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Issue 745

24-30 JAN 2014

Simply ‘Mabulous’

Spread the tax burden Taxes can now be spread over the year by entering a voluntary agreement with Javea Town Hall p4

Cash in at the Currency Clinic People are invited to make an appointment at the Currency Clinic to discuss all aspects of foreign exchange with Moneycorp p15

The event of the year is here for 2014!

The Homes Gardens & Lifestyle Show is open for business p25

It’s time for the 720 again

The 720 is a form on which foreigners must record assets of a specified value held in other countries p29

Romeo loves Juliet

Footlights Youth Theatre is bringing West Side Story to the Costa Blanca stage p39

Paul Rodwell cuts the ribbon helped

by Jacqui Phillips (left) and Sue Reula

by Jack Troughton A NEW word is said to have entered the Oxford Dictionary in praise of the MABS Cancer Support Group – ‘Mabulous’.

The word was coined by the British Consulate team in Alicante – described as “being over-zealous” because when asked for three words to describe the charity, came up with four!

Consul Paul Rodwell revealed the unusual word as he opened the new MABS Benidorm and District Centre in Cala Finestrat on Wednesday – the latest facility in a charity that has expanded to

cover from Valencia to the Costa del Sol. The centre, which incorporates a charity shop, treatment rooms, nurses’ rooms, and an equipment store, is housed in a former supermarket in Avenida Finestrat, near the commercial centre, and the building was packed for the opening with MABS volunteers, supporters and guests.

MABS Benidorm Director Sue Ruela said she located the building last July and described the battle to get the centre up and running.

WESTERN “I don’t know whether you remember the old west-

ern films with the OK Corral and a bale of hay rolling down the street and doors hanging off their hinges and cobwebs hanging off the walls?” she asked.

“Well we had KFC boxes, McDonalds coffee cups, piles of leaves, graffiti and dog poo – and then having got the building we had the usual – no electricity, no water, doors that either shut and didn’t open or opened and didn’t shut, and the roof leaked.”

Sue said the idea of the ceremony was for everyone to see “what we have on offer” and to pass the word the charity was up and running and ready to help people affected by cancer.

Continued on page 3

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24-30 JAN 2014

NEWS & VIEWS

from the North & South Costa Blanca and Costa Calida.

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Lilley’s treatment room CUSTOMERS AT Lill’s Lounge in Albir raised over 2,000 Euros to equip a treatment room at the new MABS centre in memory of bar owner William Lilley.

by Jack Troughton At the centre’s official opening on Wednesday, his wife Deborah sat in ’Lilley’s treatment room’ and told how ‘Willie’ died nine weeks after being diagnosed with cancer.

A full time teacher of business studies and information technology at the Costa Blanca International School in Benidorm, she said she as proud to have been able to equip the room.

“MABS was immediately there and assessed what he needed and provided a translator for the palliative care team,” she said.

“They were absolutely marvellous. The support we are giving MABS from the bar is ongoing.”

Deborah Lilley

The sweetest souvenir in Benidorm

ONE OF Benidorm’s most popular and tasty souvenirs is a signature cake created by baker Felix Camargo. Felix trained as a pastry chef in Madrid, moving in the early eighties to the tourist capital of the Costa Blanca to turn his vacation destination into a home. When he saw that Benidorm did not have a traditional cake he invented one using local ingredients that include almonds, sugar, eggs, pumpkin, raisins, dates, aroma orange, lemon flavouring and cinnamon. Benidorm cakes now sell at a rate of 20,000 per month from Felix’s La Nucia bakery, supplying more than 100 outlets throughout Benidorm. And this week he celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the invention of his delicious ‘Tarta Benidorm’.

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Continued from front page She added: “The reason I asked so many people here today is because I want everyone to go away and find three people – the first you find, tell them the shop is open and we are looking for any sort of donations to sell. “The second person, I want you to tell them we are in desperate need of donations – if any bars, clubs or associations can do anything to raise funds; this centre needs a lot of assistance.

“And the third thing and the most important, is if you can find someone who has been or their family has been touched by cancer and tell them of the services we offer.” Services include help with translation and transport to medical appointments and the loan medical equipment. MABS offers its services free of charge but donations are gratefully received.

Sue, who heads a team of over 20, described the centre as a “one stop shop” and said more volunteers were needed – as well as a new shop manager who had to be able to drive, be computer literate, and available from 10am until 2pm Monday to Friday.

She said initially the treatment rooms were open and nurses would be at the centre on Wednesdays between 10am and 2pm but it was hoped to soon be able to offer this five days a week. “But there is always someone at the centre and counsellors if required can be seen in a private room.”

Consul Paul Rodwell underlined that cancer was something that affected everyone in one way or another “and I think that explains the popularity of MABS. I think it is great the support the charity gives.”

He had asked his team for three words describing MABS – and they produced four: ‘dedicated’; ‘immediate’, ‘caring’; and ‘mabulous’. Mr Rodwell said: “It is a very dedicated team and everyone who speaks to anyone from MABS says they are very professional and go the extra mile to support someone in need.

“MABS is immediate because you just pick up the ‘phone – you have a big problem on your hands and as a consular officer you speak to MABS and you know immediately the person will be supported...those suffering need help quickly and efficiently.” The consul added: “And caring, the feeling that the MABS team is always there with tremendous empathy. There are rooms for treatment and the amount of knowledge built up over the years is staggering.”

Mr Rodwell paid tribute to Sue Reula and her team and to MABS founder and director Jacqui Phillips MBE. “Jacqui is a very visionary person with incredible drive and incredible professionalism. She is very keen things are done properly and she makes things happen.”

Sue Reula can be contacted on the MABS telephone on 664 266 991.

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Spread the tax burden

Oscar Anton

by Jack Troughton RESIDENTS OF a Marina Alta town are being offered personal payment plans to spread the burden of local authority taxes.

Property tax, rubbish tax, business tax and road tax, can now be spread over the year by entering a voluntary agreement with Javea Town Hall, which is offering a number of payment systems.

And discounts are available for those who choose to spread payments over the year – or a 4% discount if the taxes are settled in one advance payment, a saving worth more than the money would earn in interest!

Leaflets in English explaining how the system works are available from the Oficina de Atention al Ciudadano at the Clot in Avenida Amanecer.

Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Finance Oscar Anton believes the system will make the burden of taxes less onerous for residents.

He said that pensioners receiving money from the UK on the fifth of the month

could choose to pay an instalment on the tenth – while businesses could choose to pay taxes at the end of the high season rather than in April.

“This can be done by direct debit, or if you don’t want to do this but want to know exactly when you pay, you can get 12 payment slips from the town hall and take them to the bank.”

He said there was a minimum payment of 20€ a month and the minimum tax liability to enter a scheme was 250€.

“And the programme is not fixed. If you start to pay monthly and suddenly receive some more money, you can elect to pay everything – you can change everything at any moment,” said Mr Anton, who heads the party Xabia Democratica.

“If you pay all at once, you save 4%. You are actually saving more money than you could earn in interest at the bank.”

He said the system also helped town hall finances because the regular payments by citizens reduced the need to take out loans during the year.

Hit and run driver caught

Local police arrested a hit and run driver on Friday 17th January who fled after running over a cyclist just before 8am in Eldense, Elda. The rider, a 54-year-old man, was seriously injured and taken to Elda Hospital before being transferred to Alicante Hospital for emergency surgery. His condition is described as ‘critical’. The suspect was tracked down by local police following information by local bystanders on the vehicle which was known to be parked regularly in the area. The driver, a 23-year-old resident of Elda with the initials JCP, was breathalysed and found to be almost three times over the blood/alcohol limit.

17-year-old dies of flu HEALTH PRECAUTIONS are being adopted against influenza A in a Javea high school following the tragic death of a 17-year-old student, Manuel GE, who died in the ICU of Denia Hospital at 11.45pm on Tuesday after falling ill with the virus.

The youngster became ill last Saturday after playing a game of football. He returned to his father’s home in Javea displaying symptoms of fever and sickness that continued throughout the weekend, rapidly developing into pneumonia.

Manuel is the first fatality of the illness in the Valencian community. He was the eldest of three children and a gifted student. Javea’s Antoni Llidó Institute,

where Manuel studied, has ventilated its classrooms and instigated a thorough cleaning programme throughout the school, placing alcohol-based hand cleaning dispensers in the toilets, instructing students to wash their hands regularly and not to share drinking glasses or writing utensils. Health centres in Javea have requested more vaccine for residents wanting flu jabs.

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Election deadline approaches EXPATS WISHING to cast a vote in May’s key elections for the European Parliament have until 30th January deadline to register their intention to join the ballot.

by Jack Troughton According to Spanish government figures there are more than 2.1 million EU citizens who are entitled to vote in Spain – yet by the end of last November just 322,000 – 15% of the total – were on the electoral roll.

And to vote it is necessary to first register on the town hall census – the ‘Padron Municipal’ – and fill in the paperwork regarding an intention to vote.

Expats who were registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years can choose to cast their vote in Britain as long as they are on the electoral register – a form is available from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk and must be returned before 7th May. Jacqui Cotterill, Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Finance in Parcent, is urging people to take up their democratic right and vote in the elections – she also underlined the importance of registering on the Padron.

“The Padron is not a tax register – people are always anxious about that and it is important to point that out,” she said. “And apart from being a legal requirement to register and get a NIE number, it gives benefits.

ACCESS “It gives access to health care, social services, and education. Any bureaucratic action and administrative procedure will ask for a Padron certificate.”

She said resident numbers were important for town halls because they received a financial contribution from central government based on the head count.

“Registration also counts towards the numbers going to

central government for regional government funding for things like health centres and schools.”

Jacqui said anyone registered to vote in the last election in 2009 should already be on the electoral register. “Anyone who has arrived since then or has never voted before should ask to sign the intention to vote form at the town hall.”

She said there was an opportunity in April to check the electoral roll. “If you have signed the intention to vote but are not there for some reason you can make sure you are on the list at that point – however, the instructions are anyone who has already voted should still be on the electoral roll.”

And Jacqui stressed as expats living in Europe “it is in our interests to have representation in the European Parliament” as MEPS took an interest in citizens and provided support when needed.

FIGHT As an example, she said when Parcent was threatened with massive development both Spanish and British MEPs

supported the people of the village in their successful fight in halting the unwanted move.

Parcent petitioned Europe and MEPs visited the village on a fact finding mission. “The petitions process was important in the final decision of the regional government in not allowing the building plans,” said Jacqui. “It is an example of how MEPs do work on the behalf of citizens.”

She added: “At the moment EU citizens are actually questioning the importance of the EU as an institution, largely because of the financial crisis. “As British citizens living in Spain we have taken advantage of the freedom of movement and are enjoying the benefits of belonging to the EU. “I think everyone agrees it is time there was reform of the actual institution. By using our vote we are part of the process of choosing MEPs who can best bring about that reform.”

The Diputacion de Alicante has information in English on voting in the European Elections at www.ciudadanosextranjeros.es/admin/publicaciones/ elecparlamento_en.pdf

Cruel poisoner kills dogs in Benidorm LOCAL POLICE are investigating the deaths of dogs thought to have been poisoned in the popular dog-walking area of Foietes in Benidorm. At least three animals have died after being taken to emergency veterinary clinics in the city with symptoms of poisoning. The Rural Environment Unit and police have carried out an inspection of the area to ascertain whether poisoned meat has been set to trap dogs being walked by their owners. Although certain varieties of fungi known to be poisonous are in the vicinity they have been ruled out due to the rapid progression of symptoms. One broken-hearted owner, Raquel Liza, said her dog “disappeared for just a few minutes” whilst out walking. When the dog reappeared she was writhing in agony and dead 20 minutes later. Early clinical tests have revealed that the dogs may have been poisoned with an organophosphate product used as weed killer.

JAN,

Consulates win Facebook friends

by Jack Troughton EXPATS ARE increasingly turning to Facebook and the ‘Brits living in Spain’ page to find out factual information and share experiences.

Nearly 3,250 people have ‘liked’ the page run by the British Consulate network since its launch in November and numbers continue to grow.

Facebook is being used to answer many questions raised by the British community – such as how to report a crime; healthcare rights; how to renew a passport, or obtain an emergency travel document.

And the consular team believe the secret of the success of ‘Brits living in Spain’ is offering both factual and reliable information and a lively forum for sharing experiences.

Facebook followers and contributors have left their own endorsements such as: “Brilliant...keep up the good work”; ‘Great page... excellent idea and comments for expats here in Spain”; and “It’s an interesting way to get in touch with other Brits in Spain – and the

Insurance scam catches dozens of victims THE NATIONAL Police have arrested a 47-year-old man alleged to have sold false insurance policies on homes and vehicles. The swindle came to light when vehicles were subjected to routine checks at police checkpoints where owners discovered they had no insurance cover. It also emerged that when some of the owners had made checks and noted their insurance was not valid, they were informed the error was due to “a computer glitch” and given replacement policies which were also fraudulent! At least 39 vehicle insurance scams have come to light. An investigation is being carried out by the Judicial Police in Elche over fraudulent insurances brokered in the city.

Costa Blanca promoted strongly at Fitur

By Keith Nicol This weekend, the Costa Blanca Tourism Board is promoting the region at Spain’s largest and most important Travel and Tourism Fair, Fitur, in Madrid. The International Tourism Fair features nearly 9,000 exhibiting companies, 167 participating countries, more than 116,000 professional participants and 91,000 non-professional workers. The Costa Blanca Tourism Board’s main focus this year is to spread word of the value and resources of the province with new brochures containing information about Alicante’s towns, the development of new technological applications and the creation of a new website. Of major importance is the new website for the region that will be launched in March, that provides integration with social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, providing information on tourism routes, incorporating access to professional services and the possibility of tablet/smartphone travel, among other innovations.

Another proposal presented this week was the continuation of the project ‘Tu Plan Costa Blanca’, a travel planning tool that provides information on more than 400 cultural tours, sports, dining and entertainment activities and facilities, among others, throughout the province.

passport and legal information is good.”

The social media site works in tandem with the British embassy’s UKinSpain Facebook page, which focuses on institutional and political information. Will Middleton, Consular Director for Spain, said: “We are really pleased with the response so far and with how British residents are sharing the information they find useful with others.

“If you are not yet following us and want to benefit from independent advice and others’ experiences, then please do search for ‘Brits living in Spain’ on Facebook and ‘like’ our page.”

Residents who are twitter fans can also keep up with the latest news from the British Consulates across Spain on @BritsliveSpain – and they can also read news and comments from the Ambassador on @SimonManleyFCO. To follow ‘Brits living in Spain’; go to www.facebook.com/BritslivinginSpain and ‘like’ the page. People who do not already have a Facebook account will be prompted to create one.

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Ambassador Simon Manley

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24-30 JAN 2014

Keep the home fires burning THE JALON Valley HELP team was quick to provide youngsters at a children’s home with a winter warmer by installing a top-of-the-range wood burner.

by Jack Troughton After hearing of heating problems at Benissa, the charity committed the necessary finance and ordered the burner from Jalon’s Meridian Stoves – where owner John Gilbert immediately offered to help and made no charge for installation.

And while John and his staff were at the EMAUS home they noticed a number of things needing and made the repairs – again without charge. Also helping out on the day were volunteers from HELP’s ‘Men’s Shed’, a group of men keen to assist in the local com-

munity and architect Neil Weston – who insured there were no structural issues and also offered his services free.

Elaine Horton, President of Jalon Valley HELP, thanked Meridian Stoves and Neil, and said: “We are very fortunate here in the Jalon Valley to have such supportive local businesses, who appreciate that we are trying to improve things and want to help. Needless to say, we are very grateful to John and Neil for being so generous.”

Pictured here with the new stove (from right to left) are John Gilbert, and his staff Wayne Pearce and Jamie Cook.

Are you on the Padron?

THE MAYOR of Alfaz, Vicente Arques, has launched a campaign aimed at foreign residents of the town to ensure that they are registered on the Padron.

Being on the padron and confirming that your details are correct is very important as funding from the government is reliant on these numbers. The Town hall receives subsidies from both regional and central government for every single person that is registered and it is this money that funds Social Services, Health Centres, Police, Rubbish Collection and other amenities. Take your passport and green Residencia card to the Town Hall and confirm that your personal details are correct and up to date.

Denia house reveals hidden treasures

IN AN excavation conducted by Silvia Ruiz fragments of Arab plasterwork dated around 1200 have been unearthed in a house in Denia. Head of the Archaeological Service Josep Gisbert confirmed that plasterwork decorating a rectangular frame contain geometric motifs and the Arabic words ‘lucky’ and ‘peace’. The treasures were found in an area providing access to an Andalusian patio. There are also three graves in the house along with 17th Century wall art representing a galley.

Expat voting back in Parliament

Sir Roger Gale

by Jack Troughton THE ISSUE of expats voting in British general elections has again been raised in Westminster by a supporter of the campaign to give a voice to everyone.

Sir Roger Gale, the Conservative MP for North Thanet, was on his feet in the House of Commons to ask a question regarding the Electoral Commission – and reminded colleagues of the “hundreds of thousands” of British citizens who were disenfranchised because of the 15 year rule on voting.

Currently people emigrating from the UK are able to vote in elections in the constituency they were last registered on the electoral roll for 15 years after leaving Britain.

Sir Roger said: “In addition to the hundreds of thousands of expatriate United Kingdom citizens who – like Harry Shindler, 93, who received an MBE in the New Year’s Honours List – are disenfranchised because of the 15-year rule, there are also tens of thousands of expat citizens who could vote but who are not registered. What is the commission doing to insure they can be registered to vote?”

Tory colleague Gary Streeter, a member of the electoral commission committee, said it was “an important issue” and added: “This is a matter of concern across the House.”

However, Mr Streeter failed to address the problem of disenfranchisement because of the current 15-year rule – instead he assured Sir Roger the commission, representatives of political parties and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office had met to discuss ways of getting those eligible to vote to take the opportunity.

ENCOURAGE “There will be a public awareness campaign in overseas literature and online to try to encourage more voter registration,” he said.

Meanwhile Harry Shindler’s legal team went to Brussels on his behalf – he was unable to attend in person - and the European Parliament’s petitions committee is to keep his case calling for expats to have the universal right to vote open.

It is expected the committee will investigate the situation and invite the 93-year-old, a member of the campaign group Votes for Expat Brits, to another meeting.

Campaigners believe the European Commission is soon going to publish its own findings on the voting issue - having already said restricting voting in a home country was punishing people for taking up their right of freedom of movement within the EU. And campaigner Graham Richards told RTN: “The understanding is that the strongest form that this could take would be a ‘recommendation’ which would not be legally binding but would be directed at the six states where expat votes are restricted, and would carry considerable weight, proposing legislative change on the voting system.

“This is the closest we may get to the Commission admonishing the UK for ‘punishing citizens who exercise their treaty rights’. It is understood this is the route EC Vice President Viviane Reding wants to take and let us all hope she wins and issues a recommendation. We would then have to wait for the UK to make a formal response.”

Find out more about the campaign at www.votes-for-expat-brits.com

Clooney arrives in Valencia GEORGE CLOONEY arrived in Valencia on a flight from Zurich on Sunday to begin filming final scenes for Brad Bird’s Disney sci-fi mystery blockbuster ‘Tomorrowland’ at the City of Arts & Sciences. Clooney arrived in a limousine with blacked-out windows and chose not to greet fans waiting at the door of his hotel. Instead the coffee shop was closed to customers so he could make his way directly to his 800€-per-night room. Hugh Laurie, star of top medical series ‘House’, cast as the villain in Tomorrowland, arrived half an hour before Clooney and also headed straight to his room - a double disappointment for fans!

