Potton jan 15

VILLAGER The

Issue 101 - January 2015

and Town

Life

LOCAL NEWS • LOCAL PEOPLE • LOCAL SERVICES • LOCAL CHARITIES • LOCAL PRODUCTS

Inside this issue

The History of the Bicycle

Albert’s

Mongolian adventure

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in our Prize Crossword

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in Biggleswade, Sandy, Potton, Gamlingay and all surrounding villages 11,000 copies delivered to over 30 towns and villages every month

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Contents Handpicked Wedding Team

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The History of the Bicycle.................................................4 Christmas Presents - Your Rights!.....................................8 Children of Courage Awards 2015...................................10 The Handpicked Wedding Team.....................................13 Where Am I?..................................................................16 Where Do Bees Go In Winter...........................................18 Swan UK.........................................................................21 Mobile Safety.................................................................22 Golden Years..................................................................24 Sandy Tourist Information Centre...................................26 Design a Blissful Bedroom..............................................28 The Best Ever January....................................................33 Thessaloniki - Greece......................................................34 To Eat or not to Eat.........................................................36 Drop a Dress Size Digitally..............................................38 St John’s Hospice Fundraiser...........................................41 In the Groove..................................................................42 Working from Home - Is It For You?................................45 Happy New Year Traditions.............................................47 Albert’s Mongolian Adventure........................................48 Editor - Catherine Rose Editorial - Catherine Rose, Jonathan Vernon-Smith, Chris Rose, Tom Hancock, Nooshin Hassan, Solange Hando, Katherine Sorrell, Debbie Singh-Bhatti, Louise Addison, Susan Brookes-Morris, Pippa Greenwood, Geoff Wharton, Potton Vets, Derek Thompson, James Baggott, Ann Haldon, Kate McLelland, North Beds RSPCAand Bruce Edwards Advertising Sales Nigel Frost - 01767 261122 nigel@villagermag.com Photography - Terry Rug, Heidi Hodgson, Emma Porter, Biggleswade History Society, Cathy Yeulet and Catherine Rose Design and Artwork - Design 9 Tel 07762 969460

VILLAGER The

Issue 101 - January 2015

and Town

Life

LOCAL NEWS • LOCAL PEOPLE • LOCAL SERVICES • LOCAL CHARITIES • LOCAL PRODUCTS

Inside this issue

The History of the Bicycle

Albert’s

Mongolian adventure

Win £25

in our Prize Crossword

Bringing Local Business to Local People

in Biggleswade, Sandy, Potton, Gamlingay and all surrounding villages 11,000 copies delivered to over 30 towns and villages every month

ur Yo EE FR1copy

The Truly Green Garden..................................................51 Rural Ramblings.............................................................52 World’s Biggest Garden Wildlife Survey..........................54 Ask Alan.........................................................................57 Animal Heroes................................................................59 Children’s Page...............................................................60 Winter Flu Jab................................................................63 Rolls Royce Wraith..........................................................65 Wordsearch....................................................................66 Seasonal Delights...........................................................68 Letchworth Centre for Healthy Living.............................70 Are you Gym Phobic?......................................................72 What’s On?.....................................................................74 Winter Sales...................................................................75 The Pros and Cons of Equity Release...............................77 Puzzle Page....................................................................80 Fun Quiz.........................................................................82 Prize Crossword..............................................................86 The Amici Singers...........................................................88 Book Review..................................................................92

Where Do Bees Go In Winter

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Publishers Villager Publications Ltd 24 Market Square, Potton, Bedfordshire SG19 2NP Tel: 01767 261122 nigel@villagermag.com www.villagermag.com

Disclaimer - All adverts and editorial are printed in good faith, however, Villager Publications Ltd can not take any responsibility for the content of the adverts, the services provided by the advertisers or any statements given in the editorial. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored without the express permission of the publisher.

To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122 3

History

The History of the Bicycle

By Catherine Rose

Dan Albone

The city of Cambridge has long been renowned for its bicycles, and with the excitement of the Tour de France last summer, cycling as a sport is rapidly increasing in popularity. What’s more, one of cycling’s most famous inventors was born in Bedfordshire. Catherine Rose takes a look at the history of the mechanical two-wheeler.

Despite the existence of a 600-year-old drawing from the workshop of Leonardo da Vinci showing a two-wheeled contraption, the first bicycle is said to have been invented by a German, Baron Karl von Drais. Nicknamed the Draisine, it was patented in 1818. It is believed that he had the idea when that

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year’s crop failure led to the widespread death of horses and consequently, a transport shortage.

His invention consisted of a two-wheeled wooden vehicle that was propelled by the rider’s legs and he test rode it from Manheim, covering eight miles in under an hour. Renamed the velocipede by the French (the modern French word for bicycle is ‘velo’) and the hobby or dandy horse in England, over the ensuing years, the model was refined.

Then in 1839 a Scottish blacksmith, Kirkpatrick MacMillan invented a treadle driven version with rods that connected the treadles on the front wheel to crank pins on the back. The oldest existing pedal-driven bicycle is a similar design that was made by Gavin Dalzell, a cooper from Lanarkshire, who may have copied MacMillan.

But it was in the 1860s that Frenchman Pierre Lallement, a mechanic, invented the Boneshaker which had pedals attached to a rotary crank mechanism on the front wheel. It was patented in 1866 and the patent sold to the Michaux family.

It became very popular in England and there is one on display in the Science Museum. It is said to weigh the same as a fridge and was notoriously uncomfortable to ride.

Once again this model was improved upon, most notably by James Starley in 1858 who is described as the father of the British bicycle industry. Solid rubber strips were cemented to the wheels for increased suspension and comfort, the saddle was moved forward to improve weight distribution

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and the handlebars widened and became higher.

A ladies’ side saddle version also became available (although it must have been very difficult to ride!)

The first cycle race was held in Paris in 1868 with an Englishman, James Moore, being the winner.

That same year, the Phantom cycle became available. It was hinged in the middle to aid steering and was the first to use metal wire instead of wood for the spokes.

Another Frenchman, Eugene Mayer is credited with inventing the high bicycle, the most famous of which is the Penny Farthing, in 1869. The large front wheel had the effect of increasing the bicycle’s speed and minimized road shocks but it was very difficult to mount and dangerous to drive.

In reaction to this, the first ‘safety bicycles’ were invented in the 1870s. These were deliberately made to be low to the ground. The Shergold Safety bicycle is believed to be the oldest surviving vehicle with a chain driven rear wheel. This was closely followed by the Bicyclette designed by H.J. Lawson who registered the term ‘safety cycle’.

Rover was one of the main manufacturers of the safety bicycle bringing out a version in 1885 with direct steering and rear chain drive that is very similar to our bicycle design of today.

In 1884, Hilman, Herbert & Cooper brought out the Kangaroo, a gear and chain-driven bicycle that that was the first bicycle to be ridden for 100 miles. During this era, tandems, tricycles and even

quadracycles were brought out as the bicycle craze exploded.

Four years later, John Boyd Dunlop, a Belfast vet, invented what the revolutionary pneumatic tyres with an inner tube, which he first made for his son’s tricycle. These quickly took over from solid tyres and by 1892 practically all bicycles had them.

One of the most famous cycle inventors is Dan Albone, affectionately known locally as ‘Smiling Dan’, who was born in 1860 and grew up in Biggleswade. For his ninth birthday, he was given a Boneshaker which began a love affair with mechanical transport. Four years later, he had already built his own version of the Penny Farthing complete with suspension and was using it to win local races. When he left school, he became an apprentice at Thomas Course & Son in Hitchin Street, learning to be a millwright and engineer.

By 1880, he had founded his own company in Biggleswade, the Ivel Cycle Works where he produced racing bikes – the Ivel Light Roadster and the Ivel Racer. He became known internationally, attracting custom from all over the world. When James Starley exhibited his Rover safety bicycle at the Stanley show, Albone took the design and adapted it, producing his own Ivel Safety Cycle which went on to beat world cycling distance records.

He was to win many more cycle races, including two in Northampton (in 1885 and 1887) and in 1885 he founded a local cycling club. He even invented a bicycle child carrier. Unfortunately, there was a downturn in the economy in 1893, and Albone’s cycling business was forced into liquidation. However, he carried on producing motor cars and tractors and his name has gone down in history as a pioneering inventor of mechanical and motor vehicles.

Bicycles continued to evolve over the 20th century and today they are multi-geared, hi-tech and lightweight. Although the advent and popularity of the motor car meant that there was a significant drop in the number of bicycles being used to get around from the 1950s onwards, today, a resurgence in cycling interest coupled with the opening of new cycle routes mean that hopefully, Cambridge will not be the only city to be populated with bicycles in the future.

Photography: Biggleswade History Society

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Three Counties Radio

By Jonathan Vernon-Smith

Christmas Presents

Your Rights!

At this time of year with the sherry flowing and the credit card making a frequent appearance, I always think it’s worth reminding ourselves of what we are and are not entitled to as consumers when it comes to Christmas presents.

The first thing to consider is the returns policy of any company your purchase from. Many consumers wrongly believe they have the right to return non-faulty goods to a retailer and that they are duty bound to give you a refund. Although many companies have their own ‘goodwill’ returns policies, consumer law does not provide for this. Therefore if you are purchasing a present for someone and are worried that they may want to change it, or in the case of clothing, that it may be the wrong size, always ask the retailer what they will allow after you’ve left with the goods. If you want clarification, ask to see their official returns policy. To save on embarrassment, NEVER buy clothes as a present from a company that does not accept non-faulty returns.

Please also bear in mind that even if the company DOES allow non-faulty returns, the present must be returned in re-saleable condition. Tearing of packaging, removal of tags etc can render a product non-returnable so remember this when you’re excitedly tearing open those packages on Christmas day.

Christmas presents purchased online have different rules that are worth bearing in mind. Consumers who purchase goods online are protected by ‘Distance Selling Regulations’. This entitles the buyer to return the goods within the first 14 days whether they are faulty or not. Check the postage rules in the terms and conditions for the company though as many companies will expect you to pay the cost of postage when returning non faulty goods.

What about if the Christmas present you’ve been bought IS faulty? Well it’s worth remembering that the sales of goods act remains the same, whether it’s Christmas or not. Therefore any product purchased must: a) Be fit for purpose, b) Be of reasonable quality, c) Last for a reasonable amount of time.

The key to returning faulty products is not to delay. For the first 4 weeks after purchase buyers are entitled to return faulty goods and obtain a full refund. However, after this period of time, the retailer has greater rights. After 4 weeks, the retailer has to offer either: a) A repair of the product, b) An exchange, c) A refund Many people come to my radio show frustrated that they cannot get their money back on a 5 week old faulty item they’ve purchased. It’s with great reluctance I have to break the bad news to them that the retailer is entitled to a reasonable opportunity to repair goods when they are this old.

It’s also worth remembering that there is no such thing as a 12 month cut off for a customer’s rights. Although a manufacturer’s guarantee may expire after 12 months, you are still well within your rights to return faulty goods for a ‘reasonable’ amount of time depending on how much you’ve spent on the goods in the first place.

The final piece of advice I would offer is KEEP the receipt. Where nonfaulty goods are concerned, without a receipt, companies are under no obligation to accept returns. With faulty goods, you will still have to prove the purchase which may be possible with a credit card bill or bank statement, but with a cash purchase will be impossible. Don’t risk it, just put the receipts for those presents in a safe place.

Jonathan Vernon-Smith not only offers you his consumer advice here but you can listen to The JVS Show tackling your consumer problems every weekday morning from 9am.

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Local News

Children of Courage Awards 2015

These awards will be made by the Rotary Club of Biggleswade Ivel to young people aged from 9 to19 years (age on 31st March 2015) who have shown exceptional courage and fortitude during the year from April 2014 to the end of March 2015.

Courage is not only showing bravery in the face of danger, but can also be displayed by day to day determination and hard work in dealing with, adjusting to, and overcoming the obstacles and harsh realities that life can present; including illness and disability whether this is social, emotional, cognitive or physical.

These awards are a local Rotary Club initiative and are separate from other national awards.

They are designed to give encouragement to local young people.

Nominations may be made by local schools, charities, individuals and businesses for young people living within the circulation area of the

Biggleswade Chronicle. The recipients of the award will be identified by the Rotary Club. The closing date for nominations is 14th Feb 2015.

Awards will be presented on 18th March 2015 at a high profile lunchtime event to which local dignitaries, sponsors and family members or carers of those receiving awards will be invited.

The Rotary Club will also be pleased to receive support from local businesses and organisations who, in return, will gain publicity and know that they are encouraging disadvantaged young people in our community. The Club is grateful for the support already given by Jordans Mill, Ashley-Edison International (UK) and Langford Nurseries & Garden Centre.

For further information please contact Rotarian Liz McCartney, Rotary Club of Biggleswade Ivel, email lizbeth.mccartney@virgin.net

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We have a variety of housekeeping positions with flexible hours to fit around your lifestyle. There are contracts available from early mornings to school hours and you will come into regular contact with our guests so you will need to have a pleasant and helpful nature. Transport is available for some of our positions in the local area.

