Bristol 1904 Arts - Grouse 2021 by Bristol_1904_Arts

grouse-2021_cover_a4_aw_dec-21.indd All Pages

17/12/2021 15:55

The Bristol 1904 Arts Magazine

Issue Number 51 – Christmas 2021

Bristol 1904 Arts, The Red Lodge, Park Row, BS1 5SJ bristol1904arts.org Cover by Richard Pope This cover picture was kindly provided by Artist member Richard Pope and is entitled “Going Forwards” which is very appropriate given the change of name and circumstances of our Society. Dick says that the image was taken from his sketch book and then worked up into a small painting of original size 160mm x 100mm. It is a stylised view , during the late spring, looking upwards into a cherry tree laden with blossom.

CONTENTS OF GROUSE ISSUE 51 Page 3-4 Editorial Commentary Page 5 New President John Bedford Page 6 New Chairman Michael Newstead and Membership Changes Page 7-8 Michael Heming obituary by Graham Blower Page 9-11 Sketches from Michael Long Page 12 Avians report Page 13-14 In a time of Lockdowns - report on Cultural Expeditions 2020-1 by Paul Main Page 15 Snappers’ report by Jonathan Bolgar Page 16 Walkers’ report by Geoff Wright Page 17-19 Oily classic cars at St Donat’s Castle 24th August 2021 by Peter Bush Page 20 Prince Philip –sketch by Mark Blackmore Page 21-22 Reflections on the life and legacy of HRH The Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh by The Lord Lieutenant Mrs Peaches Golding Page 23-24 Prince Philip and me by Roger Francis Page 25 -26 Coming home by Bill Phillips Page 27 TWIST Evening Friday 20 Aug 2021 by James Short Page 28 Annual Artists’ outing to Christchurch Thursday 29th July 2021 by Robert Dawes Page 29 Artists Outing to Christchurch 29th July 2021, our guests’ perspective on the day. Page 30 Scenic Car Run, BBQ and Jazz 24 June 2021 by Bill Phillips Page 31-32 Open Doors Day September 2021 by Jonathan Bird Page 33-34 Social Distancing by Alan Shellard Page 35- 38 The Sieges of Bristol by Ian Faulkner Page 39-40 The Life & Music of Robert Schumann by Ray Anstice Page 41-47 The History of Ashton Court by Bill Thomas (supplied by Elizabeth Thomas) Page 48-49 Booby Prizes by Les Shutt Page 50-59 A Circle Around the Lake: Some Notes on Travels in Africa by James Ball Page 60-61 How the Spedding family climbed Mount Snowdon unintentionally by Alan Spedding Page 62- 68 THE MG and Me by Susan Blackmore Page 69 Sir Terence Rattigan by John Isaacs Page 70-72 Sketches from Richard Pope’s workbook Page 73-74 Why the Task Force? by Mark Blackmore and James Short Page 75-80 Our New constitution Page 81 Streaming up the learning curve by Geoff Wright Page 82-83 Development of Future of Entertainment by Brian Inglis Page 84 Dates for your diary and Officers

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 2

17/12/2021 16:17

EDITORIAL COMMENTARY

‘All changed, changed utterly’? (WB Yeats)

All changed, changed utterly? Well, yes, but not quite. There were thoughts that after the Covid -19 pandemic there would be a new normal. That many, much needed, changes would have happened faster than expected and that the pandemic would have acted as a kind of disruptive innovation. Some changes have certainly happened. We now know that with a large injection of finance and a real imperative, scientists can produce effective vaccines in at least a fifth of the time that it normally takes. Likewise, we have seen many useful innovations in medical treatment due to the devastating coronavirus. We have all made better use of technology and words like bubble, zoom, waiting room and mute have taken on a new meaning. We have learnt to use the internet more effectively to communicate with family and friends and to order goods on-line. Many folk have learnt the importance of exercise and there has been an increase in walking, running and cycling. We have learnt that we can work from home and parents have discovered that teaching children is a really demanding skill. Amidst the trauma of the pandemic we have learnt to value the restorative aspects of nature. Particularly In the first lockdown we really enjoyed the silence of no traffic or aircraft, when we could hear the birds sing and appreciate blue skies. We have seen and often experienced acts of great kindness. We have learnt the importance of our essential workers like nurses, care workers, lorry drivers and those involved in recycling and rubbish collection. In our organisation there have been changes caused by the external force of the pandemic, but others have been internally driven. Like SAGE our own TASK FORCE (TF) has had regular meetings, in fact weekly, on Zoom for at least 18 months. In 2019 we ceased to be a men only organisation, a change that was long overdue. After extensive consultation with our members, the TF was furnished with numerous ideas about the way forward. The TF has worked on a new name, new logo, new website, new constitution, new management committee and many other things. Other things including the new Heming bar in honour of our much loved President who sadly died during, but not of, the pandemic. Mark Blackmore and James Short have recorded this process of change elsewhere in this issue. Our last Wednesday meeting of the 2019-20 season was on Friday 13th March. No more greeting each other with an elbow bump or toe tap in our hallowed home, for more than twelve months. Geoff Wright has reported on our streaming events, which helped to keep us in touch, as have Arthur Noonan’s excellent Smoke Signals. Bill Phillips in Coming Home has captured the pleasure of our first night back together. As the summer drew on, we had regular Wednesday meetings and there was activity amongst the Walkers, the Avians, the Sappers, the Oilies and even some Cultural walks around Clifton, Betjeman’s 'handsomest suburb of Europe'. Some of these activities are recorded in this edition of Grouse.

During the height of the pandemic, in May 2021, our much loved and admired president, Michal Heming, died. The previous month our nation had lost the Duke of Edinburgh. Accounts of them are in this edition. Both the Duke and Michael were men of vision who could see the need for change, innovation and progress. It is vital that our society follows their example to embrace the challenges that our ever changing world throws at us. 3

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 3

17/12/2021 16:17

So we are now getting back to our new normal. We are not yet sure what it will be. It is an evolution not a revolution. But as we have come together again, it is clear that what we truly value about our society is the good fellowship: the sharing of stories, refreshments, projects and activities. The craic is how our joint secretary Arthur Noonan would describe it. This was finely exemplified at the end of the season with two very successful Open Doors days as reported on by Jonathan Bird, our other joint secretary. Successful because of much careful planning, goodwill, commitment and energy from our fellow members. For this edition we have an editorial team of Jeff Mason and myself. Jeff has been the sole editor of Grouse for the past eleven years and has done an excellent job. I can only hope that my involvement will not detract from the past brilliance. Part of the modernisation of our organisation is our user-friendly website, courtesy of our webmaster Arthur Noonan. Jeff has for some time wanted to have a digital Grouse, and it will be available this year on the website, as well as in hardcopy format. Our new normal will, we trust, mean a widening of the concept of the Arts. We hope to include more poetry, perhaps some drama and dance and certainly a greater variety of 21st century music and song. The challenge for our organisation is to attract younger members and provide the art and entertainment that these generations want and appreciate. So we need some grit in our oyster to produce the pearl that we are certainly capable of. As I write this, the Omicron variant has arrived from South Africa, with the possibility of more disruption. We must and can learn to be resilient and ride above the storms of this uncertainty. There is still, very understandably, much Covid cautiousness amongst our wise and thoughtful membership. We have changed and we are developing a new normal. But the good fellowship and companionship remains firmly intact, and we are ‘carrying on.’ Paul Main

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 4

17/12/2021 16:17

JOHN BEDFORD: THE FIRST GREEN FEATHER PRESIDENT

Our new President John Bedford is the first Green Feather to be elected to that position, it having always been held by a Red Feather in the past. When the Rules were changed to make that possible, he was the only nomination put forward and noted that ‘the members had no choice really!’ John joined the Society over forty years ago and has been a prominent Green Feather holding a regular position on the Committee as ‘Honorary Legal Adviser’ (a position that no longer exists) and becoming Chair of the Committee some years ago. Starting National Service straight from school at eighteen, he served as a young officer in Cyprus during the EOKA insurgency (where his close friend and colleague was the first officer to be killed in that conflict) and coming to Bristol to start a career in the law, he continued service for ten years in the Territorial Army. On qualifying as a Solicitor in 1961, he worked in London in the Temple for a year or two before returning to his training firm in Bristol to become a Partner and, many years later, Senior Partner before mergers resulted in the eminent firm now known as Veale Wasbrough Vizards. As an occasional boy actor, he developed an interest in Theatre, becoming Chair of the Arts Centre Theatre in King Square (now the Cube Cinema), which led to the creation of The Watershed on dockside of which he was the Chairman for its first ten years. Now, at eighty-five, he is surprised to find himself our President, but is enjoying the challenges it presents.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 5

17/12/2021 16:17

MICHAEL NEWSTEAD - our new Management Committee Chairman

Michael is originally from Leigh-on-Sea, Essex. He read Physics at Bristol University and then worked for a couple of years at Marconi Avionics in Basildon. Thereafter, he trained in London as a Patent Attorney, coming to Bristol with his firm in 1975. He joined Bristol Savages in 1977 (his father-in-law being a member at the time) and has been our Curator since 2009, about which time he co-founded the “Avians” bird watching interest group. Michael is married to Karen and they have two daughters, three granddaughters and two grandsons, all of whom live in London

MEMBERSHIP CHANGES 2020-21 We welcome as new members ; Gill Cleverdon (our first lady member), James Adams-Foord, Roger Harper MBE, Rory Hall, Nick Pope, Dr. Dorcas Bird, Sylvia Shore, Viv Young, Patricia Wyatt, Susan Blackmore, Dr Joy Main, Monica Watkins, Eithne Noonan, Marion Potter and Mark Pym.

We say goodbye to those members who have died and acknowledge their contributions to our Society: Bob Payne (62 years an entertainer), Peter Lingard, Michael Heming (51 years a member) and Peter Scott.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 6

17/12/2021 16:17

DAVID MICHAEL HEMING President of Bristol Savages 2019 – 2020 and of Bristol 1904 Arts October 2020 - 27th May 2021. Many of us will be unaware that our former President Michael ‘Mike’ Heming’s Christian name was in fact David, but he was forever known as Michael in honour of one of his cousins who died in WWII. Mike was one of our longest serving members, having joined us in 1969. Over the years he had been involved with many aspects of our Society’s life, in his time he had been our Green Feather Representative, Chairman of the GPC, an active member of the “Oilies” classic car group and, after becoming a Red Feather, our President in 2019. Because of the disruption caused by the Covid 19 pandemic, he remained in post for a second year as President of Bristol 1904 Arts, following the Society’s change of name at the 2020 AGM. The year 2020 was in many ways the most challenging in our Society’s history. Never before, even during the two World Wars, had the Society found it necessary to suspend its regular meetings for more than a few weeks. The Covid 19 pandemic closed the Wigwam meeting hall for the best part of 2020, however Mike continued to work enthusiastically throughout this period towards changing the Society’s direction and its rebranding. This resulted in the establishment of Bristol 1904 Arts as a leading organisation dedicated to the promotion of all forms of art, visual, verbal, and musical

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 7

17/12/2021 16:17

creativity, in an inclusive and entertaining way to provide enjoyment, and to foster friendship amongst its members, partners, guests and the wider community. Mike Heming was one of a long and distinguished line of Heming family members of our Society – Mike’s brother Chris, sadly also no longer with us, his nephews James, a Blue Feather member, and Tony, who was a member until recently. Also, his father John, a Blue Feather who joined in 1946, and John’s father George, yet another Blue Feather Member who joined in 1906, and George’s brother Percy, who was a well-known opera singer and also a Blue Feather. So, from 1906 to date there has been a Heming member in our Society (in other words for all but the earliest years of our existence). Mike was born in Bristol in 1943 and grew up in Westbury-on-Trym. He was a boarder at King’s School, Bruton, where he excelled in sports, art and music. He was a grade eight pianist, held the school record for fastest back stroke for several years, and was a very keen and accomplished rugby player. After leaving school Mike joined the family firm of Brokenbrow’s Wholesale Fish Merchants in St Nicholas Market Bristol, where his working day started at 4am. He remained there until the early nineties when he left to set up his own business, as a fishmonger in Carlton Court in Westbury Village. After a time, he was headhunted by Ross Fish and from there went to the Eastern Business Centre as CEO, where he remained until his retirement. Mike and his wife Daphne married in 1973 and they moved to the family home in The Crescent Henleaze in 1984. Mike and Daphne loved their classic cars, exploring the countryside, finding great pubs and having adventures together, as well as regular holidays; particular favourites being Malta, the Isles of Scilly and Dunster. Mike’s three daughters Vicky ,Kate and Michelle, like Daphne, were always supportive of Mike’s many interests and Tom Thorp, partner of Mike’s granddaughter Becky, recently performed as a guest in the Wigwam, playing his saxophone. Mike’s enduring passions were gardening, specifically his roses, classic cars - firstly his Austin Healey then an Alvis TA14 and finally his Alvis TD21. He enjoyed red wine, about which he taught himself to be very knowledgeable, the Bristol Light Opera Club, for which he was stage manager, lighting designer and of course painting. Mike will be forever remembered for his kindness, his thoughtfulness and fairness. He was a great listener and always took time with people, showing interest and being supportive. He invariably had a twinkle in his eye and enjoyed life immensely, particularly when it involved good food and fine wine! One of Mike’s lasting legacies from his time as President is the new bar that was installed in the Wigwam at the end of 2020. Having due regard to Mike’s overall commitment to the Society, his Presidency and the Heming family connection that has been such a part of our Society, the General Purposes Committee decided that the most appropriate name for our new bar was “The Heming Bar.” Life is never without its challenges, but on learning of his own terminal diagnosis Mike faced his final illness reluctantly but pragmatically and although shockingly swift, it will be a comfort to us all knowing that he did not have to endure months of debilitating disease and painful treatment. Without doubt Mike would appreciate us raising a glass of red wine (or two), in his honour and in thankfulness for all the ways in which he has enriched our lives. Graham Blower

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 8

17/12/2021 16:17

SKETCHES BY ARTIST MEMBER MICHAEL LONG “Working outside (en plein air) does frequently create difficulties in capturing the essence 1 14/12/2021 14:34 of a scene. It’s often best to work quickly in a medium best suited to the situation and the time you have available. I find working in pen and ink, or even a black Biro can draw out the contrast in the subject and emphasise its main features. If the subject seems to require it to capture the colour or atmosphere, then the addition of colour begins to help reflect this. So I might add washes of colour in watercolour or coloured pencils. This will help in recording particular distinctive features of the subject. These are all sketching techniques to help in capturing the subject well enough to provide the material for a more detailed picture which I might prepare back in my studio. Sketching enables me to become familiar enough with the subject to feel confident to work on a more in depth study.”

09-11 Sketches from Michael Long.pdf

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 9

17/12/2021 16:17

09-11 Sketches from Michael Long.pdf

14/12/2021

14:34

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 10

17/12/2021 16:17

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 11

17/12/2021 16:17

AVIANS REPORT 2020/2021 After February 2020, the Avians were not able to meet outside until Covid rules were relaxed. However, we have made three trips since then, the first in May 2021 having been to the RSPB Reserve Ham Wall in the Somerset Levels, notable for example for Bittern, Marsh Harrier, Great White Egret and the summer visitor Hobby (scientific name Falco subbuteo - many will recall the "hobby" of playing Subbuteo). Because of Covid rules, we took picnics for post-birding sustenance. June saw us visit Fyne Court in the Quantocks for a walk in woodland and meadows culminating (like the Ham Wall trip) in a picnic. Dudley Shellard organised this trip and had filled the empty bird feeders in the picnic area before we started so we were able to enjoy seeing Stock Dove, Siskin and Nuthatch feeding on them while we tucked into our picnics. In September, the venue was Chew Valley Lake, where we had some good sightings including a variety of wader species – Redshank, Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper and Black Tailed Godwit. This was the first occasion we could have a pub lunch – in the garden of the Ring O’ Bells in Compton Martin. Although, each of us enjoyed what we ate, most of us were extremely jealous of Paul Main’s enormous dish of Ham Hock which he valiantly consumed. We had 13 to 18 on each trip – which are comfortable numbers for enjoyable birding. At the time of writing, a visit to Clevedon Pill and the coast beyond is scheduled and future venues are expected to include Oldbury-on-Severn, Steart and the Wildfowl and the Wetlands Trust site at Slimbridge.

Michael Newstead

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 12

17/12/2021 16:17

IN A TIME OF LOCKDOWNS Report on Cultural Expeditions 2020-1 Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, at the time of writing, there have only been two events in the Bristol 1904 Arts season of 2020-21. They were both commemorative plaque walks around Clifton in September. Commemorative Plaques of Clifton and the Mansions of Pembroke Road: Ten 04ers and spouses did two hour walks around some of the commemorative plaques in Clifton. Our Guide was the knowledgeable and enthusiastic Gordon Young, who is a volunteer guide at the Clifton Suspension Bridge. He also chairs the Bristol Civic Society’s Blue Plaques Panel. The tours were limited to ten people. Intermittent showers were the order of the day! Our first plaque on Clifton Park was to Sir Archibald Russell who started his distinguished engineering career playing with Meccano. At the Bristol Aeroplane Company he was involved the design of WW2 bombers, the Blenheim and the Beaufort. He later designed the Brabazon and finally Concorde, for which he was knighted.

Clifton Park

Canynge Road

Buckingham Vale

In Canynge Square we saw plaques to Samuel Jackson, the ‘father of the Bristol Society of Artists’ and Jeremy Rees the founder of the Arnolfini. We admired the gas lit street lamps and the sink hole into the Georgian vaults. More plaques followed; about artists, scientists, poets and a sportsman. In Pembroke Road, amongst the seven mansions, we saw the two houses where James Fuller Eberle (‘Bongie’) lived. We also looked at copies of two paintings ‘Dinner at 110 Pembroke Road 1907’ (Stanley Lloyd) and ‘After Dinner at 110 Pembroke Road 1927’ (F G Swaish).