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24-30 JAN 2014

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letter of the week

Facebook is getting in my face FOR THE past few months I have avoided looking at Facebook. Initially Facebook was a novelty, for reconnecting with people from the past and that sort of thing.

WE WOULD talk about the good old days, whatever that means. We would chat on Facebook, but soon found we had little in common and talking was especially awkward unless we were sufficiently lubricated with the nerve -numbing local ale. We would reminisce about what we did, but that becomes boring. I recall chatting on Facebook a few times with ‘friends’ and the conversation ending with: “Let’s keep in touch,” knowing full well that neither they nor I had any intention of keeping in touch.

Accumulating more and more ‘friends’ was sort of interesting, and gave a shallow sense of security thinking I had a lot of friends. I would entertain thoughts like: ‘look how many friends I have, I must be very popular’.

But lately I have found Facebook has become a source of irritation. Facebook has been getting in my face!

I look at photos posted by ‘friends’ of people and I have no idea who they are. They post photos of the children who are now grown-ups and the last time I saw them they were in nappies.

So the novelty of looking at photos of total strangers wears off after a while. Now I am getting notices in my email to inform me about someone wanting to be a ‘friend’ on Facebook. I do not know these people and have no interest in knowing them. It seems like a ruse to get me to open Facebook. I am not interested in posting photos or information about myself. Narcissistic - no thanks!

Gary Smith, Villajoyosa

BOW-OOOOW! Whinging ex-pats RE YOUR superb ‘Letter of the Week’ in RTN 10th-16th January, I own a villa in Calpe and enjoy about five months a year out there. I also play jazz trumpet and composed ‘The Howlin’ Dog Blues’ especially for the ‘Hot Dogs’ (how appropriate) at the ‘Bolero’ on La Fossa Beach as a ‘tribute’ to uncaring dogowning morons. These idiots desert their pooches most evenings on La Valesa and the beasts ‘bow-ooow’ while they are away. I can supply lyrics and a backing track for anyone who wishes to take their hi-fi boom boxes to play after the dog owners return home and attempt to get to sleep! Retribution! BOW-OOOOW! Ian Royle, Manchester

I READ these whinging letters from ex pats and shake my head. You made the choice to move to a better way of life.

I have a house in Spain and one in Scotland - I know which is warmer at the moment. I have just checked the temperature in the Spanish one – 25º without ANY heating. I am sitting in Scotland at 22º with the heating full on!

I have spent many a winter in Spain and only needed two small butane bottles weekly for about 6/7 weeks: here I need 3 deliveries of gas at £680 each. The rates for my Spanish house are 150€: in Scotland £2,480.

In Spain I can still go out to eat a three course meal and wine for 9€: here the equivalent is £24. The cost of living here is still a bit higher than Spain, - but you can still go out in the daytime and enjoy the sun – it’s free. So please - no more whinging rubbish, you made your choice - live with it!

Jim Wilson

A tragedy has to happen before anything can be done I LIVE on an urbanisation on the Balcon de Finestrat. Last month I lost three cats poisoned by Strychnine left in cat food foils on the public pathway to the swimming pool and gardens. These foils were not hidden and could have been picked up by children. I made a denuncia to the police and reported the incidents to the urbanisation administration but nothing really happened.

Today my fourth cat was poisoned - again by the same method and again foils were left on the public path (I have photos). The police say they cannot do anything as it is a private estate and they can only act if a child is affected!

I cannot believe that a tragedy has to happen before anything can be done.

The community administration has today taken more notice: they are talking of installing CCTV. I would be interested if your readers have an opinion on this…

Kathryn Chamberlain

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Rav’s Back On The Road Again...

Watts In Britain By

Paul Watts

FOR A trainee depressive in frost-torn January Britain I managed to achieve a state of near nirvana yesterday.

After months of peddling everywhere (braving wind, rain and ice) on my trusty Raleigh I finally got my old Toyota Rav back on the road. It has stood idle since October.

Having had several friendly mechanics from work pour over the Rav’s problems the cure, apparently, could only be realised if I dipped deep into my pockets and secured the services of a highly trained auto ‘spark’. And so, it came to pass that young Dom from Tamworth Auto Electrics Ltd trolled up in his high-tech van to try and coax Rav back into life. The problem, as I may possibly have mentioned in the past, was the activation of the on-board immobiliser system which had rendered Rav as good as dead.

As I offered Dom a mug of tea he showed me his job sheet. It read, rather un-encouragingly: “To remove immobiliser if poss.” If ‘poss’, whoa Dom, if ‘poss’?

“Yeah,” said the Dom-ster, “if the unit was fitted post factory we should be okay. However, factory fitted units cannot be de-activated...” As this example of Rav was near-vintage he reckoned it’d be fine (i.e. post fac-

tory-fitted) and a mere formality to rip out the several hundred miles of cabling that was strangling the car’s desire to fire up. I quipped, “Oh well, another one for the scrap heap...” He winked, “Na, we’ll be fine.” I padded off in the direction of the kettle.

Dom’s arms blurred, as he turned into a human threshing machine cutting and yanking out redundant cable. Finally, he pronounced that we were ready to “give it a go”. Beside him lay two black boxes and enough cable to delight any totter of the Steptoe era. “That’s your alarm,” Dom explained pointing at one of the boxes, “and that one’s the bugger that’s given you all the trouble.” Hmmm, it looked innocuous enough. The engine compartment looked surprisingly bare now. I took the key and turned the ignition. Nothing, nada, bugger all...

Dom looked perplexed and started to tap the starter motor with his hammer, “maybe this has seized.” I tried the key as directed by Dom, his head deep in the bonnet. Nothing. He went to his van and produced a Bond-like gadget with a Dr Who sonic screwdriver at one end. He started testing circuits and pulling fuses

and tut-tutted alarmingly. Oh well maybe it’s for the scrap heap after all...

“I just don’t understand this...” said Dom his voice trailing off, “...hmm, unless.” Out came the laptop.

His sonic screwdriver was moved rapidly across the circuits. “Well, flippin’ ’eck,” he chuckled, “there’s a third level of protection here.” More wires were pulled out. Would there be any left, I pondered. “Go on,” he smiled, “try her now.” Instantly, the age old Toyota engine burst into life. I would’ve yelped, were I an American. And were I more demonstrative I would have hugged Dom. During the post-op fag Dom told me that it would be impossible to do what he’d just done to a modern car. “They’ve got em locked down so tight,” he said, “once they’re disabled that’s it.” Well then, I thought, I’m glad I don’t go in for modern cars.

So all’s well in Watts-world once again. Mind you, my problem now is - no bike use, weight back on.

Although, I suppose I could bundle the bike into the back of the Rav. Watts in Britain, so you don’t have to be

Cash in at the Currency Clinic EXPERT CURRENCY guidance is available again with the return of the popular Currency Clinic, helping people keep more of their cash when moving money around the world.

by Jack Troughton Foreign exchange specialist Moneycorp – which has more than three decades of experience – offers a free overhaul of RTN readers’ current arrangements and aims to show them both sides of the coin in the sometimes volatile currency market.

And people are invited to make an appointment at the Currency Clinic to discuss all aspects of foreign exchange with the experts, helping insure they are getting the best deal possible.

The clinic, which over the next three months is visiting La Nucia, Javea and Quesada, is of vital importance to anyone selling property in Spain and repatriating the proceeds to the UK. Moneycorp, RTN’s recommended foreign exchange dealer for nearly five years, has saved people thousands of Euros in charges and fees over the past 5 years.

Friendly face to face meetings involve sitting down with an expert and chat about all the options in foreign exchange and moving money across borders given the “uncertainties” of currency markets.

Moneycorp’s Kevin Wright says the Currency Clinic was principally aimed at people not already using a specialist foreign exchange company and there was no pressure to sign up.

BOOK “We are giving expats the opportunity to book an appointment and come in with any queries they have about what they are currently doing with their money,” he explained.

“If they are currently using a bank or another method of exchange, they can come in and discuss their options, what is happening and what is likely to happen to exchange rates.”

Kevin added: “People using a bank or any other method of exchange can come in double check they are getting the best deal and value for their money possible.

“There’s no pressure. They don’t have to sign up with Moneycorp – although the option will be there if they want to – and they will be safe in the knowledge that they are dealing with a company that has 34 years of experience and is fully regulated.”

Moneycorp offers a foreign exchange service for one-off

payments and expats frequently benefit from a specialist regular payment plan when bringing Euro into Spain from Sterling. The company also has ‘Moneycorp On Line’ – providing an opportunity for clients to move money at times that suit them without the need to talk with a dealer.

PROPERTY Kevin said: “We are particularly hoping to meet people who are putting their houses or property up for sale – whether they are waiting to do so or even nearing completion – because we can discuss our repatriation service which can save them thousands, not just on the exchange rate but also in bank fees.

“They can come in for a chat and get all the information before deciding what to do.

Hopefully they will be in a better position afterwards.”

He said the Currency Clinic was an initiative that had already been welcomed by RTN readers and had a successful track record.

“People can make sure they are doing the best they can – if they have thought about using Moneycorp but are a little wary, it is a chance to talk privately on neutral ground and not be under any pressure.”

The clinic is being run at the offices of Europa Network, Javea, on 4th February, 4th March and 8th April. It is based at RTN’s offices in La Nucia on 11th February, 11th March and 15th April and at Moneycorps Costa Blanca Office, Quesdada on 18th February, 18th March and 22nd April.

The experts will be available from 10am to 1pm and booking an appointment is essential. Please ring 902 118 999 between 10am and 6pm.

Kevin Wright

24-30 JAN 2014

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24-30 JAN 2014

U3A’s team talk MEMBERS AND new faces of Vall de Pop U3A took the opportunity to meet the people in the driving seat of the association at a ‘team talk’ social get-together.

by Jack Troughton A fast expanding branch – membership is approaching 1,000 at the rate of around 30 people a month – it means there are a number of vacancies to be filled at the committee’s re-elections in March.

The successful event was well attended with a number of potential new members interested in joining an organisation boasting more than 50 group activities, meaning there is always something for everyone and a chance to meet new friends from all walks of life.

The get-together in Jalon’s Texas Bar was also a chance to advertise the ‘job vacancies’ in a number of fields, such as a financial assistant for the Treasurer, a new Vice President and a group’s Co-coordinator.

It is hoped members will get volunteers and get involved in helping to run the association. Insiders maintain it is “nothing too onerous” and far removed from the hustle and bustle of a “proper job” but people need to “stand up and be counted” to help U3A run smoothly.

Anyone with skills such as accounting, PR, administration, website and technology, are asked to contact the Vall de Pop U3A secretary for more information – and membership details for anyone interested in joining – at secretary@u3avalldepop.com President Bob Welham is pictured explaining how U3A works to interested people at the get-together.

Saudi Arabian handball team in Calp CALP IS becoming a top attraction for athletes in training.

Professional cycling teams often stay in the town and are a familiar sight as they train around Marina Alta roads. Now the national Saudi Handball Team has arrived in town for a few days between competitions. And they have been impressed by the beauty of the scenery around the Peñón d’Ifach.

Calp’s mayor César Sánchez presented the team with books on Calp’s local history.

Improvements for Benidorm train service

THE 99-YEAR-OLD train line from Benidorm to Denia, in danger of closure for economic reasons, is to be transformed into a super modern transport system.

The Valencian regional government has announced that FGV, the rail company responsible for the line, will be allocated €43 million over the next six years for a total makeover to include a track update, improved bridges, renewed safety measures and brand new engines.

Part of the planned works will be the electrification of the current ‘diesel run’ service so that passengers no longer have to transfer at Benidorm on the Alicante to Denia route.

In 2013 around three quarters of a million passengers used this train to get to Altea, Calpe, Teulada, Gata and Denia, approximately 35% of those being tourists. Valencian Communidad President Alberto Fabra said: “This demonstrates the potential value of the line and the importance of offering tourists a modern and efficient method of transport.”

24-30 JAN 2014

Poppy Appeal hits new high

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THE ROYAL British Legion in Spain is celebrating record receipts for its 2013 Poppy Appeal as almost 173,000 Euros was collected in a campaign launched in Benidorm last October.

by Jack Troughton Despite the ongoing affects of the economic recession, people living on the Costas once again wore a poppy with pride and the Royal British Legion in Spain District North has announced a huge 172,972.85€ was collected during the appeal leading up to Remembrance Sunday and during the year by various branches.

The figure was announced during the annual conference of the district in Alicante when President Paul Rodwell – the British Consul based in the city - congratulated members for

their hard work in raising money to aid servicemen and women and their families.

He also thanked outgoing Chairman Chris Wyatt and wife Peggy for all the hard work they had done for the Legion in Spain – in turn Chris welcomed his replacement Nigel Hails who will serve as chairman for the next three years. The district’s Poppy Appeal Coordinator Robin Hargrave revealed the total raised over the last year – topping the 2012 total of just over 171,000€. Robin thanked all the members, friends, and businesses who had once again helped to raise “much-needed funds”.

New page turner

By Jack Troughton YOUNG BOOKWORMS can enjoy story telling at Javea Port’s new library as growing numbers of people start to use the three-month-old facility. Nearly 2,500 people become members and have read library books during its first quarter – while hundreds have also logged on

And he said: “This is yet again an increase over the previous year at a time of economic difficulties and showed the generosity of not only the British but other nationalities, in supporting the Legion beneficiaries here in Spain at times of great need.”

During the conference the Benidorm and District Branch was presented with the ‘Recruiting and Retention Award 1014’ and the new chairman presented Pamela Dawson Tasker with a District Award for her work within the branch

to use the internet.

The town hall has now organised reading of children’s stories on the third Tuesday of the month at 5.30pm – the first was last night and the success will be repeated on 20th February and 20th March.

The town’s schools are being advised of the facilities available and it is also planned to stage a series of cultural activities at the library.

and on the District Committee.

The Legion has 18 branches in the district and the website gives contact details for each branch and District members. For more information go to www.britishlegion.org. uk/counties/spain-north Pictured (from left) are Chris Wyatt, Paul Rodwell, Pamela Dawson Tasker, Nigel Hails, Robin Hargrave, District Standard Bearer Eddie Coleman, and Peter Rogers, the Benidorm and District Treasurer.

Rock and Roll Sunday

The harbour of Campomanes in Altea is an exquisite harbour situated just 2km north from Altea’s main marina and between Altea and Calpe. The harbour has frontline restaurants and bars, and on the 2nd of February, restaurant La Tartana and El Bar are throwing a great Rock ´n Roll party. Like always they’ll have live music performed by the artist of Rock & Roll: PABLO BLOOM!! The harbour is easily accessed at the turning located next to Masymas store, between Calpe and Altea on the coast road. Tickets are on sale for just 12,50€ and include a delicious traditional Belgian Stew and Profiteroles!

Serving from 1pm. Reserve your table by calling 966 888 660.

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24-30 JAN 2014

Jubilee high note ANOTHER SELL out success for the popular Jubilee Jazz Band at the weekend filled seats to capacity and put a total of 850 Euros in the Teulada Moraira Lions Club’s charity coffers.

by Jack Troughton THE CLUB was delighted to welcome back the band to Espai La Senieta in Moraira and to have an international audience of jazz fans packing the hall.

Under the direction of Mike Summers, the band’s performance was hugely enjoyed, especially when old favourites – like ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’ – were given a well-received outing.

And the music received a fanfare from the Lions, the evening of jazz allowed the club to profit 700€ from tickets sales and a further 150€ from the raffle.

Outstanding service with Tintoreria Lavanderia Carmen TINTORERIA LAVANDERIA Carmen offers an outstanding service in the care of delicate articles and is considered a leading specialist on the Marina Baixa.

The process known in Spanish as ‘desmanchado’ is used to eliminate the most persistent marks and here is where Tintoreria Lavanderia Carmen excels: first the properties of the stain are identified by white and ultraviolet light before being professionally treated with specific products.

A variety of ironing techniques is also used: dry, steam or manual pressing techniques are used depending on the article and its type of fabric.

All types of textiles can be treated, even leather or suede, suits and the most delicate garments.

For carpets, blankets and comforters we have an extremely useful wardrobe service over six months at no additional cost.

And the Seamstress Service offers repairs and alterations for all kinds of articles.

The Home Delivery Service collects articles from your home and returns them crisp and clean, ready for use.

Tintoreria Lavanderia Carmen may be found at: c/Herreria, 21.Loc.8, 03580 Alfaz del Pi: Tel 695 889 799 or visit www.tintoreriacarmen.com

24-30 JAN 2014

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2013 a record year for tourism in Spain SPANISH PRIME Minister Mariano Rajoy was delighted to announce this week that 2013 has been a record year for the Spanish tourist sector.

by Jan Gamm Rajoy was addressing the inauguration of the 7th Exceltur Forum in Madrid. According to figures released by Frontur, Spain broke the 60 million international tourist arrivals barrier with an incredible 60.5 million arrivals during the year - 5.6% higher than in 2012.

The increase has placed Spain as third most popular tourist destination in the world, overtaking China and sitting behind France and the United States.

“This data is the best in the history of Spain,” said a beaming Rajoy, “… and the numbers speak for themselves.”

FLOCKING TO SPAIN Spain has enjoyed an increased number of visitors from virtually everywhere with the exception of Italy, which has been suffering the effects of an on-going economic crisis.

Britons, Scandinavians and French tourists all flocked to Spain’s sunny shores during 2013, with the Chinese and Russian markets showed the strongest growth. 35% more Chinese came to Spain in 2013 than in 2012 and 31.6% more Russians, both rapidly expanding tourist markets with ‘hot-pockets’ (tourists that spend considerably more than visitors from elsewhere).

Foreign visitors are re-discovering Spain as a top destination for sunshine holidays and also for other niche tourism markets such as health, sport, historical tours and gastronomy.

World Tourism Organisation Secretary General Taleb Rifai

A record year for tourists

said recently: “This is proof of how intelligent, innovative, flexible and adjustable the private sector is in Spain.”

The regions that performed best were the Canaries and the Balaeric Islands and of course Benidorm retains its position as the country’s favourite sunshine destination with records continually broken for hotel occupancy throughout 2013.

Statistics agency Frontur confirmed that 34 million for-

eigners arrived in Spain in the January-July period, an increase of 3.9% on last year. Russians represented the biggest increase, with 838, 876 arrivals in the period, up 31% on the year. Catalonia welcomed 15.6 million foreign tourists in 2013.

For a country in recession for more than four years, the performance figures are remarkable.

Calling the community!

DO YOU have a hobby or skills you could utilise to make items such as toys, cards, clothes or calendars that could be given at Christmas to those in need? At Christmas local town halls ask for donations of toys and suitable items to give those in need but many of those things are good quality used goods. The 3N group (Needles and Nails and Natter!) will make or renovate things to be stored in readiness for Christmas 2014. The intention is to hold an inaugural meeting with like-minded people to move this forward. The first meeting will be in the Sunrise Restaurant at Almeda del Mar, just off the N332 near Burger King and above SuperCor, on Thursday 6th February at 11am. If you are interested please give Wendy a call on 678 059 759 or email wendybeth018@hotmail.com Come along and bring a friend!

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24-30 JAN 2014

Hi-tech debut TRADITION MET 21st Century technology at the APASA dog sanctuary when a Spanish priest conducted his first blessing of the animals with the aid of an iphone.

by Jack Troughton DON JULIAN Puras helped pet owners and rescued dogs mark San Antonio’s Day with a sprinkling of Holy Water and used the ceremonial words remembered with the help of the gadget’s screen.