To apply for a housekeeping position or any of our other vacancies visit centerparcscareers.co.uk, click on Job search, then choose the Woburn location.

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at Center Parcs, we want our people to share in the success their hard work brings, enjoy a sense of wellbeing and a good lifestyle, and make the most of their time with us.

We offer unique benefits such as: • discounted Center Parcs breaks • day visitor passes • Free use of village facilities along with more classic benefits such as profit share and management bonus schemes, life insurance cover, 30 days annual leave (inclusive of bank holidays) and company sick pay.

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Weddings

The Handpicked Wedding Team The Handpicked Wedding Team are a group of well-established wedding suppliers based in Biggleswade. They include Sylvie Croot of Sylvie’s Wedding Cakes, Suzanne Randell of Flowers by Suzanne and Nicki Shea of Timeless Photography.

Together they have over 20 years’ experience in the wedding industry.

They have made numerous contacts over the years and know many excellent wedding suppliers whose work they consider high quality and who provide excellent customer service to brides and grooms.

Armed with these contacts they have organised a small, friendly and local wedding fair to be held over two days at Jordans Mill on 17th and 18th of January 2015 from 10am-4pm.

Jordans Mill have held a number of weddings and with their extensive experience in event management, will be offering brides the opportunity to look around the venue with a view to booking their wedding reception. The venue’s excellent Riverside Cafe will be open over the two days serving its usual range of breakfast and lunch choices, daily specials and drinks.

The Handpicked Wedding Team says: ‘If you are like most engaged couples we meet, you’re probably dreaming of the day you can buzz with excitement, knowing you have everything finally set up for your wedding day. We wanted to give something a bit extra to our local brides and that is when we came up with the “Win Your Wedding Extras” competition idea.’

‘We are very excited about this competition.

If the bride and groom wish to enter, they pay £1.00. Their contact information will then Visit our new community www.beds-local.co.uk

be written on their ticket when taken. Towards the end of the wedding fair, one of the team from Jordans Mill will enter the ‘Cash Grabber’ machine containing all the entered tickets, and the winning ticket will be literally ‘grabbed’! The winner will receive all the various free or money-off discounts from our wedding suppliers. Including a free “naked” wedding cake (Sylvie’s Wedding Cakes), bridal bouquet (Flowers by Suzanne), wedding photography (Timeless Photography), two balloon columns (The Balloon Ladies), guest book and hair accessory (Exceptional Designs), gel manicure (Elegant Nails by Lisa), wedding video recording (Northill Video Productions), a photo booth or money grabber machine (Glamour Booth UK), personalised post box and wishing tree hire (Amber Weddings), hair and make up for the bride (Fiona Lennox MUA) - and more! If the date is already booked by another bride in 2015, then an alternative prize will be offered as stated in the terms and conditions. But with so many suppliers offering special prizes, we are confident that one lucky bride will be able to make the most of this amazing competition.’

So make a date in your diary for the Handpicked Wedding fair in association with Jordans Mill, there will be a free goody bag, free admission, free parking, our friendly local – and quality – exhibitors to help and inspire you for your dream wedding!` To keep up-to-date with the Handpicked Wedding Team fair and the exhibitors please follow us at www.facebook.com/thehandpickedweddingteam and www.twitter.com/HandpickedWed

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Let us help you get your business off to a flying start VILLAGER VILLA GER The

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Our award winning magazines offer a unique local advertising platform. Printed on high quality paper we are still able to offer incredible prices along with a second-to-none service, professional advert design and a team just waiting to help you.

With over 15,500 copies being delivered door to door every month can your business wait any longer to be in The Villager?

“The response I have received this year is unprecedented to any other forms of media advertising I am currently engaged with!!

Steve Shackleton (First Glass Repairs)

Advertising in The Villager and Town Life could not be easier, for further information or to book your advertising space please call Nigel on 01767 261122 or e-mail nigel@villagermag.com or visit our website www.villagermag.com

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Where AM I?

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Last month’s images were taken in Sandy.

The winner of the gift voucher was Miss P Anderson from Sandy.

Our Where Am I photography is by Adam Bent.

Where Are we?

The Villager and Town Life magazine is delivered door to door throughout:

Abbotsley, Beeston, Broom, Caxton, Cockayne Hatley, Cople, Croydon, Dunton, Eltisley, Everton, Everton Heath, Eyeworth, Gamlingay, Haynes, Henlow, Ickwell Green, Ireland, Langford, Lower Caldecote, Moggerhanger, Northill, Old Warden, Potton, Shuttleworth, Southill, Stanford, Sutton, The Gransdens, Thorncote Green, Upper Caldecote, Waresley and Wrestlingworth

and can be found in most shops, pubs, garages in all of the above and more including Biggleswade and Sandy.

Booking your advertising space is easy just call Nigel on 01767 261122 or e-mail nigel@villagermag.com

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VILLAGER The

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Cloves Dental Practice

By Chris Rose

Where Do Bees Go In Winter As we light a fire, batten down the hatches for the autumn gales and look forward to Christmas, where do all the bees go during the long winter months?

As a bee keeper this is a question I often get asked, and it proves to be a fascinating tale of endurance, cooperation and planning from which we could all learn.

The first warmth of spring entices the bees out of their hives on a cleansing flight, to collect water and seek out early flowers such as crocus and snowdrops. There are relatively few bees in the hive at this time of year, maybe only 10,000 ! There is a queen - we hope - and a tired army of female worker bees anxious to begin the process of rebuilding the swarm after the ravages of winter. Worker bees will ‘spring clean’,

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removing the detritus of dead bees, bits of old wax and propylis, dust and dirt that have accumulated.

As the weather warms and the food supply of nectar and pollen increases, so the queen starts to lay eggs which are carefully tended by the female worker bees. As the eggs develop and turn into larvae, they are sealed in their brood cells with a cap of wax to emerge six weeks later as young bees. As the first crop of young bees develop so those that survived the winter begin to die off, replaced by the next brood in a rapidly accelerating process until at their peak in June there are up to 60,000 bees in a mature hive.

Male drone bees have been noticeably absent up until this point. However, the queen will now begin to lay fertilised eggs in larger drone cells in the brood comb as spring ends to provide a male stock for mating purposes.

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This is the sole purpose of the drone. They will set off with their fellow drones on mating flights looking for an unfertilised queen every time there is good weather.

Back in the hive the bees are beginning to prepare for winter already. Bee numbers of 60,000 would be unsustainable, so as the year moves in to August the queen reduces her laying to a trickle, and the worker bees focus on building stocks of honey.

Over the course of a season a single hive can produce in excess 50Kg of honey. It feeds young bees unable to leave the hive, and keeps the adult bees fed throughout the winter. The bee keeper therefore needs to carefully balance the bees’ need for food with the desire to take a honey crop off. If the bee keeper takes too much then the bees can starve over winter.

If the weather is good and spring gets off to an early start the bees start producing honey from March. The bee keeper can quickly estimate food reserves by ‘hefting the hive’ - lifting the back of it to assess the weight.

Honey is heavy, so it is possible to get a very clear picture of how much is left at any point over winter without opening the hive.

Many factors affect the rate at which bees consume their food reserves. If winter is slow in coming the bees remain active for longer and consume more food, an early spring can wake them up before spring flowers offer fresh source of nectar, and a harsh winter can

cause the bees to consume more food simply keeping warm. If food supplies in the hive fall too low then the bee keeper can feed them with a sugar candy similar to a concentrated sugar solution in an upturned feeder bucket inside the hive.

So to answer the titular question ‘Where do the Bees go in Winter?’ The queen remains in the hive at the centre of a swarm of bees who cluster around her in a ball to keep her warm and safe. Because she stopped laying in August the number of bees has dwindled to about 10,000 who form the nucleus of the colony for regeneration in the spring, and it is these bees who look after the queen over winter.

The worker bees in the centre of the ball where it is warmest slowly make their way to the outside of the ball where they can feed and cleanse, and the bees on the outside make their way to the centre to get warm again, in a constantly revolving cycle. As it get colder the cluster gets tighter, and they make a gentle hum as they vibrate to generate warmth. In warmer weather the cluster expands so it doesn’t overheat, and to bring in ventilation. But the bees are never totally dormant, and on a warm sunny day throughout winter the bees may come out for a cleansing flight, and to watch for the coming spring when the cycle begins all over again.

Photograph: Heidi Hodgson

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Swan UK

September 2014 saw the launch of SWAN UK’s local networks pilot scheme. Run by the charity Genetic Alliance UK, SWAN UK’s byline is ‘syndromes without a name’ and its aim is to support families with children who have undiagnosed genetic disorders. For many families, it can be devastating having no formal diagnosis or prognosis for a child’s condition, with a lack of support from outside groups as they ‘don’t fit in’ anywhere. It is estimated that 6,000 children a year are born with undiagnosed syndromes.

The initial pilot scheme is running for two years, funded by a grant from the National Lottery through The Big Lottery Fund. Eight SWAN UK members have been recruited in six areas of England to become local parent representatives running a range of area activities and awareness raising events, and enabling families of children with undiagnosed genetic conditions to access practical and emotional support in their local community.

One of these representatives is qualified teacher Nicola Judd lives just outside Bedford and is married with two children: a daughter aged seven and a son aged five years. She says: “My ‘swan’ is my daughter and she has clinical diagnoses of ASD, epilepsy and severe learning difficulties. We are currently undergoing genetic testing to maybe find the cause of these issues as there is no history of any of them in either families, and also to help her epilepsy as it is currently still uncontrolled after two years of different medications. She attends a Visit our new community www.beds-local.co.uk

SEN school locally and my son attends mainstream school.”

Nicola is also studying for a part-time Masters degree in Childhood Studies (with particular interest in disabilities) and is very involved in her daughter’s school as treasurer for the PTA. She continues: “I wear a lot of ‘hats’ but primarily I am a parent which is why I am very excited about becoming a parent rep for SWAN UK. I have fundraising and marketing experience through various jobs I had before becoming a teacher, and through current volunteer roles. I was introduced to SWAN UK through a friend when becoming increasingly frustrated when no one could tell us why my daughter had her issues and have found the support and work they do to raise awareness invaluable, as well as meeting other parents both locally and online. It’s such a reassurance and relief that we are not alone!”

Lauren Roberts, SWAN UK coordinator, said: “Since SWAN UK was established in 2011, local support is the most frequently requested service from our members. We are thrilled to be in a position to start making this a reality, whilst also offering personal and professional development opportunities to our volunteer parent reps - many of whom have had to give up their careers due to their caring role.”

If you live in Bedfordshire and are affected by having a child with an undiagnosed genetic disorder, you can contact Nicola by emailing nicola.judd@undiagnosed.org.uk

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Technology

Mobile Safety

By Tom Hancock

Phone security is a serious issue Nowadays it’s probably more worrying if someone steals your phone than your purse because of the amount of data stored on it: bank, Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon accounts, are the tip of the iceberg.

Your first line of defence is to make it hard for thieves to get into the phone. Make sure you’ve got your phone lock turned on so that they have to enter your password. If you’re using a pattern or pin code to unlock the phone make sure it’s not something simple like 1234 or a rectangle.

SIM cards can be switched to another phone and used to run up bills of thousands of pounds.

Notify your provider as soon as you realise your phone is missing. A delay may mean that you incur unnecessary charges. Although phone companies are being exhorted to cap the amount of liability a customer incurs if their phone is misused, at the

22

time of writing this is not commonplace. Make sure your SIM is locked, as well as your handset, and check with your provider to see if you can voluntarily place a cap on your usage; that way, the phone will cut out once the limit is reached.

Switch your location service on. Your phone will then be able to tell you where it is. Apple, Android and other major systems all have online phone location websites. You can locate and lock the phone, make it ring or even wipe it.

Mobile phones, like laptops are open to hackers.

In general phones are more secure from virus attacks, but you still need to be wary of criminals.

Virus attacks on phones mostly occur via dodgy apps. Apple are very strict about what is allowed into iTunes so virus protection isn’t an issue. On Android devices you need to be more careful.

Read reviews carefully and check the permissions the app requests when you install it. If it’s a simple app asking for full access to your phone, it should ring alarm bells. If in doubt don’t install. Most of the major security companies produce Android apps to give you an extra level of security. Install one of these to give you extra peace of mind.

Remember, when your phone connects to a Wi-Fi hotspot all the information it sends and receives passes through the computer controlling that hotspot. Always be aware of who owns the hotspot and how much you trust them. Most data, like bank logins and other major services, are highly encrypted so they can’t be stolen.

However, other websites you use will not be as secure and may allow your login details to be hi-jacked. Check that the website or app you are using is secure (look for a little padlock icon) before you type in your details, especially card details. If in any doubt, don’t use it.

Phone security is mostly about being aware of the problem and using common sense. If you follow the steps above, then even if you do lose your phone, it shouldn’t cause you any serious issues.

