Mass at St Mary's

 Normally I'm at work on Sundays, so it's very rare that I get the opportunity to go to a proper Sunday service.  This week, though, I'm getting ready to go on holiday, and there is someone at work who can cover the front desk, so I had the time to do it.

It's even better now that I can cut through on the little public footpath behind the Almshouses and come out right at the church.

Poor Father David was only assisting at Mass this morning, because his arm is in a sling, and for some things the presiding priest needs two hands.  He did preach, though, on the Gospel reading about Jesus warning people not to take the place of honour when they were invited to dinner parties, and to throw banquets for the poor instead.  He did say that he's not on co-codamol any more, though - so he's not as high as a kite, and he is getting better!

I didn't know all the hymns, but hymns are generally designed to be easy for the congregation to pick up, so that was all right, and I was able to belt out Tell Out, My Soul as the last hymn.

After the service, I was asked to mention the next concert at St Mary's.  Rhapsody in Blue is a concert by Mike Hatchard, assisted by Susanna Warren and Jeremy Young, and there will be jazz, and Chopin, Ravel, and Flanders and Swann.  Tickets are £15 from WegotTickets or on the door.  OAPs are £12, and it starts at 7.30pm.

Also, on Saturday 6th September, there will be coffee in the church from 10.30am, followed by the monthly organ recital at 11am, with Barrie Magill. 

A little later I met Simon the Poet in town, and he asked me if I'd like to sign up for the Parish magazine, Way-on-High - so he took my address and £10 on the spot and will add me to the list.

It means I'll have advance warning of things like Parish trips - for instance, yesterday there was a trip up to Capel-y-ffin for the annual Father Ignatius Memorial Pilgrimage.  They start at Llanthony Abbey, and go from there to Capel-y-ffin, finishing off at the ruined monastery church.  One of the banners in St Mary's Church is of Our Lady of Capel-y-ffin - a schoolboy had a vision up there in 1880.

And next year there will be the Parish pilgrimage to Walsingham - I visited Walsingham when I lived in Norwich many years ago, and it is a place with a very special atmosphere, so I'd love to go back. 

 

Electrifying Rose Hips

 I was invited to a private party at the Cabinet of Curiosities a couple of nights ago - a thank you from Francoise and Pierre to all the people who had helped them, before the renovation work starts.

They asked people to bring their own glass, and had local cider, Weobley Ash apple juice and Lucky 7 beer available (but no wine). 

They'd also subtly changed the displays throughout the house, as they do every time they open to the public.  I'm sure there were more of the dressed little mannequins around the house - those wooden models that artists use to get poses right when they're drawing.  I noticed a little fisherman this time.  They're made by an artist called Maizie Healy (I think I have the name right - I wasn't taking notes!).

My favourite this time, though, was a large 19th century book which was open on a page of experiments.

I don't know what the book was - it would have been rude to move it to see the cover - but the author was describing an experiment where he electrified rose hips with "electrical fluid" (with the help of his servant!) to see if they would grow better than a control group of rose hips that had just been steeped in water.  And he was successful! 

Film Crew

 There's a film crew in Castle Street - they seem to have nearly finished now, but I don't walk past that way as often now, so I missed them starting off.

Apparently, there's a design show on TV, and they're doing a makeover of Oil and Oak and the guitar shop Wye Fret.  I must say, the guitar shop looks very comfortable inside now, with leather sofas in the middle of the shop.  It's harder to see inside Oil and Oak!

They should be on TV sometime next summer. 

Beautiful Bus Stop

 First there was the new bus stop, and now the area around it is looking even more welcoming to visitors.

Two of the wooden planters that were scattered around town a few years ago have been relocated to either end of the bench (also recently refurbished by Mac).  They've got new plants in them, too, thanks to Francoise and Pierre, who will be keeping an eye on them.

Francoise is also keeping an eye on the timetable situation, and if one doesn't appear very shortly after 1st September, when the bus companies change, she will be chasing them up!

 

Vintage Car

 

A rather gorgeous Bristol car, made in 1947, and first registered in Stoke on Trent according to the Chiltern Vehicle Preservation Group list.

Secret Japanese Wine Bar

 I went to Belmont House for their Secret Garden weekend around lunchtime on Saturday, and it was already busy.  Tables had been laid out around the garden, and the serving tables were at the top, the food table under the kitchen window so that food could just be passed down, and the wine table just round the corner.

I had the vegetarian gyoza (little dumplings).  They also had pork gyoza, a burger, chicken bits and a couple of other things - all of which looked quite interesting.  The wine was from Black Mountain Winery, and I had Shouting at Weather, a sparkling white wine.

