Happy New Year

From my favourite fictional bookshop this year - A.Z. Fell's bookshop in Soho, from Good Omens.

Heraldic Beasts at the Border

The wooden sculpture of a dragon has been in the first gateway as you cross the bridge from England to Wales for some time:

It was only when I walked back from Cusop Church the other day that I noticed that the Welsh dragon now has a British lion facing him from the English side of the bridge:

Hereford for the Sales

It wasn't as busy as I expected.
For Christmas I got two M&S vouchers, so I thought I'd head into Hereford to see what I could find.
As it was Saturday, the bus fare was Zero - for a return ticket.
Marks and Spencers was full of black trousers, and I don't need any black trousers. The lovely silky blouses I'd seen some time before Christmas were nowhere in evidence.
But, I had a Plan B.
I also needed a new printer, as the old one won't do black any more, so I walked out up Widemarsh Road to the Currys/PC World there, and succeeded in finding a colour printer for £29.99. They only seem to stock Hewlett Packard, though I'm sure that will be fine. I haven't got round to trying it out yet.
This meant, of course, that I now had a fairly large box to carry round with me for the rest of my shopping trip, which wasn't so bad at first, but it gradually got heavier and heavier. Next time I'm going to embrace my inner little old lady, and take a shopping trolley!
However, I did find some nice trousers (in sage green and rust brown) in Debenhams, so the clothing part of the trip wasn't a total write-off.

Christmas Trees at Cusop Church

This exhibition of Christmas trees has been going on for a while, but yesterday I walked up the hill to Cusop Church to see it.
There are nine trees in the church, including the two flanking the entrance. Each of them are sponsored by different groups, such as the Keith Leighton Neuro Fund, and decorated by other local groups. Hay School did one, and so did the WI. The WI craft group did one with fabric hearts and patchwork; another was all blue and white pom poms, and another was all card angels. Also around the church were information boards about the history of the Christmas tree.
And on the wall were some of the poppies from Remembrance Day, done in crochet and as rag rugs.

The two smaller trees in the porch were decorated with all natural materials, as Cusop Church is now an Eco Church.
I picked up a leaflet. This is an initiative by A Rocha UK (ecochurch.arocha.org.uk), with the support of Christian Aid, the Church of England, the United Reformed Church, Tearfund and the Methodist Church. They award the title of Ecochurch (with bronze, silver and gold categories - I didn't notice which one Cusop is) on the basis of a questionnaire, which asks about things like use of renewable energy, low energy light bulbs, composting toilets, insulation, and encouraging wildlife in the churchyard, as well as praying and having special services on environmental themes and encouraging cycling and walking, and getting involved with local wildlife trusts and so on.

As far as walking is concerned, the church keeps a kettle with tea and coffee for the use of passing walkers, and has a Walker's Prayer on laminated paper to take away:
Creator God, you hold the whole world in your embrace.
The hills speak your eternal name and the green fields reflect your glory.
Give us who walk this earth sunshine, shade and rain in due season, and open eyes to see its beauty.
May we have joy in the morning, strength through the day and peace when we come to our rest.
Amen.

A Rocha UK also have a nature reserve in the Stour Valley in Essex, and an urban community garden project at Wolf Fields, Southall, near their HQ.

Sculptures on the Riverside Path

Because I've been unwell in the last month, I haven't been out walking at all, so it was only yesterday that I managed to get down to the Riverside Path to see the wonderful new sculptures that have been put in. This time they're in full colour!
Because I am a rubbish photographer, I only managed to get a decent photo of one of them:

The others are a badger and a hawk swooping down on a pigeon.

I also liked the new information boards at the bridge, that the Town Council have put in:

Boxing Day Traditions

There was no Thursday Market today, but there was the traditional gathering of the Boxing Day Hunt at the Clock Tower.
Despite the drizzly weather, there was a pretty good turnout (Christmas Day, by contrast, was lovely and sunny).
This year I got some good action shots from the top of the hill near the Blue Boar:

One rider pulled up just past the Cinema Bookshop and didn't go any further. I saw him later chatting to the people who were still clustered around the Clock Tower.

Nadolig Llawen

Monday Market

Specially for Christmas, there was a Monday Market this week. I don't usually get much chance to wander round the stalls - when I come out of work for lunch, the market is usually starting to pack up and go home. This time I had a lovely chat with the man from Harrisons' Teas, and bought one of my favourite teas, Russian Caravan, and a Chinese tea I hadn't tried before, Zeng He Golden Dragon.
There were also carol singers, and George the Town Cryer dressed in his finery - and also manning a stall with beeswax soaps.
And there were the usual food stalls, Christmas wreaths, blankets, socks and jewellery.

Glamping by the Wye

The woodland area just on the further side of the bridge from Hay is almost ready to become a Glamping Site - the owners of the land, from The Start B&B on the other side of the road, have been working on the paths for some time now, including the public footpath that winds through the site, as well as trimming trees, and creating stone tables and log chairs. They've also put up bat boxes, and are working hard to make the site sustainable and eco-friendly.
But eco-friendly doesn't have to mean roughing it - these are going to be luxurious safari tents with kitchen and bathroom - they even provide eco-friendly toiletries and ask that campers don't bring their own. There's even wifi in The Hide, which is almost a tree house - it's on stilts with a view of the river from the decking, and it's in the process of being built now:

There are also cwtch tents - which appear to be tents that are suspended from the trees. I'm not sure that would be my cup of tea! And they are happy to accept dogs.
They have a website at www.bythewye.uk

Children's Photo Exhibition

I had time the other day to pop into Thru the Lens, the new photographic gallery. They've got an exhibition on at the moment by local children - the oldest are sixteen - and they are so good I feel like throwing my camera away!
One good idea they have is selling small polaroid pictures for £1 each, and they also have Christmas tree decorations for sale.

Meals at the Three Tuns

By chance, both the Christmas meals I've been to this year have been at the Three Tuns, so I had an opportunity to sample two different main courses and sweets - I stuck to the butternut squash soup for starters, because I love butternut squash soup.
At the bar, the real ales are from Wye Valley - I tried the dark Space Hopper, which was very pleasant.
They have a whole menu of different gins on a board on the wall, but I think that's something to sample on a different occasion. They also have a good selection of wines, so we were sharing bottles. I enjoyed the prosecco, and the Malbec (Las Pampas?) was a smooth and tasty red wine which went very well with the beef.
I feel you've got to have at least one traditional meal over Christmas (I'm going to have a very untraditional game casserole on Christmas Day), so for one meal I went for the turkey and Christmas pudding option. There were plenty of vegetables, the meat was tender, and the custard for the pudding was lovely.
For the second meal I went for the beef and plum and apple crumble option. Again, the beef was delicious, and the crumble came in two little pots - one for the crumble itself and the other for ice cream. They also offered a gluten-free pudding option from the ordinary menu.
So I had two very enjoyable meals, and several people I was eating with said that they'd like to come again to sample the ordinary menu - the Three Tuns specialises in Italian food.
There was a conversation over the second meal about how we would probably not want Christmas crackers again, considering the amount of plastic involved, and how much got thrown away. And hardly anybody wanted to wear their party hat anyway.

Houses on the Cattle Market?

When Oliver Balch wrote Under the Tump, his book about living in the Hay area, he interviewed the people who ran the cattle market. They had seen a decline in the use of the market over the years, since it is quite a small, local one.
Gareth Ratcliffe has now shared a letter on the Hay Community Facebook page to say that Powys County Council are putting the site forward to the Brecon Beacons National Park local development plan for consultation to change it to residential use.
This does not mean that the builders are about to move in - it's just a suggestion, should the cattle market site become vacant.
One local resident at that end of town is in favour of the site being used for affordable/social housing. She is surrounded by houses that are used (rarely) as second homes, and others which are being offered for very high rents. Another house is now an AirB&B. So she actually has very few neighbours who live there all the time. Also, of course, there is a need for more affordable housing in the Hay area. Others have pointed out the need for more housing for the over-65 age group.
The Swan at Hay have also reported that, from January 2020, the cattle market car park will not be available, as the gate will be kept locked.

Charity at the Three Tuns

The people from the Three Tuns have posted on the Hay Community page on Facebook to say that they are collecting for a new local charity, the Brecon Baby Bank. They are looking for new/unopened packets of nappies, baby wipes, new bottles and teats and so on. One lady has already offered a pushchair.
If this appeal goes well, they are thinking about collecting for other local charities next year.