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23

History

Golden Years Memories of 50 years ago

Early in the New Year of 1965, Winston Churchill had suffered a stroke. He never regained consciousness and died on January 24th, aged 90; and though it seems sacrilegious, it’s true that he had rarely been as much loved during his lifetime as he was after his death. Hated by miners as the Liberal Home Secretary who sent troops to Tonypandy to put down a strike in 1910; blamed (wrongly) for the Gallipoli disaster in World War I and (rightly) for the even greater disaster of the return to the gold standard in 1925; a truculent Imperialist dinosaur in the 1930s; distrusted by the masses in 1945; old, sick, and in the way in 1955 – Churchill had known more brickbats than bouquets.

But not on the 30th January 1965, the day of his funeral. Then he was every downed airman, every drowned seaman, every tankman burnt alive, every Tommy blown to Hell, every exhausted ARP man, landgirl, munitions worker... and miner. He was their suffering and their victory.

In the three days his body lay in state in St Stephen’s Hall, Westminster, 321,360 people filed past the catafalque. The gun-carriage that bore him, pulled by 108 naval ratings with the Earl Marshal at their head, took an hour to make the 2½ miles up Whitehall and along the Strand, Fleet Street, and Ludgate Hill to St Paul’s, every inch of the way thronged by silent mourners who had waited hours in their tens of thousands in the freezing cold. At the cathedral steps his wartime comrades Attlee, Eden, MacMillan, Ismay, Slim, Alexander, Portal, and Mountbatten escorted the coffin inside where the leaders of 122 nations sang To Be A Pilgrim, The Battle Hymn of the

24

Republic, Fight The Good Fight and Oh God Our Help. And then the short voyage on the launch Havengore from Tower Hill to Festival Pier, the monstrous dockside cranes each bowing in turn as it passed. And finally the private train and the family burial at Bladon, Oxfordshire, where at last his widow Clemmie and his children Randolph, Mary and Sarah had their chance at tears.

This was how a nation grieved then: not in hysterical outbursts, but bound together by protocol, by formality, by seemliness; as rigidly drilled as a platoon on a parade-ground and thus united in deed as well as thought. For everyone who lined the route or watched on television, the grief and the memories were personal; and yet they were as one.

• How fitting it was that Churchill should choose Bladon, the parish church of his birthplace, Blenheim Palace, as his burial-place. “In my beginning is my end. In my end is my beginning,” wrote TS Eliot in The Four Quartets; and Eliot had died aged 76 at home in Kensington only 20 days before Churchill. Both were members of the Order of Merit; both had won Nobel Prizes for literature.

Eliot, though, was cremated privately at Golders Green, and his ashes were buried at East Coker in Somerset. But he has his slab at Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey, and Churchill’s statue is in Parliament Square not 200 yards away, so you can pay your respects to both in one visit, if you’ve a mind.

• Happy 50th birthdays to Vinnie Jones (5th), Joely Richardson (9th), Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (14th), James Nesbitt (15th), and Heather Small (20th). Cake and botox to you all!

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25

Local News

SANDY TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRE

January 2015

Winter is a time for cold, often wet and sometimes even snowy days and nights.

The winter is a wonderful time both physically and mentally to get out into the countryside and have a good walk to blow the cobwebs away.

Sandy and its countryside is the ideal place to walk. Sandy became an accredited Walkers are Welcome Town in 2012 and we are proud to be the first community in Bedfordshire and the second in East Anglia to achieve this. Walkers are Welcome is a community led scheme which incorporates 90 towns in Great Britain and is designed to promote walking and enjoyment of local towns and villages.

There are some wonderful walks round and about Sandy and we hope you will contact us for advice and guidance on the walks nearby. You don’t have to be a “traditional” walker to get out and about in Sandy TIC GUIDED WALKS Over the past seven years the Tourist Information Centre has led a series of local Guided Walks throughout the summer months and in fact over this period nearly 1300 people have enjoyed these organised walks.

Many of the walks have taken place within the parish of Sandy itself and have included Town Walks, a number along the River Ivel and over the greensand hills.

There have been specific walks to some of Sandy’s historical sites and buildings and also commemorative and landscape Walks. These have included various walks around the RSPB’s UK headquarters at The Lodge, walks in the Repton landscaped park and gardens at Hazells Hall and tours of Sandy Parish Church and Churchyard. For a number of years we have undertaken a tour of the delightful grounds and interior of the Georgian manor house at Sandye Place and we have led two walks to commemorate the life of local naval hero, Captain Sir William Peel.

Guided walks to other villages have included a walk around the beautiful village of Ickwell, including the grounds of Ickwell Bury and the estate village of Cardington with its connections with the airship industry and the famous philanthropist, John Howard. Other walks within an historic landscape have included those in the estate village of Old Warden with its medieval parish church and its impressive estate buildings lying within its parkland setting, a delightful walk in the ‘Capability’ Brown landscaped grounds of Southill Park, ancestral home

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of the Whitbread family and a walk around the former estate village of Waresley.

In 2014 the Tourist Information Centre organised eight Guided Walks over the summer months and 210 people partook in these. These included a winter walk at The Lodge and guided walks to Sandye Place and Southill Park together with five new Walks. These included a guided tour of the interior of The Lodge, once the home of the Peel family, a guided walk around the estate village of Tempsford, a walk around the parish of Everton, home of the famous RAF Tempsford, a walk from the ancient market town of Potton to the delightful village of Sutton with its medieval Packhorse Bridge and the last walk of the season was to the Willington with its medieval dovecote and stables.

NEW YEAR WALK The first Walk of 2015 is a winter walk to help you rid yourselves of the excesses of the Christmas festivities and is called the ‘LOWFIELDS, HEATH AND LODGE WALK’. This walk will take place on Friday, 9th January. From the Tourist Information Centre we will walk though Sandy’s beautiful countryside, with its varied landscape of arable fields, deciduous and coniferous woods and heath land to low greensand hills. On this walk we will pass through much of the Pym family estate which has been owned by the family since 1761. Whilst walking through Sandy’s Low Fields we will pass certain remaining outlying defences of the World War II airfield of RAF Tempsford, situated nearby and walk along the route of the Roman road. After walking through part of the parklands of Hazells Hall we will walk along a small length of the Everton Road and then along the picturesque Short Riding.

We will enter the RSPB reserve and we can take much needed refreshments at the RSPB Gatehouse and then walk along the picturesque Firs Walk and return to Sandy.

Please book your place and meet at the Tourist Information Centre at 10.30am. The Cost is £5.50 per person.

Look out for details of this year’s other Guided Walks which will be published in due course.

If there is a walk you would like to be repeated or indeed a new walk you think that others would enjoy, please contact us at the TIC. WALK LEAFLETS The Tourist Information Centre has a large range of walking leaflets available - including walks in the nearby villages of Everton, Old Warden, Tempsford,

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Potton, Sutton, Blunham, Moggerhanger, etc. We also have leaflets of walks in the stone villages of north Bedfordshire, the west of the county, including the estate villages of Woburn and the southern part of the county.

Here are a few suggested walks to do in Sandy’s delightful countryside this winter :‘The Greensand Ridge Walk‘ (GSR) is Bedfordshire’s premier long distance Walk and its route spans the county for a total of 40 miles following the line of the ridge starting in Leighton Buzzard and ending in Gamlingay. The Walk is divided into five sections (for this particular area, section 4 goes from Haynes to Sandy and Section 5 goes from Sandy to Everton, Tetworth and Gamlingay.) The GSR Walk is an ideal introduction to the history, landscape and wildlife of this part of the county. The Greensand ridge leaflet has recently been updated and reprinted.

‘The Kingfisher Way’ As well as rich agricultural lands and heath and woodlands, Sandy and the area enjoys the delights of a number of riverside walks with water meadows grazed by cattle and sheep. The Kingfisher Way leaflet is divided into three sections showing the routes from Baldock to Tempsford – section 3 is the section from Biggleswade to Tempsford which goes through Sandy and Blunham. It has been designed to make use of the Ivel Valley’s railway stations allowing the route to be tackled as a whole or in stages ‘The Captain Peel Walk’ In 2008 the Tourist Information Centre published this historical walk to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the death of Sandy naval hero, Captain Sir William Peel, one of the first recipients of the Victoria Cross and who died during the Indian mutiny in 1858, aged 33. The illustrated leaflet includes not only a biography about Peel but details this Walk and gives information about the various sites and buildings to look out for. The route starts at Sandy Parish Church (to view Peel’s statue) and goes via the RSPB’s Gatehouse - the former home of Captain Peel and returns to Sandy via Stratford Road ‘The Jubilee Walk’ In 2012 to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty The Queen we published the Jubilee Walk leaflet, which contains six new Walks around Sandy and its countryside. There is one Walk for each decade of the Queen’s reign. It includes a town walk, a pushchair walk, a cycle ride and walks over the greensand hills, fields, woodlands and heathlands together with delightful walks along the banks of the River Ivel, the rich water meadows, and man-made lakes.

‘The Sandy Everton Walk’ and the ‘Old Warden Circular Walk’. These leaflets have recently been updated and re-published . The former takes you on a nine mile walk (with two short cuts) from the town of Sandy, over the Sandhills, along the Roman road where you pass the famous Barn at Gibraltar Farm (the only remaining building of RAF Tempsford) from whence it ascends the hill, passing through the parklands of Woodbury Hall to the village of Everton.

From here it crosses both Everton and Sandy Heaths before returning to Sandy via The Lodge reserve.

The Old Warden Walk is 7 miles and begins at Old Warden’s 12th century church from whence it passes through woodlands and fields to the edge of the greensand ridge from which there are extensive views. The walk continues across agricultural land and pasture to the large plantation of Holme Wood and in due course enters the picturesque villages of Northill and Ickwell with their many thatched cottages, the latter with its large green and maypole. The walk continues along the edge of the Shuttleworth Airfield, through the wooded Warden Warren and returns to the Church.

SANDY CALENDAR 2015 The TIC has produced and is selling the Sandy 2015 Calendar which has various colour views of Sandy, including winter at The Lodge, Sandy horse riders, autumn woods, St Swithun’s Church, Stone Lodge, Sandye Place, etc. Please call into the Centre to see the Calendar and purchase copies either for yourself or for that special gift. The cost is £5.50 Call into the Centre and see the large range of brochures , leaflets and information that we hold.

With all good wishes from the staff of Sandy Tourist Information Centre for a Happy New Year

Sandy Tourist Information Centre, Rear of 10 Cambridge Road, Sandy Telephone 01767 682728 – email tourism@sandytowncouncil.gov.uk OPENING TIMES Monday to Friday 10am – 3pm Saturday 10am-2pm Sundays and Bank Holidays Closed To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122

27

Interiors

By Katherine Sorrell

Design a

Blissful Bedroom Your bedroom is a private retreat, a special place in which to relax, unwind and express your true personality. Our tips from expert Katherine Sorrell will help you make it as comfortable, functional and beautiful as possible First, think about how you use your bedroom – is it just for sleeping, or do you listen to music, watch TV, make phone calls or even work? You will need to allocate space for each different function. Then, consider the atmosphere you want to create – would you prefer a light, bright and airy room, or one that is dark and dramatic?

In general, soft and gentle colours are considered most restful, and it is a good idea to avoid loud patterns and clashing shades. A feature wall (perhaps behind the bed head), with either one strong paint colour or an interesting wallpaper pattern, can be a great way to provide interest

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without going over the top.

In high-traffic areas such as halls and living rooms, carpet (if used at all) needs to be hardwearing and practical. In a bedroom, however, wear and tear is not such a factor, spills are not such a risk and bare feet are more likely to be the norm. All of which means that this is the ideal place to give your toes a treat and opt for a sumptuous, deep-pile carpet. That said, natural or painted wooden floorboards with a few rugs scattered about (on each side of the bed in particular) is an alternative with masses of character.

Whether you use curtains, blinds or shutters, your windows should be well-covered, both for privacy and to avoid early-morning sunlight waking you up. Sumptuous curtains with a blackout lining will do the trick, as will louvered shutters – which

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also offer an extra element of security. Roller blinds are plain and simple, and ideal where space is restricted, while Roman blinds pull up in lovely soft folds that give an attractively draped effect.

Aim for the maximum storage possible: ideally a combination of floor-to-ceiling fitted wardrobes with free-standing pieces for character and flexibility. If in doubt, the only way to calculate exactly how much storage you need is to take a tape measure and calculate square footage for long and short hanging, folded clothes, shoes, blankets, linens and other items. Plan the interior of a wardrobe with the utmost precision, and look for gadgets such as tie racks, belt racks and pull-out trays. If you’re really short of space, clever storage ideas include under-bed drawers, stacking boxes, canvas “tidies” hung on the back of the door, plastic shoe racks stacked inside the wardrobe, and a bamboo ladder leant against the wall for scarves, spare bed linen or clothes.