However, while it helped Don Julian make sure all the 240 plus APASA dogs received a blessing in record time, the animal charity’s supporters and friends were taking a more laid back approach and enjoying a carnival atmosphere. Hot dogs, cakes, snacks and drinks were all available for the faithful – along with tombola – in another happy APASA get together.

Charity President Mandy Conway said: “We are named after the saint at the Asociation Protectora de Animales de San Antonio and very proud of that and lots of people of all nationalities come to support us.

“The father came to bless all our animals – the dogs currently in the pound and those brought back for the celebration – and he did it one hell of a rate!

“Everyone is enjoying the party and next month is our 15th anniversary so I must thank people for all their help and support.”

Who was Joaquín Sorolla?

SOROLLA WAS a 20th Century Valencian master painter who won many artistic prizes and was adored the world over. He was an impressionist artist who explored many realms of diversity including orientalist, mythological, historical, and social subjects, for display in salons and international exhibitions in Madrid, Paris, Venice, Munich, Berlin, and Chicago.

What many people do not know is that Sorolla and his family made their summer home in Javea. Many of the most intimate paintings by Sorolla explore the pleasures of Javea’s seaside resort.

On 30th January, Hemeroscopea, an educational centre in Javea, will be hosting an Introspective Lecture and Slideshow dedicated to the life, artworks and historical perspective of Joaquín Sorolla as Spain’s premiere 20th Century Impressionist artist, starting at 10.30am until 1.30pm. There will be helpful lecture notes for future use.

Hemeoscopea i son Calle Príncipe de Asturias, 48, Jávea: the registration deadline is 27th January. www.SpainLifestyle.com

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Dogs enjoy their day 24-30 JAN 2014

CANINE PETS enjoyed being top dog last Friday when they returned to the LAPS animal shelter for the traditional blessing to celebrate San Antonio, the patron saint of animals.

by Jack Troughton More than 30 dogs and owners walked from Pego Cemetery to the nearby Local Animal Protection Society base in the orange groves – to be greeted by the current animals being cared for by the charity.

The ceremony is to insure a healthy year for the animals -while the provision of water and cake for the owners is said to make sure their families have food and drink for the coming 12 months. The blessing was conducted by Don Angel from the convent in Pego and Father Chris from Oliva.

During 2013 the charity took care of 279 dogs and puppies and 129 cats and kittens – providing veterinary care, shelter, food and some loving care – before locating new homes. And the LAPS volunteers at the shelter said it was “fantastic” to see so many of the previous residents of the shelter mak-

ing a return visit and looking so happy with their new ‘forever’ families.

The LAPS shelter is supported by the Charity Book Stall at Pego’s Thursday market and a calendar of fund raising events – the next is a Valentine’s dinner and dance.

For more details about LAPS, how to help support the charity or events during the year, call Chrissie on 661 199 270 or email Chrissie.mpego@hotmail.co.uk

A happy return

A wing and a prayer

By Jack Troughton ALL CREATURES great and small were blessed during the annual homage to San Antonio, patron saint of animals – from working beasts to all manner of pampered pets.

Pictured are youngsters with caged birds outside the church in Teulada as they were sprinkled with Holy Water and received a blessing to protect them during the coming 12 months.

Home & Garden

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HOME

GARDEN

24-30 JAN 2014

23

Brought to you by

www.spanishhomefinder.com

The winter cut back

by

Dick Handscombe Holistic gardener and author

JANUARY WILL be a busy month for diligent gardeners - the month of cutting back and pruning most plants and trees in the garden to ensure they perform well in the spring and summer. And the cleaning up of the soil to minimise fungal spores and over-wintering insects into the next growing season.

Those living inland may well have had a few nights of frost that have burned the leaves and final flowers on lantanas while on the coast they might still be blooming.

But in both cases they need cutting back hard to stimulate new close growth in the spring rather than expanding leggy plants. Other plants will be dormant and sap is unlikely to be lost at this time of year.

Just one word of warning: if you do live inland and expect heavy frosts leave the cutting back of tender plants until after the frosts as newly-cut growth is vulnerable to frost damage.

You will find guidelines for cutting back of a wide range of shrubs in section 6.9 of Your Garden in Spain’ and the pruning of fruit trees is described in ‘Growing Healthy Fruit in Spain’. There is not enough space to refer to all in this column but the following will indicate the sort of

things that need to be done: Bougainvillea: Trim hard to shape - this may be as a climber or a squat bush. Cut back side shoots along each branch and cut out all non-flowering suckers – normally easily recognised as paler green straight stems.

Hibiscus: Shorten branches by 20 to 50 cm to stimulate flowering shoots and keep plant to appropriate dimensions.

Oleanders: Trim young plants to keep them tidy. When they have grown to your intended height cut them back hard every two or three years to control their height and stimulate new shoots and branches and a thicker bush.

By the way oleanders can be trained into very attractive standards and even large trees.

Succulents: Remove dead flowers and trim to control size of plants. Pot up or immediately plant prunings to produce new plants.

Galan de Noche: Cut back hard to keep plant under control and stimulate flower covered growth for the following summer.

Evergreen trees and hedges: Trim to shape and control size. Many can be pruned/trained into interesting topiary

shapes – see section 3.12 of ‘Your Garden in Spain’.

What you cut back can be best shredded (with the exception of diseased material) and put on a compost heap to rot down to produce good compost for use the following autumn when preparing the vegetable plot, preparing new raised beds and level flower/shrub beds and planting trees.

Each of the books gives concise guidelines for the successful making of compost in Spain as many newcomers fins it is not as easy as it was in the UK or Ireland.

Alternatively you can do one of the following: Obtain a licence for a bonfire and use the wood ash on the garden – it’s especially useful sprinkled around growing onions and garlic.

Take the garden rubbish to a local Ecopark where they have a composting producing plant such as those near Benissa and Pedreguer/La Xara.

Put the garden rubbish in the ‘green’ bins provided by the local council.

With such important work ahead we can only hope that we have a sunny month so that the New Year exercise can be enjoyed and a few alfresco breakfasts cooked on an early morning bonfire.

The Handscombe’s books can be most conveniently purchased from Amazon Books, Santana Books website or 95 248 5838, The Book Depository or The Royal Horticultural Society Bookshop. ©Dick Handscombe www.gardenspain.com

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24-30 JAN 2014

Home & Garden

Brought to you by spanishhomefinder.com

24-30 JAN 2014

The event of the year is here for 2014!

The Homes Gardens & Lifestyle Show is open for business!

THE COUNTDOWN is on as the successful Homes Gardens & Lifestyle Show heads to Calpe..... If you want to put your business on the map or improve it and get ahead in business in 2014 – Get your stands at the most successful events being staged on the Costas - The celebrity status Homes Gardens & Lifestyle Shows.

Build success into your 2014 by joining us and participating in the Show in Calpe at The Diamante Beach Hotel on 3rd & 4th April and/or at The La Finca Golf & Spa Hotel, Algorfa near Torrevieja on October 15th & 16th 2014. With our proven track record of thousands of visitors at each event, this is the perfect platform to showcase your business, products and services to increase your brand awareness and future business. Come along to the Exhibitor Show Open Day at the hotel on Wednesday 5th February from 11.00 am – 3.00pm to discuss your

participation and options.

This consistent concept is growing Show by Show, with more feature concepts than ever before to ensure the visitors have a great show experience- Join our two UK TV celebrities, gardening guru Charlie Dimmock (Ground Force) and expert antiques valuer Mark Stacey (Flog it! Bargain Hunt, Antiques Road Trip) Plus our Main Sponsors HiFX and this year we are introducing the all new Costas Cook Off! Sponsored by Cambridge 800 (our version of Ready Steady Cook) Plus much much more!

To book your stand at a show contact GM Promotions on FB: Homes Gardens & Lifestyle Show, email: gina@solproductions.tv or call 634 300 125 to be part of the Event of the Year. See www.gmpromotions.es for more info.

Avalon are calling all Artists!

Are you a budding new artist or even a seasoned talent? Then don’t miss this chance to shine!

We invite you to submit your work to be featured in the exclusive Homes Gardens & Lifestyle - Art Competition & Gallery which will be showcasing local Artists work during the 2014 Homes, Gardens & Lifestyle Show organized by GM Promotions.

It’s an exciting opportunity for your art to be viewed by thousands of art lovers – and this year’s event promises to be bigger and better than ever before.

All new, emerging or experienced artists are welcome to enter for the chance to display and even

sell their artworks at the show. All works will also be entered into the competition, judged by a panel of experts and the winning artists will be announced as the show’s “ARTIST” competition winners, a coveted title that will be covered by the local press.

Venue: The Diamante Beach Hotel, Calpe, Costa Blanca. Date: 3rd & 4th April 2014 Entry fee: €5 euro for each artwork to go to M.A.B.S Three entry categories: • Beginners (less than 3 years’ experience)

• Intermediate (3-8 years’ experience) • Expert (8 years or more experience) Styles accepted: acrylic, oil, drawing, pastel, water-colour, mixed media.

Hurry! Register your interest now!

Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to exhibit your work and enter this exclusive competition. Please email marketingmanager@avalonsl.es and we will send you full details.

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money

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24-30 JAN 2014

Best income for ex-pats by

Keith Littlewood International Financial Adviser

HERE IS a brief resume of exactly what is available in the Market Place for investors and the rates you can expect to receive.

GETTING THE best income possible from your investments is crucial in the current economic climate.

UK DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS Nationwide and the AA both offer web-based instant access offering 1.5%. This is only for the first year as 1% is in the form of a bonus at yearend so then reverts to 0.5%. Please note the Nationwide account is an ISA so you shouldn’t be allowed this if you are a Spanish Fiscal resident.

If you have over £50,000 to invest The Bank of London and the Middle East is offering 2.8% fixed for 2 years and 3% fixed for 3 years. These are Bonds and NO withdrawals are allowed during the term but the investment does carry full Financial Compensation Scheme Protection.

SPANISH DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS La Caixa is offering its customers 1.5% in the first year for a 2 year deposit which then reverts to

Euribor(currently 0.558%) + 0.75% giving 1.308% in the second year.

ANNUITIES Rates are around 3% at the moment- the older you are the better rate you get. This does lock you in for life and you give up the capital: not the best time to purchase in my opinion as rates are low but as a Spanish fiscal resident these have fantastic tax benefits so you should not overlook them entirely.

SPANISH COMPLIANT BONDS Rates vary and depend on the size of investment.

Prudential offers a Cautious Fund that is paying around 4.5% after charges.

This type of investment is great for people wanting medium to long term income or growth. 5% of capital is allowed to be withdrawn each year penalty free. These offer very good tax benefits but are only available if you are a Spanish Fiscal resident.

STRUCTURED NOTES These are sophisticated investments but can offer income rates of between 6% and 12%. There are normally two areas of risk with these: counterparty and the conditional risk. There are lots of issuers of these notes and it is best to discuss with a Financial Adviser before entering to ensure all the conditions are fully understood.

There are other investment vehicles such as share portfolios, unit-linked or unit trust funds but then we are going up the risk ladder and usually a Financial Adviser will be involved. Remember everything is okay in moderation and putting all your eggs in one basket can lead to trouble.

In today’s financial climate it is essential you do everything you can to make sure your money is safe and secure and what you want to transpire in the future has the best chance of happening.

If you need advice or if have any questions regarding the above you can contact me on 657 684 094 or email keith.littlewood@blacktowerfm.com

The above information was correct at the time of preparation and does not constitute investment advice and you should seek advice from a professional adviser before embarking on any financial planning activity.

Blacktower Financial Management Ltd is licenced by the UK by the Financial Services Authority and is registered with both the DGS and CNMV. Blacktower Financial Management (Int) Ltd is licenced in Gibraltar by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) Licence No: 00805B and registered with the DGS in Spain.

legal

by

Carlos Baos

of White & Baos Abogados

English & Spanish Solicitors

24-30 JAN 2014

27

The rich Tax obligations in Spain: get richer…

The non residents income tax AS WE do every year, we wish to remind readers who are Non Tax Residents in Spain, that they are still obliged to pay Income Tax in Spain for Non Tax Residents, even if they do not have any income in Spain, just for the fact of owning a property here.

If you live in Spain and but are not registered with the taxman as a tax resident or you do not submit taxes as tax residents, you could be legally considered as Non Tax Resident, as no notice has been given to the Tax Authority. Non Tax Residents could be liable to pay Wealth Tax, but only if the value of their assets in Spain (after deducting debts, i.e: pending capital of the mortgage, etc.) is above 700.000€.

If you are Non Tax Resident in Spain ( or

you are not legally tax resident in Spain), you will need to pay tax for income in Spain (Income Tax for Non Residents, IRNR): i.e.: rents from a letting, interest on bank accounts, etc., If you do not have any income but you own a property or a share on a property, your tax bill will be based on a calculation as per the Cadastral Value (value that appears on your Spanish Local Rates receipt from the Town Hall, the SUMA office or the equivalent).

Even now it is quite common for people who are Non Fiscal Residents in Spain ( or not legally Tax Resident in Spain) to simply not pay this tax; usually due to ignorance or neglect and especially when they have no income in Spain and only own a house.

Caution is needed as the Spanish Tax Office, equivalent to the Spanish

Inland Revenue (Agencia Tributaria), is investigating property owners in Spain who do not pay taxes as either tax residents or non tax residents, urging them to update their status and pay the applicable tax.

If you are not sure if you are “legally or officially” tax resident or non tax resident, if you want to know what is the most convenient for you, we can assist you, studying your personal situation.

If you are non tax resident, do not forget to meet your tax obligation if you want to avoid a possible tax inspection, penalties, etc. We could deal with your tax affairs as non tax residents in Spain.

You can follow the Spanish Legal Issues that affect you and consult us by following us on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ WhiteBaosAbogadosLawyers

Carlos Baos (Lawyer) © White & Baos Abogados 2012 - All rights reserved. C/Diana 19, 2º-D, 03700 Dénia (located 1 minute away from the La Via underground car park).

Tel: 966 426 185. Send your questions to spanishlawyer@roundtownnews.com or info@white-baos.com. This article is available in English and Spanish at www.white-baos.com. The information provided in this article is not intended to be legal advice, but merely conveys general information related to legal issues.

Visit our blog at http://www.white-baos.com/blog/ and Facebook (White-Baos-Abogados-Solicitors)

A RECENT report from Oxfam reveals that the wealth of the 85 richest people in the world equals that of half the planet’s population. And in Spain the fortunes of the top 20 richest individuals equal 20% of the poorest population. Oxfam’s report claims that the world’s wealthiest “hijack political power to manipulate the economic game,” adding: “the case of Spain is of particular concern due to the effect of the financial crisis and the policies that have been adopted that punish the middle class and the disadvantaged. Those responsible for the financial meltdown are treated with impunity and there is a clear lack of forceful action against corruption.” Amongst a set of recommendations being sent to next Wednesday’s World Economic Forum are proposals for countries to increase restrictions on the use of tax havens.

money

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24-30 JAN 2014

by

Mark Roach

Company Director and Spanish Tax Consultant

How to protect your cash in a Spanish bank on death!

I READ a previous article about a gentleman who was concerned that when his wife passes away that their bank in Spain will freeze the account and he will not have access to the funds.

Unfortunately this is very common across Spain and it means that the surviving spouse may not use the funds in the account to pay Spanish Probate or Inheritance Taxes (IHT) that will be due on their cash and property that they may own in Spain. Not only is this a very distressing situation but the beneficiary only has 6 months to probate in Spain otherwise fines and interest may be charged.

Our suggestion: to avoid this happening, if you own a property in Spain, is to instruct Wincham to invest your property into a UK Limited Company (Wincham Can provide). We can facilitate the process from start to finish for you in about 4/6 weeks if required.

Once the property is owned by the client’s UK

Company the owners receive shares in exchange for their investment. These shares are then the assets, owned by them and it is those shares which are subject to Taxation outside of Spain. One demonstration of the advantage here is that if the owners are British and also married and leaves their half to each other then they will inherit under UK Law, where Inheritance Tax is exempt between spouses, unlike Spain, where a spouse only receives an allowance of €15,957 if they are non Resident of Spain when inheriting.

After registering the property to the UK Company the Wincham Spanish Head office located in Calpe, Alicante, will help the clients Company open a bank account in Spain, and then move all the utility and other bills into the Company name and bank account. After this is completed the property owners do not require a personal bank account in Spain and all their funds can be held in their own

Wincham Consultants Limited, Wincham House, Greenfield Farm Trading Estate, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4TR, England.

(Wincham Consultants also have offices located on the Costa Blanca and the Costa del Sol) UK Tel: +44 (0)1260 299 700 | Spain Tel: +34 965 830 991 | Email: iht.info@wincham.com | Web: www.winchamiht.com

Company bank account which does not become frozen on death unlike a personal account.

Wincham has been established since 1994 and we believe that we are the market leader in helping clients own property in Spain via a UK Limited Company structure. Our trained Consultants will also supply a free of charge Spanish Inheritance (IHT) illustration demonstrating the Tax liabilities that the beneficiaries of the property may have when the property passes between individual people’s names.

To find out more about the implications of Spanish IHT, what the liabilities of your beneficiaries are likely to be and the legal steps you can take to avoid it, or for details of future events in your area please call Wincham Consultants on Spain-0034 965 830 991 / UK-0044 (0)1260 299 700. Alternatively visit www.winchamiht.com to make your appointment or apply for your FREE Spanish Inheritance Tax illustration.

money

24-30 JAN 2014

29

It’s time for the 720 again LAST YEAR around this time there was great consternation amongst many foreigners living in Spain: the requirement to complete the 720 asset declaration form really shook the community.

Suzanne by

O’Connell Customer Care at Ábaco

IN CASE you are blissfully unaware, the 720 is a form on which foreigners living in Spain must record assets of a specified value and type held in other countries. There was confusion and a great deal of suspicion about what declaring this information might lead to.

Now, a year later, the second round of 720 is proving to be not quite so controversial. Whereas last year the free newspapers and forums were flooded with questions, concerns and criticism, this year there is more of a mood of quiet acceptance.

People might not be happy with this additional administrative burden, but for most it’s done and dusted.

However, for some, the 720 will need a spring clean.

Residents in Spain who have completed a form previously will need to reconsider at this time every year whether their circumstances have changed and warrant a new form being registered.

REASONS FOR COMPLETING A 720 IN 2014 Even if you feel pretty sure that you do not have to resubmit your form this year, do check against the list below. Keeping your 720 up-to-date is as important as submitting it in the first place. Take time to reflect: does any of this apply to you? * There has been an alteration in your circumstances such as: You have purchased or sold property abroad Investments have matured You have changed account numbers You have cancelled previously declared assets Your assets have altered by 20,000€ If it does, then you should contact your fiscal representative and renew your form as soon as possible.

It’s not just where circumstances have changed that a 720 might need completing in 2014. There are still people out there who did not declare last year and perhaps on hindsight would like to ensure that they

are complying with the requirement. After all, those who did have lived to tell the tale and the fine for late declaration is much less than if you’re ‘found out’.

Another group who will need to register their assets in 2014 are those who moved to Spain during 2012. You will need to complete the 720 if: You have accounts held abroad where the total balance of all the accounts exceeds 50,000€ Other assets and pensions held abroad exceed 50,000€ in value You have a property or business premises abroad If you’ve realised that this applies to you, don’t panic.

There is still time to complete a new form as the window runs from 1st January to 31st March. By next year, who knows, we might be taking the 720 in our stride and wondering what all the fuss was about.

If you would like assistance with your 720 or would like more information about it, please call: 96 670 3748.