‘Dinner at 110 Pembroke Road 1907’

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 13

‘After Dinner at 110 Pembroke Road 1927’ 13

17/12/2021 16:17

Of the ten plaques we looked at all, apart from two, were green plaques put up by CHIS (Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society ), whose main aims are: to improve the amenities of the area, to preserve the best features, and to maintain the quality of life within the area. It is hoped that when the Covid pandemic has become truly endemic we will be able to have our Arts and Crafts day: visiting the wonderful Wilson Museum in Cheltenham and Rodmarton Manor which was planned for June 2020 and had of course to be cancelled. Paul Main

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 14

17/12/2021 16:18

SNAPPERS’ ANNUAL REPORT Like all the Bristol 1904 Arts interest groups, the Snappers’ year 2020 – 2021 was dominated by the need to comply with Covid requirements. However, we managed better than many, as photography is essentially a solo exercise unless carried out in a studio. Once we had taken the photographs, we shared them with fellow members for interest, comment and mutual experience. Learning how to take good photographs comes from looking at, analysing and discussing the work of others. In pre-Covid days we would meet in the Upper Studio and each member would project a selection of images. During lockdown, we were able to do this satisfactorily over Zoom, enabling us to hold meetings most months and thus remain active. Again, pre-Covid, some members would bring in historic cameras from their collections for others to examine. There was some impressive delicate engineering achieved by our forefathers. John Stone impressed and amused the assembled members by demonstrating an adjustable telephoto lens he made, when a boy, from two co-axial black painted cardboard tubes and a normal 35mm lens borrowed from his mother’s camera. Viewing historic equipment was not possible during lockdowns, so that was one activity that was curtailed. During the partial break in the lockdown rules in the summer of 2020, Snappers organised a photoshoot and lunch at Portishead Marina. We had lunch in the Aqua outside seating area and thus complied with fresh air and distancing rules. This meeting was enjoyed on a beautiful sunny day and resulted in some memorable photographs. More recently we have visited Bristol Museum to inspect photographs on display as part of the Bristol Festival of Photography, and arranged a photoshoot at Severn Beach which gave us opportunities to take muscular photographs of sea defence works and the Second Severn Crossing. During lockdown Snappers were appreciative of and contributed to the monthly Smoke Signals. Each month the appeal went out, ‘more images needed for “Smoke Signals” and members came up trumps. Snappers hope that other members of the Society enjoyed and appreciated the images shown. As a result of the change of name and identity from Savages to Bristol 1904 Arts, there has been a demand for photographs of the various activities of the Society and the various interest groups. Snappers have been rather caught out. We do not, by and large, take record photographs. We try to take photographs which are a pleasure to look at, e.g., portraits, landscapes and fine architecture, or raise questions and concerns in the mind of the viewer, e.g., graffiti, rough sleepers and derelict housing. Photography can, at different times, be artistic and/or provide brutal social comment. In the New Year Snappers will consider whether a suitable project to tackle would be a series of documentary images on the various activities of the Society. Snapper members are also members of other interest groups and, of course, the main body of the Society, and take part in their activities. Maybe, next year we will have more to report. Jonathan Bolgar 15

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 15

17/12/2021 16:18

WALKERS REPORT A short season, but memorable. Two walks of contrasting scenery and weather. The May Meander was based around Corsham. We met at the Methuen Arms for coffee, left our cars there, walked through and round the Park of Corsham Court, finishing down the wonderful main street for lunch back at the Methuen Arms. The weather was more April than June, but the numbers were good and the pleasure of being able to meet up again and the beautiful surroundings made up for every drop of rain. The June Jaunt was a longitudinal walk taking in a few miles of the Wye Valley and ending in Chepstow for lunch at the Beaufort Arms Hotel. It was one of the hottest days of the year and we were glad that much of it was in the shade of the woods. Despite being by the Wye there were only glimpses of the river through the trees. Downhill it was, but there were many ups and downs on the way, the going was tough underfoot and recent rains showed how difficult a walk it would be in winter. July and August are always fallow months. The new season will have begun again with the September Stroll. Geoff Wright

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 16

17/12/2021 16:18

OILY FEATHERS CLASSIC CARS AT ST.DONAT’S CASTLE 24th August 2021 On an idyllic summer morning, eleven mostly topless cars, and twenty two drivers and their navigators, congregated to collect their route notes and map, for a two and a half hour drive from Chepstow Garden Centre. A skilful route had been devised by Bill Phillips assisted by his wife Jenny. Without touching the M4, we started by keeping close to the Bristol Channel. We drove along sparsely inhabited flatlands, with closed pubs of yesteryear and horses tethered on roadside common land. Negotiating the Newport ring road, we were delighted to pass under the historic Transporter Bridge, recently closed for major refurbishment, otherwise we would have been on it! Nearing Cardiff outskirts, we were treated to signs warning of Slag Overhead, but not to worry, as the entire works are in demolition mode. This is reminiscent of the Rust Bucket part of the USA, vast corrugated iron buildings being prised apart for scrap, alongside working railway sidings. Onwards past the airport and into lovely countryside again, and after two and a quarter hours the entrance to St. Donat’s Castle quietly emerged on a corner of a leafy lane. We were welcomed and directed down the long multi-humped, tree-lined drive to our parking area. By now the sun was strong, and shade was scarce for those of us nursing hot running cars with bonnets thrown open. Although Bill’s briefing about the photo shoot was unusually brief, it turned out to be anything but. Instead of all cars lined up with a Castle background, we individually went through the outer Castle Gate, which we learnt had been demolished by a bin lorry, and rebuilt. Then we turned around to have the Portcullis Tower behind us so that Mike Burmester could photograph car, driver and navigator. My offer of a garden kneeler was given short shrift in order to include the top of the Tower by our worthy tall photographer.

Having parked our cars, we entered the impressive castellated outer walls through the substantial Portcullis Tower with a timber portcullis looking ready for action. Our walk went under another tower and then into a small lawned quadrangle bordered with flowers and quaint houses. On entry to the reception hall we were amazed by the height of the ornate ceiling, walk-in fireplace and arches along one side with glass in-filling. We flopped onto the comfortable furniture before following the guide to an immense hall, like a monastic refectory, with a vast inverted birthday cake ceiling high above.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 17

17/12/2021 16:18

Leaded windows opened onto the wooded area below. Our £13 lunch with its generous portions of homemade lasagne and salads, followed by pear crumble and custard served in ‘draught’ form was fantastic, and everyone spoke highly of such catering. Certainly, it was unbeatable value and quality. Martin, our castle guide then showed us around. He was delightfully informal and engaged with us well.

This is a lived-in Castle as it is occupied by the Atlantic College school. It dates from about 1100 AD and is thought to be Norman in origin. Some ceilings have been transferred from churches; it is in excellent condition. We moved into the Great Hall, the length of a football pitch, with a multi-beamed ceiling the height of a cathedral. It has two walk-in fireplaces and a beautiful light timbered floor. A dais exists at one end. Prize giving in the hall, with teaching staff in academic robes and hordes of parents and friends, would be spectacular. We learnt about the famous US Newspaper Tycoon William Randolph Hearst buying it in the 1930s. He loved lavishing money on the castle, much to its benefit. He brought a considerable show of opulence to the locality as he was chauffeur driven to the local pub in a polished Studebaker. The castle provided lots of local employment at that time of depression. Martin explained that in earlier times, much of the land in the Watchet area of Somerset had been in the ownership of the Castle family, and that is why the Castle faces the distant Somerset coastline. Upstairs we were impressed by a sprawling library in a vast L-shaped room with ornate ceilings and yet more walk-in fireplaces. Leaded windows look down over the Top Lawn and across the Bristol Channel. Sloping lawns and garden lead down to the sea. We enjoyed the spaciousness of the wonderful Top Lawn and the views across the Channel on this glorious, balmy August afternoon. Some of us went far down the sloping gardens and pool to the sea, enjoying the panorama of that distant coast to which we had soon to return.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 18

17/12/2021 16:18

We had all enjoyed St. Donat’s Castle immensely and clambered on board our topless jalopies to enjoy our good fortune of the weather, the venue and even having the sun behind us to drive back. The Castle had been a most unusual outing for us with its 800 year old history and we appreciated Bill Phillip’s excellent selection. Peter Bush

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 19

17/12/2021 16:18

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 20

17/12/2021 16:18

Reflections on the life and legacy of HRH The Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh My heart skipped a beat or two when the notification that His Royal Highness The Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh has died reached me. It was less than 15 minutes of the notice being placed on the rails at Buckingham Palace. Could this be true? Was this a ghastly hoax? Alas, the sorrow-filled moment that we knew must come had arrived. My first thoughts went to Her Majesty who publicly stated on several occasions how his support, advice and counsel provided her such strength. During his long and relatively healthy life, The Duke of Edinburgh took on over 780 patronages, had a clear affection for the Royal Navy and a drive to help young people to find the best in themselves through skills, expeditions and voluntary service. Since 1996 HRH came to Bristol on 11 occasions, visiting nearly 25 organisations, community groups and businesses. On three of those occasions, I was in his presence. I was also privileged to meet him at Buckingham Palace on a further two occasions. Few people realise that a third of the patronages of The Duke of Edinburgh involved organisations in Commonwealth countries. Over his lifetime and through numerous visits to observe grassroots environmental or community projects, understand how the UK responded to requests to help build the institutions of government and national infrastructure, pose solutions to pressing issues of health, education and jobs, HRH embraced the diversity within the Commonwealth and breathed life into the free and equal status of countries therein. The transition from colony to independence to Commonwealth was as much crafted by The Duke of Edinburgh as Her Majesty and the Heads of State of the Commonwealth. The focus on climate change and the marine environment are but two of the strands of work pursued throughout the Commonwealth, both close to the heart of The Duke. Looking to the future, these are the ties that will continue to bind together 54 Commonwealth countries, spanning the Caribbean and North America to Australasia, and of which we all can be immensely proud. Less than a year ago, The Queen elevated me to Honorary Captain of the Royal Naval Reserves. My first thought was of my parents, my youth on their powerboat and the camping trips our family found so very enjoyable. Then I recalled the stellar naval career of The Duke of Edinburgh and his love of the sea. In 1970, when the SS Great Britain was returned from the Falkland Islands where she had been scuttled in 1937 to the dock where it was originally built in Bristol, The Duke of Edinburgh was onboard. As the first Patron of the SS Great Britain, his interest in engineering and the sea were united. He followed closely her preservation and the accumulation of archive materials. For nearly a decade the SS Great Britain has run a successful, five-year long education programme for pupils in Years

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 21

17/12/2021 16:18

7 to 11, encouraging young people to consider careers in science, engineering and technology. Successive Royal patrons have met these 'Future Brunels' and heard how the programme changed their career aspirations, building the skills and innovation needed in our country for years to come. Lastly, The Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme has global recognition and is operational in 130 countries worldwide. I have met many young people involved at all three levels in the Scheme. I have listened to their experiences of learning new skills, partaking in expeditions, conquering their fears and becoming more aware of the needs of others through volunteering. Most of my Lord-Lieutenant's Cadets have taken part in the Scheme, as have young people from schools located in communities of disadvantage or elsewhere in the County. I have also met parents who spoke with tremendous pride of meeting the Duke of Edinburgh on achieving the Gold award. 100 percent of those involved in the Awards Scheme and its delivery speak of the increased self-esteem, confidence and resilience gained by participants. People will read what they wish into accounts of what The Duke of Edinburgh may have said or done during the 22,200 plus public engagements he made during his time as the longest ever Consort to a reigning British monarch. What is abundantly clear is the phenomenal way that the energy, drive and influence of The Duke of Edinburgh has permeated our lives for the good of the environment, the encouragement of our young people and the cohesiveness of society here in the UK, the Commonwealth and further afield

Mrs Peaches Golding OBE CStl RNR Her Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant for Bristol 10 April 2021

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 22

17/12/2021 16:18

PRINCE PHILLIP AND ME “Good Morning Sir, I am the test pilot”. These were the first words I uttered to H.R.H. Prince Philip, and unbeknown to me, it was the beginning of a long acquaintance with the Prince. The occasion was a tour of the Walker Wingsail factory when it was based in Hamble, which had been organised for the Prince many months before. The wingsail had been fitted to the “Ashington”, my command in June 1986. To mark the occasion, Walkers wanted to present a model of the ship fitted with the wingsail, and when they found the professionally built models to be extortionate, they asked me if I could oblige. At the time I had built numerous models, including models of two of the ships I had sailed on. So the model was duly presented to Prince Philip during the visit, and he said that he had been at a meeting of the National Maritime Museum and they were keen to receive it. The presentation was not without its humour, as I described how I had written on the deck of the Mate’s cabin (hidden from view), that my elder daughter Britta spent her first Christmas there at the age of five months. On seeing that I had fitted out the wheelhouse Prince Philip asked me “if there was a model of me in the wheelhouse too!”. As he was leaving, he took me away from the model, put his arm around my shoulder and asked me if I could read the plaque on the model. When I said I couldn’t, he told me that I should bear in mind doddering old fools like him, needed to be able to read the plaques, and to make them as big as possible! During my involvement with Prince Philip, I struck up a friendship with his late Private Secretary, Brigadier Sir Miles Hunt-Davis, K.C.V.O., C.B.E. This was through the negotiations to move the model from Buckingham Palace to the Discovery Museum in Newcastle on Tyne. The model had gone from the presentation to the Walker Wingsail factory in Plymouth for twelve years on loan, then when they went into liquidation, it was sent back to me to repair a small bit of damage, before the Palace asked for it back. I was away piloting on the day that Miles came to collect it and Kathy was feeling ill, so Miles merely came in, picked up the model and beat a hasty retreat. In 2006, I was elected a Younger Brother of Trinity House, where the Master was H.R.H. Prince Philip, and so I found myself meeting and talking with the Prince on numerous occasions. When not able to update the Prince on the progress of the wingsail, Miles suggested I drop into Buckingham Palace, when I could and have a cup of coffee with him. He could then pass on elements of our conversation to the Prince. One of the memories which I will cherish is one such visit to Miles at 09.00 hrs one morning. As I was walking along the corridor to his office, which must have been below the Royal Apartments, as I could clearly hear the piper playing the Queen’s breakfast recital. In 2011 Prince Philip retired as Master of Trinity House, ending the longest service of any Master in its 417 year history, having served for 42 years. Since that time, I remained in contact with Miles, and continued to keep in touch with the Prince through Buckingham Palace, and also when he was 23

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 23

17/12/2021 16:18

guesting at Trinity House functions, which he often did, accompanying Princess Anne, who became Master in his place. In February 2013, I was able to write to Buckingham Palace and update the Prince on the progress of the wingsail, and that we were now planning to test the wingsails on the manned model at the Ship Handling Centre bear Romsey in Hampshire. The Prince’s new Private Secretary wrote back to me to say that H.R.H. would like to know the dates of the trials and sent me his best wishes for this new venture. I wrote back giving the dates we planned to carry out the trials, and almost by return of post, I received a letter from the Prince’s Equerry in Waiting, telling me that the Prince had “placed 10.15 hrs on the 21st of May 2013 in his schedule to view the wingfoil (sic) trials at Timsbury Lake”. He also sent some guidance notes. Suddenly I found myself arranging a Royal Visit! Naturally I wrote to Miles to say “help”, and Miles gave me sage advice, in that he said the real expert will be the Security Officer, one of H.R.H.’s Personnel Protection Officers (PPO), who will be doing the recces anyway. All it needed was for me to plan what happened! The visit went off well. The Prince had flown by helicopter to a house nearby, and came over to us by car. He had asked to come on the model with me, but due to a health problem he was unable to. Nevertheless, he spent most of the visit holding a life jacket – just in case. I had invited Miles to the event and when the Prince saw him he said “what the B……...H… are you doing here?” and when Miles said “Roger had invited me”, the Prince said “Oh that’s OK then!” A month later, I sent a report of the trials to Buckingham Palace and received a warm reply through his Private Secretary. Following that I had occasional meetings with the Prince, and last year I wrote to the Palace to advise that we were carrying out further trials and once again, inviting him to those. Unusually I did not receive a reply, so I telephoned his Private Secretary at the Palace, and he advised me that the Prince was not well, and at Windsor Castle. The assumption was that, whilst he had read the letter, he would not reply until he could give me a firm answer. Naturally, the reply never came. I found the Prince highly approachable, and extremely knowledgable with an amazing memory for names. He once asked me whom we had met, when he visited the factory in 1987, and when I looked blank, he said “Oh I remember, it was so and so”. He once called me a fool, but he was right to do so, as I tried to make a point about the proliferation of wind turbines in the Netherlands, when talking about the UK insisting on hills being best, and he pointed out that the Netherlands were flat. I shall miss him. Captain Roger Francis