Subtle, flattering lighting is best for a bedroom, and if yours is not quite how you would like it you can make some quick, easy and inexpensive changes such as adding a table lamp or two in the corners, and fitting a dimmer switch to a central pendant. A strong, bright light, on the other hand, is essential above a dressing table mirror (don’t position it to one side – it will cause awkward shadows). For bedside reading, a pair of swing-arm, wall-mounted lights will free up space

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on a bedside table – some types include tiny, adjustable spotlights so you can enjoy a novel without disturbing your partner.

Lastly, to transform a bedroom from boring to boudoir, introduce sumptuous bed linens that are gorgeous to look at and enjoyable to touch – cool and crisp or cosy and warm, depending on the time of year. The quickest and easiest way to put together a gorgeous-looking bed is simply to use plain white or off-white sheets, pillow cases and a duvet cover, and add a stunning throw, blanket, eiderdown or quilt – or several, for eye-catching colour and pattern. Layer texture on texture, plains with patterns, modern with vintage – creating a serene and luxurious, indulgent retreat.

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31

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Well Being

The Best January

Ever

By Nooshin Hassan

Well, here we are – ‘another year over, and a new one just begun’ (so the song goes). It’s all too easy for the January blues to set in after the fun and excitement of Christmas has passed, but I have vowed not to let that happen this year. It might take a bit more effort to feel optimistic in this often grey and dreary month, but I suspect if we just look around us and take a few minutes to think about it we can all find much joy in January...

Hopefully we will all have some lovely memories of a great festive holiday: watching children excitedly opening gifts, spending time with loved ones, catching up with friends, or just enjoying a well-earned break from work. It’s good to recall those memories and realise how fortunate an individual is to be able to cherish memories like that.

Unfortunately, there are plenty of people in the world who are in far less comfortable circumstances than most of us living in the UK, and while we may not be able to change that, we can at least appreciate what we have. I heard a good piece of advice which suggested a little routine of spending a few minutes each day thinking of a number of things that you feel grateful for. Even if you only spend two minutes thinking of four things that you really appreciate in your life, it lifts your mood.

Something for which I will probably still be feeling truly thankful for is that it didn’t rain at my sister’s November wedding and everyone had a great day!

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Sunshine is another thing I’m going to try to keep in my life. Ok, I know we may not actually see a whole lot of sunshine in January, but just getting out in the fresh air for a quick walk is good enough. We have so many beautiful walks locally, so whether you pull on your wellies and head to Wimpole or take the family out for an easier walk around Bedford’s Priory Marina, it’s worth escaping the house for a while. You never know, you might discover a new place, a corner of woodland you’d not seen before, or find a new cafe or pub en route. If you do end up getting caught in a downpour then it can make coming home that bit sweeter. Treat yourself to a soak in a hot bath, snuggle up on the sofa with tea and cake, or open a bottle of wine to share with someone special.

So there we have just two relatively easy ways to stay upbeat and cheerful throughout what is usually the most depressing month of the year. Look for all the things to be grateful for, and get out in the daylight when you can. It might take a bit of effort to begin with but, as with most things in life, you get out what you put in, so here’s to a very happy New Year!

33

Travel

by Solange Hando

Thessaloniki - Greece Capital of Greek Macedonia, second only to Athens, this pleasant city by the sea was founded in 315 BC by Cassander who named it after his wife, half-sister of Alexander the Great. Alexander didn’t live long enough to see the new city but among shields and battle scenes, his imposing statue holds pride of place on the waterfront, flying cape, dagger drawn and horse raring to go.

Yet the city’s most beloved icon is the nearby ‘White Tower’, a symbol of Greek sovereignty since the 1912 Balkan War and an obligatory stop for visitors, touring on the road train or horsedrawn carriages. Rebuilt under Ottoman rule to strengthen the harbour, long known as the bloody tower, it was painted white, they say, by a prisoner in exchange for his freedom.

Today, the tower has turned honey-coloured and there are no prisoners inside, only a museum relating the city’s history and if you climb up the spiral ramp to the top, a superb 360° panorama.

First there’s the great sweep of the bay from the bustling commercial harbour to fine sandy beaches, the promenade lined with elegant buildings and pavement cafés, the cyclists enjoying the sea breeze, the fishermen and now and then, a galleon preparing to sail with its small cargo of wide-eyed tourists.

On the land side, the city spreads towards the mountains in the distance, straight boulevards, parklands, orange trees, modern sculptures and here and there, a touch of Art Nouveau or Deco for much of Thessaloniki was rebuilt after the great fire of 1917. Meanwhile, high on the slopes, the old town beckons with steep cobbled lanes, brightly-painted Ottoman houses with closed

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balconies and the sturdy remains of the Byzantine wall draped in crenellations, turrets and gates.

Up there, you enjoy a true bird’s eye view of Thessaloniki and by clear weather, you might even see Mount Olympus across the bay.

But the city wall is only one of fifteen UNESCO sites in Thessaloniki, a town amazingly rich in early Christian and Byzantine monuments. Among them are the Rotunda, St David’s church and the basilica of St Demetrius, the city’s patron saint, all claiming precious mosaics. Converted into mosques at times, destroyed, rebuilt, the churches still showcase the development of religious art and architecture from the 4th to the 15th century. St Paul is said to have visited the area around AD 50, thus making Thessaloniki one of the first bases for the spread of Christianity.

From the Archaeological Museum to vestiges of the Roman arch and palace in the town centre, Thessaloniki is justly proud of its heritage but with its vibrant university and enviable title of European Capital of Youth 2014, it fully embraces the 21st century. Disused warehouses have become restaurants, cinema and photography have their own museums and the International Film Festival draws crowds from afar. Yet, life feels relaxed, lunch al fresco in a shaded lane, mobile stalls selling ice cream or sesame rings, couples strolling in the park or on the waterfront, church bells chiming in the midday sun. At the weekend, city folks head for the nearby lakes to enjoy the water, ramble along the trails or gaze in wonder at great flocks of migrating birds.

Alexander the Great would approve and no doubt Cassander would do likewise.

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35

Health

To Eat, or not to Eat! Should we diet?

The United Kingdom has the third highest level of obese and overweight people in Western Europe, with nearly a third of adults and more than a quarter of children fitting into this category.

The statistics are worrying, especially as obesity increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer and other diseases.

So, what is making us fat and what can we do about it? Put simply, we put weight on when we consume more calories than we use. This could be due to portion size or the type of food we eat.

Foods rich in sugar or fat contain the most calories and are most likely to make us gain weight.

It’s New Year, and many of us will make the decision to lose weight, but what is the best way to tackle it?

There are numerous diets, aids, supplements and slimming clubs out there, some promising amazing results. You’ve seen the adverts about people who have lost six stones in as many months and are feeling great! It’s tempting to want to shift the excess pounds as quickly as possible, to get the business of dieting over with, and get back to normal life again.

The sad fact is that the vast majority of people who lose weight put it back on again, and this is because once the weight is lost, they do return to ‘normal’ by reverting back to the habits that caused them to gain weight in the first place. This is particularly true for people who lose weight quickly.

No doubt just about any diet can help you lose weight, but the real test is: which one can help you keep it off?

Over the years there have been various diets - the high fibre, high protein, high carb, grapefruit, cabbage soup and meal replacement diets to name a few. But increasingly, evidence suggests that the most effective way to lose and maintain weight loss is not to follow a ‘diet’ at all, but to simply make changes to eating habits that can be sustained for life.

Diets don’t generally work because they demand more of us than we can realistically give for a prolonged period. Eating regimes that deny us all the things we enjoy, that leave us feeling hungry and a social outcast on nights out, will inevitably cause us to revolt at some point and turn back to old ways.

Becoming better educated, learning new habits, taking responsibility for our choices, continuing to live a normal life and losing weight gradually at around 1-2 lbs per week will, in the long run, produce the best chances of permanent success at the scales.

Good luck as you take the first step to becoming a slimmer and healthier you!

By Debbie Singh-Bhatti

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37

Health

Drop a dress size - digitally!

It’s that time of year again: everybody’s on a diet and the gyms are packed with people whose memberships will last much longer than their willpower. But there’s no need to take extreme measures if you overdid it a bit at Christmas: a few well-chosen gadgets can make losing weight much easier.

The trick to weight loss is to make little, permanent changes. For example, using an oil mister (from around £9) reduces the amount of oil you use in cooking while a set of measuring spoons and a digital scale can ensure you’re not putting too much of any ingredient into your food. If you can’t bear to give up fried food, go for a low-fat fryer such as Breville’s Halo Health Fryer (£79.99) or Tefal’s ActiFry (£119) which will mean you get all the taste with a fraction of the fat.

Gadgets can help you cook healthy meals in other ways, too: if you have a smartphone, an iPod touch or a tablet you can take advantage of stacks of cooking apps ranging from celebrity chefs’ apps to specialist apps such as the British Heart Foundation’s Healthy Heart Recipe Finder, which is free on both iOS and Android. We’d also recommend using a recipe manager such as the fantastic Paprika app to store any good healthy recipes you find online from the likes of the BBC Good Food website.

No weight loss programme comes without the recommendation to exercise more, and there are plenty of gadgets designed to help with that too. Fitness trackers can keep an eye on how many steps you take and calories you burn, with devices such as the Fitbit Surge smartwatch (£199) and Fitbit Charge activity tracker (£99) and Nike’s Fuelband (£89) making it easy to track your progress. If you have an iPhone, Nike’s device also

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enables you to share your progress with friends in private groups.

There’s a huge trend for health monitoring in smartphones, with both Google’s Android and Apple’s iPhones offering health tracking apps. In both cases the apps can talk to other devices such as fitness trackers, and there are plenty of thirdparty apps for recording your food intake, the workouts you do in the gym or anything else you might want to track and record.

How can you tell if your new regime is working?

While it’s tempting to climb on the scales every day that’s a bad idea, because our body weight fluctuates quite dramatically from day to day. It’s better to track the longer term trend, and once again technology can help with that: smart scales such as Withings’ wireless scales (from around £80) can help you track your weight loss by storing over 100 readings. The scales are also compatible with smartphones, which can take the readings and turn them into inspiring and motivational graphs.

If you really want to see what’s happening to your body, gadgets such as Omron’s Body Logic Fat Analyser (£74) can tell you how much muscle you have, how hydrated you are and how much fat you’re carrying. That’s useful if you’re working out as well as eating well, because muscle weighs more than fat - so your weight might not change but your body composition will.

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Albert’s Birthday

Charity Fundraiser

Charity Fundraiser for St John’s Hospice As part of Matt Givertz’ fundraising towards his Mongolian trip in Albert, a 50-year-old Morris Traveller featured this month, there is a big birthday party on Potton Market Square on Saturday 24th January 2014 which aims to raise money specifically for one of the local charities being supported – Sue Ryder St John’s Hospice.

Two characters who are well known in Potton, Nick Bruce and Ron Pickford will be braving the barber to have their long-standing long hair and beards shaved off. In the morning, there will be a local car rally, followed by a barbecue and a pop-up classic car show including the Bedford branch of the Morris Minor Travellers’ Club. Children’s activities are included with face painting and competitions.

There will also be a tombola and charity bracelets for sale.

Most importantly will be the unveiling of Albert himself following his restoration in readiness for Matt and Sarah Givertz’ arduous charity trek in June.

In true celebrity style, you also have the chance to star in your own music video.

The popular Madness hit ‘Driving in my Car’ which featured a Morris Minor Convertible in the original video will be being shot in and around Albert and you are invited to take part for a donation, either as a member of the cast or an executive producer. Your name will then appear on the film credits.

The fun starts at 11am and will carry on until around 4pm.

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41

Music

In the Groove Records are enjoying a revival

“Mum this stuff is awesome! You should totally listen to it!”

That was my teenage son ‘discovering’ my 80’s vinyl collection and my father’s collection of 78s.

Because of course my dad and I know nothing about music while he and his friends are experts.

In the age of the strangely invisible digital sound file, I watched his burgeoning love affair with these solid pieces of sound history with some amusement. 78s in particular are very tactile: the thick, heavy shellac, the dust, the stiff card cover.

There’s a richness about them which time hasn’t dulled.

In the way of teens, Charlie began to google his latest obsession.

“Mum, did you know that in the early days they discovered that recording a piano while it was on the floor made it sound too tinny, so they suspended pianos in the air and made the pianist perch on an elevated platform? Cool?”

I had to concede that I did not know this!

Over the coming weeks I also learned that because there was no sound equipment early on, there was no way of modulating the volume of a singer to prevent distortion when recording. To get round this, a someone stood behind the singer reading the score, and when a particularly high note or loud phrase was imminent they pulled the singer away from the mic! Wonder what Mariah Carey would make of being manhandled like that?

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By Louise Addison

Our language even evolved to reflect our love of records. The phrase ‘In the groove’, ‘Groovy’, ‘To groove,’ all relate to the grooves on a 78, LP or single.

In spite of all the studio shortcomings, collectors of old records swear the sound quality of 78s in particular has never been surpassed. The hiss and scratch caused by the patina and deterioration of old shellac discs appeals to them.

