Cardiff Now January 2011 by dan kenneally

Priceless JANUARY 2011

ARDIFF NOW CARDIFFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MOST USEFUL MONTHLY MAGAZINE

MUSIC The Ultimate Eagles FASHION Blind Lemon vintage fashion FOOD & DRINK Spanish Pork and wines from Uruguay HEALTH The New Year Resolution TRAVEL An affordable taste of paradise FILM PREVIEWS The Black Swan PLUS Win am iPod nano! And Lots More Inside! Visit the magazine online at: www.cardiffnow.co.uk

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Contents 06

Fashion : Blind lemon by Chantele Cross-Jones

Ladies night by Alaina Morgans

Beauty : Beat the January Blues

Education : New Year, New Choices

History : St Isan

Perspectives on January by Chrissy Derbyshire

Food : Spanish Pork

Travel : An affordable taste of paradise

Music: The Ultimate Eagles by Alaina Morgans

Gardens: Contain your winter wonderland

Crossword and Sudoku

Food & Drink: Wines from Uruguay

Tony Millin: ‘Come by ‘yer....’

Health : The New Year Resolution

Health: Dan Jones on back injuries

Health: Keeping fit and healthy in the New Year

Movies : Special preview of The Black Swan

School News

ARDIFF NOW

elcome

It is hard to be original in January and not be wishing everyone a happy and prosperous year. So I’m going to anyway!

Publisher: Media Publishing Group Ltd Editor: Dan Kenneally

I’m not sure what weather will be confronting us at the time you are reading this, but at the time of me writing, there is more snow on the ground than I’ve seen in Cardiff for many years. Great for making snowmen, but not so great for travel. Still I’m sure the wholesale market on rock salt is doing very well!

Editorial: 02920 612 476 Advertising: 07868 281320 Email: cardiffnow@btinternet.com Website: www.cardiffnow.co.uk Feature Writers Ann Konsbruck Dr Sue Kenneally Dr Anna Maclean Tony Millin Kris Agland Alaina Morgans Chrissy Derbyshire Chantele Cross-Jones Dan Kenneally

Thank you to all those who have sent messages regarding the new-look magazine, which is very encouraging and of course, feedback is always welcome. I will apologise for the website not being quite ready to go, but hopefully this will be ready very soon and you should find lots more information and up to date news there in the near future.

Photography Kris Agland Cross-Jones Photography

Best Wishes,

So here is wishing you a very happy and safe 2011!

Acknowledgements James Neale Louise Denning Nan Kenneally

Dan Kenneally

Editor

Whilst every care has been taken to ensure that the data in this publication is accurate, neither the publisher nor its editorial contributors can accept, and hereby disclaim, any liability to any party to loss or damage caused by errors or omissions resulting from negligence, accident or any other cause.

CARDIFF NOW RESOURCE GUIDE

Media Publishing Group Ltd

68 What’s on in Cardiff

does not officially endorse any advertising material included

70 Churches & Community

72 Schools & Local Council

reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted

74 Health & Charities

in any form - electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise - without prior permission of the

76 Restaurants & Takeaways

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77 Cardiff Venues 78 Local Sports 5

lind Lemon : Vintage Fair By Chantele Cross-Jones

Next month sees the return of the Blind Lemon Vintage Fair to Cardiff City. The brilliant semiannual vintage shopping extravaganza will be held in Cardiff City Hall on the 6th February. The ever popular event is organized by Edwin Dyson, civil servant by day, vintage enthusiast by night. I caught up with Edwin to find out a little about why he started the fairs and what led to his vintage passion.

“It gives you a chance to look smart and on-trend whilst getting some serious value for money and allows you to be an i n d i vi d u a l . . .I t’ s p o p u l a r because it’s ethical, it’s recycling and thats important as there’s only a finite amount of resources available and clothing takes up a large chunk of those”.

Edwin started trading vintage clothing online in 2005 when he noticed there was a great stock of vintage clothing in charity shops local to him in Pembrokeshire. His online store did so well he started importing stock from the States and sourcing UK wholesalers. In 2006 he decided to launch Blind Lemon Vintage Fairs.

From a personal point of view I also love vintage fashion because it allows you to look unique, I love the idea of having something that no one else in the UK, possibly even the world has. Vintage clothing was rarely mass produced and much of it was handmade so the likelihood of there being 2 pieces of the same item in circulation is very slim. I think popularity has risen recently because so many celebrities have admitted to wearing vintage and there have been a number of vintage themed trends over the last 18 months or so. Think of all the lace we saw last year!

Although he is still a one man band he has managed to launch fairs in 5 major cities: Cardiff, Bristol, Cheltenham, Gloucester and Swansea. Plus he says he has another 2 cities in the pipeline to hopefully launch this year. Edwin believes that any city with a university or large college is a great place for a vintage market, as students are very fashion conscious. So Cardiff is, in his words, ‘a cracking city’ for vintage fashion. Edwin says his love of vintage fa shion sta rted whilst a t University in Bristol when he found a passion for vintage Hawaiian shirts! But his best find so far was a blue striped boating blazer which he found at last years fair in Cheltenham. I asked Edwin what was his favourite part about vintage fashion and why he thought it was becoming so popular?

So if all this talk of vintage shopping has got you dreaming of the perfect 50’s day dress, 60’s Chanel style jacket or even 70’s flared jeans why not get yourself tickets to one of this year’s Blind Lemon Vintage Fairs:

Cardiff 6th February Bristol 13th February Cheltenham 20th February Gloucester 27th February Swansea 13th March Tickets can be purchased from their website: www.blindlemonvintage.co.uk

Pictures by Cross-Jones Photography

ashion

If you can’t wait till February why not check out one of my top places for vintage shopping in Cardiff.

Jacobs Antique Market West Canal Wharf Cardiff CF10 5DB Open Wed-Sat 9:30am-5pm Hobo’s Vintage Clothing 26 Hight Street Arcade Cardiff CF10 1BB Open Mon-Sat 11am-5:30pm and Sun 12pm4pm I Claudius - Fancy Dress and Second Hand Shop 8 Castle Arcade Cardiff CF10 1BU Open Mon-Sat 9:30am-5:30pm Milkwood Gallery 41 Locaber Street Cardiff CF24 3LS Open Tues-Sat 10am-5pm

adies Night

t the New House Hotel Also Virgin-V make up will be presenting their products and offering advice.

Cardiff Now attended a ‘ladies night’

event held in the New House Country Hotel Cardiff. The ladies night was a joint promotional event with the New House Country Hotel and Lazarou Hairdressers. We spoke to Clare Sheehy (Group Sales & Marketing Manager of the New Country House hotel) and Flora Lazarou (Manager of Birchgrove Lazarou Hairdressers) about the event and the line up of the evening.

Q: What events can the Hotel cater for? A: The Hotel is a wedding venue, but we cater for a variety of events from Christmas parties and conference meetings. We also hold evenings with a bit of nostalgia; seventies nights, murder

Interview with Clare Sheehy of the New House Hotel Q: What are the main objectives of the ladies night? A: We thought it would be a great way to raise the profile of the hotel, to a new market. We wanted to reintroduce the hotel to people who haven’t been here in a long time and to people who have never been before. We felt that working with La zarou hairdressers would also be an opportunity to meet their clients.

mystery and many more. So there are lots of different ways we cater for people whether it be an office party or just a day out with family and friends.

Q: What will we be expecting this evening; what is ‘ladies night’ all about? A: It’s a pre- Christmas treat for ladies to get together, sample some of our delicious canapés and indulge in a little cocktail or two as a treat. The ladies will get to see some fantastic hair demonstrations, to give them some ideas for hairstyles for the festive season.

Q: How would readers be able to book an event with the Hotel? A: Via Telephone or via our website. We can send you a brochure on request.

Flora Lazarou , Manager of Lazarou Hairdressers in Birchgrove, Cardiff Q: What are the main aims of the event this evening? A: We wanted to give our clients a ‘thank you’ for their custom throughout the year; it’s a pre Christmas treat. Due to time constraints and space we couldn’t contact everyone, so we were limited to those customers we saw near to the event, but for those who missed it, we are very keen to do this again and look forward to seeing you there! Q: What does the ‘ladies night’ entail? A: We have been offering free hand and head massages, advice and demonstrations on hairstyles for the party season and a goody bag which includes an invitation for a make-over with Dior, an invitation for a five day trial with Estee Lauder and loads of other gifts like a GHD heat-proof bag,

sweets and chocolates. We’ve had loads of other prizes up for grabs in the free prize raffle. Style advisers from Dorothy Perkins have been here to offer advice on this season’s latest looks. We’ve also offered a discount on an appointment with a style adviser. Ruth Thomas, a nutritionist, has been offering health and fitness advice too. We spoke to some of the ladies who attended the event. They described the night as ‘A lovely treat’ and ‘Thoroughly enjoyable.’ The Lazarou and Hotel staff were ‘Welcoming, helpful and friendly’. There was a wide variety of food and drink provided from the Hotel and the views of Cardiff, from the Hotel’s Winter Room were ‘Spectacular’. I think I can safely say that the evening was a great success and hugely enjoyable for all the ladies who attended the event. Thank you very much to Flora Lazarou and Clare Sheehy for organising a fantastic evening! I look forward to the next one with great enthusiasm. Alaina Morgans

eat the January Beauty Blues

Make-up artist Bobbi Brown reveals her hints for getting your skin back on track for 2011.

No matter how many detox juices you're glugging or treadmills you're pounding, that elusive healthy New Year glow always seems beyond reach.

Problem: Dry, flaky lips Bobbi's solution: "Forget about the 'exfoliate with an old toothbrush' trick. Ouch! "Instead, soothe and protect lips by applying an extra emollient eye cream then gently slough off the dry, dead skin cells with a damp washcloth. "Keep lip balm in your handbag and apply every time your lips feel remotely dry."

In the cold weather, all you get is dull skin, red nose and runny eyes, so it's little wonder the nation practically hibernates throughout January. Make-up artist Bobbi Brown says it's an annual occurrence: "Like clockwork, after I've gone to the last of the festive parties and the decorations have been stowed away, I catch my reflection in the mirror and just look 'blah'!" she admits. "My skin looks a little dull and red in places, and I'm not as bright-eyed as I usually am. I've got a serious case of the winter beauty doldrums."

Try: Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Lip Protectant Stick Sheer Tint, ÂŁ17 (Boots).

Symptoms sound familiar? Bobbi has all the tonics and tricks you need to combat the January beauty blues.

B B obbi

rown

Make-up artist

B Problem:

Problem: Skin looks

Eye make-up keeps running in the cold

washed out Bobbi's solution: "Break out the bronzer. First pick your perfect formulation - powder is a good option for most skin types and should be dusted on with a big fluffy brush for a seamless look. "Cream is ideal for dry skin, and gel's a good choice for oily skin. For a fresh-faced look for winter, add a touch of blush onto the apples of your cheeks. I think pink, from pale pink to rose, flatters all complexions because it's the colour our cheeks turn when we're naturally flushed."

Bobbi's solution: "Prime lids with a sheer face powder to absorb any excess oil, which can cause make-up to smudge and smear. Dust a little over the concealer under your eyes too - its emolliency can also cause make-up slippage. "Switch to waterproof mascara and opt for a long-wearing, water-resistant eyeliner." Try: Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Eye Pencil, £15 (www.esteelauder.co.uk).

Problem:

Usual foundation doesn't look right

Try: Jemma Kidd Contour & Flush Creme Blush Duo, £18 (www.spacenk.co.uk).