Charging for the ATM

I've just come back from a wonderful weekend away (I'll be posting about it on my other blog, Morwenna's Tower, if anyone's interested in an idyllic Cotswold break), to find a furore about the ATM machine at the Post Office.
Since Friday, the machine has charged 99p for every cash withdrawal - this is a flat rate, no matter how much or how little money is taken out.
I've been reading the thread on the Hay Community page on Facebook, and the point has been made that, as usual, it is the poorest people in society who will be the hardest hit by this.
Apparently this is nothing to do with the Post Office - the ATM is owned by a separate company and they decided to start charging for withdrawals.
There is a free ATM machine at the back of the Co-op, and it is also possible to draw money out at the Post Office counter when the Post Office is open.
What annoys me about this is that they are charging for me to access my own money. I haven't paid a charge to take my own money out of the bank for 40 years - and I don't want to start now. I also don't want to start using my card to buy things routinely - I much prefer cash, which does not rely on electricity to work.

At the Polling Station

Going to vote in Hay is always a pleasant experience, even in the rain. When I went down at lunch time I saw a couple of people I knew.
One of the ladies giving out voting slips also volunteers in one of the charity shops in town, and she said she'd put a hat to one side for me if I wanted it.
There were tellers outside for the Lib Dems and Conservatives, and they were talking about how people had struggled over the years for the ability to vote - like the suffragette Emily Davidson who jumped in front of the King's racehorse (she and the horse died).

General Election

Don't forget to vote tomorrow!
The polling station for Hay is the Bowling Club pavilion on Brecon Road.
You do not need to have your polling card with you.

Farewell to Big Al

This is copied from Alistair Shaw's Facebook page, for anyone who would like to attend his funeral or the gathering in Hay afterwards:

"An open invitation to the funeral of Alastair Donald Shaw on Monday 16th December 2019
11.30am Burial at Humber Woodland of Remembrance, Risbury, Leominster, HR6 0NE
2.30pm Send-Off Gathering at Honesty Bookshop, Castle St., Hay-on-Wye
This will be a day of remembering and celebrating Alastair, bringing the people and things he loved together…
• Please bring a hug and a smile and wear your most colourful (warm) clothes.
• If you have a crazy vehicle, why not make it your ride for the day.
• If you have a story, a song, a poem, a picture, words of remembrance or music you want to play, let us know.
• Please bring food and drink to share at the Send-Off Gathering.
• Instead of flowers, consider making a donation to a charity close to Al’s heart - The Flying Seagull Project is a troupe of clowns, magicians, circus performers and musicians who take smiles to those in need. They believe that every young person has the right to a childhood with play, laughter and creativity. Donate here https://theflyingseagull.charitycheckout.co.uk/…/alastairsh…
Some boring stuff…
Humber Woodland – This is a field and the ground is uneven and most likely wet, there is no inside space or loo and parking is limited, so please share lifts where possible. www.humberwoodland.co.uk
Honesty Bookshop – there will be a canvas canopy for shelter, but as it’s December please wear warm clothing.
May we have merryweather!"
The organiser can be contacted at amberknipe77@gmail.com

Unicorns, Almost

I wasn't able to go to see this play at the main Festival this year, when it was performed in the Swan - there were too many other things going on!
But after going up to the Edinburgh Festival, and a spell at the Bristol Old Vic, and an audio version that was recorded to be played at Bayeux during the Normandy Landings commemorations, Unicorns, Almost came back to Hay on the last day of the Winter Festival.
It's a one man play about the Second World War poet Keith Douglas, written by local author Owen Sheers, directed by John Retallack, and produced by Emma Balch from The Story of Books in Hay. The chairs had been moved at the front of the tent to form three sides of a square, where the action took place, with a desk, coat rack, boxes and sandbags.
Dan Krikler plays Keith Douglas, with the help of special effects and voices off, some of them quoting lines from Keith Douglas's poetry. He was a tank commander in the Desert War, and some of the descriptions of the dead scattered in the wake of tank battles were graphic. Poets back in England lamented that his poetry was "losing its musicality" - considering what he had witnessed, of course it was!
At the end of the desert campaign, he came back to England to wait for D-Day, when he landed an amphibious tank on the Normandy beaches - and died a week later. He was twenty four. The play ends with one of his poems: "Simplify me when I'm dead", which we got as a handout at the end of the performance.
There was also a question and answer session. When Dan came back on stage, having changed, he commented: "Now I get a mic!" as the entire performance had been him speaking without a mic. Owen Sheers and John Retallack were also taking questions, and said that the play has never previously been performed to more than sixty people - last night there were two hundred and fifty people in the tent, and we were spellbound.
Another questioner asked if there really would be Christmas lights on Oxford Street in the middle of the war, as mentioned in the play, but Owen Sheers said that was a quotation from Keith Douglas's own letters, so it must have been true.
And another person asked if they would consider putting the play on for the Ledbury Poetry Festival.
Owen Sheers said that the play was intended as a kind of haunting, so that Keith Douglas would be remembered, even though his published work fell into obscurity after the war. If he had lived, he could have been one of England's foremost poets of his generation.
It was a wonderful evening of theatre.

Small Business Sunday

Foozling is now open, at least for the Winter Festival. Over the last few months they've had some of the most inventive window displays in Hay - brass instruments mounted on pram wheels, and something with ghoulish dolls for Hallowe'en.
I'm not quite sure what they're selling, but it all looks very interesting!

Turning on the Christmas Lights

There was a huge crowd in the town square last night for the turning on of the Christmas Lights.
Inside the marquee there were stalls selling food and drink - Brecon Beacons beer, fancy gin, the Fudge Shop, Welsh honey, fancy cakes and chocolates - as well as local groups. Hay School was selling Christmas wreaths in red and green, made by the children, and Christmas tree decorations. One stall was doing "guess the number of wine corks in the bottle" to win some wine. There were raffle tickets for a hamper. The Fairtrade group were there, with their new banner, to remind people that Hay is a Fairtrade town. Hay2Timbuktu had pictures of what they've been doing to help the high schools in Timbuktu.
Outside the marquee there were food stalls selling a vast variety of take away food - Indian, goat curry, Parsnip-ship's organic and vegetarian food, Welsh pizzas, mulled wine, and more.
The Community Choir sang carols, beautifully, introduced by George the Town Cryer. A procession holding big white lanterns, stuffed with fairy lights, arrived and mingled with the crowd - there had been a lantern making workshop at the library earlier in the afternoon.
I still wasn't feeling 100% so I slipped away before the countdown to the lights going on started - but it's the biggest crowd I've seen yet.

Witchcraft talk at the Winter Festival

This is one of the pictures Thomas Waters used to illustrate his talk on the history of witchcraft this afternoon. It's a curse doll with a note that was found in the wall of a house in Hereford, and is now in the possession of the Hereford Museum. I copied it from the Eat Sleep Live Herefordshire Facebook page. The writer of the note really didn't like someone called Mary Ann Ward!
It was a fascinating talk, with examples right around the world and up to the present day, though there were several stories from Victorian England. One of the conclusions Thomas Waters has drawn from his fifteen years of research for his book Cursed Britain is that, although some cunning men and witches were undoubtedly charlatans, others performed a valuable service to their clients not unlike counsellors and therapists today.
As in previous years, the tent in the Cattle Market has an annexe with bar, snacks and a few stalls, including the Festival Bookshop where I treated myself to the Mike Pitts book Digging for Britain. There were also some girls from Fairfield School, in uniform with Extinction Rebellion badges. They'd set up a tree, and were inviting people to write their wishes for the future on luggage labels, and tie them to the tree.

Outside the tent there's a big mobile burger bar set up, selling burgers with local Hereford beef, which I've heard good things about, though I didn't try any today.
And in the centre of town, the tents are going up for tonight's switching on of the Christmas Lights, tomorrow's Food Festival and the fair on Sunday.

The Aliens have Landed!

This is probably the most bizarre of the Christmas decorations around town - outside the Old Electric Shop.

Goodbye, Alistair Shaw

It was a shock to look at Facebook this morning and find that Alistair Shaw has died.
I've been watching him putting up the Christmas lights all over town in the last week or so.
When I looked at his Facebook page, the last post he put on it was the Four Candles/Fork Handles sketch from the Two Ronnies.
His family say he suffered a heart attack.
I've known Alistair for a long time - he always seemed a little larger than life, a showman with a circus background. He was one of the characters that make Hay special.
He will be missed.

Small Business Saturday

Kooko, which appears to be selling Christmas themed goods and furniture at the moment.
This picture was taken before they painted the quotation from Shakespeare on the wall: "I like this place, and willingly could waste my time in it."

Feeling Ill

I am in isolation at the moment, so I don't spread my 'orrible germs to anyone else.
Which is a pity, because I was quite looking forward to the XR meeting at Cusop Village Hall tonight at 7pm, and I don't think I'll manage to get to the Shantymen concert on Sunday either.

