Prawn
to be Wild (17th December 2003)
Winchester’s rockabilly buskers Swamp Things are celebrating
the launch of their sizzling new CD, ‘Seafood Shuffle’
with a fifties-style Christmas Party at O'Neill’s, Winchester
on Thursday 18th December from 7pm.
Everyone is invited to the shindig at which Swamp Things will be
playing from 10pm ‘til midnight). There will be free shots
for anyone dressed up in ‘50s gear, a jive competition with
prizes and lots more fun with a ‘50s theme.
2003 has been a year of changes for Swamp Things, they have slimmed
down from a quintet to a trio and switched from being a blues band
dabbling in a little rock’n’roll to a rockabilly band
incorporating a little jump-jive, a smattering of honky-tonk hillbilly-swing
and a smidgeon of down-home country-boogie.
The new album ‘Seafood Shuffle’ contains 16 red hot rockabilly
numbers, including tunes originally performed by Carl Perkins, Jerry
Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Hank Williams.
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Mast and commander (17th December 2003)
Winchester campaigners into their fourth year of protest against
the Orange mast in Byron Avenue, travelled to the midlands at the
weekend to support mast protesters in Wishaw.
The small village, near Sutton Coldfield, has become a cause celebre
for thousands of people, concerned about the growing number of cancer
clusters in communities living near phone masts.
Wishaw has seen twenty cases of serious illness, including cancer,
among residents of eighteen houses within 500 yards of a T-Mobile
mast erected nine years ago. Many of the victims are in their thirties
and forties and have no family history of disease. Children are
also suffering ill-effects and concerned parents have erected copper
mesh mosquito nets over their beds to provide protection. Events
took a dramatic turn when the mast was toppled in the early hours
of Bonfire Night by persons unknown. Since then campaigners have
maintained a round the clock vigil to prevent a new mast being erected.
Winchester campaigners say the Wishaw experience shows how important
it is that the Byron Avenue mast should be prevented. The Planning
Inspector, who allowed the Orange appeal against the council’s
refusal, accepted in his report that the beam of greatest intensity
from the mast would fall across Western Primary School. Parents
are taking High Court action to have the decision quashed. "The
community is one hundred per cent behind them," says campaigner
Karen Barratt. "This mast must be stopped. We can’t just
let it go up and then sit and wait to see who gets cancer."
Wishaw protesters are now selling pieces of the mast to raise funds.
Two six-inch sections presented to the Winchester visitors will
be displayed on the Byron Avenue mast site soon. Campaigners say
this represents the only telecommunication equipment they are prepared
to tolerate so close to their homes and to their children’s
school.
At 3.30pm this Friday (19th December), the Byron Avenue protesters
are meeting, on the proposed site of the Winchester mast, for a
Christmas celebration.
Ain’t no shoeshine when he’s gone Wednesday 17th December
A Winchester man claims that a policeman stole his shoeshine box.
He is now planning to take the officer involved, Stephen King, to
court.
The aggrieved, Cee Jay, says that he was sat there with his box
in front of him, waiting for custom, when the policeman struck.
"There were some guys over the road setting up a stall,"
said Cee Jay. "A policeman turned up and started telling them
off for not having the right licenses. Then he turned his attention
to me. He took my box, which as far as I am concerned is theft."
Without his shoe shine box, Cee Jay has been reduced to begging
to make ends meet. Begging is illegal. This means that, by having
the tools of his trade taken away, Cee Jay has effectively been
criminalised.
"I don’t want to beg, but it has been forced upon me,"
says Cee Jay. "What is the point of taking a man’s livelihood
away from him?"
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Cold Frank, Insensed &
Brrrr! (10th December 2003)
Dome dweller Frank Williams is annoyed that Winchester City Council
are kicking him out in the cold after Christmas.
Frank (53) has been living in his ‘biodome’ tent at the
foot of St Catherines Hill for about twelve years.
He will be familiar to readers as the busker who is always in town
playing his accordion, accompanied by a couple of dogs. One of these
dogs only has three legs. The fourth was ripped off by a car careering
down Garnier Road. After this Frank launched a campaign to stop
traffic speeding down the road. He is widely credited with being
responsible for the traffic calming measures that were put in place.
He is also responsible for a lot of litter picking on the hill.
None of this was enough to save him from the tough new planning
policies put in place.
The City Council are trying to encourage land owners to kick illegal
dwellers off their property. As Frank lives on council land they
feel that they should lead by example. They are also worried that
after so many years there that Frank would start to get more and
more rights. They have no plans to do anything with the land once
Frank has moved.
From Front
Winchester City Council are giving Frank until after Christmas to
move. The council say they are trying to find some land where people
who want to live an alternative lifestyle can stay.
A spokesperson for the council said "he can declare himself
homeless and we will try and find him somewhere to stay."
Whilst she admitted that it seemed ludicrous to voluntarily add
to the homeless problem, she said "unfortunately some of these
travellers do leave litter and a mess and stuff, and we cannot be
seen to be making exceptions."
Frank said "I do not leave litter, in fact just the opposite.
