these residenceswithconditions restrictingthe outsidestorage of materialsand thehours of operation

Councillor Huffer said alot of concernhad blownup in thelast dayorsoafterincorrect informa-

tion wascirculated that theformer maternityunitwas to be demolishedfor housing.

“The building wasclosedfor any health serviceuse afterdecades of lack of maintenance,”she said

“Itisnolonger fitfor health pur poses.There is awhole ward empty in themoremodernbuildingnext door.Weabsolutelyneed to keep a hospital in Ludlow.Itisbecominga forlornhopethatthe maternityunit will reopen forlive births.”

CSIonsiteafter burglary at Aldi

Alarms soundedata superstore in theearly hoursofthe morningafter aburglary took place.

OneresidenttooktoFacebookto pointout thecrime sceneinvesti gatorvehiclesparkedoutside Aldi Donnington’s WellingtonRoad storeinTelford,where officers were at workafterthe alarm went offat 12.45am.

AstatementfromWestMercia Police read:“Officers attended shortlyafterand discovered abur glaryhad takenplace.Crime scene investigatorsare currentlyat the location.No arrestshavebeenmade at this time andour investigations areongoing.”

Police wouldliketospeaktoanyone whosaw theincident or capturedfootage on adash-camor CCTV.Other informationcan be reported online under the‘Tell Us About’ sectionofthe West Mercia Police website quotingreference 20 of October19, or by calling 101.

Bincollection dayshake-up

ShropshireCouncilischanging many of itsrecycling andwaste collection days to make thesys temmoreefficientand reduce themileageits binlorries travel.

Newrecycling andwaste collectioncalendars arebeing post ed to households inthe former north Shropshire,south Shropshireand Shrewsbury andAtcham councilareas this week –withpeopleurged to look out forany change to theircollection days.

From November7,changes will be made to some recycling andwaste collection days in theseareas to make thecollection servicemoreefficient, and reduce thedistances that the collection lorries need to travel on theirrounds.

TheformerBridgnorth and Oswestry districtsare notaffected by these changes

Povertyfearson energydecision

Theaxing of theenergyprice guar anteecould leadtoalmost11mil lion UK households falling into fuel poverty, campaignershavewarned.

TheEnd Fuel PovertyCoalition describedthe outlookas“frankly terrifying”and urged theGovernment to focusonanew packageof supportand energy market reforms, alongsideinvestmentinhome insu lation andrenewables.

Thereare currentlyseven million householdsinfuelpoverty,but that couldriseto10.7million when the Governmentlifts itsguarantee limitingthe averagehousehold energy bill to £2,500 from April.

The figurescome as protesters gathered in London to askMPs to back plansfor auniversalbasic energy allowancetomeetheating, cookingand lighting needs, part of the‘Energy ForAll’petitionwhich washandedtoDowning Street yesterdaywithmorethan600,000 signatures.

Anytime Fitnessstaff KittyGibson,ChrisClarkeand Chloe Palmerare helping with thefoodbankappeal

Planners have giventhe go-ahead forproposals to change theformer maternityunitatLudlowHospital into units forsmall businesses.

Business unitplans for theformer maternity unitatLudlowHospital

Astunning town steeped inhistory

There’sa sweeping drive into Bridgnorth as you head offthe A454 from Wolverhampton. It descends througharoad that’s been carved from thesandstone cliffs that surround thepicturesque market town.

As theroadopens out, there’sascin tillatingviewacrossthe River Severn to themajesticBridgnorth. Historic buildings, afunicular railwayand the windingriver loom into view

It’s aviewtotakethe breathaway. It’s areminder, too, that this town wasonceanextremely busy river port, wheremerchants ferriedgoods along theriver andwhere thetown’stradesmenwereproficientinmalting,tan ning,weaving andironfounding.

Thetown’srichhistory is evident having crossed theriver bridge and ascended alongmazyroads to High Town.There arethe dilapidatedruinsofa 12th centurycastle, that was foundedbyRobertdeBelleme,the son of theFrenchEarl, RogerdeMontgomery.Ayearafterits construction, it fell into thehands of King Henry I. Centurieslater,KingCharles IdescribedBridgnorth andits castle as the finest in hisdomainand it wasa Royalist stronghold during theCivil Warin1642. Thestructure nowleans at an angleof15degrees,fourtimes theleanofthe TowerofPisa, dueto damage causedinthe CivilWar

Thetown’sHigh Streetand the pretty roadsthatleadtoitrevealexemplaryarchitecture, whichspeaks of adifferent time.The town contains 252Listed Buildings, with oneof thoseat GradeI,12atGradeII* and theremainder at GradeII.

High Town is thefocus of those buildings, many of them timber-framed anddatingfromthe 15th, 16th and17thcenturies.StLeonard’s Church retainsasignificant amount of medieval fabric.Elsewhere, there is awar memorial,drinkingfountain, former textilemilland more.

Bridgnorth’s town is in fact split into two, theaptly namedHighTown andLow Town,withthe best views availablefromHigh Town,from wherepeoplecan seethe River Severn andfar beyond Thetownwas carved in twodur ingthe IceAge,which spread south from Scotland around 25,000 years ago. They followed thepaths of riv-

ers, gougingtheir waythrough the bedrockand leavingthe landscapewe enjoy today. Andyet we cango back even furthertorevealthe true origins of thetown. Thesandstone upon whichBridgnorth sits wouldhave been formed during the Permianperiod, when Shropshiresat around 25 de greesnorth of theequator.Bridgnorth wouldhavelookedlikethe Sahara desert,then, with huge sand dunes that were bakedastheywereblown acrossthe hot,dry landscape. Those dunesare visiblewhere thesandstone is exposed andthere arecaves dotted around thetown, some of whichwould have formerly been inhabited

TheSevernissynonymouswith Bridgnorth, linkingthe town to Shrewsbury andWorcester alongits 220-mileroute,fromPlynlimon, in the CambrianMountains, outtothe Bris tolChannel.The river lendsits name to oneofthe town’s most famous tour istattractions, theSevernValleyRailway. Therailway wascreated to lighten theloadofriver barges,which had formerly been used to transport goods andwhich were knownas ‘trows’ Therailway openedin the1860sand within 40 years, bargetransport had ended.The line wasoncepartofthe Shrewsbury-to-Hartlebury line

In 1948,the Governmentnationalisedthe railways andthe SevernVal leyLinepassedtothe newly formed BritishRailways. Steam-hauled passengertrainswerereplacedbydiesel unitsbut trafficdeclinedand passen gerservicesstopped in 1963.Within twoyears,localsset about re-opening theroute,aftera meetinginapub BritishRailsoldthe line to localenthusiastsand in 1970 the firstofficial train on theSevernValleyRailway journeyedfromBridgnorthtoHamptonLoade.Where once thelinecould barely attract enoughpeopletokeep it going, now it attractsvisitorsfrom around theworld

Thetownhas thriving communities in theworld of sportand art, with itsmuch-lovedTheatre on the Stepsbeing locatedhalfway between High Town andLow Town.There is a strong runningcommunity as well as accomplished football,cricket,rugby andrunningteams

Steepedinhistory that hasbeenelegantlypreserved,possessed of great natural beauty andbenefiting from an independentspiritinstilled into locals, thereare countlessreasons to love this bustling andattractive Shropshiremarket town

Student Timtakes topaccolade

AShropshireuniversity student haslandeda topaccolade at ama jorawardsceremony.

Harper AdamsUniversity’s TimothyDavidsonwas named Agri Student/Apprentice of the Year at theFarming LifeAwards 2022

Theawardswerepresented at theCrownePlaza HotelinBel

fast. Tim, 23, said:“Winning theaward is an honour andIam proudtobring it back to Harper Adams.”

Timcompleted hisplacement year in industry with Aviagen. He wasgiven a100 percentemploya bility rating by Aviagen–and was also winner of the2022Cogent BreedingLtd Placementaward

Jeweller in BBCcharityappeallink-up

Ajewellers with stores in Shropshirehas revealed anew Pudsey collection in partnershipwithBBC Children in Need F. Hinds–which hasstores in TelfordShoppingCentre and Shrewsbury –islaunching itscol lectioninits stores

It includes an alarm clock,trin ket boxand moneybox in theshape of Pudsey Itemswillbeavailable to pur

chaseinstore andonline with 35 percentfromthe sale of each prod uctdonated to BBCChildren in Need

Projectleaderand head of mar ketingNatasha Housesaid: “We aresoexcited to be releasingour very firstrange of products forBBC Children in Need

“The charityisclose to allofour hearts, andweare so happytogive it thefocus that it deserves.”

Tonnes of ‘unflushable’ items areblockingupour sewers

MEGANHOWE newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Severn Trentisurging people to thinkbefore they flushas it showcas es theamountof‘un flushable’items that end up in sewertreatments in Shropshire.

Everyweek, some twoand ahalf tonnes of wipes andother items whichshouldnot be flushed are pulled outofour sewers, thewater companysays– thesameweightas aRange Rover

If theitems managetoreach the sewage treatment works without causing ablockageinthe network, they areremovedthrough ascreen ingprocess

Dissolve

GrantMitchell, from Severn Trent, said:“Unflushables such as wetwipes cause huge problems on ournetwork– they don’tbreak up anddissolvethe same waytoiletpa perdoes.

“Theycan attach to otheritems whichare incorrectly flusheddown thetoilet, such as sanitary products andnappies,aswellasfatsoilsand greases that have incorrectlybeen poured down thedrain,and quickly causeablockage.

“These full skipsare theresult of everyone flushing just onewipe here andthere,and not realising theimpactthatit’shaving.

“Our advice is to stickto flushing the threeP’s (pee,poo andtoiletpaper) andbin anything else

“These relativelysmall changes will make abig difference andhope fullyavoid anyfutureblockages.”

Theaverage home sewerpipeis 150mmindiameter–the same as anew roll of toilet paper, so it does

not take much forablockagetoform andcause sewage back up into peo ple’shomes, thestreet or thelocal environment.

“Manycustomers maynot real ise that they areresponsible forthe wastepiperunningawayfromtheir home up untiliteithercrosses the property boundary or meetswith

anotherwaste pipe or sewer,”Grant added.

“Itdoesn’t take much to cause a blockageand unblocking or repair ingthissection of pipe canbecost ly,but it’s completely avoidableif you’recareful about what you put down yourtoiletand binany ‘unflushables’.”

Cash boostfromestateagent will help hospice

A£1,500chequedonationfrom county estate agentSamuelWood hashelpedboost fundsfor Shropshirecharity SevernHospice.

RussellGriffin, co-directorat Samuel Wood, has first-hand ex perience of thehospice, as hisown fatherreceivedpalliativecarefrom thecharity

He said it wasthisexperience andmeeting head of fundraising Elodie Homethrough business membership organisation,B4 Shropshire, andhearing Elodie speakabout thecharity andits work, whichmotivated himtode velopabusinessrelationship.

“I attended arecentB4Shrop shirelunch eventsome months ago and, andheard aspeechabout the charity, whichisB4 Shropshire’s chosencharity

“Itreallyresonatedwithmeand afterspeakingtomybusinesspartnerAndrewCadwallader we decid ed to donate some fundsset aside forcharity to theSevernHospice to supportits essentialwork.

“It’ssucha worthwhilecharity anditlookedafter my ownfather 15 yearsago

“The wonderfulpeoplemadethe last days of hislifesocomfortable It’s allabout collaboration andwe

areveryhappy to be able support thehospice.”

Louise Withers, salesnegotiator at Samuel Wood in Shrewsbury, said:“We arethrilled to support such aworthylocal charitywhich provides free care forindividuals andfamiliesacrossShropshire, Telfordand Wrekin andMid Wales when patientcureisno longer pos sible.”

Elodie said:“We aregratefulto Samuel Wood forsupportingus. As acharity,wereallyvalue everysin gledonationwereceive andalways make sure it does itsbestfor the peoplewecarefor.”

Still no date for repairstolights

Highways bosses areunabletosay when damaged trafficlights on one of Shropshire’s busiestroads will be replaced

Thetrafficlights have notbeen working on half of theEmstrey Roundabout on theA5inShrewsbury forseveral weeks.

Thecontrolboxes forthe lights were damagedwhentheywerehit in acrash overnightonSeptem ber29and 30,and thelandhas also been contaminated by oilthat leaked as aresultofthe incident.

It meansthe approach from the directionofthe DobbiesIsland currentlyhas no lights,withdriv ersusing thejunctionasanormal roundabout with no signals.

National Highways is responsible forrepairing the lights andhas said that significant design workwill be needed before they will be back in place. National Highways route managerRichard Timothysaid they hadput in extra signstoalert driverstothe fact thetrafficlights arenot working

He said:“Extensivedamagewas causedinthe collision,withthree controlboxes on theroundabout beingtotally destroyedand thesite contaminated duetoan oilleak.

“The controlboxes,which man agetrafficlights on half of thejunc tion,needtobemoved,which will involvedesignworkand surveysto ensure otherutilities areavoided

“Weare also waitingfor bespoke partstohelprebuildthe boxes. We have recently installedadditional signstoalert driverstothe fact that trafficlightsonpartofthe roundabout arenot working.”

Staffshowred card to racism

Councilstaff showed ared card to racism to supportanational charity.

BackingShow Racism the RedCard, ShropshireCouncil staffwereasked to take photographs of themselves at workto be used in acollage of images on aspecial screensaver organised to operateonnationalWearRed DaylastFriday.

Additionally,the Wear Red Daytheme wasaddedtoall staff online payslipsthismonth Lezley Picton,leaderofthe council, said:“This year’s Show Racism theRed Card theme–‘Changehearts, change minds, change lives’ –isverymuch complementarytothe national BlackHistory Monththeme as well –‘Time forChange: action notwords’.

“Thisstartswithall of us, in theefforts that we canmakeas individuals, acrossthe council andacrossour county, to rec ognise andtackleracismand otherforms of discrimination wherever they occur.”

Keiran Brookes, branch sec retary of ShropshireUnison GeneralBranch, added: “Weare delightedthatthe council are continuing thehighlighting of inequalities in society andin justicetogroupings in ourcom munity with everyopportunity andsupportingthe National Wear RedDay.”

Dealing with blocked sewers.Photo:Severn Trent

Amazing mapofShropshirefeels like slipping into Tolkien’sworld of fantasy

MARK MORRIS mark.morris@mnamedia.co.uk

It maylookmorelike Middle Earthfroma Tolkiennovelbut this TheLordofthe Ringsstyle mapisinfactour very ownShropshire.

It is theworkofChris Birseand thedetailedmap took him80hours to finish usingPhotoshop

The35-year-old’s obsessionwith creatingthe eye-catchingmapsbe ganwhenhewas writingafantasy noveland needed a fictionalmap drawn.

Butratherthan“paying some one to do it”hegaveitagohimself andhewas so pleasedwiththe end result he decidedtodrawamap in thesamestyle forhis home region in Teesside

Sincethenthingshave“spi ralled”and he hasembarkedon an impressive missiontoproduce Tolkien-esquemapsofeveryregion in thecountry,including theWest Midlands –featuring asmall but impressive BlackCountry section andShropshire.

He’s sincebeenabletoquithis job in retail andtakeupfantasy map drawingasafull-time career.His latest work– TheWestMidlands map–required alarge amount of feedback from localpeople.

TheShropshiremap went through thesamelengthy process AccordingtoChris, thefeedback is an importantpart of designing these maps becauseitmeans he’s able to includeasmuchfolkloreas possible andcover areaswithinter esting storiesthatmightbeunder represented on othermaps, thus do inglocal communitiesjustice while designingamap of aplace he’s not 100per cent familiar with

“Itcertainly is alot of work,”said Chris. “A good half of it is just going through people’s feedback.Ipost in alot of places,onFacebookand Reddit,sobythe time Igothrough 1,000-pluscommentsthatyou get offpeopleacrossall theseplatforms, it really does take alongtime.

“Ifthere’s people whoreadthis whohavegivenmesome feedback,I justwanttoextendmythankstobe honest,because Ireallycouldn’tdo this, certainlytothe levelofdetail withoutthe feedback.”

TheWestMidlandsand TheLord of theRings go hand-in-hand,of course.WriterJRR Tolkienlivedin Birmingham

ButShropshirehas fine folklore tooand that made it aprime loca tion forone of Chris’ fantasymaps.

“Myfavourite bit from that region wasthe mythologyand thefantasy creatures that people highlighted–theWrekinGiant beinga favourite actually,” he explained. “I drew him sort of peekingaroundfrombehind theWrekinand Ithink that’s are ally nice touchin that one.”

Chrissells hisworkonEtsyand describesthemasthe “ideal Christ maspresent.”

Chris’ incredible mapstakeplentyofresearch andcomeinthree sizes andare full of detail as hismap of Shropshire,above,demonstrates

Sheer terror of meeting ‘Owd Scratch’ on isolated road

Howahistoricmurderled to spectral sightingsat abbey

BY ROBSMITH newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Buildwas Abbeyhas stood on thebanks of theSevernfor almost a thousand yearsand has seen countlesspeople pass throughits hallowedgrounds –not all with good intentions.

In fact,one murderousmonkis even said to have slainagreedy abbot, causinghis spirit to haunt theabbey to this day. Shropshire folkloreexpertand researcher Amy Boucherisafrequent visitortothe abbey andhas been diggingintoits history, particularly thegrimperiod of theearly 1340s when murder andplaguefelluponits doors.

Amy, whocomesfromMadeley andrunsablogdetailing spooky go ings-oninShropshire, takesupthe storyofthe violence at theabbey that mightexplain ghostsightings in theinterveningcenturies

Disease

Shesaid: “1342wasn’ta great year forBuildwas Abbey, though thetrouble really beganaround18 months earlier, when ahorrendous cattlediseasestruckShropshire. Unknowingly, this diseasewould starta chainofeventsthatwould lead to murder

“The cattle diseaseblightedthe area anddecimated livestocknum bers with onemanor nottoo far from theabbey seeing 62 of the154 cattledead, andthe rest toosick to give milk. It’s not knownhow farthe diseaseaffected Buildwas Abbey’slands,however theremust have been some impact,asitled to thebehaviour of theabbot being called into question

“The abbot seemed to ignorethe problemand grew even more unre lentinginhis pursuitofrent. This angeredlocal farmers; however, thedispute waseventuallycalmed when church officials were sent to

Buildwas.There waspeace fora time,until thefollowing year,when thecrops failed

“Withnocrops andthe coun ty stillinthe gripsofacattledis ease,manypeasant farmersleft theirlandinsearchofworkfur ther afield, or died,leaving acresof abandonedarable land.Thiswas a real crisis andput immense pres sure on thepeasantsleftbehind. It seemsthatthe abbotrefusedto acknowledgethese seriouseconomic problems.Hehad no pity forthe peasants andinsisted that theabbeyshouldcollect thefull taxesof abbey land,evenifempty.Hesaid he expected full rentsand refused to allowany remission of fees or fines.

“The detailsofwhatfollows are lost to time,however it seemsthat thelocal peasants expressedtheir

concern, andfound avoice in ajun ior monk,bythe name of Thomas Tong,known asThomasofTonge in some records. Tong sympathised with thepeasantsand wanted the abbottoaddress thegrowing issue, buthealso disliked theabbot on a personal level

“Tongraisedthe concerns anda meetingbetween thetwo men was arranged to discussthe growing dissent. Themeetingwas arather unpleasant affair,withthe two menquickly losing theirtempers As theargumentraisedand insults were thrown,somethinginTong snapped, andhestabbed theabbot to death.

“Itisnot knownwhether this was apremeditated actoramoment of madness, butthe whole abbeywas stunned by theevents.”

Apatentroll– an officialorder is

sued by theCrown –fromSeptember16under thenameofKingEdwardIII detailsthe “appointment of William Carles to attach Thomas de Tonge, amonkofBuldewas, who is indicted in thecountyofSalop of themurder of hisabbot as is said, andhas spurnedhis religioushabit andisnow vagabond in secularhab it,and imprisonhim in Shrewsbury gaol”.

ThebookMedievalMonasteries of GreatBritain includes this passage:“In 1342 theabbot wasmur deredbyone of hisown brethren, Thomas Tong.Tongmanaged to evade arrest andlater hadthe au dacity to petition forreinstatement to theCistercianOrder.” Whatever happened to Thomas,itappears he wasn’t punished tooharshly.He wasevenabletorejoin theorder af tersome time

Butwhatabout theabbey?Amy said:“Anew abbotwas appointed to Buildwas,who waskindertothe plightofthe peasantryand so the rent situationwas resolved. Howev er,thiswasn’tthe endofBuildwas Abbey’sstrife.

“Fiveyears later theBlack Death wouldstrikethe country, killing many in Shropshire, andplummet ingthe valueofBuildwas estate

“Totop it alloff,Tongreturned,” Amysaid. “However,his return seemed to be toomuchfor thespirit of theabbot.Afterresting for five years, hisghost wasrisen. Soon he wasseenagain,incessantly wandering theabbey’s grounds, un happyathis killer’s return.Many of theyounger monks suggested he wassearchingfor Tong,who fled themonastery,apparentlynot too keen on theideaofmeetinghis victimagain

“However,thisdidn’tgivehis victimrespite.His spirit is still report ed to wander thecrumbling ruins of Buildwas Abbey. He is oftenseen stood amongthe ruinsand enjoying theserenityofthe abbeyruins.”

n Read Amy’sworkat nearlyknowledgeablehistory.blogspot.com

Thereisasmall andinconspic uous roadin southShropshire where, it is said,you couldmeet theDevil himselfand face his judgment

Andaccordingtolocal folk lore, if youdon’t measureupyou mightnot make it back from an encounteronthe road known forgenerations as theDevil’s Causeway

Modern-day Shropshire folk loreexpertand paranormalenthusiast Amy Boucher explains:

“There areanumberoftales whichlinkthe Deviltoaspecific area,which were oftenused to implorethe listener to avoid that place. ActonBurnell in Shropshireisthe home to sever al such stories.”

Anditisbetween ActonBur nell andthe nearby villageof Cardington that ‘Old Scratch’ is said to do hisdevilish business, north-eastofChurch Stretton andwestofMuchWenlock

Thestretch of road in ques tion is mentionedinthe 1883 tome Shropshire Folk-Loreby CharlotteS.Burne:“Astretch of rude pavement, from twoto threehundred yardsinlength, knownasthe Devil’sCauseway.

