Organisers of Blackburn in Bloom are keeping their green fingers crossed that they have impressed judges enough to scoop a fourth gold in the Britain In Bloom horticultural competition.
The Blackburn In Bloom team gave the judges of the highly renowned competition a tour of the town centre on Thursday, taking in the sights and scents of the brightly coloured flowers, planters and hanging baskets adorning the streets.
Blackburn hopes it can retain its run of gold awards, after scooping the top prize in its category for the last three years. This year, the town has once again entered the ‘town centre’ and ‘BID’ categories.
The Royal Horticultural Society judges visited various locations including the Cathedral Gardens, Church Street, Northgate, Exchange Garden Urban Park and Fleming Square’s Italianate Garden, paying particular attention to three key criteria: community participation, environmental responsibility, and horticultural achievement.
The Council’s green team have been working tirelessly to look after the displays, ensuring that they are watered and fed during the growing season. The scheme was supported financially by Blackburn Business Improvement District (BID) who have funded additional floral displays and their maintenance.
Catherine Price, Blackburn BID Manager, said: We want to attract more people into the town centre and we are doing that by making sure it looks beautiful. One of the priorities for Blackburn BID is to create a greener, cleaner area. We are incredibly proud of what Blackburn In Bloom has achieved. It has been a real team effort between all the partner organisations and the Council’s dedicated gardeners. It goes to show what can be achieved when we work together. Clare Turner, Development Manager at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, submitted this year’s entry.
She added: Footfall in town centres across the country is decreasing so we need to make Blackburn as beautiful as it can to help attract visitors. Creating this kind of environment is incalculable in terms of how people perceive the town and driving additional footfall.
The winners are expected to be announced in October
An award-winning British jewellery designer is expanding its business with a second outlet now open in Belvoir Castle’s beautifully restored Victorian Engine Yard retail village, opposite the main entrance to Belvoir Castle. B Jewellery is a luxury retailer specialising in bespoke jewellery designs. Fronted by designer Belynda Faulkner, her second shop offers unique creations, workshops and a number of her jewellery collections at a larger scale.
Belynda says: “This is an exciting time for the business as we continue to grow. We create the ultimate romance for our customers with bespoke items, and where better to establish ourselves than in the shadow of beautiful Belvoir Castle? With great support from the Duchess of Rutland, we are delighted to set up shop and make the Engine Yard our second home.”
Emma, Duchess of Rutland, added: “We’re very excited to have B Jewellery join us at the Engine Yard, it’s a great addition. Belvoir Castle is a magical location for many who wish to enjoy a fairytale wedding and B Jewellery compliments this perfectly. Belynda’s jewellery is truly stunning and we know that visitors to the Engine Yard are going to fall in love with her bespoke designs.”
Located at the Engine Yard on the Leicestershire country estate, B Jewellery is now welcoming visitors and bookings for workshops and services. The shop offers a range of stunning jewellery collections, custom designs and beautiful personalisations, all crafted by hand on-site. A click and collect service is also available.
B Jewellery also offers couples the special opportunity to make their own wedding bands, or for groups to celebrate by creating silver bangles or rings.
Belynda has been in the jewellery business for more than 15 years with a BA in Silversmith, Jewellery and Allied Crafts. She has worked behind the bench, as well as in other aspects of the jewellery trade, including as a designer, product manager, diamond buyer, plus running very well-known high street jewellers for several years.
Opening hours for B Jewellery at the Engine Yard are Tuesday to Saturday, 10am – 4pm. Appointments are available upon request. Contact the shop on b.jewellery@aol.co.uk.
For more information, visit www.b-jewellery.co.uk. Facebook: B-Jewellery Twitter: belyndafaulkner Instagram: b.jewellery B Jewellery is the latest addition to Belvoir Castle’s multi-million-pound artisan shopping village. The Engine Yard champions local businesses and great British brands, including a host of artisan retailers, food and drink, all within the grounds of the ancestral home of the Duke and Duchess of Rutland. Visit: www.engineyardbelvoir.com.
This month’s aerial photo shows the 18th century stable block at Wollaton Park. This was once home to Nottingham Police horses but today houses a courtyard café and gallery and Nottingham Industrial Museum.
The photo was taken by Robin Macey who is a member of Nottingham & Derby Hot Air Balloon Club. The club is currently looking to expand. Members take turns being on the chase crew as well as flying in the basket. For further details about how to get involved phone 0115-8541028 or visit www.facebook.com/ndhabc.