Ábaco provide fiscal representation to non-resident and resident Spanish property owners. You can contact us for free advice and information by calling our helpline 96 670 3748 or visiting our website www.abacoadvisers.com

Life

Moonshiners Classic and Custom Cars

From Classic cars to hotrods at Sunday’s event

By Keith Nicol THE SUNDAY, January 25th, the Moonshiners Car Club Costa Blanca, is offering yet another great attraction for classic and specialist car aficionados on the southern Costa Blanca.

The gathering is an opportunity for speciality car owners and visitors to further enjoy motoring on the Costa Blanca.

The event takes place on the last Sunday of each month at

Reflections Bar, c/Aviles, on San Luis, lakeside in Torrevieja.

Dave from the Moonshiners Car Club Costa Blanca said; “We are a fun and free to join car club; a mix of the wildest and wackiest, coolest cars and bikes in the region. We are a fun and banter filled bunch that welcome members of all nationalities.”

The next meeting starts at 11.00am until around 1.00pm, with the bar open for lunch for those that would like to

extend their stay. Everything about the event, apart from food and drink is absolutely free so if you are a car nut or petrol head, make sure you make your way there for a relaxing morning with fellow enthusiasts. This month will have American Muscle cars, British classics and a group from the Easyriders Motor Cycle club, at the very least, so for more information please call Dave on 603 142 786 or check them out on Facebook.

24-30 JAN 2014

33

Quality start to Jazz Festival

By Keith Nicol THE INTIMATE Music Palace was packed with an appreciative audience on Sunday who witnessed one of the most accomplished guitarists ever to perform on their stage. Torrevieja’s first International Jazz Cycle was kicked off by the ‘Gustav Lundgren Trio’ playing in an up tempo Gipsy Jazz style that had toes tapping and fingers snapping. From Stockholm (Sweden) guitarist Gustav Lundgren was accompanied on bass by Miguel Angel Navarrete and guitar by Jorge Guzman, and the combined sound made everyone understand why Gustav is one of the leading guitarists of his generation.

Gustav Lundren introduced each song in Spanish,

English and Swedish, much appreciated by a mostly International audience. Gustav has an extensive discography and fabulous technique allowing this extremely versatile jazz musician to switch between different jazz styles although on this occasion his focus was on providing a homage to Django” Reinhardt, the Belgian-born French guitarist who is often regarded as one of the greatest guitar players of all time.

The second of three days of the International Festival will take place at the same place, same time of 7.30pm, on Sunday February 9th and feature the Celia Mur Quintet, who will present “Swings Hot and Cool”. Celia will present a night of early jazz and swing, with her focus being the music of Ella Fitzgerald and other greats of the era.

Gustav Lundgren amazed a packed audience

Life Showbiz Goss

Who was it that told Adam he was funny?

IT’S ALWAYS amazed me that Adam Sandler has been spoken about in the same breath as Steve Martin, the late John Candy and Richard Prior when it comes to the business of film comedy, as for the life of me I have never found the guy either funny or anywhere near being a good actor ... but first let me explain to you about something called ´The Razzies!

Every year as the Oscars come around there is also a ceremony called ´The Razzies´ (´The Golden Raspberries Awards´) which celebrates and awards a spray painted trophy to the worst film, actor, worst supporting actor etc., and not only did Adam Sandler win the worst actor award last year, but he is the front runner to win the same award this year for the movie ´GrownUps 2´which has been rather neatly re-named ´Groan-Ups 2.

Making people laugh in a cinema at a joke that was shot several months, if not years before, takes an enormous amount of raw talent and Señor Sandler has, in my estimation, absolutely no conception of the skill that’s required to go about rattling our chuckle muscles.

What’s even more frightening is that the movie did very well at the box office which suggests they will go about the business making a third one … HELP! … but with movie itself also being in line for a big old raspberry, pray to god ´Groan-Ups 3´ never sees the light of day.

The gongs will be handed out in a nonstar studded ceremony on March 1, the day before the Oscars, an event at which only a few of the recipients have ever turned up to, one being comedian Tom Green who in 2001 amusingly brought his own red carpet to the ceremony to walk down.

Footnote: Adam Sandler won ´The Razzie´ last year for his role in Jack And Jill, in which he played male/female identical twins … and he also took the prize for worst actress!!

35

24-30 JAN 2014

by

Peter Taylor

Writer and Broadcaster

Celebrity Clips

THE AWFUL ITV show Splash! should now be re-named ´Ploop! as it´s impact is more like the sound of a small pebble dropping into a lake. To make matters worse, the ladies are having to wear one piece bathing suits as last year there were, ´quite a few bosoms and bottoms on show, because diving in a twopiece is not a good plan!´… So that’s more viewers lost then.

Four lads have been in Australia for the last few months making the follow up to their hugely successful first movie ´The Inbetweeners.´ Jay, Simon, Will and Neil posed against a backdrop of the Sydney Opera House, with heading ‘G’bye Australia, you’ve been great and you’re genuinely a credit to our much maligned convict relocation policy!’ The Inbetweeners Movie 2 is due for release this August.

In 1978 Robert Redford bought a huge chunk of land outside Salt Lake City, Utah and founded ´The Sundance Film Festival´ with the purpose of providing an opportunity for independent filmmakers to showcase their work on a global scale. He has now stated that he is to relinquish his association with the project as the corporates have tampered with the dynamic of his plan … Greed once again destroying art.

I´ve intentionally steered clear of all the nonsense written about Batman v Superman, but I just couldn´t resist the story about Gal Gadot´s Wonder Woman costume. ´Latino Review´ wrote ‘Gal Gadot’s WONDER WOMAN outfit will consist of ARMOUR, not the Lynda Carter itty bitty outfit ... I hear it looks dope’ … made of Armour it can only look …´dope!´

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24-30 JAN 2014

Life TV

24th January - 30th January

FRIDAY 24th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

ITV2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:15 Wanted Down Under 11:00 Homes Under the Hammer 12:00 The Sheriffs Are Coming 12:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 13:15 Bargain Hunt 14:00 BBC News; Weather 14:30 Regional News and Weather 14:40 Doctors 15:10 Father Brown 16:00 Perfection 16:45 Escape to the Country 17:30 Antiques Road Trip 18:15 Pointless 19:00 BBC News 19:30 BBC London News 20:00 The One Show 20:30 A Question of Sport 21:00 EastEnders 21:30 Room 101 22:00 Silent Witness 23:00 BBC News 23:25 Regional News and Weather 23:35 The Graham Norton Show 24:25 EastEnders

07:00 Homes Under the Hammer 08:00 Sheriffs Are Coming 08:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 09:15 Paul Hollywood’s Pies & Puds 10:00 Sacred Wonders of Britain 11:00 Question Time 12:00 BBC News 12:30 BBC World News 13:00 Daily Politics 14:00 Live International Bowls 18:15 Flog It! 19:00 Eggheads 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys 20:00 The Great Interior Design Challenge 21:00 Mastermind 21:30 An Island Parish 22:00 Italy Unpacked 23:00 QI 23:30 Newsnight 24:00 Weather 24:05 The Culture Show

07:00 Daybreak 09:30 Lorraine 10:25 Jeremy Kyle Show 11:30 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women 14:30 ITV News 14:55 ITV News Central 15:00 Dickinson’s Real Deal 16:00 Alan Titchmarsh Show 16:59 ITV Central Weather 17:00 Britain’s Best Bakery 18:00 The Chase 19:00 ITV News Central 19:30 ITV News 20:00 Emmerdale 20:30 Coronation Street 21:00 The Martin Lewis Money Show 21:30 Coronation Street 22:00 Piers Morgan’s Life Stories 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:30 ITV News Central 23:40 The Americans 24:30 Benidorm

07:25 Countdown 08:10 Will & Grace 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Secret Millionaire Australia 12:00 Sarah Beeny’s Selling Houses 13:00 Channel 4 News 13:05 Come Dine with Me 13:40 Come Dine with Me 14:10 Come Dine with Me 14:40 Come Dine with Me 15:10 A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun 16:10 Countdown 17:00 Deal or No Deal 18:00 Come Dine with Me 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 21:00 Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast 22:00 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown 23:00 Big Fat Gypsy Weddings 24:05 Brooklyn Nine-Nine 24:35 Saw III

07:00 Childrens TV 09:00 Fifi and the Flowertots 09:15 Peppa Pig 09:25 Peppa Pig 09:35 Toby’s Travelling Circus 09:50 Bananas in Pyjamas 10:00 Tickety Toc 10:15 The Wright Stuff 12:10 Winter Road Rescue 13:10 5 News Lunchtime 13:15 Celebrity Big Brother 14:15 Home and Away 14:45 Neighbours 15:20 The Mentalist 16:15 Murder 101: College Can Be Murder 18:00 5 News 18:30 Neighbours 19:00 Home and Away 19:30 NewsTalk Live 20:00 Ultimate Police Interceptors 21:00 World’s 22:00 Celebrity Big Brother 23:30 Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit on the Side 24:30 Celebrity Big Brother

07:00 Emmerdale 07:25 Emmerdale 07:55 You’ve Been Framed!

08:25 You’ve Been Framed!

08:45 Jeremy Kyle Show USA 09:30 Dinner Date 10:30 The Real Housewives of Atlanta 11:30 The Real Housewives of Orange County 12:30 Millionaire Matchmaker 13:30 Emmerdale 14:00 Emmerdale 14:30 You’ve Been Framed!

15:00 The Jeremy Kyle Show 16:05 The Jeremy Kyle Show 17:10 The Real Housewives of Orange County 18:05 Millionaire Matchmaker 19:00 Dinner Date 20:00 You’ve Been Framed!

20:30 You’ve Been Framed!

21:00 Two and a Half Men 21:30 Two and a Half Men 22:00 The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift 24:10 Take Me Out

07:00 Switched 07:25 90210 08:10 Ugly Betty 09:00 Charmed 10:00 Glee 11:00 Made in Chelsea 12:00 Charmed 13:00 Rules of Engagement 13:30 Hollyoaks 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Made in Chelsea 17:00 Rules of Engagement 17:30 Rules of Engagement 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 Hollyoaks 20:30 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 The Big Bang Theory 21:30 2 Broke Girls 22:00 Top Gun 24:10 The Big Bang Theory 24:40 The Big Bang Theory

SATURDAY 25th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

ITV2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 11:00 Saturday Kitchen Live 12:30 The Good Cook 13:00 Football Focus 13:45 Sportsday 14:00 BBC News; Regional News and Weather 14:15 Inspire: The Olympic Journey 14:45 Live Athletics 17:30 Final Score 18:20 Dynamo: Magician Impossible 19:00 Reflex 19:45 BBC News; Regional News and Weather 20:00 The Voice UK 21:15 The National Lottery: Who Dares Wins 22:10 Casualty 23:00 Mrs Brown’s Boys 23:30 BBC News; Weather 23:50 Air Force One

07:00 This Is BBC Two 07:45 The Spanish Main 09:25 Live Tennis 12:30 Great British Railway Journeys 13:00 The A to Z of TV Cooking 13:45 The Big Bread Experiment 14:45 Escape to the Country 15:30 Live International Bowls 17:30 Coast 18:00 Wild Arabia 19:00 Wild Arabia 20:00 Flog It! 21:00 Dad’s Army 21:30 Morecambe & Wise in Pieces 22:30 QI XL 23:15 West Is West 24:55 International Bowls

07:00 Pat & Stan 07:25 Dino Dan 07:40 Dino Dan 07:50 Canimals 08:00 Canimals 08:05 Canimals 08:10 Om Nom Stories 08:15 Sooty 08:30 Scrambled!

10:25 ITV News 10:30 Dinner Date 11:25 Murder, She Wrote 12:25 ITV News and Weather 12:29 ITV Central Weather 12:30 Catchphrase 13:15 Live FA Cup Football 16:00 All Star Family Fortunes 16:40 You’ve Been Framed!

17:10 Nanny McPhee & the Big Bang 19:20 ITV News Central 19:30 ITV News and Weather 19:45 Splash!

21:15 Take Me Out 22:30 Jonathan Ross Show 23:30 ITV News and Weather 23:44 ITV Central Weather 23:45 FA Cup Football Highlights

07:10 American Football Show 08:05 Trans World Sport 09:00 The Morning Line 10:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:30 Frasier 11:00 The Big Bang Theory 11:30 The Big Bang Theory 12:00 How I Met Your Mother 12:30 How I Met Your Mother 12:55 The Simpsons 13:25 The Taste 14:30 Channel 4 Racing 17:00 Come Dine with Me 17:25 Come Dine with Me 18:00 Come Dine with Me 18:30 Come Dine with Me 19:00 Come Dine with Me 19:30 Channel 4 News 20:00 Speed with Guy Martin 21:00 Bigfoot Files 22:00 Hostages 23:00 Underworld: Rise of the Lycans 24:45 30 Days of Night

07:00 Childrens TV 09:20 Angelina Ballerina 09:40 Rupert Bear 09:55 Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom 10:15 Jelly Jamm 10:30 LazyTown 11:00 Power Rangers: Megaforce 11:35 Access 11:50 World’s Worst Holiday Horrors 12:50 Celebrity Big Brother 14:15 Legally Blonde 16:00 Diagnosis Murder 17:00 Columbo: a Deadly State of Mind 18:35 Columbo: A Matter of Honor 19:50 NCIS 20:40 NCIS 21:30 NCIS 22:20 5 News Weekend 22:30 Celebrity Big Brother 23:30 Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit on the Psych 24:45 Ultimate Police Interceptors

07:00 Beauty and the Geek 07:45 The Hot Desk 07:55 Coronation Street 10:15 Emmerdale 12:45 You’ve Been Framed!

13:15 Free Willy 15:30 Honey 17:25 You’ve Been Framed!

17:55 You’ve Been Framed!

18:25 You’ve Been Framed!

19:30 The Perfect Storm 22:00 Die Another Day 24:45 The Magaluf Weekender

07:00 Switched 07:25 Make It or Break It 08:10 Ugly Betty 09:00 Charmed 10:00 Glee 11:00 Rules of Engagement 11:30 Rules of Engagement 12:00 Rules of Engagement 12:30 Rules of Engagement 13:00 Rules of Engagement 13:30 The Mindy Project 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Rules of Engagement 16:30 Rules of Engagement 17:00 How I Met Your Mother 17:30 How I Met Your Mother 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 The Big Bang Theory 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 The Big Bang Theory 20:30 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 The Tomorrow People 22:00 Terminator: Salvation 24:15 The Big Bang Theory 24:45 Rude Tube

SUNDAY 26th January

You’ve Been Framed!

BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

ITV2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:00 The Andrew Marr Show 11:00 The Big Questions 12:00 Sunday Politics 13:15 Wanted Down Under 14:00 BBC News 14:10 Weather for the Week Ahead 14:15 Moving On 15:00 Bargain Hunt 15:45 Helicopter Heroes 16:15 Escape to the Country 17:00 Songs of Praise 17:35 Hidden Kingdoms 18:35 BBC News; Regional News and Weather 19:00 Fake or Fortune?

20:00 Countryfile 21:00 Call the Midwife 22:00 The Musketeers 23:00 BBC News; Regional News and Weather 23:25 Meet the Fockers

07:00 Hue and Cry

07:00 Childrens TV 08:05 Canimals 08:10 Om Nom Stories 08:15 Sooty 08:30 Scrambled!

10:25 ITV News 10:30 Crocodile Hunter Diaries 11:00 Inside the National Trust 12:00 ITV News and Weather 12:14 ITV Central Weather 12:15 Splash!

13:45 From Russia with Love 16:00 Live FA Cup Football 18:50 ITV News Central 19:00 ITV News and Weather 19:15 Dancing on Ice 20:45 All Star Family Fortunes 21:30 Dancing on Ice: The Skate Off 22:00 Mr Selfridge 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:14 ITV Central Weather 23:15 Birds of a Feather 23:45 FA Cup Football Highlights 24:45 Anglo-Welsh Cup Rugby Union

07:10 The Hoobs 07:35 The Hoobs 08:00 Snowdonia Marathon 09:00 Will & Grace 09:30 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Sunday Brunch 13:30 The Big Bang Theory 14:00 The Big Bang Theory 14:25 How I Met Your Mother 14:55 How I Met Your Mother 15:20 The Simpsons 15:50 The Simpsons 16:20 Deal or No Deal 17:25 Channel 4 News 17:55 Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast 19:00 Mirror Mirror 21:00 The Jump 22:00 Unstoppable 23:50 GI Joe: the Rise of Cobra

07:00 Childrens TV 09:25 Angelina Ballerina 09:40 Rupert Bear 09:55 Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom 10:10 Milkshake!

Show Songs 10:15 Jelly Jamm 10:30 LazyTown 11:00 Power Rangers: Super Samurai 11:35 Access 11:45 The Town the Travellers Took Over 12:40 Celebrity Big Brother 13:40 World’s 14:40 World’s 15:40 Bewitched 17:40 Fairy Tale: a True Story 19:35 Outbreak 21:50 5 News Weekend 22:00 Celebrity Big Brother 23:00 Harry Brown 24:55 Autopsy: The Last Hours Of

07:00 Beauty and the Geek 07:45 The Hot Desk 07:55 Emmerdale 10:15 Coronation Street 12:45 Dinner Date: Australia 13:45 Take Me Out 14:55 You’ve Been Framed!

15:40 Miss Congeniality 17:50 Peter Pan 20:00 Despicable Me 22:00 The Magaluf Weekender 23:00 The Bourne Supremacy

07:00 Switched 07:20 Make It or Break It 08:05 Ugly Betty 09:00 Charmed 10:00 How I Met Your Mother 10:30 How I Met Your Mother 11:00 Hollyoaks 13:30 Revenge 14:30 Rules of Engagement 15:00 Rules of Engagement 15:30 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 The Big Bang Theory 16:30 The Big Bang Theory 17:00 Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD 18:00 The Tomorrow People 19:00 Brooklyn Nine-Nine 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 The Big Bang Theory 20:30 The Big Bang Theory 21:00 Furry Vengeance 22:50 Rude Tube 23:50 8 Out of 10 Cats Uncut 24:40 The Big Bang Theory

08:20 Countryfile 09:15 Live Tennis 13:00 Saturday Kitchen Best Bites 14:30 The Big Bread Experiment 15:30 Live International Bowls 18:15 Ski Sunday 19:00 Wild Arabia 20:00 Flog It! 21:00 This World 22:00 Dragons’ Den 23:00 Blood Diamond

Miss Congeniality

MONDAY 27th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

ITV2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:15 Wanted Down Under 11:00 Homes Under the Hammer 12:00 The Sheriffs Are Coming 12:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 13:15 Bargain Hunt 14:00 BBC News; Weather 14:30 Regional News and Weather 14:45 Doctors 15:10 Father Brown 16:00 Perfection 16:45 Escape to the Country 17:30 Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is 18:15 Pointless 19:00 BBC News 19:30 BBC London News 20:00 The One Show 20:30 Inside Out 21:00 EastEnders 21:30 Panorama 22:00 Britain’s Great War 23:00 BBC News 23:25 Regional News and Weather 23:35 Have I Got Old News for You 24:20 BBC News: The Editors 24:50 The Graham Norton Show

08:05 Sheriffs Are Coming 08:50 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 09:20 Paul Hollywood’s Pies & Puds 10:05 Britain and the Sea 11:05 Britain’s Empty Homes 11:35 Click 12:00 BBC News 12:30 BBC World News 13:00 Daily Politics 14:00 Britain’s First Photo Album 14:30 Cash in the Attic 15:15 Great British Bake Off 16:15 Coast 17:15 Secret Life of Elephants 18:15 Flog It! 19:00 Eggheads 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys 20:00 The Great Interior Design Challenge 21:00 University Challenge 21:30 Food & Drink 22:00 The Many Faces of 23:00 The Sarah Millican Television Programme 23:30 Newsnight

07:00 Daybreak 09:30 Lorraine 10:25 Jeremy Kyle Show 11:30 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women 14:30 ITV News and Weather 14:55 ITV News Central 15:00 Dickinson’s Real Deal 16:00 Alan Titchmarsh Show 16:59 ITV Central Weather 17:00 Britain’s Best Bakery 18:00 The Chase 19:00 ITV News Central 19:30 ITV News and Weather 20:00 Emmerdale 20:30 Coronation Street 21:00 A Great Welsh Adventure with Griff Rhys Jones 21:30 Coronation Street 22:00 The Bletchley Circle 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:30 ITV News Central 23:35 Piers Morgan’s Life Stories 24:35 The Unforgettable

07:25 Countdown 08:10 Will & Grace 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Secret Millionaire Australia 12:00 Sarah Beeny’s Selling Houses 13:00 Channel 4 News 13:05 Come Dine with Me 13:35 Come Dine with Me 14:10 Come Dine with Me 14:40 Come Dine with Me 15:10 A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun 16:10 Countdown 17:00 Deal or No Deal 18:00 Come Dine with Me 18:30 Coach Trip 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 21:00 The Jump 22:00 Benefits Street 23:00 Three Wives, One Husband - Married to the Mormons 23:55 My Daughter the Teenage Nudist

07:00 Childrens TV 09:10 Peppa Pig 09:15 Peppa Pig 09:25 Peppa Pig 09:30 Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures 09:35 Toby’s Travelling Circus 09:45 Milkshake! Show Songs 09:50 Bananas in Pyjamas 10:00 Tickety Toc 10:15 The Wright Stuff 12:15 The Hotel Inspector 13:10 5 News Lunchtime 13:15 Celebrity Big Brother 14:15 Home and Away 14:45 Neighbours 15:15 NCIS 16:15 Carolina Moon 18:00 5 News 18:30 Neighbours 19:00 Home and Away 19:30 NewsTalk Live 20:00 Go Hard or Go Home 21:00 Police Interceptors 22:00 Celebrity Big Brother 23:00 Helix 24:00 Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit on the Side

07:00 Emmerdale 07:25 Coronation Street 07:55 Coronation Street 08:25 You’ve Been Framed!