Bobbi's solution: "It's more than likely your skin is fairer this time of year so you may need to switch to a foundation that's one or two shades lighter than your usual product. "Foundation can look cakey, streaky, and obvious on dry skin. Changing to a moisturising formula will help ensure an even, natural-looking application."

Problem: Powder looks cakey and unnatural Bobbi's solution: "If you have dry skin, chances are it is even drier in the winter, so you can skip powder altogether. "Women with oily skin don't need to use as much powder as they do during warmer months so I suggest applying it just to the areas where skin tends to be extra oily, like forehead, cheeks, nose and chin. "Consider blotting paper, which absorbs excess oil without looking dry and cakey and can be used before and after make-up application."

Try: Paul & Joe Moisturising Foundation Primer, £19.75 (www.asos.com).

Try: Shiseido Oil-Control Blotting Paper, £14 for 100 sheets (0207 313 4774).

Problem: Problem: Puffy under-eyes

Dry rough patches

Bobbi's solution: "Go with two shades of a yellow-based concealer to help counteract the dark circles. "Dab a concealer that's one shade darker than your foundation directly onto the puffiness to help visually recede them. "Apply concealer that's one shade lighter and brighter than your foundation under the puffy area to bring attention to the flatter, smoother skin there. Blend both concealers with a fingertip and set the area with loose powder."

Bobbi's solution: "Exfoliate. An exfoliating cleanser can be used daily by most skin types to encourage cell turnover and the removal of dry, dead flaky cells, which can seriously impede a perfect make-up application. "Extremely dry and sensitive skins might want to use exfoliating cleansers only a few times a week. If your patches are extra stubborn try a manual exfoliator, which contain beads or scrubs, once or twice a week."

Try: Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer Kit, £23 (www.bobbibrown.co.uk).

eauty

Try: Clarins One-Step Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser, £18 (www.clarins.co.uk).

New Year, New Choices, New You! Forget the clichés about making New Year resolutions. Let’s talk about ‘choices’. What will you choose to do with your time in the new year? Perhaps you could consider learning something new, broadening your knowledge and meeting new people – with a part-time course at the Cardiff Centre for Lifelong Learning.

“I have found a warm and welcoming environment that nurtures and challenges me on a personal and intellectual level. The course content is set out in a way which is easy to follow, especially if you have been away from studying for some time, like I have. It provides a gentle introduction to advanced learning.” Hayley, Exploring the Past, Humanities

The Choices prospectus tells you about all the courses in the following subject areas: • Art and Architecture • Business and Management • Chinese, Japanese and Arabic Studies • Computer Studies • Creative Writing • European Languages • History and Archaeology • Law • Music • Philosophy • Public Service Interpreting • Science and Environment • Social Studies

“Attending the course gave me enthusiasm to learn more! You have nothing to lose – but everything to gain – by trying something new. It’s a great way of meeting people who have the same interests as you, too.” – Leah, Science and Environment

How to find out more

Courses are open to all adults and you don’t need any qualifications. So, don’t worry if it’s a long time since you’ve studied.

Make a wise choice this new year. Order your FREE copy of the Choices prospectus today:

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St Isan There is only one fact definitely known of him: he would never have heard of the name Isan. His name was Isien (pronounced “eeshen”). The rest is conjecture. So what can we surmise of this patron of Llanisien and Llysfaen?

who sat beside the dying Illtud in 500AD? Legend tells us that Isien lived at the end of the fifth and early sixth centuries dying possibly in 527 or 537. His feast day is 9th October. Where was his first chapel in this area? Typically, early Celtic chapels lay on the lower edge of a mountain ridge close to running water. The present church’s location is a standard example, and it’s also on a possible route from western

He was probably a monk, either a priest or lay brother, based at Llandaf or more probably at St. Illtud’s European famous monastery at Llanilltud Fawr (Llantwit Major). Was he the monk, Yssen,

Llanishen Local History Society

Gwent to the lowest ford of the Taf at Llandaf. However, Isien is also associated with Llandennis (The Oval) where there is an abundance of running water in a marshy area, a still active holy well and another possible east-west route to the ford of Llandaf. Well do I remember my parents encouraging my brothers and me to bathe our eyes and faces in the spring renowned for healing eye and skin diseases. We frequently took kettle-loads of water for family use. In fact I regularly stopped to drink the deliciously fresh, cool water until recent years.

and the Norman French Dennis? Did the Normans change his name? Or was it Bishop Bledri of Llandaf who encouraged Latin in his diocese a century before the conquest and so called him Dionysius? Much more likely it was Isien himself. Pilgrimages to Rome were very common at this time. Welsh, and especially Irish, monks voyaged from Llanilltud Fawr to Padstow in north Cornwall, thence down the Camel and Fowey valleys and on to Brittany. Legend says Isien Latinised his name in Rome. Many other local monks did the same. Eirwg became Melonius: both his names survive in Cardiff East. (St Mellons and Llaneirwg).

And what about that prominent mound north-west of the well? Is it really hiding the remains of an ancient church or just a clump of agricultural waste? One thing is certain - it makes a great ramp for teenage cyclists! In the 1890s the new road linking the recently built lake with Fid Las deliberately skirted the well after much public agitation.

There are other mysteries too. Why did Llandennis and the church at Lisvane have the Latin Norman name but the village and church in Llanishen the Welsh name? Why was the church dedication Anglicised in a predominantly Welsh speaking area? So who was Isien? Undoubtedly he was a humble monk most of whose life was spent praying and working in his monastery. On a regular basis he visited our area to preach and, if he was priest, to offer Mass in a wooden chapel long since vanished.

So which came first; the present site or Llandennis? How did Isien become associated with the Latin name Dionysius,

February 2nd - Gwyn Griffiths on The Shioni Onions Man March 2nd - Annual General Meeting followed by Walter Jones on History in Everyday Objects Meeting commence at 7.30pm at Coed Glas School, Ty Glas Avenue, Llanishen Contact: Cec James on 029 2075 5518 e-mail llanlochist@btinternet.com web site: http://www.llanishenhistory.btck.co.uk/ Facebook: Llanishen Local History Society

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erspectives on January

We celebrate the turning of the year in a way that is peculiarly modern. While other holidays tend to bear at least the vestiges of the holy-days at their root, the New Year is a joyous and colourful example of the creation of new traditions: fireworks, televised countdowns, waiting for the ‘bongs’ at midnight, champagne and ‘Auld Lang Syne’. It is, perhaps more than any other festival in the British traditional calendar, a true folk-holiday. It is inclusive. It means something to all of us. But it is interesting to note how the New Year and the month of January have touched the imaginations of different peoples throughout history and across the world.

Year had in store. One old Scots saying goes: ‘Wind from the West, fish and bread; Wind from the North, cold and flaying; Wind from the East, snow on the hills; Wind from the South, fruit on the trees.’ Here in Wales, January also holds the prospect of St Dwynwen’s Day – the Welsh day of love. Stories of the lives of Celtic saints are some of the most interesting and colourful in Christian folklore. They mix Christian ideas with earlier Celtic imagery. The result rests, strangely but comfortably, somewhere between a Bible story and a fairytale.

January is named for the double-faced Roman god Janus. Janus ruled over doors and gateways and, by extension, all new beginnings and times of transition. He is usually depicted with his two faces back-to-back, one gazing back into the past and the other looking forward into the future. In lands where the weather could be deadly cold, the bitter nature of the month of January was often evident in its name. The Old Norse name for January was ‘Wolfmonat’ – Month of Wolves. This can be understood both literally and metaphorically, as the month both of actual wolves and of harsh, biting weather. Similarly, in Finnish it is called ‘Tammikuu’ which, though usually translated as ‘Month of the Oak’, is more accurately translated as ‘Month of the Heart of Winter’.

Dwynwen was young and beautiful, and in love with a boy named Maelon Dafodrill. Night and day she pined for her love, but her father had already promised her to another. Besides, Maelon never gave her a second glance. Finally, angered by her unwanted affection, Maelon raped and left her, and she was broken and shamed. In her sorrow, Dwynwen fled to the forest. There she went down on her knees and begged the Lord to make her forget about the boy who had hurt her so. Uncaring of the cold, she cried herself to sleep on the forest floor, and there she had the strangest dream. In Dwynwen’s dream, an angel appeared before her, golden-winged and carrying a potion that would erase all memory of Maelon, and trap the wicked boy in a block of ice. Dwynwen took the potion and instantly her love for Maelon was snuffed out. But when she saw the boy she had loved encased in ice, her heart softened and once again she begged the Lord – this time, for three wishes. God in his mercy, allowed Dwynwen to choose three wishes for him to fulfil. First of all, she wished for Maelon to be thawed and set free. Then she wished that the hopes and wishes of all true lovers should be fulfilled, or else their unrequited love dissolved. Finally, she wished that she herself should never marry, but devote herself to God the rest of her days. And so she did. To this day we send cards or give love-tokens in her name, for she can intercede and see to it that our dreams of love come true.

Even in our own (generally) more temperate country, January is a harsh month, but it is marked by hopeful, forward-looking traditions. Like Janus, we both remember the year that has passed and look ahead to the coming year. These days, this is manifested by the making of resolutions. In earlier times, it took the form of divination. In Scotland it is still traditional to watch out for the first visitor on New Year’s Day (the ‘first-footer’) as he or she is sure to be an omen for the year to come. Augury was a particularly well-used form of New Year divination. To augur is to divine the future through observation of natural phenomena. The wind, the flight patterns of birds, the colour of the sky, the light and movement of the natural landscape all provided omens for the coming year and (particularly in farming communities) its weather. On the first of January, folk would stand on hills and look out over the world to see what the New

From the bitter cold of January weather to the heat of love, from past to future, this month holds within it endless potential. So remember your own potential this January, hold to your resolutions, watch out for your first-footer, and may St Dwynwen make all your wishes come true.

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Spanish Pork

ood

erves 4

Ingredients 1 tbs oil 400g casserole pork - cubed 100g chorizo - cut into small dice 1 large onion - chopped 2 cloves of garlic - crushed 1 red, orange or yellow pepper, deseeded, white pith removed and sliced 100g button mushrooms halved if large 400g tin of chopped tomatoes 275 ml vegetable or chicken stock 1 bay leaf A few sprigs of thyme A handful of black olives Freshly chopped parsley for garnish

Method Heat the oil in a largish casserole. Add the pork and brown on all sides. Do this in batches not to overcrowd the pan. Remove the browned pork to a plate. Add the chorizo to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes to draw the fat from it. Remove this to the plate with the pork. Add the onions to the pan, adding a little more oil if necessary, and cook until soft and translucent. Next add the garlic, pepper and mushrooms and fry gently for a minute or so. Return the pork and chorizo to the pan and add the tomatoes, stock, bay leaf and thyme. Give everything a good stir and bring up to simmering point. Put a lid on the pan and transfer to a pre-heated over 140ºC, Fan 120º, 275ºF for 1½-2 hours until the pork is tender. Add the olives for the last ten minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle over the parsley and serve. This is good served with rice or tagliatelle.

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n affordable

taste of paradise With a wave of family-focused hotels opening in the Maldives and the introduction of all-inclusive options, paradise no longer comes with a whopping bill at the end of a luxurious seven-night stay.

Waking up to this fairytale vista, it's not difficult to live out the barefoot dream of a sarong lifestyle for a week. After a 10-hour flight from London and 20-minute seaplane transfer across turquoise ring-shaped reefs, not even my designer sunglasses and wide-brimmed hat could shade me from the beauty of this tropical island.

Savvy holidaymakers can dip their toe in the Indian Ocean and soak up all the usual four-star trappings of an exclusive island resort and still have enough left over to plan a return trip.