“Itonceformedpart of a Romanroadleading to WroxeterfromRushbury, andinthe judgement of theRev.CHHart shorne,the local antiquarian authority, wasnever more than on an average13ftwide.”

Amytakes up thetaleofthe causeway: “Thisroadisknown as theDevil’s Causeway, as folk lorestatesthatthe Devilcreat ed it in asinglenight,toaid his nefarioustravels

“Heisbelievedtowanderthis road still, andmostlyappears to anyone whochooses to walk this path at midnight. ‘Owd Scratch’ takesthe form of aman riding awhite horse(sometimeswith horns andhooveslikeagoator cowand fartallerthanany mortalman).

“Hehas tasked himself with judgingthe soulsofthose who arecaughtout late.Ifyou have livedagoodlife, you maypass unheeded as theDevil knows he cannot harm you.However, if you area wretched soul,the devilisfreetobeatyou to a ‘bloodiedpulp’

“I wouldargue that thepur pose of this storyistoemphasise therisksofthe humanworld TheDevil is thus aconduit for thefears inspired by long,open roadsand dark nights.”

Buildwas Abbeyinlithograph,byJC Baylissin1856

An aerial shot of theabbey, wherethere have been spooky sightings Buildwas Abbey, in apicture broughtintothe Shropshire Star offices in

Part of theroad northout of Cardington, leadingtothe Devil’sCauseway

BRIDGNORTH

LIVESTOCK MARKETREPORT–TUESDAY

OCTOBER25, Cattle (80).Similar numbersto last week sawtrendsatleast as sharp as the previousweek.Again ashortage of bullsand with severalproducers emptying bull yards today we look settolowerbullnumbersin weekstocome.Disappointing numbersof steerssold to alevel tradetoa highof285p/kg for handyweights, with heavier native breeds £1741inthe lump.Six heifers sold above the 300p/kgmagic number to ahigh of 330p/kg. Heavyfemalestopped at £1823 in thelump. Asmall complimentofmainlycontinental bullssold to ahighof270p/kg or £1760inthe lump.Buyerswerelooking for meaty Friesian Holsteins buttherewas only one of notetobuy Lambs(1044). Amuchbetterentryoflambs to last week,although tradewould be harder work with everysectorofthe meatindustry reporting reduceddemand. Butcher’s lambs remain sought afterwithcustomerskeen to buy finished lambswithshape and finish. Best lambsto281p/kg (48kg) Texellambs from Daveand Caroline Evans realising £134.88. Weight seemstobe paying with heavier lambs averaging £124 throughoutthe sale.Export weights alittleeasiertosell butlambsunder 40kgmet aselective tradewithnationally an oversupplyofhill-bred lambsonthe market Well-siredlambsgenerallyunder 200p/kg trading around £185 to £195.Ewes(877)

Another large entryofeweswithheavy meated ewes most soughafter,especiallythose with shape.Texel ewes to £140 on twooccasions, with smaller,leanerTexel type ewes around £120.Suffolk xMules,meatbut notfat sold to £121,withseveral selling from £110 to £115 Continentalewesattracting considerable interest with shop ewes in demand.Mules to just shy of £100 andMashams £80, lean Mules £50to£60 with only theabsolute crocks under £40. Plentyofhill typesto£70 forCheviots, £49for Swales andimprovedWelsh£44 Charollais rams sold to £100.Trade overrecent weekshas been just offthe boil.Meatedewes arerequired,but plainer ewes wouldpay to feed.Inusual circumstancesthe ewetrade lifts around Christmas,sovalue couldbe added overthe next month or so

Loader feature ‘will save time’

Fendt hasdeveloped anew front loader with adedicated valveblock, newweighingfunction, greater flexibility of movement, andheavier load carrying capacity

TheCargo 6will be availableon thenew Gen7 700Vario tractors andisthe firstFendt loadertobe fullyindependent, making it possi bletouse allthe tractor valves with theloaderattached.

Fendt’s Ed Dennettsaid: “Itisa function that will help in so many situations.Havinga loader with threeindependentfunctions –lift, tipand athird valve– withoutusing valves needed forother implements will save operatorstimeand enable tractors fitted with this loader to be moreversatile

“A clever newhydrauliclocking function enablestools to be changed in anyposition with theaddedben efitofaneasy-to-use mechanical lock andwithout having to crowd back theloaderfully.”

Maintenancetimehas also been considered by positioning allhy drauliccomponentsinthe cross beam to reduce dirt and mechani caldamage. Theloaderhas acon tinuousliftcapacityof3,500kg and amaximum lift capacity of 4,150kg.

This combined with a4.85m lift heightand aloaderframe widthof 1,140mmoffersgreater loadingsta bility and flexibility

Thetop CargoProfi modelfea turesanintegrated weighingfunction offering both individual and totalweightin each position

Innovative trial flagsupbenefits of slurry additive

An innovativetrial exploringifa newslurryadditivecan improve nutrientavailability in digestate hasshowna20.3per cent increase in availablenitrogencontent anda 29 percentreduction in drymatter solids afterthe firstyear.

monium nitrogenwas shownafter a12-week period followingthe ap plicationofDigest-It.

Users of AD plantscan realisethe full nutrient valueofdigestate by addingOriginFertilisers’additive

Thenew Digest-Itslurryaddi tive from Origin Fertilisers is a live liquid biological bacteria that hasbeenusedindigestate forthe firsttimeand hasbeenwellproven to significantly reduce ammonia emissionsand increase ammonium nitrogenlevelsinslurry. Thetrial took placeata1.2MW anaerobic digestionplant in Lincolnshire The20.3per cent increase in am

Afurther 29 percentreduction in oven drysolidshas translatedto thedigestate beingeasiertopump, whichinturnhas reducedmachin erywearand fuel use, alongwith shortening filling times.

As an outcome of reducing solid content, thedigestate hasathinnerconsistency andistherefore easier forthe plantstoabsorbfol lowing applicationtothe soil

Plants aren’t using as much en ergy to search fornitrogen, and nitrogenlossesthrough volatilisa tion arereduced.CallumNorman,

speciality salesmanager at Origin Fertilisers, whowas involvedin thetrial,saidwhilethe headline increasesmakeexcellent reading, thewider benefits of applying Di gest-It shouldn’tbeoverlooked He said:“Thetreated digestate hadlessnitrogencontent than the untreated product.”

Theupshothereis that thesame amount of land canhave13% more digestatespreadonitbeforeNVZ limits arereached,which couldbe hugely beneficialfor growerson smalleracreages with excess di gestate to spread

“Weare really pleasedwiththe resultsofthe trial,”headded.

Storagereminderisoffered as fertiliser demand increases

DAVIDBANNER newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Followinganotable in crease in thedemandfor urea fertiliser,agronomy firm Hutchinsons is remindinggrowers to ensure they store and handle it correctly.

Strict regulationsgovern the transportation andstorage of all fertilisers

The firm’s fertiliserand crop nu tritionspecialistRob Jewers said farmersmustbecareful to abide by these rules, particularly when storingbothureaand ammonium nitrate (AN) products

Inert

Urea is relatively inertcompared with AN,but he warnsthatregulationsprohibitthe twofrombeing transportedorstoredtogether.

Failing to follow theappropriate storageguidelinescould risk farm ersfailing ACCS or RedTractor inspections, nottomention increas ingthe risk of significant losses in theeventofanincident.

He said:“Urea hasbeenmore competitivelypricedthanammoni um nitratethisyear, by quitesome margin.One kilo of AN nitrogen waspricedataround£2.60 at the endofSeptember,whereas akilo of urea nitrogenworkedout to be

about£1.90,sowehaveseenmore demand forit.

“There maywellbefarmers who haven’t bought urea before,orhav en’t used it foralongtime, that per haps aren’t awarethe twoshouldn’t be stored together.

“Itissomethingtothink about, otherwise you mightbeinfor a shockifthere’s an ACCS inspec tion.”

Thereasonureaand AN cannot be stored or transported together is notbecause thereisadangerof them spontaneouslyreactingwith each other,morethe fact urea is an organicmaterialthatactsasa carbon source –CO2 produced in theHaber-Bosch processgetsadded back into theammonia to produce urea. “So, if therewas an incident with theammoniumnitrate,such

as fire,the urea wouldprovide an additional fuel source,” Mr Jew ersexplained.Thisiswhy thetwo products cannot be putonthe same vehicle when beingdelivered,and ideallytheyshouldnot be stored in thesameshed, he said

If they do have to be keptinthe same building,guidelinessuggest leavingatleast a5mgap between anyureaand AN fertiliser bags

NaturalCapitalwill be underspotlight as firm organisesfreeseminar

BarbersRural is runninga free seminartoexploreNatural Capital regulations.

Thecompany says NaturalCapi talisthe stockofsoil, water, airand biodiversity.Healthy NaturalCapi taldeliversahugerange of benefits, includingcarboncapture,cleaner water andreduced flood risks.

TheGovernmenthas recognised this andisintroducingnew legislation to both governand market NaturalCapital

“There is still alot to learnabout what thenew legislationwill mean

to ourfarming clients,”saidDan Bowden, ruralsurveyor andpart nerwithBarbers Rural.

“DirectPayments, includingThe BasicPayment Scheme,are dueto be phased outby2027and we need to know how thenew NaturalCap ital regulationswill affect support forfarmers goingforward.”

To help farmersunderstandmore aboutwhatNatural Capitalwill mean to theirfarming businesses, BarbersRural is runninga free seminaronDecember 1at6.30pm

Theevent will be held at Market

DraytonLivestock Market andthe guestspeaker will be Kate Russell from Tellus NaturalCapital whois aleading voiceinthe UK regarding NaturalCapital

Otherspeakerswill be Paul Ap pleby from ApplebysDairy and ChrisTalbotfromAlltech E-CO2 whorunscarbonauditsfor farmers.

Louise Taylor,managingpart nerwithBarbers Rural, said she wasdelightedtohavesecured the support of not only Kate Russell, COO of Tellus NaturalCapital Ltd, butalso of localdairy farmer and

cheese producer Paul Applebywho will talk at theseminar aboutthe challenges he hasfaced regarding NaturalCapital

“Itwillbeaninterestingand ex citing event, particularly forthose focusing on theirbusiness plansgoingforward,” said Louise

Refreshments will be provided so bookingisessential.For more informationand to book yourplace call 01630 692500.Alternatively emailDan or Louise at BarbersRu ralConsultancy LLP at info@barb ers-rural.co.uk

Strictregulations

Agri-tech firm is boosted by newappointments

Agri-techveterans, ScottMillar andLouiseRix,havejoinedTrinityAgTechin farmer-facingroles as customer successmanagers.

Both coming from agri-tech businesses, their new positions will seethemsupport newand existing farm customers to measureand optimise theirnatural capitalassets usingTrinity AgTech’s smart naturalcapital navigator, Sandy.

As agateway betweenTrinity’s products andservicesand theend user,their cross-sector agricultur al expertisemeans improved, tailored supportfor farmerswho are lookingtobuild theirbusiness re silience,profitability andsustain ability

Mr Millar hasspent adecade working in business development, andhails from ruralroots, having

graduated from Hartpury Univer sity with adegreeinagriculture andlandmanagement. He will be supporting Trinity’s livestockand dairycustomers in hisnew role

“I believecredibleand high-qualitycarbonand biodiversity scoring andoptimisation will play akey role in advancingfarmers’needs forhigherprofitability andsus tainability andTrinity hasthe

most robust system in themarket to help farmersachieve theirmax imum potential,”hesaid.

Also bolstering the team’s expertise with over 10 yearsworking in customer-facing rolesworking di rectly with farmersisMsRix.Coupled with astrongbackgroundin agriculture, Ms Rixjoins Trinity AgTech to supportthe company’s arable andhorticulturecustomers

Worries grow over qualityof school mealsascosts soar

DAVIDBANNER newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

Children arefacingadeteriorationinthe quality of school mealsdue to shortagesand increasingprices, asurveyhas suggested.

Morethan90per cent of the99 school meal providerspolledby Laca TheSchoolFood People across England andWales said they are experiencing food shortages, with more than 60 percentsayingthis hasnot improvedsince May

Bread, fish, cheese, pastaand po tatoes arethe itemsmostaffected by theprice rises

Thesurveyalsofound that prices have risenbya further30per cent sinceMay

This is in addition to the20per cent priceincreases Laca members reported in May, compared with April2020.

Processed

Accordingtothe survey,some ca terers have experienced 50 percent priceincreases sinceMay

Thesurveyalsofound 28 percent arenow using more processedfoods to cope with rising costs, whilealmost 35 percentare considering switchingfromBritishmeatto meat from abroad

Thesurveyfound 52.2 percent expect thequality of school meals

to continue getting worse over the coming weeksand months.

Laca is calling on theGovernment to increase fundingper meal forbothUniversalInfantFree School Meals– currently£2.41 andFreeSchoolMeals –currently £2.47–toaddress thecurrent cost

of living crisis andfor this to in crease annually with inflation.

Chairman of Laca,BradPearce, said:“Despitethe best effortsofour membersand dedicatedfrontline staff, theschoolmeals industry is on itsknees.”

“The challenges facing ourin-

dustry areset to getworse overthe coming weeksand months

“Without an increase in school meal fundingthe mostvulnerable children in oursociety will go with out, possibly,their only hot, healthy andnutritiousmealofthe day.”

Biosecurityadvice service hailed abig success

Afreeservice offering farmers biosecurity advice to preventthe spread of TB hasbeenrated excellent andusefulbythe majority of farmerswho accessed it SarahTomlinson, technical di rector at theTBAdvisoryService (TBAS) –which offers livestock farmersin Englandfreebiosecuri ty advice to protecttheir animals from TB –saidshe wasdelighted to shareareporthighlighting the success of theservice between2017 and2021.

Shesaid: “The report shows 2,280 farmswerevisited and 2,400farmers were given over-thephoneadvicefromTBASover the

four-year-period with 90 percent ratingthe serviceas excellentand 92 percentsayingthe recommen dationsgiven to them were very useful

“Thisisreallyencouraging as it showsTBAShas provided value to thousandsoffarmers andhas hopefullyempowered them to see TB as an infectious diseasethat they cantakesteps to control, ratherthansomethingcompletely outoftheir control.”

MrsTomlinsonsaidthe service is designed to show farmerswhile thereare things they can’tcontrol, thereare things they cancontrol on theirown farm

Sheexplained:“TBAS is proactive;we’re trying to reduce the risk of thenextTBbreakdown on afarmbyhelping farmerstoimplementcertain measures, butit’s also atooltogoontoafarmwhere thereisa breakdown.”

Thereportfound the five most common recommendationsgiv en to farmersatthe endofavisit were:install wildlife cameras; use theibTBwebsite priortopurchas inganimals to ascertainthe time of afarm’slastTBbreakdown;add barriers to thebottomofgates and doors; useelectricfencingtopro tectroutesofentry;and feed animals in badger-prooftroughs.

FARMINGSCENE

Thosepolitical reportersmust feel abit likethey’ve donea monthoflambing.Day afterday of rollercoasterevents, pressure to be in therightplaceatthe righttime, andresisting sleepin case you miss something.

Talkingofsleep,Rishi’s steady tonesmighthelpanyone strugglingwithinsomnia…but at leastwecould finallyhave some stability.All alongLiz Trussgaveoff the‘rabbitcaught in headlights’look–soending up as roadkill wasinescapable

As new‘head boy’ of thebri gade Rishihas been shuffling things around again.

We’vebeenwaitingwith baited breath to seewho gets plonkedatDefra.Cue aunani mous groanwhenTherese Coffey’snamewas unveiled as the newSecretaryofState forour sector

PickingbackupfromaDefra stinta fewyears, before shewas shunted to Work andPensions andthenHealth, shesmugly told themedia she’s‘going home to Defra’.Ok shehas aruralconstituencyonthe Suffolk coast, butI’m scepticalofhow much of a‘farmingand environment’expertshe is

How canany Minister get to gripswiththe nuancesofa particular sector when they are constantly movedaround?

I’mcertainly no politics geek, so hadtodosome googling to find outmoreabout thenew De fraconductor.Typein‘Therese Coffey’and the firstsuggestion is ‘cigar’–which brings up a less than complimentaryshot–not exactlythe posterimagefor someone who’sbeeninchargeof health!

Morerecently, sheupsetdoc tors andnursesbysayingthey ‘could find otherjobs’ if they thoughttheydeservedmore pay, andpubliclylet slip she shares herprescribedantibioticsaround!

Andsothe uncertaintycon tinues forfarmers.Defra predecessor Ranil Jayawardena threwthe catamongstthe pi geons when he hinted thegov ernmentmay be backtracking on long-termnaturepledges.

Although we’repromisedthat ELMs is goingahead, so many question marksstill remain forTherese Coffey to answer includingclarificationonthe SustainableFarming Incentive timeline,and when thebusinesses whichare putting food on plates will actually getany money.

With anyhope, thenew PM will keepMarkSpencer in the Defrafold.

By thetimethisarticle comes out, we’llknowifhe’sbeenkept on as FarmingMinister.

An actual Nottinghamshire farmer himself,wedesperately need someone whoknows what they’retalking about

School mealproviders saidtheyare experiencing food shortages,asurveyhas found

Sarah Tomlinson

Unsung heroes awards appeal

AShropshire-basedsocialenter prise is asking fornominations for anew awards

PEGS,which is committed to supportingparents, carers andguardiansimpacted by ChildtoParent Abuse,has launched CPAHeroes –which enablesparents to nomi nate someone whohas gone above andbeyondtoassistthem. Nomina tionscould either be aprofessional such as aGP, socialworker, police officerorteacher,ora friend,fami ly member,neighbour or colleague.

Nominationsare open until5pm on Wednesday,November30. An yone wishingtonominateshould emailadmin@pegsupport.com and includethe name,organisation–if applicable –and address– if known –oftheir nominee, alongsidetheir reason forputting them forward. They must also indicate ifthey’re happyfor theirnametobeshared with theirCPA Hero.Visit pegsup port.com

Groupswings to raisecash

Housebuildinggroup Vistry raised£7,690for suicidepreven tion charityPapyrus at agolf tournament

Eightmembersofstaff from thehousebuilder’sMercia re gion,which is basedinStafford, took up theirclubs forthe 18 hole eventheldatThe ShropshireGolfCoursein Telford.

Theevent washeldinthe same week at WorldSuicide Prevention Day. PapyrusisVis try’snationalchosencharity this year

Theorganisationisdedicat ed to theprevention of suicide, whichisthe biggest killer of people aged 35 andunder in theUK. It provides confidential supportand advice to young people struggling with thoughts of suicideand anyone worried aboutayoung person,through itshelplineHOPELINEUK.

Sharpfallin tourismoutput

Tourismand recreation experi enced thesharpestfallinoutput of anyUK sector in September,accordingtothe latest Lloyds Bank UK sector tracker

Output in thesector, whichincludes pubs, hotels, restaurants andleisure facilities,contracted at thefastest pace (36.3) sinceFebru ary2021, when theUKwas last in lockdown

Thedropwas causedbydemand –represented by neworders–fallingfor afourthconsecutive month (38.5) as consumersreined-in discretionary spending amid rising inflation.

However, five of the14UKsec tors sawoutputgrowinSeptember (against threeinAugust),while the same number sawnew orders grow (fromthree in August).

Output growth washighest amongsoftwareservice providers (55.8vs63.1inAugust),followedby healthcare firms(53.6 vs 47.8).

Motordealerisonmoveintown

Greenhous, oneofthe UK’s larg estautomotive groups, hasopened anew site in Shrewsbury

ThesiteonFeatherbed Lane will replacethe currentGreen hous ShrewsburyVauxhallsite on Old PottsWay

RichardPotts, director and generalmanager at Greenhous Shrewsbury,said: “After28years on OldPotts Way, we’reveryex-

citedtobemovingtoour new homeonFeatherbed Lane.We prideourselves on deliveringthe highestlevelsofcustomerservice andour newsitewill allowusto do exactlythat.”

It will offeraone-stop-shop carexperience, includingalarge rangeofusedcarsand vans, Vauxhall approvedservicing,repair andmaintenance andMOT

Matrix picksupa national accolade

Chartered financialplannersfrom a firm have celebrated yetanother national industry awardsuccess

TheteamfromMatrixCapital, whichisbased near Bridgnorth, hasscooped theMoney Marketing awardfor SmallAdviceFirmofthe Year 2022 andtheyreceivedtheir trophyat aceremonyinLondon.

Founderand managing director

RobinMelleysaid: “I’m so proud ofthe teamfor theworktheydo

in making sure that ourclients achievegreat outcomesand that they areprovidedwithasafepair of hands.

“Wereceivedthe awardinthe category for firmswho have fewer than five authorisedadvisers, and competitionwas extremely fierce

“Sotohaveachievedthisnational titleisbrilliantnewsand it’s the ultimate recognitionfor thehard workthateveryone puts in.”

Councilhelps recruitment firm source cash forITinvestment

JAMESPUGH

james.pugh@mnamedia.co.uk

Astart-uprecruitment agency hassecured £10,000 throughthe Business Growth Programme thanks to support from Telford&WrekinCouncil’s Enterprise Telfordteam.

Telford-basedHariley Solutions Ltdhas used theadditionalcashinjection to supportaseriesofCapital expenditureITinvestments forthe business,including newlaptops and desks.

The£10,000 wasthe maximum amount that Harileycould applyfor throughthe Business Growth Programme (BGP)and hasprovideda much-needed financialboost to sup port thecompany’s newITinfra structurewhich hascost£18,000 in total.

HarileySolutions Ltdwas founded by directorsRyanWheeler,Stu artMackintosh andJay Plant, who bringextensive experience in re cruitment, to help firmsinthe in dustrial andtransport sectors find thebeststaff

Mr Wheelersaid: “Weweredelightedtoreceivethe Business Growth Programmefunding which is invaluable forbusinesses like ourselves.The Enterprise Telford team were really helpfulfromstart to finish,helping us with allthe paperworkand guidingusthrough theapplication.”