08:45 Jeremy Kyle Show USA 09:30 Dinner Date 10:30 The Real Housewives of Atlanta 11:30 The Real Housewives of Orange County 12:30 Millionaire Matchmaker 13:30 Emmerdale 14:00 Coronation Street 14:30 Coronation Street 15:00 The Jeremy Kyle Show 17:10 The Real Housewives of Orange County 18:05 Millionaire Matchmaker 19:00 Dinner Date 20:00 You’ve Been Framed!

20:30 You’ve Been Framed!

21:00 Two and a Half Men 21:30 Two and a Half Men 22:00 Mom 22:30 Dads 23:00 The Job Lot 23:30 Plebs 24:00 Fake Reaction

07:00 Switched 07:25 Ugly Betty 08:10 Charmed 09:00 Glee 10:00 Rules of Engagement 10:30 Rules of Engagement 11:00 Made in Chelsea 12:00 Charmed 13:30 Hollyoaks 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Made in Chelsea 17:00 The Jump 17:30 Rules of Engagement 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 Hollyoaks 20:30 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 Brooklyn Nine-Nine 21:30 2 Broke Girls 22:00 Revenge 23:00 What Happens in Kavos 24:00 The Big Bang Theory 24:30 The Big Bang Theory

24-30 JAN 2014

37

Tuesday 28th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

itv2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:15 Wanted Down Under 11:00 Homes Under the Hammer 12:00 The Sheriffs Are Coming 12:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 13:15 Bargain Hunt 14:00 BBC News; Weather 14:30 Regional News and Weather 14:45 Doctors 15:10 Father Brown 16:00 Perfection 16:45 Escape to the Country 17:30 Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is 18:15 Pointless 19:00 BBC News 19:30 BBC London News 20:00 The One Show 20:30 EastEnders 21:00 Holby City 22:00 Death in Paradise 23:00 BBC News 23:25 Regional News and Weather 23:35 The Zoo Next Door 24:35 Little Voice

07:05 Homes Under the Hammer 08:05 Sheriffs Are Coming 08:50 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 09:20 Paul Hollywood’s Pies & Puds 10:05 Great Continental Railway Journeys 11:05 Britain’s Empty Homes 11:35 HARDtalk 12:00 BBC News 12:30 BBC World News 13:00 Daily Politics 14:00 Britain’s First Photo Album 14:30 Cash in the Attic 15:15 Great British Bake Off 16:15 Coast 17:15 Secret Life of Elephants 18:15 Flog It! 19:00 Eggheads 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys 20:00 The Great Interior Design Challenge 21:00 Children’s Emergency Rescue 22:00 Inside the Animal Mind 23:00 House of Fools 23:30 Newsnight

07:00 Daybreak 09:30 Lorraine 10:25 Jeremy Kyle Show 11:30 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women 14:30 ITV News 14:55 ITV News Central 15:00 Dickinson’s Real Deal 16:00 Alan Titchmarsh Show 16:59 ITV Central Weather 17:00 Britain’s Best Bakery 18:00 The Chase 19:00 ITV News Central 19:30 ITV News 20:00 Emmerdale 21:00 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

22:00 Paul O’Grady’s Animal Orphans 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:30 ITV News Central 23:35 Sports Life Stories 24:35 The Crocodile Hunter Diaries

07:25 Countdown 08:10 Will & Grace 08:35 Will & Grace 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:30 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Secret Millionaire USA 12:00 Sarah Beeny’s Selling Houses 13:00 Channel 4 News 13:05 Come Dine with Me 13:35 Come Dine with Me 14:05 Come Dine with Me 14:35 Come Dine with Me 15:10 A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun 16:10 Countdown 17:00 Deal or No Deal 18:00 Come Dine with Me 18:30 Coach Trip 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 21:00 The Jump 22:00 The Taste 23:00 Benefits Street 24:00 The Undateables

07:00 Childrens TV 09:15 Peppa Pig 09:25 Peppa Pig 09:30 Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures 09:35 Toby’s Travelling Circus 09:45 Milkshake! Show Songs 09:50 Bananas in Pyjamas 10:00 Tickety Toc 10:15 The Wright Stuff 12:15 The Hotel Inspector 13:10 5 News Lunchtime 13:15 Celebrity Big Brother 14:15 Home and Away 14:45 Neighbours 15:15 NCIS 16:15 Deadly Honeymoon 18:00 5 News 18:30 Neighbours 19:00 Home and Away 19:30 NewsTalk Live 20:00 The Dog Rescuers 20:30 Highland Emergency 21:00 Gibraltar: Britain in the Sun 22:00 Celebrity Big Brother 23:00 Botched Up Bodies 24:00 Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit on the Side

07:00 Emmerdale 07:25 Coronation Street 07:55 Coronation Street 08:25 You’ve Been Framed!

08:45 Jeremy Kyle Show USA 09:30 Dinner Date 10:30 The Real Housewives of Atlanta 11:30 The Real Housewives of Orange County 12:30 Millionaire Matchmaker 13:30 Emmerdale 14:00 Coronation Street 14:30 Coronation Street 15:00 The Jeremy Kyle Show 16:05 The Jeremy Kyle Show 17:10 The Real Housewives of Orange County 18:05 Millionaire Matchmaker 19:00 Dinner Date 20:00 You’ve Been Framed!

20:30 You’ve Been Framed!

21:00 Two and a Half Men 21:30 Two and a Half Men 22:00 Die Another Day 24:45 Two and a Half Men

07:00 Switched 07:25 Ugly Betty 08:10 Charmed 09:00 Glee 10:00 Rules of Engagement 10:30 Rules of Engagement 11:00 Made in Chelsea 12:00 Charmed 13:00 Rules of Engagement 13:30 Hollyoaks 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Made in Chelsea 17:00 The Jump 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 Hollyoaks 20:30 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 The Addams Family 23:00 Rude Tube 24:00 8 Out of 10 Cats Uncut 24:50 The Big Bang Theory

wednesday 29th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

itv2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:15 Wanted Down Under 11:00 Homes Under the Hammer 12:00 The Sheriffs Are Coming 12:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 13:15 Bargain Hunt 14:00 BBC News; Weather 14:30 Regional News and Weather 14:45 Doctors 15:10 Father Brown 16:00 Perfection 16:45 Escape to the Country 17:30 Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is 18:15 Pointless 19:00 BBC News 19:30 BBC London News 19:55 Party Political Broadcast 20:00 The One Show 21:00 Waterloo Road 22:00 Outnumbered 22:30 Mrs Brown’s Boys 23:00 BBC News 23:25 Regional News and Weather 23:35 Match of the Day

07:00 Homes Under the Hammer 08:00 Sheriffs Are Coming 08:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 09:15 Paul Hollywood’s Pies & Puds 10:00 Antiques Roadshow 11:00 Rip Off Food 11:30 See Hear 12:00 BBC News 12:30 Daily Politics 14:00 Britain’s First Photo Album 14:30 Cash in the Attic 15:15 Great British Bake Off 16:15 Coast 17:10 Secret Life of Elephants 18:10 Flog It! 18:55 Party Political Broadcast 19:00 Eggheads 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys 20:00 The Great Interior Design Challenge 21:00 The Restaurant Man 22:00 Horizon 23:00 Mock the Week - Again 23:30 Newsnight 24:20 Inside the Animal Mind

07:00 Daybreak 09:30 Lorraine 10:25 Jeremy Kyle Show 11:30 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women 14:30 ITV News 14:55 ITV News Central 15:00 Dickinson’s Real Deal 16:00 Alan Titchmarsh Show 16:59 ITV Central Weather 17:00 Britain’s Best Bakery 18:00 The Chase 19:00 ITV News Central 19:25 Party Political Broadcast 19:30 ITV News 20:00 Emmerdale 20:30 Coronation Street 21:00 Midsomer Murders 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:30 ITV News Central 23:35 Jonathan Ross Show 24:40 Corfu: A Tale of Two Islands

07:25 Countdown 08:10 Will & Grace 08:35 Will & Grace 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:30 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Secret Millionaire USA 12:00 Sarah Beeny’s Selling Houses 13:00 Channel 4 News 13:35 Come Dine with Me 14:05 Come Dine with Me 14:40 Come Dine with Me 15:10 A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun 16:10 Countdown 17:00 Deal or No Deal 18:00 Come Dine with Me 18:30 Coach Trip 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 21:00 The Jump 22:00 24 Hours in A&E 23:00 BodyShock 24:00 Strictly Baby Disco

07:10 Childrens TV 09:00 Fifi and the Flowertots 09:10 Peppa Pig 09:15 Peppa Pig 09:25 Peppa Pig 09:30 Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures 09:35 Toby’s Travelling Circus 09:45 Milkshake! Show Songs 09:50 Bananas in Pyjamas 10:00 Tickety Toc 10:15 The Wright Stuff 12:15 The Hotel Inspector 13:10 5 News Lunchtime 13:15 Celebrity Big Brother 14:15 Home and Away 14:45 Neighbours 15:15 NCIS 16:15 Fatal Trust 18:00 5 News 18:30 Neighbours 19:00 Home and Away 19:30 NewsTalk Live 20:00 Extraordinary People 21:00 Ultimate Emergency Bikers 22:00 Celebrity Big Brother 23:30 Celebrity Big Brother’s Bit on the Side

07:00 Emmerdale 07:55 You’ve Been Framed!

08:25 You’ve Been Framed!

08:45 Jeremy Kyle Show USA 09:30 Dinner Date 10:30 The Real Housewives of Atlanta 11:30 The Real Housewives of Orange County 12:30 Millionaire Matchmaker 13:30 Emmerdale 14:30 You’ve Been Framed!

15:00 The Jeremy Kyle Show 16:05 The Jeremy Kyle Show 17:10 The Real Housewives of Orange County 18:05 Millionaire Matchmaker 19:00 Dinner Date 20:00 You’ve Been Framed!

20:30 You’ve Been Framed!

21:00 Two and a Half Men 21:30 Two and a Half Men 22:00 Benidorm 23:00 The Magaluf Weekender 24:00 Fake Reaction 24:50 Two and a Half Men

07:00 Switched 07:25 Ugly Betty 08:10 Charmed 09:00 Glee 10:00 Rules of Engagement 10:30 Rules of Engagement 11:00 Made in Chelsea 12:00 Charmed 13:00 Rules of Engagement 13:30 Hollyoaks 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Made in Chelsea 17:00 The Jump 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 Hollyoaks 20:30 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 The Big Bang Theory 21:30 The Big Bang Theory 22:00 The Tomorrow People 23:00 Rude Tube 24:00 The Inbetweeners 24:35 The Midnight Beast

thursday 30th January BBC1

BBC2

ITV1

CHANNEL 4

CHANNEL 5

itv2

E4

07:00 Breakfast 10:15 Wanted Down Under 11:00 Homes Under the Hammer 12:00 The Sheriffs Are Coming 12:45 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 13:15 Bargain Hunt 14:00 BBC News; Weather 14:30 Regional News and Weather 14:45 Doctors 15:10 Father Brown 16:00 Perfection 16:45 Escape to the Country 17:30 Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is 18:15 Pointless 19:00 BBC News 19:30 BBC London News 20:00 The One Show 20:30 EastEnders 21:00 Hidden Kingdoms 22:00 Silent Witness 23:00 BBC News 23:25 Regional News and Weather 23:35 Question Time 24:35 This Week

07:05 Homes Under the Hammer 08:05 Sheriffs Are Coming 08:50 Helicopter Heroes Down Under 09:20 Paul Hollywood’s Pies & Puds 10:05 Tudor Monastery Farm 11:05 Rip Off Food 11:35 HARDtalk 12:00 BBC News 12:30 BBC World News 13:00 Daily Politics 14:00 Britain’s First Photo Album 14:30 Cash in the Attic 15:15 Great British Bake Off 16:15 Coast 17:15 Lost Land of the Tiger 18:15 Flog It! 19:00 Eggheads 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys 20:00 The Great Interior Design Challenge 21:00 Restoration Home One Year On 22:00 Dan Snow’s History of the Winter Olympics 23:00 Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe

07:00 Daybreak 09:30 Lorraine 10:25 Jeremy Kyle Show 11:30 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women 14:30 ITV News 14:55 ITV News Central 15:00 Dickinson’s Real Deal 16:00 Alan Titchmarsh Show 16:59 ITV Central Weather 17:00 Britain’s Best Bakery 18:00 The Chase 19:00 ITV News Central 19:30 ITV News 20:00 Emmerdale 20:30 Tonight 21:00 Emmerdale 21:30 Birds of a Feather 22:00 Benidorm 23:00 ITV News at Ten 23:30 ITV News Central 23:35 The Lying Game: Crimes That Fooled Britain 24:35 Strictly Kosher

07:25 Countdown 08:10 Will & Grace 08:35 Will & Grace 08:55 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:25 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:00 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Secret Millionaire USA 12:00 Sarah Beeny’s Selling Houses 13:00 Channel 4 News 13:05 Come Dine with Me 13:35 Come Dine with Me 14:05 Come Dine with Me 14:35 Come Dine with Me 15:10 A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun 16:10 Countdown 17:00 Deal or No Deal 18:00 Come Dine with Me 18:30 Coach Trip 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 21:00 The Jump 22:00 The Undateables 23:00 Bodyshockers: My Tattoo Hell 24:00 24 Hours in A&E

07:00 Childrens TV 09:00 Fifi and the Flowertots 09:15 Peppa Pig 09:25 Peppa Pig 09:35 Toby’s Travelling Circus 09:50 Bananas in Pyjamas 10:00 Tickety Toc 10:15 The Wright Stuff 12:15 Highland Emergency 12:45 Celebrity Big Brother 14:10 5 News Lunchtime 14:15 Home and Away 14:45 Neighbours 15:15 NCIS 16:10 A Trick of the Mind 18:00 5 News 18:30 Neighbours 19:00 Home and Away 19:30 NewsTalk Live 20:00 Winter Road Rescue 21:00 World’s 22:00 The Truth About Your Dog’s Food 23:00 Kids Who Kill 24:00 CSI: NY

07:00 Emmerdale 07:25 Coronation Street 07:55 You’ve Been Framed!

08:25 You’ve Been Framed!

09:15 Jeremy Kyle Show USA 10:00 Dinner Date 11:00 The Real Housewives of Atlanta 11:30 The Real Housewives of Orange County 12:30 Millionaire Matchmaker 13:30 Emmerdale 14:00 Coronation Street 14:30 You’ve Been Framed!

15:00 The Jeremy Kyle Show 16:05 The Jeremy Kyle Show 17:10 The Real Housewives of Orange County 18:05 Millionaire Matchmaker 19:00 Dinner Date 20:00 You’ve Been Framed!

20:30 You’ve Been Framed!

21:00 Two and a Half Men 21:30 Two and a Half Men 22:00 Tricked 23:00 Fake Reaction 23:50 Mom 24:20 Dads 24:50 Two and a Half Men

07:00 Switched 07:25 Ugly Betty 08:10 Charmed 09:00 Glee 10:00 Rules of Engagement 10:30 Rules of Engagement 11:00 Made in Chelsea 12:00 Charmed 13:00 Rules of Engagement 13:30 Hollyoaks 14:00 How I Met Your Mother 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 The Big Bang Theory 15:30 The Big Bang Theory 16:00 Made in Chelsea 17:00 The Jump 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 19:00 The Big Bang Theory 19:30 The Big Bang Theory 20:00 Hollyoaks 20:35 How I Met Your Mother 21:00 The Big Bang Theory 21:30 The Big Bang Theory 22:00 Brooklyn Nine-Nine 22:30 2 Broke Girls 23:00 The Midnight Beast 23:30 The Inbetweeners 24:05 The IT Crowd 24:40 The IT Crowd

38

24-30 JAN 2014

Life travel

The Romance of Iced Toes IF ANY village in Castellón deserves the title of Romantic Spain, Aín really hits the button, with its white painted houses, rare en mas outside Andalucia, cobbled narrow streets filled with floribunda, and icy water flowing from the village font. It was a complete surprise to find it, and I almost drove past without a second glance.

Everywhere is spotless; here’s a tiny village whose inhabitants are proud of where they live. Not a scrap of paper fluttered about in the breeze, not a dog turd lay in wait for the unwary, or an empty coke can floated in the fountain. Every street was lined with plant pots bursting with greenery and vivid colour, and a bright purple spread of bougainvillea framed the arched doorway of the petit village church, the Iglesia San Ambroso.

It was delightful wandering through the alternating shade and sun of the narrow streets.

It was one of those lethargic summer afternoons, where the heat of the past few days had faded and the sky was a hazy washed-out blue. A light breeze kept its cool, and even in the shade the temperature was warm enough to raise a light sweat if you walked too quickly – so I didn’t. All I wanted to do was lie on a warm rock and dangle my feet in the water, so I made my way down the ziggurat streets to the river running in the fold of the ravine over which half the village hangs.

I dropped down through the near vertical streets but when I reached the river I found there were no rocks big enough for lounging on, so I ended up stretched out on a short cement path, occasionally hauling myself upright to plunge my feet into the bubbling flow. As they slowly turned to ice in the gin clear water, I watched tiny sticklebacks weaving around my toes, as water dragons skittered across the surface. The clarity of the water made it clear that my toenails needed clipping. Concrete slab or no, rarely has my bed been so luscious for a siesta, as I drifted off to the rippling and splashing of the miniature waterfall a metre from my head.