Strolling through the ancient Banyan trees and lush vegetation, it's hard to believe there are 290 guest villas in all, some in total isolation and just a few steps from the white sandy beach.

Fringed by lush vegetation and a snaking white sandbank, the resort was relaunched at the end of 2009 and now boasts 50 water villas each with private Jacuzzi, a large split-level sun deck and panoramic view over the lagoon's crystal blue waters.

Tranquil, with a total chill factor (if you want it) of sand, sea and surf, a dive centre, excursions, gym, spa with 16 treatment rooms, kids' club, nine restaurants and six bars (including a posh Havana cigar bar), the resort offers a romantic holiday with loads of choice.

ravel

The breakfast buffet boasts an American-style spread of hot and cold dishes, breads, fresh fruit, cereals and exotic juices with chefs on hand to make any style of eggs. It's difficult not to be greedy when everything's 'free'. But with the discovery of rib-eye steak and Madagascar jumbo prawns on the evening menu, I managed to rein in those early morning cravings and concentrate instead on looking beach chic by the infinity pool. Blissful days were spent lounging on our sun-drenched private deck. The only daily boardroom decision was where to go for our first pina colada. The Palm Pizzeria & Gelateria became our local hang-out. We befriended the barman who was generous with his rum measures and we enjoyed long, lazy lunches over Mediterranean salads, stone-baked pizzas and Italian icecream. In the evening, guests can enjoy a romantic candle-lit meal in the Island Barbecue (our favourite), where tables are close to the infinity pool and popular - so you must book. This is where we gorged on scallops, char-grilled yellow fin tuna and wonderful steak. Definitely a five-star dining experience, we were spirited away to gourmet heaven every time we ate there. Larger groups and families were drawn to the main restaurants with themed buffets and cooking stations, where the chefs cook fish or beef in front of you. There's an authentic Indian (Tandoor Mahal), a Thai restaurant (Siam Garden) and our lunchtime pizza place which plays live music in the evening. There was also a fantastic band who flew in a couple of nights a week to play at the Sand Bar, and boy, did we have fun on the dance floor! With house wine, spirits and cocktails all part of our allinclusive package, bar bills weren't a strain on the purse strings. My advice for friends new to the Maldives is: Breakfast like a pauper, lunch like a prince and dine like a king if you go to Kuramathi.

Key facts - Kuramathi, Maldives Best for: Romantic couples and families who don't like hidden extras. Time to go: October-May - avoid summer months when heavy rain and high winds can batter the islands. Don't miss: A spa treatment in the open-air pavilion. Need to know: The sun is fierce - take high factor sun cream with you, because the gift shop was sold out. Don't forget: An underwater camera and an extra t-shirt for snorkelling. Nothing protects your back from the sun's rays like a cover-up.

Travel facts Sam Wylie-Harris was a guest of Kuoni which offers seven nights all-inclusive in a garden villa on Kuramathi Island Resort from £1,327 in 2011, including SriLankan Airlines flights ex-Heathrow, transfers and use of Male airport lounge on return. Select all-inclusive (more dining options) starts at £1,647 per person. Regional departures ex-Manchester, ex-Glasgow and exBelfast start at £110. Kuoni reservations: 01306 747 008 and www.kuoni.co.uk.

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Ultimate Eagles

usic Scene

By Alaina Morgans

who you would be good to work with; you use your phone book wisely.

Cardiff Now interviewed Danny Vaughn, Chris Childs and Ryan Aston, all members of the Ultimate Eagles tribute band. The Ultimate Eagles recreate the music with reverence, excitement and with a new stage show that focuses its bright lights on the 1970s, when the Eagles were at their mightiest. If you look at the biographies and accomplishments of the individual players that make up the Ultimate Eagles, it will tell you a great deal about what you can expect when you come to see these guys perform.

What inspired you to make music together? Danny Vaughn: The thing about the Eagles, aside from their music having a great public interest is that it’s musically very challenging and not something you do half heartedly. You need so much out of each band member. It’s not enough to have a good base player; he needs to have a good voice as well. That immediately shortens the list of people that you can work with. A lot of people can sing well but what’s important is wh e t h e r th ey sound good with the band in a blend. We found t ha t di ffi cul t . Being an Eagles tribute band for us is very challenging but the world is your oyster with it. The fan base is so huge that it covers every age group and every country. I was amazed to see how many people from China were writing on Eagles fan pages but I think the music translates itself.

Whose idea was it originally to form the Ultimate Eagles? Chris Childs: There were four of us in another eagles band, which ran its course and we decided it was time for us to do our own thing. At the end of last year we did; it was a joint decision between us all. How did you meet each other, with you all being from different Countries? Danny Vaughn: A few of us have been in the music business for a long time. I’m originally from America but I’ve been coming here to the UK since the 80’s when I was working with an English band called Wasted. Over the years, as with any business you start collecting phone numbers and making contacts. You begin to recognise

Why did you decide to be an Eagles tribute band rather than any other successful band? Ryan Aston: It was common ground between 37

top of presenting the music. It must be said that the Eagles are a seamless live band. They’re never off key and they work unbelievable hard to achieve that. We can only try and reach that standard but in the process of doing so we have a great time and we work with the audience.

us really, as Danny mentioned we had worked together before. We wanted to do something challenging and music which we could perform in different Countries. Danny Vaughn: You have to perform music within your scope as well. You can’t take this particular group of musicians and do a Led Zeppelin tribute, we’re not quite equipped to do that. The Eagles made the most sense and the other thing is we found we were damn good at it.

What has been your biggest challenge as a band? Have you overcome these challenges? Danny Vaughn: These are tough times, and as with any business the biggest challenge is getting people to know we exist and more importantly that people know they’re going to like what they see and it’s worth coming out for. So, getting that message out through videos and gigs is the hardest part of it.

Chris Childs: The Eagles songs are great songs to play, which we would all listen to anyway and it’s very rewarding performing their songs. Have you ever met the Eagles in person? Chris Childs: No, Not as yet. I think if they met us they would want to stab us. Danny Vaughn: It’s funny, some original bands seem a bit on the back foot about their tribute bands, which is odd. You find some bands such as Led Zeppelin are encouraging about it, for obvious reasons. If you go to your local club and watch a tribute band and think ‘I haven’t heard that song before’, you want to go and find it. They’re selling more albums off the idea of what we do. It seems some of them aren’t supportive of the idea. They must think they’re losing out on money or something?

Chris Childs: Playing the music is probably the easiest part of it, as Danny explained the promotion and raising awareness is the hardest part. Your cover track of ‘Desperado’ currently has half a million views on You Tube. How does it feel knowing that so many people enjoy listening to your songs? Danny Vaughn: It’s amazing. What amazed me was that we were getting comments which were in foreign languages and we had to get them translated. Comments were posted from Korea, South America, Brazil, Spain and all kinds of countries. Some comments were just overwhelming like ‘I like you better than the original Eagles’ and I’m thinking ‘Yeah thanks mum’ but being able to track where your work is being seen and heard and knowing people enjoy it is pretty humbling really.

What can audiences expect from an Ultimate Eagles gig? Chris Childs: Well, one thing they can expect which they wouldn’t necessarily get from the Eagles is that we really enjoy ourselves. We have a great time on stage and it’s obvious we do. I think you might find at an Eagles gig, is that it is all a bit serious. You’ll find us trying to recreate the music as closely as possible as well as having a good time. Danny Vaughn: We feel we put on a show on 38

usic Scene

Chris Childs: There’s no money in it for us, no matter how many viewings it gets. It’s there for peoples’ pleasure.

What advice would you give to other bands who are trying to make it? Ryan Aston: Go back to College.

How can readers begin to access your music? Danny Vaughn: Our website, Myspace, Twitter, Facebook, You Tube. We appreciate any feedback from our audiences. Your audience is your key to everything and we really appreciate them.

Chris Childs: Use the internet; it’s such a powerful tool. The music business has changed in the last twenty years Record companies don’t have the power they used to simply because of the internet. You don’t need a record company any more, you can do it all yourself, you just need the funding to record your music.

You’re on the New Kid in Town tour at the moment. Will you be touring in 2011? Ryan Aston: Yes, April/ May 2011. We have about twenty dates booked so far. We’ll be going to America in the summer and Australia/ Spain possibly. There are a couple of festivals that were starting to enquire about us as well.

Danny Vaughn: My answer to that question would be more on the philosophical side. Whatever you’re going to do musically, you must believe in it because if you don’t you will get battered. You’ve got to believe in what you’re doing whether it’s in fashion or not. Fans will appreciate you more for doing that. There are bands out there proving that at the moment. 39

ontain your

Winter Wonderland If you're looking for colourful pots which will last a bit longer than a few shortlived pansies this winter, it's worth shopping around for evergreen and berried shrubs and grasses. If you transfer skimmia from their pots to your borders in spring and you want berries in future years, make sure you grow male and female plants together. 'Foremanii' is female and produces large bunches of berries, while 'Fragrans' is male and recommended for its floral fragrance.

Garden centres are now awash with winter cherries (Solanum capsicastrum), bearing large brightorange berries which look tempting but may not last too long outside unless you give them a really sheltered spot. A better bet for a splash of colour in a contemporary pot would be Callicarpa bodinieri 'Profusion', a hardy shrub which produces brightpurple berries in winter, standing out among underplantings of ivy and winterflowering heather.

Deep-coloured heucheras also remain pretty hardy over the winter, contrasting well with variegated euonymus and seasonal accent plants including cyclamen from the Miracle Series, which will flower for weeks and tolerate mild frosts.

Some shrubs last well in pots and can then be successfully grown in the garden. Skimmia 'reevesiana', a hermaphrodite producing vibrant red berries, looks wonderful in pots, as does its relative S japonica 'Rubella', with its deep-red flower buds, which can be a vibrant focal point in any container.

Viburnum tinus is another reliable evergreen shrub which can comfortably fill a winter pot. Its buds reveal a dark pink tinge when they open, later lightening to pure white as the flowers open between late winter and early spring.

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ardening

When planting your winter pots, buy a container labelled 'frost-proof' rather than 'frostresistant', which will withstand the British weather more effectively. Line the inside of the pot with plastic bubble-wrap to prevent compost from freezing and damaging the roots, but don't cover the drainage hole. Line the base of the pot with crocks or chunks of polystyrene to ease drainage. Half-fill the pot with compost. For permanent plantings of shrubs and perennials, use a soil-based compost such as John Innes No 3, which holds on to water and nutrients well while encouraging good air movement and drainage. Sit the rootball of your main plant about 2.5cm below the container rim, initially sitting the plant in its pot in the container to gauge the right depth. Knock your plant out of its pot and position it in the container, holding it steady as you add more compost to secure it, and raise the level of compost to suit the other plants. Many people forget about grasses in the winter, but it's a time when they can come into their own in pots, adding huge architectural value and texture to the scene. And you can always transplant them into your garden when winter is over. Sculptural grasses such as Carex comans 'Bronze form' can make a striking formal feature, while tall containers look great with sword-like phormiums and sedges, mixed with the cascading foliage of carex. They are extremely low maintenance and highly visual, particularly in winter when not much else can steal the limelight.

Best of the bunch -

Gaultheria (Wintergreen) You may see a lot of these small shrubs in garden centres bearing their colourful red or purple berries at the moment, and they can be easily grown in pots of ericaceous compost or in a garden with lime-free soil in partial shade.

