Retirement Cake

After ten years at St Mary's Church, Rev. Allan Brown took his last service today before retiring. After the service there was the opportunity for the congregation to say their personal thank yous and goodbyes and also enjoy a few nibbles and a drink with Allan and his wife Loris.


And of course ther was a retirement cake to wish him bon voyage as he moves to pastures new.

Local Derby

A local derby between rival football clubs Derby County and Nottingham Forest meant a substantial police presence in Ilkeston today. With supporters of both clubs living in the town which is midway between the two clubs there was always the possibility that there could be trouble between the fans.


I've always followed Forest but like all the local clubs to be successful so cannot be too disappointed living in Derbyshire that the Rams took the spoils today with a 1-0 victory. On current form it should have been an easy win for the Reds but form goes out of the window in matches like this and the other results mean the Forest remain second in the table and the three points for the Rams help them climb away from the relegation zone.

There didn't appear to be any trouble this morning to bother the police and while some may have thought that so many officers walking around town was overkill it would have been a different story if trouble had flared and there were no police on hand to deal with it. Whatever the result of the match it was a no win situation for the boys in blue. Except perhaps for the one I spoke to - he supports Notts County and they won their home fixture against Barnet 2-0 keeping them in a play-off spot in League 2. And to round it all off, Ilkeston won their home match too against Droylsden 1-0!

Branches Everywhere

A lot of the trees in town have undergone pruning in the last couple of years and although they look somewhat mutilated during the winter, when they are in full leaf the branches do not show and they look much better.

Against the blue sky of a crisp January day though the branches form some intricate lace-like patterns. If only it was a little bit warmer you could almost believe that winter was over.

Coming Soon

Erewash Museum closes every January to enable to exhibits to be renewed and maintenance to be carried out. It seems though from this information panel on South Street that a whole programme of events has already been organised for when the musuem opens again in February. There's a Fun day on the 6th to mark the re-opening, Circus Week from the 15th to the 20th with a Circus Skills day on the 16th and a Stanton Ironworks Fine Art Exhibition throughout the month. Something for everyone in fact.

Stand Out

Here's a couple of tips from nature about how to stand out in a crowd.


Pictured on the Diver Derwent in Derby this afternoon, a white goose stands out from its country cousins from Canada, not only by sporting a different coloured coat but also by turning against the flow. Now why do I feel an affinity with that goose? Maybe it's because I've always rebelled against following the masses and tended to go my own sweet way.

Timely Reminder

Workmen were tending the flower beds on one of the traffic islands this morning even though I thought it was far too cold and wet to get on our own garden.


I'm not sure exactly what they were doing, whether they were replanting, weeding or just generally tidying up but no doubt we will all benefit from their labours when the spring flowers burst into bloom. Spring is not that far away but we still have the whole of February to get through yet and winter is by no means over. The sight of the workmen though is a timely reminder to be planning for our own garden and taking the opportunity to do some preparatory work as soon as we are able.

Burns Night

I'm not aware of any strong connection between Ilkeston and Scotland but I have heard of Burns Night celebrations in our town previously. Today I spotted a poster in the shop window of Truly Scrumptious on South Street where haggis were on sale.


I can't say that haggis is something I've ever tasted but now that it is available locally I suppose there's always the possibility I could try it in the future. And according to the news last week our American friends will be able to taste it too as import regulations on British meat are about to be relaxed. Whether that was in time for Burns Night today I'm not sure but haggis should be freely available in the States next year. It'll go down well with a drop of Scotch!

The Answer

A few days ago I posed a question as to the whereabouts of a compass embedded in stonework that many people would walk past without even noticing. Well the answer is that it is directly outside the front entrance to the Town Hall. This picture taken today but looking in the same direction to the north shows the Town Hall, Sir John Warren and The Scala cinema on the left with Burr Lane directly in front and the Moon and Sixpence with the old Fountain and Horse Trough to the right.


It would have been easier to locate the compass had the inscription which records the opening of the Market Place improvements in September 1995 been legible - but I didn't want to make it too easy for you.

And Here's Number Four

After yesterday's little diversion I'm returning to the theme of Ilkeston's cinemas and architecture for today's posting. This is the last of the four that I remember from my youth as operating as a cinema. It was built in 1903 and over the years was variously known as the Theatre Royal, The Coliseum and Vint's Picturedome but I remember it as the New Theatre. Although primarily a cinema, I have a vague recollection of pantomimes being staged there and it more recent years it became a Bingo Hall until 1982.


Like the other cinemas in the town it was architecturally impressive but after 87 years of standing on Lord Haddon Road it was demolished in 1990 having been used between 82 and 90 as both a religious building and a carpet warehouse. Although it is always sad to lose a building of character, a redeeming feature of the Haddon House nursing home that now stands on the site is the fact that it was designed to complement the features of the exisitng buildings in the area.

