Avanti Magazine - Autumn 2015 Issue

THE MAGAZINE FOR MEMBERS OF THE CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT FELLOWSHIP AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

MAGAZINE

Last Chance to Buy Golden Raffle Tickets

Thrilling books Healthy Bones

Indian inspirations

Over £14,000 of raffle prizes to be won!

P L U S : N e r y s H u g h e s • N H S H E L P • L E T T ER W R I T I N G

contents editor’s letter

4 JUBILEE NEWS AND VIEWS Golden Jubilee Raffle update, AGM report and news from Fellowship Office

Hello and welcome to the Autumn edition of avanti!

We’re now more than halfway through our Golden Jubilee year, and CSRF members around the UK are in full swing with their activities; and of course there’s also the Golden Jubilee Raffle. If you haven’t bought your tickets yet or if you’d like to get more for family and friends, it’s certainly not too late! Turn over the page to find out more.

Elsewhere in this issue, we have two health features. David Porteous looks at the art of letter writing; and we open up the world of crime fiction to chat to some of today’s bestselling writers. In addition, while we can’t promise you an Indian Summer as far as the weather’s concerned, our four page feature looks at Indian influences; from Brighton Pavilion to fabric and crockery.

Finally, we’ve got a packed Postbag section! Do keep sending in your letters, pictures and stories. This is your magazine, and one of the best things about editing it is seeing how many of you enjoy it.

16 FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND THE NHS Kaye McIntosh guides us through the health service maze

21 LAST POST? Letter writing through the ages

24 MOVE OVER MISS MARPLE The eternal allure of crime fiction

28 THEM BONES, THEM BONES The whys and wherefores of keeping your skeleton strong

32 EAST MEETS WEST How the Indian subcontinent influenced the UK

36 ENTERTAINMENT Staying in or going out, our top picks

40 SOPHIA’S CORNER Eating well on a budget

42 TEA BREAK In the Winter avanti we’ll be looking at the benefits of pet ownership, so please send in your photos and stories of your furry friends!

Jokes, puzzles, top tips and our ever popular prize crossword

47 POSTBAG Your letters, stories and views

51 GROUP FOCUS Group reports and news from around the country

54 THE PLANNER

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published by Square7 Media Ltd, 3 More London Riverside, London SE1 2RE t: 020 3283 4055 e: enquiries@square7media.co.uk www.square7media.co.uk

Find out what your local group is up to

62 MY FAVOURITE THINGS Nerys Hughes’ top choices

The Civil Service Retirement Fellowship Suite 2, 80A Blackheath Road, London SE10 8DA t: 020 8691 7411 e: info@csrf.org.uk w: www.csrf.org.uk A charity registered in England and Wales No 255465 and in Scotland No SC039049 and a company limited by guarantee in England and Wales No 6297479

Publisher: Gaynor Garton e: gaynor@square7media.co.uk Advertising: t: 020 3283 4055 e: adsales@square7media.co.uk Editor: Radhika Holmström Contact the Editor: Use the CSRF address above e: avanti@square7media.co.uk t: 020 8691 7411 Contributors: Eve Ahmed, Sophia Hill, Kaye McIntosh, David Porteous, Kate Wheal Designer: Charlotte Morgan ©2015. avanti Magazine is published by Square7 Media Ltd on behalf of the Civil Service Retirement Fellowship (CSRF). All rights reserved. The CSRF and the publishers declare that any publication of any advertisement does not carry their endorsement or sponsorship of the advertiser or their products unless so indicated. Contributions are invited and, whether or not accepted, submissions will be returned only is accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope. No responsibility can be taken for drawings, photographs or literary contributions during transmission or while in the publisher’s hands. Proof of receipt is no guarantee of appearance.

In the absence of an agreement, the copyright of all contributions, literary, photographic or artistic belongs to The CSRF. This publication (or any part thereof) may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in print or electronic format (including, but not limited to, any online service, database or part of the internet), or in any other format in any media whatsoever, without the prior written permission of Square7 Media Ltd. The CSRF and Square7 Media accept no liability for the accuracy of the contents or any other opinions expressed herein. The views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the official views of The CSRF.

www.csrf.org.uk AUTUMN 2015

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frontdesk Help us to hit

£150,000 Have you bought your Golden Jubilee Raffle tickets yet?

If you have bought your own tickets, have your friends and family bought theirs?

We’ve still got tickets on sale, so even if you’ve mislaid the tickets included in the Summer issue of avanti don’t worry. All you need to do is contact us and we’ll send as many books as you’d like.

We’re aiming to make a grand total of £150,000 from Golden Jubilee Raffle ticket sales and we’ve still got some way to go.

So please do help us sell as many tickets as possible. The more we sell, the more we can raise for the Fellowship. The draw closes on 2 November, so there’s still plenty of time to reach our total, but we can’t do it without you!

Each book of five tickets costs just £5 and there are some great prizes on offer. Our First Prize (donated by benenden) is a £5,000 cash prize, our Second Prize (donated by the Civil Service Insurance Society) is a £3,000 cash prize and the runners up prizes include a weekend break donated by Warner Leisure.

There’s no limit to the number of books you can buy, so do stock up for yourselves and encourage your friends and family to buy books too. All the funds we raise will go directly to supporting the Fellowship, so your support and generosity will really make a big difference.

1965 2015

How can I enter the Golden prize draw?

TATTTDATFDFFTADDFFATTTDDDATTFFDAAAAF Freepost RTRU–KBSB–RESC t Fellowship The Civil Service Retiremen 80a Blackheath Road LONDON SE10 8DA CSRF Golden Jubilee Raffle

Count me in!

Please return by 2 November 2015

If you still have your envelope from the Summer issue: 1. Detach your tickets and return the counterfoils (don’t separate the counterfoils from each other please) with your name, address and contact number written on them 2. Enclose a cheque made payable to ‘The CSRF’ for the correct amount.

You can also include a donation on the same cheque.

3. Check you have completed the response slip and then put this with your counterfoils and cheque in the FREEPOST envelope and post it off.

If you have mislaid your envelope or would like to buy some more: 1. Fill out the form opposite with your name, address and contact number.

2. Select how many books of tickets you’d like to buy (minimum order is one book at £5) and send your form along with a cheque made payable to ‘The CSRF’ to Fellowship Office using the following address: The Golden Jubilee Raffle, The CSRF, Suite 2, 80a Blackheath Road, London SE10 8DA. 3. Once we receive your form/payment we will send you your tickets by return and we will ensure your counterfoils are entered into the draw for you.

Buy Online If you’d prefer, you can buy raffle tickets online via the CSRF website www.csrf.org.uk/golden-jubilee-raffle

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Celebrating

Years

golden jubilee raffle

Order Form

Item

Quantity

Raffle Tickets

Price

Total

£5 per book

Your Name: ADDRESS:

POSTCODE: TEL NO: EMAIL (if you have one): I would like to make an additional donation of £ I enclose a cheque for the above order made payable to: The CSRF Please tick the box below to enable us to claim Gift Aid on your donation

If you are a UK taxpayer The CSRF can reclaim the tax you’ve paid on your donation. Please tick the Gift Aid declaration box below

make your gift worth a quarter more at no extra cost to you!

£10,000 worth of cash prizes (our first prize of £5,000 and 50 prizes of £100)

I confirm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities or Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for that tax year. I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand the charity will reclaim 28p of tax on every £1 that I gave up to 5 April 2008 and will reclaim 25p of tax on every £1 that I give on or after 6 April 2008.

If you pay Income Tax at the higher or additional rate and want to receive the additional tax relief due to you, you must include all your Gift Aid donations on your Self Assessment tax return or ask HM Revenue and Customs to adjust your tax code.

£3,000 cash prize (our second prize)

Weekend break in a Grand UK Hotel

Please note: The closing date for the raffle is 2 November 2015. The draw will take place on 12 November 2015. Any tickets received after the closing date will not be eligible for entry to the draw and the money will be treated as a general donation.

Weekend break in London and a three course meal for 10 people (two separate prizes)

Long weekend break in the UK

If you have any questions about the raffle please call us on 020 8691 7411 or email enquiries@csrf.org.uk.

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annual general meeting 2015 The eighth Annual General Meeting of the company was held from 1pm on Wednesday 24 June 2015 at Admiralty House, 26 Whitehall, London SW1A 2DY Chairman’s opening remarks The Chairman welcomed all company members, observers, the CSRF’s Civil Service Champion Edward Troup, Vice Presidents Peter Jones and Roi Milburn, Chris Furlong and Charles Cochrane, trustees of the CSIS Charity Fund, Kevin Holliday, Chief Executive of the Civil Service Insurance Society and Derek Kinrade, the former editor of the first national magazine. He also thanked Fellowship Office staff and volunteers for their ongoing hard work and then went on to congratulate CSRF Chief Executive Jean Cooper on being awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

The Chairman highlighted the activities that had taken place during the Fellowship’s 50th anniversary year, in particular the Fellowship Holiday at Thoresby Hall in April and the many group events that had been held around Fellowship Day (9 April). He also went on to encourage those present to help promote and sell raffle tickets for the Golden Jubilee Prize Draw that would take place in November and thanked all those organisations who had donated prizes.

He went on to acknowledge the work carried out by Fellowship Office specifically in building new partnerships, operating the National Visitors Network and Phone Buddy scheme and the exploration and development of new projects. He noted that with all the activities celebrating the 50th anniversary year it was an opportune moment to consider how the Fellowship operated in the future.

The Chairman concluded by advising attendees that Sir Jeremy Heywood KCB, CVO had agreed to take over the role of President following the departure of Sir Bob Kerslake and Edward Troup (present) had kindly agreed to take on the role of Champion with the retirement of Sir Paul Jenkins KCB last year.

There were 38 eligible voting members present.

of the Auditors were presented by the Treasurer Jenny Rowe and received without question.

She thanked Tracey Darby for her help in the production of this year’s accounts and noted that the deficit for the year was expected due to the significantly reduced last grant-in-aid payment received from Cabinet Office and a lower than hoped for number of membership subscriptions. Fellowship Office had maintained a tight grip on spending and the challenges for the future were on how to increase CSRF’s income. A general discussion was had that specifically focused on this with suggestions including payroll giving and possible engagement with serving civil servants by way of a subscription.

All the views expressed from the floor were noted by the Chairman and would be included for consideration in future discussions by the Board of Directors about setting a new financial strategy for the Fellowship.

Accounts The company’s accounts for the year ending 31 December 2014, together with the Chairman’s Statement, the Report of the Board of Directors and the Report

The Meeting then formally closed.

It was followed by a special audio visual presentation given by Fellowship Office staff on their activities during the Golden Jubilee year.

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1 4

Auditors It was resolved to appoint Moore Stephens LLP as the auditors of the company and that the Board of Directors be authorised to fix their remuneration.

Election to the Board of Directors Margaret Carter from Branch 14, Torbay & South Devon, was elected to serve as Director for 2015-2018.

Resolution Emergency Special Resolution That the Board of Directors when taking into account the income available for 2016 to enable the CSRF to meet its required aims, objects and obligations as a registered charity be able to increase annual subscription rates from £27.32 to £32 and single life membership from £250 to £320 (this would be amortised over 10 years) with effect from 1 January 2016.

Carried

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Celebrating

Years

2

3 1. CSRF Champion Edward Troup with Chief Executive Jean Cooper 2. Chairman John Barker with fast-stream secondee Rosie Jacot 3. CSRF staff Sophia Hill, Belinda Stalker and Rosie Jacot 4. Peter Ferrozznolo and Pam Davis (28) 5. Vice President Peter Jones with Belinda Stalker 6. Office intern Mathias Nizan, volunteer Ian Fenn and NVN Administrator Duncan Packer 7.

Tony Hazeldine (BD), John Lloyd (BD) and Keith Sullens (BD) 8. Mike Smith (75), Chief Executive Jean Cooper and Deputy Chief Executive David Tickner 9. Chief Executive Jean Cooper with Vice President Roi Milburn 10. Chairman John Barker and Vice Chair Sue Jarvis cutting the 50th birthday cake 11. Adrian Howlett (111), Doreen Beck (90), Betty Adlam (17), Sylvia Edgell (BD) and Michael Wailes (BD)

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news

Many congratulations to Jean!

Our Chief Executive Jean Cooper was awarded an MBE for services to the CSRF in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in June.

The award is a fitting acknowledgment of her 36 years of dedication and service to our charity. Since receiving the news, she has been touched to have received so many messages of goodwill from members. “I’m very honoured and proud to receive this award for doing a job that I’ve enjoyed very much.”

Working together Thanks to Vic Griffiths, Vice President of the NHS Retirement Fellowship and member of the joint CSRF/ NHS Retirement Fellowship (NHSRF) working group. This joint scheme to promote CSRF group cooperation with NHSRF branches is well under way and is looking very encouraging already.

CSRF has been working with NHSRF for the past three years in developing and promoting a number of the joint leisure activities offered as ‘member benefits’ to those supporting both organisations. These include the annual golf tour, photography group and book club, all of which have benefited from contributions towards their running costs from the Civil Service Insurance Society.

The partnership has evolved, with a pilot scheme to encourage greater collaboration between CSRF groups and NHSRF branches. So far about 20 of our groups have started to benefit from this and joint events have been scheduled. Swansea group will be getting together for a joint harvest Festival celebration and a skittles match, while Bexhill-on-Sea group is planning a shared outing and has decided to hold a joint ‘getting to know you’ meal.

The ever increasing costs of speakers and trips out is becoming a cause for concern for many of our groups, so the positive feedback received to date suggests that this pilot has been warmly received throughout the CSRF group network. We hope it will provide groups with an opportunity to save money in the future.

If your group would be interested in applying to participate in this pilot scheme, please contact David Tickner at Fellowship Office on 020 8691 7411 or email groupsupport@csrf.org.uk

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2015 Seniors’ Golf Tour You can still get involved with the 2015 Tour, which will be taking place at the St Pierre golf course in Chepstow on Tuesday 8 September 2015.

All CSRF members are eligible to participate and there is an individual tour entry fee of £50, which includes a full day’s golf, evening meal, set of golf balls and a golf tag.

For more information contact John Toman, Tournament Director, on 01291 620345 or 07768 406233 or by email johntoman@btconnect.com

The Fellowship sends best wishes and congratulations to the Civil Service Insurance Society on its 125th anniversary this year and also for being voted UK’s Most Trusted Car Insurance Provider in the Customer Service category of the 2015 Moneywise ‘Most Trusted’ Customer Service Awards.

Celebrating

Years

Winner

Photography group winners The latest photography group competition, on the theme of Fun and Fitness, was judged at the beginning of July during the NHSRF Conference in Leeds. Judging was carried out by Mik Webb (NHSRF Trustee), Dr Margaret Abban from Cornwall and Professor Tony Moffat from Cambridge.

There were 17 entries from CSRF members and winner of the first prize was Marianne Rowcliffe with her picture entitled ‘Off the wall push ups’. Runners up were Eric Marsh for ‘Ladies’ Rugger’ and Malcolm Gibbon for ‘Catch me if you can’.

The current competition theme is History and Heritage and entries can be accepted up to 30 November 2015. To join the photography group (free for all CSRF members) email photography@csrf.org.uk or call 020 8691 7411 to register

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befriending schemes

We need YOU!

Towns include: Bracknell Wokingham

Could you help in any of these areas?

Marlow

Being a Visitor can be a terrifically rewarding way of making new friendships of your own, while helping us make a difference too. We will cover your costs to participate in our training seminar and reimburse your travel costs when you start visiting. If you’re a serving civil servant, by joining us you can also benefit from CPD (Continuing Professional Development) accredited training seminars and reimbursement of travel costs for your visits.

If you’re interested, just call 020 8691 7411 and a member of the Fellowship Office team will call you back for a confidential call. Alternatively you can email us on visiting@csrf.org.uk with your name and telephone number. You can also find out more in the Volunteer Section on the CSRF website, www.csrf.org.uk and even download the application form immediately from there!

Plymouth Clacton on Sea Maidstone Leicester Belfast

Leicestershire

Northern Ireland

Hertfordshire

Buckinghamshire

Essex

Wiltshire

SURREY DEVON

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KENT

Berkshire

Celebrating

Years

Phone a friend

Introducing our new NVN trainer We’re delighted to introduce you to our new NVN scheme trainer, Christopher Robertson, who joins us from the charity Community Network. Chris now works with our NVN Administrator, Duncan Packer, to deliver the training seminars for our Visitors and, judging by the feedback, he’s made a very positive impression so far. “I am really thrilled to help the NVN scheme and help reduce the loneliness felt by so many people. I look forward to seeing more NVN recruits in the coming months,” he tells us.

ABOVE: Chris Robertson (left) with Duncan Packer during Volunteers Week in June 2015

NVN training day In June 2015, we trained another group of serving civil servants who have volunteered to join the NVN. We are really pleased to welcome all of them as NVN Visitors and are working hard to match them to their beneficiaries. In the meantime, they have already joined our CSRF Departmental Ambassadors Network, which provides support to the NVN and Phone Buddy schemes and helps promote CSRF’s work as well.

Our latest NVN recruits trained and ready to meet their new friends

N WA

T A BU D D Y

Feeling lonely and in need of a regular chat? Our Phone Buddy scheme might be just the right thing for you. We’d love to hear from anyone who would welcome a regular friendship phone B E A U D DY call. We can usually match you up pretty B quickly. It’s easy to register and of course we’re more than happy to chat you through the process and establish exactly what you might want.

Call 020 8691 7411 and a member of the Fellowship Office team will ring you back for a confidential chat or email phonebuddy@csrf.org.uk with your name and telephone number. Alternatively you can find out more in the Volunteer Section on the CSRF website, www.csrf.org.uk and you can even download the form directly from the website.

Remember your charity remember CSRF in your will, this September is ‘Remember a Charity’ would be very much appreciated. month, highlighting the benefits that It is very easy to do. Whether leaving a legacy can have on your you already have a will or are favourite charity. CSRF has received yet to draw one up, all you need a number of legacies this year that to do is make a simple addition to have helped make an important your other arrangements to leave contribution to our work. We’d ask either a fixed sum or a percentage you to consider helping to safeguard of the overall estate value to the our future by leaving a legacy.

CSRF. Your will is completely We know very well that today’s confidential, so you are not cost of living makes it harder than obliged to tell us if you do decide ever for many people to donate to leave a legacy. money. Extra financial burdens, However, if you do, please let us from supporting grandchildren with know so that we can ensure university fees to moving into the money is spent as a care home, make it you wish and so we increasingly difficult can also thank you for people to give for your greatly as much as they CSRF’s legal helpline is operated appreciated would like to

by McClure Solicitors and they offer contribution. their favourite advice and information on how to We promise charities in review or create a will, as well as a that your their lifetime. range of other later life legal issues such as powers of attorney. legacy will However, For more information, be spent every donation, call 08451 800939 or email wisely and whatever its csrf@mcclure-solicitors.co.uk make a genuine size, makes a difference to the difference to people we help. our work.