Alternatively, use a tall grass planted in a pot on its own, such as Stipa gigantea, a densely-tufted evergreen type that'll look great on a frosty morning and wave in the slightest breeze. Of course, if you are a flower fan and want to make the most of winter blooms, you could plant up some hellebores in pots, which will provide a terrific display of foliage and flowers throughout late winter and early spring, in shades of white, cream, yellow, green, pink and purple through to almost black. They do particularly well in partially-shaded areas.

Gaultheria is most commonly seen as ground cover under rhododendrons or camellias, but if you want a taller variety you can choose G shallon, which grows to 1.5m, producing dark purple berries. Male and female flowers are nearly always borne by different varieties, so you need to plant more than one type to be sure you will have berries. Female varieties include 'Cherry Ripe' and 'Lilian', while male types include 'Thymifolia' or 'Male'.

There's really no reason that you can't have beautiful winter containers of plants which you can transfer to beds and borders at a later date to give you pleasure in years to come.

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UDOKU

9 3 2 6 7 3 1 8 7 8

7 5 6 7 1 6 8 5 4 8 9 1 1 7 9 8 3 6 2 9 4 5 3 4 2 1 3 7 2 6

Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.

ROSSWORD

Across:

Down:

1. Give proof of (11) 9. Ceded (7) 10. Cancel (5) 11. Frequently (5) 12. Type of lottery (7) 13. Limp (6) 15. State agent (6) 18. Gulp (7) 20. Truck (5) 22. Burn (5) 23. Diverse (7) 24. Quietly (11)

2. Vertical (5) 3. Number (7) 4. Sober (6) 5. Kingdom (5) 6. Slender (7) 7. Suppose (11) 8. Hygiene (11) 14. Defiant attitude (7) 16. Ahead (7) 17. Turn (6) 19. Burdened (5) 21. Snarl (5)

ROSSWORD

RYPTIC

QUICK CLUES Across:

Down:

1. Once (8) 5. Aid (4) 9. 20 quires (4) 10. Award (8) 11. Edge (5) 12. Inform (7) 13. Urging (13) 18. Compare (8) 19. Storm (4) 20. Antiquated (7) 21. Creek (5) 22. Thaw (4) 23. Briskness (8)

2. Exceed (7) 3. Souvenir (7) 4. Listless (13) 6. Elusive (7) 7. Stop (7) 8. Fall (6) 13. Cry out (7) 14. Sneering (7) 15. Fantastic (6) 16. Sailor (7) 17. Ignore (7)

LUES

Across:

Down:

1. Conducting us and the woman in G (8) 5. Instrument of honour with a hole in it (4) 9. I labour almost entirely to return to the island (4) 10. Draws a Tory leader with pamphlets (8) 11. I'm sad about the king (5) 12. Special clothes for knocking back a first class drink (7) 13. Cried that Clay was knocked out in Durham (9,4) 18. Bestowal of gifts on Spain's capital, say (8) 19. They're crackers! (4) 20. Tasting of Chablis terminated due to a sore (7) 21. Money for a girl (5) 22. Oh, certainly there's some return of sound (4) 23. Man has an announcement concerning another man (8)

2. Nat's aim turns out to be endurance (7) 3. A pip the wrecker found on a gravestone (7) 4. Never sure rate of exchange here (6,7) 6. Being sick in the back of a taxi due to bacteria (7) 7. Catholic saint in simple rapture (7) 8. Living without waste right amid a Gulf war (6) 13. Ability of Liberal taken into consideration (7) 14. Spoil the sailor with a broken shin (7) 15. Chooses Les, etc, somehow (6) 16. Caught? Not out at the finish you maintain (7) 17. Bird I can confuse with a boat (7)

Quick Solutions: Across: 1 Formerly; 5 Help; 9 Ream; 10 Accolade; 11 Brink; 12 Apprise; 13 Encouragement; 18 Contrast; 19 Rage; 20 Archaic; 21 Inlet; 22 Melt; 23 Alacrity. Down: 2 Overrun; 3 Memento; 4 Lackadaisical; 6 Evasive; 7 Prevent; 8 Topple; 13 Exclaim; 14 Cynical; 15 Unreal; 16 Mariner; 17 Neglect.

Cryptic Solutions:Across: 1 Ushering; 5 Oboe; 9 Bali; 10 Attracts; 11 Midas; 12 Regalia; 13 Cathedral city; 18 Largesse; 19 Nuts; 20 Blister; 21 Penny; 22 Echo; 23 Benedict. Down: 2 Stamina; 3 Epitaph; 4 Nature reserve; 6 Bacilli; 7 Ecstasy; 8 Frugal; 13 Calibre; 14 Tarnish; 15 Elects; 16 Contend; 17 Titanic.

ood

Wines from Uruguay This tasting was hosted by Wiliam Pugh Williams of Fine Wines Direct UK –– our members had not tasted wines from Uruguay before and It turned out to be very interesting.

blended with Tannat from the south region. It had a good deep colour with a vegetal nose liquorice was noted with some tannins not too dry – obviously a higher quality grape - altogether a very nice easy drinking wine. Price £10.99.

Uruguay is South America’s 4th biggest wine producer after Argentina, Chile and Brazil. The main grape is Tannat, although other varieties include Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Syrah for reds with Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay for whites. Tannat produces a deep red wine with a blackberry or blueberry nose and is often blended with Merlot.

The second best wine was Juan Carrau – Amat – 1999 – 13.5%. It had a vegetal nose made in the old world style although our members thought it would be much better with food. Price £23.00 The third best wine was again from Carrau 2008 and 13%. We struggled to find fruit here – again a vegetal nose, some members were unsure about this wine but altogether thought it very nice and very drinkable. Price £5.99.

The wines we tasted were all from the same producer Juan Carrau. The first and only white wine was Carrau – Sauvignon Blanc – Cerro Chapeu - 13.5% It had a good clean nose with a greenish colour and a long finish, was fresh with tropical fruits on the palette - a nice easy drinking wine. The price was £5.99

We had a very good tasting – the wines were unusual but excellent – we tasted eight in all. For further information on these wines contact Wiliam at Fine Wines Direct UK, 242 Penarth Road, Cardiff.

The best red of the evening was Juan Carrau Ysern Tannat-Tannat – 2005 – 13.5% - this was unusual in that the grapes used were Tannat and Tannat – this being Tannat from the north region www.drinakaware.co.uk

Bute Paaaaark Cardiff

ome By ‘Yer Let Me Tell You Somefink Special By Tony Millin

I must admit to being a little disappointed with the editor of this magazine. It’s not that I don’t like the content or the slightly different design but it’s the name. I think the change from its former name of community times may well be warranted. But come on Mr Kenneally, it’s an opportunity lost – surely in south Wales the most appropriate name would be “Kayaaaardiff Now-in-aMinute”, that’s what we all say ‘round by yer’ isn’t it? It’s about time the linguistic skills of the locality is recognised in this publication.

the rest that leads from the city centre to several miles out of town, in which one can cycle, run, walk or hopscotch in a straight line north without crossing a single road until you get to Tongwynlais. I am always surprised how glowing the reports I receive are, of the town centre, bay, museums, music venues and other aspects of our city by friends and family who are visiting the area. Of course, I’m not proud of everything to do with the place – St Mary Street on a Friday or Saturday night for instance but generally we live in a pretty tidy place as places in this part of the world go.

There are many detractors of our local accent and turn of phrase, but I must admit I likes it. I really does. I’m sure, like me, you often meet those that have come from a long distance, over by there somewhere, who expect us to talk a bit like Huw Edwards or Catherine Zeta Jones, with a posh Welsh twang that somehow adds an air of quiet confidence. But we’re a little rougher in the main, a reality that of course leaves them a tad disappointed. When they hear our extended vowels and the belief that the end of words should be considered as optional as the gaps in between them some people fink we’re a bit fick, but we ain’t, not all of us anyway - like. The linguists amongst those visitors soon get their ears in tune with our communication methods and feel a bit more tidy as a result.

The people are nice too, even the belief that west Wales begins at Culverhouse Cross, north Wales at Coryton and England at a garden centre in St Mellons is as endearing, as the taste for claaaaarke’s pies and Brain’s Daaaaaark. I don’t believe all of their stories about Billy the Seal who lived in Victoria Park and caught the trolley bus in to town for a game of skittles at the Goat Major. But it’s nice that he did exist and is remembered by many, even if their anecdotes have only a little more truth in them than the alleged sightings of the fabled Grangetown whale. At the beginning of another year it is my resolution to appreciate the place, develop my Cardiffian linguistic skills and do a few things that you can only do in Cardiff, such as go for row on the lake, watch a game of baseball (the proper type not that American rubbish), cycle along the river or experience the highs and lows of following one of our winter sports teams whether that’s Bluebirds, Blues or Devils. They may not be so unique that flood of tourists will come from around the world but they are here and either free or fairly cheap. So why not take advantage of them?

I shouldn’t be surprised if they feel that some of our turn of phrase is a bit alien. Despite the fact that my mother made me recite the well known, “hark, hark the lark, at Cardiff arms park” in fluent etonian English three times a week, I find it difficult not to lengthen my vowels and drop my consonants so that hark becomes aaaaaaark, rhyming seamlessly with paaaarc. When I moved to London for a few years my fellow students who were a bit short of money couldn’t understand why I asked if they wanted to “lend some” and would reply angrily that they wouldn’t mind borrowing but certainly had no cash to lend to anyone else. I had to learn ‘em how to talk proper like. Of course the linguists will tell us how Welsh uses the same word for lend and borrow and for learn and teach, hence our local practice of considering them synonyms for each other. But I like to think of it as a local quirk, part of our local character, which needs preserving.

So fellow Cardiffians stand proud, drop those consonants, lengthen those vowels and share with your children and anyone else that will listen the legends of Billy the Seal, the Grangetown whale. I knows yew fink it’s tidy.

Tony ct@tonymillin.com

There are lots of things about our city we should keep and appreciate. I’m sure many of us forget just how nice and unique having such a big continuous green area as Bute Park, Pontcanna, Llandaf Fields, Hayley Park and

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ealth & Wellbeing

he New Year Resolution By Dr Sue Kenneally than I can include in one small article, indeed entire books have been written on the subject. However the big ones are:

That great tradition enthusiastically embraced by millions of well intentioned Brits year after year with extremely variable results. Most of us make them and most of us who do so break them almost immediately, leading to an increased conviction that whatever it was that we were attempting to change is even more impossible than we had first thought, together with a lower self esteem related to the inevitable sense of personal failure. So the next time we attempt to achieve our goal – probably next January – it is even less likely that we will succeed, creating a constantly downward spiral into misery and defeat. It is for this very reason that I am, firstly, resolutely not resolving to do anything differently simply because of the date, and secondly avoiding writing an article suggesting that any reader who has stayed with me thus far should do otherwise.

1 A reduced risk of heart disease because of lower blood pressure and more favourable cholesterol. 2 A lower risk of cancer in general 3 Protection against osteoporosis 4 Improved blood sugar levels and less risk of diabetes 5 Improved immunity 6 More self confidence and greater self esteem 7 Obviously weight control, which is why most of us do it in the first place According to the experts all of this can be achieved by moderate exercise, that is being active enough to be out of breath but still able to hold a conversation, for 30 minutes five times a week – hence my currently dormant treadmill routine. This can take the form of anything from brisk walking through to marathon running or extreme sports, but the most important issue is to find something fun otherwise your motivation will be affected very quickly. And since there is no one ‘perfect’ exercise a combination of different activities is your best plan – this both improves fitness levels more quickly and prevents the dreaded boredom from setting in.