This year’s Splendour
had sold out in record time, shifting an incredible 25,000 tickets to
the good folk of Nottingham (although not exclusively to
Nottinghamshire folk). Splendour returned to Wollaton Hall for
another day of musical delights. This year the organisers had pulled
out all the stops to create a line up which would make all other
musical events green with envy.
Rag N Bone Man at Splendour 2019 – image credit – Jake Haseldine
As always it feels like
the organisers attempted to cater for all types of music fans and
this year, they had ticked all the right boxes. Rock music category
was covered by having none other than Manic Street Preachers
headlining after a decade of not playing in Nottingham. Pop music
fans were well catered for with the All Saints and Louisa. Then for
all of us older music fans, there were blasts into the 80s from
Roland Gift (Fine Young Cannibals) . For the younger generation of
fans there were current artistes such as Rag ‘n’ Bone man and The
Slow Readers Book Club, and The Rifles and the X Factor winner
Louisa.
If fans got bored of
the music that was on offer, punters could wander over to the comedy
stage. The organisers also provided fun for children with fair rides
and other activities available. Without a shadow of doubt this is one
of those events that can be fun for all the family.
Kids Area at Splendour 2019 image credit – Ami Ford
Sadly, the one thing
the organisers had no control over was the weather, and unfortunately
if you were unlucky to be there right at the start, you would have
got drenched and spent the rest of the day drying out throughout the
glorious sunshine.
Upon
arrival there were hundreds of people carrying camping chairs and
picnics to take inside the arena. Security were friendly enough and
were patient whilst ticket holders opened all their bags to be
checked.
Once inside the
exquisite grounds of Wollaton Hall, thousands of music fans had
already set out their camping chairs and picnic mats to set up and
wait for the musical delights that were scheduled to entertain the
awaiting fans.
First up was Remy
(Winner of Nottingham’s Future Sound) he entertained the ample
sized crowd with his acoustic guitar melodies. During Remy’s set
the glorious sunshine quickly turned to rain. In a flash the crowd
were transformed from a t-shirt wearing mob into a mass of
waterproofs and umbrellas.
Due to the downpour,
the main stage bands had to do their best against a crowd who were
getting soaked. Rob Green, Barns Courtney and The Slow Readers Club
all tried to take the crowds mind of the weather.
The sunshine made an
appearance just as Louisa (X-Factor Winner) won over the crowd with
her incredible vocals and lively stage persona.
The audience then
quadrupled in size for the arrival of the Rag ‘n’ Bone Man. If
you love his voice through the radio, it is even more incredible
live. He saved “Human” until the end of his set creating a huge
sing along amongst the crowd. A genuine all-time favourite Splendour
moment.
After spending most of
the day in front of the main stage, it was time to see what was
happening on the Confetti stage. Thankfully Roland Gift (Fine Young
Cannibals) was captivating the audience with a trip down memory lane
with hits such as “Johnny Come Home” and “She Drives
Me Crazy” as well as a cover version of Elvis Presley’s
“Suspicious Minds”. Even after all these years Roland’s
vocals sound as sweet as they did back in the 80s.
All Saints at Splendour 2019 – image credit – Jake Haseldine
The All Saints
headlined the Confetti stage and they brought their A game with them.
All four members looking just as wonderful as they did back in the
late 90s/early 2000. This performance was slick. Extremely
well-choreographed with delightful vocal melodies throughout songs
such as “Booty Call”, “Under The Bridge”, and
“Pure Shores” in some ways it was too polished almost
superhuman until they had a technical difficulty and then they
became unsure if they should talk to the crowd or wait for the
technical difficulty to be sorted. Nonetheless, a great powerful, pop
fuelled injection to the day.
Manic Street Preachers
headlined the main stage with their blend of rock. Opening with the
catchy “Motorcycle Emptiness”, although at times it was
difficult to hear the guitar solos from James Dean Bradfield. (This
may have been due to the breeze flowing across the site). In no time
at all they had ploughed through a back catalogue of hits such as
“Everything Must Go”, “You Love Us” and “If
You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next”. As well as
squeezing in a cover version of Guns N Roses “Sweet Child O’
Mine” which created a heart-warming sing along from the fans.