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 24

17/12/2021 16:18

COMING HOME After so, so, long, now more than a year, it was such a joy to enter by the red door, go down those familiar stairs like it was just a month or so ago, and to enter our Wigwam, already filled with happy voices of friends not seen for so long. What a wonderful feeling it was. We had arrived, dressed very casually, and wearing masks, but there was no disguising all those faces we knew so well and the collective comfort they have given us for quite a good chunk of our lives; this is where we belong. We knew there were to be changes to our cherished Wigwam and we were rather apprehensive, but what we found really pleased us. There was the new bar, looking as though it belonged there. Gone were all those pieces of taxidermists’ art or spoils of game hunting, forays of our forebears and other gloomy pieces of paraphernalia, all of which many of us, myself included, would have resisted their removal but, from my own reaction realise they will hardly be missed at all! In their place, some welcome open wall space, making the whole hall lighter, and a very tasteful display of musical instruments hinting at one of our club’s principal reasons for being - and giving relevance. We came to enjoy actually being at the first live entertainment session of our newly branded club, rather than watching from home on Crowdcast. We also came to witness the naming of the handsome new Heming Bar, in President Michael’s absence, his being cared for at St Peter’s Hospice, sadly not realising that this was to be his very last complete day still with us. John Bedford then gathered us together and introduced our first entertainer Stuart Potter, who showed us why he is known as ‘Fingers’, with three very lively Jazz numbers. Then it was John Davenport, who chose to delight us with three light but nimble classic performances on the grand piano. Next, ‘Fingers’ again, firstly on his own, then joined by Graham Smith with his fabulous violin keeping up with Fingers, or was it the other way round? But we all loved it. Finally, it was Graham with his frisky bow reminding us how much we love what we have in our privileged membership of this fantastic club. Thank you, J, S, P and G. Sadly, we were oblivious to the fact that the airing of this concert was not leaving the premises, so all those ‘tuning-in’ to their screens at home missed it. Thankfully the whole performance was recorded and they will be able to enjoy what was an absolute treat very soon. I should add that some of us brought our own supply of drinks for the evening. There were forty plus of us a party spirit prevailed. Congratulations and thanks to all those who worked hard to put things together. Bongie, we SHALL carry on. Bill Phillips.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 25

17/12/2021 16:18

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 26

17/12/2021 16:18

TWIST EVENING 20th AUGUST 2021 What a huge pleasure it was to hear the rafters of the Wigwam ring out to the jazz virtuosity of the 04 Strollers, then to hear Alan Shellard waxing lyrical about Silver Linings, not to mention a guitar extravaganza from our guest for the evening James Shipsides. So, what was this all about? Yes, another hugely enjoyable TWIST evening put on brilliantly by Andy Mclaren and compered by one of the Greatest Showmen: Mike Burmester. There were a wide variety of guests present, who were able to enjoy the unique atmosphere of the “Tithe Barn” right in the heart of Bristol; and with Michael Newstead on hand to ensure the correctness of our memories when escorting the guests around, they could truly wonder at the exclusiveness of our collection of memorabilia. So, all in all it was a busy and fun evening with the Bar staff serving so swiftly, one could almost imagine being in a Wetherspoons – well possibly not, but you get the gist! In fact, with our very own stylish barrista, all tastes were catered for, and refreshments were certainly needed after the toe tapping first set from Cas Caswell, Andy Leggat and Roger Wells, of course not forgetting the dazzling playing from “Fingers” Potter. What a treat and we learnt that not only was Cas undoubtedly the best jazz bass player in Bristol, but actually in the country, where he often played apparently …. get the double-entendre? As for Andy Leggatt, clearly his time touring Europe with the famous Roy Mason Jazz Band for almost 20 years has left his talent undiminished. So, from Yes Sir, that’s my Baby to Up the Lazy River it was altogether brilliant. After a well needed break to refresh our glasses, the inimitable Allan Shellard entertained us with his wicked sense of humour, droll observations of life, and a delightful medley of show tunes ending with As Time goes By from the film Casablanca – such talent. Then the style changed as James Shipsides showed us what a wide variety of styles could come from a guitar, we had Flamenco and Tambour, and a couple of numbers he had composed himself; this would surely have wooed even Jonathan Price. And all under the watchful eye of his father, James showed that he really had been rehearsing hard, so that on the day he had it all “off Pat”. That then took us to the last set from the Strollers and another very varied choice of melodious, musical, mellow, magnificent jazz. Each of the band showed off their solo skills, starting with 5 foot 2 and Eyes of Blue’ (apparently not a reference to “Fingers”), we then could imagine we were on the glorious Isle of Capri, before being whisked off to the States for Sweet Georgia Brown before thrilling us all in the finale with Mac the Knife. What a wonderful evening, enjoyed by all and definitely showing that an early booking for the next TWIST evening will be essential, as we are not only back in full swing, but we are carrying on. James Short

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 27

17/12/2021 16:18

ANNUAL ARTISTS OUTING TO CHRISTCHURCH – THURSDAY 29TH JULY 2021 Bill Phillips was determined that yet another traditional event, the Artists Outing, would not fall foul of the pandemic, and bravely hired a Turners coach and set about filling it. When the day came, there were 28 of us on board, 15 men and 13 ladies, and at 9am off we went to Christchurch in Dorset. The customary meeting point is Park Row, but only Paul Main got on there; everyone else was on Saville Road on The Downs (the preponderance of membership who are clustered in and around BS9 had struck again, supported by most others!). Steve, our driver, offered the choice of the express route (the infinitely tedious M4, A34, M3, etc) or the scenic route via Bath, Limpley Stoke, Warminster and Salisbury; the wise choice was selected, both there and back, although it did rather reduce our total time at our charming destination. Sadly, there were only two Red Feathers on board (what “Artists Outing?” I hear you say), but fear not, there were at least six of us sketching, including two ladies, and some very good paintings emerged, including as usual some multiple efforts by Bill; and there was scarcely even the usual two hours available on a Wednesday evening! We had been warned by Bill that we would not be stopping on the way home for the customary meat and/or fish pie served in the skittle alley of some unwelcoming roadside pub. This was because there was no need for the usual ceremony of the unveiling of the new President, as the selection process has changed now we are Bristol 1904 Arts. Therefore, as we would have only one meal in a long twelve-hour day, the first mission on arrival in Christchurch had to be to locate some good restaurants, and the charming little town did not disappoint. There were some celebrity chefs, and generally several good eateries which were enough to spread our large number comfortably around the town. Then some sketching really did have to happen in the beautiful sunshine, and benches along the riverside walks provided the perfect locations (although some sat on the grass). For the rest of us, there were numerous photo opportunities along those delightful leafy riverside walks and in many nooks and crannies of the town. First, right in the centre of town, there was the magnificent Priory, which is the longest Parish Church in England, with a 4,500-pipe organ and a wealth of history portrayed on its wall plaques. For over 900 years, with various additions over the centuries, it has stood like a beacon by the sea. There was also once a fine castle dominating the town, although it originated in 924AD as just a wooden fort. It was destroyed by the Parliamentarian Army in the Civil War, but there are some fascinating Norman remains. A plaque proclaims that back in long-past days King John visited the thenvillage ten times, although it did not make clear what was the particular attraction for him. The present day tranquil charm of this quaint Dorset town, combined with all the boats, did at least show why we were there on this late July day in 2021. Further exploration revealed the Anglo-Saxon Place Mill, a watermill mentioned in the Doomsday Book, curiously taking water from the River Avon and spilling it later along its millstream into another river, the Stour. Then there was the fascinating replica of the Ducking Stool sited by the river behind The Kings Arms, and various references in place and pub names to the prime source of the town’s wealth in the 18th-19th Centuries – smuggling! On the nearby cliffs, there is Highcliffe Castle, a Grade 1 listed mansion which would have well merited a visit if there had been more time, and so was marked down by many for their return visit. Meanwhile another traditional event had been successfully retrieved and revived from the ravages of the pandemic. Robert Dawes 28

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 28

17/12/2021 16:18

ARTISTS OUTING TO CHRISTCHURCH 29th JULY 2021 - Our Lady Guests perspective on the day. Organised by Red Feather Bill Phillips the outing to Christchurch included, for the first time, ladies amongst the usual Red Feather Artists, Blue and Green Feather Members. On the return leg of our coach trip the thirteen Ladies were asked if they would provide comment on the day. Tegwen Evans and Jocelyne Blower, canvassed comments from our lady guests which are summarised below: This was a most enjoyable and relaxing day on many levels. We were delighted to be included in this artists’ outing, which has only been reserved for men artists and their male member guests until now! We loved the journey in a comfortable coach in good company. It was a treat to be driven on a scenic cross country route to Christchurch, through beautiful English countryside with perfect weather of warm sunshine. Some of us enjoyed an excellent organ recital in the Priory Church before exploring the waterfront which we thought was delightful. Some were unfortunately unable to see the pretty town, as they had such a long lunch and then proceeded to find a suitable place to paint peacefully on the riverbank behind the church. Bliss! It was an idyllic place with water, a bridge, fishermen and trees. For ladies who like painting it was a haven. Others managed delightful walks along the riverside and others a stroll along the quayside. Final comments were: ‘Thoroughly enjoyable, music, fine dining and scenery galore. What more could a girl want? Wonderful to be included!’ ‘Thank you, Bill, for organising and we look forward to the next trip’. ‘The next step is for the new aspiring & timid painters to gain confidence so 'we' can share our work with the more practiced Red Feather Artists. More Arts based trips needed!’

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 29

17/12/2021 16:18

SCENIC CAR RUN BBQ AND JAZZ 24th JUNE 2021 As a fund raising event for our newly re-branded Club, the idea was to bring members away from their self-imprisonment into the country, be fed country style, have some quality entertainment and enjoy a get-together with friends. The start of the routed drive, not an Oily Feather event but open to all, was at Woodford Lodge, on the west side of Chew Valley Lake, where some of us enjoyed a very pleasant (light) lunch - overlooking the lake and fishing boats coming and going. The drive itself was thirty miles of little used lanes, many with grass growing up the middle, but with glorious views. We passed by a ford at Chew Stoke, the Church at Nempnet Thrubwell (of Alan Shellard fame), Stowey Court, through Chew Magna, passing farms and through small hamlets, with expansive and more intimate English country views. We did not expect anyone to average better that ten mph; no-one did worse than that! The final destination was a gently undulating good sized grass field well off the main road. Apart from the discreetly sited facilities, there was not another building in sight – or sound! We saw a buzzard being seen off by a couple of crows. It was country indeed, Including the band and catering team there were forty souls pleased to be there, being entertained, fed and social distancing, socially! The Band was Stuart Potter’s 1904 Strollers, comprising Stuart Potter, Andy Leggett, Cass Caswell, James Heming and Robert Bartlett. The jazz they provided was great, and their programme included Stranger on the Shore by Acker Bilk, whose memorial bench in Pensford was passed by those on the planned car run. During the interval Steve Price entertained us with his guitar and deep voice. The sun came out to brighten us as we enjoyed our BBQs prepared by Bob and Sherry Gray, helped by Maurice and Bridget Hewlett. And yes of course we brought our own wine (some of us forgot) and departed the field at about 8.00pm, happy with the reminders we had given ourselves of what life can be like as members of a club, a group of people with similar likes and dislikes with whom we have, and will, enjoy gatherings in and out of doors much more again as we return to ‘normality’. Bill Phillips

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 30

17/12/2021 16:18

BRISTOL OPEN DOORS DAY: 11 and 12 September 2021 The day dawned bright and clear, thank goodness, since the Pagoda had to be erected in the Knot Garden, signs had to be put up to direct the public from Park Row, some weed clearing needed effecting and, we hoped, the public would come to our smorgasbord of 04 Arts activities. The small 'Open Doors Day team', consisting of Jonathan Bird, David Bedford and Robert Dawes, had been working on the timetable for weeks. They had negotiated with the organisers of ODD to have specific timed slots and the programme put on by Bristol 1904 Arts was the most complex and, dare we say, most exciting of the whole Bristol-wide event. We had talks, a magician, painting workshops, country music, classical music, accordion music, real jazz and topped off with a Jonathan Price piano recital. Our Chair, Michael Newstead, kicked off with a fascinating talk about our history and 'a room full of objects'. He instructed his audience on a focused range of fascinating artefacts and paintings and then took audience members around a tour of our Wigwam. Chris Payne, as always, astounded his audience including a number of quite small children who had come specially to the only magic show in the whole Open Doors event. They went away with their horizons and their eyes widened. Chris Payne's was only the first of the six half-hour entertainments of the event. Steve Price ensured audience involvement and clearly had several fans in the Wigwam as well as first-timers. They joined in, chanted, clapped and had a wonderful time with several of his own compositions. Something rather different followed with Stephen and Julie Browne playing flute and piano to a large and appreciative audience, who again had singled out this as one of the main things they wanted to see in the whole Open Doors Day event. People walking by, outside the Knot Garden, also wandered in when they heard the strains of such beautiful music and sat to enjoy the rest of the day. Throughout that first day there were also two artist presentations, Mike Long led a workshop on the compositional features of landscape painting, and drew an audience of both professional and amateur artists as he helped them to understand how to construct a painting, not only with his own works, but also by taking them out into our corridor to see a number of the Savages paintings there. Bill Phillips took the afternoon workshop, of which more below. The day had, in general, run smoothly from 10am until 5pm, by which time the organisers, the many stewards and all those who had helped out were feeling fairly exhausted. Nevertheless, they turned up again at 10am on Sunday 12 September when Cass Caswell entranced his audience with a photographic walk around the Red Lodge neighbourhood in bygone times. His archive was a treasure trove of fascinating insights into the history around us. Our own accordionist extraordinaire, Ian Watt, then turned up with his Crucianelli and had his audience swaying and even dancing, particularly the two children who came out of the audience and sang and danced to their hearts' content in front of the platform. Tours of the Wigwam and its artefacts were carried out throughout the day by pairs of enthusiastic stewards whilst, on Saturday, Alan Shellard played in the background. After-lunch entertainment with Stuart Potter and the 1904 strollers gave us a full sixty minutes of real jazz, again attracting people from outside as well as aficionados, to this tour de force. Meanwhile Pat Shipsides led a workshop on painting sea and sky (with the occasional boat) for a large audience in the artists' studio, there was standing room only. In the afternoon Bill Phillips, who the previous day had painted modern landscapes, having taken over at the last minute from Tim Willmott, who had sent the reasonable excuse that a tree had fallen on his house in France. Bill had travelled outside his comfort zone and into modern city architecture and then, as he usually does, on Sunday he sketched with wit and bravado, to the delight and instruction of his appreciative audience, again in the artists' studio.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 31

17/12/2021 16:18

The day finished with Jonathan Price and a full half-hour piano recital. Having agreed simply to play some background music, Jonathan Price was surprised and eventually quite pleased to receive the applause and 'bravos' of the crowd which had gathered to hear him play proper music. As the ODD organisers said, "together we pulled off something memorable and inspiring. Feedback from audiences was overwhelmingly positive and we reached visitors from every Bristol postcode and beyond, whilst reaching younger and more diverse audiences". This certainly was our experience on the two Open Doors days in the Wigwam. Jonathan Bird

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 32

17/12/2021 16:18

SOCIAL DISTANCING

By Alan Shellard.

Many new words and many new phrases have now become part of our everyday chatter. Corona and Covid and self isolation pandemic and lock-down form part of our chatter. But one little phrase has gained wide circulation A phrase which brings unalloyed joy to my ears, And that is the phrase being "socially distanced" which is something, quite frankly, I've practiced for years. Far be it for me to cast any aspersions Gossip is something I simply deplore But really one has to keep up certain standards which some of my neighbours choose to ignore. Just down my road at Number Eleven (which guests to my home don't notice, I hope!) I can't take my eyes off their ghastly net curtains which have, for so long, been a stranger to soap. Grand cars in the driveway of House Twenty Two Impressed me a lot till the day I set forth on a trip down to Waitrose when I heard those folk speaking and learned( to my horror) they came from up North! And the shock I received when I first met my new neighbours to whom I'd popped round to deliver a parcel, And found them sunning themselves in the garden revealing more Tattoos that Edinburgh Castle. And so you see to be "Socially Distanced" one has to take such a great deal of trouble, Narrowing down the number of people to those whom one wishes to include in one's bubble.

Like, for example, the Hamilton Brown's as nice a couple as one's ever met and have mentioned so often I must come to dinner but, so far, a date has still to be set.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 33

17/12/2021 16:18

Then, of course, there is dear Lady Carlton whose always so pleased to see me you know and insists I call in whenever I'm passing But am told she is out every time I do so. With dear friends like these, it wouldn't be right to hob nob with any old Tom, Dick or Harry And I think, quite frankly, being "Socially Distanced" is on the whole such a small price to carry.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 34

17/12/2021 16:18

SIEGES OF BRISTOL IN THE ENGLISH CIVIL WAR

Bristol has a long and interesting history and makes a great deal of certain events and people. Much is written of John Cabot, Isambard Brunei, the slave trade and the riots of 1831 but, strangely, very little is mentioned about the major events affecting it in the seventeenth century. At the start of the civil war in 1642, England was split between supporters of the Crown and Parliament, on grounds of politics and religion and both socially and territorially. If a line was drawn down the centre of England from Hull and the Humber, the majority of inhabitants to the east supported parliament. However, to the west there was a line of towns from Gloucester to Plymouth which were also supporters of Parliament. Bristol was nominally a royalist supporting city because of its wealthy merchant class but Parliament swiftly sent in troops to seize control as they did with the other towns.