As Charlie’s interest deepened, he spent a lot of time in specialist record stores and at collectors’ fairs. A surprising number of people deal in vinyl or 78s or both, and most of them are friendly individuals with a wealth of knowledge they are happy to share.

It’s a curious fact that in the age of huge TVs and surround-sound, the sound quality of the music many of us listen to is going backwards, because often we listen through tiny earbuds or mobile phone speakers. It is also curious that many young musicians, steeped in electronics, are rediscovering the joy of playing with sound on vinyl and shellac, in much the same way that the scratch and mix DJs of the seventies, eighties and nineties did.

Lots of us must have an old record player stashed in the attic along with our old vinyl LPs. We may even own a few 78s, inherited from our parents.

The heyday of CDs lasted a mere 15 years, but there is more than 60 years’ of music recorded on to these older formats. Think about that. Perhaps it’s time to get them out, dust them off, and introduce a new generation to the joy of tangible sound.

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Employment

Working from home Is it for you?

Do a search on Google for the specific term “work from home UK” and it will return around 857 million results. It’s clearly a popular subject and since broadband became widely available in 2004, the growth in this market has been phenomenal.

Indeed it is estimated that 2.8 million businesses now operate full time from home; that 1400 people start a business every week; and that home businesses contribute £284 billion to the economy each year.

Many businesses operate successfully from a spare room; but sadly too many others fail. So before you take the plunge and give up the day job, consider if your business passes these sanity checks.

Don’t overestimate the growth All businesses start from £0 revenue, and most from a negative figure by the time they’ve paid their startup costs. You might have a startup fund from redundancy or inheritance, or you might actually need the money straight away. Setting up your own business is hard work so make sure it’s going to return a profit before your personal costs overtake you.

Watch your overheads - Overheads have to be paid regardless of whether you have any business.

If you are paying for stock, leases, loans, equipment rental or staff before you really need to, you can easily find you are working for nothing.

Is there a market for what you want to sell?

A classic mistake is to think ‘there must be a huge market for this because nobody else does it/makes it’. Possibly, but it’s more likely that there isn’t a demand in the first place. For your first business you really are better to go into a market where you know money is being spent rather than trying to create the market from scratch.

How many customers do you need? There are so many tales of people who start a business, win one big profitable customer who brings in 80% of the revenue month after month, only for it to go horribly wrong when the big customer changes supplier. Far better to have lots of customers on your list. If you have fifty customers, even a loss of five of them won’t seriously impact you.

Will your customers buy again? When you get the first few people buying from you, the ideal business model says that sooner or later they’ll want to use you again. For your work from home ’lifestyle’ business, it’s best to have some customers who come back again and again.

How will people find out about you?

Treat this as a launch and do as much initial marketing as you can find the time for and can afford. Advertising in this magazine (of course!), notice boards, Google adwords, social media, emailing, networking, the school gates…anything and everything you can think of.

Do you have the space? Try not to let your business spill into the general living space. A spare room is ideal of course, but if not, then a filing cabinet where you can tuck everything away at the end of the day does mark out the boundaries.

Finally, a word of warning. If you do start your own business, it’s a legal requirement to register with HMRC as selfemployed – make it top of your action list.

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Time of Year

A Happy New Year!

Amazing firework displays from around the world have become a familiar sight on New Year’s news programmes.

Many countries also have traditional forms of celebration dating back hundreds of years.

In the UK many people observe first-footing.

This is traditionally done by a young, healthy, good looking male with dark hair.

He carries gifts which include a piece of coal, money, bread and salt, and should be the first person through the front door after the New Year begins. This is believed to bring good luck.

Auld Lang Syne is the familiar tune that many of us sing. This represents remembrance of old friends and times spent with them. Generally credited to Robert Burns, he actually said he was merely noting the words of an ‘old man’s singing.’ He set these words to the tune of a traditional Scottish ditty ‘Can Ye Labour Lea.’ In Denmark traditions involve smashing plates. People throw broken plates on to friends’ doorsteps. This symbolises good wishes for the year ahead.

Another tradition involves leaping from chairs on the strike of midnight.

New Year Traditions From Around the Globe

In Austria, New Years Eve is called Sylvesterabend which means Eve of Saint Sylvester.

Suckling pig and peppermint ice cream are traditional food for New Year celebrations.

Tables are often decorated with marzipan pigs, and good luck symbols made out of chocolate or marzipan in shapes such as chimney sweeps, coins, or horseshoes are exchanged.

Lead is considered to be auspicious in Germany so at New Year, they pour molten lead into cold water and see what shape develops. It is

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believed that this predicts the future, so: heart shapes symbolize marriage, round shapes denote good luck, and a ship means a journey.

People also leave a bit of every food eaten on New Year’s Eve on their plate until after Midnight, as a way of ensuring a wellstocked larder. Carp is also included, as it is thought to bring wealth.

Whereas in Brazil, lentils are seen as a symbol of wealth and prosperity and thus are traditionally part of a New Year’s meal.

Other customs include priestesses of the local macumba voodoo cult, dressing up in blue and white for a ceremony dedicated to the god of water Yemanja.

In addition, a sacrificial boat laden with jewellery, candles and flowers is pushed out from Ipenama beach in a bid to bring health, wealth and happiness.

In Greece, 1st January is also St Basil’s Day. He is remembered for his kindness and generosity to the poor. Vassilopitta, or St Basil’s cake, is one of the special dishes that is prepared and contains a silver or gold coin. Whoever finds the coin will be lucky for the next year.

By Susan Brookes-Morris

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Albert’s Mongolian Adventure!

There are three reasons why Matt Givertz could be described as a little crazy: the first is that he is about to make an 18,250 mile trek to Mongolia in an old Morris Traveller; the second is that he will be camping for most of that time in the dessert; and the third – and possibly biggest challenge - is that he is doing this with his ex-wife. But it’s all for charity. Catherine Rose met a man of substance.

Matt bought his bright yellow Morris Traveller affectionately called Albert by his daughter Rachel - in April 2014. A long-time globetrotter, he had spent the New Year seeing the Northern lights where he had met Ray Funnell who was doing the Mongol Rally - driving from the UK to Mongolia for the Cool Earth charity in a 1985 Suzuki Jeep. It got Matt thinking. His philosophy has always been ‘work to live, not live to work’ and he has been fortunate in that his jobs have enabled him to take extended leave for long holidays to indulge in this and his passion for photography.

“As I am turning 60 this year, I wanted to do something to mark it. I decided driving to Mongolia in a technically unsuitable vehicle was a good idea” he says. “I was looking for a Mini Traveller but they are hard to come by. Then I found Albert on ebay.”

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After deciding to do the trek, he realised that it would be even better if he did it for charity. Consequently he set up a Facebook page and asked followers to nominate their favourites. However, there is one charity that is close to his own heart: SOS Children’s Villages. The organisation builds houses in central Asia and Russia to give homeless children a stable base to grow up and Matt will visit some en route. He is also supporting another similar charity – The Lotus Children’s Centre – at Ulanbataar, the capital of Mongolia, where he will stop before beginning the round trip home.

Friends are giving Matt donations to take with him but sadly, he has found some of the big corporations unhelpful. “I have approached Clark’s, Go Outdoors and Black’s” says Matt. “A brand new pair of shoes would man so much to one of these children but so far they haven’t wanted to know.”

The other children’s charities being supported are the Make a Wish Foundation and Save the Children. Matt is also raising funds for the cancer charities: Sue Ryder, Macmillan, Cancer Research and Pancreatic Cancer UK; along with Diabetes UK and the MND Association – all through three Virgin

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Money Giving pages to be launched in February.

Although amicably divorced for over 25 years, it was while Matt was looking for a co-driver that, to Matt’s surprise, his ex-wife Sarah volunteered. Matt says: “We brought up two daughters but probably haven’t spent more than three days together.

Rachel doesn’t think we will make it to Dover! But it works well that we still have the same surname, so when driving through Muslim countries, we will be viewed as a married couple.”

The couple departs on 6th June and hopes to be back by Halloween. When asked how Matt feels about travelling through some politically unstable territory, he says: “The route may change. I won’t put myself at undue risk. It’s going to be hard – bad roads, horrible weather but it will also be a great deal of fun!”

Matt realised that Albert might need some help to get him “up to the job”. To begin with, the wood was rotten so a full body restoration was needed. Albert’s makeover has been supervised by mechanic Jonathon Heap. The suspension is being modified for rough roads and springs specially made to take the car’s weight with passengers and luggage. A long range fuel tank is being fitted, with a reconditioned 1275 low compression engine to work more efficiently with the poorer petrol. A five-speed gearbox will give better torque. Albert is also having sump guards and being fitted to take two spare ‘countryman’ tyres. The car will be easy to maintain so that if anything goes wrong, it will be simple to fix. At the same time, multi-layered storage is being fitted underneath and in the back with a bulkhead to separate it from the front, making Albert Minor a “one of a kind” overland traveller.

Being a diabetic, Matt has to plan everything meticulously. Amongst his luggage, he will be taking three sterile packs as local hospitals “may not be up to scratch”. He will also take water, spare petrol and a fridge. The intention is to take little

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clothing and buy food from local markets.

Matt says: “The crossing from Turkemenistan to Uzbekistan is in a National Park with the route through dessert so there won’t be any shops or facilities. It is not a friendly area and you need a transit visa which allows you to be in and out in five days. We are hoping to visit the ‘doorway to hell’ with a guide.” This is a hole in the ground left from when the Russians were drilling for oil 40 years ago. After they hit a gas pocket, it was lit for burning off but is still in flames decades later.

Albert was first registered on 25th January 1968 and his unveiling will take place at a special charity event in Potton Market Square to raise money specifically for St John’s Hospice in a 50th birthday celebration. “I would like to thank my helpers Georgia O’Keefe , my social media/campaign manager; Mike O’Keefe who is on Potton’s Consolidated Charity Board; and Potton sculptor Paul Pibworth for their support” says Matt.

Albert’s Facebook page is at: www.facebook.com/ groups/albertgoestomongolia where you can join and be kept informed of Albert’s progress.

And there is a blog at http://mattgivertzdoes60. blogspot.com.

See details of Albert’s unveiling and the special fundraiser for Sue Ryder St John’s Hospice elsewhere in the magazine.

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Garden

By Pippa Greenwood

The Truly ‘Green’ Garden There are so many ways in which you can plot and scheme about all that your garden could have to offer in 2015, but there’s one thing I would ask you to consider: take the plunge, ring the changes and ‘Go Organic’. Many gardeners have decided that they really want to concentrate on natural methods of pest control and the use of natural fertilising materials rather than chemical feeds. And they do it because it works and makes life so much better for the other less powerful creatures and plants we share our space with.

Since we moved to our Hampshire garden nearly twenty years ago, I have kept it completely organic and believe me, it really is not difficult.

Weed control can certainly be harder as there is no resorting to herbicides such as glyphosate, but if your garden doesn’t have too many persistent weeds, even that should not be too difficult. If you do have an existing problem then make weeding a regular part of your gardening time and you’ll be pleasantly surprised how speedily you start to get on top of it.

True, organic gardening does take a bit more planning and forethought. If you grow vegetables you will need to ensure that you rotate your crops.

Just divide the space you have into three or four chunks and then ensure that each year you grow related crops together and then the following year, move each group into a new plot.

It also pays to ensure that you really do garden as ‘well’ as you can, avoiding too many short cuts and taking the plant’s health and vigour as a prime consideration. In any part of the garden you need to try to choose plants that really are suited to the

site as those grown in unsuitable conditions will be more prone to disease and pest attack.

Regular patrols to find problems, so that they can be caught at the early stages and dealt with promptly, mean fewer problems in the long-term and should ensure that you catch an infestation of pests or a disease outbreak before it gets too bad.

Sprays of certain kinds are ‘allowed’ (those based on soft soap to control certain pests, copper based fungicides to control diseases etc) but most organic gardeners prefer to avoid them altogether.

I am a great fan of horticultural fleece. Placed over a crop such as calabrese from the moment you plant it out, you should be able to ward off all the common pests including caterpillars, cabbage root fly and aphids. Traps such as submerged beakers of old beer or milk to catch slugs and sticky yellow cards to trap flying pests, all work well. Of course for many pests there are also biological controls available, plus a whole range of controls to stop greenhouse pests.

Keeping the soil in good condition is a must and if you don’t already have a compost bin or heap, get on and make or buy one straight away.

The choice is up to you, but I strongly recommend it, for a whole host of reasons, only some of which I have mentioned here. www.pippagreenwood.com to make veg growing easy with ‘Grow Your Own with Pippa Greenwood’.

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51

Garden

Butterfly Bonanza

Rural Ramblings. By Geoff Wharton

I remember, only a few years ago one of the great joys of having a buddleia in the garden was to experience the sight of seemingly hundreds of “flutterbies” oblivious to any outside viewer. These welcomed visitors were so intoxicated by the nectar or scent, that they could be approached for an almost microscopical examination. The detail of their incredible bodies and intricate feeding mechanism was a sight to behold and only added to the attractiveness of the colour of the shrub’s flowers and the strong, sweet scent.