To find out more about By remembering us legacies you can download the in this way, you’re ensuring free information sheet on legacies that the work we do to combat from within the members’ area of loneliness through the group the CSRF website, www.csrf.org.uk, network, our befriending schemes or call 020 8691 7411 to request a and all our activities, lives on. printed copy.

If the time is right for you to

did you know

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social media

Rosie goes Digital Rosie Jacot is on secondment from the civil service, working at Fellowship Office for six months on all things digital. She explains some of the advantages and some of the first steps in ‘going digital’ Connecting to the internet for the first time can be daunting if you’ve never done it before but it’s well worth sticking with it! In fact, recent research from the International Longevity Centre has found that people who use the internet are far less likely to feel alone (just 38 per cent) than those who are not digitally connected (63 per cent). The internet can be a huge help in keeping you in touch with family, friends, colleagues and even other CSRF members; and it can also help you to remain independent and active by helping you with shopping, banking and finding help and information, all without leaving home.

You won’t need the latest or most expensive technology to access the internet. In fact, many modern devices can get online, such as: • desktop PCs and laptop computers • tablet PCs (such as an iPad or Kindle Fire)

• modern mobile phones • even many modern TVs. Even if you don’t own any of these or don’t have an internet connection at home, you’ll find many local libraries will have PCs with internet access.

Getting started To access the internet you’ll need an internet browser – an easy-touse computer program that lets you search for and view millions of web pages on any subject you can think of.

Most computers come with an internet browser already installed.

Here are some common web browsers you might come across: • • • •

Internet Explorer Firefox Google Chrome Safari

They all work in a similar way, allowing you to ‘search’ the internet, so don’t worry too much about which one you use.

Once you’ve got your browser set up, the next step is email! Email is a great way to stay in touch with your family and friends cheaply, instantly and easily.

Emails can be short or long, you can email one person or a whole group, and you can also use email to send photos and documents. An email account is also the first step into the world of social media, as you will need an address to set up a social media account, or an account for programmes that allow video calling. Setting up an email account is easy. You can get one from your internet service provider (ISP) or you could use a web based service such as Gmail or outlook.com.

Starting out on social media TWITTER What?

Twitter is an information network made up of 140 character messages called Tweets. It’s an easy way to discover the latest news related to subjects you care about.

Who?

Twitter is made up of profiles from HM The Queen to BBC news, to your next door neighbour, your grandchildren, your local councillor and CSRF!

Why?

Twitter contains information you will find valuable. Messages from users you choose to ‘follow’ will show up

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on your home page for you to read.

It’s like being delivered a newspaper whose headlines you’ll always find interesting; you can discover news as it’s happening, learn more about topics that are important to you, and get the latest update in real time. If you can’t think of anything to write, don’t feel you have to. The real magic lies in reading content from sources you follow on Twitter. By ‘following’ CSRF on Twitter you can also keep up to date with all the latest information and work the Fellowship is doing.

How?

Signing up to Twitter is easy. Just head to www.twitter.com and follow the instructions! Have a look at the ‘help’ pages to get you started, or ask

someone with an account already to show you how it’s done!

What is a #?

Putting the #symbol in front of a word or phrase allows you to click on that word and see other ‘tweets’ connected to that topic. It’s a great way to start a conversation around something that interests you.

Celebrating

Years

FACEBOOK What?

The world’s largest social network, Facebook has over 1.4 billion users.

Who?

It allows you to connect with ‘friends’ that you know in order to keep in touch. You can also join ‘groups’ with likeminded people, to generate discussion and share information.

Why?

You can use it to catch up with old friends and colleagues, to keep in touch with family members, to see ‘pages’ of your favourite celebrity, charity or politicians, or even to play games!

Most importantly, if you search ‘CSRF’ on Facebook you can join our new members’ group to help you meet other CSRF members and keep up to date with what is going on around the country, as members share pictures and stories of their group activities.

How?

To create an account, go to www.facebook.com to sign up.

Have a look at the ‘help’ pages to get you started, or ask someone who has an account already to show you how it’s done!

Staying safe There are a lot of warnings about internet security: and one of the simplest things you can do is use an email address that doesn’t give away your name. Be very careful about giving away any other personal details when you’re using social media too.

If you want to find out more, AgeUK’s free guide to Internet Security can be downloaded directly from www.ageuk.org.uk/publications/ or can be requested from the free advice line on 0800 169 6565.

CSRF online We currently have a presence on many social media sites which we use to help promote CSRF and build new working partnerships. You can find us by using the following links: - https://twitter.com/THECSRF - To find us on Facebook search ‘CSRF’ to ‘like’ our page or join our members group - Check out the CSRF website, www.csrf.org.uk and log in to the Members’ area using your member number and surname (with upper case first letter) If you experience any difficulties with logging in to the CSRF website then call 020 8691 7411 or email: enquiries@csrf.org.uk

talk to us

If you already have an email address then let us know what it is and we can add you to our CSRF E-Newsletter.

Do you use Facebook, Twitter or other social networks? We’d love to hear your positive and negative experiences.

Email: enquiries@csrf.org.uk or write in to Fellowship Office.

Many local libraries offer classes on getting online, as does the charity Age UK. The charity IT Can Help also provides volunteers who can help with connecting to the internet and using email. Contact Age UK on 0800 169 6565 or IT Can Help on 0800 269 545.

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news

Looking after members’ health for 110 years This year health and wellbeing provider Benenden celebrates its 110th birthday and though its services have changed over the years, it is still based on the principles of mutuality.

The Benenden Personal Healthcare mutual model began with post office workers clubbing together in 1905 to help provide treatment for tuberculosis (TB). The dusty, cramped offices in which sorting clerks and telegraphists worked were ideal conditions for the highly infectious disease to flourish and many of the sorting clerks died of it. They could not afford to visit the ‘sanatoria’ offering treatment, which were often in mountainous European countries such as Switzerland.

Post office clerk Charles Garland proposed an affordable solution: each person joining the new Benenden scheme should contribute just two shillings a year, direct from their salary.

It was an instant success, with 30,000 post office workers joining in just six months. Their contributions, added together, easily covered the cost of treating the 120 or so people in need each year.

Now, 110 years later, almost 900,000 people still benefit from that very simple idea, with everyone paying the same low monthly contribution of just £8.45 into a communal pot. This is then used to help those members who need to request personal healthcare services.

Such is the level of loyalty to the organisation that some existing members have been paying subscriptions since they ‘signed on the dotted line’ as teenagers starting their civil service careers in the 1950s!

FROM TOP: The new National Sanatorium at Benenden, which took its first patients in March 1907.

RIGHT: Charles Garland poses with sanatorium staff as patients look on (c.1910)

Of course, the range of healthcare services has grown considerably. Back in 1905, when Charles Garland set up the organisation, there was no NHS available. Since the health service’s foundation in 1948, Benenden’s offering has evolved alongside it with the aim of complementing rather than replicating its services. This has helped relieve some of the stress of long waiting lists, helping to achieve speedy diagnosis and alleviating some of the pressure from the public purse.

Today, members of Benenden can request a wide range of services, including consultation and diagnosis, treatment and surgery in clean and comfortable private hospitals, plus physiotherapy, support and advisory services such as a 24/7 GP helpline and 24/7 stress counselling helpline.

Since 1905, Benenden has been run for the good of members and these mutual principles will never change. The cost of membership is the same for everyone. What’s more, there are no complicated forms, no excesses and also no need to divulge medical history. Each person’s case is assessed on its individual merits. The focus is still on offering high quality FROM LEFT: (Photos from 2015 Benenden Conference) Matron Ali Curtis and charge nurse Phil Golding; Chief Executive Marc Bell

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discretionary healthcare services when they are needed most.

From small beginnings as a fund for postal workers with TB, Benenden continues to promote a community led ethos more than 110 years on, with any surpluses invested in services for the benefit of members and their health.

Benenden is already looking to the future and has plans to expand its services and continue the development of Garland’s simple, but continually relevant, ideal of people coming together to work towards a better future for all.

You can join Benenden whatever your age (there is no upper age limit).

To find out more, call 0800 414 8152 and quote CSRF.

The Fellowship sends best wishes and congratulations to Benenden on its 110th anniversary this year and also for being voted UK’s most trusted healthcare provider for a fifth year in the 2015 Moneywise ‘Most Trusted’ Customer Service Awards.

Celebrating

Years

We’d love to receive photos of lots of people wearing the buttercup badge, carrying a bag or holding piggles.

Or all three!

Golden Goodies We’ve still got some great goodies for you to purchase

Please complete and return your order form along with your cheque to: The CSRF, Suite 2, 80A Blackheath Road, London SE10 8DA or you can place your order online via our website, www.csrf.org.uk

Item

Quantity

Suggested minimum price (each)

Buttercup Badges

£2.00

Buttercup Bag for Life

£3.00

Flower Cards (minimum order – 1 set)

£4.00

Flying Piggles

£5.00

Total

Total

Bag up, write a note, wear your Buttercup Badge and fly with a piggle!

Your Name: ADDRESS:

POSTCODE: TEL NO: EMAIL (if you have one): I enclose a cheque for the above order made payable to: The CSRF

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feature : health service

Finding your way around

the NHS You have a lot more control over your NHS care than you think, from the time of your hospital appointment to which surgeon will operate on you, explains Kaye McIntosh

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o you know your CQC from your CCG? Can you spot the difference between an HCA and a Band 5 at 20 paces? No, we thought not. It’s hard to find your way around the maze of services, organisations and professionals in today’s NHS. However, the right information (and possibly someone to assist you if you’re not computer savvy) can help you take charge of your own healthcare.

Doctor, doctor The average GP appointment takes between eight and 10 minutes and it’s in both your and the doctor’s interests to make that time slot as effective as possible.

“There’s evidence that empowered and assertive patients do better,” says GP Phil Hammond, author of Staying Alive: How to get the best from the NHS. Before seeing your doctor, think about what you want to ask and what the problem is, advises Hammond. What are your symptoms?

How long have you had them? What are your concerns? What do you want from the consultation? After the discussion, ask what you need to do now: what if the symptoms don’t get better? It can help to have someone with you for support and to take notes.

“Decisions about treatment don’t always have to be made in one hit,” Hammond

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adds. “The discussion can take place over a month. You may be committing yourself to taking a drug for every day of your life.

Take your time and do your research.”

Changing your GP You also have the right to choose a GP practice. Local surgeries must accept you unless there are reasonable grounds to refuse. Some surgeries will also take on patients who live outside their area but perhaps work nearby. You can find details of local surgeries at your nearest library or in the phone book.

If you are turned away from a practice, it should tell you why. However, it ought to

Jargon buster CQC Care Quality Commission, inspecting hospitals and other care providers CCG Clinical Commissioning Group, commissioning services from your local hospital HCAs Health Care Assistants, helping nurses to provide care Band 5 Medical staff are ranked on a pay scale from Band 1 to Band 9

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Questions to ask a surgeon if you’re considering a procedure • H ow many of these procedures do you carry out every year?

• H ow many of these patients are my age, with the same kind of condition and to the same degree?

• H ow many have you considered ‘successful’ and what do you mean by this?

• H ow many cases have resulted in complications?

be straightforward to switch. You usually need to fill out a registration form and give details of your previous doctor so your records can be transferred. Some practices also like you to come in for an appointment to discuss your health needs and history.

Hospital help Your right to choose extends to hospital appointments if your doctor refers you to a specialist. According to the NHS Constitution, you have a legal right to say which hospital you prefer among those offering suitable treatment that meets NHS standards and costs (with some exceptions for urgent care and cancer services).

Your local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), which pays for most hospital care, might try to limit that choice to the ones it commissions. If you want to go elsewhere, you may need to argue your case, pointing to your constitutional right.

You may be able to arrange your appointment online direct from the GP surgery, using the new NHS e-Referral Service, which lets you decide when and where you want to go. Alternatively, you will be given an appointment request letter, which includes your unique booking reference, NHS number and a list of hospitals or clinics to choose from. Under

the NHS Constitution you can also go outside this list.

So how do you pick the best hospital or clinic for you? There’s been a huge drive for greater transparency in healthcare through league tables that compare the performance of different hospitals and surgeons. Yet this isn’t always the best way to choose, says heart surgeon Samer Nashef, an expert in the study of risk in medical care. His book, The Naked Surgeon: the Power and Peril of Transparency in Medicine, takes a closer look at league tables. A surgeon who looks good may simply be better at playing the system, he reveals.

Conversely, a good surgeon may be wary of taking on high risk patients for fear of falling in the league tables if something goes wrong through no fault of their own.

A third of the surgeons who responded to a survey carried out by Nashef admitted denying procedures to patients for this very reason. He and his colleagues at Papworth Hospital, Cambridge, on the other hand, share responsibility for higher risk patients so that no individual surgeon’s reputation suffers if something goes wrong.

It is possible, though, to get some clear information. Heart surgery was the first medical specialty to move towards publishing individual surgeons’ results.

These aren’t yet routinely available yet for

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all surgical specialties, but vascular and orthopaedic surgery are likely to be next in line, Nashef says.

For this, you’ll almost certainly need to go online. You can find the results of some surgeons’ work on the NHS website: look for things like how many times they have performed a procedure, as well as quality measures such as complication rate, adverse events and mortality rates. You’ll also be able to compare them with other consultants. If you can’t find the surgeon you’re interested in, their records might be on the hospital website or they may have their own website too.

Alternatively, you can always ask directly through the hospital or when you go to an appointment: remember, you are entitled to this information. With this in mind, it’s a good idea to take someone else with you to any consultant appointment to be your advocate. Get them to ask the questions, make sure everything is explained clearly and write the answers down so that both of you have a record for later. Don’t worry that you’re bothering the consultant: a good surgeon should be happy to share this information and explain what it means.

In fact they’ll probably be extremely relieved to see you’re handling it in such a thorough manner.

In it for the long term The NHS has a responsibility to us; but we also have a lot of responsibility for our own healthcare, Hammond points out. More than half of us live with a chronic disease, such as diabetes or arthritis, by the time

If you’re prescribed any medication, don’t forget to ask about possible side effects, and also tell them about any medication you’re already taking.

we hit our 60s. If that applies to you, it’s up to you to find out as much as you can about your condition, as you’re the one who will be living with it.

“You need to get on top of it. Learn as much as you can about it. That will improve your care. You will only see the GP two or three times a year; the rest of the time it is up to you,” he says. Most conditions have a charity or support group that offers a wealth of information and support; the bigger ones have helplines and expert advisers who can also help you work out what care you need and sometimes even act on your behalf in difficult situations.

Last of all, whether you face important decisions about surgery, live with a long term condition or are just keen to stay well, you need to look after your physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. Fresh air and exercise, cooking and enjoying healthy food, meeting other people, learning something new and helping other people are more important to our health than we acknowledge.

As Hammond concludes: “For most symptoms, you are better off with a dog than a doctor.”

If your research takes you online, it’s worth taking a look at: The NHS Constitution. This sets out your rights, from being treated within agreed waiting times to being able to access drugs and treatments recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE): tinyurl.com/c9qmsac The facilities offered by different GP surgeries and ratings from patients: tinyurl.com/3kstb2m

It’s Your Practice – A Patient Guide to GP Services from the Royal College of GPs www.rcgp.org.uk/information-for-patients.aspx

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feature : Letter writing

Last post?

In an era of instant electronic communication, letter writing is in sharp decline but is it a dying art?

David Porteous is not quite ready to write its obituary

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“

’m gonna sit right down and write myself a letter,” sang Fats Waller in 1935. Nearly three decades later, Elvis Presley gave a letter to the postman and got it back addressed ‘return to sender’. Only six years ago, the Grammy Award for Record of the Year went to Please read the letter, sung by rock and bluegrass legends Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. Purloined letters, letters gone astray in the post, letters never sent and letters received in the nick of time: they’ve played a central part in our culture.

Yet is this tradition coming to its end?

In today’s digital age of email, texting and tweeting how many of us still take the trouble to write by hand even a short message to a friend or loved one?

Boxing clever People have always written letters but it wasn’t until the middle of the 19th century that it became open to all.

Rather pleasingly, we owe a lot of the letter writing culture to civil servant and prolific writer Anthony Trollope, whose ‘day job’ ran in tandem with his career as a novelist (he wrote them early in the mornings before setting off for work at the Post Office).

Before the radical changes made to the postal service during the Victorian era, sending letters was largely the preserve of the rich and privileged. Rates were high, based on distance and the number of sheets in a letter, and the recipient, not the sender, had to pay (or quite often refused to pay).

Rowland Hill, a Warwickshire headmaster and social reformer, campaigned for a uniform letter rate of one penny, to be paid by the sender.

This was adopted in 1840 with the introduction of the Penny Black, the world’s first postage stamp. Overnight the postal service became accessible to almost the entire population and within a year the number of letters sent more than doubled.

Then came Trollope with his invention: the pillar box. These first appeared on the streets in 1853. As demand grew they were emptied several times a day, from early morning to late at night. Some households in London could expect as many as a dozen daily deliveries by the end of the 19th century. A letter posted in the morning could arrive in the afternoon. Ladies dedicated time most days to correspondence, sitting writing assiduously in their drawing rooms.

Steamships and railways extended the reach and speed of the service. With an increasingly literate general public, letter volumes grew exponentially.

Authors such as Dickens and Thackeray became prolific correspondents, while private citizens sent letters and postcards across the world (see Dearest Margarita: an Edwardian Love Story in Postcards on page 36). A whole genre of ‘epistolary novels’ (novels written in letter form) developed.

By 1914 the Post Office was handling 5.9 billion items a year and the early decades of the 20th century brought in the first airmail services too.

The Post Office also went on to take responsibility for the nation’s telegraph and telephone systems.

Boom and bust The development of alternative forms of communication for people keen to keep in touch with each other

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took a long time. Letter writing remained popular for decades, but once the computer and phone took over, letter writing fast became redundant.

Royal Mail delivered 13 billion addressed letters last year, compared with just over 20 billion in 2008 and most of today’s post is business and direct (‘junk’) mail.

Compare that with 1910, when the average person in the country sent 116.7 items of post, and it’s easy to agree with Simon Garfield’s musings in To the Letter: A Journey Through a Vanishing World. “I hope I’m wrong but letter writing is probably in terminal decline,” he says. “If technology advances at the same pace for the next 20 years as it has for the last 20, there will be very few people left writing letters.”

Garfield adds, “Letters are largely how we have communicated for 2,000 years and I do wonder how we are going to tell our history in the future from emails, tweets and texts saying ‘I’m on the train’.

