Moulsham Times May 2014

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A Chance to Win 3 Foot People Festival tickets on page 4.

Hylands Park, 24-26 June

Issue Number 17 - May 2014

MT Welcome

Welcome to the May edition of the Moulsham Times.

Well, spring seems to have well and truly arrived!

This month we have a great competition to win tickets to the 3 Foot Festival (see page 4 for details).

We hope you enjoy this, which is our 12th issue of the Mousham times (we cannot believe it has been a year).

We hope you have seen many improvements in that year and continue to enjoy our writers.

Wide range of English breakfast, Lunch & Dinners.

Burgers, Jacket Potatoes, Omlettes, Home Made Pies & Roast Dinner Quality food at reasonable prices.

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First Round of The Fling Festival Line Up is Announced!

This year, Hylands Park Chelmsford is a hive of activity with a buzz of excitement and anticipation in the air.

The Fling Festival of assorted amusements returns on Saturday 28 June. Adults aged from 18 to 80+ will enjoy live music, standup comedy and cabaret alongside quirkier activities such as adult storytelling, costumemaking and burlesque classes. The Fling offers an intriguing alternative to the usual night out and alongside playful activities, stars a fabulous cast of professional artistes and local talent who will explore, seduce and surprise your senses through performances, sideshows, poetry and much more. The arrangements for the 2014 musical line-up have been kept tightly under wraps, until now!

With his spectacular live show, Kid Kasino brings The Fling Festival an audio and visual extravaganza; double bass, drums, horns, DJs, keyboards, the full works! His electro-swing set has had crowds jiving in places as far afield as Milan, Paris, Bestival, Isle of Wight Festival, Love Supreme and now The Fling Festival. We also welcome award-winning, poetry slamming, multiinstrumentalist, folk-mashup duo Dizraeli & DJ DownLow; fresh-faced from their release of ‘Everyone’s A Winner - The Mixtape’ which has been splashing around all over the world of music. Over the past year the duo from folkhop group Dizraeli And The Small Gods, have been making big waves, sharing stages with The Pharcyde, Foreign Beggars, Beardyman

and Mos Def, and constructing a live show unlike anything you’ve seen before. Gorgeous George will also be making their Fling Festival debut. With a blast on the trombone and the wistful strains of a violin, the band will set off at a lung-busting gallop with melodies and rhythms flying from innumerable instruments as European folk and Baltic gypsy smash together, accompanied by perfect South London cockneyese. Fourth in line, and hailed as a ‘comedy genius’ by The Telegraph, The Fling Festival is very excited to announce Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer will bring his ‘mesmerising...sublimely funny’ set as he introduces chap-hop to the world.

the day. Other acts already confirmed include the Outside Puppet Collective, Jo Peacock, Tea and Sympathy, Burlesque Jems and award-winning comedians such as Gerry K. Early Bird Tickets for 2014 have now sold out but Tier 2 advance tickets are now on sale from £20 and VIP from £35. To book tickets, details on free parking and the shuttle bus service visit www.chelmsford.gov.uk/fling, follow us on Facebook at The Fling Festival or on Twitter @FlingFestival

All of this plus an abundance of local talent, such as Strike it Zero and 2014 Panic Award nominees The Kubricks and Little Donkey will be leading the musical line up. Many more acts featuring throughout the day, on more stages than ever, has The Fling 2014 set to be the best festival in its short history to date.

The Fling Festival isn’t all about the music, with hundreds of comedy, cabaret, side-shows and other performances taking place across

Competition!

6 Pairs of Tickets for the 3 Foot Festival!

The Fling Festival is produced by Chelmsford City Council with support from Essex & Suffolk Water, The Meadows Chelmsford, High Chelmer Shopping Centre, The Printing Place, The Essex Chronicle, First Group, BBC Essex, 1159 Productions, Sshhh Events, Dancing Giraffe, The City Times, Heybridge Creative, The Bassment and The Comedy Club Ltd. Ride For Helen Sunday 11 May to and from the Crix Hatfield Peverel To take part visit www.helenrollason.org.uk We also need marshals to help please contact Lauren for further details on 01245 380719 or email enquiries@helenrollason.org.uk

Saturday 28 June 2014 Hylands Park, Chelmsford

We have 12 tickets available to win for the 3 Foot Festival at Hylands Park 24, 25 & 26 June 2014 up for grabs!