By the middle of the seventeenth century, Bristol had become the third largest city in England (after London and Norwich) with a population estimated in the lower twenty thousands but was still largely a medieval town with the bulk of the population living within the city walls. At the beginning of the Civil War, a Colonel Essex was appointed governor of Bristol. He was subsequently removed for lack of progress in strengthening the City's defences and a lawyer, Colonel Fiennes, was appointed in his place. He immediately set about enhancing and enlarging these defences.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 35

17/12/2021 16:18

In the middle ages its walls and rivers had made the city near impregnable but, now in the age of cannon, the defences were vulnerable to attack from the slopes behind the city. Fiennes set about moving the outer defences back half a mile to the summit of the range of hills to the north, in the meantime a plot was discovered to let royalist troops into the city and two senior merchants/citizens were arrested, tried and executed. In the first year of the war, royalist troops in Cornwall under the command of Sir Ralph Hopton {a veteran of the Thirty Years War) had successfully defeated Parliamentary supporters in Devon and Cornwall and driven them out of the West Country. Victories at Lansdown near Bath and Roundway Down near Devizes left Bristol exposed and the King and his advisers recognised the opportunity to attack. The Cornish army was joined by Royal troops from Oxford commanded by Prince Rupert of The Rhine (nephew of the King), a total of approximately 7000men. He was faced by Fiennes with 2500 regular troops and a further 2000 trained band and other local supporters. For both sides an attack presented problems. The revised defences were over 5 miles in length and difficult to man adequately with the small number of defenders available. For the attackers, co-ordination of assaults was difficult and, although the defences were weak in places, the lack of any siege cannon was a handicap. The leaders of the two Royal armies met and agreed a course of action with the opening attack at 4.00am on 26 July. In the event, the Cornish army could not be restrained and started their attack at 2.00am so matters got off to a chaotic start. Three brigades attacked the walls and ditches on the Somerset side and with heavy casualties were thrown back three times. The leaders of two of the brigades were killed and the third badly wounded. In the north, the Royalists were equally unsuccessful. Lord Grandison was mortally wounded in an attack on Prior’s Hill Fort and attacks on Colston's Fort, Windmill Fort and Clifton Fort were equally unsuccessful with heavy casualties. By early afternoon, the attackers found by chance that the wall between Windmill Fort and Brandon Hill was shielded from enemy cannon by houses and trees (somewhere on modern Queen's Road). The wall was assaulted by Wentworth and Washington and, with the aid of incendiaries scaled .Once inside, the Royalists were attacked by cavalry but repulsed. The Royalists were now free to attack down the hill, part under Colonel Thomas Washington (a forbear of President George Washington) charged down what is now Park Street) to the Cathedral Green and thence to the river and Frome Gate. The other part attacked down Park Row, overrunning a strong point near the Esso garage, down Lower Park Row to what we now know as 'Christmas Steps'. There they met heavy resistance in the narrow confines with defenders firing from upper rooms. Heavy casualties were sustained, including their leader, Colonel Lunsden, before being able join the other attacking party at Frome Gate. Here, having crossed the drawbridge over the river and through the gate, they again met heavy resistance from troops, townsfolk and a party of women led by Mrs Dorothy Hazard (wife of the vicar of St Ewens and later one of the founders of Broadmead Baptist Church). With the centre of the City occupied, Fiennes had no choice but to sue for peace and treaty was agreed and signed. He, with as many of his troops who wished to leave, were given safe passage out of the City. Fiennes was subsequently arrested by Parliament for cowardice, tried and sentenced to death. He was later acquitted as it was appreciated by the army high command that he had a hopeless task to hold Bristol. What had the Royalists achieved? They had captured, a major city and the second port of the country with access to Ireland and South Wales for reinforcements, eight warships and armed merchantmen

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 36

17/12/2021 16:18

which gave them a basis of a fleet (the navy having declared for Parliament), a major small arms manufacturer and huge prestige. One of the less obvious consequences of the siege was that the King was horrified by the number of casualties, particularly among senior officers and resolved to avoid frontal assaults in the future. This was reflected after the battle of Newbury when the road was open to London and he decided to besiege Gloucester instead. The fall of Bristol in 1643 was probably the apex of royal power. Over the next two years, there followed two defining defeats, the first at Marston Moor when the Scottish Presbyterians joined with Parliament and secondly at Naseby, the first major battle fought by the new Model Army created by Lord Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell which changed the outcome of the war. By the summer of 1645 the Royalists were in full retreat everywhere and only Bristol remained as a major outpost The Model Army swept south and, after a comprehensive victory at Langport, Fairfax resolved to attack Bristol. Since the 1643 siege, Rupert and his deputy Sir Ralph Hopton had strengthened the defences with additional strong points and, in particular, constructing the Royal Fort on the northern slopes near the top of St Michael's Hill. The problems of defending the City remained the same. Rupert had about 7000 troops at his disposal but Fairfax had at least double that number and reinforcements he could call on. Rupert had promised the King he could hold Bristol for months but when he sought help with reinforcements or distracting attacks elsewhere this was not forthcoming. The assault by Fairfax and Cromwell commenced on 22 August 1645, the main attack coming on the east side of the city at Lawford's Gate and Prior’s Hill with holding attacks elsewhere. The attacks were initially successful with Parliament’s troops gaining access between Lawford's Gate and the Avon, the wall here being in a poor state and the ditch narrow. A further assault was then made on Prior’s Hill Fort and after a fierce fight the fort was taken and the defenders put to the sword. Parliament now held a line of defences a mile long from Prior’s Hill to the Castle and then to the Avon. The defenders had greater success on the Somerset side and resisted all attacks. On the Gloucestershire side the Royal Fort held but Colston’s Fort was evacuated and the defenders fled into the City.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 37

17/12/2021 16:18

Meanwhile, the City had been set alight and whilst fighting continued, neither side was able put it out. Rupert sent a message to Fairfax and, as neither side was happy to see such an important city left to burn, negotiations were started. It was agreed that Rupert would surrender the City and his troops could march out with their small arms and personal belongings. Parliament would provide an escort to Oxford to protect them from the Clubmen who were marauding the countryside and attacking troops of both sides. The King received the news of the fall of Bristol with horror, removed Rupert from his position as commander in chief and banished him and his brother Maurice from the Country. In 1647 Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell ordered the City to pay for the maintenance of the defences but in 1654 authorised the City to pull down the walls, the Castle and other defences including the Royal Fort, every citizen being ordered to assist with the demolition or pay a fine of a shilling a week. Bristol had survived the war just and went back to doing what it did best ie making money through trade. By the end of the century, the population had risen to 29000 and in the next century became England's second city. Very little remains to remind us of the civil war. Rupert and Fairfax Streets remain but both were built in the next century after the River Frome was covered over. The Royal Fort exists in name only, the structure having been pulled down. Ian Faulkner

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 38

17/12/2021 16:18

THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF ROBERT SCHUMANN

Allan Schiller and I had put together a presentation of the above for Let’s Talk, but covid restrictions prevented that so our editor Paul has asked me to reproduce a taste of the narrative I had prepared. This is very much a condensed version and I suppose the question arises - what made me choose Robert Schumann? Well, I have to confess he is not amongst my favourite composers, but I became so moved by Allan’s beautiful and sensitive performances of his music, that I had to learn more of the man. And of course, the more I listened to his compositions the more I realised what an amazing composer he was. He was born in Saxony in 1810, towards the end of the Napoleonic wars. His father was a bookseller, writer and something of an uninspired intellectual, but he died when Robert was just sixteen. Robert was one of five children and in his early years displayed a talent for literature and music. By the age of seventeen he had devoured Latin and Greek classics and was influenced by and friendly with the poet Jean Paul Richter. He struck up a love for the piano and the songs of Franz Schubert. His mother was keen for him to have a career in law and he went to the Leipzig law school, where he was far from happy, and it led to a fiery conflict with his mother. He was strong willed, self-centred and his life at that time was directed more towards champagne and pretty women than law. Despite being a spendthrift and, it seems, several love affairs, he suffered bouts of melancholy and frequently requested his mother for more money. Eventually he abandoned his law studies, but continued his music lessons under Frederick Wieck at whose home he was boarding. There was an added attraction at that residence, namely Frederick’s lovely and highly talented daughter Clara. But Robert’s future was precarious to say the least. He wanted to compose but worked endlessly to perfect his playing technique, and his mind continued to fluctuate between ecstasy and despair. His incessant practising resulted in a strain upon his fingers and at the age of twenty two, this limited the time he could spend at the keyboard, so he needed to concentrate on composing. About this time, he gained some income as a music critic and also enjoyed friendships with Chopin and Mendelssohn. Clara was about 6 years younger than Robert, but they became very attracted to each other. She was already a highly gifted musician, and as a distinguished pianist, would depart on concert tours to Leipzig. Despite other flirtations on both sides, their love for each other blossomed. Her father, however, was adamantly against their marriage. Nevertheless, they married, but not without a sad but successful lawsuit against her father. They lived together for fourteen years, in the early part of which Robert was overshadowed by her fame and talent. She composed an impressive repertoire of songs and instrumental music, and the balance between a devoted inspirational wife with a highly acknowledged talent in her own right, could not have been an easy one. But they were a devoted and deeply loving pair and had eight children, some of whom did not live long. Several successful musicians of the time kept in touch with them. He and Clara lived in Leipzig, but left for a time when the 1848 rebellion occurred, after which they returned. Added to his mental distress was the burden of poverty, but he managed to acquire various musical posts with modest remuneration. He was described at one stage as a man of too much genius and too little talent. Whilst often nervous, he was excited too, with an over-fertile brain. It was during unnerving months that he wrote his noble fourth symphony in D minor. It seems his music would not let him rest. They enjoyed their fourteenth wedding anniversary, when he played a group of songs which he dedicated to Clara. It was a happy time for them both, but his mental torments continued, verging 39

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 39

17/12/2021 16:18

on insanity. There was an occasion when he threw himself into the Rhine. He was rescued, but the inevitable was forced upon him and he was admitted to a mental asylum. It was a couple of years before Clara was allowed to visit him. His health declined severely and he almost completely lost the use of his limbs. He was forty six. It was a sad, complicated and frustrating life, for a musical genius who left the world with a wide and varied legacy of wonderful expressive music, which had a strong influence on musicians in later years. Following Schumann’s death, Clara continued her career as a concert pianist and visited England a number of times. She died at the age of seventy seven, following a distinguished concert career spanning more than sixty years. There are, of course, many musicians throughout history who, through their genius, accomplished much in a short lifespan and left a wealth of rich inspiring music we can enjoy today. We regard these musicians as “masters”, and indeed they were. Undoubtedly, Robert Schumann is among them and although his life in many ways was a sad one, he left us an abundance of great music. Ray Anstice

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 40

17/12/2021 16:18

THE HISTORY OF ASHTON COURT

(The text of a talk written and performed by the late Brother Savage Bill Thomas and kindly given to us by his widow Elizabeth) I expect that many of you have spent some happy hours in Ashton Court – that magnificent open space to the south of the city – or perhaps visiting the seventeenth century mansion, which is now open to the public for banquets, weddings and conferences. As you know, all sorts of events now take place in Ashton Park – the Balloon Fiesta, for one. They have held pop concerts there, there have been special days for Senior Citizens like us, and, of course, there are two pitch and putt golf courses and some pleasant walks where you can enjoy the views right across the village of Long Ashton, as far as Dundry. Well, it was not always so. Not always a free and open park for all of us to enjoy. Not until the City Council bought the park in 1946, and then the mansion thirteen years later. Until then, it had been known as the Smyth Estate, or even, in deference to one of the last owners, Lady Emily Smyth, simply as ‘Lady Smyth’s’. Now – is it ‘Smyth,’ or ‘Smith’? How is the name pronounced? How do you say it? What is the general opinion? Well, I mostly hear people saying ‘Smyth’. I suppose it’s logical. The ‘y’ in the middle seems to indicate that it should be pronounced like that, but what I can tell you is that the family called themselves ‘Smith,’ and they got very touchy if anyone addressed them as ‘Smyth’. Anyway, I have always said ‘Smyth,’ so that is what I am going to stick to. So, as I say it – it was not until 1959 that Ashton Court was open to us all. Until then, the common folk had been kept out by a wall, eight feet high, which was called ‘the seven mile wall,’ and it ran right round the estate. Actually, it was only five miles, but it must have seemed longer to any poacher trying to get in! Much of that wall still remains, although it was built as long ago as 1820. Actually, that wall did not enclose the whole of the Smyth property. Oh dear, no. They owned land and property far beyond that. I expect a lot of you have been in the lovely room in the house known as the Music Room? It is a long room with many windows overlooking miles of countryside. The Smyths owned most of what you can see from that room. They owned many farms, umpteen houses and cottages, acres of woodland and, very importantly, at least fifteen coal mines. South Bristol had several coal mines in Victorian times. The last one, Ashton Colliery, closed in 1907. That is by the way. The point is that the Smyths were seriously rich. Of course, there had been a house on the site of Ashton Court Mansion since Saxon times. It had been owned by one wealthy nobleman or another, but in 1549 the Smyth dynasty began. A Bristol merchant named John Smyth, who was twice mayor of Bristol, bought it as well as the manor of Ashton. And from that date, the Smyth fortune prospered. As well as the property at Ashton, they held estates in

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 41

17/12/2021 16:18

Gloucestershire and Scotland and also, over the years, acquired houses in London. Yes, they were seriously rich. How rich? Well, by the 1880s, income from the coal mines alone was nearly a million in today’s money, and rents from farms and property in and around Bristol was even more. An example – in 1880, Sir Greville Smyth was able to spend £50,000 on his natural history collection – probably two million pounds in today’s money. Incidentally, most of that collection was taken over by the city museum, and you can still see it there. Anyway, you can see how much wealth was involved when, in 1853, a convicted horse thief came close to defrauding them of everything they possessed. So, this is the story of Tom Provis, the son of a Wiltshire carpenter, who had been sentenced to hang for horse stealing as a boy, but reprieved because of his youth. He spent time in prison, then eked out a living in various ways (acting as a so-called ‘oratory lecturer’ was one of them), and finally made his bid to become the master of the Ashton Court Estate and fortune. The Great Ashton Court Fraud started when a letter from a solicitor arrived at the mansion, addressed to ‘Arthur Way.’ Now Arthur was the guardian of an eleven year old boy named Greville Upton. Greville had just inherited the whole of the Ashton Court estate through his grandmother, who was one of the Smyth family. He later changed his own name to Smyth. Anyway, here is his guardian receiving an official letter which said, in effect – ‘Remove yourself and the boy and all your household and servants from the estate – you are all trespassers. The long lost heir to the Smyth fortune has arrived to take his rightful place as the Lord of Ashton Court. Arthur Way was stunned. Who was this long-lost heir who no-one had ever heard of? Where had he come from? How strong was his claim to be the rightful heir, the true owner of the Smyth millions? He did not have to wait long for an answer. A couple of days later, two men hammered on the front door of the mansion, demanding to be let in to see Arthur Way. One of the men was a lawyer with documents in hand, and the other was a tall, gaunt, shrunken-cheeked individual in his sixties calling himself Sir Richard Smyth. In reality, this was Tom Provis, the master con man. Before he let them in, Arthur Way got two or three burly servants to stand by. Then he had the pair admitted. He listened patiently to what the lawyer and Sir Richard had to say – and what they said was a rigmarole of why Sir Richard was the rightful heir. And then the lawyer added ‘Hand over the keys to all the property and we will give you two hours to get yourselves and all your servants and your personal possessions off the estate. Sir Richard is taking over.’ Arthur Way quietly put his watch on the table. ‘I’ll tell you what I’ll do’, he said. ‘I’ll give you one minute to get out.’ But the pair did not budge and so the servants picked them up bodily and threw them out of the house. But if Arthur thought that was the end of the matter, he was very wrong.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 42

17/12/2021 16:18

‘Sir Richard’ – the fake Sir Richard – claimed to be a lecturer in Oratory, and he certainly must have had the gift of the gab, because he told his tale to the world and large numbers of people believed him. He got support from influential people in Clifton and Bristol and became the hero of the hour. One of his supporters provided him with a house in Sion Hill, among the nobs, and tradesmen like butchers, bakers and tailors flocked to give him credit, anticipating favours to come when he came into his fortune. He brought his wife to live with him Sion Hill, and on a Sunday they would process to church with a footman behind carrying a bible, while they acknowledged the tributes of the local people. And his next move, with the aid of his supporters, was to engage some of the top barristers in the country – two of them QCs – to bring an action in the High Court at Gloucester Assizes. He wanted the court to eject the Smyths from the estate and confirm that he was the true owner. The Smyths were terrified that they were going to lose everything, and they too engaged the absolutely top barrister of the day, a man named Sir Henry Thesiger QC, along with three other QCs to defend themselves against ‘Sir Richard.’ The case caused a huge sensation all over the country. The newspapers of the time were full of it. The court was packed with gentry from all over the southwest. Every big landowner was concerned to see whether this man from nowhere could take over the Smyth wealth and status. Well, Tom Provis had cooked up a wonderful story to back up his claim. He was, he said, the son of a Sir Hugh Smyth who had died about thirty years before. Though Sir Hugh had married twice, there had been no children of these marriages. ‘But’ said Tom, ‘there had in fact been another wife – a marriage in Ireland when Sir Hugh was a very young man, and he was the product of that secret marriage and so was the heir to the estate. ‘Why hadn’t anybody known about the marriage?’ ‘Well,’ said Tom, or Sir Richard, as he was called in court, ‘his mother died in giving birth to him and his father hushed everything up because he wanted to marry again – to the daughter of the Bishop of Bristol, and he believed that if she knew he had a child she wouldn’t have him.’ ‘Sir Richard’ said he had then been handed over to a carpenter in Warminster to be looked after. When he was a lad, he went to sea, was shipwrecked and lost all the family papers he had which could have proved who he was – and it was only now that certain things had come to light which could prove his claim. He produced all sorts of documents – very authentic-looking. And a family bible in which his baptism and a certificate of his mother’s marriage was recorded. Now you have to remember that in the days when Sir Richard was born, there was no official national register of births and marriages. What records there were, were kept in Parish Registers and then, not very accurately – or, especially in family bibles, they were signed by the officiating minister. So, it was not unusual for proof of a marriage to be found in that kind of way. And Sir Richard did produce a family bible with all the