I’m not against new technology and I send emails all the time but I still write letters and the people who do tend to be of a certain age. We need to do more to inspire the younger generations about the value of letters and their wonderful physical qualities.”

Enduring popularity In present day Britain collections from pillar boxes are being cut and the postie is no longer a daily visitor to many houses. Yet letter writing hasn’t completely finished.

“We’ve seen dramatic changes in the way we communicate and writing is certainly under threat. However, there are plenty of reasons for thinking it will not become a lost art any time soon,” says Christopher Leonard-Morgan, organiser of National Stationery Week.

Leonard-Morgan points to an enduring belief not just in the letter but the handwritten letter. “Handwriting was reintroduced to the secondary

Some of the earliest novels were written in letter form

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The formal rules Debrett’s, the definitive guide on British etiquette and manners, provides these general rules on letter writing (whether you stick to them or not is, of course, up to you): school curriculum last year and sales of fountain pens are going through the roof,” he says. “A handwritten letter shows courtesy and etiquette. Love letters are treasured while emails declaring ‘I love you’ just don’t cut it.”

Public opinion appears to back him up. More than two thirds (68 per cent) of people surveyed by YouGov ahead of this year’s National Stationery Week agreed that handwriting remains a very important skill, while 97 per cent agreed that it is important to teach handwriting to school children. In a separate survey carried out by the National Handwriting Association, the majority of people (64 per cent) said that receiving a handwritten note made them feel special.

Don’t write it off Today, it’s true, Fats would probably have sat right down and sent himself an email and Elvis would have found his texts blocked. Yet we’re still communicating and we’re still entranced by letters.

The popularity of Garfield’s latest book, My Dear Bessie, a love story told through letters between a soldier and his girlfriend during the Second World War (and profiled in the Summer issue of avanti), shows there is still widespread public interest in that art, even among those who do not practise it. Newly edited or newly discovered collections of correspondence penned by historical figures such as Paul Cézanne, Ernest Hemingway and TS Eliot have been literary hits in recent years. Letters have adapted and evolved rather than died out.

Tomorrow’s collections of letters may not be sent through the post, and the formats and conventions may differ, but the basics of written communication, and all that means for human contact, should never be allowed to die out.

• If you do not have letterheads and are writing on blank paper, the address is written in the top right hand corner.

• Write out the date in full: 8th October 2015, not 8/10/15.

• If you addressed the letter to ‘Dear Mr Smith’, sign off with ‘Yours sincerely’. If addressed to ‘Dear Sir/Madam’, then use ‘Yours faithfully’.

• For personal correspondence, letters can begin with informal greetings such as ‘Dear John’ and be signed off with ‘Best wishes’ or With love’.

• It is acceptable to write on both sides of a sheet of writing paper. If a second sheet is needed, use a plain (unheaded) continuation sheet.

• On the envelope, the address should be centred, with each new line increasingly indented.

talk to us

Do you still write letters? Indeed, do your friends still write to you?

What’s the best letter you’ve ever received? Do let us know (and yes, you can email us too)!

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feature : CRIME FICTION

Move over Miss Marple We dip into the world of today’s crime fiction

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wo of the great figures of English writing have died in the past year: PD James last November and Ruth Rendell in April. Between them these two friends succeeded in bringing their crime fiction into the mainstream; especially Rendell’s novels written under the pen name Barbara Vine, which moved into new areas of psychological suspense.

By the time they died, even the few people who never touch the genre had to acknowledge that it had long left behind the tired clichés associated with the ‘crime novel’.

Once upon a time, crime writing was an often formulaic genre that many people might read with a guilty pleasure. There is still a fair amount of social and peer group snobbery that can prevent people from declaring their enjoyment of crime (along with fantasy and romantic) novels. “So instead of admitting their favourite kind of books might be crime fiction, they’ll say they’ve read all the Man Booker Prize winners for the past 10 years,” says crime novelist Sophie Hannah. “They’re anxious that their tastes show them in a certain light.”

However, you can’t argue with the facts that crime is increasing in popularity, especially as more and more books are adapted for TV and cinema.

Despite some remaining snobbery crime fiction has moved up in the world, with people of all intellectual pretensions happy to admit they’ve seized on the latest by Hannah, or by Val McDermid, Lynda La Plante, Harlan Coben, Elly Griffiths, Nicci French, Kate Rhodes, CJ Box, Linwood Barclay … or many others; while on big and small screens actors Ian McKellen and Benedict Cumberbatch have both recently refreshed Sherlock Holmes for a modern audience.

Unsurprisingly, with such a big pool of authors contributing to the genre, the novels are becoming less predictable.

There’s everything from tense psychological dramas to police studies to novels with offbeat protagonists such as archaeologists.

credited with creating the first fictional detective, Sergeant Cuff in The Moonstone. The first Sherlock Holmes novel, A Study in Scarlet, followed 19 years later.

“In the UK, certainly, detective fiction came out of sensational novels and gothic fictions, genres concerned with the individual’s place in a domestic scene and with secrets,” says Dr Stacy Gillis of Newcastle University. “In the US, it was rather different, emerging from Westerns. So in one country there’s the lone figure, while in the other there’s the gunslinger.”

From whodunnit to whydunnit

She adds: “Later on, around 1916, there is a whole slew of women like Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers and Margery Allingham writing ‘family mysteries’. For the first time, people understood what it was to say ‘I like reading detective fiction’.”

Yet however popular the books were during this time (and they certainly were), they were still not considered serious literature. Many novels were also, frankly, not well written. Writers such as Rendell and James, along with the likes of Patricia Highsmith in the US, started to change this.

Gothic and gunslinging It was Charles Dickens’ contemporary (and friend) Wilkie Collins, a writer of ‘sensational novels’, who is often

Then, in the 1980s, there was another change of direction. “There was an explosion of different sorts of sub genres, with the bookshop shelves increasing their ranges,” Dr Sabine Vanacker of the University of Hull points out. Feminist crime, lesbian and gay crime, left wing crime, black crime fiction and others all came onto the scene.

Publishers today are much more cautious; it’s unlikely that they would publish books like Barbara Wilson’s Murder in the Collective or Manuel Vázquez Montalbán’s Murder in the Central Committee, because they would be seen as ‘niche’ books that wouldn’t sell. In fact, both novels were snapped up by plenty of readers and the wide breadth of today’s crime fiction owes a debt to that cheerfully varied period.

Today’s detective is flawed, complicated and human

One of the huge differences today is that the characters are often as, or more, interesting than the actual crime.

“One of the things about early detective fiction was the purity of purpose that the detective seemed to have and you don’t get that in contemporary fiction very often,” says Gillis.

Nowadays, instead of the lone detective fighting evil, the central character is often a flawed, complicated human being. They can be pretty lonely too: the dysfunctional divorced policeman who drinks too much is a modern stereotype.

“A lot of crime fiction plots turn into the detective detecting themselves.

They’re very much about identity, with the whole surge towards the solution of the mystery leading them back to themselves,” adds Vanacker.

“Character has to come before plot. In fact, character is plot,” says novelist Elly Griffiths. “Crime writers like Phil Rickman, whose protagonist has a daughter who grows up as the series continues, don’t always get the credit they deserve.”

This storytelling technique is something we owe to PD James, says Vanacker. “She published over 30 years and the readers grew old with her. I think that is something distinctive with crime fiction. Nowadays in particular, the novels are written in series and once you’ve read one you stick with

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it and grow with the character.”

Women detectives such as Lisa Gardner’s DD Warren, Tess Gerritsen’s Jane Rizzoli and Laura Lippman’s Tess Monaghan deal with the challenge of having babies while solving crimes.

Sophie Hannah and Val McDermid feature couples who grow and change but continue to struggle with fundamental difficulties between them. Meanwhile, one of Harlan Coben’s characters goes from psychotic to recluse.

Unsurprisingly, crimes have also changed. Yes, there’s murder (often in ingenious and really quite nasty ways) but the focus is as much whydunnit as whodunnit. “I think the motivation interests me as much as the crime itself. Maybe we’re all fascinated by aberrant minds,” says novelist Kate Rhodes. “People who transgress and aren’t afraid of doing so.

This kind of fiction allows us to explore what we fear most in our society.”

Watching the detectives The police detective is alive and well in the new crime scene, but so are other protagonists. The fourth in Rhodes’ Alice Quentin series, River of Souls, was published in June. “There’s a reason why I’ve chosen a forensic psychologist: we’re both trying to get under the skin of the criminal mentality,” she says.

“I think crime readers are demanding that. The popular vote isn’t always with the action novels, but with the subtle, more complex books that stand on the borderline between literature and crime. There’s nothing wrong with the kind of writing that sweeps you along, but there’s room for more than that.

I wanted to create a modern woman as well, who felt very conflicted about her job and whether her own mind was strong enough to cope with her job. It’s a broad church these days, with a lot of good writing out there.”

Rhodes started off as a poet before moving into novel writing.

Hannah did the same, and other

the focus is as much whydunnit as whodunnit

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novelists such as Kate Atkinson and Susan Hill wrote novels in other genres before turning to crime.

Griffiths has written several other novels under her real name, Domenica de Rosa. “My agent thought my name wasn’t ‘crimeish’ enough when I started writing crime novels about eight years ago. However, I don’t think there’s much difference between the writing. I’ve always liked to have a mystery there.”

She’s written seven novels featuring forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway (The Ghost Fields was published earlier this year). She’s also written two novels set in 1950s Brighton featuring former members of the ‘Magic Men’ unit and set in the world of variety theatre. They are based on her grandfather’s music hall experiences (The Zig-Zag Girl was published last year and Smoke and Mirrors is due out this November). Both offer the opportunity to look at crime from yet another angle.

“I was fascinated when I found out there was such a thing as a forensic archaeologist, and archaeology itself is interesting because it’s both quite scientific and quite mystical,” she says.

The Magic Men books probably won’t run to a series the length of the Ruth Galloway novels but she says this won’t be the last one.

“Publishers do think in terms of series.

It’s given lots of writers the chance to write about one character through a whole chunk of their lives.”

Again, it’s the characters (and the wider cast) and their complex, often flawed relationships that hold the readers’ attention as much as the crime itself.

End game “One of the things readers enjoy with crime novels is that there’s an element of puzzling out and getting closure,” says Rhodes. “We all have elements of our lives that don’t have answers, whereas in crime novels you always get an answer.”

Griffiths isn’t so sure. “I think there’s always a convention in British and US novels to tie it up neatly, but European crime novels can be more ambiguous,” she says.

Where both agree, though, is that writing crime fiction is enormously enjoyable. In Rhodes’ words: “It’s a pleasure to write them. It enables you to indulge all of your hobbies.”

Gillis concludes: “Some time in the 1990s, one of the Man Booker Prize judges said it would be perfectly fine if a detective or fantasy novel won.

Neither has so far, but detective fiction has done the most to move into this category.” In any case, she adds, “most people aren’t reading the books on the Man Booker long list. Many of them are reading crime fiction instead and hugely enjoying it”.

talk to us

We’ve only been able to mention a few writers here. If you’re a fan of the genre, which are your favourites and why? Do write and let us know.

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feature : HEALTH

Them bones, The importance of keeping your skeleton solid

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one health becomes increasingly important once we reach the age of 50, particularly for women. Diet, exercise and, if necessary, medication can all help. So can practical help to prevent falls, and being aware of the necessity for a proper bone scan if you have a fracture. There are plenty of things you can do to protect your bones.

Living skeletons It may not seem like it but bone is living tissue, both the thick outer shell and the inner mesh. Throughout our lives this tissue keeps breaking down and being renewed. In fact, the density of bones continues to increase (strengthening that inner mesh) long after they’ve stopped growing in length and probably right up to our mid twenties.

After that, we can never improve on that peak of bone health, though we can keep as close to it as possible. Once

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we reach the age of 35, we lose bone more quickly than we gain it, a process that accelerates for women after menopause because oestrogen plays an important part in stimulating bone renewal.

Genetics and family heritage, including your ethnicity (people from African and Caribbean countries are usually lucky enough to have stronger bones) and how well you’ve looked after them, are important factors too.

Bones are made stronger principally through load bearing exercise and diet.

‘Load bearing’ means any activity where you are working against gravity, from dancing to weightlifting. “This type of exercise pulls on the muscles and promotes that bone building cycle,” explains Sarah Leyland, who’s a senior osteoporosis nurse and helpline manager at the National Osteoporosis Society.

Diet matters because bone, as living tissue, needs to be fed properly. Most important, it needs protein, calcium (the average human body contains around a kilo of calcium, 99 per cent of which is in our bones) and vitamin D to enable us to absorb that calcium adequately. It also means eating enough, overall.

“Women don’t often realise that their bones are in danger if they’re not taking in enough of the right nutrients and minerals,” points out Susan Ringwood of eating disorder charity Beat. “Often,

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them bones those minerals require sufficient fat in our diet, too, to reach the right places in the bones.”

On top of the diet and exercise recommendations, Leyland says, the need for healthy bones is yet another argument against cigarettes. “Smoking has a directly toxic effect on bones,” she explains. “Stay within the recommended alcohol limits too, because this also has a direct effect on bone cells; and because salt and caffeine affect the rate at which your body excretes calcium, use them in moderation. Important recent research shows that these things really do increase the risk of fracture.”

Leyland continues: “Also, stay active.

Quite apart from the direct effect on your bone density, there’s good evidence coming through that if you remain active into later age, this can help prevent fracture because you’re less likely to fall.”

Don’t break a leg Osteoporosis (literally ‘porous bone’) means that the inner ‘struts’ of our bones become weaker, so they can

snap or fracture easily. At the moment, that leads to about 300,000 fractures a year in the UK. In fact, it’s estimated that one in two women in the UK and one in five men over the age of 50 will break a bone for this reason.

However, there’s a lot you can do to keep yourself out of this category. The really important issue with osteoporosis is to understand how it works and how to cut down your risk of developing it. If you are diagnosed with fully fledged osteoporosis, take advantage of all the treatments on offer and protect your bones from damage.

Find out if you’re at risk of osteoporosis by visiting the National Osteoporosis Society’s Stop at One website stopatone.nos.org.uk and taking the special bone heath quiz. Or ring the charity directly on 0845 130 3076.

The best way to measure bone density is through a scan called ‘dual energy Xray absorptiometry’ (DXA), which uses a small dose of radiation to measure bone levels of calcium and other minerals. Most people only get this after they’ve already fractured a bone.

There are other warning signs, including a history of eating disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, an early menopause or other conditions that affect the way you absorb food or keep you immobile. Often, however, there’s no indication that your bones are at risk.

This is why the National Osteoporosis Society has launched its Stop at One campaign to have anyone over 50 who fractures a bone automatically assessed for osteoporosis through the hospital where they are treated.

If you’ve had a fracture in the past, one that shouldn’t have damaged a healthy bone (a classic is a wrist fracture after you put your hand out to break a fall), but you didn’t have an assessment, the NOS recommends making an appointment to see

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Staying upright Whatever state your bones are in, one very basic way to protect them is by preventing yourself from falling over in the first place.

Five top tips: • K eep your balance: you can do specific exercises (Age UK has some suggestions on its website), or sign up for a class in yoga or t’ai chi. The more supple you are, the less likely you are to fall over.

• C lear the clutter: keep your floors free of anything lurking unexpectedly underfoot or in front of you.

• T ake a look: make sure you can actually see what’s in front of you too. Good lighting is

your GP. It should be enough to tell them that you haven’t had a scan despite a fracture but if your GP really doesn’t seem particularly clued up, try suggesting they look at the new website developed by the NOS and the Royal College of General Practitioners (www.osteoporosis-resources.org. uk). It’s been written directly by and for GPs, so it is written in the kind of language that communicates directly to them and gives them a very clear briefing on the condition.

The osteoporosis assessment itself puts together all the different risk factors, including your bone mineral density score. If you’re shown to be at risk, the next step depends partly on age. If you’re still close to 50 and your bones aren’t overly fragile, you may be advised to start with lifestyle changes alone. If you are older, you’ll probably be moved immediately onto one of the various drug treatments available.

These slow down the cells that break down old bone and may also stimulate the cells that build new bone.

However, it’s still important to complement that treatment with lifestyle, partly to preserve the bone density you’ve got and partly to make

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important, especially in hallways and on stairs, as are regular eye checks. If you do have sight problems, it’s even more important to cut down on clutter you might trip over.

• G et a grip: wear shoes or slippers that fit your feet properly and don’t slip around. If your carpets or rugs skid on the floorboards, you can buy ‘carpet grips’ to keep them steady.

• A sk the doctor: if you do find you’re falling more than you used to, it could be caused by anything from an ear infection to side effects from other medication you’re taking.

World Osteoporosis Day is on 20 October. Read more about National Osteoporosis Society supporter Nerys Hughes’ Favourite Things on page 62. sure that they’re protected from failing in other ways.

You can also do some advance work of your own. Try the International Osteoporosis Foundation’s quick online test at www.iofbonehealth.org. Or if you’d prefer to speak to someone directly, the National Osteoporosis Society runs a helpline on 0845 450 0230 from 9am to 5pm every week day.

“Life changes but doors open” Many of us do end up with some level of bone damage but that doesn’t have to mean the end. Phillippa Russell, 80, pictured right, from Birmingham, has had pretty extensive osteoporosis for the past 23 years, and has suffered successive

fractures and now walks with a frame. But as she points out, she has continued to be extremely positive.

“Life does change, of course,” she says. “People think of doors shutting but not those that open. I can’t ride my bike but I have a scooter. I had nearly a year when I couldn’t play my cello, so I got out my old paintbox and painted instead; I wasn’t getting out much, so I had great fun doing this.

You have to think positive, and that is a message I do try to put across.”

Russell adds that her experience is probably very different to that of someone diagnosed today. “That was 20 years ago. Nowadays it would probably have been spotted early and I would have been given medication to halt its progress. You can receive one of the many options for medication that have been developed in recent years so that you can maintain a sufficiently healthy skeleton.”

Despite this, she is keen to remind us that our skeletons need care and attention: “Please look after your bones!”.

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feature : Indian influence

East

meets West Eve Ahmed looks at some of the people and trends (and the words!) that travelled here from the Indian subcontinent before the First World War

F

ancy a curry? Well, people in the UK have been able to pop out for a poppadum ever since 1809, when Sake Dean Mahomed opened his Hindostanee Coffee House in London. Centuries before the hippy trail brought one wave of Indian influence to Britain and the influx of postwar immigrants brought another, the subcontinent has contributed to the British mainstream in many different ways.

First arrivals In 1599, when another Queen Elizabeth was on the throne, a group of traders set up what would become the ‘corporation that ruled the world’: the East India Company. The Company went on to account for half of the world’s trade in commodities, including silk, cotton, salt, tea and opium. It ruled great swathes of India with private armies and it eventually led to the British Raj, with the British Crown assuming direct control.