The Aeronauts

Some films need to be seen on the big screen.
I'd been looking forward to The Aeronauts, starring Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones as Victorian scientist James Glaisher and balloonist Amelia Wren who attempt to break the height record for balloon flights while taking scientific readings.
I went to Brook Street Cinema on Monday evening - it was almost like a private showing, as only six people had bought tickets for the 7.30pm show.
The special effects were very good (after all, they couldn't really have been flying over Victorian London!) and it wasn't just two people in a balloon basket. I did like the portrayal of James Glaisher's father, the clock and watch mender, who had a telescope out the back of his shop and was only just holding on to reality. He was played by Tom Courtney. It was also nice to see James' friend being played by an Indian actor, Himesh Patel, and some black and brown faces in the crowd scenes (there were black and brown people living in London in 1862, after all). Also some glorious crinoline dresses!
I was inspired to do some research after seeing the film - the balloon flight in the film was actually made with a male colleague, and Amelia Wren was fictional, but based on some real lady balloonists of the time.

The trailer was for Last Christmas - I was quite excited to spot Michelle Yeoh in that, running a Christmas shop. I last saw her as the evil Emperor of the parallel universe Terran Empire in Star Trek: Discovery! That's coming soon, and also coming soon are Gaugin from the National Gallery, The Good Liar starring Helen Mirren and Ian McKellan, Knives Out and a Les Miserables Concert.

Unicorns, Almost at the Winter Festival

It's not long now to the Winter Festival.
It starts on Thursday 28th November and goes on until Sunday 1st December, and is the more intimate, smaller version of the main, summer Hay Festival. Venues are a 500 seater tent on the Cattle Market (the Baillie Gifford tent), St Mary's Church and the School Hall.
It was at the summer Hay Festival that the one man play Unicorns, Almost was launched. It was written by Owen Sheers, one of Hay's local authors, about a Second World War poet, Keith Douglas, who was a tank commander in the African desert war. It was a great success, and went on to Edinburgh Festival - and now they're back in Hay, still with Dan Krikler playing Keith Douglas. There will be a 20 minute question and answer session after the play with Dan, Owen and the producer John Retallack.
I wasn't able to go when it was first performed - there were too many other things going on at the time - so I'm glad to have a second chance to go to see it now.

I was hoping to see Mike Pitts the archaeologist, too, but his talk is happening while I'm working. Instead, I'll be going to see Thomas Waters talk about the history of witchcraft and black magic in modern times.

There will also be several woodland walks, and the Flying Pig Cookery School.
Jackie Morris will be painting a red fox on stage, and talking about the Welsh language version of her collaboration with Robert Macfarlane, The Lost Words - Geiriau Diflanedig. There's a rather nice Lost Words calendar on sale at the Poetry Bookshop at the moment, which I treated myself to.
Father Richard will be playing the organ to accompany the silent classic Metropolis - both showings are already sold out.
Jane Dodds, Tom Davies and Fay Jones - the Lib Dem, Labour and Conservative candidates in the up-coming General Election, will be holding a free but ticketed hustings.
There's an update on what's happening at Hay Castle, memories of King Richard Booth, Mid Wales Opera, Archbishop John Sentamu, and historian Max Hastings talking about the Dambuster Raid - and more!
There will also be a scratch Messiah at St Mary's Church - the ticket includes two rehearsals and a copy of the score.

Cerys Matthews will be there - and she's also turning on the Christmas Lights this year.
Also in the square, on Saturday there's the Winter Food Fair, and on Sunday the Hay Artisan Market.

Small Business Saturday

The Drawing Room has been replaced by a new photographic gallery called Thru The Lens. They've opened their first show with a variety of local photographers - I met Billie Charity when I went in the other day. We had been told to go and look for the "blue Dalek" - which is a photo by Jasper Fforde, who is also a local writer (the Thursday Next series and other books).
For such a small space, there's a wide variety of images, including scenes of working class Liverpool, vintage photos of Wales, landscapes, a magazine of images by Richard Greatrex, and a collage of images by Geraldine Charity who is still taking creative photos despite being confined to bed.
They are generally open from Thursday to Saturday, but at this quiet time of the year sometimes they are closed on those days too. The present show runs until December 5th.
They have a website at www.thruthelens.photography which seems to be a work in progress at the moment.

Re-lining the Car Park

This is the car parking area in the middle of Hay, the Market Square.
I was chatting to someone the other day who couldn't understand the reasoning behind the new lay-out. Four spaces have been taken away underneath the castle wall, which does make sense because they will be building a new route down into the square there shortly, so it wouldn't be safe to park just below where the work is taking place.
The problem comes in the centre of the space, where there are now two spaces for vehicles carrying disabled people, with extra space to unload wheelchairs and so on. It's a very good idea to provide extra disabled parking. Unfortunately, five ordinary spaces have been taken away to fit the new spaces in.

Artistraw Cider

I was in the Wholefood Shop the other week, where a local cider producer was offering samples from a table by the door. He and his wife have a farm in Clifford where they produce perry and cider from traditional, unsprayed orchards. The name "Artistraw" comes from a local dialect word for a shrew.
They have a website at www.artistraw.co.uk, and are also on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Lime Tree Preservation

I happened to notice a yellow sign tied to a post as I walked along Broad Street this morning. It seems that the five pollarded lime trees along Broad Street have just been granted a Tree Preservation Order.

Cwm Rhondda

I've been away for the weekend in the South Wales Valleys.
As we travelled on the Saturday morning, the bus ticket was free (travel on the T14 within Wales is free every Saturday).
We went down to Pontypridd, where my Young Man's friend met us and took us out to his place in Cwm Rhondda. It was pretty damp and drizzly on Saturday morning, but later the sun came out, and the trees growing up the valley sides were decked out in autumnal colours, with moorland just visible beyond them, and the Rhondda river itself running close to the road. It's a very beautiful place to live these days, with the occasional reminder that this was once an area of heavy industrial activity.
Our friend offered to drive us back to Hay, and the views were glorious going over the hills. Up at Storey Arms, there were cars parked all along the sides of the roads, and lots of people heading up across the moors on the paths.
It was lovely to get out of Hay for a little while and see parts of South Wales that I've never been to before.

No Richard Booth Procession

It was a shame that the plans for a procession and fire festival on 31st October didn't come to anything (I had a costume ready to wear, just in case). I'm sure Richard Booth will be properly remembered next April at the Independence celebrations.

Cakes and Ale

I moved on from the Dial-a-Ride party to the Parish Hall, and saw several familiar faces who had done likewise.
This event was A Haydloniant Cakes and Ale Concert - and there were cakes and ale on sale at the back (at least, the drinks were on sale while the cakes were free). Apparently, 'adloniant' is Welsh for 'entertainment', so when you put it together with Hay, you get Haydloniant!
The Parish Hall was set out with tables, with candles burning, and so many people turned up that they had to bring more chairs out. Which was very gratifying for the lady introducing the evening, who had been out earlier in the Market Square shouting "Free Madrigals" to drum up custom!
The group was formed from a variety of local choirs, including the Black Lion Singers and the Wern Fach Singers. There were also guest artistes Donald Ellman, who played the harpsichord, and Steve Jones who played violin. Lucy Green also played the harpsichord for some solo songs.
The music was sublime, a mixture of English and Italian madrigals - and the lady introducing the pieces was hilarious! "In the last pieces," she said (as an example of her patter), "there was a lot about dying, but they were really talking about sex - and if I'd told you that before we sang them, you wouldn't have listened to a word, would you?"
There was a retiring collection, rather than an entrance fee, and the money raised goes towards the musicians, and to help up-and-coming young musicians.
At the end of the concert, a member of the audience stood up to thank the performers (I think he was also involved with a music group locally) and he said how fortunate we are in Hay to have so many wonderful musicians living locally.

Haydloniant will be having another Cakes and Ale concert on 13th December, and they also had flyers for a charity concert at St Mary's Church on Saturday 23rd November, at 7.30pm. Tickets for this concert are £7.50, with proceeds going to Ovarian Cancer Research and St. Mary's Music Fund, in memory of a lady called Elaine.
The music will be a mix of Mozart, Menelssohn, madrigals, folk, traditional, musicals, and Flanders and Swann! And will be performed by the Wern Fach Singers, Hay Madrigals, Lucy Green, Janice Day, Catherine Hughes (who was also one of the madrigal singers), Kate Hardy, Pierre Moulinier, Ian Charlesworth (local vicar), Paul Sweeting, Terry and Christina Watson (also singing madrigals for Cakes and Ale), Gay Funnell, Darren Elliot and Chrissy Maddy.