The council go on about trying to make Winchester an affordable
place to live, and then they kick me off. I do not want a house.
If I was given one then I would be taking it off someone who really
does need it."
In a worrying echo of central governments policy, the council are
launching pre emptive strikes on dome dwellers. A policy document
I saw said that ‘because of the nature of this type of development,
typically put up in secluded and often wooded area, there may be
other similar structures we have not yet discovered!’
If anyone knows of a bit of land where Frank can take himself, please
get in touch with us here at The Observer. Also, if anyone feels
that the councils stand is downright unfair then do not hesitate
to get in touch with the council.
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Taylor Made (10th December
2003)
Charles Taylor, one of the main forces behind the Trinity Centre,
was awarded an MBE last week. Max Jones met him.
He got his medal (the most excellent order of the British Empire
no less!) for services to the community. I do not think anyone could
deny that Charles certainly deserves it. He has been working with
the centre since 1988, two years after it was set up. Charles got
involved through his friendship with Reverend Sir John Alleyne,
the first chairman, and Beth Taylor.
Charles explained to me how the Trinity Centre came about. "It
was set up because there were people sat around on The Buttercross
and in the Cathedral Grounds, drinking and obviously in need of
help. The first stage was the ‘Open Door Project’ at the
Holy Trinity Church’ where people could come in for a cup of
tea and a chat. Then there was a marquee in the Cathedral Grounds,
and eventually we moved here."
Through some fairly dramatic fundraising, Charles and his colleagues
managed to get together enough money to buy the premises that the
centre is in now. "We own the freehold outright now,"
said Charles. Two of the main contributors are the City Council
and the County Council. They were quite quick to put their hands
in their pockets. Each of them gave a whopping £25,000. As
is the nature of things, having money made it easier to raise more.
However, the centre always needs cash! Michelle Gardner, the centre
manager, told me that they are quite often being given funding for
new projects they are starting. The bread and butter of the place
does not go away. "People will always need a roof and warmth,
so it is important that our fundraising is sustained as well."
The Trinity Centre offers a drop in centre for the homeless, those
in vulnerable housing and anyone who feels excluded. They offer
food, storage facilities, a post collection service, and all manner
of courses.
As Charles said, "the main thing we do is try to give people
their self confidence back." Some of the courses offered are
gardening, cooking, art, music and IT. The centre, including Ruperts
,have 11 full time staff, six part timers and a handful of volunteers.
Ruperts, part of the same organisation, is a drug treatment centre
in Bridge Street. Ruperts offer help to anyone, be they referred
or walking in off the street. All help is confidential. People often
say that centres such as The Trinity attract dispossessed people
to Winchester. This is patently untrue. For whatever reason, the
people are there already. Places like the Trinity Centre mean they
can be indoors learning IT skills rather than sat in the cathedral
grounds drinking cider. This cannot be a bad thing. The Trinity
Centre would be grateful for any help over the Christmas period.
If you have any spare food, cash, decorations or whatever, feel
free to drop them in to the centre, which is situated behind the
train station. Another worthy recipient of your Christmas goods
is the night shelter, situated behind the library. Either way, any
kind of contribution will be gratefully received.
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Three men called Horse
(10th December 2003)
Los Angeles based trio Horse Stories play the Railway Inn, Winchester
on Wednesday 17th December.
Fronted by Australian Toby Burke, the band have recently released
their second album ‘One Hundred Waves’ on the super-hip
Loose label. The album was recorded in John Barrymore's old Pacific
mountain hideaway, and has already received rave reviews, with the
NME praising its ‘late night quality’ and favourably comparing
Burke’s voice to that of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke.
The band were first formed in 1999 when Burke moved to LA to live
with his brother. After spending a few months sketching out song
ideas on an eight-track, he teamed up with drummer Clinton Stapelton
and guitarist Jeff Holmes and were soon causing a scene in the bars
and venues around West LA.
Their debut album, Travelling Mercies (for Troubled Paths), was
a critical success and led to a support slot on this years Peter
Bruntnell UK tour. Toby then went on to open for the Willard Grant
Conspiracy on their European dates where he yet again proved himself
as a frontman of class and taste.
Anyone who has seen Horse Stories live can attest to what Uncut
Magazine described as their ‘smouldering talent’. The
songs are slow-burning slices of Americana, wide open spaces cut
through with slide guitar and shimmering cymbals. The overall effect
is mesmerising; it’s like driving an old convertable down a
long and lonesome highway, where snatches of overheard conversation
stick in your mind and won’t leave you alone. Songs with titles
such as 'The Calming Effects of Rum and True Friendship' sum up
the feeling nicely.
Support on the night comes from Kate Stables and Rachael Dadd, who
were last spotted in Winchester lending Ben Weaver a hand. Both
Kate and Rachael are stars in their own right, having both played
all over the UK to growing audiences and smiling fans.
As a special Christmas treat, DJ Eskimo has also been added to the
bill, and will be spinning and mix of country, hip-hop and folktronica
before and between the acts.
So for a final blast of live music before Christmas really kicks
in, Horse Stories and friends at The Railway Inn, Winchester on
December 17th could be the ideal thing. The perfect aperitif to
the seasonal overload.