There are a number of images of the New Theatre in its various guises on the Picture The Past site (http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/).

Living It Up

No mention of cinemas and architecture today as it is a significant birthday and what better way to celebrate than a slap up meal of fish, chips, mushy peas, bread and butter with a mug of hot steaming tea to wash it all down.


Yes we really know how to live it up. I really enjoyed lunch with the family and they can all now officially call me a senior citizen!

Three Of Four

The third of Ilkeston's four palaces of entertainment of my youth (there were more before that!) was the King's Picture House on Bath Street. With a reputation of being the most luxurious of Ilkeston's cinemas, the King's had been built in 1915, a year after the visit to the town by King George V and Queen Mary to open the Ilkeston County Secondary School.


Similar to the Ritz and the Scala, it was architecturally impressive outside and had a faïence-clad façade designed by local architect H. Tatham Sudbury but suffered under the demolisher's hammer in 1964 to be replaced later by the rather nondescript frontages of these shops as part of the Albion Centre Development. Whilst change must always go on, it is a disappointing fact of life that gems like the King's are lost in the name of progress. The replacement buildings are probably best seen as in this picture in the semi darkness. I'm not sure they would win any prizes for design or appearance.

Classic Architecture

Following on from yesterday's picture of the Ritz, here's another piece of classic architecture that pre-dates the Ritz by twenty or thirty years. This is the frontage of the Scala - Ilkeston's only remaining cinema that is still being used for the purpose for which it was built.


It dates from 1913 when it was constructed as a purpose built cinema. There is a family connection for my wife's grandfather and a great-uncle (later to become manager of the cinema) played in the orchestra to accompany silent movies. More recently it has been featured in the TV series "Boon" and the title sequence to "Shine On Harvey Moon".

O & So

One of Ilkeston's classic architectural buildings that just screams the 1930s at you is the former Ritz Cinema on South Street. There used to be four cinemas in the town in my youth but only one, The Scala, now remains. A nursing home now stands on the site of the New Theatre on Lord Haddon Road whilst the King's Cinema on Bath Street has been replaced by the Albion Shopping Centre.

The Ritz however is still open as a place of entertainment and for a considerable number of years now has operated as a Bingo Hall although I have never crossed its threshold since it changed. It was here though that I saw my first X-rated movie, a black and white horror epic called "Cyclops". Back then you were supposed to be 16 years of age before you could be admitted to see an X film but with a number of school friends we managed to gain access around about my fifteenth birthday. I think the most exciting thing about the outing was the fear that we would be found out as the film itself raised more laughs than frights and these days it would probably be shown as children's entertainment. How times have changed!

If you're wondering about the title of this piece it just refers to the missing letters on the vertical sign making it read the "BING. . ...CIAL CLUB" and if you look closely you'll see the "T" & "Z" of "RITZ" are missing their lights too.

Which Way Now?

,As I ponder which way to go to take this week's photos for the Latest Images page at Ilkeston Cam, I paused today for this shot of a compass embedded into the stonework.


Hundreds of people must pass this plaque every day but I wonder how many actually "see" it. It's situated in quite a prominent place in the town and the inscription around the edge (which cannot be read at this scale) would probably give the game away. So the question is "Where is it?" I'll tell you later in the week.

A New Day

A Minister at a local church often started his services quoting Psalm 118 verse 24 "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Some days are much easier to rejoice in than others and after a few days of rain and grey skies, today, which has been much brighter than many of those last week, has been one of those easier days.


I often think though of the words of a former work colleague who used to say "Every day is a good day if you wake up." Whatever our trials and troubles, if you are reading this, you are more fortunate than millions of others in the world and this week I only have to mention the devastation caused to Haiti by the earthquake. Whatever our circumstances we should be grateful for what we have, for what we can to do help those less fortunate than ourselves and rejoice in the day that the Lord has given us.



Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense. - attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

Optimism

Most of the snow had disappeared but the rain was pouring down this morning so whoever put the tables and chairs out in front of Saturday's Burger Stall on the Market Place was being just a tad optimistic.


Not all of the regular traders had turned up but the market did show signs of returning to normal. Forecast for tomorrow is sunny - that will make a nice change but the tables and chairs along with the Burger Stall will be following the snow's example and they will have disappeared too.

Welcome Relief

At any other time a morning when it didn't stop raining would have been greeted with dismay but following the prolonged cold spell with snow and ice, I for one greeted the precipitation with some relief.


Some people still found it necessary to grumble but others like the two pictured above paused to pass the time of day and apart from the umbrellas seemed oblivious to the conditions. The rainfall helped wash a lot of snow and ice away and made getting around a lot easier and much safer than the black ice of earlier this week. However if it freezes tonight it could well be a different story tomorrow!

