At the weekend, I suggested two possible actions:

1. To wear a badly made, shaggy, obviously false orange wig
2. To cut my hair short

Mrs Z considers only one of these options a possibility – otherwise my rating could be downgraded from ZZZ stable to considerably unstable.

In the meantime, I will luxuriate in what hair I still have.

COMBEbusiness

After standing up and speaking at a public meeting, I was elected to the committee and then voted chairman of a new business group in North Devon. Thanks to my fellow directors and support from members, COMBEbusiness has established itself to promote business around the Ilfracombe, Woolacombe and Combe Martin area of North Devon.

This has been an inspiring year and the turnout and participation at our monthly meetings has been phenomenal. In 2012 COMBEbusiness plans to provide tailored support and training for businesses in the area.

Ilfracombe courteous town initiative

Again, the response from business and residents of Ilfracombe has been tremendous. This pilot initiative, run by pleaseandthanks.co.uk and the National Campaign for Courtesy, has trialled a campaign to recognise courteous businesses in the town and focus on the positive aspects of business and work.

During the course of the initiative, I have met hundreds of people in business in the town and have been amazed by the response when people realise that someone has nominated them for an award to recognise their courtesy: it means so much to them.

North Devon 101 Apprentices campaign

In my role as business writer for the North Devon Journal, I had no idea how the North Devon Employment and Skills Board’s campaign to sign up 101 apprentices in 101 days would succeed. As it turned out, the commitment from North Devon’s employers, jobseekers, schools, colleges and residents was impressive. We beat the target and will be repeating the campaign in 2012. Watch out in the North Devon Journal.

North Devon Journal Business Awards

This was the first time that the North Devon Journal had run its business awards and again the response was enthusiastic. We met some great businesses and judging the winners was very difficult. The awards evening was a contrast to many other events in this time of economic uncertainty in that it focused entirely on genuine achievement and success.

North Devon Business Alliance

As a founding member of the NDBA, I’ve always enjoyed its friendly, professional lunches and events. Blogging, discussion on LinkedIn and interaction on twitter help to bring this vibrant business community together and in 2011 I’ve got to know even more business people across North Devon through the NDBA. In 2012 I look forward to getting to know even more.

Studio Theatre car boot sales

I also organised six fund-raising car boot sales for Studio Theatre on the seafront at Ilfracombe. I know many people love these and come from Bideford, Barnstaple and elsewhere because the atmosphere is so enjoyable. I was considering giving these up, but this week bumped into a car booter who thanked me and pleaded with me to run them again in 2012. I shall have to think seriously about this.

So thank you to all who have supported these organisations and activities and have made all the hard work in organising them worthwhile.

I plan to do some more gardening, DIY and things for myself in 2012, but already there are many projects and events in the pipeline for some of the above organisations above.

Let’s hope 2012 is even more successful!

Free parking is available in Ilfracombe for Christmas shoppers from 2pm to 6pm on Thursday 15 to Saturday 17 and Thursday 22 to Saturday 24 December 2011 at the following North Devon Council operated car parks:

• Jubilee Gardens
• Pier
• Wilder Road
• Cove
• Brookdale
• Oxford Grove
• Larkstone Lane
• Marine Drive
• Hillsborough

Anyone wishing to take advantage of free parking should check the machines and signage in the car park they are using to ensure it does apply.

At the moment the foxgloves are just coming into flower up Hillsborough . . .

While conkers are already forming on the horse chestnut trees near the swimming pool . . .

While nearby a starling hopped around on the grass . . .

Over at Bicclescombe Park, a collection of goldfish and other fish have mysteriously appeared in the boating lake. From what I have been told they are not supposed to be there and may be someone’s unwanted fish from a pond . . .

Not only is this production part of the North Devon Festival, but it is also part of the RSC Open Stages programme, which involves workshops with the RSC, mentoring and the chance to be selected to perform at the RSC at Stratford-upon-Avon. The play is directed by Bob Corwin and the cast features a number of younger performers as Studio Theatre aims to promote both Shakespeare and theatre generally.

You can book tickets online for performances at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe on Thursday 9 and Saturday 11 June  or call The Plough Arts Centre, Torrington for tickets on Friday 10 June.

The production promises enjoyment for those who already know Shakespeare and for those new to his plays.

To see them:

• walk from the harbour round to Hillsborough
• go via the car park by the swimming pool
• climb the cliff steps from Hele Bay

After our first batch of runner bean seeds failed to germinate (we did use last year’s seeds), I bought new seeds and they are just now starting to raise their heads above the compost.

The way they lift their ‘heads’ suggests it is a great effort . . .

The broad beans are also germinating as are marigolds.
The sunflower seedlings look a bit happier than they did several days ago . . .

Out in the garden itself, the comfrey is just about to burst into flower. The bees love these . . .

. . . and a small holly seedling, that really looked quite bare in the winter, is really putting on new growth . . .

It’s a marvellous watching everything emerge, stretch and grow in the garden.

This morning, in Bicclescombe Park, Ilfracombe in North Devon, I heard ducks squabbling down in the East Wilder Brook as it passes under a small bridge. I looked over the fence and saw a mother duck and her fleet of ducklings. Unfortunately, there were three male ducks trying to mate with her, explaining the noise as she fought them off.

Some blurred photos, taken with zoom lens while hanging over a fence with two spaniels on leads . . .

One of the park-keepers said they were born on Sunday. I counted 12. Before I could take any more photos, they swam under the bridge.

Meanwhile, back on the duck pond, this pair were doing some serious courting and a bit more when they weren’t being interrupted by other jealous suitors . . .

Expect more ducklings!

They’re at it everywhere . . .

Fortunately, we don’t take a ‘not in my back yard’ approach . . .

. . . as we hope it’ll work up their appetite for eating aphids.

Meanwhile, a bee decided to ignore these goings-on by drinking . . .

. . . from the apple blossom . . .

. . . while a robin landed on the fence looking very pleased with itself . . .

He’d got a takeaway in his beak . . .

It looked like an insect, but I couldn’t tell exactly . . .

It was certainly eat, drink and be merry in our garden this lunchtime.

This morning I spotted quite a few ladybirds on our two blackcurrant bushes.

I hope they are feeding off any aphids and pests.

I can see why they love the blackcurrant bushes as the flowers are wonderfully delicate.

As well as the ladybirds, there were quite a few beed feeding off the flowers, although they would not keep still enough for me to get a photo so I just snapped the ladybirds.

I did catch this bee feeding on the heather flowers.

And just had to snap the bluebells all coming into flower.

There’s so much going on in the garden at this time of year.

Posted via email from robertz

This morning the apple blossom opened up . . .

I hope the number of flowers means we will get lots of fruit this year!

This morning I saw bluebells flowering in Bicclescombe Park in Ilfracombe, North Devon . . .

The magnolias are also blooming too in a variety of colours . . .

It’s a wonderful spring for blossom. All the trees are heavy with petals . . .

All we need now are lots of ducklings on the pond!

. . . and in the park . . .

The new shoots on a rather sorry-looking holly cutting . . .

I could say I haven’t got time to stop for this, but what I would really be saying is I haven’t got time to live.

It’s the best time of year.

. . . and six seedlings have germinated in our shed nursery.

Sunflowers are fun to grow and produce seed for birds or to eat.

So join in the competition and see who can grow the tallest sunflower.

Follow on twitter at @twunflowercomp and on facebook.

This pigeon landed in a tree in Bicclescombe Park in Ilfracombe, North Devon, looking very pleased with himself. He had a twig or something similar in his beak, possibly nesting material.

He seemed to think he could not be seen, but I had my camera . . .

I think he spotted me and didn’t look very pleased . . .

. . . but he was up in the tree and I was on the ground where no one could reach him.

I took his photo, thanked him, then walked on.

It’s such a bright, delicate flower and so uplifting.

It makes a drive down the lanes even better than usual . . .

. . . and we’re lucky to have a few plants in our garden too.

We also have too tiny tomato seedlings.

The accidental nectarine seedling is also now established in it pot and is growing fast . . .

Snowdrops are lasting well too . . .

The daffodils are now in full bloom . . .

. . . a shy primrose peeps out from a heather . . .

. . . the camellias produce a superb display . . .

What more could you want?

The daffodils in Bicclescombe Park just get better each day and I couldn’t resist taking a few close-up photos.

There’s nothing more full of life to bring us cheer!

. . . a peacock butterfly.He did not seem to happy to be woken up and ‘buzzed’ at us by rubbing his wings together.

What to do? We had removed his winter sleeping quarters.

Now you see him . . .

. . . now you don’t!

We moved him outside into the sun on to a honeysuckle box hedge . . .

. . . where he woke up and then flew away.

Hopefully, it’s mild enough here in Ilfracombe, North Devon for him to survive. Apparently, they live for up to a year.

. . . and found the root connected to a seed which had fallen out of a fruit stone. It’s either an apricot or nectarine stone which must have found its way into our compost heap and then got transferred to the trough for growing tomatoes. I hurriedly potted it.

If this seedling grows, will it need a second plant for pollination to produce fruit?

. . . along the beach. Nothing quite like it. Today we walked along Woolacombe Beach to Putsborough and had a welcome cup of tea at the beach hut there, admiring the views . . .

See the full gallery on Posterous

. . . then climbed among the rock pools. I love the pinks, purples and greens of the rocks and stones . . .

See the full gallery on Posterous

Wonderful for the few of us on the beach enjoying the sea this afternoon . . .

Posted via email from robertz

It feels and looks like spring in the park as everything wakes up.

The daffodils are blazing across the grassy banks . . .

. . . although the snowdrops are a little more subtle . . .

Even a robin sits in a magnolia tree to survey the park . . .

. . . and the ducks are pairing up and getting frisky.

Spring’s arriving.

Posted via email from robertz

Pussy willow is bursting out again. It amazes me every year.

And other trees are producing leaves and shoots too.

Something new appears every day at this time of year.

Posted via email from robertz

Lately I seem to have spent too much time in business meetings and on committees discussing and making plans. Now planning can be valuable – it helps us identify what we want to and can achieve, recognise our limitations and spot possible risks and how to deal with them – but it can also be a powerful excuse for putting off action: “We can’t do that until X does this, Y does that and Z has been completed.”

Planning takes place inside our heads, a comfortable environment where we control the results: A leads to B, which leads to our goal of C. Once we take a plan out of our heads and put it into the real world, F, G, H and Q can intervene, some of them completely unexpected. It’s much safer to run a plan in our heads than risk it all going wrong when put into action, but this means we won’t achieve our objectives.