Nowadays, with the problem of our wildlife declining, we usually only see a few insects visiting these plants. However, buddleias can be a bit of a nuisance in some situations as their incredibly small seed can be spread far and wide. They can be seen colonising waste ground, grow along railway lines and will even grow in walls and paths where they can cause damage. When grown in the garden, cultivated varieties have much stronger colours and usually a greater range compared to the wild plants.

The three main varieties of buddleia are: davidii, globosa (orange, ball shaped flowers) and alternifolia (arching pink flowers). They are all easily propagated from cuttings especially softwood as long as you use a peat-perlite rooting medium, provide a little bottom heat and keep them humid (preferably by misting or spraying).

If you grow a plant from a cutting, or any piece of original tissue, it will produce a genetically identical offspring and therefore the flower colour, and all other features, will be identical to the original parent.

As a sort of experiment I decided to try growing a few plants from a packet of seed advertised in a catalogue, with the intention of eventually planting out to encourage insects. I knew that as they were being grown from seed, they would probably be small-flowered and mainly the pink kind but as the seed was cheap, I decided to go ahead.

When the seed arrived I thought that the packet was empty, but on closer examination I realised that there was a small quantity of “dust “ inside (the seeds! ). Great care had to be taken not to sneeze or exhale! during the sowing but after a

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couple of weeks some small green specks appeared which I assumed were the seedlings as the seed compost had been sterile. The specks grew rapidly into recognisable seedlings during the summer and eventually started to produce flower heads. Although I regularly removed the flowers in order to produce stronger plants, eventually some did manage to escape the pinch and I was pleasantly surprised by the range of colours. I ended up with about a hundred strong plants and in the Autumn I trimmed them back to a few centimetres ready for planting. The problem was where to put them all? I am sure that if they were attractively wrapped in glossy paper, preferably with a snowy butterfly scene, they would make ideal presents!!! Let’s hope the butterflies appreciate all the effort and return in their thousands again.

Geoff Wharton Gardening Services Reliable, experienced, well qualified.

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Tel: 01767 261727

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RSPB

Worlds’ biggest garden wildlife survey RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 24th and 25th January 2015 The UK will once again be peering out of their windows for the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th January 2015.

To take part, families are asked to spend just one hour at any time over the birdwatch weekend noting the highest number of each bird seen in their gardens or local outside space. They then have to submit their results to the RSPB before 13th February, either online at www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch or in the post.

Aggie Rothon, RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch Project Manager says: “This is a fun, relaxing activity for families or individuals and everyone who takes part will be helping to give nature a home.

“Now in its 36th year, Big Garden Birdwatch continues to help us learn about what is happening with our much-loved birds and other visitors, giving us an overall picture of how we will be able to help wildlife for generations to come.”

For more information, images and interviews please contact: RSPB Communications team in the east: 01603 660066 or 01603 697591

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Ask Alan Walter asked - I have been told my cat, Stanley, is overweight but he is smaller than my friends’ cats and eats very little.

Dear Walter Obesity in pets is now so common that it is regarded almost as normal by many pet owners. I am distressed when a pet, in perfect condition, is brought to me as the owners have been told he is too thin! Over half of pets that I see are overweight.

Unfortunately, being overweight increases the risk of developing many problems, including diabetes, urinary disease, heart disease, some cancers, high blood pressure and arthritis.

Obesity develops slowly so is not noticed until it is quite advanced. Everyone wants to do the best for their pets, but

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Pets they are much smaller than us and require surprising little food, especially after neutering. A small treat or dental chew can make up a large part of their daily food requirement. Exercise also tends to reduce as they gain weight, which makes the problem worse.

Fortunately, this is very treatable with patience and persistence.

The “light� foods are good for weight maintenance but not necessarily for weight loss. For that, prescription weight loss foods are best, combined with increased exercise.

I recommend you go to see our nurses for a proper body condition assessment. She will advise and help you manage your pets weight if needed.

If Stanley is overweight, weight loss will make him a healthier, happier, longer lived cat!

Best wishes,

Alan

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Pets

Animal Heroes Contentment, satisfaction, and happiness – surely feelings all of us would like to experience more?

Sometimes happiness is found in the simplest things. In less time than it takes to boil a kettle, you can set yourself up to feel good about yourself on a regular basis, and to help others too. So, forget making new year’s resolutions that only make you unhappy ¬– get clicking, be a hero and help save local animals in need!

How it works easyfundraising.org.uk is a great way to raise money for charities, schools, sports clubs, community groups, and other good causes just by shopping online. You don’t pay anything extra – the retailer donates when you buy from them.

So far over £7 million has been raised for causes throughout the UK. The RSPCA Bedfordshire North Branch asks that if you use this option, please nominate us to receive the donations.

It’s simple!

It’s really simple to use and setting yourself up takes only a few minutes. The easiest option is to follow the steps below: 1. Go to: easyfundraising.org.uk 2. Click on ‘Support a good cause’

Every time you shop online (there are literally thousands of retailers who support this scheme) a small reminder will pop up on the retailer’s website. All you do is click ‘Activate Donation’ and each time you buy something, the retailer will donate to us!

An added bonus is that you receive regular emails to tell you just how much you’ve raised for us. This takes some of the guilt out of spending and makes you feel good about helping a charity so regularly – by doing virtually nothing at all!

So, in terms of getting quick results AND feeling good about yourself – using easy fundraising surely beats making a new year’s resolution to lose two stone, train for the next marathon or learn a new language!

3. Search for ‘RSPCA Bedfordshire North’

Of course, there are many other ways you can boost your happiness and help the many local animals so desperately in need: • Adopt an animal • Volunteer • Support our shops • Donate – money or items.

We’re constantly in need of stock – so please donate any unwanted clothing, bric-a-brac, DVDs, CDs, books, toys, jewellery or small furniture.

• Leave a legacy – and specifically name us in your will.

4. Choose our charity to receive funds from each retailer every time you shop. Click on ‘Support this cause’

Be a hero today – forget making resolutions you’ll never keep and just do something simple. On behalf of the animals, we thank you!

That’s it.

ANIMAL HEROES is one of a series of articles brought to you by the RSPCA Bedfordshire North branch www.rspca-bedfordshirenorth.org.uk

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Better Life

The Better Life

Winter Flue Jab

Derek Thompson www.alongthewritelines.blogspot.co.uk “We should have done this last year,” Anne stared reproachfully at the anaerobic fireplace puffing in the little back room. That cat glanced in my direction and then walked off in disgust. She was right of course - Anne, I mean. In my defence, we hadn’t needed to light the fire during the summer and I hadn’t decided then that it was high time I had a special place to do my writing.

It seems that chimney sweeps are a curious blend of the ancient and the modern. Our regular ‘traditional’ sweep arrived in a top-of-the-range Land Rover Defender (i.e. a proper Land Rover) with a set of poles, a vacuum cleaner, a laptop and a tiny camera. The sheets went down and it didn’t take him long to diagnose the problem. “You’ve got a bad case of Jackdaw-itis,” he said as we gathered around his laptop.

The camera was swiftly replaced with a brush and we retreated to the kitchen to put the kettle on.

Our sweep made an array of interesting noises and did battle, calling us back in a little later - as witnesses - once the jackdaw nest had yielded.

It was a complete mess and my comment about there being some good kindling in there failed to win Anne over.

However, we weren’t out of the woods yet, so to speak; we were about to get an education. Yes, we knew that we needed a cowl fitted; and no, of course we didn’t burn much unseasoned wood.

Pine is the worst culprit - it clogs up the chimney and is liable to spit. Burning driftwood indoors is another no-no, due to salt corrosion on cast iron, and wooden pallets may be treated with chemicals.

Lesson over, we brought out tea and Anne’s ginger shortbreads to accompany tales of terrible chimneys in the area - a list we’d now joined. We listened, enviously, as Trevor (not his real name) told us about his chickens - Molly,

Polly and Dolly (named by his children). He regaled us with the story of the fox that came near the chicken run at 11pm every night until they left it an alarm clock, a plan that backfired when it went off because it freaked out the hens. Trevor also has a mini-orchard of five trees. I knew enough to drop into the conversation, “M9 root stock,” which seemed to impress him.

He revealed his skill at dowsing, having located a water source in a field for a local farmer, using just a forked hazel stick and a pendulum (for a second opinion). Some of his stories were genuinely quite odd, although the cat seemed to really take to him and she’s an excellent judge of character.

We added a date on our gardening calendar for the new cowl to be fitted, weather permitting, and sent him on his way. I look forward to his next visit; I want to hear about his 20-year-old tortoise.

Once Trevor left I was true to my work and went outside to sift the debris for kindling. I also started wondering whether a log burning stove would be better for the back room, on the grounds of efficiency and aesthetics. After all, there’s always a faint chance that one of my books will eventually need a backcover photograph of the author at work.

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Motoring

Rolls Royce Wraith

James Baggott @CarDealerEd This is surreal. I’m wrapped in the finest leather, staring at some of most ornate materials I’ve ever seen inside a car and yet still I’m wafting along the challenging A543 at a pace that is leaving the RTOTY crowd lagging behind.

Surfing on a gloriously torquefilled surge of V12 goodness, delicately light steering guiding this two ton luxury monster across the Welsh moors, I’m opening up a gap on the cars behind me as my relationship with the Rolls-Royce Wraith finally clicks. For the last two days I’ve been living in fear of harming the £219,480 brute, every wayward sheep tying my stomach in knots, every oncoming tractor making me wince at the impending doom that never happens.

You see driving the Wraith is quite some responsibility. With a price tag that wouldn’t look out of place in an estate agent’s window, piloting the curvyrear ended British beauty – the sportiest of Rolls-Royces – really is a nerve-wracking experience.

Well, at least at first it is. In time, as the miles rise, fear eases, and you finally begin to gel with

the giant – and it’s then, at this moment, that the wonder of this incredible feat of engineering is finally hammered home.

It’s here, now, on this stunning piece of tarmac that’s twisting across the dew-dipped Welsh countryside that the Wraith truly comes alive. The 624bhp V12 may be whisper quiet on the motorway, where the dash tells you there’s still 90 per cent of power in reserve (there’s no gaudy rev counter in here), but in kick down it growls, bellows deep and powers off towards the future like a Bullet Train. The first time I let the Roller scamper off, it shocks with the aggressive nature it adds digits to the headup display. Make no mistake, this big girl has serious pace.

There’s no hiding the Wraith’s girth, though. It’s absolutely huge – and feels it. Most of the team who got behind the wheel exited with a huge grin on their face, not just because it was such an event to drive, but because they handed back the jewel-like key and returned the Wraith unscathed. Everyone also agreed that it was simply a very special place to spend time in.

Driving the Wraith is an event.

From the automatically-closing suicide doors, to the inch-deep lamb’s wool carpets, to the glass buttons on the dash and beautifully machined solid metal vent pulls and piano black dash, everything inside feels five star hotel, Ritz-like perfect. All it needs is a butler on the options list to retrieve the umbrellas from inside the flanks of the two front doors to be truly palatial.

Driving it to and from Wales for our shoot I was staggered at how comfortable, relaxing and easy it is to clock up hundreds of miles with so little effort. Yes, the 327g/ km emissions and 20.2mpg might worry the wallet, but it’s a small price to pay for spa-like levels of luxury.

Rolls-Royce insists its cars are bought by owner drivers – and after a week behind the wheel of the Wraith I can well believe that.

Yes, sitting in the back might be a pleasant place to spend time, but the Wraith is aimed squarely at the driver and after shelling out close to a quarter of a million pounds I for one know exactly which seat I’d be occupying.

Model Rolls-Royce Wraith Price: £219,480 (as tested) Engine: 6.6-litre, twin turbo V12 Power: 624bhp, 800Nm Max speed: 155mph 0-60mph: 4.4s MPG (comb’d): 20.2 Emissions: 327g/km To advertise Visit our newincommunity The Villagerwww.beds-local.co.uk and Town Life please call 01767 261122

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ABOVE ALL Autocentre Unit 1, Sand Road Ind. Est., Great Gransden SG19 3AH

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Food and Drink

Seasonal Delights Paneer and Mixed Vegetable Coconut Curry Serves 4 Ready in 45 minutes

This filling vegetable curry can be made with any mix of vegetables you have to hand. Serve with steamed rice or crusty bread and some cooling natural yogurt.