Also at St Mary's Church, on Saturday 7th December, will be Enrico Tomasso and Martin Litton. Enrico is an award winning trumpet player, including five times winner of the British Jazz Awards in the trumpet category, and he will be paying tribute to his influences, including Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Harry James, Bunny Berigan, Chet Baker, and Miles Davis.

Celebrating Twenty Five Years of Dial-a-Ride

The hall of Hay School was full for the Silver Jubilee celebration of Hay Dial-a-Ride.
Although the school had hired out the hall, they didn't provide the tables and chairs, which had to be borrowed from Clyro Village Hall.
The people there included those who use the service, including the lady who lives in the most remote spot they visit (as someone said later, even the most comprehensive public transport system wouldn't be able to get up there!). There were drivers, past and present, all volunteers, and there were the organisers and special guests, including Trudy Stedman the Mayor and other Town Councillors. I was there because of the blog, but I did remind Mary Fellowes that my ex-husband had driven the Dial-a-Ride bus for a while in the early days, along with a chap called Doug who used to dress up in costume - I remember him doing Darth Vader and a Viking in a horned helmet!
Twenty five years ago, they needed to raise £25,000 for an accessible bus (the buses cost about double that now), and at one of the first fund raising events John Grant, who had a shop on Castle Street, was heard to say it would never last. Now they have nearly 300 members who use the service, and three staff, as well as the volunteer drivers.
They started out sharing an office with Community Support, in what is now Chris the Bookbinder's workshop beside the launderette - they suffered from floods, and nightmare plumbing!
Then they were able to move into an office in the Council Chambers, where they stayed for many years - and now there are question marks about the future of the Council Chambers they have just moved to an office on Castle Street, opposite the Blue Boar.
As well as the bus, they have drivers who use their own cars, and they've also started running day trips. Now that Hay has no bank branches, they also run a regular Bank Bus so people can visit their bank branch in Brecon.
Fund raising and applying for grants is something they always have to be thinking about - they don't get the same level of help from Powys or Herefordshire County Councils that they did in the early years.
There were speeches - Mary Fellowes, who was involved from the beginning, gave a run down of the history of the service, and Kirsty Williams, the Assembly Member, praised them for enabling older people to continue to live independently for longer.
There were presentations, too - Mary Fellowes got a special certificate, which they'd managed to keep secret from her, and Dial-a-Ride was presented with a Dementia Friendly sign. The lady presenting it said she thought that Hay was the first community bus service to get such an award, and it was all thanks to the enthusiasm of the office secretary, Lesley Moore. And all the volunteers got a little scroll. The service has also been awarded a Community Transport Association Quality Mark, and several awards (from PAVO and others) for Volunteers of the Year.
There was also tea and coffee, and a buffet big enough to feed an army! Everyone got a slice of cake too, which was sponge iced with a picture of the Dial a Ride bus.

Poppy Sellers

Last year, the poppy sellers had a table beside the old HSBC bank, exposed to the elements.
This year, they're in the old King of Hay shop on Castle Street, under cover.
This year's enamel badge for the Welsh British Legion is a green and white map of Wales with a poppy superimposed, and there's a special edition one for the 75th anniversary of D-Day, too, as well as all the other poppy related merchandise.

Mushroom Pickers, Beware!

I've seen some big mushrooms near the Old Library which I think are shaggy ink caps (edible, if so).
Other mushrooms are not so user-friendly - I was told this afternoon that there are death caps growing somewhere along Forest Road. As the name implies, it's not a good idea to put them in an omelette!

Floods

There's been a lot of water around the Wye Valley for the last week or so.
Down on the Gliss, the car park area flooded, with several cars still parked there.
Peterchurch was cut off, and Hereford had some of the worst flooding they've had for years - according to the Hereford Times, the river reached the highest point since the gauges were installed in 1970! De Koffie Pot was flooded, and that's really quite high above the normal level of the river. The old bridge in Hereford is choked up with debris.
Things are getting back to normal now, but it has started raining again....

Talking About Archaeology

I think it went very well!
The room at the Swan was full, and people asked interesting questions - so along the way we made tangents into subjects like why John Wayne developed cancer, pigs from Scotland being eaten at feasts at Stonehenge, and archaeology in Orkney, as well as the detection of art fakes and the age of the Turin Shroud - and how your teeth can show where you grew up.
Next month, the talk - on the last Monday of the month at 7pm - is on mitochondria.

Science Cafe

Tomorrow night at 7pm, the talk at the Science Café at the Swan will be How Do We Know How Old it is?. It's a talk about dating techniques in archaeology, and I've been dusting off my college notes, because I've volunteered to give the talk!
So, I'll be talking about Carbon 14, Thermoluminescence, Dendrochronology, and more!

Small Business Saturday - Old Electric Bookshop

A new bookshop has opened in Hay!
The Old Electric Shop started off in the actual old electric showroom at the end of Castle Street (now Days Household Goods), but they quickly outgrew that and moved into the old Teddy Bear and Jigsaw Puzzle shop on Broad Street, where they had more room for different units of interesting vintage goods, rugs, furniture, and tailor-made clothing - and a vegetarian café. They were also selling a small selection of new books, mostly on environmental themes.
The books have been expanding, so now the people who run the Old Electric Shop have taken the decision to rent another shop nearby - just above the Clock Tower - just for the books.
I went to the launch party last night, which was packed out despite the awful weather. Unlike most of the secondhand bookshops in town, who want to make maximum use of their shelf space to put as many books out as possible, the Old Electric books are mostly displayed face on, so the cover is visible, on shelves and tables. There are also potted plants, and the whole effect is light and pleasant to browse in. I saw some interesting books that I may go back for - and it's very rare that I buy new books!

HOWLS - fundraising and volunteers

The HOWLS meeting on Wednesday evening was to update people on what's happening at the moment - at a time when Powys County Council are considering their budget for next year, but are not releasing any details yet.
One thing's for sure - it isn't going to be good news for Libraries.
The PCC was going to cut £200,000 from the library budget last year, but agreed to defer the decision for a year, so that cut will probably be made in the coming year, with more on top of it.
The PCC has just published the results of a survey about libraries that it conducted in June (Hay is on pages 8 - 10), and this can be found at:
https://en.powys.gov.uk/article/7873/The-future-of-Powys-Libraries
HOWLS has to be ready for whatever decision the PCC takes.

A CIC (Community Interest Company, like the one that renovated the Cheesemarket) has been created, and the idea of this is to fund raise for the library. They are setting up social media now, including a video project called Public Libraries Transform Lives, in which people explain what libraries mean to them.
We shouldn't have to fund raise, as provision of libraries is a statutory requirement, but we will probably have no choice if we want to keep the service in the short term. The CIC is just getting up and running now, with £500 from HOWLS to start them off. The estimate is that Hay Library costs £20,000 a year to run, so that's what they are aiming for - but the PCC would only get that money if they continue to provide the professional staff and back up services that are needed.

In the meantime, there are volunteers who help out at the library. HOWLS is determined that the library should continue to be a professionally led service to the community, but volunteers are always helpful. At the moment there are seven regulars, including two who are still at school (which is encouraging for the next generation of readers and library users), and they try to make sure there is someone there for each session that the library is open. There's also Sian, who runs Storytime on Monday mornings, and Bernie who helps with IT advice. Jane the Librarian has also started Enchanted Hour, a storytime for adults, with coffee.
They'd like to have a few more volunteers, to fill in for times that the regulars can't get there, and to expand what they do - they'd like to offer a service to housebound people who can't get to the library, for instance. They'd also like to have a proper training package from Powys County Council, like the volunteers in Herefordshire, and clarity about DBS checks (Herefordshire has a simple disclosure agreement).

Also, they would like people to join the library! It's free! It can be life-changing! There are no downsides to this at all!
There are 875 library members in Hay at the moment, out of a total of 1,985 scattered around the surrounding villages. I think I'm right in saying that the children who go to Hay and Clyro Schools have all got library cards, and visit the library regularly from school.

Stone Heads at the Castle

Peter Dorling, archaeologist at Hay Castle, has made a chance find that is quite exciting. When he picked up a stone he thought looked interesting, he found a face carved on the underside! Though the carving is worn, they think it is a carving of a Norman knight, and may come from one of the earliest phases of the Castle. It may have formed part of a window arch in the original castle building.

Meanwhile, up on the tower overlooking the market square, about 4 or 5 metres from the ground, there is another stone head. The tower was rebuilt in the 16th century, so the head dates from that time, and may be a portrait of James Boyle, the Lord of the Manor of Hay in the 1580s. Alternatively, it may be an earlier Celtic head used as decoration, as was the fashion at the time.

Rhosgoch Tractor Run

This year's Tractor Run will be on Sunday 27th October. Cost is £10 for tractors and £5 for cars, and the John Haydn Memorial Trophy will be presented to the best turned out tractor. They are serving breakfast from 8.45am, at Rhosgoch, because the Wales match will be on TV. The tractors start out at 10.30am, and should be coming through Hay.