I’ve never been happy just to sit on committees as I like to see action. So that’s my focus at the moment: getting plans out of my head and into the real world to achieve what I want and maybe encounter adventures along the way.

How about you?

Posted via email from z2zine

I couldn’t have asked for a lovelier February morning.

At Bicclescombe Park Ilfracombe, North Devon, the sun seemed to want to play tennis . . .

. . . while a sleepy pigeon blinked in the bright morning light.

The trees are blushing with blossom . . .

. . . and the Wilder Brook in full flow.

In the distance, sheep are grazing on the Torrs . . .

. . . while the sun lit up the Round House on the Cairn.

What a great way to start the week!

Posted via email from robertz

As well as uncovering its ancient historic past as a hill fort, the work clearing vegetation from Hillsborough is making it easier to appreciate different views of Ilfracombe, North Devon, especially the harbour.

We were up there this afternoon in glorious sunshine and, luckily, had my camera with me. I should have taken a tripod as a northerly wind off the sea made it difficult to hold the camera steady. Nevertheless I hope these photos give an idea . . .

It’s good to see construction of steps to make the paths easier to climb. All in all, it is making Hillsborough not only more interesting, but even more enjoyable for residents and visitors alike.

Posted via email from robertz

In the past few days daffodils, snowdrops and primroses have flowered in our garden.

It’s a wonderful sign that spring is within sight . . .

. . . and an indication of all the colour to come after the bleakness and grey of winter.

Posted via email from robertz

I just had to climb up Capstone Hill, Ilfracombe today.

It was worth it, even on a grey day.

The sea, the sky, the statue . . .

. . . commemorating Ekaterine (Kate) Frolov, who fell to her death from Hillsborough, the hill in the background, in 2000.

And, looking South, Ilfracombe itself.

Posted via email from robertz

The alarm clock seems to have gone off for many plants which are springing to life.

At Bicclescombe Park in Ilfracombe, North Devon, we have blossom on trees, blooming daffodils and snowdrops in flower.

In our garden the chives, mint and lemon balm are waking up.

Camellias, fuschias and hyacinths are also emerging . . .

. . . and crocuses and heather are blooming.

A wonderful time of year.

Posted via email from robertz

Last weekend, this chap (or girl) arrived.

At first, he didn’t appear to be accepted by the other ducks and was hiding in a bush, but now he is swimming with all the other ducks in the duck pond.

What do the other ducks think about the new muscovy duck?

This duck appeared quite happy . . .

Posted via email from robertz

Peace. Sometimes silence, stillness, harmony, serenity: all sanctuary from head-piercing, rushabout insanity.

Born under aircraft screaming on descent to Heathrow Airport, I have always cherished peace. Although I used to sleep untroubled by any noise – planes, traffic, trains – perhaps all my tolerance has now been consumed.

I loved quiet from an early age. I can remember the loud timekeeping of our cuckoo clock when, occasionally unable to sleep as a child, I went downstairs in what seemed to me the middle of the night, but to nightbirds was still early. The slow, wooden rhythm of the clock’s tick tock emphasised the silence in between. As much as it tried to help time pass, all stood still to that small boy.

My first memory of what seemed total silence is of a school history field trip to Shropshire. Returning from an evening in a rural pub to the unwelcoming centre where we were staying, I remember noticing the total absence of motion and background noise: no planes, no traffic, no hum of town and machinery and motors.

Then, at university, I luxuriated in the solitude of winter’s day walks by the fountain in the Inner Circle of Regent’s Park. In those days Bedford College’s classics department was appropriately based in St John’s Lodge and I purposely arrived early to walk in the park. The rustling of the trees in the wind masked the traffic noise from nearby Marylebone Road and Baker Street. Was I really in the middle of London?

Then several decades of whirlwind activity, buzz and noise: working at Heathrow, in London, in town and city . . . until there was no peace.

On a Sunday morning in our house a mile west of Windsor, the first aircraft flew in to land about 6.30. Another followed every 90 seconds to two minutes. I couldn’t relax on a Sunday morning. I wanted peace. The time had come to move.

Always a city boy, I had dreamt of living in the countryside for many years. And so we moved 200 miles west to Ilfracombe in North Devon. 50 miles from a motorway instead of 2. 60 miles from an international airport instead of 7 or 8. Not much traffic, not many people. It is calm and quiet.

On a Sunday morning, on any morning, I can wake up and hear nothing outside. I can relax.

Is life boring? No, there are many challenges, much to do and much to be done in this town.

But I have found peace.

Posted via email from robertz

And if you want even more ideas on what to do, where to eat and stay in Ilfracombe, see visitilfracombe.co.uk.

I am biased, but then I moved here because I love it.

It sounds industrial, unappetising and harmful, like something you’d use to repair a pot-holed road, smear on a rash or apply to a vegetable plot.

I eat butter and accept no alternatives. Admittedly, not a lot of butter, but I’d rather have the real thing or nothing.

Over the past 10 years or so, we’ve reduced the amount of butter we eat considerably. I love butter on hot crumpets, melted into toast or mashed into fluffy potatoes, but realise that the rest of my body probably doesn’t appreciate it as much as my taste buds.

This morning I calculated how much butter I eat a week: 2 oz (50g). This just happens to be the weekly adult ration in the Second World War. Rations also included 4 0z (100g) of margarine and 4 oz (100g) of cooking fat per week. We don’t use the former and use far less of the latter.

In the war, recalled Marguerite Patten, who worked at the Food Advice Division of the Ministry of Food, people tended to be very healthy, even if menus were somewhat monotonous. Apparently, infant mortality declined and the average age of death from natural causes increased. Dr Alan Borg of the Imperial War Museum suggested that the introduction of more protein and vitamins and the reduction of meat, fats, eggs and sugar played a part in this.

I definitely don’t want to go back to rationing, especially one egg a week or having to use powdered egg, but I like the concept of a simple, healthy diet. I also feel it’s important to be able to enjoy food, even if it’s not eating treats all the time. That’s why I eat and enjoy butter, but not all the time.

Whatever the weather, whatever the season, it’s always a beautiful part of South West England.

We hope to see you soon.

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See visitilfracombe.co.uk for even more details.

Would you like to appear in Studio Theatre’s June 2011 production of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream? Performances will take place at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe and at the Plough Arts Centre, Torrington in North Devon as part of the North Devon Festival.

Audition dates are:

If you are 16 or above, you can audition for one of the many roles. This production will feature actors across a broad age range, from the young lovers upwards.

If you are interested, please familiarise yourself with the play before the audition dates. Although you may not be asked to read for a specific character at the auditions, please let director Bob Corwin know what role(s) you are interested in.

Rehearsals will start in March and there will be two open workshops in February.

This is a big production with lots of opportunities.

If you would like to know more about the production or cannot make the auditions, please call Bob Corwin on 07733 080768.

Seem more details at studiotheatreonline.org.uk.

Posted via email from robertz

However, today Mike Turton gave us the news that the recycling company that has been collecting the bottle tops he collected will no longer do this as it’s not worth their while.

Does anyone know of any other way of recycling this waste?

Events conspired to keep me out of the garden for much of 2010, although early preparation did lead to a bumper crop of tomatoes, runner beans, apples and blackcurrants.

A review of the garden after the snow and ice reminds me there’s a lot to be done.

I am also surprised at how advanced the hydrangeas are already; their buds are quite big and I hope they don’t think that because the December snow and ice have gone that spring is just round the corner.

The camellias do not seem to have so many buds, but it’s early yet.

One of the apple trees should have been pruned back in the autumn and, while I’ve given it a quick trim, I think I’ll wait until later in the year as there is a lot of winter left to get through.

So the main focus for 2011 in our garden is to get back on track.

Posted via email from robertz

What is essential in life? Not just desirable, but really essential. What would you miss a lot, if you couldn’t have it?

I started thinking about this when I was in hospital earlier in the year. Not having eaten for days, I was desperate for a cup of tea. I realised that it was one of the things that made my life special.

When I have my  life’s essentials, most other things don’t matter.

Family, friends and pets matter more above anything else. After them, establishing everything that is important in my life. Everything else is either a pleasant bonus or inessential.

Let’s see what they are . . .

Posted via email from robertz

Pointing the finger is easy; it’s identifying the right target that is more difficult.

That’s why the rush to blame bankers, not only for the financial crisis but pretty much everything else that’s wrong with our economy and public finances, makes me feel uneasy. There’s no denying that the banks appear to operate in a fantasy world with little relation to reality, but then the government’s light-touch regulation let them get away with it. Consumers also happily bought into financial products that were very high risk. How many times I remember people talking about self-certification mortgages which bore no relation to their actual finances.

If the banks were wrong to develop risky products, no doubt identified by market research as what customers wanted, should consumers have been more careful in choosing them?

The culture of greed and something-for-nothing stretches beyond the world of banking. We wanted, or want, cheap everything. We moan about lost jobs, dying manufacturing, yet quibble over a few pence or pounds to buy something cheaper. This inevitably means manufacture in a country where employment conditions and wages would not be acceptable to us.

And house prices. How many delighted in accumulating wealth as the value of their properties rose to perviously unimaginable heights? Despite several years of being assured that the economy would have a ‘soft landing’, again I remember countless people expressing views that it was unsustainable and that a severe correction was likely: just ordinary people, not economists.

Perhaps responsibility for our situation is more widespread, but uncomfortable to admit.

I wonder what part I played.

Posted via email from robertz

Everywhere I look I see patterns in the frost and cold.

Here are just a few from Bicclescombe Park, Ilfracombe, North Devon.

Posted via email from robertz

Last week the teapot lid broke, disrupting the smooth operation operation of this household.

Now we have a replacement, a traditional Brown Betty teapot, and tea making can resume as it should.

Tea is one of my essentials: it starts and ends each day.

In August this year, when I was in hospital for an unexpected operation, I lay there dreaming of a cup of tea, as each time the trolley passed by my ‘nil-by-mouth’ bed. At last, I was given a hot mug and, afterwards, in my post-aneasthetic haze, I wrote:

“That first cup of tea. After five days. Scared of the heat. Waiting for it to reach the perfect temperature. First sip: warm, sweet, heaven. Sip after sip, seeping into me slowly, bringing me back to life. Each sip savoured for its restorative bliss. A connoisseur’s cuppa, produced from industrial teabag, metal teapot and mixed with plastic bottled milk: a cup of tea I shall treasure for years.”

After that, I’ll never take a cup of tea for granted.

Posted via email from robertz

While many humans stayed at home during the cold spell, I spotted these industrious characters at Taunton Deane services on the M5, no doubt touting for titbits.