Law firm is shortlistedfor twoaccolades

Alaw firm hasbeenshortlistedin twocategoriesatthe upcoming na tional PersonalInjuryAwards. Theawards, nowin their15th year,recognise theexcellence of law firmsand individualsacross thepersonalinjuryand medical negligence sectors, with 21 awards beingpresented on thenight.

Shropshirelaw firm Lanyon Bowdlerisa finalist in theClini calNegligenceTeamofthe Year

JAMESPUGH james.pugh@mnamedia.co.uk

category andBethHeath, apart nerand head of Lanyon Bowdler’s clinical negligence team,isa fi nalist in theClinical Negligence Lawyer of theYearcategory. The awards ceremony takesplacein Manchester on November24.

BrianEvans,managingpart-

ner, at Lanyon Bowdlersaid: “We aredelighted to be shortlistedin twocategoriesatthe Personal In jury Awards –the country’sleadingawardsinthe personal injury andclinical negligence sectors.”

He added: “Our clinical negligenceteam, whichhas an enviable reputation within theindustry, works tirelessly on behalf of our clientsand fullydeserves to be recognisedonthe national stage.”

22 unitssnapped up at business parkthankstoQ

A financialservicesgroup has revealed howithas helped busi nesses secure dealsfor morethan 20 unitsonathrivingShropshire business park

QFinancialServicessaidithas securedcommercialmortgages for22separateunits on theTern Valley Business Park on theedge of Market Drayton, in dealstotal ling £2.5 million.The park will be home to around 300new jobs when fullyoccupied– with Qhelping source financefor nearlya quarter of allunits on thesite.

Josh Timbrell,partner at Q CommercialFinance, said the companyhad helped awidevarie

ty of businesses on theparkaccess themoneytheyneededtomake theirbusinessdreamscome true over thelastfouryears

Success

“The Tern Valley Business Park is ahugesuccess storyhelping createjobs, growth andexpansion and we aredelighted to have been able to play ourpartinhelping somany businesses move onto thesite.

“Intotal,wehavesecured competitive commercialmortgages for 22 unitsonthe site –all with asale priceofmorethan£100,000

“We’vebeenabletobrokerour

clientsthe best deal basedontheir business circumstancesand have helped seethe dealsall theway throughtocompletioninevery case

“There have certainlybeenchallenges overthe four years–includinggetting lenderstoworktowardsstrictcompletiondeadlines once theunits were constructed –but theoverall result hasbeen absolutelyfantastic andthe park is arealcredittoall thosebehindit.”

QFinancialServicesgroup, whichhas officesinWellington andShrewsbury, is oneofthe lead ingand fastest-growingcompanies in thesectoracrossthe Midlands

Qpartner Josh Timbrell

AJonah

BJamie

CJason

Anansie

ACROSS

Former name of Ethiopia (9)

“--- Bede”, novel by George Eliot (4)

Mountain in Rio de Janeiro(5,4)

and 24 Ac. Novel by John Steinbeck (2,4,3,3)

Michael, 1989 French Open tennis champion (5)

The goose, Branta bernicla, is found in northerncoastal regions (5)

Capital of Qatar (4)

Disembodied hand in The Addams Family household (5)

Aforwardinrugby (4)

In Greek mythology,the underworld abode of the souls of the dead (5)

Upper part of the bows of aship which houses the holes through which the anchor ropes pass (5)

See 10.

Genus of shrubs with yellow bell-shaped flowers (9)

26. “--- Wars”, 1977 science fiction film (4)

Tom, actor who appeared in Alan Ayckbourn’sThe Norman Conquests (9)

DOWN 1. Common auk, Alca torda, of the North Atlantic (9)

2. Tourist centreinFlorida between Lake Worth and the Atlantic (4,5)

4. Colour of the ball worth five points in snooker (4)

5. In tennis, afast and powerful overhead stroke (5)

6. “The ---”, 1979 novel by Peter Benchley (6)

7. Country whose capital is Baghdad (4)

9. Paul, English novelist who authored the “Raj Quartet” series (5)

11. Small purple-flowered plant whose leaves are used in cooking (5)

12. Oliver,Irish author of She Stoops to Conquer (9)

13. Daughter of Priam endowed with the gift of prophecy (9)

17. African republic whose capital is Accra (5)

19. Title assumed by Prussian king Wilhelm (6)

22. Erik, French composer who died in 1925 (5)

23. Dorothy’sdog in the film The WizardofOz(4)

24. Verdiopera set in Egypt (4)

WORD

1Happy

Clogs, 120 Tissue, 121 Doorways, 122 Awards, 123 Togo, 124 Silver Down: 2Accuser,3 Deals, 4Arizona, 6Garibaldi, 7Shape, 8Drive, 9Lit, 11 Abi, 12 Fox, 13 Ruffian, 14 Being, 15 Eventual, 17 Fever,18Naive, 19 Part-timer,20Stub, 21 Red-hot, 25 Spain, 26 Battled, 28 Supposing, 32 Tom, 33 Redrawn, 37 Ron, 38 Finish, 40 Caste, 41 Corgi, 43 Pastorals, 44 Heath, 46 Sui, 47 Now,48Levers, 50 Depress, 52 Greatness, 53 Weights, 54 Parlour,56Islamic, 57 Thame, 58 Alto, 59 Hazel, 61 Iris, 66 Calico, 67 According, 70 Erase, 73 Lammas, 74 Keyhole, 76 Drain, 77 Ruler,78Philately,79Joe, 81 Rig, 83 Spotter, 85 Unnerving, 87 Protests, 89 Ill, 90 Expose, 92 Impress, 94 Drops, 96 Lag, 98 Thrones, 99 Gazelle, 100 Panic, 101 Thing, 103 Orate,

Men’srole in dealingwithmenopause issues

Many women believemenopause wasafactorintheir relationship breakdown, accordingtoanew study.

Seven outof10women ques tioned blamed themenopause for theirdivorce or maritalproblems, with some saying it increasedargumentsordomestic abuse. Only a thirdofrespondents polled by the FamilyLaw Menopause Project andNewsonHealthsaidtheyhad beenoffered treatment,withmany believingitcould have potentially savedtheir marriage

“Menopause canbesucha chal lengingtimefor twopeopleina relationship,” says psychotherapist CathyPress.She listsmood swings,physicalchanges, disrupted sleepand nightsweatsas just some of thepotential effects of menopause,which usuallyhap

pens betweenthe ages of 45 and 55,and perimenopausecan start up to adecadebefore. “All of these symptoms canleave apersonwith littleenergy, enthusiasm andhope, andsome experience asense of griefat thelossofthe personthey were pre-menopause.”

Theeffectoncouples whoare experiencing ongoingdifficultiescan be even worse, shecontinues:“The onsetofmenopause canbeacatalyst formanywomen to recognise thereissomethingwrong in the relationship.”

Everywoman experiencesthe menopause differently, buthaving asupportive partnercan make a huge difference,and couldprevent relationship problems

“Education is thekey,and nor malising theconversation helps notjustpartners, butall of us,”

says psychologist andauthorDr Audrey Tang.The firststepisto read up on thesymptoms, butremember that they vary greatly: “Some women mayexperience symptoms similar to PMS, others oftenreporta‘flat’moodwhich canall tooeasilybedismissed as stress or overwork.”

If yourpartner is struggling, en couragethemtoseekhelpfroma doctor or online resources.

“Menopausesupport.uk is an ex cellentwebsite forresourcesand information, includingasymptom checkerand afactsheet forpartners,” Tang continues.

If you’refeeling more distance betweenyou andyourpartner than usual, that’s normal.

Themenopause canalso lead many women to step back andreassesstheir lives.

Emma’s bakes arethe icing on thecakeinnew venture

HEATHER LARGE heather.large@mnamedia.co.uk

When EmilyRoa clocks offfromher dayjob in credit control, she doesn’tjustput herfeet up.

Insteadshe headstothe kitchen whereshe gets to workbaking sweettreatsfor thecommunity

From cupcakes to celebration cakes, the29-year-old completesup to 25 orderseachweek.

Herventure hasgone from strength to strength sinceitwas launched around twoyears agoand nowshe hasbeenshortlistedfor a business award.

“Mybakingbusinesshas achieved more andmoresuccess andIwanttoshare my storyto show that anything ispossibleif you aredeterminedenough,”says Emily, wholivesinWolverhampton.

Shebegan making batchesof cupcakes to keep herself occupied whilelooking foranew job after beingmaderedundant from herreceptionroleata cardealership.

With thehelpofher mother Julie, akeenbaker,she started learning newrecipes andhoningher skills

“Mymum wasoff workas well so we baked togetherand shetaught me how to make cakesand butter cream,”explainsEmily.

Emilyposted picturesofher bakingsuccesses on herpersonalIns tagram accountand soonstarted attractingcompliments

Sheset up herdedicated Beauti fulBakes By Em Instagrampage in September 2020,which nowhas more than 15,000 followers.

Soon theorderswere flying in and therun-uptoChristmas 2020 was especially busy as people shopped forgifts.

Amongher customers hasbeena friend of acelebrity girl-band member, whoshe is unabletoname, who

gotintouch andordered four chocolate bombsasagift.

SincethenEmily hascontinued to attractcustomers from farand wide andgrowthe business alongsidea full-timejob

“I opened during lockdown and took amassive gamble.Iworkedsuperhard– andImeanliterally bakingall dayand nightwithno sleep consistently,” shesaid.

After finishingher dayjob at 5pm, shecan oftenbefound baking to fulfilordersuntil theearly hours.

ButEmily,who hasalsohelda number of pop-up stalls, says she

doesn’tmindthe longdaysbecause sheloves getting creative andmak ingpeoplehappy with herbakes.

“I don’tenjoy themess butIen joyeverything else.The best part is tastingitall.Ihaveacreative flair whichI neverknewI haduntil I startedthis,”she says

Herspecialitiesnow includecup cakesand cakesicles as well as decorativecelebration cakesinarange of flavourssuchasvanilla, choco late andred velvet

Emilyrecentlyfound outshe had been nominatedfor TheMBCC (Multicultural Business& Com-

Membersofthe publicweregiv en thechancetovotefor whothey thoughtmostdeservedtoreach the final.

Afterwinningenoughvotes to secure herplaceat thered carpet eventonNovember5,Emily now hasachanceofwinningthe titleof Most InfluentialBusinessPersonof theYear. he awardisfor peoplewho notonlyhaveasuccessfulbusiness butalso help andinspire others around them.But sheadmits the nomination came as such asurprise that shedidn’tbelieve it couldbe true at first.

“I thoughtitwas ascamsoIignored the firstemail.Thenasecond emailarrived andI thoughtI’d bet terhavea look at it

“I have no idea whoput me forward forthisaward.Itcould be a friend or relative butno oneisown inguptoit. Averythoughtfulper sonhas gone outoftheir waytodo this formeand I’mreallytouched

“Toevenbenominated foran awardwas enough formebut to know that my amazing Instagram followersand my loya clientsall voted formeand gotmetothe final is completely overwhelming andI’m still in shock,”Emilysays.

As well as thesupport of herfol lowers andcustomers, sheis also grateful to hermotherfor teachingher to bake andfor making the eye-catchingfondant toppersfor hercelebration cakes.

Herpartner,Sunny, hasalso helped with ideasfor thebusiness andcontinued to “pushher to succeed”

Emilyhopes herstory canbean inspirationtootherstofollowtheir dreams andnot to letany challeng es standintheir way.

n Seewww.facebook.com/BeautifulBakesByEm or follow @beautifulbakesbyem on Instagram.

WITH JOHN RIDGWAYOF OLDMILLANTIQUESCENTRE

It’s that time of year again, when ghosts andghoulsabound andwitches take to theskies on theirbroomsticks!

Andifyou areplanninga Halloweengathering of any kind you maydowelltotrack down some vintageitems with whichtohelpcreateasuitably spooky atmosphere!

Candlesare amust, of course, so look outfor chunky wooden gobletsorsilver-plated chal ices in which to display them andlamps will definitely help brightenupeventhe most ghostlyofrooms

If you have thebudgetfor it acandelabrawould look amaz ingonyourdiningtable and look outfor some orange bowls in whichtoserve your pumpkin soup.Why notadd an oldmirror above your candlestoadd extra lightand burn extra candles or tealights in vintageholders in your fireplaceoronaman tlepiece?

Youmay be able to find some Coalport Batwingchina cups andsaucers foryourtealights whichmay suffice in theab

senceofrealbats!

If mightbepossibletolocate amedical skeleton whobethe ghostatyourfeast.Don’t forget to getanold broomstick or two forthe guests whodon’t drive andacauldronwould be ideal, youcan find them at very rea sonablepricesand afterHalloweentheymakegreat planters

Autumn dried flowersinvin tage containers wouldlooklove ly andyou candisguise sofas andchairswithvintage rugs

Youcould also look outfor copiesofvintage classicghost novels, such as TheTurnofthe ScrewbyHenry JamesorThe CantervilleGhost by Oscar Wilde,and leave them around for people to browse through.

If you arelooking to dress up foryourparty thereare all kindsofvintage costumeitems to choosefrom, rangingfrom blackcloaksfor vampires to Victorian lace-upboots forwitches

So do alittlevintageshopping this Halloweenand have alove ly spooky time!

BakerEmilyRoa setup herown cake business afterlosing herjob

Menopausecan bringonmany

Chalicescan hold candles

munity Champion) Awards,which recognise andcelebrate thenation’s inspirationalbusinessand community unsung heroes

Chef Andi keen to promote diversityinthe kitchen industry

Topcooks’advice on ways to getchildren serving up help

PressAssociation

Thereare so many reasons to getchildren cooking.

Theupper echelons of thefood world haslongbeendominated by whitemalechefs –but this isn’tanaccuratepicture of the culinary greatnessout there, says chefand broadcasterAndi Oliver

ThehostofBBC 2’sGreat BritishMenusaysinthe UK thereisa“narrow perception” of excellence in thefood industry, writes ImyBrighty-Potts Oliver,58, says:“Thereare people wholooklikemeatthe topend whoaren’tgetting what they deserve. Theexcellence, the beauty,the poetry, themagic is what food is about.Thatcomes from allparts of theworld.”

Oliver is celebratingthisexcellence as ajudge forthe BIH SpotlightAwardswithBeInclusiveHospitality,aninitiative that aims to tackle diversity is sues within theindustry.

Itsfounder Lorraine Copes, asocialentrepreneurand hospitality consultantwho has workedwithGordonRamsay Restaurants, says there’sa no ticeable absence of people of colourinvisible positionsofinflu ence in hospitality.

Shesaidjust17.83 percent of theindustryidentified as BAME.“Ihavesat on theboards forbusinessesand Iamalways theonlypersonthatlooks like me in thoserooms,”she says “I wouldstruggletonameanotherblackwoman in thesame position as me in thesector.”

This extends, Oliver says, to working in food andtelevision. Thinking back to an International Women’sDay eventearli er in theyear, shesaid: “I was surprisedathow many of the younger womenchefs of alleth nicities in that roomstill had hesitation aboutworking in a kitchenataparticularlevel

“British multiculturalism is thejewel in ourcrown.We should be celebratingitinevery environment. People of colour should notjustbewashing dish es.”

As thehostofa prestigious show likeGreat BritishMenu, andasablack woman in her late 50s,Oliver says shetakes herroleseriously “I don’tspeakfor anyone else,but Iknowmyvisibility is important. It feelslikequite a responsibility.Iget alot of support andlove.I don’ttakethat forgranted,” shesays.

Notonlywill it armyoung peoplewithcruciallifeskills, it brings them closertotheir food –poten tially helpingthemmakehealthier choices. Plus, you canhavealot of funbakingand cookingwithchildren (onceyou accept things won’t be perfect, andyou mighthavea hefty amount of tidyinguptodo)

Butitcan be hard to know where to startwithlittleonesinthe kitchen –sohere’swhatthe pros sug gest

1. MARYBERRY

“I thinkit’sessential to getthe young into thekitchen,” shesays. Forher,the best waytoget children cookingisbyhavinga two-pronged approach: figuring outwhatthey want to cook,and making sureit’s not toocomplicated

“Startwithsimplethings– even making scones or breadisinexpen sive,” sheadvises. “And then stand by them,show them weighing– af terall,ifyou’vegot digitalscales, theyare used to that sort of thing.

“And somethingthey’ll be proud ofhavingmade. Ispoke on the phonetomydaughterthismorning, andAtty[hergranddaughter,Ata lanta] hassome friendscomingover forasleepover

“Theyweremakingbiscuits and when herfriends come,theywill also cook thefamilysupper–it mightbepasta,and it’llbepartof thelateafternoonentertainment, so to speak. They’lldoittogether, andenjoy eating andsharing it.”

n Cook AndShare by Mary Berry (BBC Books, £27)

2. HUGH FEARNLEY-WHITTINGSTALL

ForHughFearnley-Whitting stall, if you have anychanceofget ting children interested in cooking, it’s allabout engaging them with food from ayoung age.

“Even thetiniest kids have a real naturalcuriosity around food, andtheywanttoplaywithit–soI wouldsay,let them,” he says

“Theydon’t always want to taste it or eatitstraightaway…It’squite hard forgrown-ups to letgoofour hang-ups aboutkeeping thekitch en tidy,and also stressingabout whetherour kids areeatingthe rightfood, butifyou letkidsmuck about with agoodrange of ingredients when they’rereallyquite small… soonerorlater,they’ll come around to it.”

Fearnley-Whittingstall’s also a bigadvocatefor introducing chil dren to “realfood”froma young ageifyou can.

“Kidswho theonlyfood they seeisajar beingopenedand mush beingspoonedout of it into their mouths, they’regoing to grow up not actually knowingwhatfood is,” he says –which is why“food recognition is so important”,hopefully

sparkinganinterestinwhatgoes on in thekitchen n River CottageGood Comfort by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (BloomsburyPublishing, £27)

3. OLIA HERCULES

Olia Hercules is marriedtochef andfood photographerJoe Wood house, so theirtwo-year-oldson Wilfredhas been around food from ayoung age.

“Duringthe pandemic,wewere allstuck in thehouse andmyhus band puthim into asling,” sheremembers. “Assoonashewas able to turn himaroundfacingout –becauseJoe waswriting abookaswell andtestingall therecipes–Wilfred wouldhangoff thething andwatch himchop, mixand whatever.”

To startWilfredonhis cook ingjourney,Herculeshas astool “thatyou putnexttoyou as you’re chopping,sohe’sonthe same level standing”, shesays. Sherecommendsgetting akids’ knifesothey canstart gettingstuck in too.

n Home Food by Olia Hercules (Bloomsbury Publishing,£26)

4. EDD KIMBER

EddKimbermightbebiasedbecausehe’sa bakerbytrade, buthe recommends starting with some thingfun in thekitchen

“Kidsmightnot necessarily find cookingfun at ayoung age–I think baking hasthatmorehands-onapproach kids like,”hesays.

“It’sreallyimportant,because you canhelpeducate them about food in general, whilst doingsome thingreallyfun with them.When youbakewithkids, you have to let them do thethingstheycan do, and know when to step in anddothe things they’renot goingtobeable to do

“Butalso realise baking with kids meansyou’reprobablynot goingto getthe perfect finish –and that’s okay.Halfthe funisthe process, so sticktothe simple things.”

n SmallBatch BakesbyEdd Kimber (KyleBooks,£18.99)

5. SUZIELEE

ForSuzie Lee, youdon’t need specialistequipment to get children excitedinthe kitchen. Instead,

shesays: “Startthemwithabut terknife,and offyou go”– or you couldbuy plastic serrated knives:“I bought apack of five from Amazon, andtheycosttwo pounds.”

Shecontinues:“Getthemona chairorone of thesafetystoolsyou canget,and letthemworkaway–startthemoff on mushroomsorsoft fruit, or anything likethat– and just letthemplay. That’s thewhole point–that’swhatmymum didfor us.Wewerepeeling chopping,doingfood prep forthe takeaway from ageseven,but we were alltottering around thetakeawayfrombirth.”

Lee’stop piece of advice forpar ents supervisinginthe kitchen? “Relax andchill out,”she suggests. “Ifitdoesn’tlookbeautiful,it’s fine You’re allowing themtosee,thisis what food is allabout.” That’s why herrecommendationfor kids is “bring them into thekitchen from thestart,let them chop,let them askquestions”.

Andfromthere,“Theirfood knowledgewill grow –and your food knowledge will grow”.

n Simply ChinesebySuzie Lee (HardieGrant,£20)

Superviseyour children in thekitchen while youallow them to chop andprepfood

EddKimber –‘SmallBatch Bakes’ ‘Simply Chinese’–Suzie MarLee

yBerry–‘Cook andShare’

Andi Oliver

Conjuringup abewitching brew this Halloween

This spooky season,Baileys is conjuring up theirmostbewitching treatsyet

Mixing thevelvety creaminess of Baileyswithrichchocolatey realness,Baileys hasa newrange of luxuriouslyindulgent choctails, includingthe BaileysChocolate Orange Martinicocktailand the BaileysSaltedCaramel Espresso MartiniCocktail

Thesetreatsaren’ttobemissed by chocolateloverswho want aseriouslysumptuous sip, everytime.

So,ifyou’replanningoncelebratingHalloween in stylefrom home this year,don’t fear,treat yourself in thecomfort of your own

home with ourstep-by-stepchoctail recipe

THEZESTY WITCH

(BaileysChocolate Orange Martinicocktail)

Ingredients: 50ml BaileysOriginalIrish Cream

25ml TripleSec 75ml milk (dairy or soya milk –orfor extra deliciousness use50:50 milk andcream)

ChocolateOrangeslice

Method: Addyour50mlBaileys OriginalIrish Cream, 25ml Triple Secand 75ml Milk to acocktail shaker with iceand shakeitup!

Garnishyourserve with some grated chocolatefor theultimate Halloweentreat n Releaseyourinner HalloqweenthisOctober with Baileys OriginalIrish Creamavailable at majorsupermarketsand online ABV17% RRP:70cl£15,1l£20

Deliciousonits own, over ice, in ascrumptiousBaileys Choctail,or poured over your favourite devilishlydeliciousdessert.

Delicious,seasonalrecipes shared by toprestaurateur

ANDY RICHARDSON andy.richardson@mnamedia.co.uk

Birmingham restaurateur AndreasAntona shares some more deli ciousseasonalrecipes.