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 43

17/12/2021 16:18

necessary signatures in it. What is more, a number of quite respectable people came forward to back him up. Sir Richard had gone to great lengths to cook up his tale. For instance, he made trips to Ireland and went to a place called Castle Bernard. This was where he said his mother had come from. He went around getting to know the local people and made such an impression on them that they believed his tale of being the Smyth heir. So much so that he was entertained by one of the local aristocrats, the earl of Bandon. He made friends with the local vicar and promised to give him a fat living in England as soon as he came into the Smyth estate. And then he wheedled out of this vicar a copy of a signature of a previous minister – and it was that signature he forged to make his entries in the family bible. It all looked really genuine. Arthur Way, though had not been taking the threat to the Smyths lying down. He hired a private detective to look into Sir Richard’s background. He himself went to Ireland – to Castle Bernard – and found that Sir Richard had invented a family into which he said Sir Hugh had married – they just did not exist. But it all had to go to court, not easy. The fraud was so cleverly contrived. ‘Sir Richard’ told his tale to the court, witnesses were called to say he was who he said he was, the documents proving his claim were produced and so was a lot of family jewellery bearing the crests of his mother’s family – a brooch with her name on, Jane Gooken – and a ring with engraving which showed she had been married to Sir Hugh Smyth thirty or fifty or more years ago. Under cross examination in the witness box, the fake did not do too badly, but the jewellery was his undoing, and led to the most extraordinary revelation. As I said, the case caused a huge sensation, and the national papers carried big stories about it. On the fourth day of the trial, the Times carried a description of the jewellery which Sir Richard had produced. A jeweller in Holborn, London, got his copy of the Times that day, saw the description of the ring, and recognised it. Now this is interesting. That jeweller wanted to get in touch with the Smyths before the trial ended, and it was nearly over. What was he to do? Well, the electric telegraph had not long been invented. It was used mainly by the railways. But this jeweller must have rushed to a telegraph station and sent the following message to the Smyths’ barrister. He received it while he was on his feet in court. The message said ’Ask the plaintiff (that is Sir Richard) whether he came to my shop three months ago and had a ring!’ This ring was the one which Sir Richard had said belonged to his mother over fifty years before. The question was put to Sir Richard and there was a deathly hush in the court, waiting for an answer. He was caught. If he denied it, the jeweller could prove he was lying: if he admitted he had had the jewellery engraved and faked himself he was done for. Sir Richard turned deathly pale. His voice faltered. His words came out in a whisper, but what he said was, ’Yes, I did.’ He knew the game was up. His bid for the Smyth fortune was over. He was immediately arrested and later put on trial for perjury. They proved he had bought

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 44

17/12/2021 16:18

the family bible himself, they showed he had forged all the documents because the paper they had been on had not been made until long after they were supposed to have been signed. But worst of all, they proved clearly that he was Tom Provis and not Sir Richard Smyth. They even called his sister to give evidence against him. ‘Do you say I am your brother?’ he asked her. ‘Yes, I do, Thomas,’ she replied. ‘Did your brother ever have anything like this?’ he said, and turned to show his hair worn in a pigtail. ‘No,’ she said. ‘No, Thomas, you never wore your hair like that when you were at home.’ In the end, he was found guilty of perjury and despite a pitiful plea for mercy, he was sentenced to be transported for twenty years. Two years later, he died. The Smyths presumably gave a huge sigh of relief at their escape, and continued to enjoy their vast fortune. And they prospered mightily. Not only in a financial way, but in climbing the ladder of society – and therein lies the story (or was it just idle gossip?) of a Royal Scandal. But let me set the scene for you. You will remember that when Tom Provis made his bid to steal the estate, the owner was an eleven year old boy who became Greville Smyth? He had a cousin called Emily Way, who came from a poor branch if the family. So, he did not meet her until, as a young man, he came across her by chance while on a touring holiday. She was married to a man twice her age, but she and Greville fell in love and had an affair, and the result was a baby daughter. Divorce being out of the question in those days, Emily continued to live with her husband but continued her affair with Greville for twenty years, until, in 1883, Emily’s husband died and she and Greville married. So, at last, Emily Edwards, as she had been, became Lady Smyth. By now, the Smyths had reached the peak of society, and the cream of the gentry were visiting Ashton Court, including, no less, the Prince of Wales, the one who became Edward V11. Ostensibly, he came for the shooting, but according to widespread and very public stories, his aim was not so much for game birds, but one particular game bird, Emily. In a superb book on the Smyths by local historian Anton Bantock, he stated that local people would point out abodes in Long Ashton which were said to be used by Lady Emily and the Prince for their liaisons – including a cottage on the site now occupied by Redwood Lodge. And some will hint at people still living in the area with Royal blood in their veins. The fact is that these stories were widespread in south Bristol, most of which was owned by the Smyths. The servants in the house told of seeing Emily and the Prince (later, when he became King), together in a way that showed what was going on. One of Emily’s maids, in her old age, said that Emily and the King always had adjoining rooms in the house. A friend of mine who was born in Ashton and whose grandfather was a shoe repairer, swears that throughout his childhood, it was an accepted fact that Emily and King Edward VII had been lovers.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 45

17/12/2021 16:18

Well, whatever the case, those years coming up to the end of the Victorian age were the peak of the Smyth destiny. After that, there was a slow, and sometimes sad, decline. Greville, Lady Emily’s husband, died in 1901, and Lady Emily became the mistress of Ashton Court, somehow acquiring the title of Dame Emily. Despite the fact that times were changing, Dame Emily was still a commanding figure in the area. She could be seen around the roads of Clifton and Long Ashton, a large, imposing figure, ostrich plumes fluttering in her hat, driving in an open carriage emblazoned with the Smyth coat of arms, coachman at the front and footman in the rear. It is recorded that when she went to church in Long Ashton, the villagers gathered at the side of the road to pay their respects, and in the church, the congregation stood while she progressed down the aisle, with a footman behind, carrying her bible on a purple cushion. You have to remember that people were not just paying tribute to the Grand Dame of Ashton, they were keeping in with their landlady. But harder times were coming. When Lady Emily died in 1914, the value of the estate was put at just under a million pounds – forty to fifty million pounds today. She had been one of the wealthiest women in the country. But the First World War, death duties, supertax, the drift away of servants and land workers to factories and the forces, all meant the end of an era was near. Whoever inherited, would never be the same Lady Bountiful. Well, the person who inherited was Esme, Lady Emily’s illegitimate daughter. At the time she took over, she was a big, awkward-looking woman, over six feet tall, and unpredictable to the point of eccentricity, at times. But she fulfilled her role quite well, although there were some strange stories about her, such as the time she went into the snake house at Bristol Zoo and wrestled with a boa constrictor. But she was also a very talented photographer, of international acclaim. She was well known in Long Ashton, of course, and entertained notable people including, on one occasion, the Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth). But she spent some years at her Scottish castle, and during the First World War, Ashton Court Mansion was used as a hospital. And the fortune dwindled. Land was sold off, coal mines closed. At one time, more than thirty servants were employed in the house. Towards the end, it was down to three. The death of the Honourable Esme Smythe, as she was known, brought to an end the reign of the Smyth family at Ashton Court. Death duties were assessed at £897,000 and the heir, a man named Cavendish, was glad to sell the park to the City Council. A huge auction of the family effects was held at the mansion. Everything had to go. Altogether, the estate had to sell fourteen farms, eleven large houses, eighty cottages, two public houses, ten smallholdings and acres of woodland. In effect, they sold the whole of Long Ashton village.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 46

17/12/2021 16:18

The auction sale of the household goods lasted eight days. And it included a 204 piece Minton dinner service, a ninety piece Worcester service and a Wilton carpet ninety feet long. It all went, right down to a set of copper jelly moulds which I expect went for next to nothing, but would be collectors’ items today. Bedsteads, books, a valuable picture, tons of canteens of cutlery, the organ from the music room, all went – and the house fell into disrepair, until the Council bought it – they have partly restored it. It is still not complete. The Smyths have gone. I wonder if some ghosts from the past are left in the house. Certainly, the servants always swore that there were ghosts there – a Sir John Smyth who died in mysterious circumstances had been seen wandering along the corridors and peering into windows. Soldiers stationed at the house during the war swore they had seen a little old, crinolined lady on the staircases and one servant was terrified by a top-hatted apparition that appeared in a gateway and then vanished into the ground. Well, I have been to Ashton Court many times to have lunch, and I have never seen a ghost. Mind you, I have seen plenty of spirits, but they have all been in a glass, being drunk with great enjoyment!

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 47

17/12/2021 16:18

BOOBY PRIZES If you have selected this page in the hope that you might find something risqué or at worst an appraisal of joke items you’d prefer to avoid, then I regret to disappoint you. On the other hand, if you might like a pictorial travelogue in search of uncommon pelagic birds, this may be just what you are looking for.

The Galapagos Islands lie in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator, a two-hour flight away from Quito or Guayaquil, Ecuador, their parent country. Until 1989 flights were to the flat arid Baltra Island, but now there is also an airport on San Cristobal. The number of tourists allowed within this national park was strictly limited to 2500 in any one day controlled by the availability of berths and guides on the registered transport ships. However, in recent years, the number of individuals able to holiday on the islands themselves has increased giving some cause for concern by conservationists.

We arrived to Baltra and were then transferred by panga (small fishing boat) to the MV Santa Cruz, our floating home for the next three days. The first two days were spent on and around the central islands of Santa Cruz and Santiago, observing numerous Marine Iguanae, Sally Lightfoot Crabs, Lizards, Frigate Birds and Darwin’s (yes, he came in 1835 on HMS Beagle) Finches. We had strict instructions from the guides to stay on the footpaths and to keep a healthy, long before Covid, 2 metre distance from all wildlife. But because the Galapagos fauna see so few humans, they are often inquisitive and seem to have little fear of mankind. When relaxing on the beach a playful sea lion might come ashore to enjoy a roll in your towel.

But what did we just see on a steep dive? 48

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 48

17/12/2021 16:18

That was a Blue-footed Booby diving to catch a fish. Boobies are members of the Gannet family. Booby refers to the Spanish ‘Bobo’ meaning clown and relates to the courtship dance of the Blue foots in lifting to show off their feet and mutually pointing their faces skyward. The foot colour is sexually linked in that females are more attracted to the brighter blue feet of young males. Blue foots are pelagic i.e., they spend most of their time at sea and breed on rocky shores. They are common in the Galapagos, but their range is limited to the eastern Pacific.

Blue-footed Boobies

The archipelago is home to two more booby species, Red-footed and Nazca, both in colonies on the more remote islands, close to oceanic waters. On our second night, our ship motored north and at dawn entered Darwin Bay, the former volcanic caldera of the horseshoe–shaped island of Genovesa. The Red foots, the smallest of the booby species, also have red legs and a pale blue bill. They nest in trees on the 60-foot cliffs which edge the bay, laying one egg, incubated by both parents for 45 days. They follow ships at sea and catch, in midair, flying fish disturbed by the boat’s movement. Red foot colonies are found in the tropical and sub-tropical regions of all the great oceans.

Red-footed pair

Nazca Boobies are white with black tail feathers and a yellow/pink beak. They co-habit with the Red foots and lay two eggs in open ground but only raise one chick. The eggs are laid and therefore hatch within a few days of each other. The strongest growing chick forces the weakest out of the nest, where it is ignored by the parents and falls prey to scavengers - a process of obligate siblicide. Should the first egg not hatch the second is the insurance policy. Like the Blue foots, Nazca Boobies are eastern pacific birds.

Nazca Booby & chick (Nazca relates to a 2000 BC culture of coastal Peru)

And the prizes? To walk so close to wild birds and thereby take sharp images of their behavioural patterns is a pleasure that lives long in the memory. The following day we were walking amongst giant tortoises on San Cristobel Island before taking the flight back to the UK. 49

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 49

Les Shutt

17/12/2021 16:19

A Circle Around the Lake: Some Notes on Travels in Africa During my final year at university, I came across a notice inviting applications to do voluntary work overseas. It sounded an interesting and worthwhile prospect. Application submitted, interviewed, and accepted by Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), they assigned me to a Secondary Technical School in Moshi, Tanzania. The following year, after flights from London to Nairobi and then by light aircraft to Arusha, and barely 24 hours after being on a number 8 bus in Bristol, I was in East Africa. My introduction to the African continent was interesting. Through a misunderstanding, the person assigned to meet me thought I was arriving the following week. My posting was 50 miles to the east, and the evening was coming on. The bus to Moshi had just left. I was stuck. A British ex-pat, who was at the airport, noticed me and understood my predicament, told me to put my stuff in her Land Rover and pursued the departed bus. We sped off down the road towards Moshi. Overtaking the bus, she swung her Land Rover round and blocked the road, forcing the bus to stop, told the driver where to drop me off, and I was on my way. Moshi, meaning smoke in Swahili, sits due south of Kilimanjaro National Park in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro. A dramatic location, with the mountain dominating the view from the town and surrounding area. Moshi town is at over 2000ft elevation, affording a more congenial climate than the sauna-like conditions at the coast. I was to get to know the mountain well over the next two years, exploring both on foot and with my Honda trail motorcycle. That is another story for another time. Centre of Moshi: View from the KNCU (Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union) Building with Post Office on the right.

I stayed a I few days in the headteacher’s house then was allocated a bungalow, sharing with two other VSO volunteers from the UK and an American Peace Corps from Des Moines, Iowa.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 50

17/12/2021 16:19

With the December/January 1967/8 Christmas break and the end of our first teaching term approaching, a safari was proposed. We all chipped in, bought a second-hand Volkswagen Beetle, worked on it to get it up to scratch, and planned our route. In broad terms, this involved circumnavigating Lake Victoria in an anti-clockwise direction. Travelling through Kenya, Uganda, back into Tanzania, and on to Kigoma on the Northern shores of Lake Tanganyika. Boarding the SS Liemba at Kigoma and sailing the length of Lake Tanganyika to Mpulungu in Zambia. Then into Tanzania for the last leg home, heading north and completing the circle. A journey of some 3600 miles. Those who followed Michael Palin’s Pole to Pole television series will recall that he also sailed on the SS Liemba during part of his journey. Drawing on daily travel notes, I can trace out our journey, mentioning in more detail a few notable incidents that occurred along the way. Going back over the notebook, written more than 50 years ago, was a revelation as I rediscovered many forgotten details and even the sequence of some events. Departure day was 9th December 1967. The first leg of the safari took us West to Arusha, North into Kenya as far as Athi River, before heading West to Nairobi. Whilst in Nairobi we stayed in the flat of a VSO volunteer. There was an unwritten convention to host fellow volunteers who were travelling through. Whenever I was away, I always gave the cook instructions to open my room for anyone who needed somewhere to stay. People used my room who I did not know and never met. Not once was that trust abused. In Nairobi, we stocked up on provisions for the next stage and bought ex-army combat jackets for their practicality. Durable with loads of pockets, and de rigueur for amateur adventurers such as us. Little did we realise how having those jackets would play out. Before leaving Nairobi and heading off to the Aberdare Hills the next day, we drove out to the N’gong Hills on the Great Rift Valley to observe the sunset. However, it was not an auspicious beginning when the car broke down. We were helped by the occupants of two passing cars, left our vehicle at the house of an English ex-pat, and headed back into Nairobi. It appeared to be a transmission failure. Any plan of continuing our journey the next day was thrown into doubt until the problem was fixed. The following day British Council staff, who had an oversight role regarding the welfare of British volunteers, were persuaded to use their Land Rover to tow the car back to the British Council car park in Nairobi. Once the back wheel was removed, the cause of the problem was immediately apparent. For those technically minded, the brake drum to which the wheel is attached was made of cast iron and mated to a steel half shaft with splines. The whole assembly clamped together with a whacking great castle nut and split pin. The spines on the drum had eroded away completely. Undoubtedly a result of vibration from driving on unpaved and washboard roads. Fortunately, the half-shaft was undamaged. A new brake drum, castle nut, and two new split pins cost a grand total of 160 East African shillings. Repair effected, and we were on our way the next day. Headed for the Aberdare Hills and over the next few days, made our way through Thika, Fort Hall, Nyeri, Naivasha, Gilgil, crossing the equator, and then on to Nakuru. Lake Nakuru

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 51

17/12/2021 16:19

is renowned for its birdlife. Countless flamingo. Someone mentioned that flocks of a million are not unusual. I cannot verify that figure – but there was certainly an enormous number. Avian Feathers may have a view. Sunday 17th December found us at Eldoret where we met two other VSOs teachers at the St Loretta Convent School. Got accommodation at the school, which was a welcome change from camping. The headteacher, who was most hospitable, also provided hot baths and an evening meal at her house. As a volunteer, one felt free to scrounge accommodation wherever and whenever the opportunity presented itself. Refreshed and respectably clean, we left Eldoret for Kitale then on to Mbale via the Wagagari mountain road and crossing into Uganda. My notes caution this route is not to be recommended and records a “very rough journey”. We were driving in the dark and misjudging a corner, ran into a bank on the side of the road. Fortunately, there was no serious damage. We continued, shaken but not stirred... Arriving at Mbale, we found a bed at the Aga Khan Hostel before heading off the next day, via Soroti, for the Karamoja region and Moroto. Camped near the Government Rest House in Moroto. I recall how dry and hard the ground was. It was only with difficulty that we could get the metal tent pegs to stay put, as however hard we hammered, the peg seemed to produce nothing more than a conical hole and dust. Eventually, we got the tent pitched and avoided sleeping in the open or having to go hunting for somewhere to stay. Just over a year later, I visited the area again with a fellow VSO, from up-country, who was staying with me in Moshi. During the long summer break and on a whim, we decided to get to Moroto. This time, however, we did not have a vehicle and relied on hitch-hiking. I mention this because of an incident that occurred in Kenya during our return journey. Tony played the violin and been a member of a Welsh Youth Orchestra, but had left his instrument in the UK. We learned a violin was going begging from a British ex-pat who wished to pass it on to any worthy recipient and made a detour to collect it. Having secured the instrument, we continued our journey. Passing vehicles being few, Tony took to providing entertainment by playing some tunes. We were in the middle of nowhere on a desolate stretch of road stretching, it seemed, from horizon to horizon. Two Africans then appeared in the distance, walking towards us along the road. We must have appeared a strange sight, for their eyes never left us as they passed, turning their heads and heading off down the road. We exchanged no words. They must have thought, yet another example of mad dogs and Englishmen. Tony had an amazing memory and enjoyed quoting lengthy extracts from Beyond the Fringe, which kept me entertained. I particularly recall his rendition of the Peter Cook gem: “Yes, I could have been a judge but I never had the Latin, never had the Latin for the judging, I just never had sufficient of it to get through the rigorous judging exams. I managed to get through the mining exams - they’re not very rigorous, they only ask one question, they say, ‘What is your name?’, and I got 50 percent on that….” And so on.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 52