I’m no expert on birds, but I think they’re rooks. Anyway, good luck to them. They can show us a thing or two about getting on with life in the cold.

Posted via email from robertz

North Devon is a beautiful place in which to live and run a business, but it’s not always so easy to do the latter.

There are a number of initiatives under way to help businesses in Ilfracombe.

Ilfracombe Business Forum

After two public meetings, moves are under way to establish the Ilfracombe Business Forum to provide the town’s businesses with a voice.

Why is this important?

Well, at the moment, when a council or other agency makes a decision, there is no often no representation from the town’s businesses to express their views. A forum would enable businesses to voice both their concerns and requirements. Also, with public sector cutbacks, future developments in the town will have to be driven by business.

A further meeting is being scheduled for January 2011, but I have volunteered to help get details of as many businesses as possible so all can be invited to the meeting to decide how the forum should be constituted and what should be its aims.

If you would like to be involved or kept informed, please send me your email address at rob…@z2z.com. You details will be forwarded to Transform, who are coordinating the process, although the Ilfracombe Business Forum is attended to run itself once established.

Workhubs research

North Devon+ is currently funding research into whether Ilfracombe needs a workhub. A workhub would provide office facilities, support services and other help to home-based business and new and other businesses.

Again, this research requires as many businesses as possible to participate, so please visit devonworkhubs.co.uk and complete the survey. (Devon Council County is funding research into Barnstaple and is asking businesses there to participate too.)

Participating in both programmes could help us move to building a stronger economy in Ilfracombe and North Devon.

Posted via email from robertz

The recent rains have fuelled the streams and rivers in North Devon. Travelling from Ilfracombe to Barnstaple this past week has involved driving through flooded roads and lanes, whichever route was chosen.

In Bicclescombe Park, the East Wilder Brook is flowing fast and I was reminded of some video footage I took in July 2009. I’ve just looked it out and uploaded it.

The park is always an interesting place at any time of year. Most of the time the brook, the millstream it feeds and the duck pond and boating lake are peaceful and still, but when the torrents rush down from the hills to the sea, the turbulence is impressive.

It is easy to see why the mill, now tea rooms, was built here and I wonder why we no longer use this source of energy.

Posted via email from robertz

Such a beautiful day, although the ducks in Bicclescombe Park this morning did not too lively and one stared me out . . .

How do they manage to withstand the flow of water?

Everything seemed so sharp and the trees stood majestically in the sunlight . . .

Later on, as the sun went down, it became chillier and greyer, but still clear enough to snap views of Ilfracombe and the fishing boats in the harbour from up Hillsborough . . .

Posted via email from robertz

It’s been a dry year in comparison with last year when we we’re having our roof replaced, but today we had some impressive rain in Ilfracombe with thunder and lightning and hailstones.

Having got drenched taking the dogs out in the morning, I was prepared to get drenched again this afternoon, but I was spared.

However, the contrasting bands of light and dark and the drama in the skies were fascinating.

Posted via email from robertz

. . . as Peter Fairchild loved to.

We came across this brass plaque on a bench while out walking with our dogs this afternoon.

We hadn’t seen Peter for several years as he had gone into a nursing home. Before that he used to walk his dachshund, Chalkie, up Hillsborough in Ilfracombe to a spot near where this bench is to sit and look out over the town.

He seemed such a gentle man and would always enjoy a chat. Apparently, he had been a keen sailor when younger, but could no longer manage to climb to the top of the hill. On Sunday afternoons he would be joined by two of his friends on the bench. It’s fitting that he is remembered on this spot where on a summer evening his parting words would be: “Enjoy your tea.”

We remembered him at tea this evening and will do whenever we walk past his bench.

Posted via email from robertz

. . . worth getting up at 7am to prepare from the dough made last night . . .

. . . served with butter and home-made jam.

Now they are nowhere to be seen!

Posted via email from robertz

. . . I saw the sunrise from Hillsborough in Ilfracombe and took some photos as it was a beautiful morning . . .

Then I came down the hill the other side, overlooking the town, harbour and St Nicholas Chapel and lighthouse, which is the oldest working lighthouse in the UK . . .

Posted via email from robertz

The news that the M4 bus lane, so closely associated with John Prescott, is to be scrapped reminded me of a painting which it had inspired me to ‘create’. This was back at the turn of the millennium when I wondered whether I would be capable of producing anything with paint, brush and paper that could in any way interesting or entertaining.

With no training whatsoever but with the images of traffic on the M4, North Circular Road and M25 imprinted on my mind, the bus lane leapt out of my brain, down my arm and into the brush. Whether it managed to make the final step on to the paper, who knows?

I sort of like the result and so do some members of my family, but dreams of multi-million pound auction picture sales faded and my paints and brushes now lie gathering dust.

I did enjoy doing it and it reminds of long, afternoon art lessons at school when it was usually raining as we listened to art teachers who were interesting and eccentric. Perhaps I should get paint and brushes out again and just dabble for fun.

Posted via email from robertz

See photos of Studio Theatre’s and Small Pond Production’s forthcoming North Devon premiere of Mack and Mabel at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe on 14-16 October 2010.

See more details at studiotheatreonline.org.uk and book tickets at the Landmark Theatre online or from the box office on 01271 324242.

Posted via email from robertz

Posted via email from robertz

Hydrangea . . .

Fuchsias . . .

Daisies . . .

Posted via email from robertz

. . . looking east from Hillsborough in Ilfracombe . . .

. . . and looking west . . .

. . . taken on 24 September 2010 in North Devon

Posted via email from robertz

. . . different views of Ilfracombe and the sea a beautiful colour today.

Posted via email from robertz

Views of the MS Oldenburg approaching Ilfracombe Quay on an autumnal afternoon plus one of the harbour. Beautiful whatever the time of year and weather.

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Small Pond Productions and Studio Theatre are staging the North Devon premiere of Mack and Mabel at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe on Thursday 14, Friday 15 and Saturday 16 October 2010. This is the major production of 2010 and is being funded solely by the two companies.

However, the cost of staging such a big production – with a large cast, orchestra, a large backstage and support team and professional stage set – is considerable.

To help us bring this high quality production to North Devon, we seek sponsorship from local businesses to support it.

Sponsorship options

£40 sponsorship of principal cast member with business contact details printed in programme and repeated with a clickable link to sponsor’s web site from studiotheatronline.org.uk

£15 sponsorship of company member with business contact details printed in programme and repeated with a clickable link to sponsor’s web site from studiotheatronline.org.uk

Bigger sponsorship oppportunities – eg stage set – available by agreement.

Ilfracombe and North Devon businesses have always been generous in their support of the companies’ productions and we are grateful for all support provided.

To sponsor Mack and Mabel, please complete and return our sponsorship PDF below or call Robert Zarywacz on 07971 176044.

Production details

For details of the production visit Studio Theatre’s Mack and Mabel pages and to book visit northdevontheatres.org.uk

Posted via email from robertz

Studio Theatre and Small Pond Productions present the North Devon premiere of Mack and Mabel in October 2010.

Out of the silent movie era and the heady heights of 1920s Hollywood a, the classic musical Mack and Mabel features the Keystone Kops and bathing beauties. Classic songs include: Time Heals Everything, Look What Happened to Mabel, Tap Your Troubles Away and I Won’t Send Roses.

From the writer of Hello, Dolly! and Le Cage Aux Folles.

Directed by Lee Baxendale. Choreographed by Pamela Beecham.

For more details and cast photos visit see-this.co.uk regularly.

Performances will take place at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, North Devon on:

8.00pm Thursday 14 October 2010
8.00pm Friday 15 October 2010
2.30pm Saturday 16 October 2010
8.00pm Saturday 16 October 2010

Call the Landmark box office on 01271 324242 or book tickets online.
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For details of all other Studio Theatre productions and activities visit studiotheatreonline,org.uk

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The fruit has ripened later this year up Hillsborough in Ilfracombe and there are lots of lovely berries ready for jam making.

On the whole, we’ve had a good year for fruit with good crops of apples, raspberries and blackcurrants.

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Ilfracombe in North Devon will be awash with maritime activities for all the family from Friday 10 to Sunday 12 September 2010 when the second SeaIlfracombe festival celebrates the town’s sea heritage from Iron Age origins to the present.

Offering an eclectic programme of some 40 events over three days, festival goers can sample gig rowing and kayaking in the sea, try out diving in the swimming pool, explore rockpools on secluded beaches, eat their way round the town on guided food trails and enjoy music, entertainment, films, exhibitions and more.

Packed into this small town are a working harbour with trawlers and its own wet fish shop, intimate beaches and coves, a varied selection of vibrant restaurants, bars and pubs, a museum, aquarium, theatre, lifeboat station and a high street filled with interesting, independent shops.

From morning to night during SeaIlfracombe, Ilfracombe’s Gig Club, Compass Club, Dive Club, H20 and Canoe Club, Sea Cadets, RNLI, churches, associations and residents will together host activities aimed at every age and interest. Whether you want to get physical rowing on the sea or prefer a more relaxed culinary tour, the thrill of spotting hidden wildlife or the chance to dance the night away, there is something for everyone.

Watch for Orcas from the height of Capstone Hill, carouse at the Pirate Ball, enjoy pirate fun at the Kiddies’ Disco or listen to performances by the town’s own LaLa Choir and Male Voice Choir as well as by international folk artist Heidi Talbot, backed by John McCasker and Boo Hewerdine, at the Landmark Theatre.

There will be floral exhibitions of the sea, art displays from the town’s college, the chance to explore the classic passenger ship MV Balmoral plus plenty of individual musical performances, street entertainers and opportunities to enjoy the best of North Devon food. From seafood landed in the harbour to a range of the finest local produce – not forgetting Devonshire cream teas and fish and chips – there is something to tickle everyone’s taste buds.

For details of the SeaIlfracombe programme, download the attached PDF brochure or see the events calendar below. Book many events from the North Devon Theatres box office on 01271 324242.

Download now or preview on posterous

sea ilfracombe 4pp A5 2010 low res.pdf (857 KB)

Visitors to Ilfracombe are offered a wide choice of accommodation, from luxury hotels to quality guest houses and bed and breakfasts to self catering cottages, holiday parks and caravan and camping sites. For a choice of accommodation in Ilfracombe, see visitilfracombe.co.uk or call Ilfracombe Tourist Information on 01271 863001.

Posted via email from robertz

Posted via email from robertz

The fruit has been growing for ages, it seems, but the tomatoes are finally starting to ripen.

Looks like being our first good crop for quite a few years after rain spoilt previous crops.