DUCK BREAST CELERIAC PURÉE, BRAISEDRED CABBAGE, DUCK FAT POTATOES

Ingredients: Serves 4

DuckFat Potatoes: 1kgMaris Piperpotatoes

100g duck fat,melted

Maldon salt

CeleriacPurée:

580g celeriac (about 1celeriac), peeled androughly diced 250mlwhole milk

250mldoublecream

5g salt

BraisedRed Cabbage: 25gbutter ½red onion, thinly sliced 600g redcabbage, shredded 65gsoftbrown sugar

1cinnamon stick

65ml cidervinegar

125mlred wine

Duck Breasts: 4duckbreasts

Maldon salt

Method: ForThe Duck FatPotatoes:Preheat oven to 200˚C. Peel thepotatoesand cutintofoureven sizedpieces.

Placethe potatoes in apan and cover with cold,saltedwater.Bring to theboilover medium heat and cook forabout five to 10 minutes untiltender.

Drainoncecookedleave and shakeincolandertorufflethe edg es.Leave to standfor five minutes

Pour duck fat into roasting tin andplaceinthe oven to heat up for about five minutes

Carefullyremove theroastingtin from theoven andgentlyadd in the potatoes.Stirthe potatoes in the roasting tintoevenly coat thepotatoes

Roastfor about 30-40minutes, turningthe potatoes over twoto threetimes during theroasting process. They should be crispy and adeepgolden colour.Seasonwith Maldon salt

Forthe celeriac purée: Placethe diced celeriac,milkand double creamina panand bringtothe boil over medium heat

Reduce theheatand simmer for about 20-30minutes or untilten der.Drain theceleriac andreserve theliquid. Placethe celeriac in and blender andblenduntil smooth

If you arestrugglingtoblendthe puree, addina tablespoon of the cookingliquidatatimeuntil you canblend andcreateasmoothpuree. Thepuree should holdits shape when ateaspoonamountisplaced on aplate.Taste andseasonwith salt

ForThe braisedred cabbage: Melt thebutterinalarge panover medium heat.Add in thered onion andcookuntil soft.Mix in thecab bage,brown sugarand cinnamon stick.

Stirin thecider vinegarand the redwine. Bringtothe boil then re duce theheatand simmer with alid forabout an hour,stirringoccasionally

Addalittlewater to thepan if thecabbage is lookingdry andnot cooked.The redcabbage should be tender when done.Remove thecin namon stick.

Forthe duck breasts: Preheat oven to 180˚C. Trim duck breast

andremove the fillet andsinew Placeina cold panand bring up to theheattorenderthe fat. Drain offasmuchfastas possible as this will help to crispthe skin.The skin should be agolden-browncolour andcrispy. Turn thebreastover andsearfor about30seconds

Transfer theduckbreasts to a baking trayand placeonthe oven forabout four to five minutes or longer dependingonthe desireddegree of cooking.

Once cooked allowtorestfor about10-15 minutes

To Finish:Reheatceleriacpuree andred cabbageinseparatepans untilhot

Placeasmall bedofthe cabbage on theplate.Gentlywarmthe duck breastsinthe oven.Slice theduck breasts, season with Maldon salt andplaceontop of thecabbage Addadollopofceleriacpureeto the plate. Servewithred wine sauce androast potatoes.

Perfectsnacks forVeganuary

Bringing thebold, thecolourful andthe abundant this Veganuary is RAMONA’S,adeliciousrange of vegan-friendly products that are perfectfor sharingand designed to be eatenjoyouslyand plentifully.

If you’relooking forsomethingto bring flavourtomealtimes this Ve ganuary, then keep apot of RAMO NA’S Heavenly Houmoustohand. Aspokesman said:“Perfectfor easy lunches, as asnack with colourful veggies, or as atopping for salads,orpasta dishes, RAMONA’S Heavenly Houmouswill be your easy go-toinyourquest foraveganlifestyle andperfect forsharing with friendsand family, vegans and non-vegans alike.

“Available in four delicious fla vours:mighty Original,kicking Jalapeno,refreshingRed Pepper andtangy Beetroot.RAMONA’S Heavenly Houmousismadefrom the finest ingredientsingreat,big bountifulsizes to ensurethe fullest andtastiest flavours to make your mealtimeswithfriends andfamily as deliciousaspossible.

“For aperfect companion, choose RAMONA’SFabulousFalafel Served as part of tastingplate, with asalad or stuffedintoawrap, theseauthentic Fabulous Falafels area filling andwholesome choice

“TuckintoRAMONA’SFabulous Original Falafelavailable from Sainsburys andOcado in thefrozen andchilled sectionand Fabulous Spinach andKaleFalafel in Ocado in thefrozensection (RRP £3.25).

“RAMONA’scan help youbom bard yoursenses with delicious Mediterranean-inspired flavours that will make mealtimesbothdeliciousand memorable.”

RAMONA’SHeavenly Houmous is availablefromTesco, Sainsbury’s,Morrisons, Ocadoand Cost co,RRP £3.00for a500gtub.The rangeis veganand gluten free

Newburgers join themenu

Burger King®UKhas an nounced thelaunchofa mouth-watering, southern-style menuitem: TheMemphis Crispy ChickenBurger.

Andthe good news doesn’t stop there, as duetopopular demand,the mighty Memphis King beef burger hasalso made atriumphantreturntoBurger King®menus nationwide

Theindulgent Memphis Crispy Chickenburgerfeatures asucculent chickenbreast, sandwichedbetween crispy baconslices, melted Americancheese,three golden onion rings, creamy mayo, Burger King®’ssignature smokyBBQ sauce, andall served in atoast ed briochebun

Themuch-lovedMemphis King burger is made using iconic flame-grilled beef,three crispy onionrings,aheapof mouth-wateringbacon slices, twolayersofmeltedAmerican cheese slices,aswirl of cool mayo, adollop of tangyBBQ sauce, andall served in alightly toastedsoftsesame seed bun.

Duck Breast Celeriac Purée, BraisedRed Cabbage, Duck FatPotatoes

Helpingclimate throughthings in your basket when shopping

Hunting foroptions forthose worriedabout mortgagerates

VICKIJONES

vicki.jones@mnamedia.co.uk

Rising mortgage rates anda smallerpoolof home loanstochoose from meanshomeown erslooking to secure theirnextdealcould be in fora bill shock.

We areall awareofthe wor ryingstate of affairswhenit comestothe climatecrisisand thelossofhabitatsfor ourplanet’swildlife.

TheWWF’s latest Living Planet report revealspopulation sizesdeclinedby69% on average, between1970and 2018,driven largelybythe loss andbreak-upofnatural habitat foragriculture,while climate change is also increasingly a threat to wildlife.

So,whatcan we do as consumers to mitigatethe impact of deforestation andhelpto preventit? Wherecan we make planet-friendlyswaps?

1. Ditchanimalproducts re liantonsoy: From soymilk, to candlesand veggie alternatives, soyisusedeverywherenow

“There is an oceanofsoy be ingproducedwithhugeareas beingdeforested in ordertopro duce it.Soy hasbeenproduced to such ascale,because it’s used predominantly foranimalfeed,” says Steele.

2. Look outfor palm oillabelling: Palm oilhas become a more prevalent productpeople aretryingtoremove from their diets, butthere arewaystolook outfor ethicalpalmoil too.

“Palmoil is in things likenut butters, anditeven appearsin toiletries like shampoos and soaps,”Steelesays.

“Palm oil, likesoy,isasuper crop –it’susedinalot of things Boycotting doesn’talwayswork, so do look forcertified palm oil labels that show it is notfrom freshly-deforested land.”

3. Stop buying newgold: Due to an immense rise in theprice of gold,particularly during the pandemic,mines have been set up across theAmazon.

“Large partsofthe Amazon arebeing illegally destroyedin ordertocreategoldmines,and mercuryisusedinthe extraction process, whichoften polluteswaterways andtherefore harmslocal indigenous communities,” Steele says.

4. Only buybeefifit’sBritish: Steele says:“Oneofthe reasonsfor illegal land grabs in theAmazonisfor cattleto effectivelyberearedand sold forbeef. UK supermarketsare focusing on not importingBra zilian beef,sowecan as well.”

Octobermarkedthe weakest starttothe month formortgage productchoiceinmorethan12 years, accordingtoMoneyfacts. co.uk. Encouragingly, thechoiceof products hassincestarted to creep back up again– butwiththe added stinginthe tail that lenders’ rates have also increased.

Market volatility andastringof recent Bank of Englandbaserate hikes have been amongthe factors putting an upward pressure on mortgage costs. Averagerates for twoand five-year fixed-rate mort gage topped 6% in earlyOctober, markingthe firsttimethishas happened for14yearsand 12 years respectively,accordingtoMoney facts’ records. Whilethe ratesavail able will vary day-to-day,thiscould mean difficult choicesfor thoseon the1.8 million fixedmortgagedeals scheduledtoend next year

“The climbininterestrates will be worryingnewsfor borrowersnot only sittingona variable rate deal, butalso thosewho aresoontocome offtheir fixed-rate mortgage,” says Rachel Springall, a financeexpert at Moneyfacts

Some borrowerswho have savings putby maywanttoconsider making overpayments on their mortgage,which couldpotential ly give them access to acheaper mortgage rate ifoverpaying means they move down into alower loan to-value bracket.But individual circumstances vary –and so thepros andconsofpotentially having less moneyinsavings butmorepaidoff themortgageneed to be weighedup verycarefully

Theremay also be othersteps that homeowners cantaketoget themselves in abetterposition.

“Althoughthe mortgage market is certainlystill open forbusiness, it does mean that dealsare comingand goingfrequentlyand often with little or no notice,”saysDavid Hollingworth, associate director, communications at L&CMortgag es.“That meansborrowers don’t have theluxuryoftimetodecide on theright deal andwill have to move fast to secure arate.

“Using an advisercould help,as they will hopefullybeabletohelp borrowerszoneinonthe rightdeal as well as assist in making theapplication,”he adds.“Once thefull applicationissubmitted,the rate should be secured, butitwill make sense to provideall therequested back-updocuments as soonaspos sibletohelpthe processing time

“Withborrowers eagerto fixtheir rate to give some security,lenders will be beinghit with aspike in business andthatisbound to have an impact on processing times. Whilst borrowersneed to move quickly, it’s still importanttoshop around andtheyshouldn’t panicor make knee-jerkreactions.”

Borrowersmay be able to widen choice of dealsavailable to them by speaking to theirexistinglender. KatieBrain,consumerbanking ex pert at star ratingsbusiness Defaq to,says: “Itcould be worth goingdirect to yourexistinglender or bank you alreadyhaveaccountswith, as many of thebestbuysare only availabledirectlythrough thelender.Otherwise,itisworth goingtoa broker,who cansearchthe market

foryou,but it maybetrickygetting access to oneat themoment dueto sheerdemand. Getyourpaperwork in order,soyou canapply forthe mortgage quickly,”she suggests Anotherdilemma maybewhether to fixintoamortgageratein order to have certainty, or to sitonavar iabledeal. “The decision forthose with a fixedratecomingtoanend now, whetherto fiximmediately or move onto avariableratefor awhile to seewhere themarket settles,is adifficult onetomake,”saysPaul Broadhead, head of mortgage and housing policy at theBuildingSocietiesAssociation (BSA). “The best betisfor borrowersinthisposition to reachout to theirbrokerand/or currentlendertodiscussall theoptionsavailable.”

Putthe kettle on andthink aboutthreatofscams

Putting people underpressureisa common tactic used by scammers, to trickpeopleintodoing some thingwithout really thinking it through

When people areina stateof high stress,theymay only real ise afterthey’ve transferred their cash or handed over theirpersonal details, that they have probably justbeenconned. Scams canbeso convincingthatone in five (21%) people feel resignedtobeing likely to fall victim to afraudster pretendingtobesomeoneelse, accord ingtoresearchfromSantander

So,pausing fora moment to take stockofthe situation– andtore-

move yourself from that sense of urgencyand pressurethey’re putting on you –can breakthe spell woven by ascammer

This is exactlywhatthe Take Five to Stop Fraudcampaignis encouragingpeopletodo–and in some cases, it couldsimplymean stopping to make acup of tea

Morethantwo fifths (44%)of thosesurveyedfor Santander agreed that stoppingfor acup of teais thebestway to addclarity to asituation, andfor more than a third(35%),stoppingfor acuppa hashelpedthemtoavoid making a gravemistake

Psychologist Dr MegArrollsays

doing some deep breathingcan also help calm asituationdown.

“Begin by breathingdeeply throughyournose, hold foramoment andthenbreathe slowly out throughyourmouth,” shesug gests. “Ifyou find yourself in a stressfulsituation,for example beingconfronted by somethingor someone suspicious, this canslow yourheart rate down andprovide asense of calm.”

Stopping to jotthingsdownwith apen andpaper,orgetting theper spective of familymembers can also bringclarity to asituation, shesays. “Whenin doubt, putthe kettleon!”saysArroll.

Manyfamilies will be worrying about mortgage rates

Paul Broadheadhas advice

KatieBrainfromDefaqto

Do othercountries follow trickortreat traditions?

As Halloweenapproaches, experts have looked into how differentnationsacrossthe world celebratethe annual festival

Theteamat Busuuhaveresearched what October31stmeans forother countriesand cultures to seeifthey’ve embracedthe Ameri cantradition.

How Halloweeniscelebrated around theworld:

Mexico: Mexico is very bigon Halloweenand allofthe traditions areembraced –the pumpkins, the spooky decorations, thedressing up The only thing that isn’t a big thingistrick or treating– this is becauseofkidnappingfears.Chil

dren living in saferneighbour hoodsmay be knocking door to door,but generallyit’snot safe for children to be roamingthe streets.

Spain: Protective over theirtraditions, Spaintends nottocelebrate Halloween,and sees it as an Amer ican tradition.Youngstersmay go to Halloweenpartieshosted by clubsand school kids in biggercit iesmay go trickortreating, but the eventisn’t widely celebrated by all.

Poland: Halloweenisn’t abig cel ebration in Poland.All Saints’Day is andfamilies will go to thecemetery together,where it’s knownto become very busy andpacked. Ex

pertsactuallysay that it’s as busy as rush hour on theLondontubes!

Germany: Like theUK, Germany seemstohaveadapted moretothe idea of Halloweeninrecentyears andit’smainlyyoungsterswho are likelytocelebrate it.The Hallow eenvibes aredefinitely metwith spooky decor, pumpkins andfancy dress. Kids also do allofthe tradi tional Halloween activities

China: Halloweenhas definitely growninChina because of popular cultureand socialmedia. It’s used alot moreincommercialsettings by shopsand bars,ortocome to Halloweenevents.

Have afrightfullygoodtime stylinghomefor Halloween

HEATHERLARGE

heather.large@mnamedia.co.uk

Homeowners who are lookingtoset theirspaces up aheadofHalloweencan create brilliantly eerie-themed homes whethertheywantto go extremeordecorate subtly on abig or small budget.

Halloweendecorations will differ foreveryonedepending on how they areplanningtocelebrate this year andthere areplentyofdifferent de corideas to choose from

Tips includecreatingaHalloweentreat table, usingchicorex travagant decorationsall around thehouse andgarden andtaking part in pumpkincarving traditions

Creative

NicShacklock,fromOnline-bed rooms.co.uk, said:“Halloweenis agreat time to getcreative with themed decoraroundyourhouse andkidscan getstuck in andhelp make some of theirown decora tions.

“Lotsofparty-goersare looking forwardtodressingupcome Octo ber31, andlittleoneswill be filled with sugarand excited about trickor-treating. Formanyofus, this time of year is allabout over-the topdecorations in yourhome and garden,and thereare Halloween designsand ornamentsfor alldif ferent budgets.

“And forthose less interested in thespooky season,there areplenty of chic home decoroptions to subtly bringHalloween into yourhome: you don’thavetogo extravagant with fake graveyards andlife-size zombies, insteadchooseattractive ceramicpumpkinsand Halloween string lights

“However you choose to celebrate Halloweenthisyear, whetheryou want to host alavishpartyorare lookingfor ways to styleyourhome in achicway,there arelotsofdiffer-

entideas on how to setupaHalloweentheme you canbehouse proud of.”

Thebestwaystodress up homes forHalloween:

HALLOWEEN THEMEDTREAT TABLE

Forthose hostingaHalloween party this year,atable stackedfull of delicioussnacksisessential for guests.

Thereare loadsofgoodies that canbeturnedintoaHalloween theme–try making cupcakes with scaryfaces iced onto them or choose from pickand mixsweets, caramel apples,monster cookiesand chocolate pumpkins.

PUMPKINCARVING

Carvingout root vegetables is an iconic Halloweentraditionacross theworld,withpumpkinsbeing the most popular–other countriesopt forturnips, swedes,ororanges

Thereare lots of differentdesigns forvarious skill levels andtrying somethinga bit more difficult than theclassic trianglenoseand round eyes wouldbefun forall ages.Also trydifferent decorative ideassuch as painting thepumpkinsinstead of carving.

SPOOKY DECORATIONS

It is easy to create fabulously-creepy haunted houses this Halloween,

with loadsofdecorations perfect forthe spooky season.Hanging up ghosts andbatswithfakecob webs andorange-and-black candles will adda scarytheme throughout homes. Go allout with awow factorfor Halloweenbyaddingeerie soundeffects andfog machines to really impressguests.

CREATE A‘CHIC’HALLOWEEN HOME

Optfor attractivealternativesto stay with thecreepytheme this year,whilst stillkeeping thehouse lookingstylish.There arelotsofchic decoration options, such as smart centerpieces,wooden Halloween decor, subtle pumpkinstringlights andblackcandles.Minisculedecor pieces also look chic in homes, such as ceramicpumpkins.

GETTHE TRICK-OR-TREAT SNACKS READY

Oneofthe most importanttraditionsfor many children is dressing up in scarycostumesand going trick-or-treating. Be prepared for anynight-timedoorknockersby getting abowlfull of yummyHal loween-themedsweetsand chocolatesready to hand out.

THEMED HOUSEWARE

Deckout thehome with abunch of creepy lookinghouseware there’ssomething foreveryroom. Pick outHalloween themed glasses,mugs, plates,tea towels, bath mats,pillows, andbedding to have thespooky seasonal vibe running throughout theentirehouse

DON’TFORGET THEGARDEN

Thegarden is agreat space to decorateatthistimeofyearand adds an extra bitofHalloween pizazz when settinguphomesahead of thespooky season.Gosubtleby simply stringingupHalloween outdoor lights acrossthe garden,orgo allout by settingupa fake grave yard complete with ghostand ghoul props

n Formoreinterior tips, see www.online-bedrooms.co.uk/

Autumn canbe theperfect time to celebrate the greatoutdoors

Autumn is the perfecttimetoenjoy foraging in thewoodlands andfor ests –roaming around in thecrisp autumn air, thesense of achievement of filling abag with natural goodies andtakingthemhome to make adeliciouspie or jamare all part of thefun

Andwhatbetterway to spend time with lovedonesthanwildfor agingfollowedbyfeastingonthe fruits of yourlabour?

Catharina Björkman,lifestyle ex pert at Contura, offers herguide to mindfulautumn foraging

Foraging perks: Beinginthe greatoutdoorsunquestionablyhas benefits forbothmindand body As theweather coolsitiseasytogo from one indoor space to another with only minimal time spentout side.Havinga reason to be in the freshair is thereforeagreat wayto ensure you aresoaking up allthe goodnessnaturehas to offer.

Location,location, location: Differentareas of theUKhave differentlawsaroundforaging. In Englandand Wales, foraging on privatelyowned land requires permission from theowner,unless there’sasignsayingit’sallowed.In Scotland thereisa‘RighttoRoam’ whichallowsfor foraging in private land.Sense should be usedhowever Obviouslyawoodland mightbeOK to forage in butyou should probably avoidsomeone’s back garden!

Fruits of theforest: Depending on wherein theUK you areforag ing, differentberries andnutswill be more readilyavailable.Blackber ries grow in many woodlandsacross theUKsoare perfectfor collecting –justmakesuretheyare adark purple when pickedotherwise they arenot yetripeenoughfor eating Otherwidelyfound berriesare elderberries,hawthornberries and rowanberries.Whenpicking ber ries it is importanttoknow which varietiescan be tasted rawversus whichneedtobecooked first. Haw thornberries,for example, contain atoxic acid when rawbut once cooked areperfectly safe

Nuts arealsoa greatoptionfor foraging,and identifyingthe different species whilst outwalking,is oddlysatisfying!

Bake off: Foraging is agreat activityinand of itself,but arealhigh lightisbringingall your findshome andcooking up afeast!Foraged fruits have thebenefitoflargely growingwithout addedpesticides, soneed less washingtoremove any waxesorchemicals.Aquick rinse in thesinkshouldbeenoughtoprep theberries forawhole rangeof homemade treats.

Making jamisagreat option for foraged berriesasitactstopre servethem, meaningyou canmake enough to storeunopenedjarsina cool,dry placefor up to 12 months. Make blackberry, raspberryand el derberry jams or combinetomakea preserve of yourown invention fora fruity flavourthatwill perk up the colder days ahead.

n Formoreinformation,visit contura.eu

Trickortreating at Halloween

Enjoyisland’s superb vistas on ahiking trip

HeadingtoMajorca during the autumn monthsisperfect for travellersseeking to avoid the peak-summercrowdsand truly enjoythe island’s incredible natural landscapes

Majorcaisaparadisefor ad venturers duetothe varietyof exciting hikingtrailsthatlead walkersthrough themountain rangeofSerra de Tramuntana (a UNESCO WorldHeritage site)and theisland’spleasant year-round climate. Holidu has dugintothe AllTrailsdataof more than 600reviewedhikes in collaboration with Spain-Hol iday to discover thebest-rated hikingroutesinMajorca.Ready to plan yourdream Majorcaadventure?

Es Pujadors –Colldena Benet– BonAire

The hiking trailisabout five kilometreslongand is located near Alcúdiainthe north of Majorca. Theroute has amedium level of difficultyand canbe completedinabout twohours Thepanoramic path is alittle uneven in partsbut offers afan tastic view of thesurrounding mountainsand thesea.