If you are one of the privileged few who succeed where the rest of us fail dismally, then I salute you and congratulate you on your victory. By the time this magazine is available in print it will be mid January and if, when you read this you are still on course, then you are already in the overwhelming minority and deserve to feel more than a little smug. I hereby step down from my soap box and intend to spend the next few column inches considering a subject which has undoubtedly been the basis of many resolutions in recent times, the benefits of exercise. Not because it is January, actually on reflection this is a somewhat inappropriate time of year because of the adverse weather conditions, but because it is something most of us should be including in our lives far more than we do. As a family we achieve great things in terms of fitness and activity in general in fair weather, but have a tendency, along with countless others, to fail miserably on the many grim days and seek the comfort of our cosy home instead of braving the elements. Naturally we never blame the weather, after all there are many indoor pursuits that would keep the whole family fit – the housework, the homework, the baby and any other distraction we can invent serve as the perfect ‘explanation’ for our couch potato status on some cold, dark days. The possibility that lack of motivation could be a factor doesn’t even get a mention.

There are many reasons or excuses given for an individuals’ lack of exercise, and believe me when I say that I’ve heard them (and in many cases said them) all, but they largely fall into three categories: lack of time/money, and existing health problems imposing physical limitations. I understand that if you have, for example, significant arthritis then this is likely to be a challenge, but if you are assessed by a fitness professional they are likely to come up with ways in which you can at least make a start. Various establishments around Cardiff will provide this service either for free or very cheaply, and your GP can actually prescribe exercise for you, so money should not be a limiting factor either. As for the time issue I leave you with one of the most sobering quotations I have come across:’ He who cannot find time to exercise will one day have to find time to be ill.’

So why should I, and (statistically) most of you, be making more of an effort? There are more good reasons to exercise

Enough said!

hysiotherapist Dan Jones answers your questions

I recently slipped on ice during the cold snap and jarred my back. Since then I have had soreness and stiffness in my low back, that seems slow to settle. Are there any exercises that I can do to help ease the stiffness and pain. Jayne, Rhiwbina. Exercises that stretch and strengthen the muscles of your abdomen and spine can help prevent ongoing back problems. If your back and abdominal muscles are strong, it will help you to maintain good posture and support your spine in its correct position. Warm up your muscles with light aerobic activity like brisk walking before doing any strengthening or stretching. Stop doing any exercise that causes pain until you have talked with your health care provider.

can. You should try to create a gradual curve of your back towards the ceiling. Hold the position for 5 seconds and relax. Repeat 10 times.

Lumbar Rotation Lie on back, shoulders flat, knees bent, feet on floor. With knees together, slowly control your knees to one side, hold for 10 seconds, and repeat to opposite side. Repeat for 10 reps.

Bridge

The exercises are intended only as suggestions. Ask a health care provider or chartered physiotherapist to help develop a specific exercise program for your needs. Caution: If you have a herniated disk or previous disk problem, please check with your health care provider before doing these exercises.

Lie face up with knees bent and hands at your ides. Slowly, uncurl your spine off the mat, one vertebrae at a time until you're in a bridge position, body in a straight line from knees to head. Arch up, squeezing your gluts, then lower back down by slowly uncurling the spine onto the mat. Repeat for 10 reps.

Pelvic tilt Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Tighten your abdominal muscles and push your lower back into the floor. Hold this position for 5 seconds, and then relax. Repeat for 10 reps

In addition to conditioning your back, you need to condition your whole body. Physical activities such as walking or swimming can help strengthen your back. It is always best to check with your health care provider before you start any rigorous exercise program.

Cat Stretch In a hands and knee position, place your hands under the shoulders and the knees under your hips. Let your head drop down while at the same time tuck your hips under and raise the middle of your back as high as you

Remember to begin slowly and grade your exercise. Good activities for people with back problems include: • Walking • Cycling • Swimming • Pilates • Yoga

50-52 Station Road, Llanishen, Cardiff CF14 5QP

our New Year Resolution

eep Fit and Healthy

The Government has introduced

CCR Private General Practice – Lifestyle Health Consultations.

measures to assist individuals keep fit and healthy – thereby ensuring many will be able to stick to their well intentioned New Year resolutions!

To kick start your Keep Fit and Healthy New Year Resolution why not book into a CCR Private General Practice Lifestyle Health Consultation. Our standard health check includes:

The £250 million scheme to be called “The Great Swapathon,” will see members of the public trade their lifestyle for a healthier one.

Blood tests for cholesterol Urine analysis Blood pressure Assessment of fitness levels Cancer prevention awareness Cardiovascular risk score Lifestyle smoking and drinking tool analysis

Vouchers will be given out in supermarkets as well as being printed in newspapers, which individuals will be able to “swap” for free gym membership, swimming sessions, and healthy food and drink. Launched just after the New Year, the scheme will be funded by the private sector, with firms wishing to offer food vouchers required to pay for the scheme.

With additional checks for men including a full examination to include Testes, Prostate and Rectal examination and further checks for women to include a full examination to include Breast, Smear and Pelvis examination. Each consultation includes a personalised Health Report and Action Plan to ensure your New Year Resolution has the very best chance of succeeding!

Vouchers will be given in chequebook form. Five million chequebooks will each contain 20 healthy lifestyle vouchers including offers for half-price swimming sessions and reduced-rate gym taster packages. To redeem the vouchers, consumers will be directed to a website where they will be able to search for their nearest participating venue, and type in a code to access an e-ticket.

So if you are concerned about your health or just want a check up….call CCR now on 029 2076 4611 or visit www.privategpcardiff.co.uk for more information

SPECIAL OFFER

Book and pay for 3 get 4th FREE Offer available until end of December Sports massage can be beneficial for sporting and exercise related problems, and can be incorporated into a training schedule. Also helpful for day to day stresses and strains that can develop from occupational and everyday activities. Qualified and Insured Practitioner Registered with the Sports massage Association

104 Caerphilly Road, Birchgrove, Cardiff. CF14 4AG Parking in front of clinic

02920 625551 See website for more information on clinic services and newsletter http://www.recoveryandbeyond.co.uk/ Full time established clinic with daytime, evening and weekends available

lack Swan

A film by DARREN ARONOFSKY NATALIE PORTMAN VINCENT CASSEL MILA KUNIS BARBARA HERSHEY and WINONA RYDER

anuary’s must-see film

A psychological thriller set in the world of New York City ballet, BLACK SWAN stars Natalie Portman as Nina, a featured dancer who finds herself locked in a web of competitive intrigue with a new rival at the company (Mila Kunis). A Fox Searchlight Pictures release by visionary director Darren Aronofsky (THE WRESTLER), BLACK SWAN takes a thrilling and at times terrifying journey through the psyche of a young ballerina whose starring role as the Swan Queen turns out to be a part for which she becomes frighteningly perfect.

if she can let go enough to embody the dark side of the Swan Queen. As she ascends to new heights with her body, her most deeply buried fantasies, jealousies and nightmares begin to ensnare her mind into the blackest depths causing a dangerous clash with the provocative newcomer who is her greatest rival. Nina quickly becomes all too perfectly entwined with the bewitching and deadly Black Swan. Far from the typical thriller set in a world of crime or haunted houses, Aronofsky’s vividly intimate portrait of a woman unraveling at the very seams of her psyche takes place in the least expected of realms, the artistically electric and physically demanding world of professional ballet. For Aronofsky, it was the perfect place to unfold a visually explosive tale of the obsessive pressure to be perfect. As with THE WRESTLER, the film also gave him a chance to plunge into an unseen world and peel back what makes the people who are driven to sacrifice so much.

BLACK SWAN follows the story of Nina (Portman), a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like all those in her profession, is completely consumed with dance. She lives with her retired ballerina mother Erica (Barbara Hershey) who zealously supports her daughter’s professional ambition. When artistic director Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) decides to replace prima ballerina Beth Macintyre (Winona Ryder) for the opening production of their new season, “Swan Lake,” Nina is his first choice. But Nina has competition: a new dancer, Lily (Kunis), who impresses Leroy as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play both the White Swan with innocence and grace, and the Black Swan, who represents guile and sensuality. Nina fits the White Swan role perfectly but Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. As the two young dancers expand their rivalry into a twisted friendship, Nina begins to get more in touch with her dark side with a recklessness that threatens to destroy her.

The challenges of making BLACK SWAN were also similar to the notably intense production of THE WRESTLER, perhaps even harder. As secretive as the world of professional wrestling can be, Aronofsky found the ballet world even more insular and closed-off to outsiders. And then there was the training that Natalie Portman had to undertake in order to make the film’s ballet scenes as incandescently lyrical as they are full of mounting tension and foreboding. “Ballet is something most people start training for when they’re four or five years old and as they live it, it changes their bodies, it transforms them. To have an actress who hasn’t gone through all of that convincingly play a professional ballet dancer is the tallest of orders. Yet somehow, with her incredible will and discipline, Natalie became a dancer. It took ten months of vigorous work, but her body transformed and even the most serious dancers were impressed. I’m convinced that the physical work also connected her to the emotional work,” states Aronofsky.

Darren Aronofsky (THE WRESTLER, THE FOUNTAIN, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM) lures audiences into a haunting, fractured world of delusions, doubles and paranoia in BLACK SWAN, his first psychological thriller. He spins a sensual and chilling tale of a prima ballerina locked in an obsessive battle with dark impulses that slowly engulf her. Academy Award® nominee Natalie Portman (CLOSER) stars as Nina, an ambitious young New York ballet dancer who is after the ultimate double role: the delicately innocent White Swan and the seductively evil Black Swan of the star-making classic “Swan Lake.” She gets the role but is unsure

Aronofsky notes that he was gratified to find a cast who could take on this challenge. They, in turn, were attracted by a story that became a suspenseful, yet daring, odyssey into a dancer’s sudden rise and terrifying descent.

training. “It was pretty intense because I had to deal with it for about half of the shoot,” she admits. “But it’s hard to complain when you see what the professional dancers dance through all the time. They’re constantly dancing with very serious injuries, like sprained ankles. They are accustomed to dancing through pain.”

Even before the screenplay for BLACK SWAN was completed, Darren Aronofsky knew who would play Nina. It had to be Natalie Portman, whose diversity of memorable roles ranges from Queen Amidala in the STAR WARS series to her Oscar®-nominated and Golden Globe®-winning role as a stripper in Mike Nichols adaptation of CLOSER. Not only had Portman studied ballet as a child, more importantly, she had the commitment and drive to plunge into the immense physical and psychological demands of a part that would have her leaping, spinning and losing touch with reality, all at the same time.

Bypassing a century of both dance-on-film and psychological thriller techniques, Aronofsky instead brought his own trademark style to a world rarely seen in this kind of raw intimacy. Most of the film’s scenes rely on a single hand-held camera that moves continuously, sinuously, with no resetting for masters or close-ups.

Nina starts out as what the ballet world calls a “bunhead,” a not-so-endearing term for a ballerina so devoted to dance that nothing else matters, who is sheltered by her equally driven, former-dancer mother and who never really developed an adult life of her own. But when she gets the role of the Swan Queen, it awakens something new in her, a need to explore her deepest, darkest feelings which begin to unhinge the fragile edges of her mind. Nina, like the Swan Queen she wants to embody, suddenly becomes embroiled in a story of enchantment, desire and danger.

“I was excited to shoot a psychological thriller mostly hand-held because I couldn’t think of a time when it had been done before,” says Aronofsky. “There are sometimes a few scenes in thrillers where you see from the monster’s POV with a handheld camera, but to do the whole thing hand-held in a documentary style felt unique.”