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This evening’s fiery orange light mixed with a rainstorm produced these effects . . .

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It’s seeming to take forever, but soon we could be there. The smallest of our four sunflowers has now overtaken the other three and is now some 10ft tall, adding three or four inches every day. Flowers are slowly developing so I’m hoping they’ll be out soon.

Posted via email from robertz

This sunflower was the smallest when planted . . .

. . . now it is almost 7ft tall and just forming a flower.

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Summer comedy, song and dance entertainment for all the family in North Devon

Starts at 8.15pm on Mondays 26 July, 2, 9, 16 and 23 August. Tickets £8.

Book tickets on 01271 324242 or online.

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The welcome rain is giving everything a rush.

The apple trees need a summer prune, although the apples are coming along nicely.

The tomato forest in the shed is reaching the roof and fruit is forming and growing.

The runner bean wall is covered with flowers and beans are forming . . . I’ve pinched out the tops.

Raspberries are having to be harvested daily.

Approaching a delicious time in the garden as so much comes to fruition.

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Studio Theatre’s production of this hilarious, fast-moving comedy tells the story of attempted infidelity as it causes misunderstanding and mayhem and ends up with everyone getting their just desserts.

Set in the Sixties in a West End fashion salon, Oowner Gilbert Bodley and his hapless assistant, Arnold Crouch, lurch from mishap to catastrophe with barely time to draw breath. Loyal secretary Miss Tipdale does her best to keep them out of trouble with some hilarious results. Confusion reigns and it doesn’t help that behind every cupboard door there lurks a flimsily-clad young woman.

Written by Ray Cooney and John Chapman. Directed by Anne Bacon.

Performances are on:

• Sunday 25 July
• Sunday 1 August
• Sunday 8 August

Performances start at 8.15pm with tickets at £8.50.

Call the Landmark box office on 01271 324242 or book online.

Cast of Not Now Darling

The cast of this farce includes Pamela Beecham, Bob Corwin, Larry Fabian, Skye Lucas-Banks, Zoe Mundell, Tony Parker, Su Scott-Goldstone, Rod Vass and Sandi Wildash-Daws.

For full details visit studiotheatreonline.org.uk

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I’m not sure anyone can beat @llamakevin ‘s magnificent field of sunflowers. Our tallest one continues to grow, but no sign of a flower yet . . .

However, the tomatoes are really coming on: lots of flowers and fruit forming.

We could be tomato-ed out in a few weeks.

Posted via email from robertz

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The sunsets over the past week have been remarkable . . .

. . . so many colours, so many shades . . . simply breathtaking skies.

Posted via web from robertz

Posted via web from robertz

I just wish I could slow time down at this point of the year. From April to June everything seems to grow so fast. The poppies have come and gone in a blink and our wild rose has almost finished flowering.

Now the flowers on the bushes are developing into flowers. The raspberries look good . . .

. . . and so do the blackcurrants . . .

As you can see, I’m a practical gardener and love plants that provide produce. The runner beans are starting to flower, although still have a way to grow up the wall, and the tomatoes are too.

So while it will be wonderful to eat the beans and tomatoes, and make jams and puddings, I don’t want the summer to pass by too fast.

I do enjoy flowers though and think the colour of these (haven’t a clue what they are ) is stunning . . .

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I go away for three days and look what happens . . .

Were these the beans that Jack swapped for the cow?

These are the first sunflowers I’ve grown successfully so I’m quite pleased. The fun of the @twunflowercomp is watching the sunflowers grow . . . and grow . . . and grow . . . and grow . . .

Can’t wait for the flowers!

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Wild foxgloves are just coming into flower this year up Hillsborough in Ilfracombe . . .

. . . but the paths are also starting to become overgrown.

Last year, the foxgloves and blackberries were cut down savagely before they had finished flowering. I do hope that North Devon Council, their contractors or whoever is responsible for tending this area can apply some common sense this year by trimming long grass and weeds without butchering all the flowers. Surely, landscape professionals should be able to exhibit expertise in this area. Isn’t that what they’re paid for?

Otherwise, locals, dog-walkers, walkers and visitors won’t be able to enjoy the marvellous natural beauty at its best.

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Three days away and the sunflowers have shot up . . .

They obviously enjoy the combination of warmth, light and rain . . .

. . . although I’d like to know who is munching away at the leaves.

Who else is growing sunflowers? Have you entered the sunny sunflower @twunflowercomp on twitter? It’s just for fun.

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Our poppies are almost horizontal . . .

. . . but generally plants seem to be the better for the water and now the temperature is rising again . . .

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. . . even after a couple of glasses of red wine or maybe even because of them.

I can’t get enough of these long, light evenings . . .

. . . and we need to treasure them when it’s cold, wet and stormy and we think we haven’t had a summer, because we’re having it now.

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Everywhere is blue this morning.

The sea as I looked across Larkstone Café and Leisure Gardens to the sea . . .

The sea and sky from Hillsborough . . .

Who could want anything more?

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It’s a wonderful time of year when so many plants start to flower . . .

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They’re flowering thick and fast . . .

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Out with the dogs and camera this Bank Holiday morning up Hillsborough snapping away . . .

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Are you growing sunflowers? Have you entered the Sunny Sunflower Competition 2010 on twitter at @twunflowercomp?

This is one of our four sunflowers in our garden.

How tall will it grow? Will it be a winner? We’ll have to see.

Follow the @twunflowercomp.

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The garden has been rather neglected in recent weeks due to business commitments and theatre productions, but luckily many plants look after themselves.

This summer our two red poppy plants promise a magnificent display. The original plant has over 10 heads starting to flower, while the second plant, which grew from a piece of root left when we moved the original plant, has about 20 heads.

The poppies always look so cheerful and the colours inside are as vibrant as those on the inside. They really make me feel that summer is here.

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It’s a noisy election and on a national scale seems more unpleasant than other elections. It will be interesting to see how accurate the media and chatterers are about the outcome. I don’t think anyone can be sure.

What do I think? From a national perspective I believe we need a strong government that will have the guts to tackle some of the country’s problems as fairly as possible. Some of the decisions it will need to take will not be popular and there will be pain: we are in a mess and getting out of it will be hard work.

From a local point of view, I believe North Devon needs an MP who will represent everyone in the constituency and fight for the area. A desperate lack of investment in towns and infrastructure over decades needs correcting. Who will battle with their party, with Whitehall, with any of the establishment to achieve this?

That’s what I’ll ask any candidate who knocks on my door.

They only make hot cross buns for a short period so they remain special, unlike the unimaginative supermarkets who peddle them all year round.

Once again, we delighted in the fluffy, light dough and currants, accompanied by butter, some by homemade jam, and a mug of fresh coffee.

What is is this? A competition to encourage people to grow sunflowers for fun . . . nothing more.

I’ve planted some sunflower seeds outside and some inside. Following a gardening tip, rather than buying peat plant plugs I put some compost into half a toilet roll inner with some newspaper to stop it falling out the bottom.

Today the first sunflower inside raised its head, although still with its seed ‘hat’ on.

The fun is starting.

If you want to join in, all you need is a packet of sunflower seeds, which you can plant inside or out and a digital camera so that you post photos.

As well as twitter, there is also a facebook Twunflowercomp page.

Good luck!

I don’t argue with the intentions, but once again we see government aiming to introduce poorly drafted, heavy handed measures that will impact on all dog owners. I have no concerns with micro-chipping: both our dogs are micro-chipped. I have no concerns with the concept of insurance, as both our dogs are insured, although it presents another opportunity for the insurance industry to raise premiums for existing policyholders.

What does concern me is that the people most likely to keep dogs as weapons or for fighting are unlikely to micro-chip their dogs or pay for insurance. If the dogs are kept for illegal purposes, do they ever get taken to a vet unless seriously ill? And who will police this, checking dogs are micro-chipped and insured? There are not enough services provided for dogs at the moment: most dog warden provision is purely an exercise in collecting revenue for councils from dog fouling with no real concern for the state of dog poo bin collection or anything else.

Presumably, using a dog as a weapon involves intimidating people or committing other crimes. Are there not existing laws to prevent this? Why aren’t the police taking action?

Unless human beings want to eradicate every form of life that creates any inconvenience, which includes every living thing that’s not human, we should recognise that dogs are living creatures needing exercise, stimulation and the chance to lead a life free from cruelty. At the moment, government and councils are anti-dog, seeing them as a source of cash from fines.

Most problems with dogs are caused by people: people who let their dogs foul pavements, who probably also drop litter which can harm both wildlife and young children who pick it up. I am sick of picking up dangerous litter dropped by humans. Last week a dog walker told me he had extracted a blunt Stanley knife blade from his puppy’s mouth dropped by kids. Problems are also caused by people who use dogs as weapons to back-up their own aggressive, malicious or illegal activities. They are a bigger problem than the their dogs.

These proposals seem to be yet another excuse to push the bigger, more fundamental problems aside, and appease the tabloids by doing something which sounds tough. If the people concerned knew they couldn’t get away with it, they wouldn’t keep aggressive dogs or use them the way they do. But they do know that they can get away with it. They know the police won’t stop them. They know that they can do anything they want.

So instead of dealing with the real problems, police and council officials will be fining ordinary dog owners for any reason they can think of.

My recommendation: focus on people and apply existing measures so that the perpetrators know they cannot break the law, ignore police and, what’s more, cannot abuse the dogs, which suffer most.

]]> http://www.robzlog.co.uk/amusing/will-government-unleash-another-pitbull/feed 0 http://www.robzlog.co.uk/amusing/shhhhhhhhh-i-want-peace-and-quiet http://www.robzlog.co.uk/amusing/shhhhhhhhh-i-want-peace-and-quiet#comments Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:28:31 +0000 robz http://www.robzlog.co.uk/?p=2367 What is it about unceasing noise and activity that is so exciting? I don’t know. I’ve lived and worked in London, was born under the Heathrow Airport flight path, have been jostled by crowds at big events and on city streets, have listened to the unending rumble of distant traffic, so I’m well acquainted with hustle and bustle, but I’ve always sought peace and quiet.

I can remember as a child not being able to sleep on occasion and going downstairs and listening to the quiet in between the ticks and the tocks of our cuckoo clock. When I was lucky enough to attend lectures and seminars at St John’s Lodge in Regent’s Park, I loved walking around the pond and fountain in the Inner Circle in the winter when it was deserted. Who could have believed that Baker Street was so near? And so now I revel in the peace and tranquility of North Devon, 50 miles from the nearest motorway and even further from the nearest airport.