INGREDIENTS 2 small carrots, peeled and thinly sliced 100g small cauliflower florets 100g small broccoli florets 1 tbsp vegetable oil 225g paneer cheese, cubed 150g mushrooms, wiped and sliced 1 large onion, peeled and chopped 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed 2cm piece root ginger, peeled and grated 1 red chilli pepper, deseeded and chopped, plus extra sliced chilli to garnish 1 tbsp Thai red curry paste 400ml can coconut milk 150g frozen peas 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped Squeeze of lime juice Fresh oregano leaves, to garnish Bring a pan of water to the boil. Add the carrots and boil for 5 minutes until almost 68

tender adding the cauliflower and broccoli florets for the last 2 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large deep frying pan over a medium heat. Add the paneer and mushrooms and stir-fry over a high heat for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the onion to the pan and fry very gently for about 10 minutes until soft and golden.

Add the garlic, ginger and chilli and fry for a further 2-3 minutes then stir in the Thai paste and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.

Pour in the coconut milk and bring to the boil then reduce the heat and return the paneer and mushrooms to the pan along with the drained vegetables, peas and tomatoes. Stir well and simmer gently for 4-5 minutes. Add the lime juice and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve garnished with sliced red chilli pepper and oregano leaves.

TIP - Paneer is an Indian vegetarian cheese which has a firm texture and goes particularly well with spices and garlic, chilli and ginger.

You can use drained and cubed tofu instead, if preferred.

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Health Living

Healthy Living Local centre is a national flagship

Having just been chosen as the complementary health centre which has made the most ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Community’ in the country, the Letchworth Centre for Healthy Living appears to be on a roll during this, its 30th anniversary year. A registered charity with over 1,200 people using its services each week, the centre has become one of the leading and possibly the largest such facility in the country.

However, despite its national reputation as a centre of excellence, the centre is not well known locally – and many people are not aware of how its work might help them.

Whether it is using one-to-one therapies like osteopathy or acupuncture, or attending groupbased classes like Yoga, Pilates and T’ai Chi, complementary approaches can help with many conditions from back problems and easing pain from arthritis, to reducing stress and promoting relaxation. They can give people more energy, and

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may be able to help with or relieve symptoms of other chronic physical conditions. Quite simply, these approaches can help people to feel better!

The Letchworth Centre for Healthy Living offers: • A complementary therapy clinic staffed by highly skilled and qualified professionals • Over 70 day, evening and weekend classes taught by talented and experienced tutors • A large counselling and low-cost counselling department • Special programmes for older people, carers and for people living with Parkinson’s Disease.

If you have not found out the benefits to be had from visiting this nationally recognised centre, to find out more, visit www.letchworthcentre.com, or telephone 01462 678804.

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Health

If you’re gym-phobic?

Sign up here

by Kate McLelland

Tempted by the discounted membership fee advertised in my local paper, I thought of signing up for my local gym. However one look through those expensive, plate glass windows at the rows of fit, lycra-clad young people lifting, pushing and jogging made me think again. With my spreading waistline on display over the top of my 1990s jogging pants, I would feel more out of place than a penguin in the tropics.

The image of modern gyms as temples to the young and super-fit is hard to shake off: in fact surveys suggest that less than 20% of us are prepared to use a gym to stay in shape. So where can you go if, like me, you no longer match the description “young and super-fit” and have an intermittent back problem that gets worse with vigorous exercise?

If you want a really gentle form of exercise that aids mobility and balance, you might try Tai Chi. This discipline combines relaxation and deep breathing with slow, gentle continuous movements: improving muscle strength in the legs, helping your balance and reducing stress.

Many people are dissuaded from

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taking up Yoga by those images of practitioners with limbs contorted into eye-watering positions – but the first principle of Yoga is to do as much, or as little, as your body feels capable of doing. However, the word ‘Yoga’ covers many different kinds of practice so do some research before signing up for a class. E.g. Iyengar is about perfecting poses, holding them for a period of time while breathing deeply and checking your body’s alignment, while Ashtanga yoga can be vigorous and intense.

If you don’t want a class where you need to move around, Pilates might be the one for you. Pilates has many similarities to Yoga and focuses on rebalancing the body, improving posture and building both muscle strength and endurance through slow, controlled movements.

Nordic Walking is easy on your joints and works well for all ages and fitness levels. It is an enhancement of walking, where special poles are used to engage the upper body muscles as well as the legs. There are a range of classes available, from gentle walks for people with health issues to workout-style walks that help

you lose weight and tone your whole body.

Finally, you may have heard about Zumba. This is a dance exercise craze started by Colombian dancer and choreographer Alberto Perez in the 1990s that uses Latin rhythms as the inspiration for a fun fitness programme. You can join a class at any level, from a slower, beginners’ session to a full-on aerobic work out. Active older adults can take part in a Zumba Gold class, offering a lower intensity version of the normal Zumba routines.

Many of the exercise methods mentioned here can cater for people with health issues (but do see your doctor if you have concerns). A good instructor will want to know about any problems you have, so make sure to tell yours if you have any conditions that might affect your ability to undertake certain exercises. You can find out more at www.nhs.uk/ livewell/fitness.

If – like me – the sight of a gym leaves you sweating before the workout even begins, there’s no longer an excuse to stay at home.

Forget the lycra: just get out there and get fit.

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n O s ’ t Wha

In January

3 January Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire Hardy Plant Society 2pm Weatherley Centre, Eagle Farm Road, Biggleswade Speakers will be Robert Edwards, ‘Backyard and Tiny Gardens.’ Robert is a qualified garden designer and consultant and winner of Chelsea medals. May be plants for sale. Visitors welcome - small charge which includes refreshments.

7 January Folk Evening 7pm Moggerhanger Village Hall First Wednesday every month. Open floor folk session evening.

Tel: Chris 01767 640242 for more info 7 January Gamlingay & District Gardening Club 7.30pm WI Hall, Gamlingay Visitors £2.50 ‘Birds in the Garden’ with Richard Bashford from the RSPB. 9 January Bedfordshire Family History Society Doors open 7.15pm Mark Rutherford School Drama Hall, Wentworth Drive, Bedford, MK42 9RX Members free, Visitors £2 Illustrated talk “The Convict Ship The Lady Juliana” by Ann James. Library and bookstall. Next meeting Friday 6 February. www.bfhs.org.uk

17 January Traditional Burns Night Dinner 7pm for 7.30pm Scout Hut, Hatley Rd, Potton Tickets £18 Three course meal, Piping in of the Haggis, Ceilidh Band. Tartan wear encouraged. Bar and Raffle. Tickets available from Camerons from 1 January.

18 January Biggleswade Antiques Fair 9.30am-4pm The Weatherley Centre, agle Farm Road, Biggleswade Admission £1.50 This antiques fair offers a diverse range of antiques and collectables so whether you are a professional dealer, an avid collector or just looking for something special, this monthly fair is the place to visit. Café serving breakfast, lunches and afternoon tea.

Tel: 01480 382432 or 07906 647346 Web: www.madisonevents.co.uk 23 January Gamlingay Photographic Society 8-10pm Gamlingay Village College, Station Road, Gamlingay Lecture evening. “Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia” with Brian Reid. Nonmembers welcome free of charge.

Refreshments and optional raffle.

Tel: Nick or Jackie 01767 651025 for more info about the evening/the Society Email: nickbruce7@btinternet.com

29 January An evening of Clairvoyance with Wayne Marriott and Friends Doors open 6.45 pm for 7pm Wyboston, Chawston & Colesden Village Hall Admission £5 30 & 31 January Hansel and Gretel Tickets £9 and £5 Little Gransden Village Hall The Revellers bring you an action-packed seasonal pantomime full of traditional fun for all the family. Three performances - Friday evening, Saturday matinee and Saturday evening which promise an excellent evening’s entertainment.

Tickets can be booked in person on 13 December at The Reading Room, Fox Street (10am-12pm) or online at www. roundaboutrevellers.com from 14 December.

31 January Burns Night Supper 7.30pm Barley Town House Tickets £17.50 including welcome drink, three course home cooked meal, music, reeling, haggis and more!

Get your tickets as soon as possible for this annual popular event! All proceeds to Save the Children Tel: Liz 01763 838172 Email: luciecoleridge@gmail.com

Deadline for What’s On entries is the 12th of the previous month.

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Time of Year

SALE!

Make the most of the winter sales Everyone loves a bargain, and at this time of year there are plenty of them around, but it can be easy to get carried away. Here are some tips on how to stay in control of what ends up in your shopping basket!

Decide what you need first. Go through your wardrobe to check for gaps, scout through your cupboards, and think about what you actually use.

There’s no point filling up with stuff just because there’s 70% off!

Do your research. Take a stroll down the high street or browse on line to see what catches your eye. Try on where appropriate and make a list of everything you really want , so that when the doors open you can make a beeline for it.

Go early – or late. To be sure of getting what you really want, visit the sale in the first couple of days, but if you want the cheapest prices, wait until the end.

Stick to a budget. It’s easy to get carried away in the heat of the moment and compromise on what you are willing to pay. If you are too weak to say no in the face of temptation, take cash and only spend what you have.

Take a sale buddy. They could be the head of reason when you choose to ignore all the above advice!

Happy shopping!

By Debbie Singh-Bhatti

To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122

75

Tel: 01767 261622 Mob: 07947 732883 Email: dialporter01@tiscali.co.uk

1st Glass Window Repairs 30

years experience

FULLY INSURED! Local company who can fix all types of problems with your double glazing, call us now for a free quotation.

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07511 906161 76

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Finance

By Ann Haldon

The Pros and Cons of

Equity Release

Equity Release unlocks some of the value in your home, providing a tax-free lump sum or cash facility from which to draw a regular income. It is a way to fund your retirement without having to move from your existing home, and is available to homeowners over the age of fifty-five.

Equity release products can be broken down into: • Lifetime mortgages • Home reversion schemes The first step in deciding whether equity release is for you is to find a professional financial advisor with specific knowledge and experience. The advisor and lender must both be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, and the lender should be a member of the Equity Release Council.

Lifetime mortgage How it works A lifetime mortgage allows you to borrow money against the value of your home, with interest added to the total each month. There are no repayments to meet - you still own your home but the value of it decreases due to the escalating mortgage.

Types of lifetime mortgage Roll-up: interest is added to the loan, which is repaid on death or if you move into care. There are no monthly repayments to make.

Interest-only: you receive a lump

sum and pay the interest on a

monthly basis. Interest may be

fixed or variable, and the original

loan amount is repaid on sale of the house.

Fixed repayment: you take a lump sum from the house, but there are no monthly interest payments to make. A repayment sum is calculated by the lender and agreed with you when the loan is taken out. This fixed amount is repaid on death or if you move to a care home.

Pros • Unlocks the value in your home • Several choices of how the money is taken • Many lenders offer a ‘no negative equity’ guarantee • You can stay in your own home Cons • May affect your eligibility for benefits • Can be expensive in the longterm (there may be other less expensive options) • They are complex financial products which require professional guidance • Reduced inheritance for your beneficiaries Home reversion scheme How it works Home reversion means that you sell all or part of your home to a company, which gives you a cash lump sum for its value,

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or allows you to take a regular income. Some schemes let you live in your home rent-free, while others charge a reduced rent. This arrangement continues until you die or move into a care home, at which point the house is sold and the loan repaid.

As with a lifetime mortgage, you’ll be advised to discuss it with your family before proceeding. They need to know where they stand financially, particularly if it will affect their inheritance.

Pros • A useful way to get money from your property without having to move out • You may be able to make an ‘inheritance guarantee’ to safeguard a proportion of your home for beneficiaries • Many schemes allow you to live in your home rent-free Cons • You generally only receive between 20%-60% of the market value of your property • These schemes can be costly to set up • They are complex to understand in detail The equity released from your home can be used for a range of purposes. Some people use the money for home improvements, others for holidays or to help their children onto the property ladder.

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DRIFTWOOD JOINERY LTD Specialists in Bespoke Joinery

J. Jenkins

Building Services Extensions New Build Renovations Garage Conversions Loft Conversions Kitchen Fitting Driveways and Patios

For all your building needs Conservatories • Doors • Windows Staircases Handmade Kitchens Handmade Bedroom Furniture

Call John on 01767 222219 or 07831 283296

Unit 12, Gracious Farm, Southill, Beds SG18 9JB T: 01462 816695 F: 01462 850915 E: info@driftwoodjoinery.com 78

Email: chippyjenkins@gmail.com References available on request

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Tranquil Sea Tai Chi (yang style) Tai Chi is a gentle form of exercise suitable for all ages and genders, with its gentle pace and low impact movements it can be learnt by virtually anyone. Tai Chi is a holistic approach to wellness including Mind, Body, and Spirit.

Beginners are always welcome at any of our classes, just come along or contact Gary for a informal chat.

Classes: Lt Gransden village Hall, Primrose Hill, Lt Gransden SG19 3DP. Mondays (from 5th Jan) 9-30-10-30 am.

The Plough, 77 Church St, Langford, Biggleswade SG18 9QA. Sundays (from 4th Jan) 10-30-11-30 am.

For more info contact Gary on 07758232068 or 01462 701701 Tranquilsea13@gmail.com To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122

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Codeword 1

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13

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16

17

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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Easy Suduko

Hard Suduko

Fill in the grid so that each row, column and 3x3 box, contains the digits 1 through to 9 with no repetition. Use your logic to solve the puzzles.