17/12/2021 16:19

From Moroto the planned route took us, via Gulu, onto The Murchison Falls National Park. Before reaching Gulu, however, our navigation skills let us down, and taking the wrong turning at Abim Corner ended up at Kitido some 60 miles south of the Sudanese border. We were also dangerously low on fuel. It was our good fortune that there was a police post at Kitido, and we could persuade them to sell us some petrol, although it was strictly government property. We pointed out, it was let us have the petrol or if we set off and run out of fuel, then they would have to mount a rescue operation. It was just two years since the Simba rebellion and Mad Mike Hoare and his mercenary army operating in the Congo, so the authorities were understandably jumpy. Seeing our army jackets, the police were suspicious that we might be mercenaries from the Congo, and checked my passport. Reassured, they allowed us to go on our way. Later in our journey, we were again under suspicion of being mercenaries. At the Murchison Falls Park, we joined a tourist launch going up the Victoria Nile to the foot of the falls. Looking over the side, I noticed the freeboard was less than a foot and that as we came next to an area with crocodiles basking on the bank, several of the creatures slid into the water and approached the boat. I just hoped other passengers would not, for whatever reason, be tempted to move to one side of the boat all at once, capsize the craft, pitch us into the water and provide an easy meal for the crocs. The following day we drove to Masindi, lunched at the Masindi Hotel, and continued to Kampala in time for Christmas. The Masindi Hotel, still trading, is Uganda’s oldest hotel, being built in 1923 by the East Africa Railways and Harbours Company. In Kampala, we stayed at Trinity College, Nabbingo, an all-girls boarding school founded in 1942 by the White Fathers. The Trinity College website states that their mission is: ‘to produce women who are morally upright, academically sound and socially balanced and physically capable, by educating the future female leaders of this country in an environment that is at once ambitious and joyful’. The girls were all safely off campus and home for Christmas by the time we arrived. Having enjoyed the Christmas break, we left Kampala on the 28th and were on our way to Fort Portal. Fort Portal is the seat of both Kabarole District and the Toro Kingdom and sits south of Lake Albert and close to the Congo/Uganda border. Another tip from my notes: ‘attempted to make macaroni cheese for lunch. It was an abysmal and indigestible failure. Powdered milk will not do! Just a mush of macaroni in an unpleasant tasting yellow watery soup’. The concoction was so repulsive we ditched it, and went hungry. From Fort Portal on to the Queen Elizabeth National Park, with a diversion to take in the hot springs and Semliki valley, on the Bundibugyo Road. Wikipedia notes: Semuliki National Park sprawls across the floor of the Semliki Valley on the remote, western side of the Rwenzori. The Park is dominated by the easternmost extension of the great Ituri Forest of the Congo Basin. This is one of Africa’s most ancient and bio-diverse forests; one of the few to survive the last ice age, 12-18,000 years ago. The Ituri forest is home to several indigenous pygmy groups. Those we encountered seemed friendly enough at first until a dispute arose over how much we should pay for taking a photograph. They turned belligerent, and we had to beat a hasty retreat deeper along the forest road. The only way out was back along the road. They knew this, and several were waiting with rocks ready to hurl at the car. Steve, our American 53

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 53

17/12/2021 16:19

colleague, who was driving, headed toward the group, swerving at the last second, putting them off balance, and we escaped unscathed before they could launch any missiles in our direction. Over the next days, we continued our journey towards Bukoba and the shores of Lake Victoria. Passing through Kisoro by the mountain road and on to and Kabale, a sign advised that we were taking a ‘Road Through the Impenetrable Forest’ – which struck me as somewhat contradictory. My notes remind me that ‘the scenery we encountered was exceptionally beautiful with terraced farms and wooded areas. The sunset over the Four peaks of the Ruwenzori a breath-taking sight’. From Kabale, we had considered travelling into Rwanda but were advised against doing so because of the volatile situation in the Congo. It seemed not long before, other travellers heading for Rwanda had become confused, taken a wrong turning, and driven into the Congo in error. Unfortunately, they encountered a Congolese army patrol who, presumably thinking something associated them with the rebels, opened fire without warning. Several people were killed. On that advice, we agreed to give Rwanda a miss. Leaving Bukoba, headed south to Kigoma some 300 miles away intending to make the second rest house for an overnight stop. On arrival we discovered a man and his two wives had taken the last room. Our only option then was to travel on to the next rest house. Before reaching the rest house, we arrived at another police post where, clad in our army jackets, we again were suspected of being mercenaries from the Congo. The police asked for our weapons (of which we had none). They seemed incredulous at our denials, searched the car, confiscated our car keys and passports, and told us we were being detained until they could confirm who we were. Given the hour, it was too late to verify our identities with the authorities in Dar es Salaam that day. They did not physically lock us up, but without our car keys, we were going nowhere. Overnight, we slept on the floor of one of the police buildings, sharing with two police witnesses who appeared to be in protective custody. Regardless of the conditions, however, I slept well, considering the bed comprised a hard mud floor. The next day, having confirmed our identities and story, the police returned our passports and car keys and let us go. We continued our journey to Kigoma and the SS Liemba. Thursday 4th of January: boarded the Liemba for a 5.30 pm departure. The car was placed on nets, hoisted by a crane, and deposited on the deck. So that’s how it’s done! Sailing was delayed until 10.00 pm. First, because customs papers were late arriving and then because the ship had to wait for a barge containing oil for Zambia. It was no real inconvenience, and my notes record that dinner on the Liemba was excellent.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 54

17/12/2021 16:19

The SS Liemba has an interesting history. Originally named the Graf Goetzen she was built at the Meyer Werft shipyard in 1913, taken apart, transported and rebuilt as a German passenger ferry for the colony operating on Lake Tanganyika. When the world war broke out, she was converted to an auxiliary cruiser with the addition of four guns. Threatened by the British and Belgian advance on the German colony in 1916, the ship was scuttled. The Germans lost their African colonies during the war, so they did not return to salvage the Graf Goetzen. The British did salvage her in 1924, renaming the ship Liemba. The engines and machinery which had been protected by heavy grease were recoverable. The ship continued to be powered by a triple-expansion steam engine until 1970 when a diesel engine was installed. (Summary from The Old Salt Blog: Rick Spilman). Over the next three days, the ship travelled along the Eastern shore of the Lake, stopping at settlements dotted along the way. There were no docking facilities and dozens of small boats came out from the shore transfering passengers and cargo. People were swarming all over the place and it seemed a marvel how some of the craft stayed afloat.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 55

17/12/2021 16:19

From Wikipedia: Lake Tanganyika is situated within the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift, and is confined by the mountainous walls of the valley. It is the largest rift lake in Africa and the second-largest lake by volume in the world. It is the deepest lake in Africa and holds the greatest volume of fresh water, accounting for 16% of the world’s available fresh water. It extends for 420 miles in a general north-south direction and averages 31 miles in width. The lake covers 12,700 sq. miles, with a shoreline of 1,136 miles, a mean depth of 1,870 ft and a maximum depth of 4,826 ft. The elevation of the lake surface is 2,536 ft, which means the deepest part of the lake is almost 2300 feet below sea level. On the second day, an Irish priest boarded the ship. From the boat, I could see a small group of nuns, in white, clearly visible on the shore below what appeared a sizable religious building. He was quite a character; somewhat enigmatic. We never really found out much more about him or why he was on a journey and where he was going. One meets many interesting characters when travelling. I found the same experience on subsequent journeys in both Africa and Europe.

At 9.00 pm on Sunday 7th January, the ship docked at Mpulungu in Zambia. We slept on board overnight and got breakfast in the morning. We were on the last leg of our journey with just another 800 miles to go. If all went well, we planned to get back home in a few days, passing through Tunduma, Mbeya, Iringa, Ifunda, Morogoro, and then a final 200-mile push to Moshi. A planned detour, to visit a friend of our Peace Corps colleague in Fort Hill, Malawi, was abandoned when we encountered heavy rain and saw the state of the road. Not that the roads on our principal route proved to be any better. In fact, because of heavy vehicle traffic on the route up to Dar es Salaam, conditions on some parts of the road were atrocious. The road being colloquially referred to as the Hell Run. Following Southern Rhodesia’s declaration of UDI from Britain, on November 11th, 1965, relations between countries to the North of the Zambesi and the breakaway regime in Rhodesia, under the Premiership of Iain Smith, were fraught. Normal transport links, both North and South, across the Zambesi were disrupted. The route for oil imports to Zambia from Beira, in Mozambique, was also cut. To maintain Zambia’s oil supply and general

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 56

17/12/2021 16:19

freight transport links, an overland route up to Dar es Salaam was used. Road tankers transported oil from the port at Dar es Salaam (DSM) to Zambia, and copper ingots from the Copper Belt carried back to DSM on returning empty tankers. Heavy vehicles and the volume of traffic could play havoc with the unpaved road surface. A difficult stretch of road:

When conditions were wet, sections of the road churned up into a quagmire. Long distances and driver fatigue led to frequent accidents along the route so that the road was littered with wrecked vehicles. Reputedly, the trade was so lucrative that if a tanker made a successful outward and return trip, the return on investment sufficed to cover the cost of the vehicle with operating costs, and still show a profit. Mayhem on the Hell Run:

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 57

17/12/2021 16:19

On one stretch of road, we came upon a stranded Spyron tanker trailer with its wheels on one side sunk deep into the road surface and tilted at a crazy angle. With a heavy smell of petrol in the air, a gang of workers was labouring to dig it out. One (second from the right in the photograph) apparently oblivious to the danger, had a lighted cigarette in hand. Understandably, we made our greetings and beat a hasty retreat.

At one point we ran into a boggy stretch of road and attempting to negotiate the hazard ended embedded up to the axles in mud. We tried to lift the car out but to no avail. Then, as if by magic, a group of Africans materialized out of the bush. They offered to help us for a price. It was a high price; higher than seemed reasonable. When we tried to argue them down, they made to wander off. Our options were simple. Either pay what was being asked or stay stuck in the mud. It was, as they say, a no-brainer. With a practiced technique, they expertly lifted the car onto firm ground. I imagine it was a nice little earner for them and we could afford their price anyway. But I speculated whether, between rescuing stuck vehicles, they spent their time watering the road. Staying overnight at schools in Mbeya and Iringa we made good progress to Morogoro and apart from hitting a chicken on the road after Ifunda, it was an uneventful slog. At Morogoro we splashed out; had dinner at the Acropol Hotel and stayed at the Kibarua before the final push back to Moshi. Out of interest, I checked and found the Kibarua Hotel has disappeared without a trace, but the Acropol is still in business, trading as the New Acropol Hotel. Over 50 years many things change, but also others continue much as before, adding to the feeling of nostalgia.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 58

17/12/2021 16:19

January 11th and an early start, keen to get back to our beds and baths in Moshi, we were making good progress up to 50 miles from Morogoro when, early afternoon, the rear offside brake drum splines went leaving us stranded. We knew what the problem was and the solution, having been there before. The nearest likely place to get a replacement drum was at Tanga, which is on the coast some 120 miles away. Andy set off for Tanga. We set up a makeshift camp by the side of the road, not expecting to continue our journey for at least a day, or two, depending on how successful Andy was in reaching Tanga and getting back. We were expecting to be back in Moshi that day, so had no food with us to speak of. A road construction gang working nearby told us there was a duka (shop) seven or eight miles up the road. I got a lift from a passing truck to the duka but found it was not much more than a shack with a very limited range of stock. Nevertheless, I got some basics and importantly, some Fanta to drink, which was better than nothing. Hitched back to our camp.

Andy had been amazingly successful in locating a replacement brake drum and getting a lift back, arriving at around 8.30 pm that same day. Now experts in replacing brake drums, we had it repaired within half an hour and got underway at 9.00 pm. Very tired, we arrived at Korogwe around midnight and refreshed ourselves with coffee at the bus station. With still another 120 miles to go, we pressed on. On the way we stopped and gave a lift to an Asian whose car had broken down - goodness knows where; just too tired to remember. Friday 12 January 1967: Arrived at Moshi 05.30 am. Back to teaching! James Ball

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 59

17/12/2021 16:19

HOW THE SPEDDING FAMILY UNINTENTIONALLY CLIMBED MT SNOWDON From the late 1920s my grandparents used to take a family holiday on a farm at Rhewl on the River Dee near Llangollen, North Wales, and my parents kept up that tradition for several years both before and after WW2. We lived in the north of Liverpool, so North Wales was easy to reach. In the 1970s, we had moved to the outskirts of Bristol, and I had my own young family, who always wanted to hear stories about my early days. My somewhat exaggerated tales of swimming exploits in the crystal-clear waters of the Dee, and ‘helping’ staff at the nearby Glyndyfrdwy station on the gated single-track Dee valley railway were received in rapt silence. I must have over-egged these stories just a little, because the choice of destination for our next holiday was a foregone conclusion, as far as the young people were concerned. We were off to Llangollen. I telephoned the exchange there, and asked the operator (remember those days?) for the number of the farm where we used to stay, and everything was fixed up in a matter of minutes. Needless to say, when we got there, the stones in the river were no longer clean, the water did not sparkle any more due to slurry run-off from fields, and I did not feel like scooping-up its water in order to make tea. However, everything else was as expected, and we were made welcome at the farm by the grand-daughter of our original hostess, and after dinner we settled down to make plans for the next day’s trip. My suggestion of a picnic on the Llanberis Pass, followed by adventures at Caernarfon castle was approved, and we looked forward to a ‘grand day out.’ Perhaps it is appropriate now to mention that our son, Robert, who then was six years old, had always, even before he could walk, climbed stone walls and furniture, with pianos, and Welsh dressers a specialty. And so it was that next day, after a short drive, we arrived near the top of the Llanberis pass, parked the car adjacent to the ‘miners’ path’ and laid out our picnic overlooking Lake Glaslyn, which was bathed in bright sunshine. There is little louder than the cry of a mother who discovers that Number One Son has gone AWOL. ‘Quick! Quick!’ she called, ‘Alan, take your clothes off and rescue Rob, he must have fallen in the lake.’ However, the surface of the lake lay smooth and mirror-like. With trepidation we raised our eyes unto the hills, and behold! a smallish, orange-cagoule-clad figure could be seen, already half-way up the steep, narrow, and treacherous pathway through the slate scree. ‘It’s Robert!’ we all cried, stating the obvious. Then, ‘don’t distract him, he might fall down from that height’. Patch, our Border Collie dog, idly fossicking about, heard the cries, and obviously decided that following his young pal up the vertiginous path was a potential adventure likely to be more interesting than going ordinary boring walkies. His sheepdog inheritance engaged in first gear, and he dashed off up the path, seemingly with little effort. Of course, Catherine, who was a year older than Robert, was not going to allow her brother and the dog to enjoy an adventure without her supervision, and she was on her way before we could exert a restraining influence. Meanwhile, wife Susan had collected up the picnic, thrown it into the car, and then followed me up the path as I bravely set off at speed to rescue our little lad. I should have said ‘bravely’ in respect of Susan, because, not only has she a fear of heights, but Robert had climbed quite a distance. No jokes about ‘vertigo,’ please. Naturally, the realisation that he was being 60

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 60

17/12/2021 16:19

pursued stimulated Robert to scramble even faster upwards. We did not dare to call him back, so, if anyone was observing the drama, they would have seen the Spedding family in a straggling line, frantically scrambling up the mountainside. Without climbing helmets, ropes, or ice axes, I hasten to add. I caught up with Robert just after he emerged from the treacherous scree onto a sheepcropped grassy part of the ancient route, and so all were joyfully re-united. ‘I am not going back down the way we came up’ said Susan firmly. Looking down, I realised just how steep was the path, and I had to agree that it would be very dangerous. From the southwest, and above us, came an asthmatic whistle. ‘The Snowdon Mountain Railway,’ I exclaimed. ‘We have scrambled through the difficult part, and only have to walk up in that direction to the Summit Station, and we can ride down in comfort.’ Some time passed before we stumbled into the summit café giving a cheery, if slightly inaccurate, ‘Borada’ to all, and buying cups of tea, and slices of Bara Brith for us, water and a sausage roll for Patch. ‘Tickets for the trip down on the train? I can take the children if they sit on your wife’s knee’ said the guard, ‘but I can’t take you with that dog.’ I explained to him that the dog was a Welsh Border Collie, but, from the guard’s accent, I think he might have been a volunteer from Birmingham, so that cut no ice. Someone suggested that we might leave the dog behind, having explained carefully to him that he was required to follow the train. This idea was, unsurprisingly, given the heave-ho by us, and all of the nosey-parkers around. ‘All aboard for the last train’ shouted the guard, and with a chorus of ribald suggestions from the third-class passengers, the toot of the train’s whistle indicated that I was left alone on the bare mountain. Even the café staff had gone down, so I turned to Patch and said, as jovially as I could, ‘walkies,’ and off we set at a jog. Patch and I re-traced our steps as quickly as possible because the sun was rapidly approaching the horizon, dropped thankfully into the car seats, and drove quickly down the Llanberis pass to the mountain railway station. There sat my family, with a small group of ramblers nearby, who had laid bets on whether we would arrive before dark, or even at all. ‘You’ve taken ages, what kept you?’ came what I thought was the superfluous interrogative arising from my nearest and dearest. Crumbs! (or something similar) I thought. The drive back to Rhewl was quiet, and, after dinner, we had the uncanny experience of the young ones going to sleep without any arguments. Alan Spedding