Exciting? A meaningless, empty word used by announcers on television and radio when they want to attract a younger audience. Usually it’s an empty promise. A lot of running around and making a noise does not guarantee excitement and sometime it can be just tiresome.

Exciting is seeing the first pussy willow unfurl, cooking a recipe successfully the first time or anything that means something to you. Noise and activity are not obligatory.

Perhaps some people like peace and quiet more as they get older, but I’ve always appreciated it. And I need it to enjoy the excitement of life.

What to do with these?

It’s that time of year when some people tire of brussels sprouts, but the Victorians knew what to do with them: turn them into soup.

I experimented by making Saxe-Coburg Soup and lived to tell the tale.

Melt 2 oz of butter in pan and add a small onion finely chopped and cook for 10-15 minutes. To this add 12 oz of peeled and finely sliced brussels sprouts and 2 oz of finely chopped ham, stirring until all the butter has been absorbed. Season with salt, pepper and 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg and then sprinkle and mix in a tablespoon of plain flour.

Gradually add 2 pints of vegetable stock or water (the sprout flavour is strong enough to use water if you haven’t got stock). Bring to the boil and simmer for 6 minutes, then sieve or blend the mixture and return it to a clean pan.

Heat the soup, adding another 2 oz of ham cut into thin strips and 1/4 pint double cream, then serve.

It has quite a subtle flavour and a lovely texture, similar to asparagus soup. The above measures make 4 good-size servings.

The Saxe-Coburgs ruled in Brussels – was this a Victorian joke?

The Vicar of Dibley, hm.

Christmas, hm.

And now a New Year.

Hm.

Life has been busy. Even Christmas has been busy . . . with family and friends, with sorting out all the accumulated things to sort out that have piled up because of work and theatre, work and theatre and life and everything else.

So it’s not been much of a rest, which I usually like at this time of year, but it feels great to be in control again. There is hectic and hectic and I prefer hectic to hectic, although control is even more preferable.

And I did relax a bit . . .

. . . on Woolacombe beach.

So now I aim to write more and add more to the novel.

I hope you had a good Christmas too and wish you a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

Yesterday we lit our Advent calendar (thanks, Neil) for the first time, an event I find helps put everything into perspective.

Like many, I’ve had a hectic, challenging year and look forward to slowing down at Christmas and enjoying time with loved ones. It’s also a good time to reflect on all around, appreciating what I have, not what more I want for Christmas. More of this or that doesn’t necessarily improve life.

I also aim to resume publishing Candyfloss and Pickles, which has halted briefly, while Oh, What a Lovely War! and Vicar of Dibley productions have dominated life.

So here’s to simplicity, Christmas, Life and day two of the Advent candle!

Even the East Wilder Brook that runs through Bicclescombe Park in Ilfracombe is swollen.

It changes from still pool to torrent with no warning . . .

. . . and although not very deep has the power to drag along anything in its way.

It commands my respect.

Yet many people dismiss the theatre because of its external appearance. I have to agree that the building’s exterior does not thrill me, but it’s really the facilities inside that really matter. We’re lucky as a small town to have a theatre like this and we should value it. It would be very easy for funding to be cut and it would not surprise me, although it would sadden me, if in a few years time we had to fight to keep the Landmark open.

If it did close, no doubt those people who grumble about it would grumble even more about the town and the lack of things to do.

Let’s be glad we’ve got the Landmark, a cracking theatre and a draw for visitors to North Devon.

In the meantime, we’re looking to see all these seats filled on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 November.

As for keeping myself trim . . .

Breakfast on the Morning Tram - Stacey Kent

From the very first note she sang it was clear that those of us lucky enough to be in the audience at the Plough Arts Centre, Torrington last night were about to experience two hours of the most sublime singing from Stacey Kent along with husband, composer, producer and saxophonist Jim Tomlinson and backed by an accomplished trio on piano, bass and drums.

Never knowing whether an artist performing live will match up to the expectations created by recordings, I have to say a shiver went down my spine in these opening seconds and on other occasions during this performance.

The set list was broad and varied from American show standards, such as ‘Easy to Remember’ and ‘If I were a Bell’, to the Latin ‘Samba Saravah’ and ‘Corocovado’.

The sign of a great performer is the appearance of effortless and Stacey made every song sound so easy with her perfect vocal control and diction a joy to hear. Another accomplishment is her ability to create her own version of songs, such as ‘Surrey with the Fringe on Top’ and ‘What a Wonderful World.’

Much of the material was from Stacey’s most recent album, ‘Breakfast on the Morning Tram’ including the title track as well as ‘I wish I Could go Travelling Again’ and, one of my favourite numbers of the night, ‘The Ice Hotel’. Jim got an opportunity to shine with an instrumental version of the theme from ‘Alfie’.

Songs were interspersed with Stacey’s often rambling, bubbly accounts of her life, experiences of recording, learning Portuguese, her new album currently being recorded and lots more. I’m certain the audience could have sat entranced for another two hours as the time passed so fast.

Did the night live up to its promise? With a mix of American, Latin, French and Portuguese songs all performed with enthusiasm, sensitivity and emotion, I’d say it did. I’ll definitely look out for future performances in North Devon.

Studio Theatre’s production of Oh, What a Lovely War! at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, North Devon combines the songs that united the ordinary soldiers of the Great War with a wry look at the politicians and officers in charge of the carnage.

Set as a pierrot show, projected images and shocking statistics of the war on the Western Front contrast with the comedy action taking place on the stage in this 1960s satire which achieved West End success.

Throughout the action the ensemble cast sing well-known songs including Belgium Put the Kaibosh on the Kaiser, Hold Your Hand Out
You Naughty Boy, Goodbye-ee, Row Row Row, I’ll Make a Man of You, It’s a Long Way to Tipperary, Christmas Day in the Cookhouse, Sister Susie’s Sewing Shirts for Soldiers and Oh, It’s a Lovely War, many with humorous lyrics adapted by the soldiers in the trenches.

See the volunteers struggle to learn combat drill, watch the Tommies mingle with their German counterparts during the Christmas ‘truce’ and gape at the great European nations as their monarchs, politicians and generals stumble into the morass resulting in four years of pointless trench warfare.

First staged in 1963 and devised by Joan Littlewood and the Theatre Workshop, Oh, What a Lovely War! was influenced by the late Alan Clark’s military history ‘The Donkeys’ as well as by ‘The Good Soldier Svejk’ by Czech humourist Jasoslav Hasek.

Studio Theatre’s cast of 20 share the roles of soldiers, nurses, monarchs, generals, officers, secret police and more from the pre-war empires of Europe, accompanied on the joanna by Mike Riley and commanded from the safety of the auditorium by director Lee Baxendale.

Thursday 5 & Friday 6 November 2009, 7.45pm

Call the box office on 01271 324242 or book online at northdevontheatres.org.uk

Visit studiotheatreonline.org.uk for full details

Lemon suprise

Cream 2oz of butter and 3 1/4oz of caster sugar, then add grated zest of a lemon.

Add 2 egg yolks, 3 tablespoons of lemon juice and fold in 2 tablespoons of plain flour.

Mix in 8 fl oz of tepid milk.

Whisk the two egg whites plus a pinch of salt, then fold into the mixture.

Transfer to a dish and sit in an oven tray with warm water lapping the sides (but not too high) and cook at Gas Mark 4 for 30 minutes.

Great fun . . . hope to see them all again next year!

Ilfracombe promenade at twilight

It’s a time of it’s own, fleetingly breath-taking in beauty . . .

Ilfracombe seafront at twilight

And as the sun sinks slowly below the horizon, you couldn’t wish for anything better.

Ilfracombe seafront as the sun sinks

PS More novel updates tomorrow.

Based on three different episodes of the popular BBC TV series written by Richard Curtis & Paul Mayhew Archer,  and presented by special arrangement with the writers and Tiger Aspect Productions, the stage show features Debbie Hadley as the Vicar supported by Pamela Beecham, Mike Bennett, Laurence Butler, Tony Scarratt, Ted Turner, Elena Wright and Robert Zarywacz and is directed by Lee Baxendale.

Book tickets for performances on the Landmark web site:

• Friday 18th December 2009 8.00 pm evening- Tickets £10; family ticket £36
• Saturday 19th December 2009 3.00 pm matinée- Tickets £85.0
• Saturday 19th December 2009 8.00 pm evening – Tickets £10; family ticket £36

Buy 10 tickets, get 1 free
Only available for evening performances by calling the box office (not online).

or call the box office on 01271 324242.

For more details and cast photos, visit the Small Pond Productions Vicar of Dibley web site at dibleyonstage.co.uk.

A glitzy revue of showstoppers from the most successful musical theatre duo ever. Featuring songs from their classic shows, including:

• Carousel
• Oklahoma
• South Pacific
• The King & I
• The Sound of Music

Join the cast members of Studio Theatre – Rachel Forbes, Debbie Hadley, Elizabeth Kemp, Julie Moore, Elena Wright, Laurence Butler, Neil Rudd and Stuart Thompson – for an enchanted evening as they fly on a bright cloud of music singing a few of their favourite things!

• Sunday 9 August 2009 – Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe
• Sunday 16 August 2009 – Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe

Performances start at 8.15pm.

Tickets £8.50. Family ticket: £28.00. Call the Landmark box office on 01271 324242.

When You're Smiling II @ Landmark Pavilion

Studio Theatre recreates film, radio comedy and musical stars who kept Britain smiling through the war years in a fast-moving tribute show.

Family fun and laughter in a cabaret-style setting at the Landmark Pavilion, Ilfracombe, North Devon.

Monday 3 August 2009
Monday 10 August 2009
Monday 17 August 2009
Monday 24 August 2009

Tickets: £7.

Book When You’re Smiling II online or call the Landmark box office to book on 01271 324242.

See details of all Studio Theatre’s summer productions at studiotheatreonline.org.uk.

Hobson's Choice @ Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe & Croyde & Pilton, North Devon

Studio Theatre will be staging Harold Brighouse’s comedy, Hobson’s Choice, at

• Friday 24 July 2009 – Pilton Church Hall – tickets on the door £7
• Sunday 26 July 2009 – Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe – tickets £8.50. Family ticket: £28.00.
• Thursday 30 July2009 – Croyde Village Hall – tickets on the door £7
• Sunday 2nd August 2009 – Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe – tickets £8.50. Family ticket: £28.00.

Book Landmark tickets online or call the Landmark box office on 01271 324242.

Set in 1880s Salford, Henry Horatio Hobson is a successful shop owner selling shoes made by his employee Will Mossop. Hobson rules his household with a rod of iron, but when his children and shoemaker rebel, what choice is he presented with? Discover the hilarity of his dilemma as Studio Theatre brings this delightful Lancashire comedy to life.