Mani Street Preachers at Splendour 2019
image credit – Jake Heseldine
Manic Street Preachers
saved “Design for Life” until the end of their set, as is
usual with the Welsh rockers they very rarely do encores, and tonight
they stuck with tradition and did not oblige the fans with an encore.
Nonetheless, A masterclass in how to headline a music event.
Hopefully they won’t leave it another ten years before playing in
Nottingham again. The only disappointment was that they left “Faster”
out of their setlist.
Splendour 2019 was a
fabulous family friendly day out, with one of their best line ups
since Splendour started. The only difficulty the organisers have now
is how do they make Splendour 2020 even better??
With just over one week to go, the Wollaton Park music festival, headlined by Manic Street Preachers and The Specials, is heading for a sell-out.
An additional name has also been added to the bill. Joining the line-up of international stars, exciting new artists and established favourites is singer-songwriter, Remy. After impressing judges and winning ‘Future Sound of Nottingham’ at Rock City against six other local artists, he will open Splendour and rub shoulders with the likes of Manic Street Preachers, The Specials, Rag’n’Bone, The Slow Readers Club and Rob Green on the Main Stage. Main Stage 21:00 – 22:30 Manic Street Preachers 19:00 – 20:15 The Specials 17:30 – 18:30 Rag‘n’Bone Man 16:30 – 17:00 Louisa 15:30 – 16:00 The Slow Readers Club 14:30 – 15:00 Barns Courtney 13:30 – 14:00 Rob Green 12:30 – 13:00 Remy
Confetti Stage 20:15 – 21:15 All Saints 18:30 – 19:30 Roland Gift (FYC) 17:00 – 17:45 Ash 16:00 – 16:30 The Rifles 15:00 – 15:30 The Coronas 14:00 – 14:30 Do Nothing 13:00 – 13:30 Bria 12:00 – 12:30 Ava Saint
Courtyard Stage 20:30 – 21:00 My Pet Fauxes 19:30 – 20:00 Mid November 18:30 – 19:00 Esther Van Leuven 17:30 – 18:00 Megatrain 16:30 – 17:00 Velvet Blush 15:30 – 16:00 94 Gunships 14:30 – 15:00 Re Teu 13:30 – 14:00 Laurie Illingworth 12:30 – 13:00 Camille Christel
Comedy Stage 18:00 – 18:30 Suzy Bennett 17:00 – 17:30 Roger Monkhouse 16:00 – 16:30 Vince Atta 15:00 – 15:30 Sean Heydon 14:00 – 14:30 Nathan Caton With compère Andy Robinson
Fringe Stage 17:15- 17:45 The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican 16:00 -16:30 Mrs Green 15:00 -15:30 Rhymes Against Humanity 14:00 -14:30 Salsa with Salsa Bae 13:00 -13:30 Spoken Word with Stephen & Friends 12:00 -12:30 Yoga and Mindfulness session
The award-winning music event takes place at Wollaton Park on Saturday 20 July. Children under 11 will once again be admitted free and discounts are also in place for Nottingham City residents. Including booking fee, a standard ticket is £56.65, coming down to £45.65 when the Nottingham City discount is applied. Tickets for Nottingham City residents aged 11-17 are £22. VIP packages are also available and start from £87.65 for a Nottingham City adult.
Tickets can be purchased from the newly launched website splendourfestival.com or in person from the Nottingham Tourism Centre. To claim Nottingham City resident discount, a copy of your council tax bill is required.
To stay in touch with festival news follow Splendour on social media: Facebook: @splendourfestivalUK Twitter: @splendourfest Instagram: @splendourfest #SplendourFest.
Dining out at The Villa
has just got better, especially with our Afternoon Tea Offer! Until
the end of July, we are offering a Luxury Afternoon Tea for the price
of a Traditional! That is just £15.95 for a selection of sandwiches
and savouries, cakes, scones, tea or coffee and a glass of sparkling
Prosecco or non-alcoholic Elderflower Fizz.
If Afternoon Tea is not
your thing then do not worry! We also serve delightful dishes from
our Lounge Menu, Table D’Hote Menu, A La Carte Menu and Grill Menu.
Not to mention our weekly offers…
Fish Friday
Every Friday between
12pm and 9.30pm we serve a beer-battered fish with hand-cut chips,
mushy or garden peas and homemade tartare sauce for just £6.95. To
go large just add £2.