Family Language Day

This sounds like a lot of fun!
There will be a Family Language Day at the Globe on Saturday 26th October, from 10am to 4pm.
It's described as a chance to learn different languages through fun and interactive activities like making food, crafts, and dance.
Languages represented include Welsh, Spanish, Italian, French, Chinese and Sign Language, and the activities include making tortillas (that'll be Spanish, then), Japanese calligraphy, songs in sign language (I used to be able to do the chorus to Swing Low, Sweet Chariot in sign language - I wonder if I can remember it?), and making a piñata or a dragon!
I'd like to learn more Welsh - and come away with my own dragon!

Death of Town Clerk

I was sorry to see, on Facebook, that Nigel Lewis, who had been Town Clerk for Hay Council for many years (and later their Financial Officer), has died. His funeral will be held on Friday 25th October, with a service at Hereford Crematorium at 10.30am and a Memorial service at St Michael's Church, Clyro at noon.

Artists Against Food Poverty

Brecon Food Bank, based at St John's Centre, is filling a very real need locally. They are part of the Trussell Trust charity, which runs foodbanks across the UK, and give out three days' worth of emergency supplies at a time to people who are in crisis.
Last year they fed nearly 400 adults and more than 150 children. They handled more than 6 metric tonnes of food, hygiene products and pet food.
Everything they give out is donated. They have collection points in shops, banks and cafes, and other donations come from churches and individuals. However they also need money for running costs, and they run other projects to help their clients.
So on Saturday 26th October they are holding a fund raising Art Auction at The Neuadd, Christ College, Brecon. Viewing is from 5.45pm, with the auction starting at 7pm. Admission is £5, including a drink, refreshments, and entry into the raffle. There will also be live music by Mike Chappell during the viewing period. They are selling tickets on the door and at Brecon Food Festival.
The works in the auction are by local artists, and include an original painting by Meg Stevens (who painted gorgeous wildflowers and local landscapes), others by Pip Woolf and a numbered print by Sir Kyffin Williams. Ardent Gallery and Sable and Hogg gallery in Brecon have also donated works.
They also have a website at www.brecon.foodbank.org.uk where there is a catalogue of the works in the auction, and it's even possible to place a bid online.

HOWLing Again

The Library isn't out of danger yet. The County Council will need to make more cuts next year, and they have already deferred threatened cuts to the library service across the county once.
So there will be a HOWLS meeting at the Library at 7pm on Wednesday 23rd October. There will be updates on how the Library is working at the moment, and news about the new CIC (Community Interest Company) which has been set up to support the library if and when it's needed. So the meeting will also be discussing whether HOWLS should make a financial contribution to the CIC to start it off as a fundraising body.

Bowling Club Table Top Sale

Hay Bowling Club are having a Table Top Sale on Saturday 19th October, from 10am.
I always like going to table top sales - you never know what you'll find, and there are refreshments on offer, too.

Dial-a-Ride on the Move

Dial-a-Ride is moving to a new office on 18th October. They'll be at 14 Castle Street, opposite the Blue Boar, in the back office, from Monday 21st October. The telephone number will stay the same.
If a journey has been pre-booked for that date, it will still be running.

New Lining for the Pool

Good news for Hay Swimming Pool! They've very nearly got all of the £15,000 (plus VAT) that they need, and the swimming pool is being re-lined now. They hope to be fully operational again in November.
They want to continue fund raising so that they can continue to maintain the pool and the building.

Tree Preservation

I've just heard that four of the five trees on the Old Library site now have Tree Preservation orders on them. Three are birch trees, two at the end of the site by the parking area for the solicitors and one on the grassy area near Brook Street Pottery. The other is the big cedar tree between the bench and the old Poetry Bookshop. It is hoped that this will preserve the green area for the public.

Stars in their Eyes

There were three really interesting things that I could have gone to see last night - the Walking Festival talks at the Swan, a folk singer at the Globe, and a talk about medieval astronomy at Cusop Church.
I chose the medieval astronomy, because I went to the talk that the speaker, Martin Griffiths, did last year, and thought it was absolutely fascinating.
This time the church wasn't quite so full, but the weather had been pretty awful, which may have dissuaded people from going out.
The talk centred around the state of knowledge in the medieval period in Europe, where a lot of the knowledge of the Classical World had been lost - or rather, it had moved East, to the Islamic world, Vedic India and China, where they encouraged the love of knowledge for its own sake. In the Medieval Christian West, theology was the Queen of Sciences and anything else wasn't seen as important.
The situation was complicated, though, because on the one hand the Church was limiting knowledge to what was acceptable, and what fitted with the Bible (even if it was contradicted by actual experience), and on the other hand the Church had saved knowledge from the Classical world such as Plato and Aristotle (who was a "rubbish scientist", but whose works were copied for 1500 years).
Astronomy was important to the Church because of the difficulties of calculating the correct date for Easter every year, so that was studied - with the proviso that the Earth was, naturally, in the centre, with the planets, Moon and sun going round it.
Astrology was also important, and to cast an individual's horoscope you need to know the positions of the planets. Astrology also had a correspondence between an astrological sign and each part of the body. Chest problems which we would now call lung cancer were common in the smoky atmospheres of medieval housing, with all those open fires, and the chest was ruled by Cancer the Crab - which is where the name for the disease came from.
Another difficulty for medieval scholars was trying to do maths with Roman numerals. At this point Martin Griffiths looked around the church to find some numbers to point at with his laser pointer - Arabic numerals, except they're not really Arabic either. They originally came from Vedic India. When they had numerals which were easy to use, and one of the Popes had re-invented the abacus, they were able to do all sorts of maths problems which had been incredibly difficult before.
And then an Arab invented algebra, which made even more complex maths possible.
At around the same time, someone went down to Cordova in Islamic Spain and translated 87 books into Latin - which caused a great expansion in universities across Europe, as scholars came to grips with this flood of new knowledge. At the time, one of the biggest libraries in Europe, near Rouen, had a grand total of 39 books. Cordova had a library of half a million books.
Later in the talk, Martin Griffiths said something quite staggering while talking about Leonardo da Vinci - when Leonardo was born, it is estimated that there were only 7,500 books in the whole of Europe. During his lifetime, the printing press was invented (or rather, pinched from the Chinese, along with paper which made printing much cheaper) and when Leonardo died there were 30 million books in Europe. The Church wasn't going to be able to keep control of that outpouring of knowledge.
Back to cosmology, and Dante's Divine Comedy, which has 9 circles of Hell, Purgatory and Heaven. This was based on the Aristotelian system, and is also where the phrase "on cloud nine" comes from - the highest circle of Heaven!
So it was a fascinating evening, with a lot of questions at the end. Even better, I won a prize in the raffle (some Roses chocolates) and got a lift home!

Auction for Extinction Rebellion

The Drawing Room art gallery in Hay (beside the old HSBC bank) organised an auction of original artwork by Stephanie Lamb yesterday in aid of the people from Hay who have gone down to London to join in the Extinction Rebellion protests (I only saw the post on Facebook this morning). The money is to help to pay any fines and travel expenses they have if they are arrested.

At the protest in the spring, Justin Lewis Preece was arrested. He sings in English and Welsh and plays guitar at the Globe open mics, and also sometimes comes to the Baskerville acoustic sessions. He was fined £355 and lost four days work, as he had to travel down to London to appear in court twice. At the present protest, he is there again, as a legal observer.
I haven't heard of any arrests among the seventeen people from Hay who have gone down to London this time, but Sean O'Donoghue has set up a Just Giving page just in case. They're trying to raise £1,000.

An Autumn Cabbage Leaf

The Cabbage Leaf is the name of a free magazine which is distributed locally by Botany and Other Stories. It's a slang term in France for a low quality newspaper, but also has the advantage of being green - and the message of the magazine is that we are all part of Nature.

In this issue, they have been working with the children of Clyro School, who have provided pictures and two stories from eleven year olds about plastic pollution in the seas.
A group of children from Clyro School also visited the National Botanical Garden of Wales. They interviewed Amy, who works there, went to look in the pond for tadpoles and pond snails, and spent the afternoon in the butterfly house. There are lots of pictures of butterflies.

There's also an article about Maria Sibylla Merian, an artist and scientist who lived from 1647 to 1713, a botanical illustration by Françoise Verger, a book review by Elspeth-miri Llewelyn Funnell, aged eleven, and an article about the Mexican Cempoalxochitl flower by Karen Francis Torres, who is from Mexico.