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Horsing Around (3rd
December 2003)
A white horse has magically appeared in the centre of a Winchester
roundabout while security cameras watched.
The chalk horse which resembles the one at Ufington, near Swindon
can be found next to the controversial new Park and Ride car park
at Bar End.
The car park was built on an area of meadowland which was home to
a lot of wildlife. This area was ‘given back’ to the people
of Winchester in exchange for Twyford Down having a road built on
it. The siting of the car park sparked much heated debate, and has
lead to visits from such renowned figures as the environmentalist,
David Bellamy and the self-styled king of the druids, Arthur Pendragon.
Of the handful of protesters still remaining at Bar End, Mr Pendragon
is one. Speaking of the white horse, the ‘king’ has suggested
that it was created by the Celtic horse-goddess, Epona. Apparently
its appearance means that the cavalry are going to come and help
the protesters in their quest.
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Revenge of the Killa Tomato!
(3rd December 2003)
The Winchester music scene, as is regularly chronicled in these
pages, is a thriving hotbed of talent. Anyone who frequents the
back bar of the Railway Inn will already be aware of the sheer quality
and skill that oozes from the pores of so many Winchsiders.
We were naturally delighted, then, when word reached Observer Towers
that one of our local stars has recently been thrust forward onto
the brink of real stardom.
Vinyl-spinning extraordinaire, Tom Clugston, 21, has scooped first
place in a qualifying heat of the Juice Student DJ Competition,
earning him a chance to appear at the regional final this Thursday
(4th December). Should he make the grade there, Tom, who performs
under the name of DJ Killa Tomato, will be taking his set of cut-and-paste,
scratchadelic hiphop wizardry to the national finals, which are
taking place at London’s legendary Ministry of Sound club in
February 2004.
Tom, who began his DJing career in Winchester’s Bar Iguana
and Railway Inn, is currently in his second year at Cardiff University
where he is studying Media and Popular Culture. Alongside regular
slots in several venues in the Welsh capital, the Killa also holds
down a residency at a club in Newport on the Isle of Wight (a long
journey to make with all his the records on his back). Already a
finalist in the Cardiff heats of the DMC championships, he was alerted
to the Juice competition by friends and lugged his records up to
Swansea (the nearest heat) where he apparently outstripped all competition
by a mile.
The prestigious competition is organised by Juice, the student supplement
of the Daily Telegraph newspaper, and Blue Strobe, a London-based
events consultancy. And as if reaching the finals of a national
competition was not enough, Killa Tomato also received a big-up
in this month’s edition of HipHop Connection magazine, so impressed
were they with his skills on the decks. So, can he kick it? The
Mid Hants Observer is saying yes, he most certainly can.
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Can I dig it? Yes you can!
(3rd December 2003)
Put the winter behind you! Visit DIG! and see images taken on one
of the hottest days of the year as a group of volunteers dug up
the dirt in a Hampshire field!
August 2003 saw Winchester Museums Service, with over 90 volunteers,
take its Community Archaeology Project, designed to enable local
communities to participate in an archaeological excavation, to a
site just outside Owslebury.
A new aspect to the project this year was the involvement of a local
artist to provide a different perspective on the process of archaeological
excavation. The work generated is intended to broaden the appeal
of the gallery exhibition to people interested in archaeology and
history, as well as catering to the usual art gallery visitor.
The artist chosen for the project was a young local photographer,
Steve Bliss. Steve completed a four-year course in photography,
media, design and communications at Plymouth in June 2003 and is
now working freelance. He specialises in portraiture and depictions
of youth and popular culture, so an archaeological excavation presented
something of a challenge!
He spent several days on site familiarising himself with the archaeological
process, the landscape and the people participating in the excavation.
His visit coincided with one of the hottest days on record and the
images he has produced vividly evoke the experience of digging under
such extreme conditions.
The exhibition will also include a small display about the archaeology
of the site with a selection of hands-on activities for young visitors
such as quizzes, object handling and puzzles.
The archaeological project that inspired Steve’s work involved
the examination part of a large Iron Age and Romano-British farmstead
site, about 6km southeast of Winchester. The site was extensively
excavated in the 1960s, revealing almost continuous occupation from
the Middle Iron Age (about 400BC) through to the end of the Roman
period (about 400AD).
This summer’s work followed up new geophysical surveys, revealing
new features and allowing two trenches to be located accurately
over them. The main target was a large ‘banjo’ enclosure,
so-called because of its shape, a sub-circular ditched enclosure
dating from the Middle Iron Age, probably used for the corralling
of stock. Two sections of the ditch were uncovered, enabling the
true size of the enclosure to be established.
The exhibition will provide a brief glimpse, in the depths of winter,
of what it was like to dig on an excavation, on chalk, in an open
field during the hottest summer on record! Taste the dust! Feel
the heat! And don’t forget the bottled water!
Opening Times - Tuesday to Saturday 10 - 4; Sunday 12 - 4; Closed
- Christmas Eve to New Years Day inclusive. email:museums@winchester.gov.uk
Telephone 01962 848269.
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