Many will remember the famous film version starring Charles Laughton, John Mills and Brenda De Banzie, and Studio Theatre’s cast bringing the play to life on stage features Alan Bailey, Matt Cann, Larry Fabian, Carla Morgan, Lisa Morgan, James Morrison, Jason Morrison, Sara Pruce, Tony Parker, Peggy Strudwick, Rod Vass and Fenella Watson.

Visit Studio Theatre online for more details.

I’ve taken hundreds of photos, but not had time to post any, so here is a short video clip . . . watching them has been delightful.

A thorough drenching on the way there – it’s your fault, Glastonbury! – wasn’t an ideal start, but the arrival of Bonzos Roger Ruskin Spear, Rodney Slater and Sam Spoons, plus pianist Dave Glasson and guitarist Andy Roberts, soon had the audience and my clothes steaming.

From the start, classic Bonzo numbers honked out of Rodney’s and Roger’s saxes – Cool Britannia, Jollity Farm, Hunting Tigers – and the compact but enthusiastic audience joined in without prompting.

Roger Ruskin Spear, directing the proceedings in a manic, forgetful but totally entertaining manner, introduced his infamous electrified implements and robots on many of the songs. Reaching out into the audience as far as the mike lead would allow, he asked us the original questions preceding Shirt.

Unbelievably, I got the chance to shout a right answer – I knew memorising those words would be more useful than my degree – and was awarded with a signed certificate, as were other studious participants. This was followed by a solo on the electric shirt collar, while Trouser Press featured the electric trouser press and the theremin leg appeared on Noises for the Leg.

Across the stage Rodney Slater blew a mean sax, played washboard on Mr Slater’s Parrot and performed a mixture of new and old numbers, including Senior Moments and Ginger Geezer, the latter in tribute to the late Vivian Stanshall.

Sam Spoons lived up to his name with several virtuoso performances on the spoons, including electric spoons on Monster Mash. A country and western performance of Purple Sprouting Broccoli also included the audience in a sing-a-long.

As well as the three advertised Bonzos, we also got a free one: Vernon Dudley Bohay-Nowell. Uncle Vernon bewitched us with a stunning cabaret magic trick, held us spellbound with a children’s story and charmed us with an enchanting rendition of Marlene Dietrich’s Falling in Love Again, complete with solo on the musical saw.

The audience got into the full spirit of the show and were in stitches most of the time, whether at Roger and Sam with their human ventriloquist act, when joining in the lyrics of Viv Stanshall’s Tent and Big Shot or from the hilarity of the Music for the Head Ballet.

Organised mayhem ensured the whole show remained refreshingly rough at the edges, so that the evening flashed past in continuous laughter.

Three Bonzos and a Piano (33% extra free) should have packed out the Landmark because they were well worth seeing: I have the certificate to prove it.

Go and see www.threebonzosandapiano.co.uk

2 tablespoons clear honey
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon sherry (I tend to add more)
black pepper
4 chicken breasts, diced
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
12oz potatoes, peeled and cut into fine strips
1 red pepper, cut into strips
1 green pepper, cut into strips
1 carrot, peeled and cut into strips
1 head of broccoli, cut up (optional)
1/2 pint chicken stock

Mix the honey, soy sauce and sherry together and season. Add the chicken and marinate in fridge for 1/2 hour or more.

Drain chicken, reserve the marinade. Lightly fry chicken and ginger for 3 minutes in frying pan or wok for 3 minutes (or as long as required). Add remaining vegetables and stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Pour in stock and reserve marinade, bring to boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until potato is tender and chicken cooked through.

Preceded by Ilfracombe’s town crier and followed by a procession including drummers and morris dancers, the revellers made their way to the seafront.

A good crowd turned out to watch the celebrations . . .

. . . including the world’s tallest person or shortest lamppost . . .

Then we enjoyed the beer festival in the Landmark Theatre and the music . . .

This weekend the Landmark Beer Festival is in full swing and on Monday 4th May, the Jack-in-the-Green celebration takes place with children dancing round the Maypole, morris dancing, music and, of course, Jack-in-the-Green himself welcoming summer.

In addition, Ilfracombe Victorian Celebration launches its 24-page colour 2009 programme packed with over 50 Victorian-themed events from 6th to 14th June 2009. Committee members in Victorian dress will be distributing copies and they will also be available through local outlets in the run-up to and during the week-long celebration.

You can download a PDF version of the programme (2.8 Mb) or view details of all events on the online events diary at the Ilfracombe Victorian Celebration web site.

. . . followed by some gardening perhaps . . .

. . . maybe not in this hail and rain . . .

How many different types of weather can we have in one day?

Ah well, there’s plenty of other things to do inside.

I paid a hurried visit to support the event, which was well-attended by children from the town’s schools, Ilfracombe Victorian Celebration and the High Street traders themselves.

I took a few snaps from the side, but I’m sure the Journal photographer will have got better ones with all the details of the teams . . .

And to round the day off we had pancakes for tea!

]]> http://www.robzlog.co.uk/ilfracombe-north-devon/ilfracombe-pancake-race-2009/feed 0 http://www.robzlog.co.uk/ilfracombe-north-devon/ilfracombe-high-st-pancake-race http://www.robzlog.co.uk/ilfracombe-north-devon/ilfracombe-high-st-pancake-race#comments Mon, 23 Feb 2009 12:31:56 +0000 robz http://www.robzlog.co.uk/?p=1091 Top marks to Ilfracombe High Street Traders who are taking the initiative to revive the annual Pancake Race on Shrove Tuesday 24th February 2009 11.00 to 11.30am in Ilfracombe High Street, North Devon.

In these over-regulated days, closing a high street for half an hour is beyond the means of mere mortals, so the Traders have achieved a lot to get permission to cordon off the lay-by oppositie Pedlar’s. Contact Robert McFarlane on 01271-862031 for more details.

Which leads me on to . . .

Will you be eating pancakes this Shrove Tuesday? We will!

I had a belly buster – two eggs, jumbo sausage, bacon and beans plus toast and tea. Sometimes food just doesn’t get any better.

The menu ranges from fish and chips to breakfasts, cottage pie and chilli with rice (I think), so there’s quite a range.

We don’t have a fry-up often, but Rainbow Corner Café comes recommended by me for the food, bright and clean decor, and friendly service. It’s on the corner of the High Street and Northfield Road, opposite the Ilfracombe Centre.

Ilfracombe is so lucky to have such a wide range of restaurants and cafés offering pretty much anything you could want.

We’ll certainly be going again, although maybe for a cup of tea rather than a belly buster – got to think of my waistline.

Coincidentally, we organised some fund-raising car boot sales along the seafront last year. Everyone loved it – sellers, buyers, locals and holiday-makers – because it provided a focus. From my observations, I concluded that the seafront needs a covered shelter where the old pavilion used to be. This would provide shelter from the wind, which comes straight off the sea, as well as creating a covered space for craft stalls, entertainers, musicians and a café. The area desperately needs dedicated public toilets – people are always asking where the nearest ones are – in the Landmark Theatre, if it’s open, or on the Quay, which is 10 minutes or so walk. I’ll happily take the £80K offered to develop this proposal.

Seriously, Ilfracombe needs companies with imagination to handle this. The natural beauty of the seafront is astounding and needs imaginative and sympathetic management.

We used to live in Windsor, a charming place once, but now full of plastic bars and cafés with no feeling of authenticity. At least the castle has been there longer than five minutes.

I agree that bad service in terms of poor quality food, dirt and unhelpfulness is damaging, as I remember from many years ago when measuring airport customer service performance as a member of British Airways’ Quality Team. But I also think excessive standardisation and the simpering from staff with idiotic grins on their faces, which some mistake for good service, are just as damaging. 

Many of the best hotels, guest houses and restaurants I remember have been quirky. Some of them even had their own rules, like a gentlemen’s club. If the service, accommodation and food is superb, then what’s wrong with a few rules? Better than places which try to please everyone and end up getting everything wrong. Recently, in Oxford, we were asked if we had any special requirements as we requested a table in a lookalike restaurant we had mistaken for another one. “No, we’re just two normals,” I replied.

A little quirkiness added to an otherwise superb venue can add an element of exclusivity too.

So don’t worry about reasonable rules, as not every establishment can hope to deliver everything: better that it does what it can do superbly. I know guest houses with rules who get people coming back again and again, because the rules enable the owners and staff to achieve excellence in the defined service they offer.

I hope UK venues don’t standardise too much and throw away the characteristics that create the best possible experience.

By 1978, when Octave was released, the world had moved on and so had the Moody Blues. Founder member Mike Pinder and producer Tony Clarke left during the recording, so when I first heard a new album by the band there was a question mark over their future direction. The album seemed to lack the intensity of their earlier work and seemed to echo some of the solo albums recorded by each of the five members. And that’s how I viewed Octave for many years.

When I heard that the album had been remastered, I grudgingly added it to my wish list. The recently reissued seven core albums are fantastic, but I doubted whether Octave would be so good.

I was wrong.

The remastering, by Justin Hayward himself, has transformed the album and brought it to life for me. The Moodies have always written well and are fine musicians and singers, both recorded and live. Their performance on Octave doesn’t let them down and I now have some of the songs going round in my head.

Ray Thomas’s I’m Your Man used to be my least favourite track by the band, but now I listen with enjoyment. The extras include a live version of the track, which is even better.

John Lodge’s bass work is also more apparent. My appreciation of him as a player grows year by year and I think he is grossly under-rated, as are all the Moodies.

Driftwood, Survival and One Step into the Light are other favourites from a time when each of the five members would contribute songs to create a true group effort, whereas now songwriting is left to Hayward and Lodge. The five extra live tracks are also a great demonstration of how the band deliver powerful performances in concert.

So, while I usually view reissues and repackaging with some suspicion, I am so glad I have Octave. It was certainly worth the 31-year wait to hear it as it ought to sound.

squiggly lights of Ilfracombe harbour before the dawn

Anyway, this morning I took out the one-legged-tripod-thingy, but still my hands shook in the cold. But I did get this . . .

Ilfracombe harbour at dawn

. . . and this one looking across to Wales . . .

Looking across from Ilfracombe to Wales at dawn

Worth getting up in the dark to see.

We’re lucky to have independent retailers who supply good quality food fresh without most of the shrink-wrapping you get from supermarkets. It certainly makes a difference to start with basic foods already full of flavour. Here’s my top 10 favourites, which I have eaten and drunk again this Christmas. 