There's also news of a new session at Hay Library called The Enchanted Hour, in which "writers and performers will read aloud to transport the Library visitors to another world". This happens on the second Friday of each month at 3.30pm, starting on 11th October.
The Library also has Storytime for babies and toddlers every Monday from 11am to 11.30am.

Town Council News

The councillors are changing round again. This time it's goodbye to Councillor Hugh Sawyer, who is moving on to a new business venture, and hello to Councillor Isobelle Keith, who works at PCI Pharma Services and has lived in Hay for two and a half years - her husband Tom grew up in the area.
Isobelle has hit the ground running as a member of the Town Council, as she is now the Co-ordinator for the Green Transport Action Plan. She has already set up a lift/car share group on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/238557719890177/
The Green Transport Action Plan is part of the Low Carbon Hay Steering Group, which was set up by the Town Council after they declared a climate change emergency. There are eight different topic areas, all with the aim to reduce the area's carbon footprint by 2030. They include: reducing business energy use, reducing domestic energy use, planting trees, working with Hay School and local secondary schools, transport, and supporting Plastic-Free Hay.
The Town Council is also supporting the Sustrans idea of a Hay to Brecon Cycle Path, more or less along the route of the old railway. This isn't possible along the whole route, as there are parts of the old railway line that have been built on, or are privately owned, but they hope to be able to re-route around those areas. Again, there is a Facebook page - www.facebook.com/pg/brecontohaycyclepath
Also on a green and sustainable theme, the Town Council mentions Hayfield Garden, the community garden on the other side of Hay Bridge, on Racquety Farm. They are keen to welcome new members to the group, which grows organic fruit and vegetables which are shared among the members, with the surplus being sold. They meet on Wednesdays and Saturday mornings, but people may be there on other days as well.
And finally, the newsletter that went out with WyeLocal has a thank you from the Town Council to Harold Coombes, who has been looking after the garden around the Council Chambers for the past 20 years and has now finally decided to retire!

Declaration of Rebellion

Around 50 people met at the Clock tower on Saturday morning to march, behind George the Town Cryer, to the middle of town, where George used the outdoor seating area for Shepherds café as a stage to address the crowd. He was reading Extinction Rebellion's Declaration of Rebellion at 11am, at the same time as speakers all over the country. At the beginning of the speech, he made clear that he had been commanded to make the Declaration by the Mayor.
The girl who organised the Hay School Strike march also made a speech, and then George returned to say a few words of his own, about how he often felt guilt about what his actions were doing to the planet, but that feeling of guilt could be turned into a positive force for change, and that what he saw when he looked at the crowd was hope.
Then another little girl made a speech, and lastly Paul from the local Extinction Rebellion group reminded everyone that a big action is starting on Monday morning in London.
I saw some friends among the crowd, and we retired to Shepherds for coffee (and delicious apple cake) and conversation.

That evening, The Old Electric Shop was opened up for a social evening for the local Extinction Rebellion group. It was an opportunity to get to know each other over a glass of wine (or beer) and nibbles. I had a fascinating conversation about Ursula le Guin's Earthsea books, continued from that morning, when the parcel delivery man had seen me by the Clocktower and delivered my parcel containing the complete stories of Earthsea illustrated by Charles Vess.
The gathering also had the purpose of getting the people who were going to London to take part in the protests sorted out with the messaging system they were using - and there was a video call from John Paul, who has been walking to London. He was camped somewhere near Windsor when he called - the phone and speaker were held up high so everyone could see and hear him. However, he said that his feet had given up, so arrangements were going to be made to pick him up in the electric bus that is travelling down to London, so that he can make it to the opening ceremony.

Hay2Timbuktu News

There's a good piece in this month's WyeLocal about the work that Hay2Timbuktu is doing.
The toilet project is going well - new toilets have been installed in the local high schools and water supplies are now being provided for hand washing facilities as well. The toilets are important because girls were missing school, and now they can continue their education without interruptions. As one of the teachers says on the Hay2Timbuktu website, the boys can always manage, but for the girls it's more difficult, and one of the headmasters says that his school is 114 years old, and the toilets have never been modernised.
The girls who are in the bursary project have also been doing well, and are all moving on to the next grade. This is to provide extra support in the form of school materials which parents would usually have to buy, and to give extra training in areas like sexual health.
There's also a solar lamp project, where students can take lamps home so they have light to do their homework.

Some time this month there will be a dinner to raise money for Hay2Timbuktu at Booths Bookshop, including a talk by Lucy Duran on Music in Mali, Creativity and Crisis. I haven't been able to find the date of that yet. A new Hay/Timbuktu recipe book is also planned.

Members of Hay Town Council have also been invited to go to Timbuktu to see the contributions that Hay2Timbuktu have made.

Rabbits in the Castle

Well, not exactly! Andrew Williams of Eighteen Rabbit, the Fairtrade shop on Lion Street, has taken on a new job. He's now the office manager of Hay Castle, involved in the day-to-day running of the Castle.
And the end of the renovations is in sight! The Trust hopes that the Castle will be open to the public next summer, so they'll be recruiting staff and volunteers for their new café, shop and gallery next spring.

Indestructible Pumpkins!

There was a craft fair in the Buttermarket on Saturday. There were the regular stalls - the Japanese lady artist, embroidery, woollen goods, wooden goods and so on - and something unusual caught my eye.
Indestructible pumpkins - made out of old horseshoes! Just in time for Hallowe'en.
They also had some of those fairy doors which have become popular, with a horseshoe as the frame for the door - though I'm not sure how keen traditional fairies would be about passing through an arch of Cold Iron at their front door!

Stars in their Eyes - Astronomy Talk

While walkers are headed out to the hills over the weekend beginning on 10th October, I'll be hiking up the hill to Cusop Church on Friday 11th for a talk about medieval astronomy.
Martin Griffiths has been to the church before - then he was speaking about astronomy with reference to the Welsh myths, and he was absolutely fascinating. This time he'll be talking about art and objects from the medieval period that illustrate what they knew of the night sky.
He was a senior lecturer in astronomy at the University of South Wales, and has also worked for NASA. He's also involved in the Dark Sky Wales project.
Tickets are £6 (£4 for students), and the talk starts at 7.30pm.

Walking Festival

It's not long now until the Hay Walking Festival (I hope they have better weather than this week!).
It starts on Thursday 10th October with three walks - Moors, Waterfalls and Witches; Merbach Hill and Arthur's Stone, and Kilvert Country. All the walks cost £8 to join.
On the Friday, the walks include Craswall Priory, the Cat's Back and the Golden Valley.
In the evening, there's a talk at the Swan, with speakers talking about walking in the Brecon Beacons, Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk, and The Shropshire Six - six hills on a 40 mile route which is traditionally completed in one day!
On Saturday the walks include Cusop Hill and the Darrens, Lord Hereford's Knob, another walk along the Cat's Back, and the Timbuktu Trail around Hay - that one only costs £5.
On Sunday, there are walks up Hay Common, Hay to Peterchurch with the Hay Ho bus, Llanthony, and the Begwns.
So there's quite a variety in terms of length of walks and terrain - all in beautiful countryside, of course.
They have a website at www.haywalkingfestival.com

Bronllys Well Being Park

Bronllys Well Being Park is a Community Land Trust, a not-for-profit organisation which is developing the area around Bronllys Hospital for the benefit of the local community. There's an article in WyeLocal with an advert, all about it.
On Wednesday 9th October, between noon and 3pm, they will be at Hay Library with a presentation, to find out what local people in Hay have to say. They will be asking about the factors that keep people well in the home, local community (Hay, Talgarth and Bronllys) and the region (South Powys), or outside the area. This will help them to develop proposals for the future of the Bronllys site in partnership with the Health Board, County Council and Community. They're thinking about sustainable housing so that people can live close to where there are local job vacancies as well as leisure opportunities and amenities around the existing hospital buildings.
On Thursday 10th October, from noon to 3pm, they'll be at Royston Hall in Bronllys, and from 4pm to 8pm they'll be at Bronllys Hospital Concert Hall.
On Friday 11th October, from 4pm to 8pm, they'll be at Talgarth Town Hall.

Planning for Rebellion Part Two

There was a bit of discussion about how to hold a non-violent protest. One of the things that was seen to be important was music - if people are singing and music is playing it's harder to be violent. There are songs and choruses on the XR website, and people with white sashes will be forming an impromptu choir. I mentioned the Quakers protesting at the recent Arms Fair in London, who sat down and held a prayer meeting outside the venue.
Someone asked if this was the right time to hold climate protests, considering the present political climate in the UK. The considered answer was that all the problems over Brexit seemed like a petty squabble compared with the importance of saving the planet. Whatever people's politics are, we all need a habitable planet to live on. In one way, this is a perfect time to protest about climate change, both because of the short time we have to make a difference according to the IPCC report and the volatile nature of British politics at the moment - there may be a General Election soon, and the situation seems to be changing all the time. It was seen as a positive sign that Jane Dodds, the new MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, came to the Brecon protest last week, and was talking about holding a Citizen's Assembly to talk about what can be done in the local area to mitigate climate change.