Inevitably, the people they encountered made their way here too; sometimes willingly, sometimes less so. When British families returned from their overseas stint, for instance, they often brought servants and nannies (ayahs) with them. Company agents grown wealthy retired to Britain with their financial gains and, on occasion, their Indian wives and children too.

Their ships, meanwhile, were crewed by Indian sailors. Some of these ‘lascars’ remained in British

Indians were baptised and buried in London from 1616

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ports and continued to ply their trade. Others set up cafés, lodging houses and curry houses. The unemployed made pennies where they could, as hawkers, street musicians, sweepers and beggars.

The first known record of the baptism of an Indian immigrant to Britain took place in 1616 in the City of London. Little is known of ‘Peter’, except that he’d converted to Christianity and then went back to India as a missionary, but there are several other notices of baptisms and burials of Indians in London parish records from the 1600s. There is also a record of an Indian man, Samuel Munsur, marrying an English woman, Jane Johnson, in Deptford, south east London, in 1613.

Second wave A more well to do set arrived in the next century.

Scholars came to study astronomy and anatomy, to teach or to work as interpreters. Businessmen came to stake claims against the East India Company. To work in the higher levels of the Indian civil service required a British qualification, so ambitious, well connected young men came to Britain to study at Oxford or Cambridge universities.

By 1800 there were at least several hundred Asians living in Britain, ranging from sailors and ayahs to students and nobility. An Indian or black servant was quite sought after, while a few enterprising Indians set up their own businesses.

In addition to his coffee house, Dean Mahomed subsequently set up Mahomed’s Baths in Brighton, treating patients with muscular ailments using herb and oil filled baths, followed by a massage (or champi). He acted as ‘personal shampooing

Celebrating

Years

Family legacies British people with Indian relatives include: • Virginia Woolf (left) • Lord Liverpool (Prime Minister from 1812 to 1827) • William Makepeace Thackeray • Anna Leonowens (the ‘Anna’ of Anna and the King of Siam) • Boris Karloff (left) • Cliff Richard

surgeon’ to two successive kings, George IV and William IV. Later in the 19th century, Queen Victoria (whose titles included ‘Empress of India’) employed Abdul Karim as her munshi (secretary) and her affection for him caused a major scandal in court circles.

Those who had settled in Britain often married and had children here.

Dean Mahomed married Irishwoman Jane Daly, and his descendants still live in the Brighton area.

Alongside the people whose parents or grandparents had emigrated came a number of children of British men who had married or lived with Indian women while working for the Company. Many such children stayed in the country of their birth, but men with enough money often sent them ‘home’ to Britain (though the children themselves were going to a strange land and would never see their mothers again).

James Kirkpatrick, the subject of William Dalyrmple’s book White Mughals, was one of many men who sent away very young children (his daughter was only three) to become part of FROM TOP: ; The Kirkpatrick Children (Oil on canvas, 154 x 118.1 cm) George Chinnery: Courtesy of HSBC Archives’ indian silk scarves at market; Abdul Karim, Queen Victoria’s munshi

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FROM LEFT: The Royal Pavilion, Brighton; Sezincote, Gloucester.

BELOW: the Durbar Room, Osborne House

the English mainstream. Noor oon Nissa grew up as Kitty Kirkpatrick. Quite a few pillars of the English establishment grew up without knowing their Indian roots or, if they did, they went to great lengths to conceal them.

Fabrics and buildings Yet if Indian relatives were not widely acknowledged, Indian influences certainly were. British traders were inspired by Indian artistry and brought back carpets and textiles from their ventures. They were particularly impressed by calico and muslin (Britons only had access to linen or wool at that point) and British industrialists began to produce these themselves.

They also took a fancy to the shawls with decorative motifs that originally came from Kashmir. Scottish manufacturers reinterpreted these to create paisley, a print that is thought of as quintessentially British; but look closely and you’ll see that it is in the shape of a mango.

Rosemary Crill, senior curator in the Asian department of the V&A, is one of the leading people behind the museum’s Festival of India this Autumn. “India was hugely influential. Indians had been experts in dyeing for hundreds, if not thousands, of years and the British fell in love with the colours, especially indigo. For the first time, people could afford bright, easily washable clothes,” she points out.

She hopes the forthcoming India Festival will remind visitors of the Indian origins of textiles and colours we now take for granted (without indigo, there would be no blue jeans: a different world indeed).

The passion for all things Indian extended to tableware. The scenes that decorate many blue and white ceramics of the early 19th century were often taken from popular topographical prints of India.

The popular paisley is in the shape of a mango

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Celebrating

Years

It also influenced architecture. The first notable building was probably Sezincote in Gloucester.

Its owner, Charles Cockerell of the East India Company, commissioned his brother to build the house with advice from the painter Thomas Daniell (who had spent 10 years in India) in the latter part of the 18th century. The resulting house, garden and orangery mix Hindu and Muslim traditions, complete with a Moghul paradise garden, a temple to the Sun God Surya, statues of Brahmin bulls and a coiled three headed snake.

Sezincote was one of the inspirations for the Prince Regent (George, Prince of Wales, and subsequently George IV), who visited Sezincote in 1807 and changed his own plans for the Royal Pavilion in Brighton. Designed by John Nash, the pavilion was built between 1787 and 1823 along Mughal lines, complete with domes, minarets and pinnacles.

Sixty years later, and indeed after the Indian display at the Great Exhibition of 1851 had brought the subcontinent to a much wider audience, Queen Victoria commissioned an Indian style banqueting hall for Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.

At the same time, Indian aristocrats were commissioning works of their own, including Elveden Hall in Norfolk (home of the Maharajah Duleep Singh) and the Maharajah’s Well in Stoke Row, Oxfordshire (endowed by the Maharajah of Benares).

Glorious food The spice trade was one of the boom areas for the East India Company. Nutmeg, cloves and peppercorns were traded for exorbitant prices, while other spices ended up on those Indian patterned plates.

“It was the British who invented curry powder,” says Dr Lizzie Collingham, author of Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors. “The civil servants, or nabobs, retired to the UK having acquired a taste for the exotic, bringing their Indian cooks with them.”

Indian words and expressions: Pyjamas, Bungalow, A cup of char (chai), Catamaran, Shampoo, Typhoon

The British were satisfied with a ready made blend rather than the complex array of spices that any self respecting Indian cook would grind themselves. However, even in this form, curry became immensely popular. An 1852 cookbook stated, ‘Few dinners are thought complete unless one is on the table.’ Queen Victoria was a fan, while writer William Thackeray even penned a Poem to Curry. By the 1860s Isabella Beeton was including Indian dishes in her famous books. Spicy food was mainstream.

The home cooked variety had fallen out of favour by the start of the 20th century and most people took to a fairly mass produced version until a revival of interest in ‘real’ subcontinental food, and indeed in different types of Asian restaurants, took us full circle to the days before curry powder.

However, chicken tikka masala (itself a hybrid curry house creation) is often said to be our national dish, while tea, the national drink, was in fact first cultivated by the British in India.

WWI and after During the First World War, 1.5 million Indian men volunteered to fight alongside their British counterparts (and many were nursed in the Brighton Royal Pavilion, which was converted specially for them). Indians were living in Britain in considerable numbers, including aristocrats such as suffragette Sophia Duleep Singh and cricketer Ranji (considered second only to WG Grace), as well as more ordinary people.

“Nowadays, most South Asians in the UK were actually born here,” concludes Dr Shinder Thandi, one of the authors of A South Asian History of Britain. Yet as Thandi and other historians have revealed, Indian people and trends have been here for centuries.

talk to us

What is your favourite Indian influence? What about your favourite Indian food: and do you have a recipe you’d like to share with other readers?

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entertainment

Our regular mix of books, culture and entertainment

The Book of Human Emotion: an encyclopedia of feeling from anger to wanderlust Tiffany Watt Smith (Profile, out October)

Recent research has us believe that there are as few as six ‘basic’ emotions, but if this makes you uneasy, suspicious or even a little sad, The Book of Human Emotion is for you. Ranging across literature and art, medicine and psychology, philosophy and pop culture, it explores the secret histories of our feelings and the surprising connections between them. As you explore the hidden routes that link boredom and disgust, excitement and rage, grief and mirth, you’ll discover more about why you feel the way you do.

SPQR: A history of Ancient Rome Mary Beard (Profile, out October)

Ancient Rome matters. Its history of empire, conquest, cruelty and excess is something against which we still judge ourselves. Its myths, stories, debates and controversies still strike a chord with us.

SPQR is a new look at Roman history from one of the world’s foremost classicists. It explores not only how Rome grew from an insignificant village in central Italy to a power that controlled territories from Spain to Syria, but also how the Romans thought about themselves and their achievements, and why they are still important to us today.

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Noonday

Pat Barker, (Hamish Hamilton, out August)

The Booker winning author of the Regeneration trilogy turns to World War II. Paul Tarrant, Elinor Brooke and Kit Neville first met in 1914 at the Slade School of Art before their generation lost hope, faith and much else on the battlefields of Ypres and the Somme. Now it is 1940, they are middle aged and another war has begun. As the bombs fall and Elinor and the others struggle to survive, old temptations and obsessions return and they are all forced to make choices about what they really want.

books

Dearest Margarita: an Edwardian love story in postcards (Viking, out October)

In 1900, aged 20 and travelling from Havana to Europe, Margarita Johnson met and fell in love with the dashing gold prospector Charles Lumb. Her father disapproved and after three years of secret postcards the couple eloped to London. Cut out of her father’s will, Margarita was never welcomed again in Havana. These are the postcards she treasured from Charles, her family and friends who wrote to her from England, America and Europe: from the charming to the jocular to the romantic.

Celebrating

Years

Jonathan Coe (Viking, out November)

Jonathan Coe’s new novel is the story for our times, from the distant rumble of the Iraq war to the austerity years of the Britain we know now.

Surviving characters from his earlier novel What a Carve Up!, Coe’s classic 1990s satire, stalk five vividly imagined worlds. Among them, a minor pop star tries fruitlessly to revive her career, an unusual detective investigates the murder of three standup comedians, and a bewildered Oxford graduate finds herself catapulted into the world of private tutoring for the super rich.

No Picnic on Mount Kenya Felice Benuzzi (Maclehose Press, out 5 November)

The Great Escape meets Touching the Void. Imprisoned in a British POW camp in East Africa in 1943, Felice Benuzzi looks out onto beautiful Mount Kenya and dreams of freedom. This classic, compelling narrative of derring do recounts how, using only makeshift equipment, Benuzzi and two companions planned a daring escape past armed guards, and set out to scale the 17,000 foot mountain.

IMAGES: NICK WALL, IMAGE.NET, WARNER

NUMBER 11

film Bill (Koch Media, out now)

The story of what really happened during Shakespeare’s ’lost years’, when hopeless lute player Bill Shakespeare leaves his family and home to follow his dream. It’s a tale of murderous kings, spies, lost loves and a plot to blow up Queen Elizabeth. The BAFTA Award winning lead cast of BBC TV’s Horrible Histories and Sky One’s Yonderland play 40 roles between them.

Strange Magic (Disney, out 28 August)

A madcap fairytale musical inspired

by A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Popular songs from the past six decades help tell the tale of a colourful cast of goblins, elves, fairies and imps, and their hilarious misadventures sparked by a battle over a powerful potion.

The Intern

(Warner, out 2 October)

Ben Whittaker, a retired widower in his 70s, answers an advertisement seeking senior interns at a new Brooklyn business. With Robert de Niro and Anne Hathaway.

Suffragette

(Pathe/Fox, out 30 October)

The story of Maud, one of the working women willing to risk everything in the fight for women to get the vote. Meryl Streep stars as Emmeline Pankhurst and Carey Mulligan as Maud.

MANY OF THE NATIONAL CINEMA CHAINS OFFER SPECIAL DISCOUNTS FOR OLDER PEOPLE. CHECK YOUR LOCAL PRESS FOR FURTHER INFORMATION.

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Johan Persson

culture

Gypsy

Savoy Theatre, to 28 November

theatre

Jonathan Kent’s critically acclaimed production of Gypsy stars Imelda Staunton in one of the great Broadway musicals. It tells the true story of ambitious showbiz mother Rose, who treks across America with her daughters Baby June and Louise in search of success with their homespun vaudeville act. As times change, Rose is forced to accept the demise of vaudeville and the rise of burlesque.

Bouncers

Royal Court Liverpool, 4 September to 3 October

It’s 1985 and Ralph, Les, Judd and Lucky Eric are on the doors of North London pub The Grafton. The lads aren’t doormen or security operatives; they’re bouncers and they’ve seen it all. Lads full of lager, girls full of giggles and clubs full of crazy stories.

Times might change but some things stay the same.

Book soon for this one because “if your name’s not down then you’re not coming in” (and indeed, do please send us any of your own recollections of bouncers).

Rebecca On tour

For anyone who hasn’t read the book or seen the Alfred Hitchcock film, Maxim de Winter returns to Manderley with his new young bride after the mysterious death of his first wife. Surrounded by memories of the glamorous Rebecca, the new Mrs de Winter is consumed by jealousy. She sets out to uncover the secrets of the house and a past fiercely guarded by the sinister housekeeper Mrs Danvers. All is not what it seems in Manderley.

10 to 19 September: Truro Hall, Cornwall 21 to 26 September: Theatre Royal, Norwich 28 September to 3 October: Theatre Royal, Brighton 5 to 10 October: Alhambra, Bradford 12 to 17 October: Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford 19 to 24 October: King’s Theatre, Edinburgh 26 to 31 October: His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen 2 to 7 November: King’s Theatre, Glasgow 9 to 14 November: Royal & Derngate, Northampton 16 to 21 November: Oxford Playhouse 23 to 28 November: Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield

Simon Schama’s The Face of Britain

National Portrait Gallery, 16 September to 4 January 2016

As part of a series on BBC2, historian Simon Schama joins forces with National Portrait Gallery curators to create five displays exploring the development, character and meaning of British portraiture. Staged throughout the gallery, portraits from across the collection will be displayed for the first time by theme rather than chronology, taking a long view of the history of portraits in each room. Each display will comprise a selection across the period in various media, exploring one of the following themes: power, love, fame, people and self.

ABOVE: William Wilberforce by Sir Thomas Lawrence oil on canvas, 1828; BELOW: Sir Joshua Reynolds by Sir Joshua Reynolds oil on canvas, circa 1747-1749 © National Portrait Gallery, London

For some great deals on theatre tickets, why not try the avanti theatre club. Call 020 7492 1566 or log into the members’ area of the CSRF website?

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Celebrating

Years

Ai Weiwei

Royal Academy of Arts, 19 September to 13 December

He has only just been allowed to leave China, but that hasn’t stopped Beijing based Ai Weiwei from planning this exhibition at the Royal Academy. Known for his critical opinion of the Chinese government, he remains one of the country’s most important artistic exports and a voice for a generation disenchanted by oppressive political regimes.

The exhibition will include significant works from 1993, the date that marks Ai Weiwei’s return to China following more than a decade living in New York.

LEFT: Portrat Ai Weiwei © Gao Yuan; BELOW: Ai Weiwei, Free Speech Puzzle, 2014, Hand painted porcelain in the Qing dynasty imperial style, © Ai Weiwei

The Fabric of India

V&A, 3 October to 10 January 2016

The highlight of the V&A’s India Festival, this will be the first major exhibition to explore the dynamic and multifaceted world of handmade textiles from the third to the 21st century. It will include a spectacular 18th century tent belonging to Tipu Sultan, a stunning range of historic costume, highly prized textiles made for international trade, and cutting edge fashion by celebrated Indian designers.

ABOVE: Wall hanging (detail), cotton appliqué, Gujarat, 20th century, © Victoria and Albert Museum, London; RIGHT: Houndstooth sari by Abraham & Thakore, double ikat silk, Hyderabad, 2011

Enchanted Dreams: The Pre Raphaelite Art of Edward Robert Hughes Birmingham Museum, 17 October to14 February 2016

Nephew of the painter Arthur Hughes, model to Dante Gabriel Rossetti and studio assistant to William Holman Hunt, ER Hughes lived and worked at the heart of the Pre Raphaelite circle. The watercolours he exhibited in London just before the First World War, such as the fairy vision of Midsummer Eve (1908), are among the most familiar and reproduced images in British art. Yet surprisingly Hughes himself has often been overlooked and his name is little known. This is the first exhibition ever dedicated to Hughes and his work.

Night with her Train of Stars (1912) , watercolour

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Sophia’s Corner Yes, you can eat well without blowing the budget, our resident cookery expert explains

L

iving on a tight budget as a student taught me that with a little creativity you can do a lot more than beans on toast for tea! While it’s worth spending a little more on some ingredients, it is often difficult

to taste the difference between a supermarket’s own brand and much more expensive alternatives. So these recipes use the cheapest option available.

For just £10 you can make a three course meal and a

Thyme after Time

Starter

Courgette Fritters with Aioli Ingredients For the fritters: 2 coarsely grated courgettes 1 lightly beaten egg 1 egg yolk

50g plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 4 spring onions Zest of half a lemon Pinch of salt

METHOD Preheat your oven to 110ºC/225ºF/ gas mark ¼ . Crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar or finely chop it, then use the flat side of the knife to make it into a paste. Add the paste to a large bowl along with the egg yolk and whisk together. Very slowly add the oil, whisking continuously so that the mixture thickens. Finish with a generous squeeze of lemon and season with salt to taste.

Spread the grated courgette out on a clean tea towel and sprinkle with salt to get rid of the excess moisture, which will stop the fritters crisping up.

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mocktail for four people. The only extras you’ll need are a few cupboard basics, such as oil and flour. Serve them at a dinner party to impress your family and friends or enjoy them as standalone dishes.

AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

For the aioli: 2 egg yolks ½ a lemon 1 clove of garlic 200ml olive oil

Peel off four long strips of lemon rind with a peeler and set aside with four sprigs of thyme. Zest and juice what is left of two and a half lemons and pour into a pan with 500ml water, a small handful of thyme and 60g sugar. You can adjust these amounts depending on how sweet you like your drinks.

Let it simmer for 15 minutes and then leave it to cool. Put a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker (a jam jar with a lid will do just as well), pour the liquid over and shake it to cool.

Strain and pour into martini glasses over the lemon strands and thyme.

If you like, you can add a shot of gin per person before shaking over ice to make it into a cocktail.

Leave for 15 minutes. Finely slice the spring onions and then combine all the ingredients in a bowl to make a thick batter. Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a frying pan. When the oil is hot, drop in dessertspoonfuls of the batter, being careful not to let the oil splash or to overcrowd the pan. Repeat until all the batter has been used, keeping the finished fritters warm in your preheated oven. Serve all the fritters on a dish with a bowl of aioli in the middle and let your guests help themselves.