80

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81

Fun Quiz - Review of the Year 1. One Down, Five To Go was the sub-title of a 2014 stage show featuring which famous group?

2. The acronym “yolo” was added to the Oxford online dictionary in 2014. What four-word phrase does it stand for?

3. In March, which famous couple said they were going to “consciously uncouple”?

4. Which country won the most gold medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games?

5. Which country won the most gold medals at the 2014 Winter Olympics?

6. A selfie set up by the host of the Academy Awards ceremony in 2014 set a new record for the most retweeted image ever. Who was this host?

7. Rounded to the nearest whole number, what percentage of voters said “yes” in the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence?

8. On January 1st, which country in the Baltic region of Europe adopted the Euro as its currency to become the 18th member of the Eurozone?

9. Written by Harry Hill, the short-lived 2014 musical with the main title of I Can’t Sing was based around which TV show?

10. On July 8th, what promotion did the Róisín Dubh pub in Galway run that meant a German beer called Erdinger, which they started selling at 4 euros a pint, ended up being sold for just 50 cents a pint?

1. Monty Python 2. You only live once 3. Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin 4. England 5. Russia 6. Ellen DeGeneres 7. 45% 8. Latvia 9. The X Factor 10. They reduced the price by 50 cents for every goal Germany scored in the World Cup match against Brazil

Before

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After

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Comet Cleaning Services Commercial & Residential Cleaners • Commercial and Domestic Cleaners • Builders/Landlord Cleans • Experienced and Personal Service • Regular, Weekly/Spring Clean • Fully Insured/Ref's Available • No up front fee's/contracts

01767 631402 Mob: 07762 462866 Tel:

Email: comet.services@virgin.net

www.cometcleaningservices.co.uk

Julian Biggs Plumbing OCT Advert:Layout 1 10/09/201

T&R Roofing Ltd

Family Business Est. 1985

• Felt Roofing Specialists (10 year & 15 year guarantee on high performance felts) • Tiling, Slating, Guttering • UPVC Facia/Soffits • Chimney Work

All NEW work guaranteed Fully insured for employer & Public Liability Call Tony Simpson for a FREE estimate on:

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Julian Biggs Plumbing& Heating All aspects of plumbing & heating work Boilers - Servicing, Repairs, Installation Bathroom, showers and taps leaking taps to full installation

NO CALL OUT CHARGE • COMPETITIVE RATES

Tel: 01767 627591 07950 705479

www.julianbiggsplumbingandheating.co.uk located in Northill, Beds

Fully qualified and insured • All work guaranteed Free Quotations • Local, professional & reliable

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• Supply & fit at competitive prices • Free home calls to estimate & advise • Friendly reliable service For all enquiries, please call or email:

01480 509 685 M: 07833 222 199 T:

E: pgscarpets@hotmail.co.uk

WORDWHEEL

Using only the letters in the Wordwheel, you have ten minutes to find as many words as possible, none of which may be plurals, foreign words or proper nouns. Each word must be of three letters or more, all must contain the central letter and letters can only be used once in every word. There is at least one word that uses all of the letters in the wheel.

TARGET Excellent: 28 or more words Good: 22 words Fair: 17 words

K

B D

A 84

T C

A

E

Answer: BACKDATE Please mention The Villager and Town Life when responding to adverts

Crossword Solution for The Villager December Edition Last Month’s Crossword Winner - Joyce Barnes from St Neots

December’s Codeword and Suduko Solutions

Easy

Hard

Advertising in The Villager is easy.

To find out more call Nigel on 01767 261122 or email nigel@villagermag.com To advertise Visit our newincommunity The Villagerwww.beds-local.co.uk and Town Life please call 01767 261122

85

The Villager Prize Crossword

Prize

ÂŁ25

Across 1 Be quiet! (4) 3 A cool treat (8) 9 Organise (7) 10 Clamour, din (5) 11 Corrections (12) 13 Calm (6) 15 Arachnid (6) 17 Self service store (12) 20 Nimble (5) 21 Window covering (7) 22 Best (8) 23 Jewels (4)

1 Weightiest (8) 2 Remove clothes (5) 4 Intelligent (6) 5 Up-to-date (12)

Complete the crossword, fill in your details below, cut out this page and send to the address below before

16th January 2015 Prize Crossword, Villager Publications Ltd 24 Market Square, Potton, Beds SG19 2NP



Down

6 Lived (7) 7 Humble (4) 8 Proclamation (12) 12 Gifts (8) 14 Procedure (7) 16 Hits (6) 18 Rub out (5) 19 Long pointed tooth (4)

Name: Tel: Address:

86

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KEMP GARAGE DOORS SALES • INSTALLATION • REPAIRS • Family Run Business • 25 Years Experience • Up and Over • Sectional and Roller Doors www.kempgaragedoors.co.uk • Security Shutters

• Remote Control Door

SANDY • POTTON • All Major Brands

Supplied and Serviced

BIGGLESWADE • Call for a Free AND SURROUNDING AREAS

Quotation

• OAP Rates Available

01767 260165 Sandy

01480 210410 Eaton Socon To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122

87

Local News

The Amici Singers

are looking for new members

Following a very successful year, which included singing at the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres and an invitation to sing at St. Paul’s Cathedral the Amici Singers are looking for new members to join them.

The choir was founded in 1978 by Douglas Coombes and is a Ladies only choir. The name Amici was chosen deliberately because of it’s meaning ( friends ). The ladies are indeed a very friendly group who have achieved a rare balance of having fun while at the same time taking their music seriously. Over the years they have been to the USA ten times and travelled to France, Belgium and Germany. They have a trip planned to Quedlinberg, Germany in May 2015 The year is split into three terms . Fees are £20.00 per term and rehearsals are every Thursday , 7.45 to 9.45 at St. Peters Catholic Church, station Rd., Biggleswade.

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We realise that some people can be put off by the prospect of having to audition, but with the Amicis There are no auditions. Singers will fall naturally into the appropriate section for their voice.

Their repertoire is varied and includes classical, folk, spiritual and much more.

Musical Director and Conductor.

Dr. Douglas Coombes, MBE. In recognition of his services to music, Douglas was awarded an honorary doctorate by Gloucester University in 2010 and in 2012 was awarded an MBE. He is a prolific composer and , on occasions, writes music specially for the Amicis Please, do come and join us. You are assured of a very warm welcome. Contact : Chairman, Anne Bunker 01767 650630, or any choir member. Find us at :- www.amicisingers.net

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The

Ironing Fairy Do you hate ironing, or just don’t have time to do it?... ...Then let me do it for you!

• Friendly, reliable 1 to 1 service from a business that cares!

• Affordable prices, and can pick up and drop off to your door.

• Non Smoking home with plenty of references from happy customers.

Call Sue for more information on:

M: 07963 031 538 H: 01767 261 899

Country Stoves Quarter page MAY Advert:Layout 1 10

COUNTRY STOVES & SWEEPS STOVE INSTALLATION CHIMNEY SWEEPING

We now supply wood and kindling!

Call now or visit our website

• Wood burning & multi fuel stoves • HETAS certified installation • Chimney lining • Twin wall flue systems • Free survey & quotation • ICS Qualified chimney sweeps • Insurance certificates issued • Bird guards fitted • Local, professional & reliable

www.countrystovesandsweeps.co.uk

Tel: 01767 627591 07950 705479 Northill, Beds.

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ROOFLINE PRODUCTS INSTALLED

BY THE PROFESSIONALS

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10 year guarantee Very low maintenance Quality approved zinc-free plastics to eliminate rusting Seamless colour-matched products across the entire range For a free quotation please call Langford Windows

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www.langfordwindows.com langfordwindows@hotmail.co.uk Langford Windows advert.indd 1

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24/01/2014 14:19

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Wordsearch Solution - December 2014

The unused letters are in yellow and the last 4 villages names are: Blunham Moggerhanger Haybes Roxton Word Search winner was Faye Durrage from Biggleswade

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91

Books

D . S. LEWIS CARPENTRY & BUILDING

BOOK REVIEW

By Bruce Edwards

The Christmas Party Carole Matthews Pub. by: Sphere p/b £7.99

There’s the inevitable prospect at this time of year of the avalanche of overly comfortable Christmas reads, because, well, it’s expected. They’re to get you in the mood for the festivities if you’re not already inundated from watching the many stomach-churning celebratory commercials of goody-laden tables screened during nearly every telly advert break. And, if you’re office based, there’s going to be the Office Christmas Party. It’s inevitable, the annual occasion when the boss lets his or her hair down; you can (maybe) take liberties and even do silly things. The problem arises when matters get out of hand; Louise, the devoted single mum, usually manages to adroitly avoid the boss’s sticky hands, but then the pretty new dress, the free-flowing champagne and the ultimate silliness seem to get in the way . . . The boss’s wife should be loyal, but is she? Office politics can surface, even in the magnificent party venue (a thinly disguised Waddesdon Manor) and there’s an odd feeling that a rather tragic game of ‘musical chairs’ is being played with the top jobs and even the Manor suffers. As a page turner read, this plot works fine, but be aware, your own office party may seem rather dull in comparison. Just don’t get drunk and take care the morning after doesn’t take a life-changing turn as debts may have to be honoured . . . .

Suggestion and queries to: writerselect@gmail. com. We’re always happy to consider specific titles for review, though without obligation.

Can’t find a title? E-mail your details and we’ll try to help.”

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• Wallpapering • Interior & Exterior Painting • Murals • Colour & Design Advice Local, Reliable & Professional

T: 01767

220 744 M:07791 438 593

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Classifieds Aerials and Satellites AERIALS & SATELLITES

Decorating Services

T/A Broadband Communications Established 1993

Aerials & Satellites • Digital Aerials Freesat & Satellite Installations Commercial IRS Systems All Work Guaranteed • CAI Approved C.1616 Based in Stotfold www.broadbandcommunications.co.uk

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DECORATING SERVICES

• Over 25 years experience • No job too big or too small • Free estimates T: 01767

222 028

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email: topcoat@ntlworld.com

Domestic Repairs

Alterations

Domestic Appliance Repairs Washing Machines • Cookers Fridges • Vacs • Dryers

Bill Tangye

Beds Tel By or appointment only - 4 Stratford Road, Sandy, Mob 01767 650750Tel: 07711 07802 393331 257105

Builders

Domestic Repairs

“YOUNG’S BUILDERS”

JB Domestic

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Garage conversions from £5.9K

Extension - Sunrooms

Call 07811 985568 or 01767 261803 www.youngsbuilders.co.uk “Free quotes • Excellent references”

• • • • •

Guaranteed Repairs To: Washing Machines Tumble Dryers Electric Ovens/Cookers Dishwashers

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Chauffeur Cars

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No Call Out Charge!

Tel: 01767 680621 Mobile: 07778 891490

Electricians

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Classifieds Garden Machinery Service/Repair

Kitchen & Bathroom Fitter M. Philmore (Phil) - Kitchen and Bathroom Fitter

Garden Machinery & Mowers Expert Service and Repair

Disabled showers supplied and fitted.

General plumbing.

Collection & delivery available Unit 12a Whites Farm, Great North Road, Biggleswade SG18 9BE Tel: 01767 600085 Mob: 07593 553581

Garden Specialist

57 Green Acres, Gamlingay, Beds. SG19 3LR Tel: 01767 650619 Mobile: 07870366414

Painting Services

Local, honest, professional service

Pet Services

Handy Man

Business gone a bit slow?

Let us help!

Photography

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To find out more call Nigel on 01767 261122 or email nigel@villagermag.com 94

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Classifieds Plastering Services

Steve Swain

Plastering, Painting & Decorating Painting & Decorating Plastering, Pebble Dashing Rendering, Screeding

Property Improvements

GB

GARY BERRIDGE Plasterer & General Maintenance Including UPVC Doors and Windows Tiling, Painting and Decorating Free Quotes

T: 01767 316485 M: 07582 485155 E: garyberridge@ymail.com

Mob: 07887 861881 Tel: 01767 226404

Private Car Hire

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Airport/Stations/Nights Out etc Local and Long Distance Tel: 01767 261871 Mob: 07983 218367 www.mats-cars.co.uk All major credit/debit cards accepted

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removals, storage, archive and shipping • House and office moves • Large and small vehicles • Local/long distance and overseas removals • Containerised storage • Extremely high quality customer service Call for a no obligation quotation

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Wood Suppliers

Stephens Dinky ad_03.indd 1

3/12/12 11:45:18

Property Improvements by

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Tel: 01767 651821 Mob: 07773 973420 To advertise in The Villager and Town Life please call 01767 261122

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The best things in life are handmade Our Head Chef, Leigh Morris, and his talented team craft and cook distinctive dishes to perfection, using the best seasonal produce.

Let us warm you up this winter with our lunchtime small plates or evening dining menu.

Market Square Potton, SG19 2NP 01767 260221 www.coachhousepotton.co.uk