There was a slide presentation then, from the Extinction Rebellion website, showing what the plan is for the coming protests. They also had a kit list to hand out, with essential items to take along for the people going to London. It was pointed out that most protesters don't make their plans public before they do the protest.
The focus is on government departments this time, with the Hay contingent planning to be part of the much larger XR Wales group, which will be gathering around the Home Office, along with XR Bristol (apparently they've got 500 people coming), XR Rainbow and XR Farmers, who have a pink tractor! I think they said that the communal kitchens would be in that area too.
Each group has a different theme - around the Home Office it's "We are all Crew" - in other words everyone is there to help out. There's going to be a Faith group on Lambeth Bridge, which will also be for Global Food Justice, Re-Wilding groups, a Peace group, and others. Other organisations, like Friends of the Earth, will also be involved. There will also be Non-Violence training sessions going on throughout the protest, and there are also local training days in the days leading up to the protest, at The Koffie Pot in Hereford, the Muse in Brecon, Ross-on-Wye and Bishop's Castle.
On the middle weekend of the protest there will be a time of Grief and Community, coming together to remember people who have died because of climate change and pausing to reflect about what they're doing. The idea is that this will give the protesters fresh impetus for the second week, which will be focussed on Global Justice. The Queen's Speech, to start the next session of Parliament, will be on the 14th October, in the middle of the protests.

The meeting then broke up into groups for actual planning of when people were going to London and what they were going to be doing. As I won't be going, that wasn't something I could participate in.
However, the chap who wanted to walk to London has set off, despite the appalling weather!

Planning for Rebellion Part One

As I headed down to Cusop Hall last night I saw a heron fishing in the Dulas Brook, just below the bridge.
It seemed appropriate - that's the sort of thing that Extinction Rebellion are trying to save. I'd been looking at videos of huge protest marches around the world on my Twitter feed earlier in the day.
I was greeted with tea and fruit cake - and the lone man in the room asking plaintively: "Is it only women who want to save the world?"
A couple more men did turn up later, but the meeting was mostly female.

After a fairly general session last week, this meeting was more focussed on the up-coming climate action on October 7th and the weeks following that.
The chairs were arranged in a circle, and the meeting started with everyone introducing themselves and saying a few words about why they were there. The structure of the meetings is important to Extinction Rebellion as part of what they call Regenerative Culture. It's also why the organisation is as non-hierarchical as they can manage to make it. We were also introduced to the idea of hand signals to make communications easier - from a simple raising a finger if we want to speak next to "jazz hands" when we agree with something another person has said.
About half of the group said they wanted to go to the protest in London at least for one day. One lady commented: "I'm taking rubber gloves in case I do some washing up."
There was some talk about Affinity Groups - where a group of people who know each other stick together, and have different roles to play within the group. One lady said she'd gone down to Abergavenny last week for the protest there, because it was the only one locally she could get to, and it was more difficult for her because she didn't know anyone there. So when the group blocked a road, she had no idea how long the action was going to last, or what the group had planned beforehand.

A part of the meeting I found very useful was the (no longer lone) man in the group going through the printed handout about the aims and objectives of Extinction Rebellion.
He started by saying: "The world is burning." Since the big climate summit of 1992 50% more CO2 has been added to the world's atmosphere - after a meeting where everyone knew that CO2 had to be reduced. So something drastic has to happen, and the action that Extinction Rebellion has decided to take is Non-Violent Direct Action. One early example of this method working to change government policy is the Salt March in India led by Ghandi, where they were protesting about taxation of salt.
Protest marches are all very well - one of the ladies at the meeting had been on the march against the Iraq war, but of course, the UK still went to war against Iraq. So members of Extinction Rebellion are committed to disrupting normal daily life, like blocking the bridges in London at Easter and occupying Oxford Circus, and sacrifice - being prepared to be arrested for what they believe in.
We're in the middle of the sixth Mass Extinction of species on this planet, and summit meetings aren't enough - we need our governments to mobilise against this threat to life on earth in the same way that they did during World War Two. Trying to change the world by consumer choices just isn't enough - and has been tried over the last forty years, to very little effect. It's no use saying things are happening behind the scenes, either - let's see it happening in public.

So Extinction Rebellion wants governments, and corporations like the fossil fuel giants who have been lying about the problem for forty years, to Tell the Truth about the scale of the problem, and what they intend to do about it.
They also want to go Beyond Politics, and have a People's Assembly. This was done successfully in the Republic of Ireland over the issue of abortion, and was followed by a referendum in which the ban on abortion was overturned.

We're heading for a 2 degree rise in global temperature, which will have serious consequences - and is already having serious consequences for the world's weather. If we want to keep the Earth to a limit of a 2 degree rise, the UN will have to triple the efforts it is currently making. If we want to keep to a limit of 1.5 degrees, we will need to make five times the effort we're currently making. This is not something individuals can do on their own.

Extinction Rebellion have estimated that, for real change to happen, 3.5% of the world's population needs to be engaged in actively wanting it. Someone asked what that meant for Hay, and a quick calculation revealed that something like 70 people were needed - "We've got that many on our Facebook page!"

Castle Gateway

When I wandered past the Castle gateway this morning, I saw that the two trees that were being trimmed last week have now been cut down, and also that the old staircase leading down from the gateway has been removed. This will be the first step to creating a new entranceway going through the medieval gateway and down into the town square.

Extinction Rebellion Meeting

About fifteen people turned up to the first XR Hay meeting last night at the Parish Hall. They weren't just from Hay - there were people there from Llowes, Llanigon, Glasbury and Cusop. A couple of chaps from the Golden Valley group had come along to explain how their meetings work and to give advice. The Golden Valley group is part of a regional network with groups in Hereford (meeting at the Koffie Pot), with groups up into Shropshire and across towards Birmingham. Hay, as ever, is on the edge of that, or could choose to be on the edge of a Welsh network with the nearest group in Brecon and heading down to Bristol.

Most of the people in the room had been to the climate strike marches in either Hereford or Brecon, and were very impressed at the numbers of people who had turned out to take part - about 600 in Hereford and almost as many in Brecon. Jane Dodds, the new MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, had been at the Brecon march, and was talking about setting up a Citizens' Assembly to work out local responses to climate change. Meanwhile, the Powys Education Authority had issued an official letter to say that any children who came out of school for the climate strike would be marked down as having an unauthorised absence. Despite this, one chap had taken his two children out of Hay school for the day, and had no regrets about taking them to the march.
One lady had even taken part in the "die-in" at Primark, though she'd been very nervous about it. Some of the people there had also been to the big Extinction Rebellion rally in London at Easter, and had been most impressed by the way it was conducted.
It struck me that a lot of the people there were not the sort of people who normally went on protest marches. In fact, some said that this was the first time they had ever done anything like this, and two ladies mentioned that they were now grandmothers, and they were worried about the sort of world their grandchildren were going to grow up in.

The chap from the Golden Valley explained that Extinction Rebellion is not a hierarchical movement. There is a central Hub that co-ordinates things, but they have no authority over the local groups, which organise themselves. This can be a good thing, but it can also cause problems, such as when the Heathrow group decided they wanted to fly drones at the Airport. Despite a lot of argument, they decided to go ahead, and several were arrested, and no-one at the Hub had the authority to tell them not to do it.
However, one of the most important things about Extinction Rebellion is that it is committed to Non-Violent Direct Action. So, it's not just protest marches - there have been other groups over the years which have marched, and got nowhere with the powers that be. It's direct action, like blocking roads, or people gluing themselves to doors, and being prepared to be arrested.
It was emphasised that only a minority were prepared to get arrested, and there was plenty of scope for people to take part at whatever comfort level they had. Support roles are also important, such as cooking for big events, or being a "well-being co-ordinator" to make sure members of the group are looking after themselves and taking adequate breaks. At the Easter action, they found that there was a shortage of people who were prepared to hang around outside police stations to wait for the people who had been arrested to be released - and since 1,100 people were arrested, and processed in police stations across London, this was quite an important job that they would be trying to do better next time.
People who say they are willing to be arrested if necessary are encouraged to go to the training days that are being offered in Hereford and Malvern, so they know what to do and how to resist non-violently. There are also training days for Legal Observers, who are there to make sure that people are arrested properly and that everything is done in accordance with the law.