La TrapaRuinLoop

The7.6km circular walk alongthe ruinsof“La Trapa” near Port d’Andratxisclassified as moderate andtakes just un derthree hoursonaveragea The routeisparticularlyenjoyable for(amateur) ornithologists, as you canobserve many different species of birds. T

Valldemossa–Puigde Teix –PuigGros

Oneofthe more difficult routesonthisroughly 13-km trail leadingfromValldemossa to Puig de Teix is apopular hikingchoice. This is afairlychallengingtrail that should take about five hourstocomplete. Du

Ruta de PedraenSec VariantalPuigdeMaria

NexRutadePiedraenSec GR221, or DryStone Trail, whis alongthe west coastthrough theSerra de Tramuntana mountain rangeand is aUNE SCOWorld Heritage Site.This five kilometre trail, whichtakes abouttwo hourstocomplete, is considered an easy routethat even beginnerscan handle.Thi Ermita la Victoria–Pen ya desMigdia–Talaiad’Alcudia

Fina routetakes you around theeastofthe northerntownof Alcudia.It takesapproximately threehours and50minutes to complete

Make Wish come true with afairytale adventureatsea

BY DAMON SMITH PressAssociation

In Disney’s 1950 animation Cinderella, the optimistic heroineserenades apairofbluebirds with ADream Is AWish Your HeartMakes.

Eleven yearsafterthe Disney Dreamembarkedonher maiden voyage, my heartisfull as Ipose adoringlybesidealife-size bronze statue of thesoot-to-richesprincess on theDisneyWish.

Enchantmentisthe themeofDis neyCruiseLine’simpressive fifth ship andmagical touchesbegin with mischievousmiceJaq andGus peeking outfrombeneath Cinder ella’s sculpted ballgown,catching theattention of aslinking Lucifer thecat with abowlclasped between hisclaws. Feline fury is unleashed at thefootofa sweeping staircase, next to acloche-encasedglass slip perinthe main atrium on deck three, whichhas been redesigned as aGrand Hall

Hidden

During theday,the hall’s stage hoststhe playful Who’sBehindThe Curtain? game show,withappearancesfromhiddencharacters.

At night,achandelier-lighting ceremony dubbedthe Kiss Good nightreveals ribbonsoflightsembeddedin theornatearchitecture andchimesthatsignalthe endof Cinderella’s danced’amour

Poweredbyliquefied natural gas, theWishisa resplendent144,000 grosston behemothstretching 1,119feet, whichboasts 1,254state roomswithcustom-made fairy-tale artworkand capacity for4,000 passengers

Forits inaugural season,the ship sailsexclusively from Port Canaveral in Floridaonthree andfournightcruises to Nassau,capital of theBahamas,and Disney’s private island Castaway Cay. Thebow de pictsCaptain Minnie Mousewho joinssweetheartMickey, Captain Hook andCaptain Jack Sparrowat

theship’shelm. Continuing thevis ibility of strong female role models, Rapunzel is the firstDisneyprin cess immortalisedasa signature sternsculpture

Uniquely,the ship’s frontred funnel housesa1,966-square-foot Wish TowerSuite that sleeps eight. Twostoreys of opulence deliverunrivalled oceanviews through floorto-ceiling windowswitha pricetag comfortablyinexcessof£15,000 Disney Cruise Line oftendedi catesone nighttonautical-themed entertainmentand thePirates Rockin’ParlayParty on theWish delivers“theboldest beatsand swingingestsea shanties”inthe companyofswashbuckling four piece TheScallywagsand lead sing er CaptainRed StandportsideonDeck12for thebestviewofbiodegradable fire works choreographedtoaliverendition of thePirates Of TheCarib bean soundtrack,unobstructed by

theAquaMouse watercoaster

The firstattractiononaDisney cruise ship snakes around theWish from an entrance on deck 13 and enlivensthe thrillsofAquaDuck on theDream andFantasy with a controlled log-flume-styleascent embellished with videoscreens and water jets.It’sgiddy fun(you will be soaked)as two-personinflatable raftsare propelledthrough 760feet of enclosedwinding tubes. Ages three-12 access theOceaneerClub on deck twovia aslide from the GrandHall.

TheWish’sdedicated children’s areasare topofthe classfor immer sive storytelling anddesign.

Youngrecruitsencounter Spider-Manand BlackPanther in the Marvel SuperHeroAcademy while Star Wars:Cargo Bayis filled with otherworldly creatures,including an audioanimatronicPorg.

Threesignature dining experi ences, included in theprice of the

cruise,are immaculatelythemed.

Accessed on both sidesofthe GrandHall, 1923 (named afterthe year Walt andbrother RoyODis neyfounded theircompany)adorns wallswithmemorabilia, animation cellsand props.

Arichcolourpalette of gold, greenand chocolatebrown evokes bygone Hollywood glamour. Spiced Ahituna with wasabi andyuzu mayonnaise followed by arackof lamb encrustedwithItalian flat parsleyand rosemaryiscomfortablymyfavourite meal of thevoyage.

In starkcontrast,WorldsOfMar velondeckfoursears retinaswith pulsatingneonand videoscreens fora filmed lectureentitledMira cles From MoleculesfeaturingPaul Rudd andEvangelineLillyasScott Land andHopevan Dyne, akaAnt Manand theWasp. Thescriptis hilarious,creatingthe illusion of interactivitywithminiature quan tum coresoneachtable

Meeting BlackPanther at MarvelSuper Hero Academy

The1923 dining experience aboardthe Disney Wish

Disney Wish at Port Canaveral with Captain Minnie andMickey

Majorca is popularfor hiking

Facing up to thepumpkin alternatives for Halloween

Turn to timeless, trendy tiles to make decorative statement

SAMWYLIE-HARRIS PressAssociation

Tilesare timeless,and ago-to choice when you’re lookingtoinvest inanew backsplash,or kitchenand bathroom flooring.Especiallyif you’re feelingcreative.

They providevisualimpact, are pleasanttothe touch, andcan make afeatureout of aforgotten or over looked space.Fromtexturedsur facestorippled finishes and fluted designs, here’s what’s trendingin theworld of tiles…

Natureinspired “Natureprovidesthe perfect placetodrawinteriorsinspiration from,thanks to itsrestorativeproperties,” says HarrietGoodacre of ToppsTiles

Shesaysthe nature trend is all about findingjoy in thenatural en vironment, usingits textures and colour palettetoconnect with the outsideworld,and enhanceyour space andwellbeing

“Thismeans using tiles in muted, soft shades such as ashgrey, earthy brownand sage greentoground you andevoke feelings of theworld outside,”suggests Goodacre.“Pair with hintsoftealorbabypinkto enliven thesenses, whilst conjuring up images of warm sunsets

“Texturedsurfaces, such as natural stone, terrazzo andwood effect tilesare perfectfor this.Creating depthand texturein away that feelsauthentic to this style.”

CoastalContentment

“You don’tneed to be living be side theseaside to benefitfromthis interiorsstyle,” notes Goodacre “By usinga sophisticatedand mut ed colour palette, alookinspiredby theBritish coastlinecan be updated with an autumnal feel.”

If you’renot surewhere to start, shesaystocomplement cool tones, such as powderblue, with coppery pink,vibrant inky bluesand

muskyolive-green tiles. “Build on thelookbychoosingtexturedtiles, andsurfacesthatare weatheredor aged with anatural patina.Local ly-sourced rustic or artisan objects will addfurther personality to your space.”

Sheadds: “Yourchoicein the shapeoftilecan also addapoint of interest to your interior.For ex ample, usinga scallopedshape tile givesasubtlenod to thesea and createsafocal point, whereasa lightly fluted tile evokes thelookof calmingrolling waves.”

Fluted andlayered “Flutedinteriorsare goingtobe oneofthe biggest trendsof2023, andasautumn getsunder way, we’regoing to starttosee more homeowners playingaroundwith this distinctive finish,” says Abbas Youssefi of PorcelainSuperstore.

Influenced by theArt Decomove ment,Youssefi says fluted tileswill not only adda really interesting texturetowalls, buttheyalso play with naturallight beautifully–adding anew dimensiontointerior schemes.

When you’vemadeyourcolour choice,it’salso worth thinking about how you want to laythe tiles to enhancetheir appearance;sim ilar to fitting them together likea jigsaw puzzle,tocreatedifferent illusions

Patterned, classical mosaic

“Patterned,classicalmosaictil ingfor both floorand wall applica tionsare on trend rightnow,due to theirability to createabeautiful focalpoint,” says ChrisKettell of BenchmarxKitchensand Joinery “Available in avariety of patterns andcolours,these designsare a

greatway to introduce eye-catch ingcolourthemesinatastefulyet statementform.”

If youlovethe mosaic-style tile andwanttocreatea real statement,hesuggests incorporatingit acrossbothyour floorspace andas asplashbackfeature.Kettell adds: “Whenchoosing on-trend,bold kitchencabinetry,I’d recommend pairingitwitha more neutraltile that complementsthe lead colour.”

Similarly, if you have asmaller kitchen, opting fora neutralpat terned tile cancreatea bold feature.

Cost cutting

With thecostoflivingcrisis, Youssefi suggestsDIY decisionsfor homeowners will be heavilyswayed by theprice of everything.“Iexpect an increase in demandfor floortiles whichare compatible with underfloorheatingmats,”saysYoussefi

If yourefforts to grow aHal loween pumpkin havebeena nightmarebecause of thesum merdrought,fearnot.There areother fruitand vegyou may have harvested whichcan add magictoyourscary display…

Turnips

Accordingtothe charityEng lish Heritage,peopleacrossthe BritishIsles once carved scary facesintoturnips andplaced them near doorways to fright en away evil spirits. Thecus tomoriginated from afolktale about aman namedJackwho, aftertryingtotrick thedevil, wascursedtoroamthe earth with aburning coal inside a hollowed-out turnip to lightthe way– theoriginalJack-o’-lan tern.

Swedes

Oftenmashedwithcarrot or potato as awinter warmer, swedes canalso be carved into sinister facesfor Halloween. They areeasytogrow, if you sowthemin late Mayorearly June in an open spot in full sun.

Butternut squash

They’refromthe same family as thepumpkin,and if you’ve grownacropwhich hasmaturedwellit’sprettyeasytocut thelid off, scoopout the flesh andcarve them into Jack-o’-lanterns.

Onions

They mayseemlikeavery poorsubstitutefor mumpkins, butifyou have plenty spareo–most types canbestoredtouse from September to February –taveagoat decoratingthem with ghostlyfaces andadd them to your indoor Hecorations. Once Halloween is over,you can peel offthe facesand use them in cooking.

Apples

If yourtrees areheaving with apples or have enough stored in acoolshedtokeepyou goingall winter,you coulduse some of thecroptomaketasty treatsfor thekidsindoors.Createspooky teethusing slices of apple–the children will love it.

Potatoes

Thehumblespudmay not look sinister enough fora carved face,but once cooked it cantake on acreepyair.Carveeyesand mouthsintoa selectionofjacket potatoes andput them in the ovenfor an hour,they’ll come outwithscary shrunken heads,

MO GILLIGAN& FRIENDS: THE BLACK BRITISH TAKEOVER

Channel 4, 11.05pm

Some people first became aware of Mo Gilligan when he became apanellist on The Masked Singer, while others already knew him from his Channel 4 Lateish Show or as the sidekick to Big Narstie.

If they were really quick off the mark, they could even claim to have been fans of his viral comedy videos, which blew up on social media. However, Gilligan believes his real big break came on the Black British comedy circuit.

It helped to launch his incredible career,which has so far taken him from cult Channel 4shows to primetime Saturday ITV,picking up Bafta wins and an acclaimed Netflix special along the way.There have also been rumours that he’s hoping to conquer the US, and given his remarkable success so far,few people would bet against it.

Fornow though, he’s going back to his stand-up circuit roots with Mo Gilligan &Friends: The Black British Takeover.Filmed at the O2 Arena, it features sets from Eddie Kadi, Ola Labib, Slim, Thanyia Moore and Babatúndé Aléshé, as well as Gilligan himself, with music from the Compozers.

The fact that it was shot in December 2021might give the show acertain festive feel –executive producer Ben Wicks has said the show was partly born inspired by Mo’s dream of hosting his own seasonal special, and has described it as “the best Christmas party ever held”.

So, it may seem slightly odd that it’s airing closer to Halloween, but The Black British Takeover doesn’t need tinsel and sleigh bells to feel like acelebration, and Gilligan is certainly excited to share it with viewers.

He says: “I’m so proud of the Black British comedy circuit that Istarted on. The scene and its exceptional talent have nurtured and supported me since the very start of my career.I am thrilled to share our culture and

bring together some of the best comedy talent on offer in this country right now.”

The comedian has an impressive track record when it comes to giving talent achance, both in front of and behind the camera. Last year, he launched The Lateish Accelerator Programme, creating production roles on the second series of his Lateish Show to boost the careers of talented individuals from underrepresented groups.

Speaking about the project, Gilligan said: “A lot of young people often say Ican do things online and carry on like that, but TV gets you to an audience that you wouldn’t necessarily get from just broadcasting online.

“With the Accelerator Programme, we were able to offer not only great opportunities in front of the camera but also behind it. It’s still early days but if we can give people these key opportunities and Ican help do that in some small way -Iwill absolutely do my best.”

So, this could be the chance for some viewers to discover performers they were previously unfamiliar with. Along with the jokes –and there are plenty –the special also features backstage footage and conversations with the cast, as they discuss the significance of this event.

6.00 Breakfast (S). 9.15 Morning Live (S). 10.00 Critical Incident (S). 10.45 Paramedics On Scene (S). 11.15 Homes Under The Hammer (R) (S). 12.15 Bargain Hunt (S). 1.00 BBC News At One; Weather (S). 1.30 BBC Regional News; Weather (S). 1.45 Doctors (S). 2.15 Money ForNothing (S). 3.00 IEscaped To The Country (S). 3.45 The Repair Shop (S). 4.30 The Tournament (S). 5.15 Pointless (S).

6.00 Take AHike (R) (S). 6.30 IEscaped To The Country (R) (S). 7.15 Money ForNothing (R) (S). 8.00 Sign Zone: The Repair Shop (R) (S). 9.00 BBC News (S). 10.00 BBC News (S).

12.15 Politics UK (S). 1.00 Best House In Town (R) (S). 1.45 Attenborough’s Wonder Of Eggs (R) (S). 2.45 Eggheads (R) (S). 3.15 Lightning (R) (S). 3.45 Murder,MysteryAnd My Family (R) (S). 4.30 Gardening Together With Diarmuid Gavin (R) (S). 5.00 Flog It! (R) (S).

6.00 Good Morning Britain (S). 9.00 Lorraine (S). 10.00 This Morning (S). 12.30 Loose Women (S). 1.30 ITV News; Weather (S). 1.55 ITV Regional News; Weather (S). 2.00 Dickinson’s Real Deal (S). 3.00 Riddiculous (S). 3.59 ITV Regional Weather (S). 4.00 Tipping Point (S). 5.00 The Chase (S).

We Are England Regional current affairs reports (S).

Question Of Sport A World Cup special of the quiz (S).

Ghosts (S).

9.00 Have IGot News For You (S).

Am IBeing Unreasonable? (S).

6.00 Richard Osman’s House Of Games (S).

6.30 Strictly: It Takes Two Rylan is on hand with more Strictly exclusives (S).

7.00 Celebrity Antiques Road Trip Famous faces embark on the cross-countrytreasurehunting challenge (S).

8.00 Autumnwatch The team reportlive on another spectacular autumn. Last in the series (S).

6.00 ITV Regional News; Weather (S).

6.30 ITV News; Weather (S).

7.30 Emmerdale Kerry desperately tries to get Chloe to stay (S).

8.00 Coronation Street Fiz learns that John Stape is the subject of an upcoming book (S).

9.00 Gardeners’ World Monty Don reflects on the gardening year.Last in the series (S).

10.00 BBC News At Ten (S).

BBC Regional News; Weather (S).

The Graham Norton Show (S).

11.30 RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Strictly stars Tess Daly and AJ Odudu play the iconic Snatch Game (R) (S).

Blankety Blank (R) (S).

BBC News (S).

10.00 Mock The Week Highlights of the topical comedy series (S). 10.30 Newsnight (S).

9.00 Professor T The CID team blunder into a Drugs Squad operation against amajor trafficker.Last in the series (S).

10.00 ITV News At Ten; Weather (S). 10.30 ITV Regional News; Weather (S). 10.45 The NFL Show (S).

11.05 MOTDx Football discussion presented by Jermaine Jenas (R) (S).

11.35 Frankie Boyle’s New World Order (R) (S).

11.45 The Motorbike Show HenryCole rides through the Peak District (R) (S).

THE EVIL DEAD (BBC3, 9.30pm)

Although afew more squeamish viewers once branded it a‘video nasty’ in Britain,Sam Raimi’s classic horror film remains hugely influential as well as atestament to how far an inventive director can stretch asmall budget. It also helped to make a cult hero of Bruce Campbell (pictured), who plays one of five students staying in aremote cabin. They stumble upon an ancient book which unleashes evil spirits that starttoturnthe holidaymakers into zombies determined to feast on the living.

AMERICAN PSYCHO (Film4, 11.05pm)

Christian Bale is on terrific, deadpan formas Patrick Bateman, a financier in 1980s New York, who is determined to project the right image.

Airport(R) (S).

(S).

From

12.05 Sign Zone: Martin Compston’s Scottish Fling (R) (S). 12.35 Sign Zone: Road Rage: Cars vs Bikes –Panorama (R) (S). 1.05 Sign Zone: Doctor Who (R) (S). 2.35 Sign Zone:

12.35 Shop: Ideal World 3.00 Dickinson’s Real Deal (R) (S). 3.50 Unwind With ITV (S). 5.05 Grand Slam Years: Ireland 2018 (R) (S).

However,behind hissmooth, successful surface he’s committing horrificacts of torture and murder Willem Dafoe, Reese Witherspoon, Jared Leto, Chloe Sevigny,Josh Lucas, Samantha Mathis and Justin Theroux are among the supporting cast, but this is Bale’s film all the way

Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 6.35 Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 7.00 Supermarket Sweep (S). 8.00 Secret Crush (S). 9.00 Secret Crush (S). 10.00 Dress To Impress (S). 11.00 Dress To Impress (S). 12.00 Supermarket Sweep (S). 1.00 Family Fortunes (S). 2.00 Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow (S). 3.05 One Tree Hill (S). 4.00 One Tree Hill (S). 5.00 HartOfDixie (S).

6.00 Classic Coronation Street (S). 6.35 Classic Coronation Street (S). 7.00 Classic Emmerdale (S). 7.30 Classic Emmerdale (S). 8.05 Bless This House (S). 8.40 Bless This House (S). 9.10 Upstairs, Downstairs (S). 10.25 Upstairs, Downstairs (S). 11.30 Heartbeat (S). 12.35 Heartbeat (S). 1.40

Classic Emmerdale (S). 2.15

Classic Emmerdale (S). 2.50

Classic Coronation Street (S). 3.25 Classic Coronation Street (S). 3.55 Midsomer Murders (S).

8.55 Kirstie’s Handmade Treasures (S). 9.15 APlace In The Sun (S). 10.05 APlace In The Sun (S). 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 12.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 1.10 Heir Hunters (S). 2.10 Four In ABed (S). 2.40 Four In ABed (S). 3.15 Four In A Bed (S). 3.50 Four In ABed (S). 4.20 Four In ABed (S). 4.50 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 5.55 Car S.O.S (S).

Escape To The Chateau:

chateau (S).

Carty

Grand Designs Kevin McCloud

the Sampsons in France

Martin

Martin

Winton

9.00 Astrid: Murder In Paris

one of two. A renowned

in the middle of atrial. In French (S).

10.05 Astrid: Murder In Paris

two of two. Astrid

11.15

Karlishian’s

In French

CHARLES: OUR NEW KING

Channel 4, 8.00pm

When Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died in September after a70-year reign, it was truly the end of an era –most of her subjects couldn’t remember aworld without her.So, it’s no wonder some of us feel like we are still getting used to the idea of having aking, but this new two-part documentary may help as it asks what sort of monarch Charles III will be.

Of course, while he may be new to thetop job, it’s not like Charles isn’t afamiliar figure to the public –heisafter all the longest-serving Prince of Wales in British history and the oldest monarch to ever accede to the British throne.

The programme will draw on rare royal archive footage and revealing interviews from some of the people who know him best as it looks back over the key moments in his life and offers afresh insight into his personality

It’s astory that begins in 1948, when Charles was born to the then-Princess Elizabeth. Although he was always destined to be king, he became the first in line slightly quicker than might have been expected –hewas just three whenhis grandfather, George VI, died and his mother became queen.

Perhaps due to the demands of her new role, it has been claimed that theQueen was asomewhat absent mother,while Prince Philip seems to have taken atough-loveapproach to fatherhood, especially when it came to his sensitive eldest son.

The documentary looks at how these formative years would shape Charles. It findsthat despite the personal difficulties he may havefaced during his childhood, he grew up to be charitable, with apassion for causes that may not always have seemed fashionable at time but now appear rather forward thinking.

Despite that, Charles’ relationships with the public and the press have not always been easy

In 1981, following much speculation about when the 32-year-old Prince would marry,hetied the knot with Lady Diana Spencer

Here it’s argued that it was his sense of duty that led him to marry her,and his choice of bride certainly met with the public’s approval –the new Princess of Wales quickly became an international sensation.

Sadly,their relationship broke down and the subsequent stories about his affair with Camilla Parker-Bowles (now the Queen Consort) dented his popularity.Inthe wake of Diana’s death in 1997, some punditseven feared for the monarchy’s future.

This documentary asks whether thenew King has truly managed to put the past behind him, or whether the past scandals will prove an obstacle when it comes to commanding thesame affection and respect as his mother

It also explores how living in aharsh media spotlight will influence his approach to his reign.

If you still have questions and can’t wait for the second instalment, ITV has its own documentary, also entitled Charles: Our New King, on Wednesday November 02.