Super Sundays
Sunday is the day of
rest so allow us to do all of the cooking! Get two fabulous courses
for £18.95 or three courses for just £22.95. Served from 12 noon
until 8pm.
You can find us located
in the quaint village of Wrea Green close to the towns of Lytham and
St Annes. To book, call 01772 80 40 40.
Weddings at The
Villa
For
over a decade we have been making weddings dreams become reality. Our
4 Star Hotel with a 2 AA Rosetted Restaurant and magnificent grounds
ensure that every wedding is unique and memorable. We have 31
luxurious en-suite bedrooms, all of which have been refurbished to a
5-star standard. Our newlyweds will receive a complementary bed and
breakfast stay in one of the four staterooms of their choice on the
night of their wedding.
We have several
function rooms to choose from which all boast a certain charm. Our
Hall is our popular Ceremony Room with its high, oak beamed ceiling,
grand fireplace and sparkling chandeliers. The Pavilion is the ideal
Wedding Breakfast room, able to hold over 300 people. Its white,
draping, starlit canopy with fairy lights and mood lighting
transforms the ambience to match the change from the day to the
night-time celebrations.
There is no better time
to book your wedding with us than now! Our Summertime Offer is only
valid until the end of August, so if you would like to take advantage
of securing your wedding day with just a £500 deposit, call 01772 80
40 40!
Burnley-born Jay Rodriguez has returned home after the Clarets
swooped to sign the striker from West Bromwich
Albion.
The
29-year-old, who began his career within the Academy at Turf Moor, has signed a
two-year deal for an undisclosed fee, with further one-year
option.
The
move completes the circle for Rodriguez, who left for Southampton in 2012 in a
then record deal, having scored 41 goals in 129 appearances during his first
spell with Burnley and earned England U21
recognition.
Rodriguez also earned a full England cap in 2013, when he appeared
for the Three Lions against Chile at Wembley
Stadium.
And
after putting pen to paper on his new deal, bringing to an end his two-year
spell with the Baggies, Sean Dyche’s second summer signing flew to Portugal on
Monday evening to join fellow new boy Erik Pieters and the rest of the Clarets
squad.
The
Burnley fans’ love affair with ‘one of their own’ was instant, from the moment
the rookie front-man graduated through the ranks to make the Burnley first team
in 2007.
Following a loan spell with Stirling Albion in the second half of the
season, he scored his first Burnley goal by grabbing the winner against Fulham
in the League Cup in September, 2008.
The
goals soon flowed, although Rodriguez was used sparingly during the Clarets’
first foray into the Premier League in 2009, following promotion via the
play-off final at Wembley where Rodriguez appeared as a late
substitution.
However, following relegation back to the Championship, Rodriguez
spearheaded the Clarets attack, and scored 15 times in the 2010-11 campaign and
landing both the Player and Players’ Player of the Year
awards.
The
following season, he scored 21 goals in total and won a place in the PFA
Championship team of the year and made his England U21 debut against
Italy.
By
now, however, his goalscoring exploits had attracted a number of admirers and he
became the Clarets then record sale when he was lured to newly-promoted Premier
League side Southampton in the summer of 2012.
He
scored 35 goals in five seasons on the south coast, where a serious knee injury
ruled him out of a shot at the World Cup in 2014 and sidelined him for over a
year.
In
the summer of 2017, he was again on the move to WBA in a four-year deal, where
his goalscoring exploits brought 33 goals in 84 appearances, including 22 goals
in the 2018/19 season to help Albion make the Championship
play-offs.
Now, Rodriguez is back where it all began, reigniting a love affair
with his hometown club as Burnley gear up for a fourth successive season in the
Premier League.
Councillor Kay Cutts, Leader at Nottinghamshire County Council, will welcome 150 delegates to a Summit to hear about the county’s plans to become a leading tourism destination. I will be one of the keynote speakers at the Nottinghamshire Tourism Summit at Rufford Mill where I will be joined by leading figures from the worlds of business, economic and visitor development, tourism and regeneration.
The Summit will highlight the County Council’s ten-plan to increase tourism by 20 per cent which in turn will create 2,900 jobs and boost the local economy by more than £240m. I am a proud resident of Nottinghamshire and I’d like the rest of the country to know just what this wonderful county has to offer in terms of our fascinating history and heritage, visitor attractions and spectacular nature reserves like Creswell Crags and Sherwood Forest.