The Hay group has been set up just in time for the run up to the big action in London which starts on 7th October. They are hoping that it will last for about two weeks, like the Easter action, and people can commit to going down for the whole thing, or just a day, or anything in between - or they can support the action from home, by making banners beforehand, or being on the end of a phone. One lady said she would be willing to bake cakes for the people who were going.
The chap with kids at Hay School asked if it would be safe to take them. The action will be taking place on several different sites around London, run by different regional groups, and there will be communication between them so that people know if any trouble is likely. Having said that, there will be child-friendly activities going on. It was emphasised that, if anyone felt uncomfortable they could leave, and return later. If, for instance, a policeman told them to step off the road, it was up to them whether they refused, with the risk of arrest, or complied, and rejoined the protest at another spot.
One chap wants to walk from Hereford to London - so he'll have to start soon! He was advised to build in rest days, particularly as he got close to London, as some people had walked across the country at Easter, and arrived in London too tired out to do anything!
For those who don't want to walk, there are places available on an electric bus which will be leaving from Hereford.

XR Hay are having several meetings between now and the big action, including one on Sunday 29th September from 10am to 1pm to do block printing for banners. They're asking people who come along to bring some food to share for a vegetarian lunch.
The next XR Hay meeting will be on Friday 27th September, at Cusop Hall at 7pm.
Hereford XR group are planning a street theatre event on Saturday 28th September, in the middle of Hereford.

After the big action, there are lots of positive things that local groups can do. There's a re-wilding project on land at Lord Hereford's Knob, for instance, and the group wants to collaborate with the Re-Wilding group in Hay, and the Low Carbon group that the Town Council have set up. There are also local campaigns about chicken sheds (and intensive farming generally) and Hereford by-pass that are relevant to climate change.

XR Hay - Extinction Rebellion

Hay now has its own Extinction Rebellion group, XR Hay, and there is a meeting tonight at the Parish Hall at 7pm. Today people are marching in Hereford and Brecon, and all over the world in a mass climate strike, to demand action on climate change. (I'm not marching today, but I did march last November, and earlier this year, in Hereford.)
The Writers' Society, meanwhile, is doing the opposite of a strike, and encouraging its members to speak out about climate change from whatever platform they can.
Today is the first step in a series of actions culminating in a big protest march on October 7th in London - but you don't have to go to London to take part. The group welcomes everyone, and everyone can do something to help.
Extinction Rebellion is committed to Non-Violent Direct Action, and Herefordshire XR have been holding training days so that people know what to do when they are confronted with violence while protesting peacefully.
There are Facebook pages for the groups at Extinction Rebellion Herefordshire and XR Hay. I'm sure there's one for Brecon, too - I just haven't found it yet.


MEETING TIMES AND DATES

FRIDAY 20th SEPTEMBER HAY PARISH HALL 7-9

FRIDAY 27th SEPTEMBER. CUSOP HALL. 7-9pm

SUNDAY 29th SEPTEMBER CUSOP HALL 10am-1pm. BLOCK PRINTING ON CLOTHES AND FABRICS, LUNCH.
Food is provided, but please bring some vegetarian food to share if you wish.

WEDNESDAY 2nd OCTOBER CUSOP HALL 7-9 pm

SATURDAY 5th OCTOBER CUSOP VILLAGE HALL TIMES 7-9pm.

There's a good book explaining what Extinction Rebellion is all about. It's called This is not a drill: the Extinction Rebellion Handbook, and it is available at Hay Library, The Old Electric Shop (which is where I got my copy) and Eighteen Rabbit. Eighteen Rabbit have also been selling the little book by Greta Thunberg, No One is Too Small to Make a Difference.

Local Writing Talent

Congratulations to Kandace Siobhan Walker, who has just won the Guardian 4th Estate short story prize!
The prize money is £1,000, and the competition is for short stories by black, Asian and minority ethnic writers. It's the fourth year of the competition, which was created to encourage talented writers who have historically been marginalised by mainstream publishers.
Kandace works at Booths Bookshop (look out for the purple hair!) and grew up in Llanigon - she went to Gwernyfed High School and then Christ College Brecon, and went on from there to study English with creative writing at Goldsmiths in London, where she did her MA.
Her mother Marva Jackson Lord runs G-riots Arts locally, doing website design for musicians and other creative people, and occasionally staging music and poetry events in Hay.
Kandace's story is called Deep Heart, and can be read, along with the shortlisted entries, at www.4thestate.co.uk/prize-2/ It's a magical, beautiful and disturbing story.
She is currently working on a novel. I'm already looking forward to reading it.

Climate Strike

I've just been reading the news that the Greenland ice-sheet has suffered it's greatest losses ever recorded this summer, and is melting four times faster than previously thought.
So this seems a good time to mention the Climate Strike on 20th September.
The nearest Climate Strike march to Hay is in Hereford, starting from the Sixth Form College at 11.15am, and marching into the centre of town. The biggest rally is expected to be in London.
The owner of Fodder, the organic shop near the Cathedral, has announced that the shop will be closed to observe the strike, and so will Timothy Hawkins Gallery and Fine Furniture in Church Street.
[Edited to add: I've just got this week's Brecon and Radnor Express, and there will also be a climate strike rally in Brecon, starting at 9.30am at Bethel Square. There will also be two talks- at St. Mary's Church, Brecon, on Saturday at 7pm and at The Muse on Sunday at 3pm, by climate scientist Dr. Aaron Thierry. The talks are free, but donations will be asked for.]
This will start a week of action, with people in 120 countries taking part, including Universities, trade unions, Council workers, 1,200 businesses across Australia, museums, the Writers' Guild, independent music labels, and even architects.
As many Councils, including Hay and Hereford, have declared a climate emergency, this is the time to make sure they're doing something about it (Hay is actually quite committed to this, and Hereford has been making some positive moves since the makeup of the County Council changed in recent elections).

Castle Gate

Tree surgeons have been trimming back two trees by the Castle gate - they look very bare now! Work is going on round there as there will be new steps and a ramp leading down to the Square, so that people can walk into the Castle by the original gateway.

A Weekend of Music and History

There's a lot happening in Hay at the end of this month, the weekend of 27th -29th September.
I don't often mention the very fine classical music that is performed regularly in Hay, at St Mary's Church and Booths Bookshop in particular (there's also jazz at the Black Lion, but jazz is a style of music I've never been able to take to).
However, this is going to be something rather special - the Fitzwilliam String Quartet will be performing at St Mary's Church on Friday 27th at 7pm, with a pre-concert study session in the afternoon to discuss the Schumann and Elgar piano quintets which will be played later that evening.
On Saturday 28th, the pre concert study session is with the Fitzwilliam Quartet and the Dragonfly Trio, discussing Tchaikovsky's "Souvenir de Florence" before it is performed later in the evening at Booth's Bookshop - the concert will also have music by Borodin, Dohnanyi and Suk. I'm most interested by the Suk piece, after hearing Suk's beautiful and haunting Fairy Tale music being used as the theme music of an obscure audio SF drama called The Minister of Chance. Tickets for the concerts, and the pre-concert study sessions, are £15 each, but I think it will be well worth it.
There are two pre-concert sessions, at £7.50 each, the second one being an interview with the members of the Fitzwilliam Quartet by Richard Wigmore.
Meanwhile at Booths Cinema, they're showing Elgar - The Man Behind the Mask at 2.30pm on the Saturday, followed by a discussion with Diana McVeagh, a writer on British music. The tickets for this are £10.
And on the Sunday, the pre-concert session will be discussing Shostakovich's 10th and 11th String Quartets (tickets are £7.50 each) at the Swan Hotel from 10 - 11am. The concert takes place at Theatr Brycheiniog in Brecon that afternoon, starting at 3.30pm and is called Shostakovich Inspired! As well as the string quartets, there will be readings from Shostakovich's diaries and memoirs.

So that's the weekend for classical music lovers.

Meanwhile the history lovers will be enjoying Hay's contribution to the Brecknock History Festival, which has events all over the area. There's music involved in this too, as they are celebrating 100 years since the death of Adelina Patti the opera singer, who lived at Craig-y-nos in Powys. They used to have one of her stage costumes on show at Brecon Museum - maybe they will again when it finally re-opens....
In Hay there will be a pop-up museum from 12 noon to 4pm on Sunday 29th September at the Parish Hall. Hay History Group and Cusop History Group have teamed up for this, and it will be a good chance to talk to local historians about the research they've been doing, and the history of the local area.
At 4pm there will be a talk by Tim Hoverd, the Archaeology Projects Manager for Herefordshire, who will be presenting a round-up of recent research on Marcher castles. He's involved in research and conservation works at Snodhill Castle at the moment, which should be fascinating, and further afield he's been working on a community project at a gunpowder factory!
Entry is free, and there will be tea and cake to buy.