This pushed Portman to edges that she had never before explored on screen – and required her to peer into the abyss. “Nina is dedicated, hardworking but also obsessive,” the actress explains. “She doesn’t yet have her own voice as a dancer, as a young woman, but she progressively changes as she searches to find her sensuality and sense of freedom. At the same time, she also starts to come undone, and that was the challenge. “

He continues, “I also felt that bringing a handheld camera into the ballet world would help to get inside it, as we had done with the wrestling ring in THE WRESTLER. The camera is dancing and spinning with the dancers. It captures the energy, the sweat, the pain and the artistry close up.” And then there are the mirrors, which play a major role in the film’s visual architecture. “In the world of ballet there are mirrors everywhere,” explains Aronofsky. “Dancers are always looking at themselves, so their relationship with their reflection is a huge part of who they are. Filmmakers are also fascinated by mirrors, and it’s been played with before, but I wanted to take it to a new level. Visually, we really pushed that idea of what it means to look in a mirror. Mirrors become a big part of looking into Nina’s character, which is all about doubles and reflection.”

Grueling wasn’t even the half of it. Both she and Kunis would battle injuries and overtraining fatigue as they raced the clock to be ready for the shoot. “Two torn ligaments and a dislocated shoulder later, I was asking myself, ‘What am I doing?’” laughs Kunis. She continues: “The pointe shoes are especially brutal. I could probably have them on for a maximum 20 minutes. You don’t even have to get up en pointe for them to hurt. All you have to do is walk around. Your feet can’t go forward because there’s this wooden box at the tip. You trip over yourself. To have them on all day, your feet swell and turn black and blue.”

Black Swan opens in the UK from January 21st at all national cinemas and it’s trailer is available at http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/fox_searchlight/ blackswan/.

Portman, who danced more than 90% of her scenes on screen, also suffered an agonizing rib injury while

The line-up in cinemas through January 2011, with must-see films for everyone, including The next Three days, The Green Hornet, Conviction and 127 Hours.

THE NEXT THREE DAYS From 7th January www.thenextthreedaysmovie.com

CONVICTION is the inspirational true story of a sister’s unwavering devotion to her brother. When Betty Anne Waters’ (two-time Academy® Award winner Hilary Swank) older brother Kenny (Sam Rockwell) is arrested for murder and sentenced to life in 1983, Betty Anne, a Massachusetts wife and mother of two, dedicates her life to overturning the murder conviction.

THE GREEN HORNET Life seems perfect for John Brennan (Russell Crowe) until his wife, Lara (Elizabeth Banks), is arrested for a murder she says she didn't commit. Three years into her sentence, John is struggling to hold his family together, raising their son Luke (Ty Simpkins) and teaching at community college while he pursues every means available to prove her innocence. With the rejection of their final appeal, Lara becomes suicidal and John decides there is only one possible, bearable solution: to break his wife out of prison. Refusing to be deterred by impossible odds or his own inexperience, John devises an elaborate escape plot and plunges into a dangerous and unfamiliar world, ultimately risking everything for the woman he loves.

CONVICTION From 14th January

From 14th January www.thegreenhornet.co.uk

A classic character of film, television, radio, and comic books returns to the big screen in Columbia Pictures’ feature film The Green Hornet, starring Seth Rogen as the vigilante crime-fighter. The film is directed by Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) from a screenplay written by Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg (Superbad, Pineapple Express), based upon “The Green Hornet” radio series created by George W. Trendle, and produced by Neal H. Moritz (The Fast and the Furious).

127 HOURS From 7th January

127 Hours is the true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston's remarkable adventure to save himself after a fallen boulder crashes on his arm and traps him in an isolated canyon in Utah. Over the next five days Ralston examines his life and survives the elements to finally discover he has the courage and the wherewithal to extricate himself by any means necessary, scale a 65 foot wall and hike over eight miles before he is finally rescued. Throughout his journey, Ralston recalls friends, lovers, family, and the two hikers he met before his accident. Will they be the last two people he ever had the chance to meet?

RELEASES THIS MONTH: 7TH JANUARY IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY SEASON OF THE WITCH THE KING’S SPEECH 14TH JANUARY BLUE VALENTINE CABIN IN THE WOODS(3D) THE FINAL SACRIFICE THE DILEMMA HONEYMOONER MIDGETS VERSUS MASCOTS

What’s On

ARDIFF NOW

What’s On THEATRE Mamma Mia 16 Nov 2010 to 23 Jan 2011 Wales Millennium Centre This internationally-acclaimed musical MAMMA MIA! comes to Wales Millennium Centre this Christmas for the first time. Tickets from £15.00 per person. Cinderella 11 Dec 2010 to 23 Jan 2011 New Theatre It’s never too early to book for pantomime! Get swept away by one of the most enchanting fairy tales of all time in this classic rags to riches story. Strictly Golden Oldies Tea Dance 14 Jan 2011 to 14 Jan 2011 St David's Hall Join everyone's favourite, Stan Stennett, for an afternoon of dancing and fun at his Strictly Golden Oldies Tea Dance The Australian Classic Rock Show 14 Jan 2011 to 14 Jan 2011 St David's Hall This show presents two and a half hours of classic rock’s best moments! A virtuoso band of the finest musicians on the planet will perform a mix of selected classic rock album sides plus a special anthem-by-anthem climax to the show. Sunday Jazz – Chapter Four 16 Jan 2011 to 16 Jan 2011 Chapter Arts Centre An evening of melodic acoustic jazz in the Caffi Bar Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends 22 Jan 2011 to 22 Jan 2011 Cardiff International Arena Thomas the Tank Engine™, Percy, James, Gordon, Sir Topham Hatt and townspeople from the Island of Sodor live and in person! They're joined by a colorful cast of circus performers in an engaging story. Lord Mayor’s Matinee 30 Jan 2011 to 30 Jan 2011 St David's Hall Cardiff YMCA presents a thrilling concert showcasing the talents of young people from all over Cardiff featuring contemporary ballet, modern, tap and ballroom dancing plus routines from West End, Broadway and Film musicals.

COMEDY

Peter Karrie 11 Jan 2011 to 11 Jan 2011 Wales Millennium Centre International theatre star Peter Karrie, best known for his spectacular portrayal of the title role in Phantom of the Opera, will return to the Centre with a new show featuring songs from his new album, My Funny Old Lovely Old Wales.

Drones Comedy Club 7 Jan 2011 Chapter Arts Centre Resident hosts Clint Edwards and Dan Thomas are joined by special guests to showcase the very best in new stand up comedy.

J.L.S. (additional tour date) 18 Jan 2011 to 18 Jan 2011 Cardiff International Arena JLS: Oritsé, JB, Aston, and Marvin are the most successful group of all time to enter The X Factor; the most popular show on British TV. Rumours of Fleetwood Mac 26 Jan 2011 to 26 Jan 2011 St David's Hall The ultimate tribute to Fleet Mac, this brilliant live anthology takes you from the innovative blues of the 60s Peter Green era through to the band's reincarnation in the 70s with the recording of the definitive album Rumours.

Holly Walsh plus guests 8 Jan 2011 Glee Club

Paul Carrick 27 Jan 2011 to 27 Jan 2011 St David's Hall Former Mike & The Mechanics frontman and Squeeze member and the voice behind worldwide hits such as Ace's 'How Long', Squeeze's 'Tempted' and timeless classic 'The Living Years', who has a reputation as a stunning live performer. 'His soulful gem of a voice is one of pop's best kept secrets.

Gavin Webster, with Tim Clark, Rob Deering and guest 14 Jan 2011 to 15 Jan 2011 Glee Club Andy Askins and Gar Murran plus guests 20 Jan 2011 to 22 Jan 2011 Glee Club The Raymond and Mr Timpkins Revue 27 Jan 2011 to 29 Jan 2011 Glee Club

Alexandra Burke 28 Jan 2011 to 28 Jan 2011 Cardiff International Arena The UK’s pop goddess Alexandra Burke is set to light up the UK as she announces her debut UK tour

Stephen K Amos 31 Jan 2011 St David’s Hall Russell Howard 1 Feb 2011 to 3 Feb 2011 Cardiff International Arena

For Those About to Rock 29 Jan 2011 to 29 Jan 2011 St David's Hall The ultimate tribute to AC/DC, Livewire perform all their classics including: Whole Lotta Rosie and Back in Black.

John Bishop—Sunshine 16 Feb to 17 Feb Cardiff International Arena

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MUSIC

Churches

& Community

All Saints Church Rhiwbina Tel : 02920 626072

Community & Churches

ARDIFF NOW

Bethany Baptist Church 126c Heol Uchaf Tel : 02920 692175 Beulah United Reformed Church Beulah Rd, Rhiwbina Contact Rev Dr Peter CruchleyJones 20693517 Bethal URC Llangranog Road Llanishen Christ the King RC Church Newborough Avenue Llanishen Tel: 02920 752 389 www.3churches.org Email - pp@3churches.org Lisvane Baptist Church Lisvane Memorial Hall Heol y Delyn Tel: 02920 750 932 www.lisvanebaptistchurch.org.uk/ Llanishen Baptist Church Fidlas Road Tel: 02920 753436 Llanishen Evangelical Heol Merlin Llanishen jalord@btinternet.com Llanishen Methodist Church Melbourne Road

St Faith’s Church Morris Avenue Llanishen Tel : 02920 75 2545 Email: fatherm@btinternet.com St Denys Church Tel: 02920 753338 St Brigid’s Church Crystal Glen Llanishen Tel : 02920 752389 www.3churches.org Email - pp@3churches.org St Teilo’s Catholic Church Old Church Road Cardiff Tel : 02920 623 444 Thornhill Church Excalibur Drive Tel : 02920 759995

BoobifulBabies St Brigid’s Church Hall Thursdays 1-3pm 02920 495 800 Cardiff Archaeological Society Cardiff University, Main Building, Cathays Park 7.15pm Tel: 209 2056 6700

www.llanishen methodistchurch.co.uk

Tel : 02920 623 678

Your Local Representatives

Park End Church Llandennis Road Roath Park Tel: 02920 763677

MP for Cardiff North Jonathan Evans Tel - 02920 616031

Rhiwbina Baptist Church Lon Ucha Rhiwbina Tel : 02920 623 791

AM for Cardiff North Jonathan Morgan Tel - 029 20529551

St Isan Church Station Rd Llanishen Tel : 02920 75 2545 Email : fatherm@btinternet.com

Cardiff Area Singles Tuesdays from 9.30pm At The Hollybush, Pendwyallt Rd, Whitchurch www.cardiffareasingles.talktalk.net The Friday Night Project Llanishen Leisure centre For 11 to 16yr olds £1.00 entry Football, Table Tennis, Basketball, Snooker, Badminton and DJ’ing Friends of Coed y Felin Working parties every month Tel : 02920 747 710

RATS –Rhiwbina Amateur Theatrical Society Rhiwbina Memorial Hall, Lon Ucha, ,Rhiwbina

Impact Youth Cafe Thursdays @ Thornhill Community Centre From 7.30pm

Rhiwbina Camera Club Fridays from 7.30pm Y Canolfan Beulah, Beulah Road, Rhiwbina Tel : 02920 625120 or 02920 611874

Llanishen Breakfast Club Church Hall, Fidlas Road, Llanishen Meeting 7.45 to 9.15am Mon-Fri (term time only) For ages 3 to 11yrs

Rhiwbina Good Neighbours Tel : 02920 611 285

Email: llanishenbreakfastclub@live.com

Rhiwbina Council www.rhiwbinaward.com

Llanishen Local History Society Www.Tel : 02920 755518

Rotary Club of Cardiff Breakfast meetings held at Whitchurch Golf Club on 2nd Wednesday each month. www.cardiffbreakfastrotary.org

Llanishen Good Neighbours Tel: 02920 750 751 www.llanishengoodneighbours.co.uk llanishengoodneighbours@hotmail.com

St Faith’s Community Coffee Morning every Tuesday, 10.00am – 1l.30am.