1. Fresh turkey from Mike Turton’s family butcher, Ilfracombe High Street. Yes, we’ve had roast dinners, leftover dinners, sandwiches, salads and, soon, turkey stew, but it’s still lovely. It tends to be a once-a-year purchase for most people, so why do people have to grumble about it?

2. Christmas bread from The Pantry, Ilfracombe High Street. Even better than their ordinary fruit bread, this had cinnamon and spices in. We bought one loaf, then had to have another. As good as their hot cross buns, which, quite rightly, they only make a few weeks before Easter.

3. Home-made pickled onions. Yes, they fared all right in the shed and have a real crunch to them. Not as good as the ones I remember from my grandmother, but not bad.

4. Home-made fruit cake. Everyone tends to have their own favourite recipe and this one is based on my mum’s. I had to make two cakes and give some up to the family!

5. Home-made red cabbage. Another family recipe passed down from my other grandmother. Red cabbage cut into strips and boiled in alcohol, white wine vinegar and water, along with chopped cooking apple, lots of cloves and a great deal of sugar. The aroma defines Christmas dinner for me.

6. Home-cooked bacon joint. Delicious locally-reared bacon joint from Mike Turton’s family butcher, Ilfracombe High Street. Boiled, then baked with the rind removed, the fat scored and coated with marmalade and pricked with cloves.

7. Home-made mulled wine. I didn’t make this so don’t know the precise spices, which we get from Nana Sue’s Sunfoods in llfracombe High Street. It certainly warmed us up before Christmas dinner!

8. Aspall’s Premier Cru Cider. I’m getting to prefer drinking this to champagne, which some say was developed from English cider-making.

9.Lorenz Saltletts Sticks. A personal tradition going back many years, but for me Christmas Day would not be the same without them. I prefer German makes to others.

10. Gourmet Mulatte coffee beans from the Algerian Coffee Stores. Ground freshly to make a beautifully smooth cup of coffee.

Woolacombe, Devon in the evening sunlight on Boxing Day 2008

. . . and the light was wonderfully clear . . .

Woolacombe, Devon in the evening sunlight on Boxing Day 2008

. . . and as the sun went down . . .

The waves of the incoming tide on Woolacombe Beach, Devon on Boxing Day 2008

. . . the views got better and better . . .

Sunset over Woolacombe, North Devon on Boxing Day 2008

. . . who could ask for anything more?

Apparently, the Capstone Hotel has been bought and is to be refurbished as a boutique hotel, while Whitbread is apparently looking at a site for a new hotel or an existing hotel to redevelop. Following on from Damien Hirst’s bed and breakfast venture and Wetherspoon’s go-ahead to redevelop the Collingwood Hotel, this is very good news for the town, which needs investment in its dwindling hotel stock.

While the setting is beautiful, the town has great charm and the community is wonderful, there is no denying that Ilfracombe needs hefty investment to re-invigorate it. This news could not come at a better time. We have some fantastic businesses here, including some very good hotels, B&Bs, restaurants and shops – and many of the owners work tirelessly at what they do – but this should good everyone a boost.

And just before Christmas too!

Now, I’m a bit of a stick-in-the-mud when it comes to sausages and find some of the exotic recipes over the top, but I love these orange and ginger sausages.

We’re so lucky to have adventurous retailers who not only sell excellent quality, local food, but are also innovating.

Definitely worth trying next time you’re passing through town.

Apart from my commitment to publishing daily instalments of Candyfloss & Pickles here, I am also appearing in stage shows as well as writing sketches and material for performance. Then there’s family life, dogs, oh, and business.

The year ahead is going to be a challenge for everyone, so as the gales wail outside our house I have been tidying up, organising myself mentally, physically and electronically, and keeping an eye on my fitness.

Now I’m not a sports or fitness fanatic and consider going to the gym a waste of time that could be spent far more productively. As well as walking our dogs, I’ve just started the 5BX programme originally created for the Royal Canadian Air Force. This appeals to me because it needs no equipment and just requires 11 minutes of exercise each day at your own pace.

So with Clare Evans‘ Time Management for Dummies book organising my business and creative life, the 5BX programme keeping me fit and our dogs keeping me sane, I believe I’m prepared as I can be for what the near future can throw at me.

Scary, eh? I mean, being so prepared.

It's Christmaaas at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe

Book your tickets today by calling the box office on 01271 324242 or book online at www.northdevontheatres.org.uk. All tickets £9.

In the garden, some plants are still flowering from summer and autumn.

Hydrangea in Ilfracombe flowering in November

 Hydrangeas and fuchsias are still flowering . . .

Fuchsias flowering in Ilfracombe in November

These are quite sheltered so are protected from the winds . . .

Devon Dumpling fuchsias flowering in November in Ilfracombe

Look at these vibrant berries . . . I don’t know what the shrub is . . .

Autumn berries

And the heather is just starting to come into flower . . .

Heather coming into flower in November in Ilfracombe

We don’t seem to have had a summer this year, but there’s still much to enjoy throughout the other seasons.

The other evening, the cloud appeared to end over Lundy as it rose up out of the sea.

Lundy Island seen rising out of the sea from Ilfracombe, Devon

It was a murky evening, a bit like tonight, but the view was still stunning. The wind was blowing and the sea lashing at the rocks. Beautiful.

So what did I want for lunch today?

Delicious plunge pie from Mike Turton Family Butcher, Ilfracombe, Devon

You’ve guessed it!

A lovely meal in itself on a chilly November day.

Last night was no exception. After seeing a patient with a tumour whisked into surgery without any reference to administrators, waiting lists or staff availability and laughing incredulously after a patient recovering from surgery asked when he was going into theatre – no pain, no discomfort, no memory of the checks they should make before jabbing you with a knife – I turned off and set to writing the next section of my novel.

So I made profitable use of my evening after discharging myself from Hobly. I won’t be going back.

But my copy of Clare Evans‘ Time Management for Dummies remains on my desk and the pile of things to sort is reducing and the to do list is shrinking.

After all, it takes time.

I can’t remember how many years we’ve been doing this, but it all started with exasperation at the standard of most pickled onions on sale and lingering memories of those my grandmother used to make.

So a couple of hours hard graft, including several minutes of onion tears (which pass quite fast), produced 11lb of home-made pickled onions according to Ruth Mott’s recipe, which includes black treacle and Demerara sugar. 

Home-made pickled onions

Last year’s onions have lasted well and there are two left, which coincidentally I shall consume tonight, along with some chips which I’ll be cooking as a treat.

Halloween? One of these pickled onions will certainly put the wind up you!

The East Wilder Brook running through Bicclescombe Park

The East Wilder Brook runs through the park down a number of miniature waterfalls.

The duck pond in Bicclescombe Park, Ilfracombe

The boating lake, where the model boat club members sail their vessels on a Sunday morning, looked particularly serene.

The tree-lined model boat lake in Bicclescombe Park

And the tree-lined avenue between the boating lake and tennis courts was still relatively leafy for this time of year.

Tree-lined avenue in Bicclescombe Park

There are reminders everywhere of our milder, seaside climate and even the sheltered hydrangeas are still in bloom.

The milder climate of Ilfracombe in evidence at Bicclescombe Park

In warmer months you can enjoy afternoon tea at the old water mill, which still operates.

The water mill tea rooms at Bicclescombe Park, Ilfracombe

It’s no surprise that Bicclescombe Park has been awarded a Green Flag. All in all, it’s a lovely park to visit.

This morning as I walked through the park, I noticed that one of the wooden benches had been dumped in the boating lake. It’s half-term so not surprising if bored youngsters get up to mischief. But it’s not just harmless pranks: the damage is serious.

Up on the highest level of the park is a wooden shelter with a thatched roof. Youngsters often shelter in here at night when they have nowhere else to go (who minds this?), but why do they have to damage it by pulling wooden panels off it and sometimes burning them? At the moment it seems they have been damaging the thatch and, to stop this, an ugly fence with a steel grille is being erected at one side to prevent access to the roof.

In recent years a brand new concrete all-weather tennis table was wrecked by vandals within weeks of being installed, while young trees are often damaged.

I don’t think there’s any excuse for this behaviour. I didn’t understand mindless vandalism when I was a teenager and I don’t understand it now. I can understand people being bored, angry, frustrated and in need of stimulation and encouragement, but not wrecking the good things that are provided.

The authorities don’t seem to bothered, focusing instead on painting yellow lines on the lovely stone steps in case someone falls down them, erecting intrusive barriers to reduce the numbers of people drowning in the stream (I’m not aware of any), and putting up half a dozen maps of what is a very small park in which it would be quite a challenge to get lost.

The council uses cotton wool when the youngsters want challenge, excitement, adventure and stimulation.  

I feel angry at the damage and angry at those who do it, although I understand there are problems which cause this. I was lucky enough never to have to spend my time on the streets at night when a teenager and I believe no one should have to do this, but it’s not always the case. Providing facilities for bored youths is not necessarily an easy answer, having seen brand new, purpose-built play and sports areas in other towns wrecked by vandals with weeks of opening. No, the problems are more deep-rooted, which is a shame because it’s sad to think of these nocturnal battles during the daylight enjoyment of Bicclescombe Park when it is a delight for families, the elderly, children, dog-walkers, model boat enthusiasts, tennis players and others.

Should it put anyone off going there? Definitely not. It’s as safe as anywhere, especially in the daylight, and I’d recommend Bicclescombe Park to anyone, even bored youngsters, as long as they respect it.

But somehow it’s easy to feel cheated. We didn’t get those long, lingering sunny evenings when it seems to take forever to get dark.

And here we are, just having put the clocks back, and taking the dogs out earlier so that they can get a good run in the daylight.

I’m not getting depressed though: I love autumn and winter. They bring a different beauty to spring and summer, so here’s looking to the enjoyment of different seasons.

PS Looking back over my photos this year, here is one of my favourites of Exmoor ponies, taken in March 2008.

Exmoor ponies photographed by Robert Zarywacz in March 2008

Boats lifted out of the harbour on to Ilfracombe quay

It’s also a sign that most of the holiday-makers have gone and the town is back in the hands of residents, who can enjoy its beauty in the winter months.

It’s not all peace and quiet though, as it’s the only time that many of those in the tourism industry have to enjoy themselves after spending the summer season working all hours of the day.

Ilfracombe quay in October 2008

It’s a wonderful time to enjoy the town and countryside, even when the sea and sky are grey, it’s raining and the wind is howling. Certainly beats the M25.

The Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe under a full moon

All the line learning, all the preparations, all the singing practice, all the dancing, all the costumes, all the rehearsals: everything is now coming together for Thursday.