Celebrating

Years

cooking

Three courses for

under £10

Main Course

(Tesco own brand products used)

Puttanesca Ingredients 100g roughly chopped black olives 2 tbsp of capers 4 cloves of finely chopped garlic 1 tsp chilli flakes 10 anchovies 400g passata 350g spaghetti Olive oil for cooking (or other cooking oil if you don’t have olive)

METHOD In a large pan, heat salted water to a ‘rolling boil’. Add the spaghetti and cook for 8 minutes or until it is almost, but not quite, cooked. While the pasta is cooking, fry the garlic in oil over a low heat in a frying pan. Add the chilli flakes and the anchovies until they start to break down.

Throw in the olives and capers, then turn up the heat to medium and pour in the passata and stir.

Continue cooking the sauce until the pasta is cooked. Once drained, tip it into the sauce and combine so that all the pasta is covered. Serve it into four bowls or plates and top with parsley.

Dark Chocolate Mousse

Cut Thyme 30g

£0.70

Plain Chocolate Bar 100g x 2

£0.60

Double Cream 300ml

£0.85

Flat Leaf Parsley 31g

£0.70

Spaghetti 500g

£0.20

Anchovy Fillets In Olive Oil 50g £0.70 Crushed Chillies 28g

£0.85

Melis Capers In Brine 180g

£1.40

Eggs Box of 6

£0.70

Lemons x 3

£0.90

Bunched Spring Onions 100g

£0.49

Courgettes Loose

£0.80

Pitted Black Olives 330g

£0.75

Passata 500g

£0.35

TOTAL £9.99

Dessert

Ingredients 150g dark chocolate 100ml double cream 3 eggs

METHOD Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Place a heat proof bowl over simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl isn’t touching the water. Pour the cream into the bowl and tip in the chocolate, stirring constantly for one minute. Remove from the heat and continue to stir until the cream and chocolate is fully incorporated.

Separate the eggs (keep the yolks for the starter) and beat the whites until they form stiff peaks. Spoon a third of the egg white into the chocolate and mix until it is an even colour.

Then fold the lightened chocolate mixture into the rest of the egg white (do this carefully so you don’t knock out the air).

Serve it into four ramekins, glasses or teacups and leave to set in the fridge for at least two hours.

If you wish to add an extra element to your mousse, you could crush some biscuits (amaretti biscuits work well) over the mousse, top with nuts or garnish with berries before serving.

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It’s about

TIME “Doctor, doctor, I keep thinking I am living in the future!”

“When did you first start doing this?”

“Next Tuesday!”

Thank you to J M Beechey from Peterborough The Past, the Present and the Future went into a bar.

They were all tense.

The barman didn’t know if anyone else was going to turn up.

“Are you all here?” he asked.

“No, we’re not all present.”

A time traveller went into a pizzeria and ordered a margarita.

He enjoyed it so much he went back four seconds.

SUDOKU

tea break

CODED WORD PUZZLE

Starting clue – number 6 is ‘M’

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Afghani age group ages aqua beckon blurb bolero

EASY

debase enthral Episode gossip immaculate inexpressible iodises

ironwork jumping-off place Kill lease lily-white Malaysians obscene

MEDIUM

office boy overgraze razor edge sequoia silver jubilee user

HARD

43

Looking back at …

the Teasmade

WORD SEARCH Find the following nautical terms in the grid above

Aboard Aft Beam Below Boat Bow Bridge Crow’s Nest Davits

Deck Fall Frames Freeboard Galley Gangway gunnel Gunwale Head

Ladder List Mess Officer Port Purser Ship SOS Stack

Starboard Stateroom Steerage Stern Steward Tackle Thwart Topside Wings

We want YOU for avanti!

Whether it’s your career highlights, your hobbies or your group activities, do let us know either by email or by writing to Fellowship Office.

The Teasmade, that peculiarly British combination of alarm clock and kettle, was all the rage in the 1960s, when about 300,000 were sold every year. Their popularity continued throughout the 1970s but slowly sales dropped away over the next couple of decades.

Today, if you’re really determined, you can still find a few (they’re now termed ‘vintage’). However, while most modern kitchens are equipped with up to the minute coffee makers, those determined to stick to the old favourite are forced to hunt through charity shops and table top sales to find replacement parts.

Yet the Teasmade has a long history.

The Science Museum in London has a collection of them dating back to 1902.

Samuel Rowbottom’s Automatic Tea Making Apparatus was patented 10 years before that, with James Alfred Greenhalgh adding the clock the following year. The earliest models were heated using methylated spirits, which would be lit by the automatic striking of a match when the alarm clock went off (unsurprisingly, they frequently resulted in house fires).

The first mass produced Teasmade, made by Goblin, arrived in the 1930s and production resumed after the war. The next few decades saw the apparently inexorable rise of the mechanical teamaker, with many of us awakening to the not so gentle hiss of boiling water and a search for the milk.

talk to us

Were you one of the many Teasmade owners? If so, do you remember it with fondness or did it turn out to be more trouble than it was worth? Do let us know and send us a photo if you’ve still got it!

“If you can’t get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you’d best teach it to dance.” George Bernard Shaw 44

SUMMER 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Celebrating

Years

Prize Crossword Congratulations to Mr Kenneth Carling from Scarborough who was our lucky winner for the Summer crossword. Try your hand at this issue’s prize puzzle and you too could win £100 worth of M&S vouchers. Good luck!

Across 7 Old gold coin (5) 8 System operated or moved by fluid (9) 10 Flint is a form of it (6) 11 An information giving bulletin (8) 12 Chinese restaurant offering (5,3) 13 Blender sound (4) 15 Point at which passengers get on or off (3,4) 17 Baby slang for sleep (3,4) 20 Coagulate (4) 22 The science of jet design (8) 25 Device for flashing light signals (8) 26 Small long-tailed crustacean (6) 27 Material arranged collectively on the wall (9) 28 Bats (5)

Down 1 Absurdity (9) 2 The state of being on guard (8) 3 Nightwear (7) 4 Private road for a house (8) 5 Breakfast cereal (6) 6 Place to note appointments (5) 9 Boor’s lack (4) 14 Loss, damage, disadvantage (9) 16 Furtively (2,3,3) 18 Edible bulbous dark red root (8) 19 Current (7) 21 Surgeon’s tool (6) 23 Snug, warm (4) 24 Drink with a straw (5)

Solution to Summer Prize Crossword

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TO ENTER: Please send the completed crossword, along with your name, address and postcode to: PRIZE CROSSWORD, CSRF, Suite 2, 80A Blackheath Road, London SE10 8DA. The judges’ decision is final. Winners will be notified by post. Closing date: 30 October 2015

NAME: ADDRESS:

POSTCODE:

EMAIL:

TELEPHONE NUMBER: Please tick if you do not wish to receive our e-newsletter

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jubilee year

POSTbag

Your letters and stories

Age then and now Dear Postbag I read ‘Across the Divide’ in the Summer issue of avanti on ‘intergenerational’ practice (that really is a long word and one which, as a poet, I would not inflict on my readers).

As an 84 year old ‘escapee’ from London’s old East End, who survived bombs, V1s and V2s and spells of evacuation during WWII, I’ve grown up, mixed and enjoyed my life in both town and country, amongst young and old alike.

A confirmed bachelor, I can attest to having lived in better times here in Great Britain, when life was simpler and better than it now is.

There never was (then) a division betwixt young and old and we were all the happier for it.

Alas, our country has subsequently gone down the wrong road, and the old bona fide community spirit lost along the way.

It is, however, my current delight to be involved on an irregular basis with children, sharing my love and my own parents’ love (since my childhood in Bethnal Green) of opera. This is a 400 year old unique art form of musical and dramatic entertainment that my Year 6 pupils truly enjoy hearing, even though their parents and schools fail to appreciate it.

Peter Mahoney, Hayle

International exchange Dear Postbag I read the article in the Spring issue of avanti ‘Cities for Older People’ with interest, especially the item ‘Taking the Lead in Leeds’.

My wife and I grew up in Leeds, some five minutes from the Town Hall. She lived in the property of the Leeds Fire Brigade and I lived in Park Square, when the park was private, having moved to our present address in 1968. We still visit Leeds occasionally but I have no desire to return and live there.

There is one point in the article in the second paragraph of ‘Taking the Lead in Leeds’, where they are evidently planning public toilet provision and not before time. I am sure there are some individuals who really will appreciate these proposals, as there are none in Leeds these days, apart from in the cafés and restaurants.

The younger generation, who will

no doubt be responsible for any new toilets, should know that prior to the Second World War there were toilets available in numerous locations in Leeds, as well as in the large department stores.

Things certainly ain’t what they used to be.

With reference to Japan in the same article, I served in the navy during the Second World War, some of it in the Far East, which entitled me to visit Japan under the Heroes Return scheme.

We were amazed at the cleanliness wherever we went. The pavements were immaculate, with no chewing gum or cigarette ends. It was a pleasure to walk around, and everyone was so obliging and helpful.

If Leeds can achieve half of what Japan has succeeded in doing, they will be making progress.

RR Clarke, Cleckheaton

Ed’s note: An international perspective is always very useful, thank you.

Ed’s note: It’s always heartening to hear how the generations can be brought together (whatever term we use to describe it!).

47

Waterguard revisited Dear Postbag NC Henshaw’s letter about working for the Waterguard in the Summer issue of avanti reminded me of a friend who began his career in Customs and Excise in 1937 and became a Waterguard officer in the London docks. His mentor as a new recruit was the officer who had cleared [French aviator and inventor] Louis Blériot through customs when he landed in Dover in 1909. Because Blériot arrived from overseas in a single handed vessel, his aircraft was recorded as a yacht.

Geoff Colton, Bromley

Ed’s note: That does strike us as stretching definitions a little too far! Thank you so much.

Dear Postbag Having served in the Royal Navy for six years, I was demobbed in May 1946. I went to live on Tyneside with my wife and two children.

In June 1946 I joined the Ministry of National Insurance as a Temporary Clerk Grade III and was employed in the Embossing and Printing Section engaged on Family Allowances, the first of the Beveridge Benefits.

The Department was at Team Valley, Gateshead, and there were, I believe, some 600 people working at this venue. We were basically the foundation of the Ministry’s Newcastle central office setup.

I have often wondered how many of the original staff are still alive and remember the capable way that this ‘benefit’ was administered initially.

Peter Laker, Ashford

Ed’s note: The civil service really did underpin those postwar reforms; and we too would love to hear more about it.

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Intergalactic practice Dear Postbag The letter in the Summer edition on ‘getting to grips with computers’ brought back memories. Back in the 1960s I was involved with introducing computer technology into the Ministry of Defence.

My team was charged with replacing the manual system in the Pay and Personnel Record Office with a computerised one. This involved having a new building to house the computer and the 200 staff required to operate the new system. The computer itself, only one of three in the UK, was housed in a large secure room to which only a privileged few had access. The new system entailed all RAF airmen having an alphabetical letter added to the end of their service identity number so that the computer could spot if an incorrect number had been keyed in. At that time the RAF had about 200,000 members so it was quite a big job.

Moving on a decade or so, desktop

computers started to be brought in. They had a mixed reception. In one Department of Employment area office I found the operator was a senior executive officer while in another it was a clerical assistant.

The majority of the staff were afraid even to touch them. Called into one area office to try to calm the staff fears, I switched the computer on and started to play a space invaders game which all the computers had installed.

When I had attracted some attention I invited one of the staff to have a go.

Soon they were queuing up to try.

Then I explained there was nothing to be afraid of when using a computer for what it was really there for.

A week later I got a call from the area manager. “You’ve got a lot to answer for,” he told me. “The staff are so busy shooting down aliens, they’re forgetting they’ve got work to do.”

Charlie Duggan, Sheffield.

Ed’s note: Of course, we completely deny any allegations that we might have spent a happy few minutes doing exactly the same thing.

Water tips Dear Postbag Thank you for the interesting Summer edition and the article about exercise.

Something I find very useful as an 85 year old semi mobile subscriber is a twice weekly swim, either in a council pool or in a business pool, which costs a bit more but you get more help.

The local business pool in Fareham, Hampshire, which I use, has all the women changing together, so gives us all a chance to socialise if we want to, instead of being in a tiny cubicle on my own or a large disabled changing room, also on my own.

I can go any time, whereas the council pools usually have set times when you are not allowed in.

Sheila Colbeck, Fareham

Ed’s note: Thank you, Sheila: it’s always worth noting that there may be alternatives to council pools in your local area.

Celebrating

Years

talk to us Treading the boards Dear Postbag The article ‘Curtain Up’ in your Summer edition reminded me of my own interest in amateur theatre. This started at the age of 14 when I joined my school dramatic club and ended 70 years later when I finally and reluctantly gave up the greasepaint.

Over those years I had been involved with many local amateur drama groups, both large and small, in acting, directing, writing, scene shifting and all the other jobs that go towards putting on a production.

Among the highlights of my 70 or so years was appearing in the London Scout Gang Show in the 1950s.

Conceived, written and directed by the late Ralph Reader, this was a truly professional production but with an amateur cast. Each year we played to sell out audiences at the Golders Green Hippodrome

for two weeks, with matinees on the Saturdays.

I left the cast when work posted me away from London, but there was always a new society eager to have an additional member. For the last 13 years of my involvement, I wrote and directed for the concert party of my local branch of the University of the Third Age. Our title was The Cheerups and we were much in demand at local social and pensioners’ clubs.

With a new programme every year, the Cheerups gave 116 performances to well over 4,000 people.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time treading the boards and have a scrapbook of cuttings and photographs that remind me of many happy times.

Les Wood, Haverhill

Ed’s note: Thank you so much for this. We’re glad we brought back so many happy memories for you!

FROM LEFT: Les in 1955; playing Scrooge; with his concert group, the Cheerups.

A taxing project Dear Postbag A couple of letters in the Spring edition of avanti caught my eye – those from Brian Harris and Richard Raymont, both of whom had published books. One of my favourite genres is published diaries and over the years I have acquired many sets by writers in different spheres.

My favourite set is the 11 volume hardback Diary of Samuel Pepys, which contains about a million and a half words. I purchased it using a cash award following a successful submission to the

Inland Revenue Staff Suggestion scheme. A year or two later I decided to start keeping a diary myself and this also resulted in around a million and a half words.

During some of those years I was a district inspector running a tax office.

Last year I published an ebook entitled A Year in the Life of a Tax Inspector, which is an anonymised account of the first year I kept the diary, now well over 30 years ago. I think it gives a realistic picture of what it was like to run a tax office before HMRC took over. (Like me, Pepys was of course a civil servant

We’ve received some great responses so far. Keep them coming! If you have a story or picture to share, write or send it to the Editor using the contact information at the front of the magazine. The Editor regrets it is not possible to enter into correspondence with individual readers. All submissions, unless otherwise indicated, will be considered for publication.

It’s lovely to hear from you and read all of the letters you take the time to write but unfortunately due to space constraints we are often unable to print the full version. In these cases, letters will be edited to fit within the allotted space we give to Postbag.

Audio avanti is free If you are finding it difficult to read the magazine, then sign up to receive our FREE audio version, which includes all the main features, news and information that are contained in the printed version. It comes on a CD (kindly produced by Kent Association for the Blind) and is posted out to you just after publication of the print version.

working on the financial side.)

I used the pseudonym David Sharp and doubt whether many current employees would recognise much, although the content includes my involvement in a project that brought in many millions of pounds of evaded tax. The book can be downloaded from Amazon (Kindle) and the reference is ASIN:B00JV4ZRE0.

Robert Mitchell, Harrogate

Ed’s note: Diaries are indeed some of the most fascinating documents we have. Thank you, Robert (or should we say David?).

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jubilee year

GROUPFOCUS Deputy Chief Executive David Tickner’s round up of all the news from our group and branch network

Croydon, Dulwich & Norwood Report submitted by Victor Johnston We held our first Open Day on 26 May at the Railway Club, Selhurst. Fifteen visitors were welcomed to the event and were refreshed with tea and coffee and a large selection of cakes. The meeting opened with a short talk about the Fellowship, its objectives and how the group was responding. This was followed by an introduction to upcoming outings, starting with the annual skittles match at Limpsfield. Les Ling, one of the visitors, and a long-time member of the Scout Association, spoke about the help retired members can give to Scout groups. We would like to thank Fellowship Office for its help with all the administration and advice for our Open Day. It was a successful event, with several of the visitors returning to our next meeting.

1. Victor Johnston welcoming new members to the recruitment event 2 & 3. New visitors and existing members enjoying the event

1

1

2

Report submitted by Tony Hayward Following its closure earlier in the year, Luton Group held a Reunion Lunch in June. On behalf of members, former Vice Chairman Norma Bartlett presented a gift and thanks to June and John Barrett for nearly 20 years’ service as Chairman and Secretary of the Luton Group.

1. John & June Barrett; 2. Members enjoying their reunion lunch

Crosby

2

3

Luton

The Merseyside branch was one of the first to be opened by CSRF when it was founded. So it was a great pleasure to be able to work with members of the Crosby group on a special social event a couple of months ago to attract new members from the surrounding area to support its activities. The group meets monthly at the Mersey Road Methodist Church Hall from 10am and is a very friendly and

welcoming bunch of people. The event was the result of six months of planning with Fellowship Office, which helped the group with all the administration and logistics involved. It was great to see that the result of all the combined hard work paid off, with many new visitors enjoying the morning.

ABOVE: New and existing members enjoyed the group’s special social event

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3

in pictures

2

1

5 1: Princetown group members celebrated the Duke of Wellington’s victory at Waterloo in the Waterloo Cross Inn at Uffculme, Devon

4

2: Bexhill-on-Sea group member Phyl McEwan (pictured with her friend Betty Howard) won the 85 Ladies’ Doubles Tennis at the European Championships at Pörtschach, Austria

6

3: Dumfries & Kirkcudbright group member Elizabeth Graves pictured with the Princess Royal during a visit to the Devil’s Porridge Museum, Eastriggs

7

4: Liskeard & Pensilva members enjoyed their annual Summer lunch at the Public Hall in Liskeard 5, 6 & 7: Tamar/Tavy group celebrated the Fellowship’s 50th anniversary with a buffet lunch and celebration cake

8

8: Portsmouth & Southsea group celebrated the Fellowship’s 50th anniversary with a lunch at Rocksby seafront restaurant, by the Rock Gardens in Southsea

9

10

9: Ipswich group’s Ray Shemeld celebrated his 100th birthday and was presented with a special Ipswich ‘100’ gold medal by the Mayor 10: Sleaford group with members of RAFA on a visit to the Mayor’s parlour in Huntingdon 11 & 12: Members of the Sutton group enjoyed afternoon tea at Carshalton College 13: Neath Port Talbot group contributed a display to the flower festival at St Thomas’ Church Neath. The arrangement was made

by Margaret Potter and the placard by Norma Richards

12

11

1993

13

Golden Moment

2015

In 1993, Branch Chair Harry Hawthorne (pictured to the left of the tree) and fellow members of the Edinburgh branch planted a Fellowship tree in Princes Street Gardens. Twenty-two years later Harry (now aged 98) returned in June 2015 with Liz Beedie and Trudy Thomas from the Edinburgh branch.