Llanishen Quiet Garden situated beside the Methodist Church Melbourne Road Tel: 02920 753108

St John’s Ambulance Rhiwbina & Llanishen Division Bethany Baptist Church, Heol Uchaf Contact Janice Allen on 07967 630093

Llanishen Rotary Club www.llanishenrotary.co.uk Life Line - Christian Support Network Thornhill Community Centre Every other Friday from 10.30 to 12pm Call Sally on 02920 867040 or Dinah on 02920 521890

PACT Meetings Llandaff Danescourt Primary School 5 Jan 2011 from 6.30pm

Lisvane Community Council info@lisvanecommunity.org.uk

Llandaff North Llandaff North Community Centre 6 Jan 2011 from 7pm

Lisvane 50+club Meeting every 4th Wednesday @2.00pm, Location old school hall Lisvane. Contact Tel: 02920764871. E-mail tcousins@googlemail.com

Whitchurch & Tongwynlais International Hotel 18 Jan 2011 from 7pm

LISVANE BRIDGE CLUB Please contact Glenys Roderick on 2076 1269 or Chris Moseley on 2075 1023 with any further enquiries, or just come along one Monday and give it a try. LISVANE ART WORKSHOP Tuesday 2- 4 pm at Lisvane Memorial Hall contact: Ian Philipot: TEL 029 20754613 OR EMAIL: ian.philpot@talk talk.net

If your community group or club does not appear here, contact us to add your details by sending an email to: info@cardiffnow.co.uk

Lisvane Historical Society meeting monthly on the second Wednesday/ month, @ 7.00pm, Location old school hall Lisvane

CARDIFF NOW

Lisvane Women’s Institute Meet on the 2nd Tuesday each month at Lisvane Memorial Hall

Glamorgan Family History Society St Mark’s Church Hall, North Road 7.30pm Telephone: 029 2021 1431

Schools & Local Council

ARDIFF NOW

Primary

Secondary

Cefn Onn Primary School Llangranog Road Llanishen Tel: 02920 753088

Cardiff High School Llandennis Road Cyncoed Cardiff CF23 6WG Tel : 02920 757 741

Christ the King RC Primary School Everest Avenue Tel: 029 2075 4787 Coed Glas Primary School Ty Glas Avenue Tel: 029 2075 4862 Eglwys Newydd Glan-y-Nant Road Whitchurch CF14 1 AP Tel : 02920 628239 Llanishen Fach Primary School Heol Uchaf Tel: 02920 627886

Schools ► Adult & Further

Specialist education

Whitchurch High School Penlline Road, Whitchurch Cardiff CF 14 2XJ Tel : 02920 629 700 Ysgol Glantaf Bridge Road Llanidaff North Cardiff CF14 2JL Tel: 02920 333090

Llysfaen Primary School Rowan Way Lisvane Tel: 02920 756071

School |Term Dates Academic Year 2010/2011

Rhiwbeina Primary School Lon Ucha Rhiwbina Tel : 02920 623 732

Autumn Term Begins : Thursday 2nd Sept Half Term : Mon 25 to Fri 29th Oct End : Fri 17th Dec

Rhydypenau Primary School Fidlas Avenue Llanishen Tel : 02920 757253

Spring Term Begins : Tue 4th Jan Half Term : Mon 21st to Fri 25th Feb End : Fri 15th April

St Josephs’ RC Primary School North Road Tel : 02920 621625

Summer Term Begins : Tue 3rd May Half Term : Mon 30th to Fri 3rd Jun End : Fri 22nd July

Thornhill Primary School Heol Hir Tel: 02920 751302

► Primary Schools ► Secondary

Llanishen High School Heol Hir Llanishen Tel: 02920 680 800

Ton-Yr-Ywen Primary School Maes-y-Coed Road Tel : 02920 754 633 Ysgol Y Wern Llangranog Road Llanishen Tel :02920 762 114

Easter Sunday 24th April 2011; Spring Bank Holiday 30th May 2011. Thursday 2nd September 2010 and Friday 1 October 2010 will be designated INSET days for all Community Schools. There will be three further INSET days during the year. All schools will be closed on Monday 2 May 2011 for May Day Bank Holiday.

Cardiff Bus (timetable) Tel: 0871 200 22 33

Libraries

DVLA (Cardiff office) Tel: 0870 850 0007

Llanishen Library 31 Kimberley Terrace Tel : 02920 750634

Electricity 0800 052 0400 Gas 0800 111 999 Water 0800 052 0130 National Rail Enquiries Tel: 08457 48 49 50 Police (Llanishen) (via central switchboard) Tel : 02920 222 111 For PACT info visit; www.ourbobby.com South Wales Fire Service Home safety check Tel : 0800 169 1234 Whitchurch Fire Station Tel : 02920 623 223

Rhiwbina Library Pen-y-Dre Tel: 02920 693276 Rhydypennau Library Llandennis Road Tel: 02920 754 657 Whitchurch Library Park Road Whitchurch Cardiff CF14 7XA Mobile Library Service Tel : 02920 763 849

Connect to Cardiff C2C Tel : 02920 872087 Pupil and Student Services Admissions Team 029 2087 2909 Planning Applications Tel : 02920 871135 developmentcontrol@cardiff.gov .uk Dog Warden Tel : 02920 708141 Noisy Neighbours Tel : 02920 871 650 Pest Control Tel: 02920 872 934 Mature Drivers Refresher Courses @ the Road Safety Centre Briardene Tel : 02920 619907

Local Councillors HEATH Fenella Bowden (Lib Dem) 5 Welwyn Road, Heath Tel : 02920 692435 Lyn Hudson (Con) 19 Heathwood Road, Heath Tel : 02920 522 654 Ron Page (Con) 54 King George V Drive, Heath Tel : 02920 762 829 LISVANE David Walker (Con) 19 Clos Llysfaen Tel : 02920 765836 LLANDAFF NORTH Jacqui Hooper (Lib Dem) 12 Radyr Place, Mynachdy Tel : 02920 521782 Ann Rowland-James (Lib Dem) 22 Clarbeston Road, Llandaff North Tel : 07773 653 282

LLANISHEN Richard Foley (Con) Members Services, Room CY7, County Hall, Atlantic Wharf Tel : 02920 694 702 Robert Smith (Con) 44 Kyle Crescent, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 619304 Craig Piper (Con) 55 Pinecrest Drive, Thornhill Tel : 02920 763 647 Jonathan Burns (Con) Member Services, Room 286, County Hall, Atlantic Wharf Tel : 02920 872020 RHIWBINA Jayne Cowan (Independent) Brynlake, 174 Manor Way, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 62 7757

Brian Jones (Independent) 4 Roundwood Close, Penylan Tel : 02920 493 953 Adrian Robson (independent) Jayne Cowan (Independent) Brynlake, 174 Manor Way, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 619 237 WHITCHURCH & TONGWYNLAIS Timothy Davies (Con) 1 Westbourne Crescent, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 618751 Brian Griffiths (Con) 2 Castle Road, Tongwynlais Tel : 02920 811 374 Linda Morgan (Con) Oak House, 23 Castell Coch View Tongwynlais Tel : 02920 81 3395 Michael Jones-Pritchard (Con) 32 Castell Coch View, Tongwynlais Tel : 02920 814 342

CARDIFF NOW

Council Contacts

Useful Numbers

Health Services

ARDIFF NOW

Chemists

Dental Laboratories

Boots the Chemist Parc Ty Glas Llanishen Tel: 02920 754 838

C.A.W.Dental Ceramics 7 Lon Fach, Rhiwbina Cardiff Tel: 02920 619 714

Brooks Pharmacy 3 Fidlas Road Llanishen Cardiff Tel : 0800 0488596

GP Surgeries

Lloyds Pharmacy 4c Heol-y-Deri Rhiwbina Tel : 02920 618000 Lloyds Pharmacy 8 Park Road Whitchurch Tel : 02920 626986 Lloyds Pharmacy 34-42 Merthyr Road Whitchurch Tel : 02920 621156 Lloyds Pharmacy 22 Station Road Llanishen Tel: 02920 752292 Sainsburys Pharmacy Excalibur Drive, Thornhill Tel : 02920 761635

Llanishen Court Surgery Tel: 02920 757 025 North Cardiff Medical Centre Tel: 02920 76 44 44 Rhiwbina Surgery Tel : 02920 627959 Whitchurch Village Practice Park Road Surgery Tel : 02920 629602 University Hospital of Wales (Heath) Main switchboard Tel: 02920 747 747

Opticians John Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connor Davies 3 Thornhill Road Llanishen Tel: 02920 754 659 Evans + Hailes + Dean Church School House 2 Heol Hir Llanishen Tel : 02920 754 314

Dentists Llanishen Dental Surgery Heol Hir Llanishen Tel: 02920 761 476 Cedars Dental Surgery 189 Fidlas Road Llanishen Tel: 02920 689 099 Rhiwbina Dental Surgery 25, Heol-y-Deri, Rhiwbina, Tel: 02920 626 551

Podiatrist Lucy Jones BSc (Hons) HPC registered podiastrist/ chiropodist Tel: 07854 672563 Email : lucy@cardiffpodiatry.com www.cardiffpodiatry.com

Chartered Psychologist Mike Nelmes Hope Clinic, Cremona House, Lon Ucha, Rhiwbina Tel : 077 077 39000 Email :mikenelmes@hopeclinic.co.uk

Help Lines Advice & Local Charities

University Hosptial of Wales Heath Park, Cardiff Tel : 02920 747 747

Age Concern Tel : 02920 360 306

Gamblers Anonymous Tel : 020 7384 3040

Alcoholics Anonymous Tel: 0845 769 7555 (local rate)

George Thomas Hospice www.gth.org.uk Tel: 02920 524 150

Cardiff Royal Infirmary Newport Road Tel : 02920 492 223 Llandough Penlan Road Tel : 02920 711 711 Rookwood (rehabilitation) Fairwater Road, Llandaff Tel : 02920 415 415 St David’s Community Hospital Cowbridge Road East Tel : 02920 536 666 Velindre (cancer care) Velindre Road, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 615 888 Whitchurch (psychiatric) Park Road, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 693 191 Cardiff Local Health Board Trenewydd, Fairwater Road, Llandaff Tel : 02920 552 212

Community Care Unity Care Limited 148c Crwys Road Cathays, Cardiff CF24 4NR

Al-Anon Family Group Tel: 020 740 30888 Www.al-anonuk.org.uk

Joshua Foundation Tel: 02920 757020

Alzheimer’s Society Tel : 02920 571 872

Mencap Wales Tel: 0808 808 1111

Bobath Childrens’ Therapy Centre Tel : 02920 522600

MIND Infoline Tel : 0845 766 0163

Breast Cancer Care Helpline : 0808 800 6000 British Heart Foundation Tel : 0300 333 1333 Cancer Research Wales Tel : 02920 616467 Cardiff Concern Tel : 02920 664410 Cardiff Carers’ Information, Support & Wellbeing Bus Tel: 0845 241 0987 Cardiff Women’s Aid Tel: 029 2046 0566 Citizens Advice Bureau Tel: 02920 346 499 Childline Tel: 0800 1111 Diabetes UK Tel : 0845 120 2960 (Careline) Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 8010 800 Email : info@wdah.org