The set of Me And My Girl at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, Devon

Suddenly, the magic is appearing and everyone is being transformed into the 1930s world of Hareford where the show is set. Even the seafront at Ilfracombe took on a magical appearance under the moonlight . . .

The promenade at Ilfracombe, Devon in the moonlight

I just can’t wait until Thursday night!

The Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, Devon

From Thursday 16th to Saturday 18th October 2008, two Ilfracombe theatrical groups, Small Pond Productions and Studio Theatre, will be staging a spectacular version (we think) of Me And My Girl. With a hired stage set, a cast of 37 and an 11-piece band, it should be a great evening’s entertainment.

See Me And My Girl at the Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe, Devon

I’m biased, of course, because I’m playing Parchester, the family solicitor, but I genuinely do think this will be a great show and appeal to many people with such songs as The Sun Has Got His Hat On, Leaning On a Lamppost and The Lambeth Walk. Oi!

Book your tickets from the Landmark Theatre box office.

Apples ripening in the sun

While an apple bought from a supermarket may be bigger, rounder, shinier and smoother than one straight off a tree that is bumpy, misshapen or smaller, it’s unlikely to offer the same full flavour.

Green apples on the tree

When you pick them, you know that these apples have not been sprayed with chemicals or transported by chiller van: they are fresh.

Greensleeve apples picked and eaten in September

They really don’t take much looking after, but their taste cannot be beaten.

September sunset over Ilfracombe

I know I posted photos of sunset and sunrise only a few days ago, but after a wet and cloudy July and August, it seems like the summer we feel we have missed . . .

Breathtaking September sunset in Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . truly spectacular.

A similar sight introduced me to Ilfracombe in 1969 when my family arrived by train and at the hill-top station were greeted by the sun dancing on the sea: a powerful image, both then and now.

Ilfracombe quay on Monday 15th September 2008

It doesn’t matter that the sun’s not shining or that it’s cloudy, there’s always a lot to see and enjoy. But when the sun is shining . . .

Ilfracombe quay on Friday 19th September 2008

. . . it’s fantastic.

We’ve had beautiful mornings this week. Yesterday was sunny and clear . . .

Looking eastwards up the Bristol channel from Hillsborough

Even the moon was reflected in the water beneath the quay yesterday . . .

Moon reflected in the sea at Ilfracombe

So even though there is a lot of bad news about the economy, it’s on mornings like this that I appreciate and am grateful for what I have got and the simple pleasure of enjoying the beauty around me, especially as the sun rises . . .

Sunrise at Ilfracombe on Friday 19th September 2008

I don’t get happy clappy, but it’s moments like this that give genuine inspiration and hope.

Ilfracombe twilight

Sometimes the dying day blazes behind the Torrs . . .

The departing day blazes behind the Torrs

 . . . and all I can do is . . .

Ilfracombe sunset

. . . marvel.

The funfair on Ilfracombe quay

After what has not been the sunniest of summers, it’s good to see the funfair . . .

The funfair on the quay at Ilfracombe

. . . and the sea so calm on a clear September evening.

Adult elephant hawk moth on a fuchsia

This year we found this chap (or lady) on a different fuchisa bush . . .

Elephant hawk moth caterpillar eating fuchsia leaves

This bears out what the books say about elephant hawk moths liking fuchsias . . .

These fuchsia leaves are tasty!

He was still chomping away a few days later . . .

This elephant hawk moth caterpillar has a hearty appetite for fuchsia leaves

. . . so perhaps next summer we’ll see him as an adult?

Yes, today was beautiful, so after pruning fuchsias, we went for a walk up Hillsborough with the dogs and started blackberrying.

Blackberrying can be infectious. It’s all right, you don’t need an inoculation, but once you start you seem to be enticed into all manner of brambles and stinging nettles which attack your hands, arms, legs and every other part of your body. It doesn’t matter as long as you get to that one really juicy, ripe blackberry you have seen.

We arrived home with a good haul . . .

Freshly picked blackberries from Devon

Then, once all the accompanying travellers had been removed from the fruit, into the pan they went . . .

Freshly picked blackberries in the pan

 Boil’em up with sugar and smell that wonderful fruit!

Making blackberry jam

Once it’s reached setting point, bottle it . . .

Blackberry jam reaching setting point

. . . and once it’s cooled and set, it’s ready to eat.

Delicious!

Runner beans grown and eaten in Devon

But at long last our crop is ripening and picking has begun.

Runner beans growing in spite of a cold, wet August

Our first meal reminded us how delicious home-grown runner beans are: sweet, tender, not at all stringy. Where else can you find such wonderful vegetables?

Exquisite tasting beans

Only in your vegetable garden or plot.

Home-made fish cakes and chips with pickled onions

So simple to make too: mix the cooked white fish and mashed potato, adding salt, pepper and a few parsley leaves, then mould into a long roll. Slice the fish cakes, dip in beaten egg and coat with home-made breadcrumbs. We use the end slices of a loaf from our baker’s, The Pantry in Ilfracombe High Street, bake them in the oven and grind in a blender. 

The chips are also made from local potatoes, peeled and chopped thick.

Deep fry the fish cakes very hot for five minutes or until ready, then keep warm in the oven, while frying the chips for 15-20 minutes.

The fish cakes are deliciously light and fluffy inside and crisp on the outside. I eat mine with home-made pickled onions, but choose whatever accompaniment you prefer.

We chose a fruity Regatta from Stanlake Park, so refreshingly free of the chemical after-taste (and headaches) of mass produced wines, as the perfect white wine on this occasion.

A potentially dangerous meal if eaten too often and if you’re not careful when deep frying, but lovely to enjoy as a treat with common sense and an otherwise healthy diet.

I got the impression that there were less floats than previously, but the standard was superb. It was a great spectacle for holiday-makers and residents alike and all in aid of St John Ambulance Brigade.

So I was waiting for some of the cast of the Studio Theatre and Small Pond Productions joint production of Me And My Girl to arrive with our advertising banner – the show is on at the Landmark Theatre from 16th to 18th October 2008.

And here they are . . . 

Here’s Uncle Tom Cobbleigh . . .

And Steptoe and Son’s horse . . .

Are they on their way to the Notting Hill Carnival?

Followed by an original Olympic hero . . .

And the drummers of Humdrumconundrum . . . .

Is that fire-breathing dragon from across the Bristol Channel?

And the Youth Band . . .

There were bagpipes, drummers, majorettes, youngsters and old’uns alike.

Ilfracombe should be proud to put on such a great spectacle and well done to all who built the floats, made their costumes, drove the vehicles and stewarded on the day.

Here’s looking forward to next year’s Ilfracombe Carnival!

The carnival processions winds it way from Hillsborough car park, along to the High Street and down Wilder Road and along the seafront until it reaches the quay.

Great fun and even better if it’s dry and warm.

Details here.

The Torrs blazing at sunset in Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . when the sun blazes as it sinks behind the Tors into the sea . . .

A fiery sunset in Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . and on the seafront, the lights illuminate Capstone Hill . . .

Capstone Hill, Ilfracombe in summer twilight

. . . nothing else matters in the magic of light and dark.

See more details at www.ilfracomberoundtable.co.uk.

Coastguard. Police Force. Fire Brigade. RAF 22 Squadron Rescue Helicopter. RNLI Lifeboat. Lifeguards. Exmoor Search and Rescue. Ambulance Service. Red Cross. Devon 4×4. National Blood Service. Devon Air Ambulance. Maritime Volunteer Services. North Devon Animal Ambulance. RNLI boating sea safety roadshow.

Meet the real-life professionals and learn what it takes to keep us safe. 

Live air-sea Rescues with RAF helicopter, RNLI lifeboats, Coastguard cliff rescue. Drugs dog. Huge chip-pan fire. Lifeguards jet-ski surf rescue. See the roof being cut off a car. Handheld flare demonstration. 75^th Mountain-rescue anniversary “Then and Now” enactment. Birds of Prey Display.

Read full details of Rescue Day at Ilfracombe Round Table web site.

8.00pm Thursday 16th October 2008 – tickets £10
8.00pm Friday 17th October 2008 – tickets £12
2.30pm Saturday 18th October 2008 - tickets £10
8.00pm Saturday 18th October 2008 – tickets £12
Book your group to see Me and My Girl

Book 10 tickets for any performance and get 11th ticket free.

Thursday 16th evening and Saturday matinée 18th October performances only – for groups of 20 or more – all seats £8.50 – call the Landmark Theatre box office on 01271 324242 and book your group now.

The show

Book and lyrics by L. Arthur Rose and Douglas Furber. Music by Noel Gay. Book revised by Stephen Fry. Contributions by Mike Ockrent.

Originally produced at the Adelphi Theatre by Richard Armitage.

Subsequently produced at the Marquis Theatre, New York City by Richard armitage, Terry Allen Kramer, James M. Nederlander and Stage Promotions Ltd & Co.

A stunning production

If you have seen Studio Theatre’s production of Hello Dolly! and Small Pond’s production of Vicar of Dibley, you will know the high production values we aspire to in acting, singing, dancing, performance, costume and set. Me and My Girl promises to be a stunning production directed by Lee Baxendale and featuring the talented members of both companies.

Book now for a marvellous musical evening of entertainment from one of the best shows ever written.

There was quite a lot of activity out in the Bristol Channel: a grey warship . . .

The Balmoral passing a ship off Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . and a passing speedboat. There were also quite a few other boats in the harbour.

Speedboat passing Balmoral as she approaches Ilfracome quay, Devon

Eventually Balmoral docked to pick up passengers for its first cruise of the summer.

Blamoral docks at Ilfracombe quay, Devon

They certainly picked a fine day.

Climbing the steps from Hele Bay up Hillsborough towards Ilfracombe

. . . the view from the top northeast towards Wales and Bristol . . .

Looking out over Hele Bay from Hillsborough, Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . up above bright blue and white . . .

Clouds, blues sky and sun in Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . out in the distance . . . more blue . . .

The serenity of Ilfracombe quay on Devon summer's day

. . . and boats . . .

Boating at Ilfracombe harbour and quay, Devon

. . . and beautifully clear water . . .

Clear waters off Larkstone Beach, Ilfracombe, Devon

. . . and neverending Sunday blues in Ilfracombe.

After its success with The Vicar of Dibley, Small Pond Productions returns with a brand new weekly Monday-night summer show.

Packed with toe-tapping show-tunes, mystical magic and cheeky seaside comedy, Summer Showtime also features a live band plus a full-supporting company and is a truly great night out for all the family to enjoy.

• Monday 21 July –