Crowdfunder for Talgarth Mill

 Talgarth's mill wheel has stopped turning.

The volunteers who run Talgarth Mill had been making flour to sell through the Mill shop, but they can no longer do that because the mill wheel needs £10,000 worth of repairs (including a new sluice gate).  They also want to raise another £10,000 for necessary maintenance on the mill building. 

So they have thought up several money raising schemes.

The main one is the Crowdfunder   https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/keep-the-mill-wheels-turning-1?utm_campaign=sharemodal&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=shortlink&fbclid=IwY2xjawUludlleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMW13SFBPaUNxTXM3bjNpNEZzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe4XbBPr9FZmr_8_U0a4cFkrvlF30YwJxbBIO5nNwhUXHsVGBSvziG-uAd7q8_aem_N_LAnU49PNms-Ct9fGibbQ

I know it's a long link - it's also possible to go to the TalgarthMill Facebook page to access the crowdfunder directly from there.

They are also planning Pizza and drinks evenings at the cafe, and a poetry evening, and an afternoon talk with local illustrator and printmaker Hannah Firman.

All donors to the crowdfunder will become a Member of Talgarth Mill. 

Winter Weekend Tickets

 I went down to the box office just after they opened to the general public, and managed to get one of the last tickets available to see Father Richard play the organ to the film Phantom of the Opera.

I also wanted to see Jim Al-Khalili talk about physics and time, and the talk about Ordnance Survey maps looks interesting (I've been using maps for historical research a lot this summer!)

There are, of course, lots of other interesting events. 

Fungi Town

 Last year's celebrations were very successful, so it's all happening again this year!

Fungi Town will be running from 2nd to 4th October, all around the town.

There will be talks, with experts from Kew Gardens, Cardiff University, the Royal Horticultural Society and the National Museum of Wales.

There will be cookery, mushroom growing and papermaking, fungi hunts, films, poetry - and a musical called Puffball!

There will also be a street parade, and a window competition for the shops. Here's the trophy from last year's competition, in Golesworthy's window:

Most of the events are taking place at Hay Castle and the Globe, but also at other venues around town.

The full programme can be found at fungitown.org.uk
 

 

Winter Weekend

 The leaflet for Hay Winter Weekend is now out!

It will be happening from 26th to 29th November at Hay Castle and St Mary's Church.

Father Richard is back playing the organ for the silent film Phantom of the Opera.

Olivia Harrison, the widow of Beatle George Harrison, will be sharing his personal photo collection.

There's music organised by Hay Music and talks on a wide variety of subjects, from railways in Herefordshire to Gilgamesh to Mexican food.  There are Christmas carols and a performance of A Christmas Carol, and the Llareggub Brass Band!

They're also streaming the events for online audiences.

Tickets are available from hayfestival.org/winter-weekend.  Hay Festival Members get first choice, and ticket sales are opened to the general public on Saturday 26th September at 12pm (not sure if that's midnight or midday!) 

 

Open Art Exhibition at the Castle

 The latest exhibition at the Castle is an open exhibition - so all sorts of art has been entered for it, from amateurs and professionals alike.  There were quite a few familiar names on the list of exhibits from local artists.  There are paintings of landscapes, abstracts, collages (Barbara Shaw has contributed one of her sheep portraits), felt, pottery, metalwork and wood, so there's a great variety to enjoy.

I wasn't taking notes, so I forget names, but I particularly liked the big landscape on the wall by the door (which has a sale price of £1,300, and worth every penny) and the giant moth on the wall facing the windows.  Sue Hodgetts mentioned the exhibition at a meeting of the Cusop Castle Research Group the other day, and said that her husband Keith has a picture in it - it's called Go West, and it's very good.

A few of the paintings have overflowed into the area outside the exhibition hall, next to the marble run mansion, which is still fascinating visitors.

Downstairs, when I visited on Saturday morning, the quilt making ladies were busy at the table in the corner.  I have been meaning to join them, but the creative part of my brain is full of historical research at the moment, with no room left over for crafts! 

Batman Day

 In honour of Batman Day, (established by DC Comics to celebrate all things Batman-related), Hay Comics are doing special offers on Batman comics!

 Here's a picture of Batman sharing a milkshake with Catwoman from the 1960s series starring Adam West.

Water Debate in Parliament

 Recently I wrote to our Lib Dem MP, David Chadwick, about the upcoming debate in Parliament on the water companies across the UK and what should be done about them polluting rivers, streams and lakes - and the sea around beaches that are used by holidaymakers.  This includes the River Wye and its tributaries.

Sadly, he was unable to attend the debate because he had previous commitments in his diary, but he did send a letter back to me setting out the Lib Dem position on the debate.  

They want mutually owned public benefit water companies that are professionally managed but owned and accountable to the customers who depend on them, with profits re-invested in the water system rather than siphoned off to shareholders.

Several of David Chadwick's Lib Dem colleagues spoke in the debate - he sent me a link to the Hansard entry - and they were pretty scathing about the state of the UK's rivers, and agreed that Ofwat have been pretty useless, and should be replaced with a new Clean Water Authority that actually does the job.  They also paid tribute to the citizen scientists (there are lots along the River Wye) who have been collecting the data on the pollution in our rivers, and talked about wetlands, and collection of rain water and other ways that water management can be done in harmony with the natural environment.

They also all agreed that privatisation is a failed model for the water industry, and it should be taken back under public control.

Even though Welsh Water is not-for-profit, and doesn't have shareholders, they have also been failing to keep the local rivers healthy for years.

The debate in Parliament has not, as yet, led to any new legislation, so there is still a need for the citizen scientists and groups like Friends of the River Wye.  There's still a court case rumbling on in the background organised by the law firm Leigh Day, concentrating on the chicken farms as well as sewage allowed into the river by Welsh Water.