I found a bench to one side of the garden.  I remember this garden when it was an allotment, but now it's been transformed with curved flower beds, and many of the plants have literary associations.  Gareth, who does the bookshop for Hay Festival, helped them with the planting.  I was sitting on the camomile lawn (from the book by Mary Wesley), and that's how I found out that I have camomile growing in my garden - some of the wildflower seeds that I sowed earlier in the year came up after all!  

There were several roses ("Roses are easy to find," I was told) - for instance Jane Austen and Lady of Shalott, and other plants included Bertrand Russell, Tom Thumb, Gabriel Oak from Tess of the D'Urbervilles - there were about forty plants in all, with little slate labels.

So, good food and wine, beautiful garden, and a view across the Wye Valley - I hope they do it again some time. 

Percussion with Hay Music

 It's going to be a busy Saturday for Hay Music at the end of August.

In the morning, from 11am at the Globe, is Shake, Rattle and Bash, a workshop for children from eight upwards.  It costs £7.50 for an hour's session, and they will be making music to accompany the story Chico's Big Day Out.

Then in the afternoon, from 2pm, there's the adult session, Samba for Grown-ups, which will last 90 minutes and cost £10.  You can learn all about the different instruments used in samba bands, and they might even have a second workshop if there is enough interest.

And in the evening, also at the Globe at 8pm, is Travels with my Marimba.  Tickets are £10 or £5 for the under-25s.

In this talk, Chris Brannick and his friend Jackie Mann, who were running the daytime sessions, will be recounting tales and anecdotes from around the world, with a selection of percussion instruments from around the world.  In a career that has spanned 30 years and working for the BBC Proms among other things, there'll be a lot to talk about.

 

Secret Japanese Wine Bar

 The Secret Wine Bar will be open at Belmont House from 12 noon to 8pm on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th August.  The wine will be natural, organic, and local, and there will be Japanese tapas to try.

 

Bus Timetable

 Thank you to the lovely lady who sent me a copy of the new X44 timetable!

The first bus from Hay to Hereford should go at 07.37, and at two hourly intervals after that throughout the day. 

Wye Pilgrimage

 I realised that I hadn't put my photos on the blog yet, of the procession of Our Lady of the Wye on Friday.

After a short Mass at St Mary's Church, the statue was carried through the town to the canoe landing stage, where it was lashed to two canoes (which were already lashed together) for the trip down to Whitney as the first stage of the pilgrimage.

Here's Father Richard, who had the original idea for the pilgrimage.

 

And there they are, about to set off down river.  The banner says "Save The Wye".

The river is very low, after a summer with very little rain. 

Vintage Car

 

Isn't she a beauty?

The number plate began BO, which means the car was originally registered in Cardiff, according to the Chiltern Vehicle Preservation Group, which keeps a database of vintage numberplates.

As I was passing, a man and his little boy had stopped to look at it.  "This is the oldest car in Hay!" he said. 

Fundraiser for Gaza

 There will be a fundraising event for Gaza in Hereford at the Left Bank Village on Friday 22nd August, starting from 5.30pm.

I won't be able to go, because there are no evening buses to come home, but it sounds as if it will be a good night, with Palestinian food, a film and speaker, and music.  The film is Censoring Palestine, which deals with the way the genocide is being reported on in the UK.  The musical performance is called Peace is the Song, and it has been put together by local pro-Palestinian poets, rappers and musicians.  There will also be a creche/craft workshop (some of the images in the film are not suitable for under-15s) where you can make a bird or a friendship bracelet.

All proceeds will go to Medical Aid for Palestinians. 

Booking is essential, and can be done through the Left Bank Village website. 

Great Night at the Basky

 Wednesday night is music night at the Basky, and this Wednesday some of the guests at the hotel joined in (or I presume they were guests - they were just visiting the area, anyway).

Marek is from the Czech Republic, and he was singing in Czech, explaining: "This one is about bad weather - this one is about the Czech Robin Hood...."  There were two violins in the mix last night - regular Tom and a visiting lady, and Marek actually had the music scores for them to accompany him on one of his songs!

The visiting lady said she would only join in with harmonies at first, but was persuaded to do a solo spot as well.  Another lady, who usually performs at the Globe, sang one of her own songs and did a couple of duets with Rob.

Ellie contributed to the multi-lingual nature of the evening by singing a song in Africaans.

Another visitor borrowed a guitar (Bob keeps a spare one at the Basky just in case) - he sang one song that he usually sang at his local rugby club (so it was a bit rude!).

There was the usual mix of classic songs - the Elderly Brothers did a couple of numbers (that's Bob, who runs the evening and  Pete in a duet).

I sang some folky stuff (and one SF song).