6.00 Breakfast (S). 10.00 Saturday Kitchen Live (S). 11.30 Strawbridge Over The Drawbridge (R) (S). 12.00 Football Focus (S). 1.00 BBC News; Weather (S). 1.15 Bargain Hunt (R) (S). 1.45 Live Men’s Rugby League World Cup England vs Greece. Kick-off is at 2.30pm (S). 4.30 Final Score (S). 5.30 BBC News (S). 5.40 BBC Regional News; Weather (S). 5.50 Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel (S).

7.25 Shaun The Sheep (R) (S). 7.35 Dennis &Gnasher Unleashed! (R) (S). 7.50 Ninja Express (R) (S). 8.00 The Deep (R) (S). 8.25 Odd Squad (R) (S). 8.35 One Zoo Three (R) (S). 9.00 Newsround (S). 9.05 Nova Jones (R) (S). 9.30 Blue Peter (R) (S).

10.00 Britain’s Secret Seas (R) (S). 11.00 Trawlermen: Hunting The Catch (R) (S). 12.00 TopOf The Shop With TomKerridge (R)(S). 1.00 Nigel Slater’s Dish Of The Day (R) (S). 1.15 Saving Lives At Sea (R) (S). 2.15 Gene Kelly: Talking Pictures (R) (S). 2.50 FILM: Singin’ In The Rain (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly 1952) (S). 4.30 Live Men’s Rugby League World Cup (S).

6.00 CITV 7.15 Live Women’s World Cup Rugby Union The second quarter final. Kick-off is at 7.30am (S). 10.00 James Martin’s Saturday Morning (S). 12.15 James Martin’s Great British Adventure (R) (S). 12.45 ITV News; Weather (S). 1.00 ITV Racing: Live From Wetherby Coverage from Wetherby and Ascot (S). 4.00 Tipping Point: Best Ever Finals (R) (S). 4.30 Family Fortunes (R) (S). 5.25 Ninja Warrior UK: Race For Glory (S).

6.50 Strictly Come Dancing

Daly and Claudia Winkleman present a Halloween special (S).

6.30 ITV News; Weather (S). 6.45 ITV Regional News; Weather (S).

7.00 How The BBC Began Part two of two. More tales from the first 50 years of the BBC (S).

8.35 Blankety Blank With Stacey Dooley,Dion Dublin, Ed Gamble, Josh Widdicombe, Trisha Goddard and Chunkz (S).

9.10 ICan See Your Voice With guest panellist Becky Hill (S).

8.35 Ed Sheeran At The BBC Acollection of performances from the archives (S).

7.00 The Chase Celebrity Special With Chizzy Akudolu, Andrew Pierce, Sonja McLaughlan and Jack Carroll (S).

8.00 The Voice UK Final Emma Willis presents the climax of the singing contest. Last in the series (S).

9.35 Later With Jools Holland With Simple Minds, Wu-Lu, Flo and Christine and the Queens Presents Redcar (S).

10.10 BBC News; Weather (S).

10.30 Match Of The Day Highlights of the latest matches (S).

9.50 The Jonathan Ross Show With TomDaley, RobBeckett Lena Dunham and Georgina Campbell (S).

10.25 Ed Sheeran At Glastonbury2017 The singer-songwriter’s performance on the Pyramid Stage (R) (S).

11.55 FILM: The Exorcist (1973) Supernatural horror,starring Linda Blair (S).

10.45 ITV News; Weather (S).

12.00 FILM: David Brent: Life On The Road (Ricky Gervais 2016) Comedy,starring Ricky Gervais (S). 1.40 BBC News (S).

1.55 FILM: The Curse Of The Cat People (Gunther VonFritsch, RobertWise 1944) Fantasy sequel, starring Ann Carter (S). 2.45 (GMT) This Is BBC Two (S).

11.05 English Football League Highlights Action from the latest fixtures (S).

1.00 Shop: Ideal World 3.00 (GMT) America: The War Within (R) (S). 3.55 Unwind With ITV (S). 5.00 Ainsley’s Mediterranean Cookbook (R) (S).

HALLOWEEN

(Channel 4, 11.35pm)

Masked psychopath Michael Myers made his debut in John Carpenter’s classic 1978 horror.Asa young boy, Michael stabs his sister and is dispatched to Smith’s Grove Sanatorium. Fifteen years later,Michael escapes and heads back to his hometown. That night, high school student Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis, pictured) babysits aboy named Tommy Doyle while her friend Annie babysits at ahouse across the street. Michael kills Annieand when Laurie discovers the grisly remains of the murder,she flees black to the Doyle house to protect little Tommy

THE SIXTH SENSE (Channel 5, 10.05pm)

Director MNight Shyamalan’s supernatural thriller opens with atense five-minute sequence, detailing how Dr Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis)

was attacked in his home by an ex-patient who then turned the gun on himself.Ayear later Crowe tracks down an eight-year-old boy called Cole Sears (Haley Joel Osment) who bears all the telltale signs of child abuse. Crowe senses that there is more to the boy than meets the eye.

9.00 FILM: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015) Action comedy,starring Colin Firth and Taron Egerton (S).

(Michael Scott 2010)

drama sequel, starring Doris Roberts (S). 2.55 FILM: Christmas In Dollywood (Michael Robison 2019) Romantic drama, starring Danica McKellar (S).

Dolly Parton: The Queen Of Country (R) (S).

11.35 FILM: Halloween (1978) Horror,starring Jamie Lee Curtis (S).

7.00 Expedition Volcano Part one of two. Exploring volcanoes in the Democratic Republic of Congo (S).

6.00 Dogs With Extraordinary Jobs (R) (S). 7.00 Dogs With ExtraordinaryJobs (R) (S). 8.00 Futurama (R) (S). 8.30 Futurama (R) (S). 9.00 Futurama (R) (S). 9.30 The F1 Show (R). 10.30 Soccer AM 12.00 The Slow Mo Guys’ Big Adventures (R) (S). 12.25 The Simpsons (R) (S). 12.50 The Simpsons (R) (S). 1.15 FILM: Monster Family (Holger Tappe 2017) Animated comedy,with the voices of Emily Watson and Jason Isaacs (R) (S). 3.00 Gillette Labs Soccer Saturday Stay up to speed with the afternoon’s football up and down the country(R). 5.00 Secrets In The Jungle (R).

6.00 Unwind With ITV (S). 6.25 Coronation Street Omnibus (S). 9.05 Secret Crush (S). 10.05 Dress To Impress (S). 11.05 Dress To Impress (S). 12.10 Ninja Warrior UK: Race ForGlory (S). 1.15 In ForAPenny (S). 1.45 I’m ACelebrity: Surviving The Jungle (S). 2.50 FILM: Goosebumps (Rob Letterman 2015) Fantasy adventure, starring Jack Black (S). 4.55 FILM: Hotel Transylvania (Genndy Tartakovsky 2012) Animated comedy,with the voice of Adam Sandler (S).

6.00 On The Buses (S). 6.35 The Ruth Rendell Mysteries (S).

7.35 The Ruth Rendell Mysteries (S). 8.40 Foyle’s War (S). 10.55 Foyle’s War (S). 1.05 Midsomer Murders (S). 3.00 Midsomer Murders (S). 5.00 Midsomer Murders (S).

8.55 Food Unwrapped (S). 9.30 APlace In The Sun (S). 10.25 APlace In The Sun (S). 11.25 APlace In The Sun (S). 12.30 Location, Location, Location (S).

1.35 Come Dine With Me (S).

2.05 Come Dine With Me (S).

2.35 Come Dine With Me (S).

3.10 Come Dine With Me (S).

3.40 Come Dine With Me (S).

4.10 Four In ABed (S). 4.45 Four

In ABed (S). 5.20 Four In ABed (S). 5.50 Four In ABed (S).

9.00 Wisting Part one of four.Wisting is called to achilling crime scene (S).

(S).

9.00 FILM: Scream (1996) Horror,starring Neve Campbell (R) (S).

FILM: It (2017) Horror, starring Bill Skarsgard (S).

conclusion of the second round (S).

9.00 24 Hours In A&E A crash victim of acharity bike ride is airlifted to St George’s (S).

11.25 The Green Man Maurice attempts to exhume Underhill, who is not finished with him

(S).

11.00 The AToZOfHorror

the genre (R) (S).

trip

11.40 Family Guy The Griffins go on arock music cruise (S).

11.00 Midsomer Murders Aburglar dubbed “the Creeper”targets

SAS ROGUE HEROES

BBC1, 9.00pm

The last episode of Peaky Blinders aired earlier this year,although amovie is in the works –2024 has been bandied around as apotential release date, and Cillian Murphy recently suggested that the script was close to being ready The good news for anyone who can’t wait that long is that the hit drama’swriter and creator Steven Knight is back with anew drama, SAS Rogue Heroes, which tells the story of the creation of the special forces unit during the Second World War.

So, like Peaky Blinders, which was inspired by real Birmingham gangs, it does have its roots in history, but it seems we should expect afew dramatic liberties.

Knight, who also serves as executive producer, says: “It has been aprivilege to work on aproject which tells the story of arenegade band of soldiers who used wit and imagination as much as firepower to halt the march of Fascism across North Africa during the darkest days of the Second World War. This is awar story like no other,told in away that is at once inspired by the facts and truetothe spirit of this legendary brigade of misfits and adventurers.”

As you’d expect given Knight’s track record –as well as Peaky Blinders, his credits also include the movies Dirty Pretty Things, Eastern Promises and Spencer,and the TV dramas Taboo and AChristmas Carol –he’s attracted an impressive cast, including Connor Swindells, Jack O’Connell, AlfieAllen, Sofia Boutella and Dominic West. If the average age seems alittle on theyoung side, that’s completely intentional.

Knight says: “I’m really excited to be gathering together the very best of anew generation of British and international talenttotell this remarkable story The people who are depicted and who did such extraordinary things were young, in their 20s, and

we have made aconscious decision to cast people of the same age. We enter this project with aspirit of adventure and believe our young and talented actors will do justice to this period of history.”

It’s astory that begins in North Africa in 1941, where the British Army appears to be losing the war against Germany and the Axis powers.

Eccentric young officer Lieutenant David Stirling (Swindells) is growing increasingly frustrated with the military authorities and their current strategies, and he’s not the only one –Lt. John ‘Jock’ Lewes (Allen) fighting under heavy bombardment in the besieged city of Tobruk, and Lt. Robert Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne (O’Connell), currently ‘detained’ in amilitary prison, share his misgivings.

However,Lewes thinks the Brits aren’t the only ones makingmistakes. He points out that Rommel has moved too far and fast, leaving coastal airfields vulnerable to attack, and while the Germans may be expecting an attack from the sea,anyone coming from the desert would have element of the surprise.

So, aplan forms to parachute in units of men –but first, they’ll have to prove aparachute drop in the desert could actually work.

6.00 (GMT) Breakfast (S). 7.30

Match Of The Day (R) (S). 9.00

Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg (S). 10.00 Politics England (S).

10.30 Animal Park (R) (S). 11.00

Homes Under The Hammer (R) (S). 12.00 Bargain Hunt (R) (S).

12.45 Points Of View (S). 1.00 BBC News; Weather (S). 1.15

Songs Of Praise (S). 1.50 MOTD

Live: Women’s Super League Everton vs Manchester United. Kick-off is at 2pm (S). 4.00

Blue Planet Revisited (R) (S). 4.55 BBC News (S). 5.10 BBC

Regional News; Weather (S). 5.20 Countryfile (S).

6.05 (GMT) Gardeners’ World (R) (S). 7.05 Countryfile (R) (S). 8.00 Landward (S). 8.30 This Farming Life (R) (S). 9.30 Saturday Kitchen Best Bites (S). 11.00 ACook Abroad: Rick Stein’s Australia (R) (S). 12.00

FILM: Lucky Jim (John Boulting 1957) Comedy,starring Ian Carmichael (S). 1.35 Ghost Bear Family: Natural World (R) (S). 2.35 FILM: ParaNorman (Chris Butler,Sam Fell 2012) Animated adventure, with the voice of Kodi Smit-McPhee (S). 4.00 Flog It! (R) (S). 4.30 Live Men’s Rugby League World Cup Samoa vs France. Kick-off is at 5pm (S).

6.00 (GMT) CITV 9.25 ITV News (S). 9.30 Love Your Weekend With Alan Titchmarsh (S). 11.25 Ainsley’s World Cup Flavours (S). 12.25 Gino’s Italy: Like Mamma Used To Make (R) (S). 12.55 ITV News; Weather (S). 1.00 NFL Live Jacksonville Jaguars vs Denver Broncos. Kickoff is at 1.30pm (S). 5.00 Tipping Point: Best Ever Finals (R) (S). 5.25 Ninja Warrior UK: Race For Glory (R) (S).

7.20 This Farming

Family Fortunes

Quinns from Bournemouth go up

the Edwards

of Kent (S).

8.20 Stanley Tucci:

ForItaly

through

region of Calabria (S).

9.00 Tutankhamun’s

Larkins Ma

Cupid between Primrose and Rev

(S).

10.00

BEETLEJUICE (Channel 5, 5.05pm)

After Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis) are killed in acar crash, they discover they will be stuck haunting their home for the next 125 years. That wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t for the fact their house has been purchased by areal-estate developer (Jeffrey Jones), his sculptor wife (Catherine O’Hara) and goth daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder). When the Maitlands fail to scare the interlopers away, they turnto‘bio-exorcist’ Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton, pictured) for help.

HIS HOUSE (BBC2, 10.45pm)

Bol (Sope Dirisu) and Rial (Wunmi Mosaku) escape war-tornSouth Sudan in the hope of astable future. They risk their lives on aperilous night-time boat

Raiders Of The

With

(S).

Ranganation With

Beaumont

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Celebrity Special With Jo Brand and Dan Walker (S).

10.00 ITV News; Weather (S). 10.15 Sorry, IDidn’t Know (S). 10.45 Slam Dunk (S).

11.30 Gallagher Premiership Rugby Union Highlights Action from round eight of the season (S).

12.25 Shop: Ideal World 3.00 MotorsportUK (R) (S). 3.50 Unwind With ITV (S). 5.05 Ainsley’s World Cup Flavours (R) (S).

crossing, which culminates in heartbreak and despair.The couple are taken to adetention centre and are eventually allocated ahome to call their own. However,the peace and security they crave is supplanted by fear because the refugees are convinced that they are not alone in the house.

Friends (R) (S). 11.30

(R) (S). 12.00 Friends (R) (S). 12.30

(R) (S).

The Goonies (Richard Donner 1985) Family adventure, starring Sean Astin (S). 3.10

FILM: The Witches (Nicolas Roeg 1990) Children’s fantasy,starring Anjelica Huston (S). 5.05

Beetlejuice (Tim Burton 1988) supernatural comedy,starring Michael Keaton (S).

7.00 (GMT) Newsround (S).

7.10 Morph TV (S).

Blue Peter (S).

Chineke! Plays Coleridge-Taylor And Sowande (S).

6.00 (GMT) Madagascar: A LittleWild (R)(S) 6.25 Trolls: Trollstopia (R)(S) 6.50Where’s Wally (R) (S) 7.15 The Mighty Ones (R)(S). 7.40CroodsFamily Tree (R) (S) 8.05The Slow Mo Guys’ Big Adventures 8.35

TheGhastlyGhoul9.05 David Attenborough’s Wild City (R) (S) 10.00 Formula 1 (R). 11.45

The Simpsons (R) (S) 12.10

The Simpsons (R) (S) 12.35The Simpsons (R) 1.00 TheSimpsons (R) (S). 1.30 The Simpsons (R) (S) 2.00 The Simpsons (R). 2.30

The Simpsons (R)(S) 3.00 The Simpsons (R) (S) 3.30 FILM: Monster Family 2 (Holger Tappe 2021)(S). 5.30 PatrickAryee’s Wild World

6.00 (GMT) Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 6.35 Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 7.00 Secret Crush (S). 8.00 Secret Crush (S). 8.55 Dress To Impress (S). 9.55 Dress To Impress (S). 11.00 Dress To Impress (S). 12.00 Take Me Out (S). 1.15 Celebrity Catchphrase (S). 2.15 I’m A Celebrity: Legends Of The Jungle (S). 3.15 In ForA Penny (S). 3.45 FILM: Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride (Tim Burton, Mike Johnson 2005) Stop-motion animated fantasy, with the voice of Johnny Depp (S). 5.30 FILM: Hotel Transylvania 2 (Genndy Tartakovsky 2015) Animated comedy,with the voice of Adam Sandler (S).

6.00 (GMT) Bless This House (S). 6.35 Emmerdale Omnibus (S). 8.55 Bless This House (S). 9.25 Foyle’s War (S). 11.40 Foyle’s War (S). 1.50 Foyle’s War (S). 4.00 Midsomer Murders (S).

Lewis Astudent and a well-known

8.55 (GMT) George Clarke’s Amazing Houseboats (S). 9.55 Ugly House To Lovely House With George Clarke (S). 11.00 George Clarke’s Old House, New Home (S). 12.00 Come Dine With Me (S). 12.35 Come Dine With Me (S). 1.05 Come Dine With Me (S). 1.35 Come Dine With Me (S). 2.05 Come Dine With Me (S). 2.40 Four In ABed (S). 3.10 Four In ABed (S). 3.40 Four In ABed (S). 4.15 Four In ABed (S). 4.50 Four In ABed (S). 5.20 Come Dine With Me (S). 5.55 Come Dine With Me (S).

Audience

6.25 Come Dine With Me (S).

6.55 Come Dine With Me (S).

7.30 Come Dine With Me Patrick McMurray hosts the final party in Sutton Coldfield (S).

8.00 Emergency Helicopter Medics

injured cyclist

rescued from amountainside (S).

9.00 999: On The Front Line Paramedics are called to aroad trafficcollision (S).

10.00 24 Hours In A&E Patients include a 53-year-old woman who has suffered a suspected heartattack (S).

11.05 Emergency Helicopter Medics Amountain biker has abad fallina remote partofaforest (S).

12.10 999: On The Front Line (S). 1.15 24 Hours In A&E (S).

2.15 Emergency Helicopter Medics (S). 3.20 Food Unwrapped (S). 3.50 Close

JAMIE’S £1 WONDERS

Channel 4, 8.00pm

Jamie Oliver used to spend his time making tasty meals, but these days, he seems more focused on making a difference to people’s lives.

Back in 1999, theEssex-born chef become ahousehold name overnight thanks to his The Naked Chef TV shows.

And while he has sold afew million cookery books off the back of it (he is the second best-selling British author, behind JK Rowling), Jamie has admirably used his fame to tackle some of society’s most pressing problems, particularly those relating to food and nutrition.

In 2002, he established theFifteen restaurant, where he trained disadvantaged young people to work in the hospitality industry

He then became the scourge of the Turkey Twizzler through his programme Jamie’s School Dinners, before joined several other celebrity chefs on The Big Fish Fight to raise awareness about the discarding saltwater fish.

He joined forces with charity Sustain to startthe Sugar Smart campaign, and became asupporter for of Fresh Thinking for Forgotten Food, tackling waste.

In April this year,Jamie co-organised acharity dinner in London to raise money for Ukrainians who suffered from the Russian invasion.

In his recent book and TV series, Jamie’sOne-Pan Wonders, the chef has been providing us with helpful with advice on how to prepare delicious home-cooked food while just using one pan, pot or dish.

But although the title of tonight’s special one-off programme sounds very similar to that, Jamie hasmore than just washing-up on his mind.

Inflation is at the10-per-cent mark and, apart from energy,the biggest driver of price rises has been food and drink.

The escalating cost of living means households are having to make their money stretch even further especially at the supermarket –soJamie has come up with afew solutions to help out.

He will show us ahandful of tasty,family-friendly dishes

that can eachbemade for less than £1 aportion (based on the cost of the ingredients used, according to prices at the time of filming in October 2022).

He kicks off with adeliciously juicy meatloaf that elevates one of the cheapest cuts of meat to the level of aSunday roast, before celebrating the most cost-efficient way to cook by creating acheeky vegetarian curry

He also goes half-veg with his batch-cooked Bolognese to make our meat –and money –stretchfurther

To save time and cash, Jamie makes the most of the oven whenever it’s on by cooking two dishes at the same time.

He makes asuper-simple Cajun chicken traybake cooking the chicken, veg and rice in one dish so you don’t need to boil aseparate pan –alongside acleverly streamlined lasagne made from frozen veg and store cupboard staples.

And lastly,being on abudget doesn’t mean you can’t have tasty treat forafters.

Jamie’s super-speedy sponge pudding, cooked in three minutes, is atraditional delight, and shows that Jamie still has an excitement for great food, as well as an unwavering passion for what food can do.

6.00 Breakfast (S). 9.15 Morning Live (S). 10.00 Critical Incident (S). 10.45 Dirty Rotten Scammers (S). 11.15 Homes Under The Hammer (R) (S). 12.15 Bargain Hunt (S). 1.00 BBC News At One; Weather (S). 1.30 BBC Regional News; Weather (S). 1.45 Doctors (S). 2.15 Money ForNothing (S). 3.00 IEscaped To The Country (S). 3.45 The Repair Shop (S). 4.30 The Travelling Auctioneers (S). 5.15 Pointless (S).

6.00 Take AHike (R) (S). 6.30 IEscaped To The Country (R) (S). 7.15 The Repair Shop (R) (S). 8.00 Sign Zone: Antiques Roadshow: 100 Years Of The BBC (R) (S). 9.00 BBC News (S). 10.00 BBC News (S). 1.00 Home Is Where The ArtIs (R) (S). 1.45 Eggheads (R) (S). 2.15 Wanted: ASimple Life (R) (S). 3.00 Politics Live Special (S). 5.00 Coast (S). 5.15 Flog It! (S).

6.00 Good Morning Britain (S). 9.00 Lorraine (S). 10.00 This Morning (S). 12.30 Loose Women (S). 1.30 ITV News; Weather (S). 1.55 ITV Regional News; Weather (S). 2.00 Dickinson’s Real Deal (S). 3.00 Riddiculous (S). 3.59 ITV Regional Weather (S). 4.00 Tipping Point (S). 5.00 The Chase (S).

6.00 BBC News At Six; Weather (S).

BBC Regional News; Weather (S).

7.00 The One Show (S).

EastEnders Lola talks to the doctor about her tumour operation (S).

6.00 Richard Osman’s House Of Games (S).

Strictly: It Takes Two (S).