All Smiles

Market Day and the Market Place still hadn't been cleared or so I thought. It was a surprise therefore to find the stalls had been erected and many of the market traders were on hand to do business. It turns out that the traders along with the Market Inspector (and probably the erection team too) had cleared paths through the market to allow customers access to the stalls.


A little bit of similar effort last weekend by the Council could have seen Saturday's market to be held and they would not have lost the income from the rents paid by the stall holders. Everyone - traders, customers, Council Tax payers - would have benefited but no matter, it was all smiles today especially on Chapman's Bakery stall - the only traders to brave the elements last time and give their customers the service to which they have become accustomed. For that reason alone, they deserve encouraging.

One Step Forward, One Step Back

as It was back to square one this morning black ice made conditions underfoot more dangerous than they were a couple of days ago despite yesterday's temporary improvement.


It looked safe enough but looks can be deceiving and more than one person came a cropper. If it hadn't been for an optician's appointment, I don't think we would have ventured far and it's only thanks to our bus driver that we avoided the worst of the conditions.

Snow? What snow?

What a difference a day makes. A slight rise in the temperature, a little bit of grit thrown down by Derbyshire County Council and the pedestrian area of Bath Street is a much safer place than it was twenty four hours ago.


You'd hardly know there had been any snow and ice today as a lot of the street had dried out in a cooling wind.

Dancing On Ice

"Dancing On Ice" began a new series on TV last night but there were far more people spinning, slipping and sliding to say nothing of falling on Ilkeston's Bath Street this morning.


A partial thaw coupled with sleet showers created a treacherous surface all the way down and patches of ice sent many people sprawling. By the time Council workers arrived to treat the surface many people were counting the bruises to both their bodies and their pride and I wouldn't be surprised if there were one or two broken bones too.

Feed The Birds

Because of the continuing bad weather, people are being asked to keep an eye on their neighbours especially if they are elderly. It's also a good idea to feed the birds who are also finding hard to find food during this cold spell.


Our bird feeders are being well used and I wouldn't swear to it but is that a thrush in a neighbour' s tree?

Calling All Ex-Pats

It's been a while since I heard from Jim Garner, an ex-pat who now lives in Canada but who has previously sent a number of photos for some of the guest pages (link) on the site. Jim emailed me this week with an interesting suggestion.


The Christmas season is now over and it was brought home to me on Friday when I spotted workmen staring to remove the lights from the Town Hall. I often say the the lights don't come down until Easter so it did come as a bit of a surprise. Jim's idea though is about next Christmas and this is what he wrote: "The thought has occurred to me that next year we ex-pats could maybe contribute an 'Ilkeston Christmas around the world' photo feature." So I'm calling on all ex-pats whether they live abroad or still reside in this country but have moved away from Ilkeston to make Jim's idea a reality. If you'd like to register an interest in such a project and would like to email me, I'll make a note and send you a reminder sometime in November.

No matter how advanced your camera you still need to be responsible for getting it to the right place at the right time and pointing it in the right direction to get the photo you want. - Ken Rockwell - (Your Camera Does Not Matter, 2005)

Let Them Eat Cake

The market was cancelled today because of the bad weather but one or two traders still turned up and Chapman's Bakers stayed erecting their own stall at the side of the road and doing a good trade with their regular customers.


They were unable to stand in their usual place as the Council had not cleared the Market Place and I heard two rumours which may or not be true. The first was that the people who usually erect the stalls had offered to clear the Market free of charge but their offer had been declined by the Council. The second was that the Council were to impose a £70 fine on the Chapmans for illegal trading! If that is true, I'm sure it won't be the end of the matter as their customers were delighted to see them - after all we still need to eat and as I've written previously, the conditions around here are not that bad. I've known far worse. If it IS true, it smacks of Marie Antoinette and "Let them eat cake" 'cos you ain't buying bread here.

Regarding those weather conditions, many of the sporting fixtures in the country have been cancelled this weekend and in a similar vein to my comments regarding school closures, I have a great deal of sympathy for the BBC columnist Robbo and the views he expressed here.

Music For Skating

It didn't seem quite so cold today except when the wind caught you but there were still icy patches on Bath Street and ice skates could well have been an option in some places. I wouldn't have fancied sitting half way down the street like this chap playing his accordion. The music would have been ideal though for skaters.

It All Becomes Clear.

With temperatures in England reported as being only two degrees warmer the the South Pole, we are also told the globe is still warming.


It appears that "weather" is what we get on a day to day basis but "climate" is what happens over a thirty year period. That would explain the cold winters of 1963 and 1947 then - right! Now while the science is irrefutable it'll take a lot more than that explanation to convince a lot of people. Surely when they started talking about Global Warming that should have been the first thing they said - and have you noticed it's now more likely to be referred to as "Climate Change". Yes the climate has changed - and so has the weather!