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 61

17/12/2021 16:19

THE MG AND ME I first met the MGA, with Mark, in 2005. First registered in 1959, KVS 805 is regarded as a ‘classic’; as she’s younger than me I take that as a compliment. At our wedding reception three years later, my brother suggested that the car might have been an added attraction; what an idea. I’ve always loved maps. As a youngster I remember ‘directing’ my father on long journeys from our home in Hampshire, such as to our grandparents. As one set lived in Yorkshire and the other in Devon, I realise with hindsight that this could have been rather irritating. Going on outings with the ‘Oily Feathers’ in the early years of their formation allowed me to indulge this interest. At this time Mark would have owned the car for just a few years and hadn’t yet bestowed on it all the improvements which would be made in the future. I remember plenty of stops at the side of the road with the bonnet up. In 2006 The ‘Oilies’ made their first trip to the ‘Goodwood Revival’ meeting which afforded a tantalising map challenge – how to travel from Bristol to West Sussex avoiding large towns and motorways. On this occasion we left our meeting place – ‘The George’ at Norton St Philip, bypassed Warminster, then headed over Salisbury Plain to turn south passing between Winchester and Southampton at Twyford (pub lunch), and continued cross country north of Chichester to our hotel. In other years we have looped further north, or travelled south of Salisbury, mainly on good ‘B’ roads and through pretty villages and countryside. 2007 saw us teaming up with Mike and Daphne Heming and Alfred and Wo Hill on the ‘Welsh Wander’, an organised rally for classic cars exploring the minor roads and sights of North Wales. Despite a week of continuous rain, we enjoyed the experience and looked for more events to partake in. We entered the Chipping Sodbury Rally most years and Bill Phillips’ ‘Riding for the Disabled’ charity runs. Stuart Potter also took groups to Dawlish for weekends and arranged visits to the Vale of Evesham to follow ‘The Blossom Trail’ and the ‘Asparagus Tour’. On a larger scale, we joined the Norwich Union Classic for its last few years. This national rally had starting points around the country. Victoria Park in Bath was the nearest for us, but I remember once, when Bath was fully booked, having a very wet drive to stay overnight in Stockbridge and leave from Middle Wallop airfield. All cars finished at Silverstone. One memorable occasion we nearly ran out of fuel on our lap of the circuit; fortunately, there were friendly AA men in the car park happy to clean out the carburettors. We haven’t yet entered the London to Brighton Classic as it always falls on the same weekend as the artists’ outing; maybe one day. The number of ‘Oilies’ increased rapidly and soon became an eclectic and companionable mix of cars and crews (currently 33 members) enjoying monthly events and annual holidays. We were made aware that more than a dozen cars on a route together became an ‘event’ and the police would need to be notified. To overcome this, for our first outing in 2011, the cars were divided into two groups and sent opposite ways around a figure of eight route. And so

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 62

17/12/2021 16:19

the Mad March Run was born and has been repeated every year since except when Covid hit in 2020; after two postponements it was eventually held in August ’21 and was madder than ever with each of the 15 cars having a different combination of routes. On the Mad March Run 2011

The hope is that the participants will meet their colleagues coming from the opposite direction or passing at junctions. We always try to send the Winkleys through a ford since they complained about one en route to Dawlish one year. The Winkleys leading the way through the ford at Sidmouth 2009

Along with Tim and Judy Pearce, we’ve also combined routes with Treasure Hunts to challenge crews further, but the truth is both drivers and navigators are becoming expert and we are trying to think of further ways of testing them without introducing a competitive element as this requires a Motor Sports Association licence. To challenge ourselves further we joined the HRCR (Historic Rally Car Register) and HERO (The Historic Endurance Rally Organisation). We were foolish enough to think the ‘endurance’ part referred to the car – and signed up for some ‘regularity rallies’. I can

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 63

17/12/2021 16:19

tell from the brightly coloured rally plates hanging in the garage that our first competition was The HERO Summer Challenge 2016, an event promoted as an ideal introduction to the sport. We soon realised we were operating at a different level, with some of the entrants being virtually professional, competing most weekends and drivers even paying the best navigators to join them – don’t get any ideas, Oily Wags. These events involved following a route, which could be presented in a variety of ways, interspersed with ‘tests’ – driving around cones in the correct order and direction as quickly as possible, often on very rough surfaces such as old airfields. And ‘regularities’ where you are given a section of route to follow at such a speed as to reach certain landmarks at a precise time, to tenths of a second. You have to stop at Marshalls posted in unexpected locations who would record your time – penalties for each tenth of a second away from the ideal – and very annoying if you’d been held up by a tractor or horses (a common occurrence on the country lanes, or even tracks and private drives, they’d send us along). It was a steep learning curve. Although everyone was friendly, very little instruction was given and we learnt as we went. The first evening we went down to the bar for a convivial drink only to find all the crews poring over their route books – subsequently I went armed with a selection of highlighter pens to mark instructions which appeared in quick succession, changes of average speeds and routes around cones. On our first trip we were heavily penalised for not checking in and out at a time check. Later we arrived at the coffee stop to be told it was time we were leaving, so we did – no coffee or lunch that day as I remember. We also had a puncture on a particularly rough test track, but were rather proud to have changed the wheel in under 10 minutes and not been penalised. There were late nights marking up the routes for the next day and early starts, with those at the lower end of the time sheet going off first. The second day must have gone better because our final position was in the top half of the 50 entrants and so we persevered. Although we had had an accurate mileage tripmeter fitted to the car, it was clear our timing apparatus – two stopwatches – needed upgrading, especially as I sat on one during a regularity and froze the time. So we added an electronic timer, too, which is a lot more accurate so long as I remember to zero the trip and start the clock at the beginning of each section. Also, with the complete concentration required, comparing route book, digital time and digital mileage can get confusing: have we been 10.25 miles or taken 10.25 minutes? ‘All the gear but no idea’ as someone remarked. The HRCR Devon Rally later in the year was slightly less intense, or maybe we’d just improved. We won the Novice section and still have the two Devon Pixie trophies – our only rally success! We never had a chance to win our class because this was based on age and size of engine. Our original 1500cc had been upgraded to a bored out 1950cc MGB engine so we are grouped with the 1960s Porsches and Mini Coopers – we go really well but the handling can’t compete in the tests!

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 64

17/12/2021 16:19

On a ‘test’ during the Devon Rally 2016

An invitation from Tim and Judy Pearce to join them and their friends, former Bristol Savage Alan Atkins and his wife Mo, on a trip to the Ardennes Rally in Belgium brought some light relief in 2017. This once every three years event is non-competitive and the 180 classic cars and 40 motorbikes came from all over Europe. The Atkins brought their English White MGA, too – they also have a red one for hill climbing - and the Pearces were in the AC – we were the English ‘cream team’.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 65

17/12/2021 16:19

A route was agreed and we set off to Europe in early July. Fortunately, the journey was uneventful apart from one section where we had crawled through a town and then climbed a long hill in hot temperatures; the Atkins’ MG began to boil and ours and the AC were very hot too so we stopped to cool off. Tim drove the remainder of the journey with his bonnet propped open. Judy had booked two excellent hotels for us; the small and very French one en route was close to Giverny, where we were able to visit Monet’s house and garden first thing the following morning before the crowds arrived – really lovely. Our home for the duration of the rally weekend was an extraordinary small hotel in the Belgian countryside with luxurious rooms, delicious food served on exquisite crockery – it turned out that the owner had been a director of the Meissen factory. He had converted a swimming pool into a pond inside a conservatory where we had breakfast surrounded by tropical plants and sculptures. The rally itself was slightly disappointing; with so many vehicles following the same route it became more of a procession. At various refreshment stops we were plied with Belgian lager and on one occasion they had run out of meals and were packing up when we arrived - no lunch again. Towards the end we were stationary in a queue when a vintage Bugatti, driver obviously fed up with waiting, roared past with the Pearce AC in hot pursuit. The HERO Scottish Malts Rally in April 2018 turned out to be our final one. The weeklong events are expensive; we stayed in smart hotels – Gleneagles, Crieff Hydro, Kingsmills Inverness, and with five full days of rallying there were lots of marshalls and other staff to accommodate. There were 90 cars entered, a number coming from Europe, notably Germany and Holland. It was clear from conversations that most competitors had more than one classic car and entered at least one long rally a year, all around the world. The Atkins kindly lent us their trailer for the week and gave us full instructions on how to secure the MG. We stopped for a night at the Tebay services; comfortable room, excellent

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 66

17/12/2021 16:19

local food and even a small lounge with a log fire which, amazingly, you don’t get at Gleneagles – all imitation. Our room there was very grand, though, and the buffet breakfast impressive. By the end of three intense days of rallying, interspersed with some lovely scenery and stops at various distilleries, as well as Glamis Castle, we felt as though we were really beginning to master the challenges. Nevertheless, we were surprised to find ourselves in third position for the day.

Losing our rally number on the Scottish Malts 2018. It looks like the car needed the wash. The next morning, starting later than usual and full of confidence we were looking forward to the day ahead but before long our hopes were dashed – on a moor, just out of Inverness, our clutch failed – no gears and no spare part. Despite the best efforts of the HERO mechanics, we were towed back to the hotel and out for the rest of the day. There followed many phone calls until we located the required spare at a garage in Fife and arranged to have it delivered by 6pm so the mechanics would fix it for the next day. Cost of part: £20, cost of courier: £240! We actually quite enjoyed our ‘day off’ exploring Inverness on foot. Rallying is not a kind sport; we hadn’t completed any sections on Day 4 and were awarded maximum penalties for each – back to the bottom of the list. The final day went well and we were welcomed back to Gleneagles with bagpipes and champagne. We had arranged to stay an extra night, giving us a free day to explore and with time to admire the scenery rather than the route book, before starting for home, but the adventure still wasn’t over.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 67

17/12/2021 16:19

Back at Tebay Services (South side this time, also excellent) we noticed one of the trailer wheels was very hot. We took the MG off and the hotel arranged for us to take the trailer to a local garage the next (Sunday) morning – our car breakdown cover didn’t include the trailer. The garage owner had raced classic Minis and was keen to see the MG, so I drove the Volvo with the trailer and Mark followed. On arrival the mechanic asked to see the problem wheel, I said it was still on the trailer – it wasn’t! I phoned Mark and he picked it up, fortunately it had come off before I was on the motorway, but it was deemed unrepairable. I ended up towing the trailer – which still had three wheels – back on the motorway and Mark took the scenic route home in the MG. During the first ‘lockdown’ I enjoyed spending time solving some tricky map-based challenges set by the HERO team, but I don’t think we’ll be doing any more competitions in the car. I still enjoy planning and navigating routes and am looking forward to more tours with the Oilies and others. The bonus for me is that once we’ve completed the route, I get to drive this lovely car home. This is generally after a pub stop so it suits Mark, too. Susan Blackmore

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 68

17/12/2021 16:19

SIR TERENCE RATTIGAN I suppose I’m a bit of a nostalgic, though I don’t believe everything in the past was better. However, I do think that some of us, and I include myself, are less likely to show each other the courtesies and consideration as in the past. Terence Rattigan seems to me to embody these qualities in his writing, more than current authors. I should add that I was taught English by an outstanding schoolmaster, who encouraged our critical faculties. Terence Rattigan was born in 1911 and attended Harrow School, an upper middle class start in life which influenced some of his work. He was an author and had sympathy with his characters, even the minor ones. In all he wrote over forty plays and other works. He was thought of as being too middle or upper class by some of his contemporaries. None the less, he transcends these criticisms. He was also thought by the avantgarde to be too cosy, though actually his characters are often complex. His work also lends itself to radio and his contribution to this medium has proved popular with many. Rattigan has sometimes been accused both by his peers and theatre critics of being too sympathetic, but nothing could be further from the truth. His characters have depth and sentiment, rather than sentimentality. His plays are well structured and satisfy those of us who like to see beginning, middle and end in a production. The moving scenes in “The Browning Version” are vividly portrayed by Michael Redgrave in the film of that name, and the part of the Major in “Separate Tables” shows the sympathy Rattigan had with his characters, together with a deep understanding of human nature. Watch them! You will not be disappointed. Despite being replaced in the public favour by Joe Orton and John Osborne, he nevertheless followed their careers with interest. There was no bitterness nor jealousy. In his personal life, his play “Flare Path” later, with suitable changes, made into the film “The Way to the Stars,” was probably based on his real experience as an air gunner in World War II, which he never mentioned in public. An air gunner’s active life was four minutes. There is no doubting his courage. He was gay, at a time when being a gay person was difficult. Happily, his plays are now enjoying a revival. He was knighted in 1971 and died in 1976. John Isaacs

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 69

17/12/2021 16:19

SKETCHES BY ARTIST MEMBER RICHARD POPE I start all my work with tiny ink drawings produced in A6 sketchbooks. Here, my ideas are visualised, annotated and mixed together from both direct observation and my imagination. All my paintings begin life in these books - where scraps of ideas and imagery jostle together over the years to suggest possibilities for the future. When I arrive at something that looks as though it may work, I produce various studies to test the idea further. I look at how colour, scale and multiple viewpoints are to be intermixed and then decide which media is best suited for a final full-size version. All my work is auto-biographical and is based on something I have seen or experienced in the near or distant past. No matter how abstract the imagery, my work always makes reference to the real world – albeit one that interweaves shifting places and time-scales. I use a range of media and mark-making processes and work regularly, back and forth, with precise, controlled ink drawings and watercolours to larger more coarsely-grained paintings. I like to explore harmony and counter change using observed abstract patterns and stylised motifs. My work encourages the eye to wander through the composition and to seek associations between the interconnected parts of the painting and the world at large. I hope the spectator will take a little time to examine my work and to establish new connections for themselves.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 70

17/12/2021 16:19

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 71

17/12/2021 16:19

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 72

17/12/2021 16:19

WHY THE TASK FORCE? The timeless sentiment: “We will carry on”, long a watchword for Bristol Savages, was coming under increasing challenge in 2019. Our Society faced dwindling numbers, recognition of the increasing lack of diversity and inclusivity, and a general desire to ‘move with the times’. In looking to transform Bristol Savages into a society that would carry on, a Task Force was set up by the GPC. The remit was to plan and deliver a strategy that would result in an inclusive visual and performing arts membership organisation promoting culture, friendship and artistic endeavour, now to be known as the Bristol 1904 Arts. The challenge was to find a way to accept the diversity requirements of the 21st Century, whilst retaining the iconic, unique traditions of a 100 year old club, and then to deliver the change without upsetting members of long standing. Following unprecedented attacks in the local Press about ‘cultural appropriation’ in the wake of the Colston statue saga and the Black Lives Matter movement, it was decided that it was time for a fundamental review of how Bristol Savages should operate moving forward with the inclusion of women as full members. To achieve this transformation, a small group of volunteer Red, Blue and Green Feathers met weekly starting in the summer of 2020, drew up and agreed a Vision for the Future and drafted a strategy and an accompanying action plan. This newly formed Task Force looked at the key areas where ‘change’ was required: Membership (encourage women and younger members) Constitution/Rules (revise and update) Wigwam (update decor and build a new bar) Marketing and Public Relations (a more professional approach and reach) Collaboration and co-operation with other arts organisations Programme of events (traditional evenings, SWAT/TWIST, Let’s Talk, etc) The other huge challenge was to communicate the most fundamental changes to the membership, enable all members to have their say and to be able to vote democratically on the changes. The Covid-19 pandemic added additional difficulty, but the members acceptance of ‘doing things virtually’ proved to be most impressive. Regular communications from the President and Secretariat attempted to keep everyone up to date. At the time of writing many of these tasks have been achieved. We already have a number of women members and this will help attract many more in the future. We have a new constitution, the format for a new management committee and a new way of electing a President and a Chairman. Changes have been made to the décor of the Wigwam and a new bar has been constructed. Our bar transactions are now cashless. We have a new website which is being actively managed and incorporates a number of changes. We have a list of other organisations we are seeking to link with our own. TWIST evenings are being held and Let’s Talk events are being planned. There are proposals for a number of special events. In particular our involvement with Open Doors Day in its new format is a significant exercise.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 73

17/12/2021 16:19

The Task Force has also acted as a catalyst for new ventures such as the streaming of events. This is still in the early stages of development. Membership and subscriptions continue to be most important issues. We need new members and in particular younger members, artists and entertainers. This is being kept under constant review. There is no doubt that little would have been achieved unless the Task Force had met every week, with its members putting in significant extra hours carrying out their tasks. James Short and Mark Blackmore

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 74

17/12/2021 16:19

BRISTOL 1904 ARTS

(Formerly known as BRISTOL SAVAGES) The Foundation Members were: Ernest H. Ehlers, Thomas Kingston, Lowry Lewis, George Lingford, W. Evans Linton, FAS. Locke, Stanley Uoyd, J. Miller Marshall, A. Wilde Parsons, W.H. Quick, Frank Stonelake.

RULES 1. Name and Objectives The name of the Society is BRISTOL 1904 ARTS and its objectives are the appreciation and encouragement of the Arts including the fine and applied arts, music and the performing arts.