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Celebrating

Years

GROUP PLANNER Our group network operates across the country and provides a mix of leisure, social and welfare activities for your benefit and enjoyment. So why not show your support by popping along and making some new friends?

SCOTLAND Dumfries & Kirkcudbright

John Walker Chairman T: 01387 261889 E: j.walker215@btinternet.com We do not hold regular meetings but if you would like further details about coach trips please contact Doreen Beck on 01387 268824.

Coach Trips: All trips start and finish at Brooms Road Car Park, Dumfries. Everyone is welcome, including family and friends, as the more that go the lower the cost. Please book as early as possible by phoning Doreen Beck on 01387 268824 or the Chairman on 01387 261889 02 Sep 2015 Coach Trip to Rheged Centre, Penrith 07 Oct 2015 Coach Trip to Shale Oil Museum and Livingston

Edinburgh (Central)

Liz Beedie Secretary T: 0131 229 7422 Edinburgh Quaker Meeting House First Floor 7 Victoria Terrace Edinburgh EH1 2JL Third Tuesday of each month (October April) at 2pm for speakers etc. We run walks throughout the year (jointly with Corstorphine Group) meeting at Lakeland at the corner of George Street/Hanover Street at 1.30pm on the first Friday of each month. Organiser: Pat Sinclair (0131 337 6389) 01 Sep 2015 Summer Lunch at The Standing Order 12.30pm, cost £5 including subsidy from group finances.

Organiser Liz Beedie, please call if you intend coming 20 Oct 2015 Speaker 2pm 17 Nov 2015 Speaker 2pm

Edinburgh (Corstorphine)

Liz Beedie Secretary T: 0131 229 7422 The White Lady Cafe Glasgow Road Corstorphine Edinburgh (please note change of venue) Third Thursday of each month October - April at 10.30-12 noon. We run walks throughout the year (jointly with Central Group) meeting at Lakeland at the corner of George Street/ Hanover Street at 1.30pm on the first Friday of each month. Organiser: Pat Sinclair (0131 337 6389) 01 Sep 2015 Summer Lunch at The Standing Order 12.30pm, cost £5 including subsidy from group finances.

Organiser Liz Beedie, please call if you intend coming (please note this is a Tuesday)

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15 Oct 2015 Monthly coffee morning at The White Lady 10.30am 19 Nov 2015 Monthly coffee morning at The White Lady 10.30am

Highland (Scotland) Mrs Pam Barnet T: 01463 790265 Macdougall Clansman Hotel 103 Church Street Inverness IV1 1ES First and third Wednesday of each month coffee morning at 11am

Rosneath William Lauchlan Secretary T 01436 842723 The Church Hall St Modan’s Parish Church Rosneath Road Rosneath G84 0RQ First Monday of the month at 1.30pm 07 Sep 2015 Monthly Meeting and The Co-operative: talk by Jackie Garty 05 Oct 2015 Monthly Meeting and The Commonwealth Games: talk by Sheena Edwards 02 Nov 2015 Monthly Meeting and Christmas Meal (TBA)

NORTHERN IRELAND & NORTH WEST ENGLAND Banbridge Adrian Howlett Secretary T: 028 4062 7979 3rd Floor Old Tech Building Downshire Road Banbridge BT32 3JY First Wednesday of each month at 2pm 02 Sep 2015 Skywatch Talk 23 Sep 2015 Mystery Tour 07 Oct 2015 Talk and demonstration

by Elliotts, the Butcher (7.30pm) 04 Nov 2015 Flower Arranging demonstration

Bangor Mrs Isabel McKnight Secretary T: 028 9186 3410 E: IR3410@yahoo.co.uk Hamilton House Community Centre Town Hall The Castle Bangor BT20 4BT Second Wednesday of the month at 2.30pm 09 Sep 2015 French Fancies - Songs and Poems 14 Oct 2015 The Clandeboye Estate: talk by Mrs L Armstrong 11 Nov 2015 Talk by Ian Alexander (aka ‘Grumpy Old Man’ from local paper)

Belfast

Miss Wynne O’Neill Secretary T: 028 9067 1157 McElhinney Room The Pavillion Stormont Estate Upper Newtownards Road Belfast BT4 3TA First Monday of each month at 2pm 07 Sep 2015 Open House 05 Oct 2015 Lagan Canal: talk 02 Nov 2015 Armchair Aerobics

Birkenhead & Wirral

Cynthia Morgan Secretary T: 0151 678 6266 Victory Hall 61 Salacre Lane Upton Wirral Merseyside CH49 0TN First Tuesday of the month at 2pm

Bury

Gerald Beadling Chairman T: 01706 633674 The Mosses Centre Cecil Street Bury Lancashire BL9 0SB Each Wednesday at 2.15pm (except events below where listed). Please note that with effect from 1 September 2015 we will meet on the first and third Wednesday of each month 23 Sep 2015 Trip to Kendal and Grangeover-Sands (lunch not included)

Craigavon

George McConnell Secretary T: 028 8676 4395 E: joannearcher1@hotmail.co.uk Portadown Library 24-26 Church Street Portadown Craigavon BT62 3LQ First Tuesday of the month at 2.30pm

Crewe

Miss Grace Harding Chairman T: 01270 250677 Wells Green Methodist Church Hall Brookland Avenue Wistaston Crewe CW2 8EJ First Tuesday of each month at 2pm

Crosby

Dorothy Ainsworth Treasurer T: 0151 222 2538 E: dorrain@blueyonder.co.uk Mersey Road Methodist Church Mersey Road Crosby Liverpool L23 3AE Second Tuesday of each month at 10.30am 8 Sep 2015 The Time Machine: tbc 13 Oct 2015 Affordable Warmth Project: talk by Christina Chislett from Sefton Council

Lisburn

Ann Allen Secretary T: 028 9266 1943 Bridge Community Centre 50 Railway Street Lisburn County Antrim BT28 1XP Second Monday of each month at 2.30pm

Celebrating

Years

Penrith

Richard Roscoe Chairman T: 01697 472383 A local hostelry each quarter First Tuesday of the quarter (March, June and September) at 12.30pm for lunch and in December for a Christmas Lunch

Stockport/Grove Park

Yvonne Smith Social Secretary T: 0161 427 5593 Brookdale Club Bridge Lane Bramhall Stockport SK7 3AB First Thursday of each month at 2.15pm 03 Sep 2015 The Underground Canals of Worsley: talk by Mr Atkinson 01 Oct 2015 The Royal Yacht Britannia: talk by Mr J Hooley 05 Nov 2015 Varied video show with our Chairman, Alaister Macrae

NORTH EAST ENGLAND Blaydon

Mrs Catherine Thomas Treasurer T: 0191 488 1385 Ridley Room Blaydon Library Wesley District Precinct Blaydon Tyne And Wear NE21 5BT Second Tuesday of the month at 10.30am 22 Sep 2015 Coach outing to Gilsland near Hadrian’s Wall (all day outing)

Boston Spa & Wetherby

Mrs Janet Walker Records Secretary T: 01937 842216 Deepdale Community Centre Deepdale Lane Boston Spa Wetherby LS23 6EW Second Tuesday of the month at 2pm 08 Sep 2015 Moving House 27 times in 32 years: talk by Mrs McKeawn 13 Oct 2015 Buffet Lunch (pre-booking essential) 10 Nov 2015 Northumberland Coastline: talk by Mr Faulkner

Bradford

Mr Norman Griffiths Secretary T: 01274 586410 Centenary Court 1 St Blaise Way Bradford BD1 4YL Third Tuesday of each month at 2pm 15 Sep 2015 Humorous Poetry: talk by James Saville 20 Oct 2015 The A-Z of Transport in Yorkshire: talk by John Holroyd 17 Nov 2015 The Road to Rio: talk by Pam James

Chester-Le-Street

Mrs Mary May Chairman T: 0191 410 4106 St Mary & St Cuthbert Parish Centre Church Chare Chester-Le-Street Co. Durham DH3 3QB First Monday of each month from 2 - 4pm

Gateshead

Elsa Jackson Chairman T: 0191 267 4728 Gateshead Community Fire Station Dryden Road Low Fell Gateshead NE9 5BU First Thursday of the month at 10am - 12 noon

Horsforth, Rawdon & District

Ludlow

Mrs M J Taylor T: 0113 267 8110 Venue varies, we meet in local hostelries for Lunch. Please contact Mrs Taylor for more details The last Tuesday in the month at 12.30pm

Peter Waite Liaison T: 01584 872639 E: peter.waite@dsl.pipex.com Local public houses, various venues in and around Ludlow Third Tuesday of each month at 12.30pm

Hull

Neath & Port Talbot

Brian Mitchell Treasurer T: 01482 653973 Age UK Healthy Living Centre Porter Street Hull HU1 2RH Third Tuesday of the month at 2.15pm

Middlesbrough

Lilian Lloyd Secretary T: 01642 315439 St Marys Centre 82-90 Corporation Road Middlesbrough TS1 2RW Last Tuesday of the month at 2pm 29 Sep 2015 An afternoon of ‘things we have made’ (knitting, embroidery, paintings etc) 27 Oct 2015 TBA

Sunderland & Washington

Ivan Bell Secretary T: 0191 549 4130 Various venues in the area, please contact the Secretary for details First Monday of the month at 2 - 3.30pm

WALES & WELSH BORDERS Caerphilly

Mrs Cindy Kingham Secretary T: 01633 440460 E: cindykingham@yahoo.com No.2 Meeting Room Caerphilly New Library The Twyn Caerphilly CF83 1JL Second Monday of every month at 10.15am 14 Sep 2015 Italians in Wales: talk by Romano Bassini 12 Oct 2015 Talk on Smart Meters by SWALEC and Bring and Buy Sale 09 Nov 2015 Desert Island Discs

Church Stretton

John Brewer Secretary T: 01694 722965 E: johnbrewer1@talktalk.net Mayfair Community Centre Easthope Road Church Stretton SY6 6BL For meeting dates and times see below or contact the Secretary 18 Sep 2015 An all day ride around art and craft venues in North Herefordshire 02 Oct 2015 Coach Trip: all day visit to the National Memorial Arboretum 06 Nov 2015 Annual Quiz

Llandudno

Mrs Beryl Rennie Assistant Secretary T: 01492 876238 Queen’s Hotel The Promenade Llandudno LL30 2LE First Tuesday of each month at 10.30am for coffee mornings. Details of lunches/walks are announced at the previous coffee morning

Llanishen (Cardiff)

Miss Mary Corke Secretary T: 029 2073 3427 Park End Presbyterian Church Hall Rhyd-y-penau Road Cardiff CF14 0NZ First Tuesday of each month at 10am for 10.30am

Mrs E Northcott Chairman T: 01639 887851 Neath Working Men’s Club Wind Street Neath SA11 3HA Last Wednesday of each month at 2pm 07 Sep 2015 Old-time Cinema visit, Briton Ferry 30 Sep 2015 Harvest Tea 01 Oct 2015 Visit to Taliesin Theatre to see Gilbert and Sullivan’s Princess Ida 28 Oct 2015 A Gambian nursery school: talk by Emily Jones

Oswestry

Ruth Haile Chairman T: 01691 650993 The Wynnstay Hotel Church Street Oswestry SY11 2SZ First Tuesday of each month at 10.30am

Swansea

Mrs Sylvia Edgell Chairman/Secretary T: 01792 851125 E: sylviaedgell@btinternet.com The Vestry Hall St Mary’s Church Swansea SA1 3LP Last Friday of each month at 2pm 25 Sep 2015 The History of St John Ambulance: talk by Mrs Lynda Miners 30 Oct 2015 Gerald of Wales: talk by Colin Wheland James

Whitchurch (Cardiff)

Jane Lewis Secretary T: 029 20 757174 Ararat Baptist Church Plas Treoda Whitchurch Cardiff South Glamorgan CF14 1PT Second Wednesday of the month at 10am

Ynys Mon (Anglesey)

Eric Maynard Chairman T: 01407 720146 Please contact the Chairman for venue details.

Second Tuesday of each month at 12.30pm for lunch

MIDDLE ENGLAND Amersham

Jim Campbell Chairman T: 01494 722558 Community Centre Chiltern Avenue Amersham Buckinghamshire HP6 5AE First Wednesday of the month at 2.30pm

Banbury

Ann Garton Secretary T: 01295 750151 E: agarton@btinternet.com Hanwell Fields Community Centre Rotary Way Banbury OX16 1ER Second Tuesday of each month at 2.15 - 4.15pm 08 Sep 2015 Home Security: talk

by Michelle Miller, Communications Officer. Raffle 13 Oct 2015 ‘Can I help you, I am a Paramedic?’: talk by Bob Harding-Jones 10 Nov 2015 Leisure and Entertainment in Victorian and Edwardian Oxford: talk by Liz Woolley

55

Bedford

Patricia Waters Secretary T: 01234 347443 The Bunyan Meeting Mill Street Bedford MK40 3EU First Tuesday of every month at 10am 01 Sep 2015 Coffee morning with Sales Table 06 Oct 2015 Coffee morning - Harvest Theme 03 Nov 2015 Ro Haggerwood’s ‘What do you remember?’

Birmingham

June Oakley Chairman T: 01952 604922 Five Ways House Islington Row Five Ways Edgbaston B15 1SL Third Wednesday of each month at 11am

Coalville & Ashby

Terry Watson Chairman T: 01530 835373 Thringstone Community Centre The Green Thringstone Coalville LE67 8NR Third Wednesday each month 2 - 4pm

Coventry

Mrs J Turner Chairman T: 024 76 465382 Room 2 Gilbert Richard Centre Broadway Earsldon Coventry CV5 6NT Third Tuesday of each month at 2pm (except November)

Donnington

Betty Pugh Chairman T: 01952 811355 Turreff Hall Turreff Avenue Donnington TF2 8HG Every Monday at 1pm (except Bank Holidays)

Dunstable & Leighton Buzzard

Mrs Janet Bliss Secretary T: 01582 661795 E: j.bliss35@btinternet.com Scout HQ Grovebury Road Leighton Buzzard LU7 4SW First Wednesday of the month at 2pm 02 Sep 2015 Rothschild Houses in Buckinghamshire: illustrated talk by Wendy Austin.

Tombola, raffle and book table.

07 Oct 2015 The Last of the Mohicans: presentation by Dick Pilkington. Raffle and book table 04 Nov 2015 Tradecraft and Fair Trade: talk by Linda Smith. Raffle and book table.

Grantham

Mr Maurice Whincup Chairman T: 01476 572425 E: mewhincup@gmail.com The King’s Hotel 130 North Parade Grantham NG31 8AU First Wednesday every month at 10.30am - 12 noon

Hucclecote

Mrs B Arnold Secretary T: 01452 618069 Evangelical Church Colwell Avenue Hucclecote Gloucester GL3 3LX First Thursday of the month at 2pm 03 Sep 2015 Health and Wellbeing: talk 01 Oct 2015 Glorious Gloucestershire: talk 05 Nov 2015 TBA

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Kidderminster

Pam Hussey Local Contact T: 01562 755632 Various venues in and around Kidderminster Third Wednesday of each month at 11am (except when lunching out) 16 Sep 2015 No meeting 21 Oct 2015 Coffee morning 18 Nov 2015 No meeting

Lincoln City

Jannette Hook Secretary T: 01522 803412 Mothers’ Union Centre St Benedict’s Church St Benedict’s Square Lincoln LN5 7AR First Wednesday of the month at 10.30am

Louth

Mrs Margaret Bradley Secretary T: 01472 388928 Elizabeth Court Church Street Louth LN11 9BP Second and fourth Thursday of the month at 10.30am

Melton Mowbray

Mr M Johnson Chairman T: 01664 566821 School Room United Reform Church Chapel Street Melton Mowbray LE13 1LZ First Tuesday of each month at 1.45pm

Nottingham

Pam Bradley Chair T: 0115 938 4676 The Mechanics 3 North Sherwood Street Nottingham NG1 4EZ Second Wednesday of each month at 10.15am - 12.15pm

Nuneaton

Rachel Homer Secretary T: 024 76 385845 E: rachel.homer@tesco.net The Sycamore Tree 2 Chapel Street Nuneaton CV11 5QH First Tuesday of each month at 11am for coffee mornings

Rutland

Mrs Peggy Brown Chairman T: 01780 480314 Various locations for pub lunches in and around Rutland Third Wednesday of each month

Skegness

Ray Morris Secretary T: 01754 762060 E: ray@bermond.co.uk Philip Grove Community Rooms Church Road South Skegness PE25 2HW First Thursday of each month from 10am - 12 noon

Sleaford & Ancaster

Mike Smith Chairman T: 01526 833273 E: mjs_consultation@hotmail.com Bristol Bowls Club Boston Road Sleaford NG34 7HH Sleaford: First Thursday of the month at 10.15am Bristol Bowls Club Boston Road Sleaford NG34 7HH Ancaster: Second Wednesday of the month at 10.15am - 12 noon Angel Court Ancaster Grantham NG32 3PR 15 Sep 2015 Outing to Newark Edingley (lunch) and Rufford Park 27 Oct 2015 Golden Anniversary lunch for CSRF – Horncastle, Skegness & Gibraltar Point (joined by Skegness group)

17 Nov 2015 Louth, lunch at the Splash and (weather permitting) Donna Nook to see the seals

Solihull Margaret Smith Secretary T: 0121 744 6150 E: me.smith@talktalk.net Assembly Rooms Poplar Road Solihull B91 3AD Second Monday of each month at 10am

Stamford Mrs B Smith Chairman/Secretary T: 01780 755437 Tenter Court Wharf Road Stamford PE9 2EZ Last Thursday of the month at 2.15pm

Wigston Mrs J Collins Vice Chairman T: 0116 288 7802 The Elms Social & Service Club (formerly The Royal British Legion) Launceston Road Wigston LE18 2BA Second and fourth Monday of each month from 1.30 - 4pm (Bank Holidays permitting) 14 Sep 2015 Dreams, hopes and realities: talk by Mike Leonard 28 Sep 2015 Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance: talk 12 Oct 2015 Bring and Buy 26 Oct 2015 Badgers: talk by Mrs Val Williams 09 Nov 2015 To be advised 23 Nov 2015 Let’s talk Turkey: talk by Ian Rogerson