Health And Safety Has A Lot To Answer For

It was a much brighter day today with blue skies and sunshine interspersed by a few snow flurries. Overnight snowfall accounted for barely two inches on top of the already lying ice and snow but this made it much easier to get about on foot. Admittedly the side roads were a bit dodgy for vehicles but the main roads were clear and all the buses were running. So why oh why did someone take the decision to close most of the town's schools? As can be seen here, behind the locked gates and notice about the closure, the path leading to the buildings at one school had been totally cleared of the white stuff.


Surely it would have been better for the children to be in a centrally heated school even if the timetable had to be disrupted than set free to roam about the town's streets, have snowball fights in the town centre or play alongside a partially frozen canal, all of which I observed today. Health and safety legislation has much to do with the decision to close schools and whilst this is understandable in areas that have been hit hard by the weather, it seems to me that it was just an easy option here today. What about the health and safety of all the people on the bus today which was the target of idiot boys who aimed snowballs at the windscreen? idiot boys who should have been in school!

One school that did remain open was at Kirk Hallam but two thirteen year old boys have been suspended from there for five days for trying to cross the semi-frozen lake near the entrance, getting stuck half way and causing a full scale emergency to rescue them. It's not a suspension from school they need, it's an education!

We Never Closed.

Well yesterday it was reported that it had been the coldest December since 1995 and today they're saying it's the longest cold spell for 30 years. I'm surprised no-one has yet said it's the worst winter this millennium!

Today though has been one of those dark days when it has never really got light and there has been a covering of grey snow-filled cloud all day. In fact it is snowing right now and more is on the cards right up until the weekend. We can't complain in this part of the world though as it has been far worse in other parts of the country.

I am surprised though that these days it doesn't take much for schools to be closed although I don't think any of the local schools have had to close yet. I remember cold and snowy winters from my childhood but I can't remember any schools being closed around here simply because of the weather. We just put on extra layers of clothing, made slides in the playground and got on with life. Today children aren't allowed out if the playground is icy because of health and safety concerns but it's been shown on the news tonight that the children who are not at school or have been let out early, were in town centres having snowball fights. Wouldn't they be safer at school?

And On It Goes

It was the coldest December since 1995 and despite a brief lull a few days ago, it looks set to continue well into January. It looks like we're getting a proper winter at last and although I remember winters like this from my schooldays, recent winters have been quite mild by comparison. People keep saying "It's cold isn't it?" when we meet them but it's only to be expected at this time of year and when compared to the weather experienced by friends in other parts of the world, we're still getting off lightly.


This picture was taken this morning on Wash Meadow where it was much safer to walk on the frozen snow covered grass than the icy footpath.

Magi

The feast of Epiphany is actually January 6th and celebrates the visit of the magi to the infant Jesus but I caught this image of the Three Kings after the morning service in St Mary's toady. Do you realise though that nowhere in the Bible does it say there were three of them or that they were kings?


January 6th of course is the twelfth day of Christmas and the famous carol about the twelve days has a hidden meaning for Christians:
The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus.
The two turtle doves are the Old and New Testaments.
Three French hens reppresent faith, hope and love.
The four calling birds are the Gospels.
The five gold rings stand for the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament.
The six geese a-laying represent the six days of creation.
The seven swans a-swimming are the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The eight maids a-milking are the Beatitudes.
Nine ladies dancing are the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit.
The ten lords a-leaping stand for the Ten Commandments.
Eleven pipers piping represent the eleven Apostles.
Twelve drummers drumming re[resent the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles Creed.

Just when you thought it was safe ....

Borrowing part of the famous tag line from the film Jaws 2 and following on from yesterday's posting where I said that the snow had all gone, just when you thought it was safe to go out again, the snow returned.

As I write, the snow has settled but it's stopped falling for the present although we could get between two and four inches by tomorrow. Fortunately Ilkeston seems to enjoy a micro-climate all of its own and the worst of the weather generally bypasses the town. Another place that I know of that has a similar micro-climate is Minehead in Somerset. After spending several holidays there I am aware that there can be summer thunderstorms up on Exmoor whilst holidaymakers in the resort town can be basking in sunshine. However we do seem to have had more snow this winter than for a number of years - so much for "Global Warming"! No wonder they changed it to "Climate Change".

New Year's Day

The difference between this picture and the previous post is easy to see - the snow has gone! It's still cold but if you wrap up warm there's nothing better than a good brisk walk to get rid of some of those Christmas calories that have built up during the period between the pictures. The previous one was actually taken on the Sunday before Christmas Day and this one was captured this afternoon - New Year's Day. Happy New Year.