Bob and Ellie sang one of Dale's favourite songs that is not Elvis - I Shot Your Dog, which is a farmer apologising to his neighbour for shooting his dog by mistake!  

And the evening ended with Dale and Joe dancing to one of Joe's favourite songs, I'm The King of the Swingers. 

Next week, it will be completely different! 

Local Taxis

 While I was researching other ways to leave Hay if the buses weren't running, I decided to ring round the local taxi firms.  As it was the evening, I wasn't really expecting any answers.  I think it's useful to share what I did find out, though.

Booktown Taxis had an answerphone message to say that they are not taking any bookings because the driver is undergoing cancer treatment at the moment (get well soon, Mike!).

For A2B Taxis I just got the "this number has not been recognised" message.

Haytaxibus - the phone rang, but no-one answered.

Julie's Cabs had an answerphone.  I did leave a message, but no-one has got back to me yet.

Conclusion: it's quite difficult to get a taxi in Hay! 

New Bus Services

 I am not a happy bunny.

I booked a holiday, some time ago, in the belief that I would be able to get the early bus from Hay to Hereford to catch a train.  

Then I started hearing rumours about the change in the bus company that runs the present T14 route, so I thought I'd better check that the timetable hadn't changed.

Turns out that the new operator has cut the early bus altogether, and the first bus into Hereford on the day I want to travel leaves Hay an hour later than my train.  I had to look this up on the Traveline website, which doesn't actually give the number of the bus.

I saw somewhere else on Facebook that Sargeant's bus company are taking over the Hay to Hereford route, and that the bus will be the X44 - but there's nothing at all on their website to suggest this. 

So, I'm presuming that there is no early bus because it won't be a college day, but that doesn't help me catch my train!

[updated]  I got in touch with Sargeants, and they got back to me this morning to say that there would be an X15 school bus leaving from Hay at 7.40am - which should get me to my train! 

Yellow Submarine in the Car Park

 

Lots of Beatles memorabilia on the back window ledge, and pastel Daleks round the front!

Voyage of Our Lady of the Wye

 The statue of Our Lady of the Wye is making its way downriver again, partly as a pilgrimage and partly as a protest against the pollution of the River Wye.

Proceedings begin on Friday August 15th, with a church service at St. Mary's at 10am, followed by a procession through the town to the launch point near Hay Bridge.

On the first day, the pilgrimage will get to Whitney-on-Wye.

On the second day, they get as far as Moccas, to be greeted by Gregorian chant by the monks of Belmont Abbey (with wine and canapes).

The third day sees a Patronal Mass at St. Mary's at 11am, and Evensong at 6pm with Bishop Frome and the Amici choir.

On Monday 18th, the statue sets off from Bredwardine Bridge, to arrive at Hereford Cathedral in time for Evensong at 5.30pm, followed by a party at Old Chapel.

And on the final day, they go from Hereford Cathedral to Hoarwithy, where there will be Evensong at 6.30pm with the Ross Parish Church Choir. 

Dragonflies and Damselflies

 Stu Roberts gave a fascinating talk at the Enchanted Hour at the Library yesterday afternoon.

He talked about the differences between dragonflies and damselflies (dragonflies hold their wings out when at rest; damselflies fold their wings along their backs), and he talked about their life cycle.

Dragonflies spend most of their lives as nymphs, which crawl about in the mud at the bottom of ponds.  They can spend up to four years, getting bigger and bigger, until one day they crawl up a reed, and their body splits open at the back so that the adult dragonfly can emerge.  Stu brought some of these cases along to show us, gathered from his own pond.

Dragonflies will live for a whole summer, but damselflies only live for about a week - and August is the best time to see them, along the banks of the Wye and on the Warren.  Mary Anne suggested that he might like to lead a walk in the next week or so, to see if we could find any, and quite a few people were interested, so that might be happening soon.

There will be no Enchanted Hour in September, but in October there will be four talks, one on each Friday afternoon, on the subject of conservation.  Stu will be giving one of those talks. 

New Post Box Topper

 

Tropical fish this time on top of our post box!

More About the Bench Dedication Ceremony

 I was at work when I saw a chap who looked vaguely familiar, browsing the Second World War area.  He was wearing an Arnhem polo shirt.  To be honest, lots of customers at work look vaguely familiar, but in this case he recognised me, and reminded me that we'd had an interesting discussion previously about the composer Butterworth, who was killed in the First World War.  For a while, his Banks of Green Willow was one of my favourite pieces of music.