We have 4 tickets for each day and are giving pairs of tickets away! All you have to do is anwer the following question:

Live music, cabaret & curiosity for adults only Early bird tickets available from

In The Flintstones, who is Freds best pal?

A: Barney Rubble.

B: Scooby Doo. C: Minnie Mouse.

Please send your answer to comp@itsyourmedia.co.uk.

Stating your name and which date you prefer. Closing date is 25th May 2014.

Only one entry per person. Please visit www.chelmsford. gov.uk/3foot for the terms and conditions which apply to these tickets.

£35 VIP £22.50 Full £20 Concs Terms & conditions apply

Book ONLINE at

chelmsford.gov.uk/fling OR CALL

01245 606505 The Fling Festival @FlingFestival Supported by High Chelmer Shopping Centre, Essex & Suffolk Water, Printing Place, Meadows Shopping Centre, Essex Chronicle, BBC Essex, 1159 Productions, Bassment, Comedy Club Ltd, Dancing Giraffe, City Times and AT Music Group.

EXPIRY 30/5/14 FIRST VISIT ONLY

www.moulshamtimes.com

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Marconi Ponds Nature Reserve, Chelmsford Do you know there is a small nature reserve in the very heart of our busy city? Marconi Ponds nature reserve runs from the end of the viaduct in Central Park, and follows the railway line and the footpath towards The Village in Writtle Road. There’s a woodland area and two ponds, fenced off for health and safety reasons, at the top of the site.

Steve Plumb, our ‘environmental guru’ wrote: “I thought back to what the site was like when I first saw it back in 2003. At that time it was largely inaccessible behind a tall, chain link fence, it was in a poor condition with limited wildlife value, dangerous because of the bottle digging and of little use to “man or beast”.

It was back in 2007 when the Friends group first began, with just a handful of people but we were quickly joined by others from the local community who wanted to become involved with developing this small nature reserve in the centre of our busy city. The site is owned by the council and they kindly support us with tools, some of the heavy clearance work, but most importantly through Charlie, their volunteer support officer from the Parks Department. Our management plan and advice on the wildlife of the site comes from Steve Plumb, from the Essex Biodiversity Project.

After a slow start it is great to see how it has been transformed into a place where people want to visit and enjoy. When I wrote in the original management plan about setting up a friends group for the site, it is always a lottery as it depends on who wants to be involved, how well they work together etc. It is great to see a group such as Marconi Ponds where it falls into place and everyone works so well together.”

On the third Saturday of each month we meet for a two hour practical session when we usually welcome between 15 and 30 supporters. We have volunteers from all walks of life, of all ages and we especially welcome families as the kids often come up with the best ideas for future projects! We work on the general maintenance of the site and a variety of tasks depending on the season. We always monitor the wildlife, litter-pick and end with a cuppa (the most important part!) We also run regular sessions for community groups such as Brownies and Beavers.

We have been awarded a Green Flag Community Award for the past four years and are very proud of all the group has achieved. Why not come along and join in – no special skills needed! Check out our website to see lots of photos and more. www.marconiponds.btck.co.uk.

Last year we completed a major project - building an activity trail. There’s five different pieces of equipment which we hope will encourage people onto the nature reserve to enjoy this special place whilst also helping them to keep fit. Our funds for the trail were boosted by winning a Chelmsford Grand Award of £1,000. Three projects compete for the award each month, the one with the most votes wins! Our supporters were very persuasive and we were delighted to win the money.

It took us the best part of a year to work through the necessary health and safety concerns, devise the signage and build the various pieces of equipment. Our construction team of volunteers have turned up regularly and shown a total commitment to the project, they’ve been assisted by others who helped prepare the sites chopping trees, clearing brambles, and trundling multiple wheel barrow loads of bark chippings! The equipment is being well used and there is an activity challenge for kids which links the wildlife they can see on the nature reserve to the activities on the various pieces of equipment, the challenge sheet is downloadable from our website www.marconiponds.btck.co.uk.

Our annual open day is coming up soon, it’s on Saturday 17th May from 1pm – 4pm. A great day out for families and people of all ages! There’ll be guided walks, pond dipping, face painting and the photography competition display where you can vote for your favourite.