Award winning Creswell Crags in Worksop is truly a hidden gem on our doorstep. The magnificent magnesian limestone gorge which is dotted with a large number of caves, fissures and rock shelters, harbours many secrets from our Prehistoric past. The siege of Newark Castle is a story that is not often told and the county’s involvement in the Civil War – it started in Nottingham and finished in Nottinghamshire – is a little-known fact. Nottinghamshire also played a significant role in the journey of the Mayflower Pilgrims, one that is charted at the Mayflower Pilgrims Visitor Centre in Retford, and one that will be celebrated from this November with various events.
Of course, the Summit is being held in the grounds of Rufford Abbey Country Park, a venue that is regularly voted the county’s favourite free tourist attraction, and we will have delegates attending from the DH Lawrence Museum, Thoresby Hall and Lord Byron’s ancestral home Newstead Abbey. A few weeks ago we commemorated the D-Day Landings, and we in Nottinghamshire have our own World War Two sites that honour our war dead.
The county has numerous airfields and crash sites that pay homage to Nottinghamshire’s fallen. So, there is no doubt we have the history and heritage to rival any county and we need to shout about it. As well as these attractions and venues we have sporting venues that are the envy of the world, topped of course by the world-renowned Trent Bridge. And why are we holding this Summit?
Quite simply, we want to unlock the potential of the visitor economy and the benefits associated with tourism. We want to create jobs and opportunities for local people. By increasing visitors to Nottinghamshire we increase the need for jobs, thereby improving local people’s prospects and quality of life.
Collectively we can make a difference and I hope today’s Summit is start of a journey that truly sees Nottinghamshire on the regional, national and international tourism map.
Are you 16-25, live in Padiham, and want to travel abroad to learn more about the world, but are stuck for cash? You could be eligible for a scholarship established by the late Mr Arthur Edmondson Quinn, who bequeathed a share of his estate, upon a Trust, to Lancashire County Council for the purpose of establishing a travel scholarship. This scholarship is designed to provide an opportunity for 16-25 year olds, in full time education whose parents live in Padiham, to travel abroad to expand their education.
For more information on how to appy, please see below. The closing date for applications is Friday 26th July 2019.
Last year more than 4,500 residents in Hawtonville, Newark, had the chance to receive free travel advice on their doorstep through the County Council’s Travel Choice scheme to encourage walking, cycling, public transport use and car sharing around the town.
This two-year scheme is funded by £845,000 from the Department for Transport, with local contributions from Nottinghamshire County Council. The project aims to help residents, businesses, jobseekers and school leavers to explore different ways to travel around Nottinghamshire and help to improve local air quality, improve access to employment, tackle congestion and promote a healthier lifestyle.
Of the 950 households in Newark that accepted the offer of personalised travel information last year, 65% of those surveyed stated the information they received was useful in helping them to consider their travel options and 32% changed the way they travelled as a result of the scheme, with more residents walking, cycling and driving less. Next month the Travel Choice team will be returning to Newark to support a further 4,500 households in New Balderton, Balderton and the Lincoln Road Estates to explore their travel options.
Postcards are being delivered to households in late June to let residents know that a travel advisor will be visiting in early July over a period of three to four weeks. Households will be given the chance to ‘opt-out’ so a travel adviser doesn’t call. Similarly, households can choose not to take part when a travel advisor calls. Following conversations with the residents, the Travel Choice team will send a free, personalised ‘travel pack’ full of local transport information and maps showing local walks, cycle routes and public transport offers.
Councillor John Cottee, Communities and Place Committee Chairman said: “We know that many residents are already making sustainable transport choices and are also improving their fitness by walking or cycling. I hope this free travel advice will motivate even more people to explore their travel options and make some small changes like leaving their car at home for short journeys, car sharing or giving public transport a go. “The County Council has a long-term plan to help promote sustainable transport and improve air quality. Encouraging more people to consider walking, cycling and catching the bus is a key part of this plan. “
The Travel Choice team is also working with students and jobseekers to support them into employment, apprenticeships or further education by informing them of various travel options. Local businesses are also getting involved with the chance for their employees to get advice, cycle training, wellbeing checks, cycle maintenance and other support to encourage them to choose healthy and sustainable ways to commute to work.
A similar scheme is being rolled out in Mansfield next month. For more information on the project or for help planning a journey visit http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/travelchoice or contact one of the Travel Choice team travelchoice@nottscc.gov.uk