Missing People Tel : 0500 700 700 National Drugs Helpline Tel : 0800 77 66 00 NSPCC Child Protection 0800 800500(24hr) Parkinson’s Disease Society Tel : 0808 800 0303 Rainbow of Hope 14 Gilwern Crescent, Llanishen, Tel : 02920 764 243 www.rainbowofhope.co.uk Royal National Institute for the Deaf Te: 0808 808 9000 (minicom) RSPCA Merthyr Road, Whitchurch 02920 521177 Rwanda Restored Tel : 02920 627 581 Samaritans 0845 790 9090 The Stroke Association 0845 3033 100

Drinkaware www.drinkaware.co.uk 020 7307 7450 Epilepsy Wales www.epilepsy-wales.co.uk Tel : 02920 755 515

Tenovus Cancer Information 02920 768850

Family Mediation Cardiff Tel : 02920 229692

Women’s Aid Tel : 02920 460566

Ty Hafan www.tyhafan.org Tel: 02920 67 2060

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Hospitals

Eating Out & Takeaways

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Take Aways

Restaurants

Bombay Mix 7 Penlline Road, Whitchurch Tel : 02920 636 060

Aegean Taverna 117 Woodville Road Tel : 02920 345 114

Juboraj Express 240 North Road Cardiff Tel : 02920 610 333

Bayside Brasserie Unit 14 Upper Mermaid Quay Tel : 02920 358444

Nahin Spice Centre Caerphilly Road Tel : 02920 520360

Bully’s Restaurant 5 Romilly Crescent Tel : 02920 221905

Top Oriental Chinese Takeaway 105 Caerphilly Road Tel : 02920 522652

Cafe Jazz 21 St Mary Street CF10 1PL Tel : 02920 387026

Canton Chop Suey House 319 Caerphilly Road Tel : 02920 620 291 City Pizza 10 City Road Roath Tel : 02920 450054 Mandarin 95 Heol LLanishen Fach Tel : 02920 614 715 Papa John’s 208 City Road Tel : 02920 471 222 Top Gun 33 Merthyr Road Tel : 02920 618693

De Courcey’s Tyla Morris Avenue Pentyrch Tel : 02920 892232 India Gate 17 Penlline Road Whitchurch Tel : 02920 611 178 Juboraj – Cafe Quarter 10 Mill Lane Tel : 02920 377668 Juboraj Lakeside Lake Road West Tel : 02920 455123 Juboraj Rhiwbina 11 Heol-y-Deri Tel : 02920 628894 Mint and Mustard 134 Whitchurch Road Tel : 02920 620333 Stefano’s 14 Romilly Crescent Tel : 02920 372768

Taxis

Cardiff International Arena Mary Ann Street Cardiff Telephone - 02920 224488

Dragon Taxis Unit 5 Martin Road Tremorfa Industrial Estate Rover Way Cardiff CF24 5SD Tel : 02920 333 333

Wales Millennium Centre Telephone - 08700 40 2000 New Theatre Park Place Tel: 02920 878889

Premier Cars Unit 9, Wroughton Place, Ely, Cardiff South Glamorgan CF5 4AB Tel : 02920 555 555

St Davidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hall The Hayes Tel: 02920 878 444 Sherman Theatre Senghennydd Rd Tel: 02920 646900

Cardiff Cabs 2nd Floor, Bayview House 102 Bute Street Cardiff Bay Cardiff CF10 5AD Tel : 02920 909090

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama 029 20391 391 boxoffice@rwcmd.ac.uk

Capital Cabs Unit 8 Lamby Park Industrial Estate Wentloog Avenue Cardiff CF3 2EX Tel : 02920 777 777

Norwegian Church Arts Centre Harbour Drive, Cardiff Bay Tel: (029) 2045 4899 Howardian Centre Hammond Way Penylan Cardiff Tel 02920 432700 Howardianac@cardiff.gov.uk

Delta Taxis Tel : 02920 201010 Checker Cars Cardiff Airport Vale of Glamorgan CF62 3BD Tel : 01446 711 747

Glee Club Mermaid Quay Tel 0870 241 5093 The Gate Keppoch St, Roath Tel : 02920 48 33 44

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Venues in Cardiff

Local Sports

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Archery

Cricket

Castle Bowmen Tel : 02920 755 332 www.gnas.org

Cardiff Cricket Club Tel : 0781 8008 985 www.cardiff.play-cricket.com

Celyn Archers Tel: 02920 484 509 www.celynarchers.com

Cardiff Gymkhana Tel: 02920 307 482 www.cardiffgymkhanancc.playcricket.com

Llandaff City Bowmen Tel : 01443 227 164

Athletics Cardiff Amateur Athletics Club Tel : 02920 660 360 www.cardiffaac.org Les Croupiers Running Club Tel : 02920 514 267 www.lescroupiersrunningclub.org. uk

Badminton Arches Badminton Club Tel : 02920 483 413 www.arches.btik.com

Cardiff Badminton Club Tel: 02920 693 926

Basketball Cardiff Capitals Tel: www.cardiffcapitals.synthasite.com

Glamorgan Cricket Club Tel : 02920 419 340 Tickets : 02920 419 311 www.glamorgancricket.com Lisvane Cricket Club Tel : 02920 763 728 www.lisvanecc.co.uk Pentyrch Cricket Club Tel : 02920 858 626 www.pentyrchcricket.co.uk Radyr Cricket Club Tel : 0797 1954 791 www.radyrcc.co.uk St Fagans Cricket Club Tel : 0777 5896 967 www.stfaganscc.co.uk Whitchurch Heath Tel : 0777 1904 476 www.pitchero.com/clubs/ whitchurchheathcricketclub

Cycling

Trelai Warriors Tel : 02920 626 083

Manidy Flyers Youth Tel : 02920 529 230 www.maindyflyers.com

UWIC Academy of Basketball Tel : 02920 416 588

Fencing

Bowls Cardiff Bowling Club Tel : 02920 228874 Whitchurch Bowling Club Tel : 02920 628 044 www.whitchurchbowlscardiff.org.u k Rhiwbina Bowls Club Tel : 02920 693583 www.rhiwbinabowls.co.uk

Whitchurch Fencing Club Tel : 02920 751 155 www.whitchurchfencing.co.uk

Football Cardiff City FC Tel : 0845 345 1400 www.cardiffcityfc.co.uk Cardiff City Ladies Tel : 0786 6525 177 www.cardiffladiesfc.co.uk

UWIC Academy of Gymnastics Tel : 02920 416 777 www.uwic.ac.uk

Rowing

Lisvane Panthers FC Tel : 02920 235 718 www.lisvanepanthers.co.uk

Hockey

Llandaff Rowing Club Tel : 02920 566 361 www.llandaffrc.com

Rhiwbina FC Tel : 0777 0855 478 www.clubwebsite.co.uk/ rhwbinafootballclub Thornhill Athletic Tel : 0777 3775 146 www.thornhillathletic.org

Golf Cardiff Golf Club Tel : 02920 753 320 www.cardiffgc.co.uk Llanishen Golf Club Tel : 02920 755078 www.llanishengc.co.uk Radyr Golf Club Tel : 02920 842 408 www.radyrgolf.co.uk

Cardiff & UWIC HC Tel : 02920 405 809 www.cardiffhockey.co.uk Whitchurch Hockey Club Tel : 0795 4417 361 www.whitchurch-hc.com

Cardiff High School Old Boys Tel : 02920 693 552 www.chsobrfc.co.uk Glamorgan Wanderers Tel : 02920 592 998 www.glamorganwanderers.co.uk

Whitchurch Saints Ladies HC Tel : 0781 4000 017 www.wslhc.co.uk

Llandaff North RFC Tel : 07974 823 940 www.llandaffnorth.com

Ice Hockey

Llandaff RFC Tel : 0786 0148 887 www.llandaffrugby.com

Cardiff Devils Community Foundation Tel : 0844 801 2010 www.cardiffdevils.com/ community.aspx

LLanishen RFC Tel : 02920 761 688 www.llanishenrfc.co.uk Rhiwbina RFC Tel : 0790 5852 266 www.rhiwbina-squirrels.com

Ice Skating

Gymnastics

Dragon Paddlers Canoe Club Tel : 02920 625 064 www.dragonpaddlers.org.uk

Phoenix Gymnastics Tel : 02920 515 200 www.phoenixgymnastics.co.uk

Rugby

Whitchurch Ladies HC Tel : 0799 9825 762 www.wlhc.co.uk

Whitchurch Golf Club Tel : 02920 529 860 www.whitchurchcardiffgolfclub. com St Mellons Golf Club Tel : 01633 680 408 www.stmellonsgolfclub.co.uk

Cardiff Olympic Gymnastics Tel : 02920 238 239 www.cardiffolympic.co.uk

Cardiff Rowing Club Tel : 0780 0887 503 www.cardiffcityrc.co.uk

Cardiff Ice Skating Club Tel : 01873 812 262 www.cardifficeskatingclub.co.uk

Kayaking

Glam Boaters Tel : 0797 0261 862 www.glam-boaters.co.uk

Martial Arts

Planet Gymnastics Tel : 07790 920 573 www.planetgymnastics.co.uk

Cardiff Martial Arts Tel : 0797 1468 231 www.cardiffmartialarts.com

Somersault Gymnastics Tel : 02920 495 111 somersaultgym@aol.com

Radyr T.A.G.B Taekwon-Do Club Tel : 01443 3226 452 www.blackbeltschools.com

Scuba Diving Diving Dragons Tel : 0781 1463 238 www.divingdragons.co.uk

Squash Rhiwbina Squash Club Tel : 07967 026030 www.rhiwbinasquashclub.co.uk

Swimming City of Cardiff Swimming Club www.cardiffswimmingclub.co.uk

Tennis Lisvane Tennis Club www.lisvanetennis.co.uk Whitchurch Tennis Club Tel : 0785 4383 420 www.whitchurchtennisclub.co.uk

CARDIFF NOW

Heath Park Rangers Tel : 02920 617 505 www.heathparkrangers.co.uk

S chool news

Ysgol y Wern Choir gets busy

Thornhill Primary School

“Wedi 3” S4C Competition The Choir competed in the Carol Competition which is held annually by the Welsh television programme “ Wedi 3 “ on S4C. Ten carols have been chosen from all over Wales to be televised during the weeks leading up to Christmas. The carol was composed by the school’s Music Co-ordinator Mair Long. We await the adjudicators’ decision!

As a busy first term comes to an end we celebrated Christmas with concerts given in all Yeargroups as well as by our flourishing Orchestra and Choir with parents and grandparents in attendance. A collection was made for the Noah’s ark Appeal. In November, the children came to school in fancy dress and put coins in the Wishing Well for Children in Need, raising over £400. We also raised over £100 with our Poppy Appeal.

Gio Compario, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”. We were invited by Wynne Evans(Go Compare) to sing with him on a Christmas single. Members of Year 6 were filmed for a video promoting the single. Warner Brothers visited the school to record the children singing . It is possible for you to download the single. 25p from each download will go to the “Teenage Cancer Trust”. We hope to beat the X Factor single to No 1!

Mrs Marshall and Mrs Neathey of St Isan’s church were welcomed when they visited Year 3 to help the pupils make Christingles.

Primary Schools’ Choir Competition Final Ysgol y Wern reached the final of the Primary Schools’ Choir Competition in aid of Save the Children. The competition and prize giving was held at Howell’s School, Llandaff. We were thrilled to be announced as the winners. The school was presented with a glass plaque along with a Colorfoto Photo Shoot worth £400.00. Christmas with the Stars Concert The Choir performed in a Christmas concert at St Mary’s Church, Whitchurch in aid of The British Heart Foundation. It was a great experience to perform with Welsh stars including Wynne Evans and Côr Caerdydd.