2. Membership Membership shall comprise: (a) Artist members (b) Entertainment members (c) General members

3. General Meetings (1) The Annual General Meeting shall be held on the last Wednesday of September in each calendar year (or in such other month in that year as the Management Committee may direct) and be called on not less than 28 days' written notice to the members, to receive reports and hold elections as necessary. (2) The Management Committee may summon, in writing, a General Meeting at any time on not less than 28 days' notice to members. (3) The Management Committee shall, upon a requisition signed by not less than 20 members with a proposed resolution, summon a General Meeting on not less than 28 days' notice of the meeting and of the proposed resolution. (4) Any alteration to these Rules may be proposed by the Management Committee or by any member with the written support of 20 other members and shall be submitted to all members at a General Meeting, a copy of the proposed alteration having been sent to all members with the notice of the meeting. (5) Any alteration or resolution under Rules 3(3) or 3(4) may be carried by a majority of at least two thirds of the members present and voting at the General Meeting. (6) The quorum for any General Meeting shall be 40 members. (7) On an equality of votes at any meeting the chair of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 75

17/12/2021 16:19

4. Officers (1) The Officers of the Society shall be the following: The President The Chair The Secretary or two Joint Secretaries The Finance Manager The Marketing Manager The Operations Manager The Property Manager The Entertainment Warden The Art Warden The Members' Representative (2) Election of Officers: (a) The Chair shall be elected to serve for a term of three years, all other Officers being elected to serve for a term of one year. (b) The Chair shall be elected from a nomination supported by at least five members of the Society and must be received by a Secretary no later than 50 days before the date of the Annual General Meeting and if more than one nomination is received, a Secretary shall hold a ballot of the members (which may be carried out by email) for ratification at the next Annual General Meeting. (c) The President shall be elected from a nomination supported by at least five members of the Society and must be received by a Secretary no later than 50 days before the date of the Annual General Meeting. If more than one nomination is received, a Secretary shall hold a ballot of the members (which may be carried out by email) for ratification at the next Annual General Meeting. (d) Each other Officer shall be elected at an Annual General Meeting from a nomination supported by two members of the Society and received by a Secretary no later than 14 days before the Annual General Meeting and if more than one nomination is received for the same role, a ballot of members present shall take place at the Annual General Meeting. (e) After completing their terms of office, all Officers shall be eligible for election as an Officer except that, without the approval of the Management Committee: (i)

neither the Chair nor the President shall be eligible for re-election to the same role for at least a year and

(ii) the maximum number of consecutive years that a member of the Society may serve as an Officer is five.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 76

17/12/2021 16:19

5. The Management Committee (1) The affairs of the Society shall be managed by the Management Committee whose members shall comprise the Officers of the Society. In the event of two Joint Secretaries, both are to be regarded as Officers. (2) The quorum for any Management Committee meetings shall be 6 members. (3) The members present at a meeting of the Management Committee will elect a chair for that meeting if the Chair is not present. (4) Vacancies on the Management Committee: (a) The Management Committee may appoint a member of the Society to fill any casual vacancy on the Committee until the next Annual General Meeting. (b) Any member so appointed must retire at the next Annual General Meeting but may be elected as an Officer at that meeting. (5) The Management Committee may co-opt one member of the Society who shall serve until the next Annual General Meeting and who shall be entitled to vote at Committee Meetings.

6. Financial year, Accounts and Auditor (1) The Society's financial year runs to the end of September. Annual Accounts must be presented each year and adopted at a General Meeting no later than the 3 Ist December of that year. (2) At the Annual General Meeting a member not serving as an Officer shall be elected as the Auditor for the following year.

7. Election of Members (1) An application for membership must state: (a) The applicant's name and address. (b) That the applicant has been given a copy of these Rules, supports the objectives of the Society and agrees to be bound by the Rules upon admission to membership, (c) That the applicant consents to the Society holding and using relevant data in compliance with current data protection legislation and the current needs of the Society. (2) Election to Membership (a) Applicants must be nominated by any two members to whom they are personally known. (b) All applications for membership shall be notified to all members of the Society prior to an applicant becoming a member. Any member objecting to an applicant becoming a member shall give reasons to a Secretary within 21 days. The Secretary will immediately notify the Management Committee of any objections and the matter will be discussed by the committee before a final decision is made to admit or decline the application. (3) Artist member elections The Artist membership shall define from time to time the requirements for election as an Artist member, including assessment of an applicant's artistic work.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 77

17/12/2021 16:19

(4) Entertainment member elections The Entertainment membership shall define from time to time the requirements for election as an Entertainment member, including assessment of perfomances by an applicant. (5) General member elections After three weeks have elapsed from the date of the notification to members, the Management Committee may elect all such applicants receiving a majority of votes in Committee. Membership shall commence upon election. 8. Membership subscriptions The annual subscriptions shall be determined from time to time by the Management Committee, subject to ratification at a General Meeting. Subscriptions shall be due on joining and on the Ist October in each year. A member whose subscription shall remain unpaid on the 30th November in that year shall be deemed to have resigned. A new member who has not paid within 60 days of being advised of their becoming a new member is deemed to have forfeited this new membership. 9. Other Membership (1) The Management Committee may appoint: (a) to Life Membership, as the highest honour achievable as a member of the Society, a member who has given long and eminent service to the Society, such Life Members not to exceed 20 in number and not being liable to pay a subscription. (b) as a Distinguished Member, a member whom the Management Committee wishes so to honour, such members not to exceed 15 in number and being liable to pay the full subscription applicable to the member's class of membership. (c) to Honorary Membership someone who may attend meetings but shall not be entitled to vote, such members not exceeding I Oin number and not being liable to pay a subscription. (2) Temporary Membership - a visitor may be made a temporary member for one day provided that their name has been recorded by a Secretary not less than 2 days before attendance. 10. Guests (1) A member of the Society may introduce guests to ordinary meetings but the same guest may not be invited more than three times in six months. Guests and host members must together sign the visitor's book. (2) The Management Committee may designate as having 'Freedom of the Society' a former member who has given service to the Society and whose health or place of residence restricts or prevents attendance. The member shall then be entitled to attend meetings or functions when possible but shall not be entitled to vote. 11. Friends The Management Committee may invite an individual to become a Friend of the Society with such privileges and under such conditions as the Committee may lay down from time to time. 12. Notices (I) Any notice required or allowed to be given to any member under these Rules is validly given if written and:

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 78

17/12/2021 16:19

(a) sent by post to that member's most recent address given to the Society (in which case it is deemed given to the member 3 days after posting); or (b) given to that member personally; or (c) sent by email to that member's most recent email address given to the Society. (2) Any notice required or allowed to be given by any member to a Secretary under these Rules is validly given if written and sent by post or email to a Secretary at the postal or email address of the Society most recently notified to members. It is deemed given when actually received at that postal or email address.

13. Trustees and Property (1) The property of the Society, other than cash at the bank, shall be vested in not less than two and not more than four Trustees who shall hold the property upon trust for the members of the Society in accordance with the directions of the Management Committee. (2) The Trustees shall deal with the property as directed by resolution of the Management Committee and entry in the minute book shall be conclusive evidence of such resolution. (3) The Trustees shall be members and nominated by the Management Committee and shall hold office until death or resignation unless removed by resolution of the Committee. (4) The President is nominated as the person to appoint new Trustees within the meaning of section 36 of the Trustee Act 1925 and the President shall by deed duly appoint the person or persons so nominated as the new Trustee or Trustees.

14. Use of the Society's name Members shall not use the name of Bristol 1904 Arts in any advertisement or circular or for any professional purpose save that Artist and Entertainment members may refer to their class of membership.

15. Employment and Other Contracts (1) The Society may engage employees on such terms as the Management Committee decides. (2) All contracts of employment will be made by a Secretary and will state that the Secretary is the employer on behalf of the Society for the time being. (3) A Secretary may enter into contracts as agent for the members with the approval of the Management Committee. (4) All other contracts between the Society and any other person are made by the Trustees as agents for the members unless the Management Committee instead authorises any one or more of the Officers to enter into a contract as agent for the members.

16. Indemnities and limitation of liability (I) Full indemnity out of the Society funds is given to: (a) Trustees against all payments and other liabilities properly incurred by them as Trustees. (b) The Officers against all payments and other liabilities properly incurred by them in the exercise of their duties or powers for the Society.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 79

17/12/2021 16:19

(c) Every Trustee, Officer or other member entering into any contract on behalf of the members against all payments and other liabilities properly incurred by them in connection with that contract. (2) The liability of Trustees, Officers or other members entering into any contract for the Society and the liability of any members on whose behalf the contract is made is limited to the assets of the Society. 17. Borrowing powers (1) The Management Committee may from time to time authorise the borrowing of money by the Society for the purposes of the Society for general upkeep or with the sanction of a General Meeting, for any other expenditure, additions or improvements. (2) When so borrowing the Committee shall have power to raise in any way, any sum or sums of money and to raise and secure the repayment of such sums in such manner or on such terms and conditions as they think fit and in particular by mortgage of or charge upon all or any part of the property of the Society. 18. Expulsion

The Management Committee shall have power to expel a member when, in their opinion, it would not be in the interests of the Society for them to remain a member. A member shall not be expelled unless given not less than 14 days written notice to attend a meeting of the Committee and written details of the complaint made against them. The member may attend before the Committee to answer such complaint and shall not be expelled unless at least two thirds of the Committee then present vote in favour of expulsion. 19. Dissolution

(1) The Society may be dissolved by a resolution passed by a two thirds majority of the members voting when the vote is taken but only if there is at least 50% of the current membership voting in favour of the resolution. (2) The resolution takes effect immediately unless it expressly states that it is to take effect on a specified date not more than 4 weeks later. (3) As soon as the resolution takes effect the Management Committee must pay or otherwise settle all debts and other liabilities of the Society. All monies and assets remaining shall be distributed amongst such charitable societies and like institutions as the Management Committee shall think fit.

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 80

17/12/2021 16:19

STREAMING UP THE LEARNING CURVE For me, it all began with a call from Mark Blackmore last autumn. Would I lead on streaming? Flattered to be asked and keen to help, I said, yes and then Googled ‘streaming’. I would still be hard-pressed to give a precise definition, but ‘broadcasting a live show’ might sum up most of what we have been trying to achieve during lock-down. The team is made up of Tim Wilmot, Andy McLaren, Peter Jones, Arthur Noonan and me. Our first venture was ‘Punch Night’. This was pre-recorded, filmed on a sunny day, and edited one long Saturday to be broadcast/streamed on Wednesday 23rd December. On this occasion we had huge help from Keith Rogerson, friend, neighbour and past BBC colleague of Peter, and a sound recordist/engineer. Keith did all the filming and sound recording whilst we stood around in apprentice mode and made tea. I did get the exciting role of clapper-board operative! Was I ‘Best Boy’ as shown in the titles of films? Thereafter, we have aimed at live-streaming, but with a recording that can be viewed after the event. Live-streaming is ‘on the night’, unedited, ‘seat of the pants’ stuff with no forgiveness included. Why choose this? Live is live and has this ‘buzz’. It is also much less time-consuming. You only have one ‘take’ and there is no editing and synchronisation of sources, which is painstaking and can take many, many hours. Tim, who streams his own art classes, has been the practised, knowledgeable, patient mentor to the team. He has advised us on streaming platforms – we use Crowdcast, and on image mixing software – we use OBS. A powerful purpose-bought laptop computer creates a troubled marriage between these two capricious software packages. In each broadcast we make new mistakes, but learn more technique. I am sorry you have had to live through this. Now that we can stream from the Wigwam, things have become more manageable as there are fewer variables, although there are still many problems to overcome. Getting good sound into the laptop and then out in the broadcast is top of the list. In the beginning everyone was ‘chez-eux’, sending their contribution from their laptop via their wifi to the virtual ‘studio’ in Crowdcast which was hosted by Tim in his house, thence to all of you who had signed in. Wifi varied, cameras varied, computers varied, technique was on a spectrum, and wives, sons and daughters were often enlisted, sometimes along with their more modern iPhones and computers, to get the show off the ground. We had hours of rehearsal with the artists and musicians, but it always remained touch and go on the night. I was the anchor in the early broadcasts and I remember nail-biting times when the streaming might have started, but one of the main contributors had still not succeeded in getting into the Crowdcast green room or their wifi suddenly faded. Nevertheless, we saw and heard musicians play, sketches drawn in real time and the occasional interview carried out. Most of all, something live and a bit familiar could be seen on a winter Wednesday, and through the shaky videos and poor sound a little bit of what we missed was brought to life and to us.

What next? I hope we continue to film and stream many different events, but if we do, we will require cameras that are not webcams, a separate editing box and a professional sound coming from it and plenty of time to make new mistakes! Geoff Wright

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 81

17/12/2021 16:19

DEVELOPMENT OF FUTURE ENTERTAINMENT Entertainment for Bristol Savages (now Bristol 1904 Arts) has featured in the club almost since its inception. In the early days and indeed even up to modern times it was largely classical performances provided by instrumentalists, singers, poets, raconteurs, and magicians. As far as music was concerned it was mainly a diet of classical pieces. Over time this has changed very little, yes, we have had the introduction of Jazz and acoustic guitars, but the bedrock has been based on classical styles of music and early twentieth century entertainment. As I write this, we are in a fairly weak state as entertainers, plus we are carrying over entertainment styles, some of which are not very popular outside the confines of B1904A and so like it or not we have to change with the times if we are to encourage new membership. It is therefore no surprise that our styles of music and entertainment need to be expanded and changed. As an organisation we have and still are undergoing massive change which has affected every aspect of what we do, the recent COVID pandemic has not helped us or anyone else for that matter, but it has given us a great opportunity to restructure ourselves, not least of all the Entertainment Members. In the outside world there have been massive changes and swings in entertainment tastes. In the 1970’s there were plenty of small mid-sized venues but these days they are either small or arena size! We are fortunate with our facilities and we should make the most of them. So, over the coming months and years it is hoped to introduce genres of entertainment which will hopefully provide something for everyone, such as: Classical performance Humour including the raconteur Jazz Modern Music – Folk / Pop / Country Magic Spoken word Drama Concerts Dance Cabaret Comedy For the future B1904A will be expanding its horizons regarding entertainment with a view to embracing all the above. This will have a twofold benefit, firstly it will attract more diverse entertainment and secondly it is hoped that it will attract new younger members. Some of this will be achieved through our regular TWISTs, however, it is hoped to introduce ‘Concert Evenings’. This latter initiative is particularly exciting as it will be aimed primarily at members of the public and established performance artists, be they Classical, Jazz, Cabaret etc., to encourage them to join us. It will also provide additional spots for our own Entertainment Members. For the weekly meetings we may try and introduce younger guests to entertain us more regularly and give them an opportunity to experience life in Bristol 1904 Arts. These are long term strategies which will take time to plan and come to fruition but are necessary to ensure our future and enable us to grow. Brian Inglis 82

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 82

17/12/2021 16:19

Stuart ‘Fingers’ Potter and Graham Smith

Steve Price

Tom Thorp with Stuart Fingers Potter and James Hemming

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 83

17/12/2021 16:19

Dates for your 2022 diary: Founder’s Day Service: Lord Mayor’s Chapel & tea. Sunday 13th February Annual House Dinner: Friday 4th March 2nd XI Painting Exhibition: 2nd-10th February National Nights; Welsh Night (2nd March), Irish Night (16th March), English Night (20th April)

Please consult the Members section of bristol1904arts.org for up-to-date information on all events

Bristol 1904 Arts Elected Officers of the Management Committee (10 members) President: John Bedford The Chair: Michael Newstead Secretary/Joint Secretaries: Arthur Noonan and Jonathan Bird Finance Manager: Mark Blackmore Marketing Manager: Nigel Stafford Operations Manager: Chris Winkley Property Manager: David Marval Entertainment Warden: Brian Inglis Art Warden: John Dunn Members’ Representative: Terry Crocker Additional Non Committee Officers and posts: Honorary Auditor: Christopher Stone Legal Advisor: John Bedford Archivist: Michael Long Curator: Michael Newstead Editor of Grouse: Paul Main Almoner: Vacant 84

grouse-2021_text_a4_05_dec-21.indd 84

17/12/2021 16:19

Bristol 1904 Arts - Grouse 2021

Articles inside

Streaming up the learning curve by Geoff Wright

Sir Terence Rattigan by John Isaacs

Sketches from Richard Pope’s workbook

Development of Future of Entertainment by Brian Inglis

Our New constitution

How the Spedding family climbed Mount Snowdon unintentionally by Alan Spedding

The History of Ashton Court by Bill Thomas (supplied by Elizabeth Thomas

Booby Prizes by Les Shutt

The Life & Music of Robert Schumann by Ray Anstice

Social Distancing by Alan Shellard Page 35- 38 The Sieges of Bristol by Ian Faulkner

Open Doors Day September 2021 by Jonathan Bird

Scenic Car Run, BBQ and Jazz 24 June 2021 by Bill Phillips

Artists Outing to Christchurch 29th July 2021, our guests’ perspective on the day

Annual Artists’ outing to Christchurch Thursday 29th July 2021 by Robert Dawes

TWIST Evening Friday 20 Aug 2021 by James Short

26 Coming home by Bill Phillips

Prince Philip and me by Roger Francis

Reflections on the life and legacy of HRH The Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh by The

Oily classic cars at St Donat’s Castle 24th August 2021 by Peter Bush

Snappers’ report by Jonathan Bolgar

Walkers’ report by Geoff Wright

In a time of Lockdowns - report on Cultural Expeditions 2020-1 by Paul Main

Editorial Commentary

New President John Bedford

Michael Heming obituary by Graham Blower

Avians report

New Chairman Michael Newstead and Membership Changes