Having dozed and reflected that had I brought my paella, a bag of rice and a rabbit or two, I could have made lunch at the paelleros at my side, but as I hadn’t I climbed the narrow track up the other side of the shallow ravine.

I heard the hectic gurgling of water as it whooshed through the acequias, the network of irrigation channels, many of which in these mountains have been in use since the Moors established the first terraced agricultural system over a thousand years ago. In fact, Aín is Arabic for water, and given the amount of water flowing from the font, through the acequias and in the river, it was aptly named.

As I topped the short rise and started along a rough track, with the village spread along the hillside opposite, I saw the hermita and the calvario, (the stations of the cross), with its row of cypress trees, that instant identifier in Spain of either an hermita or a cementario.

As far as I can remember, this is the only

calvario I’ve come across that is on the flat and not scaling a steep hillside. For that reason alone I decided to have a look at it when I passed by later on.

I followed the curving path back down the hill, and passed the sparkling water of the village swimming pool, with jumping and splashing kids and adults picnicking or dozing in the shade. I added another ‘must carry in the car’ item to my list, alongside my walking boots – always take swimming trunks and a towel, because I would have loved to have thrown myself into the shimmering pool – but at least my feet were still smiling from the paddle earlier.

When I arrived at the calvario, not only did I find that it was flat, but that it was also in a straight line, another first, and it was one of the most delightful I’ve ever seen. Between each of the tall cypress stood tinajas, the large ‘Ali Baba’ pots once used for storing oil and wine, plant pots and small troughs full of plants that had obviously been the centre of someone’s loving care and attention. Too often plants in public places are just thrown in the ground and left to fend for themselves, but here the gardener cared, and the care showed in the abundant greenery. From two large cracked and much cement-repaired tinajas grew two ivy plants, whose years had led them to finally meeting and forming a frame for the central of the three arches to the portico at the entrance to the hermita.

In the shade of the portico stood alone and battered old bentwood chair, its woven cane seat long ago replaced by some rough wooden slats. I sat for a while looking out over the garden and the village, just listening to the breeze flutter through the cypress. It was sublime, and as much a temple as the consecrated hermita behind me.

Having visited literally hundreds of villages and towns in the Valencian Community over the last few years, I can safely say that Aín is one of the most delightful. It has no museum, no art gallery and no fancy must-eat-at restaurants, but it is the peak of romantic Spain during the summer; a place to walk, make a paella with the family beside the river, splash in the open-air swimming pool or simply lie down beside it and drift in and out of a siesta.

To discover more about Spain, visit www.derekworkman-journalist.com and http://derekworkman.wordpress.com. http://valpaparazzi.wordpress.com: random notes about life in Spain.

Derek Workman’s books, Inland Trips from the Costa Blanca and Small Hotels and Inns of Eastern Spain are available from most good books shops or direct from the publisher, Santana Books, www.santanabooks.com or Tel. 952 485 838.

Life events

Romeo loves Juliet MODERN LOVERS Tony and Maria are the troubled lovers in West Side Story, the updated musical based on Shakespeare’s classic tragedy Romeo and Juliet.

THE BARD described the two principal characters in his classic as a “pair of star crossed lovers” and it holds true for the musical that is set on the mean streets of New York. Footlights Youth Theatre is bringing West Side Story to the Costa Blanca stage and Joe Altamira and Abigail Tucker play Tony and Maria – heading a 25-strong cast.

West Side Story runs at the Casa de Cultura in Calpe from Thursday 13th February to Saturday 15th February. The show moves to the Teatro Municipal Torrevieja for Saturday 22nd February and finally to the Auditori in Teulada on Friday 7th March.

Ticket prices are 12€, with a reduction for children under 14 of 8€ for the Calpe shows only, and the performance on Saturday 15th February is at the earlier time of 6pm – on all other nights West Side Story begins at 8pm.

Calpe tickets are available by calling 652 404 798 or by email to footlights. boxoffice@gmail.com. The Torrevieja Box Office is open Tuesday to Friday between 6pm and 8pm, and the Teulada Box Office is open between Wednesday to Saturday between 11am and 1pm and 6pm to 8pm.

In addition, tickets for both Torrevieja and Teulada can be obtained online via www.instanticket.es Tony (Joe Altamira) and Maria (Abigail Tucker)

24-30 JAN 2014

39

Keep on smiling!

THE FOLK at the Smile Charity Group keep on clocking up success after success, and have every reason to keep smiling, and to bring smiles to so many less fortunate people.

Following the success of their Pantomime ‘tour’, which raised almost 2,000€ for local charities, namely Elche Children’s Home, Benijofar Crisis Appeal, and Altea Children’s Home, they have had another sell out night on 22nd January, when Woody & The Peckers once again delivered their superb Rock ‘n’ Roll night.

Look out for their next offering, on 13th February, when the phenomenal Maria O’Hara, will be bringing her talents to ‘Restaurante El Alto La Dolores’. Maria has performed around the world and we are very lucky to have her on the Costa Blanca. She will be supported by some talented guest artistes. The event will be in aid of the DEBRA Butterfly Children Appeal.

Tickets are available from the Restaurant itself, as well as The Post Room Benijófar, and the Card Place in Benimar, priced at just 10€ for a meal and show.

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24-30 JAN 2014

Life spanish

Basic Spanish for everyday needs

by Jane Cronin

Negatives, questions and “you” forms FIRST OF all we need to check last week’s homework. Here are the sentences I asked you to translate, with the right answers.

I don’t want to speak English.

I’m not going to open the door.

I can’t cook very well.

I need to work a little.

“No quiero hablar inglés” “No voy a abrir la puerta” “No puedo cocinar muy bien” “Necesito trabajar un poco”.

The first three sentences are negative and therefore start with “No” despite the fact that in each of the English sentences the negatives are formed in three different ways. Obviously in these articles we can’t hear the spoken sentences, but one thing to point out here is that when one word ends in a vowel sound and the next word begins with a vowel sound, they run together when spoken. So “quiero hablar”, would sound like “quieroablar” (as the letter H is silent) and “voy a abrir” would become “voyabrir” with the two “a” sounds merging together. It’s important to get practice at tuning in to spoken Spanish so that you can start recognizing these features of the language.

Now let’s see what else we can do with the words we have covered so far. We have learnt that “I words” (QUIERO, PUEDO, NECESITO, VOY A) can go in front of infinitive verbs to form really useful sentences about what we want, need, can or are going to do. We have also seen that by placing the word “no” in front, we can make these sentences negative.

Now we are going to see how these same basic forms can be turned into questions. This is incredibly easy; in fact it’s so easy people are inclined not to believe it and try to complicate things. To make these sentences into questions, all you have to do is give your voice a questioning intonation.

When writing we place a question mark at the end and an upside down question mark at the beginning of the sentence, to indicate the same thing.

For example: PUEDO ABRIR LA PUERTA means “I can open the door”. If I say exactly the same sentence making my voice sound questioning, I’ve changed it to “Can I open to the door?” which is written in Spanish ¿PUEDO ABRIR LA PUERTA? Yes, it really is that simple! Let’s see what else we can do.

“PUEDO VOLVER MAÑANA” “I can return tomorrow.” “¿PUEDO VOLVER MAÑANA?” “Can I return tomorrow?”

“PUEDO CAMBIAR MI DINERO” “I can change my money” “¿PUEDO CAMBIAR MI DINERO?” “Can I change my money?

“NECESITO TRABAJAR HOY” “I need to work today” “¿NECESITO TRABAJAR HOY? “Do I need to work today?”

“NECESITO BEBER MUCHA AGUA” “I need to drink a lot of water” “¿NECESITO BEBER MUCHA AGUA?” “Do I need to drink a lot of water?

Obviously in the case of ¿Quiero? (Do I want?) and ¿Voy a? (am I going to?) it is more difficult to find sentences that make sense, so as a special little bonus today we will learn the words for “You want” and “You are going to” – which can instantly be used to mean “Do you want?” and

“Are you going to?”

“You want” is “QUIERES” and “you are going to” is “VAS A” so therefore: “Do you want to cook?” is “¿QUIERES COCINAR?” “Are you going to sleep?” is “¿VAS A DORMIR?” Just to recap what we have just done – QUIERO means “I want”, and by changing the final letter we can turn it into QUIERES meaning “you want”. Something similar happens with VOY A “I’m going to”, we can turn it into “VAS A” to mean “you are going to”. I think I should mention as well, that these refer to an informal “you”, as in Spanish we can be formal and informal in the way we address people. However nowadays in Spain these distinctions are not so important so we’ll talk in more detail about that later.

This all might sound rather simple, but you may not have yet realized just what potential we have opened up already, just by learning these small changes. It is not necessary to learn all the whys and wherefores of how verbs change in order to start forming all kinds of sentences! So far we have only used six verbs and six “I” or “you” expressions so I think next week we’ll need some more verbs and other simple words to spread the net even wider. In the meantime though – here’s your homework: What do these mean in English? No quiero volver a casa hoy. ¿Quieres bailar conmigo? Voy a hablar con mi amigo. ¿Vas a beber vino? No necesito comer ahora. ¿Puedo aprender más?

Happy translating and see you next week!

Life books

Danny Collins - copydjp@gmail.com

The Hunger Games – Catching Fire THIS IS a science fiction novel, part of a trilogy by American writer Suzanne Collins, written in the voice of the 16-year-old heroine Katniss Everdeen, who lives in the post- apocalyptic nation of Panem, where the states of North America once existed.

The Capitol, a highly advanced metropolis, exercises political control over the rest of the nation. The Hunger Games are an annual event in which one 12 – 18 year old boy and one girl from each of the twelve Districts surrounding the Capitol are selected by lottery to compete in a televised battle to the death. Katniss voluntarily takes her younger sister’s place in the Hunger Games, but is faced with a huge dilemma. Her defiance of the regime has earned her the enmity of President Snow, putting her family and friends at risk. This develops against a background of revolt as the Districts prepare to rise up against the hunger and tyranny with Katniss forced once again into the arena as their involuntary figurehead. You’ll bite your nails to the elbow waiting for book Author: Suzanne Collins Publisher: Scholastic Price: 11.20€ ISBN: 978 1 407109 36 7 Stars 1-10: 8 for its fantasy mode

three. But here’s the good news. The entire trilogy is in print and Book 1 has already been shot as a feature film.

Suduko Answer

Life people

TLS Books and Cards: new on the Costa Blanca TLS BOOKS, a new business set up by Tash and Lou Lewis, sells new thrillers and ladies’ fiction.

THEY ALSO sell top quality greetings cards for all occasions and Featherhead Dreamcatchers and earrings on behalf of Grant a Wish.

WEEKLY VENUES ARE: Tuesdays at Magnums bar in Oliva from 11am till 2pm Ironart, Gata: Fridays from 11am till 2pm Every third Thursday at the Bella Vista Bar, Pego Books are brought over from the UK every four weeks so the stock is always changing and being updated. And if they don’t have the book you are after they will do what they can to get it. All books are priced at 2.50€ and cards are just 1€!

TLS Books also runs a charity-raising fund for Cystic Fibrosis called ‘Supporting Cystic Fibrosis Costa Blanca’. If you don’t know what to do with your books once you have read them you can take them back to TLS books and they will sell them on the last Friday of the month at Ironart at 1€ each, with all profits going to SCFCB.

24-30 JAN 2014

41

Bombers raise 1,000€ for Caritas and firemen

A CERTIFICATE of Acknowledgement was presented by Elly van der Wel, Treasurer of the Javea Port branch of Cáritas, to Carol and Brian Kiernan, owners of The Bombers Bar, after they handed over 490€, half the money raised in a recent Charity Auction night.

The other half went to support the volunteer firemen of Balcon de Mar, Javea, who lost much of their equipment in a fire late last year.

Carol said, “I was amazed by the generosity of our customers who not only raised nearly 1,000€ on auction night but also filled a dozen carrier bags with food, essentials and toys over a few weeks, for Cáritas to distribute to people in need.”

Brian continued: “I thank all those who donated auction items, gave their time and attended what turned out to be a fantastic night.”

Carol Kiernan (holding certificate), Brian Kiernan to her right with members of the local branch of Caritas and customers

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24-30 JAN 2014

Life charity

The great giveaway

THE MASONIC Home of Valencia Association has spent a busy two months giving away 10,500 Euros to good causes in the community.

By Jack Troughton THE MASONIC Home of Valencia Association has spent a busy two months giving away 10,500€ to good causes in the community.

Van loads of food were purchased at a cash and carry to distribute to needy families via the Caritas network and other charities received cheques to help them continue much-valued work.

The association – which runs the Moraira Charity Shop - described the giveaway as “once again making considerable donations to a variety of local charities.

Show of appreciation

By Jack Troughton THE MORAIRA Charity Shop has won the thanks of the Freemasons’ Provincial Grand Lodge of Valencia for its 10,000€ donation to help by ambulances and other vehicles for

the Red Cross. The money was given to the Masonic Festival 2014 appeal and Deputy Provincial Grand Master Stuart Macdonald presented a certificate to the shop in recognition of its support.

Stuart (pictured left) handed the framed certificate to the managers Chris and Kath Taylor, on behalf of the Masonic Home of Valencia Association – which runs the charity shop.

Benefiting from the Freemasons’ generosity in December and the New Year were: The Alzheimer Association in Teulada, receiving 1,500€; 2,500€ to the Bay Radio Appeal for two orphanages; Friends of the Children of EMAUS received 2,500€; Caritas in Orba and the Jalon Valley was given 2,500€; and Caritas in Teulada was given 1,500€.

Pictured taking a breather from loading a van with food are Association Secretary Keith Hart with his wife Jenny and (rear) Barbara Wilson, wife of Association President Bernard Wilson.

Life horoscopes

Don’t judge a book by its cover. There is no tried and tested way to achieve what it is you are looking for. Changes lie ahead and you are more than prepared to make sacrifices if you need to, when the time comes. The grass seems to be greener on the other side, but do prioritise, and first cut your losses; not your nose to spite your face!

The Cosmos serves you up a distinct double whammy brought about by actions with Saturn and Mercury in cahoots. This serves to highlight something you have thought of, but cautiously avoided, and the midweek actions of Uranus bring it right back to your front door, where you will deal with it your way and not look back.

Mercury squares up to Saturn midweek and this highly sensitive sharing of obligations creates a better framework for you to work with. Cards on the table there is hope and fulfilment where there used to be nagging doubt and remorse. The clock cannot be turned back, but in the current way of working there is only one way to proceed.

One thing is sure, and that is that the entire Cosmos has much need to reward you for your recent rapid response and subsequent taking control when you were required to.

Your positive energies are fuelled by the nostalgic energy of Saturn, reminding you how thing were, and the elemental inspiration of both the Sun and Uranus.

Take care of a minor detail before it is blown out of all proportion; though this does not mean taking the rap for something you didn’t want to get involved with in the first place. The onus could just be turned around on you, and it is time to quietly and astutely put your mark on a suitable solution, without having to take a backward step.

Slow and steady is the right way forward right now, especially as others who didn’t take your advice have come a cropper. You never do anything by halves, but actions here speak louder than words and you have been silent for too long. Nobody who really respects you would wish that you were involved unnecessarily in time wasting.

Mercury gains significant stature as it stands up to the warring elements of Mars this week. Here is the solution to your immediate needs, as you are finding daily alternatives to back your most valid claim. Time will bring down the curtain, but right now you are being shown the very best of alternatives and a loophole in the situation too.

Wily Saturn presides over Mercury as the famed Planet of Communication prepares to pass your true feelings on to those who need to hear it. You have developed greatly both your inner strength and your need to resolve in your showing of your true colours. Helping all concerned to restructure and rethink their objectives is all you need now.

Kenny Corris www.kennycorris.net Mobile: 686 361 594 Tel: 965 878 424

Venus is preparing to Direct, and this week you have experienced the loving energy of someone very special. You are hesitant and bewildered, but whilst you are waiting to find confirmation you are missing out on the spontaneity of a new and viable connection. Throw caution to the wind and just follow your heart on this one, you can’t go wrong!

Mercury’s take on with Mars may seem to be a chance to communicate those things you really do need to pass on to others right now. However, this is a time when silence can speak louder than words; and there is a good chance that it will put things back in order and serve to turn things around quite nicely whilst you get the credit!

The Cosmos is giving you the green light for something that you have started but are yet to finish. Now is the time to get things done and get your house in order once and for all. Energies brought about by an inventive, scheming Uranus and a wily and determined Saturn help to put things back into context once and for all…..at last!

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An even keel at last, but avoid somebody whose bark is worse then their bite and focus on your own need to move on and achieve that which you must. Finances have to be thrashed out, but here the Cosmos brings solution as a plan becomes reality and a significant success to boot. All achievement is based on your inspiration and hard work!

Kenny’s article and postbag is now being printed monthly

If it’s your birthday this week

Cause and effect have allowed you to take control and to pull things together. It currently seems as if it is one step forward and two steps back, so maintain your stance and aim high, as you consolidate all you know to be true, and work with determination and focused inspiration all around you.

Last weeks crossword answers can be found on page 51.

Quick or Cryptic Crossword

Across 7. Shares (6) 8. Visitor (6) 10. Uniform (7) 11. Concise (5) 12. Small bay (4) 13. Tell-tale (5) 17. Memento (5) 18. Daybreak (4) 22. Perfect (5) 23. Eager desire for wealth (7) 24. Stress (6) 25. Bog (6) Down 1. Largest bird (7) 2. Pardon (7) 3. Aptitude (5) 4. Warlike (7) 5. Vigilant (5) 6. Command (5) 9. Head (9) 14. Effective (7) 15. Main city (7) 16. Vehement (7) 19. Essential (5) 20. Educate (5) 21. Truck (5)

Across 7. It breaks up these endless taxes (6) 8. I’m more confused by this biographical sketch (6) 10. Stop the Spanish officer (7) 11. See 9 Down 12. We turn and hesitate but became a pitcher (4) 13. A practice that attracts a considerable amount of interest (5) 17 & 4 Down. Inexperienced zoo attendants become groundsmen! (5-7) 18 & 1 Down. William, a persevering type, is in the advertising business (4-7) 22. An inclination after tea to go for a walk (5) 23. Come home after everybody else, but live longer (7) 24. A number of notes we hear producing harmony (6) 25. Physical strength for which there could be a thousand different clues (6) Down 1. See 18 Across 2. Describing any flower deliberately sought after (7) 3. A deceptive movement is not easily distinguished, one hears (5) 4. See 17 Across 5 & 6 Down. What tennis-players wear when invited to the Palace! (5-5) 6. See 5 Down 9 & 11 Across. What French capitalists use when facing the wall? (7,2,5) 14. Material per yard as arranged (7) 15. Monetary affairs can get mixed up in legal penalty (7) 16. To be sycophantic is not so sharp! (7) 19. Illegally acquire southern bird (5) 20. Be inclined to favour a caprice (5) 21. Overweight porter (5)

Sudoku

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Life health

Are you Diabetic and taking Metformin?

Amanda Collins, Dip HE Family Medical Centre, Albir

ARE YOU aware that long term use of Metformin causes vitamin B12 deficiency in 30% of patients?

METFORMIN IS a very valuable first line drug used in the treatment of Diabetes but as with all medications it can cause side effects, one of those being vitamin B12 deficiency.

Vitamin B12 plays an essential role in the production of red blood cells. Red blood cells provide the body tissues with oxygen. Every cell of your body requires B12 to function properly including the nervous system.

It is this effect on the nervous system that can leave B12 deficiency undiagnosed in diabetic patients as the symptoms of diabetic neuropathy and B12 deficiency are the same. Both cause tingling and numbness in the limbs hands and feet. It is very important for health care professionals to know if these symptoms are caused by nerve damage due to high glucose levels or lack of B12.