Worcester Leigh Watkins Secretary T: 01905 774034 Perdiswell Young People’s Leisure Club Droitwich Road (opposite Checketts Lane) Worcester WR3 7SN Second Wednesday of the month at 1pm

EASTERN ENGLAND & EAST ANGLIA Attleborough Mrs D Parker Secretary T: 01953 456958 Methodist Church Hall London Road Attleborough NR17 2BY Third Thursday of the month from 10am - 12 noon

Aylsham & District Pam Bailey Social Secretary T: 01263 731421 Friends Meeting House Pegg’s Yard Red Lion Street Aylsham Norfolk NR11 6ER Second Monday of each month at 10am for 10.30am (unless it’s a Bank Holiday) 14 Sep 2015 Gilbert and Sullivan: talk by Mr Barrett 16 Sep 2015 Cromer End of the Pier Show 12 Oct 2015 Talk (TBC) 09 Nov 2015 The History of Christmas: talk by Margaret Brooker

Billericay Mr J R Smith T: 01277 622156 Mr Cecil Featherstone E: feathb-cay@tiscali.co.uk Various locations for informal lunches in and around Billericay

Celebrating

Years

Bury St Edmunds

Mrs Doreen Ginn Chairman T: 01284 755256 West End Home Guard Club Abbot Road Bury St Edmunds IP33 3UB Second Wednesday of each month at 10am 09 Sep 2015 Quiz with Brian Milner 14 Oct 2015 A Weaver at Waterloo: talk

by Anne Grimshaw 11 Nov 2015 Underground Bury St Edmunds: talk by Martyn Taylor

Colchester

Joan Gomer Secretary T: 01206 794656 Straight Road Community Centre 329 Straight Road Colchester CO2 9EF Third Monday of each month at 2pm 21 Sep 2015 The History of St Albright’s: talk by Christina Edwards 19 Oct 2015 Some 1st World War Comic Postcards: Joan Gomer. Bring and Buy 16 Nov 2015 Fred Pearce Entertains

Harlow

Mrs Edna McNaughton Secretary T: 01279 865102 E: edian.mcnaughton@tesco.net Toby Carvery Edinburgh Gate Harlow CM20 2LQ First Friday of the month at 12 noon

Ilford

David Hubbard Social Secretary T: 020 8550 1533 E: dhubbard777@gmail.com St Andrew’s Church Hall The Drive Ilford IG1 3JQ Third Monday of the month at 1.30pm 21 Sep 2015 Africa: illustrated talk by Les Barnett 19 Oct 2015 Retail, the story retold: talk

by Ann Hardy 16 Nov 2015 My Travels: talk by Eddie Upcraft

Ipswich

Eva Stevens Secretary T: 01473 688040 E: evajs@yahoo.co.uk Museum Street Methodist Church Hall Blackhorse Lane Ipswich IP1 2EF First Wednesday of the month at 2pm 02 Sep 2015 The Canterbury Tales: talk by Mike Wabe 23 Sep 2015 Luncheon at Peak Lodge at 12.30pm 07 Oct 2015 Can you hear me?: talk by Karen Finch 04 Nov 2015 Christmas Cards: demonstration by Janet Rosie

Loughton

Peter White Treasurer T: 020 8508 5442 Jazz Archive Room Loughton Library Traps Hill Loughton IG10 1HD Third Monday of each month at 2pm 21 Sep 2015 Talk by Age UK 19 Oct 2015 The Civil Service before World War II 16 Nov 2015 Superstitions: how they affect us

Lowestoft

Mike Chester T: 01502 476629 E: mikewc10@gmail.com

Ex-Servicemen’s Club Gordon Road Town Centre Lowestoft NR32 1DY and Victoria Hotel Kirkley Cliff Lowestoft NR33 0BZ First Wednesday (at the Victoria Hotel) and third Wednesday (at Ex-Servicemen’s Club) of each month at 10.30am

15 Sep 2015 Please ring the Chairman for details 20 Oct 2015 Please ring the Chairman for details 17 Nov 2015 Please ring the Chairman for details

Newmarket

Westcliff on Sea

Mike Hastings Chairman T: 01638 661065 E: michaelhastings@mypostoffice.co.uk The Ancient Order Of Foresters Hall Kingston Passage Newmarket CB8 8EN Second Wednesday of each month at 2pm 09 Sep 2015 Speaker (TBA) 14 Oct 2015 Talk by Martin Claridge 11 Nov 2015 The Legal Eagle, up to date laws and regulations: talk

Norwich

Mary Weatherhead Secretary T: 01603 410821 Reading Room Doughty’s Hospital Golden Dog Lane Norwich NR3 1BP Second Monday of each month at 10am for 10.30am 14 Sep 2015 Anglo Saxon Medicine: talk

by Mrs R Wilkin 12 Oct 2015 Curiosities (cont’d): talk by Mrs S Barrett 09 Nov 2015 The World of Shells: talk

by Mrs D Howlett

Radlett

Mrs Shirley Herbert Secretary T: 020 8953 2999 Monthly at local restaurants for coffee or lunch. Further details from Secretary

Rayleigh

Mrs F Cohen Social Secretary T: 01702 342426 Cloister West Parish Rooms Rayleigh Church Rectory Garth (off Hockley Road) Rayleigh SS6 8BA First Thursday of each month at 2 - 4pm

Saffron Walden

Mrs E Mansfield Chairperson T: 01279 755458 The Chequers Public House Cambridge Road Ugley Bishops Stortford CM22 6HZ Second Monday in the month (approximately four times a year) at 1212.30pm for lunch

Shoeburyness

Mrs F Cohen Social Secretary T: 01702 342426 The Salvation Army Hall Frobisher Way Shoeburyness SS3 8UT First Tuesday of each month at 2 - 4pm

St Albans

Mrs B G Hill Secretary T: 01727 858198 E: barbara.hill5@ntlworld.com Friends Meeting House Upper Lattimore Road St Albans AL1 3UD First Thursday of the month at 10.15am

Swaffham

David Moore Chairman T: 01760 723740 Methodist Church Hall London Street Swaffham PE37 7DD Third Tuesday of the month at 10.15am

Mrs F Cohen Social Secretary T: 01702 342426 Balmoral Community Centre Salisbury Avenue Westcliff On Sea SS0 7AU Fourth Wednesday of each month from 2 - 4pm

Wickford

Peter Blake Chairman & Secretary T: 01268 583060 Christchurch Hall rear of 44 High Street Wickford SS12 9AJ Second Thursday of each month 1.30 - 3.30pm

Witham

Mrs P Rogers Group Secretary Tel: 01376 514539 Witham Methodist Church Hall Guithavon Street Witham Essex CM8 1BJ Last Tuesday of each month at 10.30am

SOUTHERN ENGLAND Aldershot

Mrs Gloria Wetherill Social Secretary T: 01252 345318 E: rayglo227@talktalk.net Holy Trinity Church Galpin Hall Windsor Way Aldershot Hampshire GU11 3HE Second Thursday of of the month at 1.30pm 10 Sep 2015 Farnborough Bonaparte Connections: talk by Jo Gosney 22 Sep 2015 Lunch at Wetherspoons, Aldershot 08 Oct 2015 Card Marking: talk by Dorothy Neil 20 Oct 2015 Coach Outing to Bashley Music Hall and cream tea 12 Nov 2015 Wartime Memories of Ash: talk by David Mayhead

Arun

Jim Underwood Treasurer T: 01903 709033 E: jimunderwood9@hotmail.com St Joseph’s Convent Franciscan Way Littlehampton BN17 6AU. Please use entrance in East Street if arriving by car Second Wednesday of each month at 2pm 09 Sep 2015 An African School: talk by Mr Bond 14 Oct 2015 London: talk

Ascot & Sunningdale

Pam Drummer Secretary T: 01344 774849 E: roypamdr@talktalk.net De Vere Venues Sunningdale Park Larch Avenue Ascot SL5 0QE Third Friday of each month at 12 noon - 4pm 18 Sep 2015 How Smugglers conceal their Contraband: talk by Malcolm Nelson 16 Oct 2015 The Amazing Dr Johnson: talk by Tim Moorey 20 Nov 2015 Secrets of the Box: talk by Tony Weston

57

Basingstoke

Tony Brazier Secretary T: 01256 418770 E: bjmapbr@ntlworld Brookvale Community Association Hall Lower Brook Street Basingstoke RG21 7SD First Wednesday of each month at 10am 14 Sep 2015 Trip to Chiswick House 01 Oct 2015 Mystery Trip (includes lunch and tea) 07 Oct 2015 Kipepeo Designs (Charity): talk by Rachel Baughen 04 Nov 2015 Life and Legends of Mary, Queen of Scots: talk by Gordon Massie 12 Nov 2015 Trip to Geffrye Museum, Hoxton and Spitalfields Market (includes lunch)

Bexhill

Elizabeth Leahy Secretary T: 01424 214042 Bexhill Sailing Club Marina Bexhill-on-Sea TN40 1LA Fourth Tuesday of each month at 10am 22 Sep 2015 The Cuckmere Valley: talk by Michael Hoad 24 Sep 2015 Mystery Coach Tour including 4* Hotel Lunch 27 Oct 2015 Quiz 24 Nov 2015 My Life in Film: talk by Jonathan Linsley

Bognor Regis & Chichester

Mrs Heather Olive Group Chairperson T: 01903 778543 Jeneses Community Arts Centre 45 Linden Road Bognor Regis West Sussex PO21 2AS Last Thursday of the month from 2-4pm 24 Sep 2015 Timespan: the way we were: 1933-1950: talk by Lizzie and Tony Gilkes 29 Oct 2015 Mulberry Harbour: talk by Stuart MacDonald

Bournemouth - Boscombe & Southbourne

Paul Tabor Chairman T: 01202 422493 E: paul.tabor@tesco.net St Katherine’s Church Hall Church Road Southbourne BH6 4AR First Wednesday of each month at 10am 02 Sep 2015 Paddle along the Piddle: talk

by Mrs Anne King 07 Oct 2015 Les Chateau et Les Gateau: talk by Eric Watson 11 Nov 2015 Hengistbury Head Visitors Centre: talk by Natalie Fisher (please note this is the 2nd Wednesday)

Bournemouth - Central Alan Carter T: 01202 292720

Bournemouth Christchurch & Highcliffe Paul Tabor T: 01202 422493 E: paul.tabor@tesco.net

Bournemouth - New Forest

Sandy Whittaker Chairman T: 023 8028 2157 New Milton Community Centre Osborne Road New Milton BH25 6EA Second Tuesday of each month at 10.15am 08 Sep 2015 The Origin of Words and Sayings: talk by Derek Tones

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

13 Oct 2015 My Work in the Meteorological Office: talk

by Miss F Pounce 10 Nov 2015 A-Z of the New Forest: talk

by John Coombes

Bournemouth - Ringwood & District Ron Fisher Chairman T: 01202 896315 E: CSRF.ringwood@gmail.com Greyfriars Community Centre 44 Christ Church Road Ringwood BH24 1DW First Friday of each month at 10am. Pub lunches are 12 noon for 12.30pm. Any change of venue will be announced at the preceding coffee morning or ask the Committee 04 Sep 2015 Nature’s Magical Moments Part 2: talk by Mr John Coombes 02 Oct 2015 Find your Roots: talk 06 Nov 2015 Destination Disaster: talk by Mrs Jill Daniels

Bournemouth - Swanage Mrs Irene Greenaway T: 01929 423394

Bournemouth - Wimborne & Ferndown Eric Basire T: 01202 897158 E: eric-rita@tiscali.co.uk Ferndown Village Hall Church Road Ferndown BH22 9ET Third Wednesday of each month at 10.30am

Brighton & Hove

Mrs A Cobby E: saglibcob@googlemail.com Ventnor Hall Blatchington Road Hove BN3 3YF Please note from 1 January 2015, we will be meeting quarterly on the first Wednesday of the month in March, June September and December at 2.15pm 07 Oct 2015 Social Afternoon

Chandlers Ford

Ken Willcocks Chairman T: 023 8076 0102 Chandlers Ford Community Centre Hursley Road Chandlers Ford Eastleigh Hampshire SO53 2FT First Friday of the month at 10am 04 Sep 2015 The Victoria Cross Story: talk

by Colin Carter 17 Sep 2015 Cream Tea at Carlo’s Ice Cream Parlour, East Wellow 3pm 02 Oct 2015 Hannah Snail and others: four women who fought in wars for different reasons: talk by Mrs B Doughty 15 Oct 2015 Skittles/Lunch at Wellow Golf Club 10am to 3pm 06 Nov 2015 Annual Cheese and Wine Event in the meeting hall

Crawley & District

Jim Piercey Chairman T: 01293 409332 Bill Buck Room Crawley Library Southgate Avenue Crawley RH10 6HG Fourth Friday of the month at 2pm 25 Sep 2015 TBA 23 Oct 2015 How to decorate a Cake (TBC) 27 Nov 2015 “When I was young” (TBC)

Hastings & St Leonards John Hall Chairman T: 01424 813355 Please contact the Chairman for details

Mid Sussex

Mike Mason Chairman T: 01444 245289 E: michael_mason6@hotmail.com Millfield Suite Cyprus Hall Cyprus Road Burgess Hill RH15 8DX Fourth Wednesday of each month at 10am 23 Sep 2015 Coffee morning with talk on the work of the Mid Sussex Older Persons’ Council 28 Oct 2015 Coffee morning with talk

by Gerry Canning on his childhood in South Africa 25 Nov 2015 Coffee morning (Speaker TBA)

Newbury

Roger Walker Chairman T: 01635 44575 E: colonelrog@hotmail.com St John’s Church Room Newtown Road Newbury Newtown Road Newbury RG14 Second Monday of the month at 2.15pm 14 Sep 2015 Chasing the moon’s Shadow: talk by Ann Davies 17 Sep 2015 Skittles Evening at Thatcham FC 12 Oct 2015 From Incas to Iberian: talk

by Mike Braide 15 Oct 2015 Pub lunch at The Rampant Cat 09 Nov 2015 A day in an English Court Room: talk

Portsmouth & Southsea

Edda Rea Chairman T: 023 92 753581 St Simon’s Church Hall Waverley Road Southsea PO5 2PW Second Wednesday of the month at 10.30am and fourth Wednesday of the month at 2.30pm 09 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 23 Sep 2015 The mysteries and histories of nursery rhymes, Part 2: talk 01 Oct 2015 New Forest ride and tea at Acres Down Farm 14 Oct 2015 Coffee morning and Fish and Chips 28 Oct 2015 Entertainment (to be confirmed)

Reading West & Tilehurst

David Cox Secretary T: 0118 958 6311 United Reformed Church Hall Polsted Road (off Armour Road) Tilehurst Reading RG31 6HN Last Wednesday of the month at 2pm (unless otherwise stated)

Stubbington

Peter Stilwell Secretary T: 023 92 527346 E: amy_stilwell@hotmail.com Catholic Church Hall Bells Lane Stubbington Hampshire PO14 2PL Second Thursday of each month at 2pm (meeting) and last Tuesday of each month at 10.30am (coffee morning). On the Tuesday following the Thursday meeting we have a pub lunch 10 Sep 2015 My life in nursing: talk by Judy Stokes 22 Sep 2015 Trip to gin distillery and three military museums in the Winchester area 29 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 08 Oct 2015 Paranormal Investigations: talk by John Harvey

Celebrating

Years

12 Nov 2015 Fareham in Bloom: talk by Matt Wakefield 24 Nov 2015 Coffee morning

Tadley

Mr D MacLean Chairman T: 0118 970 1290 Tadley Community Centre Newchurch Road Tadley RG26 4HN First Thursday of each month at 1.15pm for 1.45pm (except in unusual circumstances when advance notice is given to our members) 03 Sep 2015 The Building of the Panama Canal: talk by Iain Kennedy 01 Oct 2015 Ann Davis ‘Purple People’ Music , Jokes, Quiz 05 Nov 2015 My Life as a Film Extra: talk

by Kate Bettison

Whitstable & Herne Bay (inc.

Canterbury)

Linda Swift T: 01227 276583 E: lindaswift2@sky.com Swalecliffe and Chestfield Community Centre St Johns Road Whitstable CT5 2QU Fourth Thursday of the month at 2pm 24 Sep 2015 Music and Songwriting: talk 22 Oct 2015 To be arranged 26 Nov 2015 To be arranged

Worthing

David Keeling Chairman T: 01903 248663 United Reformed Church Hall Shaftesbury Avenue Worthing BN12 4ET (just South Of Durrington Railway Bridge, Entrance In Barrington Road) Third Tuesday of each month at 10am (coffee at 9.45am) 15 Sep 2015 Legal Advice: talk by Stuart Pelling, McClures 20 Oct 2015 Letter Boxes: talk by Paul Snelling 17 Nov 2015 Bring and Buy Event

SOUTH WEST ENGLAND Amesbury

Mrs Freda Hedge Secretary T: 01980 590499 Antrobus House 39 Salisbury Road Amesbury SP4 7HH First Tuesday of the month at 2pm (unless otherwise stated) 01 Sep 2015 Hoy! Bingo 15 Sep 2015 Outing to Wilton Shopping Village followed by lunch at Barford Inn 06 Oct 2015 Speaker (TBA) 20 Oct 2015 Mystery Tour 03 Nov 2015 Speaker (TBA) 17 Nov 2015 Outing to Swindon Shopping Outlet

Bath

Ros Kedge Chairman T: 01225 443176 St John’s Parish Hall South Parade Bath BA2 4AF Coffee mornings on the first Thursday of each month at 10.30am 03 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 01 Oct 2015 Coffee morning 21 Oct 2015 Skittles Lunch (Wednesday) 05 Nov 2015 Coffee morning 18 Nov 2015 Autumn Lunch (Wednesday)

Bideford

Sylvia Moody T: 01237 471334 Griggs Close Community Centre Northam Bideford Devon EX39 1BR Second Friday in the month at 10.30am

Blandford Forum

Mrs Margaret Chambers Secretary T: 01258 456572 Contact Secretary for venue details Second Friday of each month at 11am

Bradford-on-Avon

Mr M Wickham Secretary T: 01225 864541 E: lindamorgan1975@btinternet.com United Reformed Church Hall St Margarets Street Bradford-on-Avon BA15 1DD Second Monday of each month at 2.15pm

Brixham

Brenda Smith T: 01803 559466 E: brenda54@talktalk.net Various local restaurants, usually Waterside Usually second Thursday of the month at 12 noon

Burnham-on-Sea

Mrs Joyce Beard Secretary/Treasurer T: 01278 782650 E: joyful18@live.co.uk Apex Park Marine Drive Burnham-On-Sea Somerset TA8 3YY Fourth Tuesday in each month from 10.30am

Chard

Gordon Baker Secretary T: 01460 73333 Donyatt Bowling Club Ilminster Somerset TA19 0RG Third Thursday of the month at 10.30am

Chippenham

David Gardner Chairman T: 01249 658431 Rotary Hall Station Hill Chippenham Wiltshire SN15 1EG First Wednesday of each month at 2pm 02 Sep 2015 Medical memories: talk by Dr Ruth Scrine 07 Oct 2015 Mountains of Ethiopia: talk

by Fred Hewitson 04 Nov 2015 Be a nun and see the world: talk by Sister Ann Martin

Crediton

Miss M Steer Chairman T: 01363 866256 Various venues in and around Crediton First Friday of each month at 12 noon for lunch unless there is a trip planned. Trips are announced in the local paper

Dawlish

Mrs M Carter Chairman T: 01626 888275 The Manor House Old Town Street Dawlish Devon EX7 9AP Third Friday of each month at 2pm. Please note change of date from second to third Friday 18 Sep 2015 Autumn lunch at Reflections Bistro 16 Oct 2015 Musical Afternoon 20 Nov 2015 Christmas Lunch at Mount Pleasant

Dorchester

Mike Rogers Chairman/Treasurer T: 01308 420755 E: michael@mikerogers3.plus.com

Dorset Youth HQ Lubbecke Way Dorchester DT1 1QL Third Thursday of the month at 10.15am for 10.30am - 12.30-1pm 17 Sep 2015 The Vercors: illustrated talk

by Charlie Rigeroni 15 Oct 2015 Chesil Beach: talk by Dorset Wildlife Trust 19 Nov 2015 Rajastan: talk by Bob Curtis

Exeter

Mrs Cathy Tyrrell Chairman T: 01392 879022 Contact the Chairman for further details

Exmouth

Carol Brett Secretary T: 01395 442671 Wings Club (formerly RAFA) Imperial Road Exmouth Devon EX8 1DB First Wednesday of each month at 10am 02 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 07 Oct 2015 Coffee morning 04 Nov 2015 Coffee morning

Liskeard & Pensilva

Shirley Waye Chair/Secretary T: 01579 346089 E: shirleywaye@gmail.com Refreshment Rooms Liskeard Public Hall West Street Liskeard Cornwall PL14 6BW Last Wednesday of each month at 10am 30 Sep 2015 Scarf Party 28 Oct 2015 Christmas Bazaar and Lunch at Eliot House 16-20 Nov 2015 Turkey and Tinsel Holiday to Llandudno

Princetown

Mike Fitzpatrick Secretary T: 01822 890799 E: mikeandkate3@talktalk.net Prince Of Wales Tavistock Road Princetown PL20 6QF First Thursday of the month at 12.30pm 17 Sep 2015 Coach trip to Uffculme Woollen Mill and Museum (including lunch and refreshment stops).