This time, he told me that he had been involved in the bench dedication ceremony on Sunday - he had provided large photos of the SOE women on one of the benches for a display, under cover in the Craft Centre, and some other stuff.  He also told me that Violette Szabo's daughter (who was five years old when Violette was killed) was at the ceremony.  The Violette Szabo museum is not far from Hay, in Herefordshire, at Wormelow.  This chap was also involved in helping there, and was going on from his book buying trip to do some work on the garden there. 

 https://www.facebook.com/share/r/16KdcomPUs/

Here's a link to the compilation of photos of the event that was put up on Facebook. 

Enchanted Hour with Dragons

 

Well, dragonflies, anyway!

New Bus Shelter

 

Here's the new bus shelter on the Hereford side of the road (thanks to Francoise for the photo).

It's more basic than the one at the top of the carpark, but adequate.

Sadly, there is no timetable in the holder on the bus stop yet.  I checked this evening. 

Pride at the Globe

 Pride was a bit scaled down from previous years - no procession through Hay to the Castle this year - but the atmosphere at the Globe was lovely.

I went in the early afternoon to sit in the garden, where there were a few stalls selling crafts, a lady making flower garlands, the Hay Comics stall, and someone advertising their regular meet-ups at the Jam Factory and Hereford Beer House in Hereford.  They're starting one in Leominster, too.

There was a tent set up as a stage, too, where Boo La Croux opened proceedings with a couple of songs.  I also enjoyed the chap dressed as one of the Blues Brothers, who sang The Devil Went Down to Georgia, and Rawhide with a real whip!

Then there was Hari the performance poet, who changed onstage from his baggy male clothing to reveal a sparkly black minidress underneath, and also dyed his hair pink live on stage!  All while reciting his poetry.

Meanwhile, I'd met the adorable Radar Reggie Fluffybum Big Ears, a friendly brown dog who ended up sitting next to me on the couch - until he decided that chasing an unripe pair from one of the nearby trees was more interesting. 

Festivities went on late into the night - they moved indoors at some point. 

The £5 entrance fee was being donated to the LGBT+ charities Stonewall and MindOut mental health service. 

Unveiling the Benches

 Several benches, with a military theme, have been installed around the Craft Centre for some time, but tomorrow is the official unveiling ceremony for them, at noon.

The first one to be installed commemorates the Falklands War, and is near the bus stop.

Then there is one inside the Craft Centre courtyard, with a Second World War theme.  I was told, by one of the volunteers at St Michael's Hospice shop, that all the things depicted on the bench have a connection to Hay - so there are the Land Girls, and the bridge at Arnhem, a bomber and a ship.

At the top of the car park looking out towards Cusop Dingle, the third bench commemorates the women of the SOE, including local heroine Violette Szabo.

 

The Golden Age of Melody

 I only found out about this concert at lunchtime, when I met someone on the way back from shopping who said he was going.

Janice Day and Martin Litton are a fabulous duo, and I love the 1920s and 30s style songs.

Also, I don't think I'd ever seen Martin play a grand piano before - he's always been on keyboards at other concerts I've been too - and the difference was astonishing.  He's a brilliant player.  His first solo performance of the evening was The Sheikh of Araby, which was inspired by the film The Sheikh, starring Rudolf Valentino.  I've seen that film, and Valentino really did have that star quality.  Whenever he was on screen, you just couldn't take your eyes off him.  I was slightly disappointed that Janice didn't sing the lyrics to the song, though - which include the lines: "At night when you're asleep, Into your tent I'll creep"!

Some of the songs were romantic and lyrical, and some were comic.  For instance, in the same year one song writer wrote a song that was voted the most ridiculous ever, and As Time Goes By, which was later used in the film Casablanca.  Janice sang the one about playing the rumba on the tuba down in Cuba.

She also sang Three Little Fishes, which I learned when they sang it on Playschool.  It was also a song that Frankie Howerd sang, making much of the nonsense words in the chorus: "Boop boop dittem dattem wattem chu - and they swam and they swam right over the dam."

And also Mad Dogs and Englishmen. 

Other songs I knew all the words to were Sing For Your Supper and, as part of the singalong audience participation, Dream A Little Dream of Me - though I learned them from the Mamas and the Papas arrangements.

Janice also sang in French - the signature tune of Josephine Baker, a Black American who became a star in France, and was known for dancing in a skirt made of bananas (and not much else).  By contrast, Janice was looking very glamorous in a sparkly purple dress, with a subtle costume change during the interval.  

 They also had violin accompaniment from Steve Jones for a couple of the numbers.

There was, of course, rapturous applause - and their encore was Putting on the Ritz. 

 Martin will be playing as part of a quartet in the Hay Music Festival later in the year, and he and Janice are planning a concert of songs written in 1934 (which was a very good year, apparently).

Their website is www.vintagebythewye.com