As well as numbness and tingling, sufferers may experience some of the following symptoms: Diarrhoea or constipation Fatigue, lack of energy, or light-headedness when standing up or with exertion Loss of appetite Pale skin Problems concentrating

Shortness of breath Swollen, red tongue or bleeding gums Confusion or change in mental status Depression Loss of balance Muscle weakness You are also at risk of a deficiency (regardless of Metformin use), if you have: Crohn’s disease Coeliac disease Fish tapeworm infection A vegetarian or vegan diet Any condition that makes it difficult for the body to digest food Any surgery that involves removing certain parts of the stomach or small intestine Whether you are experiencing any of the above symptoms or not, if you are taking Metformin it is suggested that you should be tested yearly to make sure that your B12 levels are adequate. It is important that

B12 deficiency is caught early as damage to the nervous system can be halted but existing damage cannot be reversed unless it is identified early.

Treatment if required is quite simple and comes in the form of injections or tablets.

Metformin (called Metformina in Spain) comes under several trade names and is sometimes combined with other antidiabetic medicines. If you are unsure what you are taking, read the small print on the packet. Common names for Metformin and mixtures containing it include: Dianben, Janumet, Jentadueto, Icandra, Efficib, Glubrava, Eucreas, Comboglyze.

If you are concerned about vitamin B12 deficiency or management of your Diabetes, speak to your Family Doctor.

This article was written by Amanda Collins, Family Medical Centre, Albir. Please call 96 686 5072 for more information or to make an appointment.

Life health

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The Costa Blanca’s Top Hypnotherapist Jonathan Gilchrist

Winging your way to the perfect swing with Fast Track Hypnosis ON THE Costa Blanca golf is almost a national sport. Beloved by many, by all ages and both sexes, golf is a welcome addition to any lifestyle.

The mind enjoys a challenge, the body loves keeping in shape and when mind and body are at one a person is never happier!

Challenges are good for the soul, against a tiny golf ball or a golfing buddy! And there’s nothing better than gaining bragging rights, or holding a golf trophy high overhead after a superb day on the course! However, not all of us can win because we simply don’t allow ourselves to do so.

Self-limiting beliefs can and do hamper our ability and affect the way you play, stopping you from attaining your goals.

Sports motivation is relatively new, in use for the last two or three decades. In the 90s it hit the newspapers after Steve Collins beat Chris Eubanks to become the World Boxing Organisation’s Super Middleweight Champion. Collins’ sports psychologist had trained him to deliver two to every one of Eubank’s punches: the papers reported that Collins’ total of six hundred hits completely swamped Eubanks’ 300.

At the 2012 Olympics many competitors left

the changing and preparation areas wearing headphones. I’d bet that a high majority of them were listening to specifically produced motivational recordings.

Of course, not everyone can win. But every competitor can do their very best, because once this happens it forces everyone to up their game.

Many golfers suffer with crises of confidence.

There’s no one else to blame for failure but you and that can be a bitter pill to swallow. Being the centre of attention is a necessary evil but it can add pressure to a situation.

Sports motivation boosts confidence, removes the fear of competition and dismantles the fear of losing.

Sports Motivation combined with hypnosis creates one of the most powerful motivational tools around. Sports psychologists use hypnosis as a part of their therapy because of its efficacious effect. Hypnosis is trauma-free, a state of relaxation where the active mind rests, allowing the subconscious to come to the foreground and make itself available for therapy while we seek the answers as to why, as soon as the green simmers with peace and waits for your

put, your swing immediately crumbles.

We work on your ingrained capabilities, your visualisation skills and improve your competitive skills, boosting your focus and confidence with positive suggestions, as well as providing you with the capability to calm yourself in stressful situations.

If you want to win, you have to think like a winner and if at this moment in time, your game is languishing, your swing is poor, your footwork is sloppy... then Fast Track Hypnosis Sports Motivation Clinic will help you think like a champion.

You’re a winner! A champion! And Fast Track Hypnosis will take you right to the very top!

For more information about any of the above, please contact me by email: jonathangilchristbh@gmail.com or phone: 691 784 954.

Jonathan holds his Fast Track Hypnosis sessions in Cabo Roig, Quesada and Benidorm. For an appointment, brochure or free-of-charge initial consultation contact Jonathan Gilchrist on 691 784 954: Email: jonathangilchristbh@gmail.com www.jonathangilchristinspain.com www.hypnosiscostablanca.com www.thegastroband.com

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Beef San Miguel I USED to make a casserole like this on cold winter nights in England when the wind howled through the trees and it seemed like it would never stop raining.

The original recipe was made with brown ale, but I only had a can of San Miguel in the fridge so I used that instead – hence the name. By all means use brown ale if you can find it, but this version was just as good, though a little paler in colour.

• 750g stewing steak cut into bite-sized chunks • 1 large onion, roughly sliced • 2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped • 3 tbls plain flour mixed with a little salt and pepper • 6 medium carrots, peeled and thickly sliced • 300ml San Miguel cerveza • 300ml beef stock • 2 tbls tomato pureé • 200g mushrooms, quartered • 2 tsps vinegar • 2 tbls French mustard • 1 tbls brown sugar • 1 baguette (or similar loaf) sliced into

rounds • 1 tbls chopped parsley • Olive oil for frying 1. Pre-heat the oven to 160°C. 2. Toss the meat in the seasoned flour to coat evenly then fry in hot oil until browned. Place in an ovenproof casserole and set aside.

3. Fry the onion and garlic until soft then stir in the remainder of the seasoned flour. Gradually stir in the San Miguel and beef stock then add the tomato pureé, sugar, vinegar and 1tbls of the mustard. Heat until boiling then add to the casserole with the carrots and stir well.

Cover the casserole and place in the oven for 1½ hours.

4. Meanwhile spread the remaining mustard on both sides of the sliced bread.

Remove the casserole from the oven and stir in the mushrooms. Place the bread slices on top and press them gently into the cooking juices then return the casserole, uncovered, to the oven for a further ½ hour. Serve immediately, garnished with the chopped parsley.

Serves 4, Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 2 hours.

If you have a recipe you would like to share email your recipe and if possible a photo to rtnmail@roundtownnews.com

Torrevieja’s First International Stew Competition THAT MOST humble but filling of winter food comforts, the Stew, is celebrated for the first time in Torrevieja, with the first International competition, open to one and all. The main objective is to publicise the many uses for traditional Ham, and especially Stew with Meat Balls, a typical dish from the City of Salt.

But in a cosmopolitan city like Torrevieja, this initiative was bound to be open up other discussions, such as the world famous ‘Madrid Stew’ or ‘baked Mountaineer’, ‘cooked Lebaniego’, traditional ‘Cantabria’ or even an Irish Stew. The Competition will be held on February 1st, starting at 10.00am, at the premises of the Municipal Leisure Centre, the OCIO, and all amateur, cooking enthusiasts can participate; regardless of age, profession or nationality. Participation may be either individual or representing an association, group of friends, etc.. As this is an amateur contest, participation is not permitted by professional chefs.

Interested participants must register with the Department of 3rd Age in Torrevieja, located on Calle Maldonado, 5; or e-mail at: granmaestre@cofradiadelcocido.es. To inscribe, just enter your name, surname, telephone and address of the participant or the representative of the group and your Stew recipe’s name.

Each participant can be assisted by two people.

Entries can be made until January 28th, 2014 at 2.00pm. More details available from the organisers regarding the different categories and the rules and regulations.

Life events

Blooming lovely!

EVERYONE IS invited to enjoy a stroll through the Vall de Pop on Sunday 9th February to take in the colour and aroma of the famous almond blossom.

By Jack Troughton JALON VALLEY HELP is staging its annual Almond Blossom Walk and people wanting to enjoy nature’s flower show are asked to meet at the Tourist Information Office at 10am for a 10.30am start.

Walkers will be divided into three groups – fast, medium and slow. Dogs are welcome but must be kept on a lead and owners are asked to walk at the rear of the slow group.

The charity describes the walk as a “leisurely” two to three hour excursion – there are some slight inclines, mostly on tracks but including around 400m on rough farm land.

And walkers are asked to wear suitable footwear and to bring their own refreshments. The outing is free but donations to the charity will be gratefully accepted.

Jalon Valley HELP is also looking to raise much-needed funds at a Charity Auction being held at the El Cid Restaurant, Benidoleig, on Friday 28th February. Viewing on the day starts at noon and the sale begins at 1pm.

The charity is asking for donations of suitable items to go under the hammer on the day.

These can be left at the HELP charity shops in Jalon (96 648 1004) or Alcalali (96 648 2970) or ring either shop to make arrangements for collection.

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Life people

Gypsy guitarist weaves six-string spell

By Benny Davis SPANISH GYPSY guitarist Fabian Barrazza kept jazz fans spellbound in Javea last Friday night after standing in at the last minute for stranded star Gustav Lundgren.

More than 200 music lovers packed the Parador Hotel expecting to hear the Swedish musician only to learn he was stranded in Germany and he would not be appearing - flight delays from Stockholm meaning he missed his Berlin connection to Barcelona.

But disaster rapidly turned to triumph when

Fabian Barrazza

replacement Fabian magically transformed an initially subdued audience into enthusiastic new members of the Barrazza fan club.

Backed by the original Lundgren duo of Jorge Guzman on rhythm guitar and bassist Miguel Angel Navarrete – who

arrived on a different flight - Fabian played a series of encores until the final notes faded at least 15 minutes later than expected.

BLUR Fabian’s fingers were frequently a blur as they flew over the frets with his interpretations of swinging jazz numbers that ranged from the Django Reinhardt song book to jazz standards, Bossa Nova and even a flavour of Russian folk.

His music was virtually classic concert style with mood changes accentuating the light, shade and drama of compositions, plus a good portion of humour that had had the audience laughing along with his infectious personality.

And the concert eventually reached an incredible crescendo of solid driving jazz when surprise guests artists saxophonist Enric Peidro and Fede Crespo, trumpet, arrived on stage to add a brass section to give a final polish to a perfect evening.

The next in the monthly series of Jazz at Parador concerts is scheduled for February 21st and will celebrate six months at this popular Javea hotel venue with a ‘Swingsational’ jazz reunion featuring the return of six of the most popular jazz musicians to date including top English pianist Richard Busiakiewicz. Tickets are 10€ and available from the Javea Parador hotel reception desk.

Life music

James Hurst

Vocalist - music for all occasions JAMES HAS been entertaining for over 20 years in the UK. He moved to the Costa Blanca in 2010 and has since built up a regular following. With a wide range of styles and genres of music from the 1940s to the present day, James delivers a complete evening’s entertainment specialising in such artists as Dean Martin, Michael Buble, Neil Diamond, Snow Patrol, Razorlight and Paulo Nuttini. From Croon and Swing, Rock n’ Roll, Reggae to Rock, James can entertain all tastes and ages. He and his wife have built up a repertoire for Theme Nights particularly for restaurants and clubs, available for bars, restaurants, clubs, societies and private parties. Telephone: 96 645 7770 or 644 462 867. Contact jim.debhurst@hotmail.co.uk Also Facebook under James Hurst - Music For All Occasions.

JANUARY GIGS Friday 24th, Private Party Saturday 25th, Private Party Thursday 30th, Chino Wok Mediterraneo, El Verger

Sharni

Hot Dogs Jazz Band

THE HOT Dogs Jazz Band, the Costa Blanca’s premier Trad Band, performs every Thursday night at the Bolero Restaurant, Edf Turmalina, Playa La Fossa in Calpe from 9pm playing a great mix of Dixieland, Swing and Standards. The Hot Dogs Jazz Band has been in existence for more than10 years and continues to go from strength to strength. They would like to remind all their loyal followers that their next gig is on Thursday 30th January. The band is comprised of:- Werner Kitzig (clarinet & tenor sax), Dave Bullock (tenor sax, clarinet & vocals), Gerry Carter (trumpet , flugel horn & vocals), Patrick Clancy (piano & banjo), John Shenton (bass) and Christian Gibaud (drums). The Hot Dogs are available for any function e.g. hotels, restaurants, concerts and private parties. Contact: Gerry 619 177 752 or Dave 685 321 594.

SHARNI HAS more than twenty years’ experience in the entertainment business with residencies in five star hotels in the Middle East and major holiday/leisure resorts in the UK. Since arriving in Spain, Sharni has been in great demand at many venues in the area and she now has a full laser and light show. She is ideal for cabaret, dancing or easy listening – singing hits from the 60s to the present day, from a repertoire she constantly up dates. Sharni performs every Tuesday at the Shanghai Chinese Restaurant, Ctra. MorairaCalpe, Moraira and every Friday (March to November Only) at Rusty’s Bar & Restaurant in Benitachell/Moraira (next to Mercadona).For bookings and more information check out www.thesharnishow.com JANUARY GIGS Sun 26th, Bar Chez Flo, La Fustera (Ctra Calpe-Moraira), Tues 28th, Chino Shang Hai, Moraira (No live Music) Thurs 30th, Chino Shang Hai, Ctra Moraira-Calpe, Moraira FEBRUARY GIGS Tues 4th, Chino Shang Hai, Ctra Moraira-Calpe, Moraira Fri 14th, Bar Chez Flo, La Fustera (Ctra Calpe-Moraira)

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Life tech

with Aunty Virus

Email auntyvirus@roundtownnews.com

Blue screen of death HI AUNTY: I have a laptop running Windows XP professional.

When I switch on I get as far as Windows XP then a blue screen flashes (too quick to read) and PC goes back to start. I have tried F8 plus others but still the same. Has windows crashed? Any ideas please? Thanks, John – Albir.

Aunty says: Sounds like you have the infamous ‘Blue Screen of Death / BSOD’. This usually occurs when there is a hardware fault on your PC (memory problems, or hard drive problems) or even with software and driver problems. Codes on the BSOD can help in identifying what the problem is. Most Windows PCs are configured to reboot immediately after receiving a serious error like a BSOD, not allowing you to see what the error code is. On most systems you can prevent this reboot by disabling the automatic restart on system failure option - usually via the BIOS options which you can enter by pressing the relevant key when the PC starts booting up (it varies from PC to PC but usually the DEL or/and ‘F’ button does this.

Magnet links HELLO AUNTY: I keep seeing magnets needed to download items. Could you please explain what these do and how I can safely install magnets. Thank you -RM Hughes Aunty says: MAGNET links are used by peer to peer (P2P) / file- sharing / torrent sites.

Click on the magnet link and your download will start in your P2P software. With magnet links, you no longer need to download a ‘.torrent’ file to download a torrent. Magnet links have the same functionality as a ‘.torrent’ file. So you will need to install some P2P software, such as utorrent or VUZE to use MAGNET links.

Normal use

DEAR AUNTY: I recently allowed a friend to access her email account from my computer. All was fine for a few days but as of today she is getting a history of my computer browsing. I am not aware of using my computer in any way different to how I always have although I seem to have recently acquired a programme of Ask and Bing which were not there before. Can you please advise on how I can get back to normal use and also delete these extras?

Aunty says: If she is using the same internet browser as you (Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox), then yes your internet browsing history will be available for her, or anyone else, to see.

However, this will not be the case if they are using a completely different Windows user account, where browser history will only be available to that particular Windows user account. You can, using the options in the browser, clear history on closing the browser, and in some browsers, you can set options not to record browsing history. If Ask and Bing are programs, then go to add / remove programs in the control panel and remove / uninstall them from the list.

Response: Thanks for your assistance. Problem now seems to be resolved.

Gadget Inspector Investigates:

Belkin Laptop Rest THIS WEEK the Inspector takes a look at the Belkin V2 Laptop Cooling Lounge.

Laptops are one of the greatest inventions of the 20th Century. They are still the epitome of portable computing and access to the internet (yes I know tablets are popular too – but some people want a big screen and proper keyboard). However, laptops have one big drawback – heat.

Because the little marvels work so hard to do all the wonderful computerising we take for granted they generate a lot of heat – there’s a lot of power concentrated into that little case.

And this heat has to go somewhere.

Okay the built in fan gets rid of a lot – but the bottom of the laptop also gets pretty hot too. And if you have it on your lap it does a pretty good job of being a wickedly efficient leg warmer.

So after a while we stop, find a table or worst of all rest it on the duvet – very effective at insulating the laptop and stopping it from cooling down. But this needn’t be the case. There is an answer to using your laptop in comfort – the Belkin V2 Laptop Cooling Lounge.

This eccentric name really describes a

padded rest that sits on your lap and has a builtin cooling fan.

The Belkin can accommodate laptops with screens up to 17 inches, and features non slip sections and a curved top to stop the laptop slipping off. The laptop isn’t strapped or clipped on in any way so don’t try any aerobatics with it otherwise it will fall off – but it is perfectly secure for normal use.

The Belkin is not bulky at 39.8 x 32.2 x 5.6 cm and a not uncomfortable 980g and the padding does an excellent job of cushioning even the heaviest laptops. But the real work is done by the built-in fan. Positioned in the centre of the rest the fan is designed with a unique airflow that pulls cool air in smoothly through the ventilation grill then pushes the hot air away from you and your laptop.

Power for the fan is provided by a USB connector that you plug into a spare port on the laptop. The lead is

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Crossword Solutions for 744 Cryptic solutions Across: 1 Cower; 4 Learned; 8 Upright; 9 Noted; 10 Test; 11 Bearably; 13 Cord; 14 Race; 16 Assisted; 17 Brag; 20 Talon; 21 Silence; 22 Redhead; 23 Press.

Down: 1 Court disaster; 2 Words; 3 Rage; 4 Letter; 5 Abnormal; 6 Notable; 7 Daddy-long-legs; 12 Presence; 13 Castled; 15 Ceased; 18 Range; 19 Clap.

Quick solutions Across: 1 Tread; 4 Crammed; 8 Breathe; 9 Jests; 10 Eats; 11 Delusion; 13 Bare; 14 Knee; 16 Normally; 17 Late; 20 Adieu; 21 Matelot; 22 Nursery; 23 Bated.

Down: 1 Table Mountain; 2 Erect; 3 Duty; 4 Clever; 5 Adjourns; 6 Massive; 7 Disinterested; 12 Creature; 13 Barrier; 15 Clumsy; 18 Allot; 19 Stub.

just long enough to reach the front of the attached laptop should it need to go that far.

The Inspectors Verdict: The Belkin V2 Laptop Cooling Lounge is a comfortable and convenient solution to a problem all laptop users face from time to time.

And it’s compact enough to be carried around in a larger laptop bag too!

Please note the following is for information and is not intended as an advertisement - visit www. gadget-hound.co.uk/belkin-cooler/ to purchase the Belkin V2 Laptop Cooling Lounge for 36€. Price quoted includes delivery to Spain and is subject to availability (Euro cost subject to exchange rate at time of purchase).

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Focus on Golf Powered by Campbell Lamont Golf, partnered by BayRadio

Lesson One - Take a deep breath and shout FORE! Help! I need somebody...

THERE ARE times in everyone’s life when you feel the need of some support and in golf, as in most areas, it is often best to seek that support as early as possible.

Head 2 Head Tony M – Golf can be very frustrating.

Campbell – At all levels. Just look at Rory and his chequered career.

Tony M – And of course your particular favourite, Tiger.

They have both been through difficult patches.

Campbell – There can’t be many golfers who haven’t experienced those highs and lows. However if you accept that the lows are due to something amiss with your game, then it is always possible to climb back up and enjoy the game even more. Help is always on hand.

Tony M – I know what you mean, I went through a bad patch last week.