7.00 Live Men’s Rugby League World Cup Papua New Guinea vs Wales. Kick-off is at 7.30pm (S).

6.00 ITV Regional News; Weather (S). 6.30 ITV News; Weather (S).

7.30 Emmerdale Afurious Cain makes ashocking discoveryand lays a trap (S).

8.00 Disaster Deniers: Hunting The Trolls Panorama (S).

We Are England (S).

9.00 The Pact Christine pulls out all the stops to dispute Connor’s claim (S).

10.00 BBC News At Ten (S).

BBC Regional News; Weather (S).

Imagine: Malorie Blackman –What If? (S).

11.50 Have IGot ABit More News ForYou Steph McGovernhosts an extended edition of the satirical quiz (S).

9.30 Women Of Steel Behind the scenes with the England Women’s rugby league squad (S).

8.00 Coronation Street Tyrone shows Fiz the first extract from the John Stape book in the Gazette (S).

9.00 The Walk-In Robbie Mullen must face his former friends from National Action in court. Last in the series (S).

10.30 Newsnight (S).

10.00 ITV News At Ten; Weather (S). 10.30 ITV Regional News; Weather (S). 10.45 Nazi Hunters: The Real Walk-In (S).

11.15 FILM: Ghost Stories (2017) Horror anthology,starring Andy Nyman and Martin Freeman (S).

11.45 Police, Camera, Murder The police hunt for asuspected serial killer in Greater Manchester (R) (S).

12.35 The Graham Norton Show (R) (S).

Michael McIntyre’s

Wheel (R) (S).

News (S).

12.45 Sign Zone: Countryfile (R) (S). 1.40 Sign Zone: Unbreakable (R) (S). 2.40 Sign Zone: Trouble At Topshop (R) (S). 3.40 This Is BBC Two (S).

12.35 Shop: Ideal World 3.00 On Assignment (R) (S). 3.30 James Martin’s Great British Adventure (R) (S). 3.55 Unwind With ITV (S). 5.10 Dickinson’s Real Deal (R) (S).

GHOST STORIES (BBC2, 11.15pm)

Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman (pictured) write and direct this big-screen version of their 2010 stage play Nyman heads the cast as Professor Philip Goodman, who has gained areputation as adebunker of hoax ghost sightings. He has been given a file of three unsolvable cases by his hero Charles Cameron, who has been missing for years. As Goodman goes to work trying to solve what Cameron could not, his perception of what is real and what is his imagination becomes increasingly blurred, until he is brought down to earth with abump.

THE EXORCIST (BBC3, 10.00pm)

A12-year-old girl (Linda Blair) is possessed by amalevolent demonic entity,and her mother (Ellen Burstyn) recruits Father Damien Karras

(Jason Miller) to stage an exorcism. Aided by the mysterious Jesuit Father Merrin (Max von Sydow), Father Damien must confront not only the supernatural phenomena in front of him, butalso his own inadequate faith and displaced guilt over his mother’s recent death.

To Declare (R) (S). 10.00 Supergirl (R) (S). 11.00 NCIS: LosAngeles (R) (S). 12.00 NCIS: LosAngeles (R) (S). 1.00 Hawaii Five-0 (R) (S). 2.00 S.W.A.T (R) (S). 3.00 Wildlife Rescue New Zealand (R) (S). 4.00 Modern Family (R) (S). 4.30 Modern Family (R) (S). 5.00 The Simpsons (R) (S). 5.30 Futurama (R) (S).

6.00 Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 6.35 Totally Bonkers Guinness World Records (S). 7.00 Supermarket Sweep (S). 8.00 Secret Crush (S). 9.00 Secret Crush (S). 10.00 Dress To Impress (S). 11.00 Dress To Impress (S). 12.00 Supermarket Sweep (S). 1.00 Family Fortunes (S). 2.00 Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow (S). 3.05 One Tree Hill (S). 4.00 One Tree Hill (S). 5.00 HartOfDixie (S).

6.00 Classic Coronation Street (S). 6.35 Classic Coronation Street (S). 7.00 Classic Emmerdale (S). 7.30 Classic Emmerdale (S). 8.05 Bless This House (S). 8.40 Bless This House (S). 9.10 Upstairs, Downstairs (S). 10.25 Upstairs, Downstairs (S). 11.30 Heartbeat (S). 12.35 Heartbeat (S). 1.40 Classic Emmerdale (S). 2.15 Classic Emmerdale (S). 2.50 Classic Coronation Street (S). 3.25 Classic Coronation Street (S). 3.55 Midsomer Murders (S).

8.55 Kirstie’s House Of Craft (S). 9.15 APlace In The Sun (S). 10.05 APlace In The Sun (S). 11.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 12.05 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 1.10 Heir Hunters (S). 2.10 Four In ABed (S). 2.40 Four In ABed (S). 3.15 Four In ABed (S). 3.50 Four In ABed (S). 4.20 Four In A Bed (S). 4.50 Find It, Fix It, Flog It (S). 5.55 Car S.O.S (S).

6.55 Escape To The Chateau: DIY Billy and his father tryto level apatio so it can pass health and safety regulations (S).

7.55 Grand Designs Arevisit to an arch-shaped home made of clay tiles (S).

1.15 8Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown (S). 2.20 24 Hours In A&E (S). 3.25 Food Unwrapped (S). 3.50 Close

CARTWRIGHT

Ean James

On Oc tobe r4 ,2 022, peacefully in Hospital at Telford, in the presence of his Family,following as hort illness, Ean Cartwright, of Three Ashes Road, Bridgnorth, aged 77 years.

The beloved Husband of best FriendofGlenys,the loving Father of Steven, Father in-law of Emma and the dear Grandad of Sam and Amy

Much loved, Ean will be sadly missed by all his Family and Friends.

Fu neral Ser vice and Interment at The Parish Church of St. Gregor y The Great, Morville, Nr Bridgnorth, on Monday, October 31, at 12 noon.

Family flowers only by request please but donations for The Spinal Injuries Unit at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic HospitalN.H.S. Trust are being gratefully received, for which purposeacollection boxwill be provided at the Church,oronline at www perryandphillipsfunerals com

All inquiries to Mr.C.C. Adams

Margaret (Mags)

Of Ackleton.

Passed away peacefully at Compton Care on October 11, 2022.

Aged 77 years.

Devoted Wife to Brian, loving Mom to Natasha and Chris, wonderful Grandmother to Alfieand Millie.

Selfless,courageous and a true fighter to the end.

Funeral Service to be held at Telford Crematorium on Tuesday,November 8, 2022 at 1.30pm.

All flowers welcome.

All inquiries to

LEE Trevor

Of Little Wenlock, formerly of Lodge Farm, Quatt.

Passed away at home aged 78 in the presence of his loving Family on October 10, 2022.

Much loved Husband of Ann, proud Father of Sarah and Carol ine, dea re st Grandfather of Alice, Joshua and Jonty

Funeral Service to be held on Tuesday,November 1at2.30pm at Telford Crematorium.

Family flowers only by request but donations if desired to be divided between Severn Hospice andthe British Heart Foundation, for which purpose acollection box willbeprovided at the Crematorium.

STREET Peter (Pete)

On Oc tober 13, 202 2, peacefully at his home in Bridgnorth, Peter Street, aged 89 years.

The devoted Husband of Susan, devoted Father to Brenda and devoted Step-Father to Robertand Julia.

Much loved,Peter will be sadly missed by all his Family and Friends.

Fu ner al at Te lf ord CrematoriumonFriday, November 4, at 11.30am.

Fa mily flowers only by request please, but donations to the Severn Hospice (Hospice at Home) are being gratefully received, for which pur pose a col lect ion bo xw ill be pr ov id ed at th e Crematorium, or online at www.perryandphillips funerals.com

All inquiries please to Mr.J.C.Adams

GEORGE Raymond Wilfred (Ray)

On October 9, 2022, peacefully at Park House NursingHome,Kinlet, Nr Bewdley,inthe presence of his Family,following along illness, Ray George, formerly of Highley,Nr. Bridgnorth, aged 91 years.

The Husbandofthe late Margaret (Chat) George, loving Father of Ray and Ian and averydear Grandad and Great-Grandad.

NIMMOCK

Samuel (Sam)

It is with greatsadness to announce that Sam Nimmock of Tasley Close, Bridgnorth, aged 87 years, has passed away peacefully after ashort illness.

The beloved Husband of the late Kath Nimmock, loving FatherofKath, Steve and Mark, adear Father-in-law and special Grandad and Great-Grandad.

EVANS Gerald Edward

On Octobe r1 4, 2022, peacefully at his home, in the presence of his Family, Gerald Evans, of Neenton, Nr.B ridgnorth, aged 83 years.

The devoted Husband of Ann, loving Father of Christopher, Jane and Lucy,adear Father in-law andaveryspecial Grandad and Great-Grandad.

Much loved, Gerald will be sadlymissed by all his Family and Friends.

Funeral Service at Emstrey CrematoriumonFriday, November 11, at 10am.

Fa mily flowers only by request please, but donations to the work and mission of both Chetton and CleoburyNorth Churches’ are being gratefully received, for which purpose a coll ec tion bo xw ill be pro vi ded at the Crematorium, or online at www.perryandphillips funerals.com

All inquiries to Mr.J.C. Adams

Much loved, Ray will be sadly missed by all his Family and Friends.

Funeral Service at The Wyre Forest Crematorium (DY13 8DE) on Monday,November 7at2.30pm.

Fa mily flowers only by request please, but donations,which are to be divided between The British Heart Foundation and Prostate Cancer U.K., are being gratefully received, for which pur pose a collection boxwill be provided at the Crematorium ,o ro nline at www.perr yand philli ps funerals.com

All inquiries to Mr.C.C. Adams

Muchloved, Sam will be sadlymissed by all his Family and Friends.

Sam was posted as adrill instructor at RAFStanmore in Bridgnorth, wherehe eventuallymet and married Kath. He also served as a retained Fire Fighter in the Town and also worked as aFoilMill roller, at the Star Aluminium factoryin Bridgnorth.

His Funeral Service will be held at The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul, Tasley, Bridgnorth, on Saturday, October 29, at 11am, to be followed by Interment at Tasley ‘new’ Churchyard.

Family flowers only by request please,but donations to RAFBenevolent Fund, are being gratefully received, for which purpose acollection boxwillbeprovided at the Church, or online at www perryandphillipsfunerals.

com

All inquiries to Mr.J.C. Adams

TIPTON

Joyce Margaret

Of Wo odberr yC lose, Bridgnorth.

Passed away peacefully at her home on October 17, 2022, aged 94 years.

Dearly lovedWifeof the late Eric, loving Mother of Michael,Peterand Paul, Mother-in-law of Judith, Susan and Suzanne, adearly loved Grandmother of Claire, Philip, Charlotte, Neil, Anna and Andrew

Loving Gre at- Gra ndmother of her 13 GreatGrandchildren, Sister to Terryand Sister-in-law of Rosie.

Funeral Ser vice at the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Tasley,Bridgnorthon Thursday,November 3at 12 noon to be followedby Interment in the Churchyard.

Family flowers only by request, donations if desired for Cancer Research UK for which purpose acollection boxwillbeprovided at the Church.

WATKINS

Cedric Edward

Of Morville, Bridgnorth.

Passed away peacefully at The Royal Shrewsbury Hospital on October 11, 2022, aged 83 years.

Devoted Husbandofthe late Diane, much loved Dad of Nick and Alison, aloving Grandad of Lauren and Mya, Brother of Roy.

He will be sadlymissed by all hisFamilyand many Friends.

Funeral Service at The Church of St Gregor y the Great, Mor ville on Wednesday, November2,at 11.30amtobefollowed by Interment in the Churchyard.

Family flowers only by request, donations if desired wouldbeappreciated for the Alzheimer’s society for which purpose acollection boxwill be placed at the Church.

HOLLAND Robert (Bob)

October 28, 2014.

No one knows the heartache what it was to lose you but in our hearts you’ll always stay, loved and remembered every day

No onewillevertake your place.

All our love always.

Loving Wife Lindaand Family XX

Acknowledgements

Doreen Bevan Jean Castle Jenny Cater Gill Chadd Charles Davies Paul Dowler Wayne Francis Anne Franks

Michael Griffiths

Mark Harrison

Margaret Henderson

Keith Humphreys Eileen Jeynes

Caroline Jones

Wayne Lewis Hazel Lewis

Gwyneth Martin

Gwenneth Pinches

Kevin Price

Frederick Ralph Leonard Tipping

Julie Trilliene-Cooke

Northwood&Sons

‘Yourwishesalways carriedout in aquietly dignifiedmanner’ IndependentFamilyBusiness Our funeral plans can be tailored to your exactneeds Aprofessionalservice covering thewholeofShropshire

CallAndrewWoodhouseon 01952727248 northwoodfunerals.co.uk

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Thenew California 6.1isthe latest in a distinguishedline, offering amoredynamic appearance, with revisedgrilleand bump ersand newfog lights

It looks the part and the novel number plate, VW51EEP,alsoprovokedcuriosity

Thereare twoversions, theCoast and Oceandriven here.The Oceanalso featuresagrilleembellished with four chrome strips andisframedwithnew LEDdaytime runninglights

Poweredbyaneconomicaltwo litre dieselunitthatpumps outnearly200bhp, this modelalso features VW’s 4Motionall-wheel drivesystem, perfectfor extra traction when campinginpotentially muddyareas

Theinterior features anew touchscreen in theroofconsole whichmanages camper vanfunctions.Itcontrols theopening and closingofthe electric pop-up roof, andmon itorsfridge operationand waterlevels.

At firstglance, It neverseems likethere is enoughspace to storeall yourholiday paraphernalia, butwithingenious hidden cubbyholes,cupboards andstorage areas, an awfullot canbestored.

It even includes acleverly concealedmini wardrobe

Spaceisata premiumbut therearseats fold to create adoublebed,which features individual lights,while thetwo frontchairs arecaptain style, whichmeans they swivel around

Also theelectrically-operated fabric roof canberaisedtoaccommodateacoupleof children in thesleepingareaabove the main bed.

Thekitchen facilities offeratwo-burner cooker anddeepfridge,and atinybowlwith an electric water pump.Weather permit ting,anawningisavailable as an option

On theroad, thepowerfuldieselmat ed with theseven-speed DSGautomatic gearbox offers plenty of pulling powerand quiteaturnofspeed when required.Italso

provedextremely economical,withecono my at onepoint showingatnearly40mpg againstthe official34.9. Impressive consid eringthe amount of weight involved.

Acentral‘DigitalCockpit’isstandard on this is modeland it offers an excellent infotainmentsystemand smartphone connectivity.

Therideiscomfortable andthe vanalways feelsstable, andthe CrossWindAssist system automaticallystabilises the camper when buffeted by high windsonthe motorway.

Safety systemsare also impressive,with afull rangeofstability functionsand airbags,plusLaneAssist, Park Assist,aside protection function (warns of obstacles when manoeuvring) andTrailer Assist (simplifies manoeuvringwitha trailer)

TheOcean is asuper efficientdescendant of theoriginalcampervan.It’snot cheap, with this modeltopping outatmorethan £80k with addedbit andpieces. Greatfor thoseshorter breaks andapleasureto drive.

Price: From £76,172

Mechanical: 204PS, 1968cc fourcylinder diesel engine drivingall wheels viaseven speed auto gearbox

MaxSpeed: 126mph

0-62mph: 11.9 seconds

Combined MPG: 34.9

C02 emissions: 213-225g/km

Warranty: 3years/100,000 miles

75 bids farewell to Jaguar F-Type

Jaguar hasannounced that production of itsF-Typesportscar is coming to aclose with aspecialedition version –the 75

Introducedaspartof‘modelyear2023’, this will be thelastyearthe F-Typeissold, as themodel bows outtoclear theway for theBritish firm’s switch to electrification

Called the‘75’ as it marksthree quarters of acentury of Jaguar sports cars, thespe cialedition modelisavailable in both coupe andconvertible bodystyles,and comessup pliedwithJaguar’slegendary 5.0-litre V8 engine underthe bonnet Twoguises areavailable forthisengine–theP450, whichgets444bhp, andthe P575 ‘R’model,which produces 567bhp

Theseare able to accelerate from 0-60mph in 4.4and 3.5seconds respective ly.

TheP450getsthe choice of rear-orall

wheel-drive, with the P575 coming exclusively with thelatter.

The‘75’ editions getmodel-specific20inch alloywheelsand discreet badging, whileinsideeachalso gettingauniquemotifonthe centre console andstainless steel

tread plates,along with agloss blackinterior package.

AstandardF-TypeR-Dynamic will also be availablein2023, usinga 296bhp2.0-li tre four-cylinderpetrolengine.

MatthewBeaven,JaguarLandRover chiefexteriordesigner, said:“For75years, Jaguar hasbeenrenownedfor producing extraordinary sports cars that deliver performance,agility andmaximum driver re ward

“The F-Typespecial editions hold true to these principles,addinguniqueinterior andexterior design detailstocelebrate this lineagebeforeJaguarbecomesanall-electric brandfrom2025.”

TheF-Typehas served as Jaguar’s sole sports carsince itsintroductionin2013, with themodel last receivinga majorupdate in 2019

FACTFILE

CALIFORNIA 6.1OCEAN SWB2.0 TDi

Pook hits thegravel runningwithimpressivetitle win

Shrewsbury’s ChrisPookhas claimedaprestigious national bikingtitle at the firstattempt

Pook battledhis waytogloryin theBritish MastersGravelCycling 35-39yearage groupchampionship at theKings CupinSuffolk

Thesuccess is even more noteworthygiven that he haslessthan 12 monthsexperiencein gravel racingunder hisbeltafterswitching from road racing to therougher terrainin2022.

TheKings Cup is considered to be theultimatebikingfestivalfor gravel cycling. Increasing in popu larity,the sportisperformed on a varietyofoff-roadterrain ranging from root strewn singletrack,gravel fire roads, hard packed mudand even sand

Pook claimedvictory over the fi nalfew metresonthe 15.6km track in KingsForest, near Bury-St-Ed munds, Suffolk, racingfor approx imatelytwo hours

Pook,who hasbeentrainingfor thecompetition in theShropshire Hills andraces forHolohan CoachingRaceTeam, wasdelightedat hissuccess in Suffolkand knew go ingintothe eventwhattoexpect.

“It’saverytechnical sport, you are making calculations allthe time, regardingthe terrainand youropponents, you need to remain very alert,”hesaid. “Withseven kilo metrestogoanother competitor took thefront andheldahigh pace whichwas perfectas it stoppedoth er competitorsattacking

“The endofthe race wasvery close andknowing thatthe sprint wouldbeintoa headwind Ilet two guys pastgoing into thelasttechnicalsection as Iwanted to come off thewheel in thesprinttothe line, only catching thelastone with me trestogo.

“I usedtoonlydoroadcycling but have movedtograveland mountain biking likealot of otherpeople. You canraceonlotsofdifferent terrains, generallyoff roadssoaway from cars andyou will struggle to find abettertraininggroundthan theShropshireHills.

“Gravelridingisreallytakingoff in popularity because there’sjust so much you candofromendur ance challenges,singleday races or just getting offthe beaten track andenjoyingthe countrysidewith friends.”

Golden girl Alison proving agereallyisjustanumber

When Alison Salthouse startedcycling at 53 to improveher health,she didnot expect to be a BritishMasters Cycling championintwo events 10 yearslater.

The63-year-old claimedasuperb double success in the500mTime Trailand the200mMatch Sprint at theBritish Mastersin Newport, SouthWales

TheTelford-based cyclisttrains sixdaysaweek, oftenatthe velo dromesinManchesterorDerby, paying herown coachand working full-timeasanITproject manager in ordertofundher racing.

AndSalthouse,who is originally from Preston, cannot believehow good shehas become

“I wanted to do somethingtoimprove my health.Iplayedfootball in my late teens, butIdid nothing then untilIwas in my mid-50s,”she said,whenasked what it wasthat made hertakeupracing.

“I thought‘Ineedtostart doing something. Idon’t want to become a couchpotato’

“I started riding just athree-mile routefromhome,and Iwas outof breath.Who wouldbelieve Iwould gethookedonthe velodrome riding abikeatthatspeed with no gears andnobrakesand find that youare actually good at it.”

In the500mTimeTrial,one of theeventswhere shewon gold,she explainedthatshe started from a standstill andbeather competition by more than twoseconds,which is

abig margin in aracethatshort, with a finishingtimeof43.992 sec onds

TheMatch Sprint wasamuch closeraffair, andshe just pipped Kathleen McCormac to thegold, heropponenthas been cyclingsince shewas nine

This eventincludedthree-and-a half laps to gain speed before going foranall-out sprint on the finallap to find awinner.

Salthousealso came runner-up in theIndividualPursuit whereshe wasbeatenbyLindsay Clarke, who smashedthe Britishrecordbyalmost sixseconds

Shesaysshe wishes shehad discovered thesport earlierin lifeand also revealed how sherubsshoul ders with some of Britain’sOlympic champions when shetrains.

Shecontinued:“IwishI hadfound it when Iwas younger.Ididn’t. But Iamsoglad that Ihavenow

“You justnever know untilyou have agoatit.

“I am still gettingpersonalbests in my 60s

“I train on thesametrack as Ka tieArchibald andLaura Kenny, and they thinkI am fascinating

“I will be in thechanging, and they saytome, ‘I hope we arestill riding likeyou when we areyour age’.”

Next year,Salthouse is hoping to wingoldatthe WorldChampionshipswhentheycome to Manchester.

Hales sealsHill Climbsuccess forthe first time

TomosHales hasclinchedthe The BBR Opticians HillClimb Series

Halesled from thefront in round10– thePropelCCclimb of SwayneyCliff,Coalport–totake thewin in twominutes 20 seconds,but he waspushedclose by MidShropshireWheelers’ John Woodward

Hales’ victoryput theShropshire Hill ClimbChampionship beyond doubt,asheclaimed thetitle forthe firsttime.

SwayneyCliff offers asignifi cant challengetoridersdue to an undulating gradient –tough over thebridgenearthe start, rising to 17 percentinthe middle and tricky around thehairpin near the top.

This wasreflected in Hales’ post race comments:“I’ve always found SwayneyCliff climbhardtopace duetoits constant gradient changes.I’m happytotakethe winand seal theSeries.”