Booking essential: please contact Mike 15 Oct 2015 Mystery Coach Tour (including lunch and evening meal). Booking essential: please contact Mike 05 Nov 2015 Ghost Stories of Plymouth: talk by Pam Magill

Salisbury Plain

Mr Roy German Secretary T: 01980 653446 E: royandvi@live.co.uk The Village Hall High Street Durrington Salisbury SP4 8AD Third Tuesday of each month at 2.30pm

Sidmouth

Margaret Adams Chairman T: 01395 577622 E: rjadams39@waitrose.com Sidholme Hotel Elysian Fields Sidmouth EX10 8UJ Second Wednesday of each month at 10.25am and lunches listed below at 12.30pm 23 Sep 2015 Lunch at the Sir Walter Raleigh, East Budleigh 28 Oct 2015 Lunch at Half Way House

59

Somerton

Colin McIntyre Secretary T: 01458 223953 The Two Brewers Leigh Road Street Somerset BA16 0HB Third Tuesday of the month at 11.30am

Tamar/Tavy (Tavistock)

David Askew Secretary T: 01822 612274 E: daveandjennyaskew@gmail.com Burrator Inn Princetown Road Dousland Yelverton PL20 6NP Second Thursday of the month at 12.30pm

Taunton

Mick Grigg Chairman T: 01823 272046 E: mfgrigg@talktalk.net Lawns Social Club (formerly Royal British Legion Club) Mary Street Taunton TA1 3PE Second Friday of the month at 10.30am (if Public Holiday then third Friday) 11 Sep 2015 Milestones: talk by Richard Raynsford 09 Oct 2015 Bring and Buy Cakes

Trowbridge

Peter Collins Secretary T: 01225 340580 E: csrftrow@which.net Please note our change of meeting venues: First Wednesday of each month (coffee mornings) at The Wiltshire Yeoman Chilmark Road Trowbridge BA14 9DD at 10.30am and third Wednesday of each month (monthly meetings) at Trowbridge Cricket Club The County Ground Lower Court Trowbridge BA14 8PX at 2pm (except for arranged coach trips) 02 Sep 2015 Coffee morning at the The Wiltshire Yeoman at 10.30am 16 Sep 2015 Monthly meeting at Trowbridge Cricket Club: A Quiz with a Difference - 2pm 07 Oct 2015 Coffee morning at the The Wiltshire Yeoman at 10.30am 21 Oct 2015 Monthly meeting 2pm at Trowbridge Cricket Club: Bean to Bar (Chocolate): John Gingell 04 Nov 2015 Coffee morning at the The Wiltshire Yeoman at 10.30am 18 Nov 2015 Monthly meeting 2pm at Trowbridge Cricket Club: One Foot in Paradise: Bob Rogers

Westbury (Wiltshire)

Ken Holloway Chairman T: 01373 864049 E: kenmoholloway@metronet.co.uk Paragon Hall Haynes Road Westbury Wiltshire BA13 3HA Third Monday of each month at 1.45pm for 2pm 16 Sep 2015 Cotswold Falconry Centre Batcombe Moreton-inMarsh OR Garden Centre & Arboretum, Batcombe 21 Sep 2015 Blue China: talk by Mr A Truscott (bring any willow pattern china) 19 Oct 2015 Cuba: talk by Sarah Buttonshaw 21 Oct 2015 Autumn lunch at Portland Heights Hotel and Weymouth

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AUTUMN 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

16 Nov 2015 Dickens at Christmas: talk by Mrs D Peet 18 Nov 2015 Outing to Oxford

Westbury-on-Trym

Beryl Webb Secretary T: 01454 614451 Studland Court Henleaze Road Henleaze BS9 4JY First Thursday of each month at 2pm 03 Sep 2015 Stourhead lake and garden: talk by Peter Gosson 01 Oct 2015 World War II at Summerdale Chocolate Factory: talk by Eric Miles 08 Oct 2015 Day out to Tintern and Abergavenny 05 Nov 2015 Wedding belles and clangers: talk by Geoff Malham

Weston-Super-Mare

Margaret Cole Chairperson T: 01934 514309 E: margaretcole@btinternet.com Friends Meeting House High Street WestonSuper-Mare BS23 1JF First and third Thursday of the month at 10am 08 Sep 2015 Coach outing to Minehead with West Somerset Railway Tea 01 Oct 2015 Senior safety: talk by SCLT 13 Oct 2015 Coach outing to Salisbury 10 Nov 2015 Coach outing to Swansea 19 Nov 2015 Demonstration by Essentially Lavender

Weymouth

Geoff Greenstreet Secretary T: 01305 832432 St Nicholas Church Buxton Road Weymouth DT4 9PJ Second Thursday of each month at 2.30pm and fourth Wednesday for coffee mornings at the Coffee Shop in the Weymouth Bay Methodist Church Melcombe Avenue near Green Hill (unless otherwise stated) 10 Sep 2015 Lawrence of Arabia: talk by Rod Harris 23 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 05-19 Oct 2015 Group Holiday 28 Oct 2015 Coffee morning 12 Nov 2015 Pam Ayres: talk by Joe Evans

Yate & District

Donald Kirkham Chairman T: 01454 317242 E: donald@kirkham3.orangehome.co.uk Yate Parish Hall Station Road Yate BS37 4PQ Fourth Tuesday of the month at 2pm 22 Sep 2015 Holidays afloat: talk by Susan Marshfield 27 Oct 2015 The diary of Sarah Champion, a Quaker and Life in the 18th Century: talk by Roger Anderson 24 Nov 2015 Every picture tells a story: talk by Cyril Routley

LONDON & SOUTH EAST ENGLAND Bexleyheath

Brian O’Brien-Wheeler Chairman T: 020 8311 1608 St Andrews Church Hall Brampton Road Bexleyheath Kent DA7 5SF

First three Wednesdays in every month at 1.45-3.45pm 02 Sep 2015 Theatrical Reminiscences: Eleanor McEnery 09 Sep 2015 Stunt Lady: Lucy Allen 16 Sep 2015 Quiz: Allen and Elaine Syred 07 Oct 2015 Erith Veteran Club Singers 14 Oct 2015 Exploration of childhood: Brenda Willis 21 Oct 2015 Social afternoon 04 Nov 2015 Father Christmas vs. Santa Claus: Ray Jones 11 Nov 2015 The good work of the RDA: Dot Johnson 18 Nov 2015 Social afternoon

Enfield

Mrs Susan Bentley Secretary T: 020 8360 4361 St Andrew’s Church Hall Silver Street Enfield EN1 3EG First Monday of the month at 10.30am (unless a Bank Holiday when it will be the second Monday). Refreshments available at all meetings from 10am 07 Sep 2015 An English violin maker: talk

by Ron Atkinson 05 Oct 2015 Africa, top to bottom: illustrated talk by Dennis Dyke 02 Nov 2015 Bygones (No.3): presentation by Ian Torrance Bookings and £5 deposits are now being taken for our Christmas lunch on Thursday, 26 November 2015

Harrow

Mr John Pickard Chairman T: 020 8866 5708 E: ja.pickard@btinternet.com St Albans Church Hall Norwood Drive North Harrow HA2 7PF Last Tuesday of the month at 2pm 27 Oct 2015 Celebrating CSRF’s 50th Anniversary

Hounslow

Roy Woods Chairman T: 020 8230 5533 United Reformed Church Hall 114 Hanworth Road Hounslow TW3 1UF Second Tuesday of the each month 1.30 for 2pm 15 Sep 2015 Another surprise package: talk by Tom Edbrooke

Kingston & District

Helen Stanley Secretary T: 020 8946 2768 Kingston Methodist Church Hall Avenue Road Kingston KT1 2UJ Third Tuesday of each month at 2pm 15 Sep 2015 Life of Lord Nelson: talk by J Mankerty

Leatherhead

Anne Thomson Secretary T: 01372 373258 E: anner.thomson@talktalk.net John Rumble Hall Fetcham Village Hall The Street Fetcham KT22 9QS First Friday of each month at 10am 04 Sep 2015 Bed and Breakfast revealed: talk by Mo Chisman 02 Oct 2015 Summoned by bells: talk by Peter Ford 06 Nov 2015 Life in a lighthouse: talk by Peter Smith

Celebrating

Years

London Catford & Lewisham

Doreen Hughes Secretary T: 020 8461 4800 St Laurence Church Hall 37 Bromley Road Catford London SE6 2TS Second Tuesday of every month at 10am.

We have a table top sale at each coffee morning - all donations will be gratefully received

London - Clapham SW4 & SW11

Miss M Farley Secretary T: 020 8870 7361 Staff Restaurant 4th Floor PCS 160 Falcon Road London SW11 2LN First Thursday of each month at 10.15am

London – Croydon, Dulwich & Norwood

Miss M Bacon Secretary T: 020 8761 2158 Railway Club Selhurst Station Approach Selhurst SE25 5PL Fourth Tuesday of each month at 10.30am 22 Sep 2015 Coffee morning 27 Oct 2015 British Legion Welfare 24 Nov 2015 Pre-Christmas Event

London - Edmonton

Mrs Sheila Lamonte Chairperson T: 020 8886 7873 Ambassador Room Millfield House Silver Street London N18 1PJ Third Monday of each month from 10am 12 noon 21 Sep 2015 Rome: illustrated talk by Jerry Hurst 19 Oct 2015 Rajastan Safari: illustrated talk by Ian Torrance 16 Nov 2015 The work of the Enfield Food Bank: talk

London - Eltham

Phyllis Duignan Chair/Treasurer T: 020 8265 0810 E: phyllis.duignan@gmail.com United Reformed Church Sherard Hall Court Road Eltham SE9 5AD Fourth Thursday of each month at 10am 12 noon 17 Sep 2015 Coffee morning followed

by Henry VIII’s Wives Poor Henry: talk by Keith Lawley 21-25 Sep 2015 Airedales Holiday to Radcliffe Hotel, Paignton (cost £430) 08 Oct 2015 Coach outing to Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey including lunch (cost £25) 21 Oct 2015 Outing to the Savoy Theatre to see Gypsy (cost £39.50) 22 Oct 2015 Coffee morning followed

by Age UK: talk 12 Nov 2015 Coach outing to Rochester Cathedral (cost £15)

London - Hendon

Mr Fred Fusco Treasurer T: 020 8902 3119 Various venues for pub lunches: contact Fred Fusco for details First Thursday of every month at 12.30pm

London - Southbank

Joy Creamer Chairperson T: 020 7407 2332 Penrose Tenants Hall Penrose Estate Walworth London SE17 3DX Second Wednesday of each month at 10am

London - Stockwell SW8 & SW9

Mr D Stannard Secretary T: 020 7720 0982 Please contact the Secretary for venue details Fourth Thursday of each month at 2pm

London - Streatham & Norbury SW16

Mrs J E Winter Secretary T: 020 8764 6450 The Glebe Sheltered Housing Complex Prentis Road London SW16 1QR Second Tuesday of each month at 2pm 08 Sep 2015 Beetle Drive 13 Oct 2015 Peru (including Machu Picchu): illustrated talk by Sue Henning 10 Nov 2015 AGM followed by Annual Bring and Buy (no clothing please)

Maidstone

Keith Hunter Chairman T: 01622 746792 Methodist Church Centre Brewer Street Maidstone ME14 1RU Second Monday of the month at 2pm 14 Sep 2015 Games Afternoon 12 Oct 2015 Working in the Medway Towns 100 years ago: talk by Jim Preston 09 Nov 2015 Xmas Fayre, Quiz and Raffle

Orpington

Peter Standen Vice Chairman T: 01689 833358 The Memorial Hall Methodist Church Sevenoaks Road Orpington BR6 9JH First Friday in the month at 1.45pm 04 Sep 2015 Bring and Buy and Quiz 02 Oct 2015 Dogs Trust: talk 06 Nov 2015 Wiltshire Farm Foods: talk

Romney Marsh

Win Owen Chair T: 01797 362598 E: winefrideowen@aol.com The Assembly Rooms Church Approach New Romney Kent TN28 8AS Second Wednesday of the month at 10am - 12 noon 09 Sep 2015 How our communities have changed over the years: talk

by John Mills 14 Oct 2015 The wonderful world of water: South East Water 11 Nov 2015 The Victoria Palace, its shows and its stars: talk by Dean Caston

Sanderstead & Selsdon

Ralph Perryman Local Contact T: 020 8657 3487 E: ralph.perryman172@btinternet.com Various venues for Lunch. Please contact Ralph Perryman for confirmation of lunch details 17 Sep 2015 Lunch at Toby Carvery, Brighton Road (12 for 12.30pm) 29 Oct 2015 Lunch at Toby Carvery, Brighton Road (12 for 12.30pm)

South East Middlesex Mrs June Brown Secretary T: 020 8891 4680 E: junebrownuk@hotmail.com Various venues in and around Twickenham Various venues, dates and times. Please contact the Secretary for further details

Staines Dorothy Dib Secretary T: 01784 441990 Various restaurants for lunch in and around Staines Third Tuesday of each month

Sutton Pam Davis Social Secretary T: 020 8641 2114 Friends Meeting House 10 Cedar Road Sutton SM2 5DA Last Monday of the month at 1.45 - 3.30pm - please note new times. Also please note that our September 2015 meeting is on the penultimate Monday 21 Sep 2015 Mollie Vascoe and her bell ringers 12 Oct 2015 Informal lunch at The Nonsuch Inn, North Cheam 26 Oct 2015 Lambeth Palace: talk by Miss J Cottle 09 Nov 2015 Informal lunch at the Cock and Bull, Sutton High Street (tbc)

Worcester Park John Wright Secretary T: 020 8337 8965 E: johnandglenisw@gmail.com Old Malden Scout Hall 411 Malden Road Worcester Park KT4 7NY First Monday each month at 2 - 4pm (if the first Monday is a Bank Holiday then meeting will be held on the second Monday) 07 Sep 2015 ‘When I was just a lad or lass’ (or not much more!): personal memories of days gone by presented by group members 05 Oct 2015 Our annual visit from Sandra Winter who will present a new bellringing programme 02 Nov 2015 Fundraising Day: raffles, cake stall, bring & buy and not forgetting ‘True or False’

NO GROUP IN YOUR AREA? Then we’d like to help you establish one. If you’d be interested in working with us to open up a new group for your area then contact David or Belinda at Fellowship Office on 020 8691 7411.

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the last word : NERYS HUGHES

my favourite THINGS

Actress Nerys Hughes had already appeared in The Likely Lads when she became a household name in 1970s sitcom The Liver Birds followed by The District Nurse. Her career has also included guest starring in Doctor Who, acting with the Royal Shakespeare Company and roles in several films

NOVEL

I like sensitive, humorous women writers and one of my favourites is Carol Shields, who died recently. I have collected everything she wrote, and I’m picking her Collected Stories because her range is superb.

PIECE OF MUSIC

Again, it’s terribly hard to pick! I’m going to go for something that a lot of people love: Jacqueline du Pré (I love people who are enthusiastic and passionate) and her recording of Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E Minor, where you can hear the passion, verve and vivacity which were so cruelly cut down by her multiple sclerosis.

FILM

I loved all those 1970s black and white French and Swedish movies, and I loved Paul Newman, so I’ve chosen Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Animal

Destination

I’ve chosen Nice, because it’s near where we live in France.

The promenade is lovely and you can walk along it for miles by a sea which is literally turquoise. The actual town is full of broad streets and lovely parks, with the mountains behind.

Colour

Blue in all its forms, from navy on.

Dolphins. We have a flat in France and about 10 years ago we woke up at around 5am and went out to sea. We were followed by about 20 dolphins. It was miraculous, with them running ahead and popping up and laughing at us and playing with us.

I never wanted the morning to end and I’ll never forget it or them.

Flower

Lavender. I have a path on either side of our house planted with lavender, which I put in about 12 years ago when we first moved in. I love the smell and the way the bees buzz round it.

Historical Figure

Quotation ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’

I was brought up speaking Welsh, so it’s David Lloyd George, who was a heck of a naughty boy but did so much for poor people. He did politics in such a hugely charismatic way.

Nerys is a supporter of the National Osteoporosis Society.

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SUMMER 2015 www.csrf.org.uk

Celebrating

Years