Campbell – Don’t tell me you lost your ball again!

Tony M – Oh that is so hilarious. How do you think them up?

Campbell – It just comes naturally . .

Tony M - You know I will get my own back.

Campbell - Yeh right - bring it on!

AND YET it is a fact that when an opponent appears on the first tee and announces that he has had a lesson you feel that the game is already won. You have mentally started to spend the winnings.

Why is that? Surely after benefitting from professional tuition the player is better placed to master the game.

However the truth is frequently summarised in this well know statement Well known factette - The inevitable result of any golf lesson is the instant elimination of the one critical unconscious adjustment that allowed you to compensate for all of your other errors.

So the evidence would appear to demonstrate that lessons merely add to the frustration of the game as the golfer, fresh from the practice ground, will often slice, hook and generally slash his way round the course as if he had just found the clubs in the car park.

TURN BACK THE CLOCK We come back to the contention that help is often so much more beneficial when taken sooner rather than later.

The game isn’t complicated and indeed compared to many other sports it is simple. The ball isn’t going to move, unlike a tennis match where it could be approaching you at 100 mph. You don’t have to make contact with any part of your anatomy so it is not going to slip though your fingers. So how hard can it be? The truth is that every golfer makes it more difficult as you strive for perfection. Watch a youngster, new to golf, and observe how he or she will approach the game. With no inhibitions they will merely place the ball on the tee and with little fuss will take the club back and hit it.

THE SOLUTION!!

So what is the solution? As a seasoned golfer with a head full of compensating faults are we destined to forever carry these around with us and hope that we can combine them efficiently or should we seek to eliminate them, and in so doing forfeit any chance we ever had of winning the occasional rollup?

Well known factette - Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.

Surely the solution is to accept the fact that the more entrenched the faults the more patience is required from us in order to regain the simplicity that we once had.

And indeed that is where the evidence would once again support the theory that one lesson is merely the start of that process and whilst there may be scoffing on the first tee following the initial lesson, this will eventually turn to fear as swings are honed, chips are precise and putts are

sunk with deadly precision.

TWO OPTIONS It would appear that the task of improving your golf game is not merely a short sharp shock but much more likely to be a series of regular improvements each one building on what has gone before. Or you could invent a time machine and then go back and start playing at an earlier date.

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Life road test

Tim Saunders Independent unbiased car reviewer

Toyota Auris Tourer Hybrid HYBRIDS ARE all very well but they’re generally smaller than traditional cars and therefore less user-friendly.

Well, at least that used to be the case with the likes of the Honda CR-Z. The largest was a hatchback, either a Toyota Prius or the more luxurious Lexus CT200h. No estates. Well, not until Toyota launched the new Auris Hybrid Tourer, which provides the environmentally conscious with a well sized, capable vehicle and also performance.

Things have really moved on since I drove a hybrid a year ago. My first

acquaintance with the striking island blue estate is at night.

It’s always more of a challenge to drive a car you’re unfamiliar with when it’s dark, for obvious reasons. A click of the keyfob and I’m inside. The delivery driver was fairly short by all accounts as my knees are around my neck as I sit in the driver’s seat. It’s easy to adjust. In common with other hybrids I am instantly struck by a feeling of fear as I rummage around for the ignition and even though I push the button start on the right of the steering wheel, there is an unnerving silence.

The automatic box does not look very substantial but on engaging the reverse function it quietly moves backwards.

There is an electric parking brake and a traditional one; the first car I have come across with two. The dashboard looks a bit boxy especially where the sat nav is located; it looks like an afterthought. Over time the driver does become more used to it, though.

It’s a large car, not dissimilar to the Ford Focus estate in terms of styling.

Head on, it’s attractive and the front looks striking and well designed.

The large

panoramic glass roof that stretches from the front to the back of the vehicle has an electric cover and this, in common with those found in Peugeots, is a winning formula. It makes the cabin much lighter when the sun does decide to show its face.

With my growing family we’re having to make use of every bit of space our Victorian terrace house has to offer and so I have cleared the loft to make way for a more imaginative use of this space; office come bedroom. Needless to say I have a great deal of rubbish to take to the tip including old bits of wood and plasterboard and a vacuum cleaner. The cavernous boot swallows it all with ease and a roof box from roofcarriers.co.uk is also a great help. Although I have to push down two of the rear seats to make way for this large load, it is so easy to do; you simply pull a lever on the right of the boot. Removing the security cover in the boot does prove a little more awkward.

FACTS AT A GLANCE: Toyota Auris Touring Sports Excel Hybrid 1.8 CVT T&G New price: 29,520€ Top speed: 112mph 0-60mph: 10.9secs Economy: 49mpg CO2 emissions: 92 g/km For more information about roof boxes visit: www.roofcarriers.co.uk Watch the video at www.testdrives.biz

Advanced motorist Tim Saunders is the former Business and Motoring Editor of the Bournemouth Daily Echo. His regular test reports appear in numerous newspapers, magazines and websites throughout the UK, Ireland and Gibraltar. For more independent unbiased car reviews and videos visit www.testdrives.biz

24-30 JAN 2014

Life cars

Brian Deller Author of Motoring in Spain

Diesel particulate filter to be tested on ITV THOSE OF us with UK registered vehicles will be now able to pay the VED tax only on line. Please read the VOSA web-site by Googling ‘DVLA UK VED payments’ for more information.

The Diesel Particulate Filter which is fitted to cars with EU-5 plus systems but has been used for some time on heavy vehicles, is to be tested as part of the ITV, or as it is called in the UK, the MOT. It appears that some owners have suffered blockage of the DPF due to not ensuring that the automatic cleaning is working and activated properly. Instead of then carrying out the expensive workshop procedure to clear it when it is blocked, they have drilled the ceramic block in the filter thus rendering it ineffective.

It is really a simple task to keep the DPF clean.

We have one on our 2011 Focus and when on a suitable road I regularly give the engine a blast through the (automatic) gears so the hot gasses are blown through the fine filter slots. The car has now done nearly 40,000km with no problems.

Driving slowly on short journeys can exacerbate this problem.

The vehicle should automatically clean the DPF if operated correctly and if you are not sure, ask your agency service advisor for your make of car. If you bought it new, it should have been explained at the time of delivery.

Take precautions against theft of your vehicle’s catalytic converter. Reports are being received where thieves are stealing the catalytic converters in modern petrol-engined vehicle exhaust systems. As they are an essential part of keeping exhaust pollution down and you will know when it has been stolen by the noisy exhaust as the thieves use a hacksaw to cut the box out of the exhaust system, and of course

the vehicle will then fail the pollution tests, noise and pollution, during the ITV or MOT. They are very expensive to replace, up to 1,000€, and as for the petrol types, they have a structure inside which is coated with platinum, an element which costs much more than gold. I suggest that if you park your car in a public place especially overnight, you get an expert to install a steel guard so it cannot be easily accessed or an effective burglar alarm.

There is much more detailed information on all motoring subjects in my book. Brian Juan (John) Deller, Malaga, author, ‘Motoring in Spain’ www.spainvia.com.

Tel: 666 888 870 Brian Deller, author, book Motoring in Spain, ISBN No 978 84 611 9278 6. Shops’ addresses in my web site at: www.spainvia.com/bookshopslist.htm

NEW CARS available to view in our showroom in CALPE 2009 MODEL,RENAULT CLIO 1.2 EMOTION Eco 2, (50mpg) 5 dr, aqua blue met, with grey trim, a/c, c/d, cruise, high spec, low kms

2012 RENAULT TWIZY AUTO, 2 seater fully electric car, pearl white met, gull wing doors 5995€ 2004 OPEL ZAFIRA 2.0DTI DIESEL 7 seater gunmetal metallic with grey trim, alloys, a/c, c/d 5,995€ Reduced now 4,995€

2002 TOYOTA CELICA 1.8 VVTI COUPE

6995€

2011 BMW 320D AUTO X-DRIVE-4x4 LTD EDITION Smoke silver met with cream Dakota leather, nav, clima, PDF. full spec, too much to list. (Cost new 48,000€) 24,950€ Reduced now 23,950€ 2008 HONDA CRV 2.2 I CTDI DIESEL platinum grey metallic climate , alloys, 1 owner, only 80k, 11,995€ 2009 FIAT 500 1.2 LOUNGE,SPECIAL pearl white metallic with contrasting trim, alloys, panoramic glass roof, a/c c/d, ONLY 5k, as new REDUCED >>>>>>>> 8,995€

2004 OPEL ZAFIRA 2.0DTI DIESEL

7 seater, gunmetal metallic with grey trim, alloys, a/c, c/d REDUCED >>>>>>

4995€

2005 VW GOLF GTI DSG AUTO tornado red with black leather,climate, alloys, huge spec, 8,995€ Reduced now 7,995€ 2006 VW GOLF 1.9TDI DIESEL, 5 DR dark blue met, with charcoal trim, climate & navigation 6995€ 2009 MODEL, RENAULT CLIO 1.2 EMOTION Eco 2, (50mpg) 5 dr, aqua blue met, with grey trim, a/c, c/d, cruise, high spec, low kms 6995€ 2006 MODEL, FORD FOCUS 1.6 AUTOMATIC. 4 dr silver with grey trim, climate/ Ac, c/d, electric windows, remote locking, 5995€

2005 CHEVROLET LACETTI 1.4 SE 5dr.silver with grey velour trim,a/c c/d,low km,s.

3995€

silver with grey sports trim,a/c, c/ d, alloys,very low km,s, as new

REDUCED >>>

4995€

2002 TOYOTA CELICA 1.8 VVTI COUPE,silver with grey sports trim,a/c, c/ d, alloys,very low km,s, as new, 5,995€ Reduced now 4,995€ 2005 NISSAN ALMERA 1.8 5 DR HATCHBACK. Silver with charcoal trim, climate , alloys, c/d, low kms 4,995€ Reduced now 3,995€ 2004 RENAULT LAGUNA 2.0 AUTOMATIC priviledge. white with grey half leather trim, alloys, xenons, c/d, 1 owner REDUCED >>>>>>>> 4995€ 2003 SEAT IBIZA1.4 AUTOMATIC 5 DR white with grey trim, a/c. c/d, remote locking, low kms 4995€

2003 SMART FOR-TWO PURE, SEMI AUTO- TIPTRONIC Black with grey trim, c/d a/c,p/ex to clear REDUCED >>>>>>

2995€

2005 CHEVROLET LACETTI 1.4 SE 5dr.silver with grey velour trim,a/c c/d,low km,s.

3995€ 2005 MAZDA 6 TS2 2.0, 5 door hatch, blue met, with black trim, climate, alloys, cruise, BOSE hi-fi 5,995€ Reduced now 3,995€ 2003 SMART FOR-TWO PURE, SEMI AUTO- TIPTRONIC, Black with grey trim, c/d a/c,p/ex to clear 2995€

MOTORCYCLES

2007 PIAGGIO MP3 3 WHEEL SCOOTER

CASH FOR YOUR CAR

2495€

Tel: 965 876 030

Mob: 699 034 138

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PRISTINE POOLS PROFESSIONAL, CONSCIENTIOUS POOL REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE SERVICE TO THE HIGHEST STANDARDS

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24-30 JAN 2014

YOUR BLINDS IN SPAIN Family run business supplying the best quality products at rock bottom prices. Rose Fabrics, Railux designer Roller blinds, Awnings & Canopies, Venetian Blinds, Pleated Blinds, PVC Blackout fabrics, Rainforest Fabrics, Mosquito Screens. Contact us now for a free no obligation quotation or visit us at Zoco Market every Sunday. Tel: 965 701 984 / 658 338 123. Website: www.yourblindsinspain.com info@yourblindsinspain.com

COSTA BLANCA PET TRANSPORT TO UK DEFRA registered. Excellent rates. www.costablancadoghoming.com or call 965 698 052 APAD (ANIMAL) CHARITY SHOP Calle San Antonio 1, Jalon. Open 9.30/1.00 Mon- Sat. Stock needed - clothes, toys, misc. For more info. Tel: Jane 680717118 ALSTRAYS TRANSPORT SERVICES Monthly cat and dog transports between Spain, France, Germany, Holland, Belgium and the UK. DEFA certificate and license. www.alstrays.com.

Tel: 676 653 681

PROTECTAPET Spains leading pet insurance provider. www. protectapet.eu tel: 965 756 371 SMALL DOGS CARED FOR IN OUR OWN HOME So if you need to go away on holiday but don’t want your dog to go into kennels then we will look after them. References available. Tel: 965843781 Mob: 622514980 (Altea area - Costa Blanca North) TRANS-PET We do regular, door-to-door journeys between the Costa Blanca and the UK.Our aim is to provide a professional, caring service for your pets.Boarding facilities for Cats and Dogs. This may be for an overnight stay or of longer durations.Tel:600-552-030/ 965-960-658 www.trans-pet.co.uk

PET TRANSPORT we treat your pet as if they belong to us and that is our promise. Van fully air conditioned we believe we have the best rates so give Joe a call on 966 074 576 or 650 341 087 for a chat or e mail pawspetttransport@gmail.com

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS - COSTA BLANCA Confidential Helpline, South 625 912 078, North 648 169 045. www.aa-costablanca.org

GOLD WANTED English Jeweller wishes to buy broken or unwanted Gold and Silver jewellery & coins for cash. Call for an appointment. Peter (7 days) 664 890 990. Member of the Nat. ASSN of Goldsmiths

MR FIXIT (No Call Out Charge) 698 320 434

STRUCTURAL SURVEYS Mark Paddon BSc Hons. MCIOB. CAAT. Property buyer’s surveys and expert defects diagnosis.

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PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL CLEANING SERVICE for your home or business at a fair price. References available.

(Altea area) Tel: 965843781 or 622514980

BYTEBACK MICROS computer repairs/upgrades in your home. Qualified technician. Systems custom built.

Whatever your problem call: 965-312-006 or 606-127-424

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24-30 JAN 2014

TAPPY TOES DANCE CLASS FOR BABIES from 18 months, at 4kwatro in Albir, 11am, call Louise on 655 781 068 for more information.

LADIES DANCEFIT WITH L.A DANCE at 4kwatro in Albir, Mondays at 7.30pm, call Louise on 655 781 068 for more information LA BAMBA’S - BALLROOM / LATIN / SEQUENCE DANCING Los Rosales Restaurant, Guardamar CV895 [near Lemon Tree Sunday Market] Monday - SOCIAL DANCE 8.30pm 10.30pm [SEQUENCE CLASS 7.30pm - 8.30pm] Friday - SOCIAL DANCE 7.30pm - 10.30pm Wednesday - New Beginners Class [Starting 8th January 2014] 2pm -3pm Intermediate Class 3pm - 4pm Intermediate Plus Class 4pm - 5pm For more information contact Andrea and Brian 616 478 157 FUNKY FREESTYLE DANCE with Louise, every Saturday morning at Villamar Campsite in Albir/Benidorm, come and learn all the moves and routines to your pop idols! Call Louise on 655-781-068 for more information!

available. No experience necessary as full training provided.

The business offers “tax free” returns to members which has averaged 5-10% a month since launch in 2011. Also, earn generous commissions in our referral program. OTE £50,000 pa.

Contact Colin Harris today on 00 44 7971 511934 or colin@artemisfunding.com GENUINELY AMBITIOUS? BUILD AN UNLIMITED INCOME FOR JUST £99 WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE, PHONE SUZANNE ON..... 627371731 ARE YOU AN EXPERIENCED CARER? ? Join our team of carers who work in the UK. Earn from £868 - £1330 for 2 weeks.

Good written/spoken English, British or EU Passport required.

Contact Sandra on 658 965 204 or email s.field@consultuscare.com.

SALES STAFF REQUIRED for fabulous glossy magazine and radio sales combined. Must have experience in sales and have own vehicle. Spanish speaking an advantage. Good commissions and telephone provided. Contact 965 997 222 for interview.

REPAIRS Washing machines, Dishwashers & Dryers. Also Boilers and any electrical problems. 24hours. Cheap prices Tel 626 805 709 MR FIXIT FOR ALL YOUR ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING, GENERAL & Appliance Repairs.

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MAKE MONEY With the Stem Cell Anti-Aging Company www. lookyoungersecrets.com Tel: 676 520 599 CARE4YOU IN SPAIN is the leading Health Care provider in Costa Blanca and Costa Calida area. We are looking for fully qualified SRN and SEN nurses to work in Torrevieja and surrounding areas. Contact care4you 96 819 8590 office@ care4youinspain.com NEED MORE MONEY?... Start 2014 by being part of an international sports trading club which has been running successfully here in Spain for over 3 years.

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DO YOU NEED EXTRA HELP AT HOME? I can help you at home with light duties, cleaning, cooking, housework, shopping etc as a carer. References available. Altea, Benidorm, Alfaz del Pi area. Call Trisha for more information on 622 514 980 or 965 843 781

SOS INSURANCE www.sosinsuranceinspain.com Best prices available. CALL US FIRST for all your insurance needs, including best deals on Funeral plans. Buildings and contents cover from just 98 euros per year. Tel 966787123 / 686116297

24-30 JAN 2014

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AT MICHAEL’S part exchange on certain beds when you buy a New bed from our New Bed shop in the Arenal. Photos: www.michaels-javea.com AT MICHAEL’S on our website you choose from over 95 different paintings, 64 different mirrors, 23 carpets, etc: www.michaels-javea.com AT MICHAEL’S Two high quality black leather sofas with recliner seats. Large corner sofa - 4-seater in black leather. See: www.michaels-javea.com AT MICHAEL’S Hostess trollies, large 2-door fridge, upright tumble drier. Beer pump from a Pub, Golf clubs & lots more: www.michaels-javea.com

WANT TO DRIVE your LHD car to the UK and sell it when you get there? Call 658 670 777

MR FIXIT For all your electrical, plumbing, general & appliance & boiler repairs. No Call out charge. 698 320 434

SWIMMING POOL MAINTENANCE from Oliva Nova to Gandia and inland. Call Paul 678 308 107

GOLD WANTED English Jeweller wishes to buy broken or unwanted Gold and Silver jewellery & coins for cash. Call for an appointment. Peter (7 days) 664 890 990. Member of the Nat. ASSN of Goldsmiths

ADVICE WITH THE SPANISH SYSTEM Whatever you need to integrate into the spanish system, we can help you. NIE, residencia, empadronamiento, car import transfer, driving license transfer, schools, doctors, social security.(Benidorm and surrounding areas) Tel: 619 269 408 email: pammcmurchie@hotmail.com ADVISORY SERVICE Need advice on making a will, buying or selling property, tax, resident or non resident, starting a business in spain, we can talk you through and give you the best advice and help you settle in spain. (Benidorm and surrounding areas) Tel: 610 634 506

WANTED I BUY ANY CAR van,Caravan,4x4 Etc.British, Spanish. Immediate cash 600-781-873 ibuyanycar@hotmail.com

MJB MOBILE WELDERS Gates, grills, hinges etc., repaired or new. No job too small.

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POOL LEAK REPAIR SPECIALIST’S Pipe leaks pressure tested, detected and repaired.

Structural leaks investigated and repaired. Professional, conscientious service to the highest standards. Refurbishments and upgrades undertaken. Replacement pumps, filters, salt systems, ph regulators and accessories supplied and installed. All work guaranteed. British trained in the UK pool industry with over 18 years experience. 10 years served on the Costa Blanca.

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SWIMMING POOL MAINTENANCE AND CLEANING SERVICE BY POOLTECHSPAIN. We are a fully legal, qualified and registered business who have been operating on the Costa Blanca for 6 years.

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24-30 JAN 2014 VAN LEAVING FOR THE UK/

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