Woodward wasmakinga belated entranceintothe Series and stoppedthe watchjustfourseconds behind Hales.

It wasaclose call forthe finalpo dium spot with Oswestry Paragon’s Jack Youngjustbeating ChrisRiley by onesecond in 2:41

With Haleshavingsealedthe Series,Young isone of theriders hominginonatightcontest forthe remainingmedals

Rileytightened hisgriponthe Veterans’Championship,although that is stillverymuchinplay.

In theBBR Women’sSeries, HayleyWells cannolongerbeovertak en with a60-pointleadand just40 points maximumavailable from the finaltwo events.Thisisthe Para mountrider’s firstseasonand she hascertainly made an immediate impact

Alex Hart wasinasimilar posi tion in theBBR Junior Series and his44-pointadvantage with 40 maximumavailable makeshim Junior champion. TheVeterans’ Championship wasdecidedinthe 11th andpenultimateround of theBBR Op ticians HillClimb Series

Princecrowned vets’champion

Over-40s riders winning events is ararity, butthatonly made Steven Prince allthe more determined to finallyget thebetterofoverallSerieswin nerTomosHales by atwo secondmargin, afterchargingup thethree-quarter mile Station Road,Ironbridgecourseinthree minutes 34 secondstosealglory in style.

Princehad extra cause forcelebration as that winalso meant he went home with theoverall silver

It wasaclose race in thewom en’s competitionasvisitingrider HannahHavelock-Allenbeatthe championHayleyWells by asin glesecond.

Theonlyother medaldecided on theday wenttoa junior,with BenSouthgatebagging silver.

Alison Salthouse in action at theBritish MastersinNewport,South Wales

Chris Pook crossesthe finish linejustahead of hisrivalstoclaim glory

Windsofchange blowingatthe PremierLeague

A2023seasonfull of changeshas alreadystarted forShropshire’stop bowlingleague.

TheShropshirePremier League hasanew main sponsorand the14 member clubswill voteonaraftof proposalsatthe AGMonJanuary 17 at MeoleBrace BC

League chiefRob Burroughs confirmed:“Theleagueisproud to announce anew sponsorinTaylor Supportfor an initialtwo yearsfor £750 peryear.

“Aspartofthe agreement, the league will facilitate access forTay lor Supportservice users at multiple crowngreen bowlstasterses sionsacrossthe county

“Thiswillprovide opportunities to access afun,social, health activityfor people of allages andabili ties whilst also promoting inclusion within thesport

“Weare incredibly excitedto workwithTaylor Supportand their owners Hollyand Mark Taylor,with Mark having playedin ourleague forStGeorges,Bowring andCas tlefields

“Webelieve this is an excellent opportunitytopromote more inclu-

Shifnal’sVasecampaign endedwithSwiftsdefeat

Shifnal Town’s FA Vase campaigncametoanend as they conceded four at StourportSwifts.

BenTilbury scored twice, includ ingafourthminuteopener, as the hoststookadvantage of some lax defendingtowin the firstround tie.

Shifnalfound themselves two down at thebreak when BenJevons divertedhome LeeChilton’s corner andthenhad amountaintoclimb when Tilbury smashedhome again within threeminutes of therestart. Thevisitors finallybegan to

exertsome pressureand pulled one back when MaxChimenesdrove a shot beyond Stourportgoalkeeper Josh Bishop.

Yetany hope of acomeback was quicklyextinguishedwhenChiltonhit home to restorethe home team’s three-goal cushion.

Shifnal, to theircredit, kept pushing. JoeThompsonwentclose to pullingagoalbackjustpastthe hourmarkand then didreducethe deficitfromthe penaltyspotafter Jevons hadbundled over Chimenes

Butitprovedonlyaconsolation Jayden Hunter marked hisdebut for Whitchurch Alport with the goal whichset them on course fora 3-0win over Uttoxeterinthe Midland League PremierDivision.

Hunter,who joined last week on loan from NewcastleTown, fired home just before thehalf-hour mark.Second-halfgoals from Sam Yeardley andNicky Parker completed avictory whichsaw Alport move up to ninthinthe table.

“It’supthere certainlywithsome

of ourbestperformances. Definite ly in thetop three,”saidassistant bossAdamShillcock

Alport enterthe FA Vaseinthe second round, having reached last season’s quarter-finals, andhave been drawnawaytoWolverhamp tonCasuals

In NorthWestCountiesLeague FirstDivision South, third-placed EllesmereRangers were 4-0 winnersatRocesterthanks to CallumGraybrook, Jordan Davies, Jack Sweeney andSteven Hole

Wimbledon star signsup forclub’sbesteverevent

sion in oursport andshow it canbe accessed by all.”

TheTaylors were guests at theleague’srecentpresentation eveningatBurwaywhentheypre sented some of theprizes.

Thebig changesfor 2023 include theformatofthe presentation eveningalteringasthe Pool Aand Bknockouts areplayedasa one-day competitionat thestart of thesea son, with theMerit qualifiersand finals beingmovedtobeplayedon FridaysinSeptember

“There will be aproposaltothe AGMabout theremoval of rule about having aplay-offifteams finish levelonpointsatthe topor bottom of theleague,”addedBur roughs.“Andwewanttointroduce aruleabout players in theAlan Mayhew Trophy finalhavingto have playedfourgames fortheir club

“The 2023 league season will startonFriday, April7,and we arelooking at doinganInter-Area competitioninvolving SouthShrop shire, NorthShropshire, Telford andShrewsburyas an eight-a-side knockout on aSaturdayevening.”

Oneofthisyear’sWim bledonladies’ singles semi finalistsisset to play at TheShrewsbury Club when theWorld Tennis Tour returnsto Shropshirethisweek.

German star TatjanaMaria is amonganimpressivenumberof players currentlyrankedinthe world’s top100 on theentry list for theBudgenMotorsW100tournament.The prestigious eventispart of theLTA’s PerformanceCom petitionsCalendar, whichaimsto provideenhancedplaying oppor tunitiesfor players throughout the country.

It is also thebiggest indoor women’s tennis tournament in theUK sincethe 1990sand takesplace at theSundorneRoadvenue between October30and November6 Maria, currentlyranked71in theworld,enjoyedabrilliantrun at SW19 earlierthisyear, reaching the last four before eventually losing in threesetstoOns Jabeur

HeatherWatson, HarrietDart, KatieSwan, KatieBoulter and JodieBurrage lead astrong British

STUART DUNN sports@mnamedia.co.uk

challengeinShrewsbury,ahead of theBillieJeanKingCup Finals, whereGreat Britainare oneof12 nationscompeting to be thebestin theworld

Thehighest-rankedplayeronthe entrylistisUkrainian Anhelina Kalinina,currently 45 in theworld

TheShrewsburyevent is setto featureMarketa Vondrousova, who wasrunner-uptoAshleighBartyin the2019FrenchOpen finalinPar is, andlastyearwon asilvermedal forthe CzechRepublicatthe Olym picsinTokyo Karolina Muchova, another Czech star,isalsoonthe entrylist. Asemi-finalist at last year’s Aus tralian Open,she reachedthe quar ter-finals at Wimbledonin both 2019 and2021.

TheShrewsbury line-upalsoincludes ViktorijaGolubic –who won adoubles silver medalrepresent ingSwitzerland,alongside Belinda Bencic,atlastyear’sOlympics–andwas a2021Wimbledon singles quarter-finalist

Dave Courteen, TheShrewsbury Club’s managing director,said:

“Wehavetalkedalot in thebuild up to this eventabout thecalibre of players that will take part in this high-profile tournament

“Now that theentry list hasbeen confirmed,it’sprobablybeyondour best expectations

“Whilethere’s still apossibility that playersmay withdraw through injury,the qualityofplayers to have enteredthistournamentisfantastic.

“Tohaveplayers that have reachedthe latter stages of Grand Slamsinthe last twoorthree years, as well as anumberofcurrent top 100players headingtoShrewsbury is so exciting

“Wehopethiseventwill attract biggercrowdsasaresultand we really encouragepeopletomake sure they reservetickets, so they areguaranteed theirseats to enjoy what’s goingtobesome trulyexcep tional tennis.”

Reflecting on thestrong British challengeinShrewsbury, Dave added:“With theexception of Emma Raducanu,all thetop Britishplayerswill be here,which is greatnews, with this eventheldthe week before theBillieJeanKingCup Finals take placeinGlasgow.Wehavere-

cently enjoyedsome Britishsuccess at Shrewsbury tournamentsand it wouldbeniceifthatcontinues

“The qualityofthe international opposition meansit’sgoing to be much tougherthistime, butthe Britishplayers areplaying well and they aresuretoreceivelotsofsup port.Welookforward to watching them play.”

Ticket prices forthe tourna ment,which includea40-page programme,start from £7.50.

Finals Daytickets to enjoy thesingles anddoubles finals on Sunday, November6,are priced £17.50

Aday earlier, forthe semi finals on Saturday,November5,there will be aFamilyDay,which will provide many offcourt activities forjuniors, with free admissionfor under-16s accompaniedbyanadult

Atournamentpasstowatch all matchesthroughoutthe week from court-side stands is availablefor £49, with anumberofspecialhospitality events also to be held at The Shrewsbury Club

Ticketscan be purchasedonline at www.worldtennistourshrewsbury.com/tickets-and-events/#tickets

Tatjana Maria –aladies’ singles semi finalist at Wimbledon thisyear– is one ofthe starsplaying in Shropshire next week,alongside Britain’sHarrietDart

Champion night: Rob Jones, skipperofrecord-breaking Wrockwardine Wood,receives the trophyfromHolly andMark Taylor

Charliecomes Home to lead Shropshire in 2023

STUART DUNN sports@mnamedia.co.uk

CharlieHomewilllead Shropshireinthe Na

tional Counties Cricket AssociationChampionship afterbeing appointed captain.

Home replaces SamWhitney, Shropshireskipper in thethree-day format forthe last twoyears, after he decidedtostepdownfromthe role at theend of the2022season.

All-rounderHome,23, atop or derbatterand off-spinner, made his firstteamdebut forShropshire aged 16

He previously representedShrop shire’sjunior sidesfromthe ageof nine,playing in ayeargroup which included Dillon Pennington and GeorgeHargrave, before he joined NorthamptonshireCCC’s Academy.

Home comesfroma bigcricketing familyand many of them have also represented Shropshire Hisdad,Ed, played forthe coun ty,asdid Jim, hisgrandfather. Guy, Charlie’suncle,isaformerShrop shirecaptain,whilecousinTom also playedfor theclub.

Younger brotherJackmade hisShropshire first-team debut againstCornwallin July,while Charlie’ssister, Milly, represented theShropshirewomen’s team and nowplays forWorcestershireand CentralSparks.

Newcountycaptain Homesaid: “Itwas ahonourtoreceive the phone call aboutbecomingcaptain andIwas verypleasantlysurprised.

“Havinghad numerous family membersrepresent Shropshire over theyears,tonow be askedtobe captainisanamazing honour and somethingI’m so proudof.

“Tobebrought up in afamily that’s Shropshire cricket through

andthrough,itmeans so much to me andthe wholefamily.

“Thankstothe committee forbestowingthe honouronme. Iwould also liketothank SamWhitney for hisleadershipofthe Championship side over thelasttwo years. He’s done abrilliantjob forShropshire cricket.”

Home’s studiesinqualifying to become an accountant meanthe wasnot availabletoplayfor Shropshireduringthe 2022 season,but he keptaclose eyeonresults andis nowexcited aboutleading the team

He said:“Theexams have been quitefull on,soIdidn’tplaythis

year,but I’msoeager to getback involved.Iwas keen to be involved before thecaptaincy news,soI can’t wait to play

“I’veplayedfor Shropshiresince theage of 16 andhavealso played in theBirmingham League,soI’ve playedafairamountofcricket fora 23-year-old.”

Home,who livesinNewport, added: “I’m lookingtowards anew era andanew chapterin theclub’s greathistory

“The plan is to energise theundoubted talent within thecounty andperhaps persuadeafew of the olderhands to getbackinvolved.

“I’m very heartenedbythe conversationsI’vealready hadand I’m optimistic aboutthe 2023 season within allthree formatsthatwe’re goingtoplay.

“The goal is to make it funfor everyone that playsand to entertain ourveryloyal supporters and followers.

“Ifweare entertaining them andenjoyingourselves,we’re go ingalongway towardsdoing good things.”

Home is in theShropshirerecord booksaftertaking7-52, the best bowling figuresbyany player forthe county in one-daycricket, againstWales at Oswestry in 2017 He will be playinghis club cricket in Shropshire in the2023season afterdeciding to return to Shifnal from Wolverhampton.

Home helped Wolverhampton gain promotion to theBirmingham League’s topdivisionlastseasonas PremierDivisionTwo champions ShropshirechairmanJohn Hulmesaid: “Weare delightedthat Charliehas accepted ourinvitation to captainthe side

“His return to theteamiswarmly welcomed. He will strengthen both thebatting andbowling and, likehis predecessorSam,playan importantrolein encouragingand supporting theyounger players lookingtobridge thegap between league andNationalCountiescrick et

“Still only 23, Charlieisalready an experiencedcricketer with a good insightand soundknowledge of thegame, as to be expected given hisfamily’slongplaying association andinvolvementwiththe county club

“Hehas aclear vision as to what he wantsfor both theteamand the county club goingforward andas with othersinthe past,weshall do ourverybesttosupport himand theteam.”

Dominant Dawley hitWoodfor sixtostayclear at top

Dawley Town continue to stretch theirlegsatthe topofthe Salop LeisureLeague.

They hit Wrockwardine Wood Juniors forsix on Saturday as they racked up theireighthwin from eightPremier Division matches this season

Daniel Beddows wasatthe dou blefor Dawley in their6-0 victory,whileKieranBuckley,Jordan Jones,GeorgeLeesand substitute Samuel RayRigbywerealsoon target

Church Stretton Town re main twopointsbehindDawley, having played agamemore, after thrashingsecond-bottom SAHA 7-2thanks to apairofhat-tricks from JamesHill andDeanRichards –whileAlexander Ryderwas also on target.

Hodnet arethird, butdid not play at theweekend,with Ludlow

taking thechancetomovea point behind them in fourth thanks to a4-0 successagainst bottom club

WemTown

Fifth-placed Morda United were also home winners– 3-0over St Martins–whilea five-point gap hasopenedupbetween them and sixth-placed Madeley Sports af terSportsconceded alateequaliser to Broseley

Joshua Clifford had firedMade leyahead just before half-time, only forMichael Smithtosnatch ashare of thespoilsfor Brose leytwo minutes into stoppage time

Andthere wasaseven-goal thriller between Shrewsbury Up &Comers and GobowenCeltic JamieHands andLewis Jones fired Gobowenintoa2-0 lead at half time,but Shrewsbury hadturned thematch on itsheadbythe hour

mark with threegoals in eightmin utes

DeclanJohnson gotone back,before AblaySowe’s doubleput them aheadfor the firsttime.

LewisBloor bagged afourthin the71stminute, anditwas important he didasJones grabbedone morefor Celtic to leaveUp&Com ersas4-3 winners.

Division Oneleaders WellingtonAmateursDevelopment needed twogoals in the final10 minutes from apairofsubstitutes to preventthemfrombeing held to asurprise draw by Llanymynech BenWalkerhad scored a 42nd-minuteopenerfor Welling ton, butitwas notuntil super-subs Hayden Norryand Joshua Harveynetted in the final10minutes that they finallymadethe points safe

AFCBridgnorthDevelop

ment arefourpointsbehind, but with agamein hand,afterhaving theweekend off.

Thereisthenasix-point gap back to thirdplace, whichisnow occupiedby Shrewsbury Juniors Development aftertheyedgedout bottom side Ercall ColtsJuniors Revolution 2-1thankstogoals from JamesAstleyand Archie Perkins

And EllesmereRangers Reserves occupy fourth placeafter overcoming BrownClee 2-0.

n TheShropshireSaturday ChallengeCup takescentre stage this weekend, with anumberof fix tures, includingWem Town trying to climboff thebottomwhenthey host St Martins.

AFCBridgnorth Development couldtakethe opportunitytoclose in on leadersWellingtonAmateurs DevelopmentinDivisionOne

Maddocksbeat championsto reachsummit

Thematch of thenightdid not disappoint in theBridgnorth &DistrictAmateur Snooker League as Maddocksfought back to down defendingchampionsChelmarsh Band move to thetop of thetable

Chelmarshgot offtoa fly ingstart with wins from Gary Smithand SimonThomas

Smithrecordeda34break whilecomfortably beatingTom Maxfieldand Thomas,inaclos er-foughtframe,got thebetterof JamesBrennan despiteamodest 27 breakfromthe latter

However,Maddockscame back with strong performances from Neil Pearsonand DanMor ris.

Pearson, in particular,did extremely well –knockingina breakof39and a25-pointclear ance to beat Paul Manningon the finalblack

Morris’swin over ChrisLewis wasalso aclose-run frame

However,there couldbeno doubtsabout theclosing frame wonby Paul Harper that completed theMaddocks’ turnaround.

Includinga modest 31 break by hisstandards,Harpereased past MikeRogerstoput his team back on topofthe tableby asinglepoint

Nowjoining ChelmarshB in second spot areBroseley B, who completedahard-earned yo-yo 3-2win againstWoodfield.

Pete Thompson, Mick Brezwyn andNickCarson–winners of frames one, threeand five gave Broseley theirvictory,with Dwyer Evansand JasonMorris taking thetwo even-numbered frames forWoodfield.

Also,inthe hunt forhonours arefourth-placed Chelmarsh SC,who nowtrail theleague leadersbyjustthree points af terawell-earned 4-1win overSt John’sA

Reasonably comfortablewins forCarlWalker, ChrisPetford andBeamerJones andone less so from IanPostans, whojust managedtopip KevinHawkins on theblack,was more than enough to confirm Chelmarsh’s superiorityonthe night.Josh Summerssaved St John’sfroma whitewash, convincinglybeating Matt Judd in the finalframe

St John’sBare provingtobe oneofthe surprise teams of the season,havingnow wonthree of their first five outings.

They beat Broseley A3-2 thanks to hard-foughtwinsfor Mike Crawley, JasonBrown and KevinSmith

Neil Caswellwas on song, putting Mark Worsdelltothe sword, andBrian Edwardswon acliff-hangingdeciding frame againstMarkJones to earn Broseleytwo valuable points

In theall-Alveley showdown, theresultwentverymuchasexpected –the Bteamhavingfar more in theirarsenal than theC team thanks to framewinsfrom TomWeaver, Arek Ziemkiewicz, Martin Coffey andDaveJones SteveColdecott gotone back

Charlie Home hasbeen appointed thenew Shropshire captain

County captain

takes the

at

Wilkin sees the effort is there

NewAFC TelfordUnitedmanag er KevinWilkin knowsmuchhard workremains, butwas pleasedwith hisside’scommitmentintheir 1-0 defeat at Scarborough

TheBucks slippedtodeadlastin National League Norththanksto Kieran Burton’s ninth-minute win nerand avictory forBradford(Park Avenue)over Hereford

Wilkin gave amuted response to an improvedperformance that yieldednoreward.

“We’ve gottostart picking up points,”hesaid. “There were effort levels there, whichwas positive,but certainlythe intensitythatweneed to workatand theconcentration levels whichweneedtoshow need to continue to improve.”

crewscompet ingfor the firsttime, Josh Roberts competinginhis firstsingle-scull race andamasters men’sfour storming

Rushin debuting at coxalongside RobGraham, Andy Lomas, Tim Grimsdaleand Paul Wallis.

captainLucyWarrensaid: “I

victorywithNicola

what we’ve achieved.Bridgnorth

is in fantasticshape.Not only are

“Enthusiasmfor rowing in

ALLBLACKSHIT BACK FORA THRILLING WIN

Bridgnorth completed astunningcomebackto climbtofourthinrug by union’sRegionalOne Midlands.

TheAll Blacks fought back from 28-7 down at home to Kenilworth to snatch a31-28 victorythanksto Elliot Murphy’s late penalty.

Kenilworth madeaconfident startwithgood phases of play and hadtheir firstseven points on the boardwhentheywereawarded a controversial penaltytry that also resulted in aBridgnorth player be ingsenttothe sinbin for10min utes

Despite that,Bridgnorth levelled things up when open side flanker Adam Ellismadeexcellent ground

RUGBYUNION sports@mnamedia.co.uk

andmanaged to offloadthe ball forJames Barham to scoreawellworkedtry,converted by Murphy

However,Kenilworth came roar ingback andscoredthree more con verted tries, unanswered, to take a 28-7 lead andleave Bridgnorth fans worried about anotherheavy defeat –likethe 44-10reverse they suf feredatDudleyKingswinford.

However,Bridgnorth gotthem selves back in it justbeforehalftime when sustained pressure told from a five-metre lineoutasMur phygroundedthe ball andthencon verted himself

Thehosts hadtowithstand

more pressure from Kenilworth, butweathered thestorm andthen struck back

Adam Ellis made good ground andpassedfor replacementwing er George Bvumatoscore.Murphy converted.

And, roared on by thehome sup port,GeorgeNewmancrossed the line forafourthBridgnorth try.

Murphy’s conversion levelled the scores andhis penaltytookthem clear.

Kenilworth triedtoget back into it,but BenRochellerosehighest to stealanattacking lineoutand Gareth Bladen kicked theballinto touch, much to thejubilationofthe AllBlacks.

Bridgnorth travel to Lichfieldfor theirnextgameonSaturday.

Wilkin leadsTelford at theNew BucksHeadfor the firsttimeon Saturday when they host Alfreton

AFCare backin league action

AFCBridgnorth return to Mid land League action forthe first time in twoweeks when they host PagetRangers on Saturday

They will be lookingfor a thirdconsecutive homevictory in Division One, having beaten Ingles 3-0and HeathHayes1-0 in theirlasttwo.

AFCwerewithout amatch on Saturday –withmostclubs com peting in theFAVase–and end ed theweekend 16th in thetable, sixplaces andninepointsbelow Paget.

BridgnorthRowing

GeorgeNewman celebrates a crucialfourthtry for Bridgnorth Picture: Robert Nicholls