Children can make a bird feeder and have a go at various quizzes and of course – have fun on the activity trail! There’s no charge for any of the activities - including the refreshments, and there’s free parking in Meteor Way.

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www.moulshamtimes.com

From the House

by Simon Burns MP

Human Trafficking

Human trafficking is a subject of increasing concern, both internationally and in the Commons. It is the base of human evil and it has to be stopped. There have been various international agreements, studies and campaigns to address the issue of human trafficking. Not only this but there have also been various legislative and other policies have been put in place, including new trafficking offences and the creation of a UK Human Trafficking Centre. In August 2013 the overnment announced in that it would introduce a Modern Slavery Bill. This bill will consolidate into one act the offences used to prosecute slave drivers, introduce Trafficking Prevention Orders to restrict the activity and movement of convicted traffickers and provide for a new Anti-Slavery Commissioner to hold law enforcement and other organisations to account.

Due to its illegal and hidden nature, there are no robust statistics on the number of people, adults or children, who have been trafficked to or within the UK for the purposes of labour or sexual exploitation. However despite this there are some estimates which do exist and during 2008-09 the Home Office conducted an inquiry into human trafficking in the UK and in May 2009 when the report was published it estimated that there were at least 5,000 trafficking victims in the UK, however the report also highlighted a severe lack of any accurate statistical information. Not only this but in August 2010 the Association of Chief Police Officers also published a report that suggested that out of 30,000 women involved in off-street prostitution at least 17,000 were migrants and over 2,600 were said to have been trafficked and a further 9,200 were deemed to be vulnerable to further trafficking. This report also stated that most of the 2,600 women who were trafficked from Asia and primarily from China itself.

2014 Edmund Carr Great Baddow Charity Races

30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION RUN

Sunday 18 May 2014

10 MILE ROAD RACE AND 2 MILE FUN RUN

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MT

in the UK in The British Blues Awards and we believe he should win so please vote for him by going to www.britishbluesawards.com. Also nominated is his band-mate Stephen Cutmore for best drummer and he is and also a past winner. They are both from the great Essex band LaVendore Rogue who played who played for us back in November last year.

As I am writing this article, I am also preparing for a live interview on Chelmsford Community Radio this evening to talk about all that I do, (I hope they have a long time). If you have not tuned into them yet you must, it is great and they can be found online at: www.chelmsfordcommunityradio.com.

I must congratulate all the winners at this year’s Panic Awards, on which you will find more about later in the magazine. I sadly was unable to attend, but my colleague Paul attended for us. It’s Your Media sponsored Andy Poole (the presenter) and Paul does most of the photography for the event and to his surprise won a much deserved award for his services with his continuous support in photographing so many events, well done Paul.

What a great show we had last month with Rag Mama Rag on their UK tour who once again blew everyone away who attended and what a support act, playing their first gig in their new format as The Jives UK. I am sure all who attended will agree it was a fantastic night of great live music, thank you all and hope to see you all again at the next night which is the fabulous Mississippi MacDonald and the Cottonmouth Kings if you have not seen them before and if you love the delta blues you will love these guys. Not just a support but a double header with Joel Fisk playing solo and he will join the main act as well. Joel has just been nominated for the third time as best guitarist

I have been and seen a couple of great acts locally, one being Wild Coyotes who were as ever great. Jimmy and the guys will never disappoint you and a first, Pie Face, as the name suggests they cover both Humble Pie, The Faces and Small Faces music and in my mind no one does it better. We have them headlining on our stage at the Fling this year. I saw both acts at the Woolpack Beer festival which is the last to run sadly by Dave and Maggie Gentry who are retiring we wish them luck and good health.

We, Jamie Williams and the Roots Collective, have a busy May. We are playing at Cosmic Puffin at their 7th festival which is held from the 2nd to the 4th May at Mersea Island. If you have not been before you should, there is so much to see and do for all the family and they raise thousands of pounds for charity as well. Locally we are also playing at The Ale House on Sat 24th please tell all to come along.

There is so much more I could say but the column inches have run out, so do remember to see all that is going on in Chelmsford, pick up Chelmsford The City Times and if you are or know of any event send it to editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk. Help Chelmsford Keep it Live and go and see some live music soon.

By Nick Garner www.bluesinthecity.co.uk www.facebook.com/bluesinthecity

Around the World on a Motorbike by Dan Skeates It’s all about the people...

“What are you doing here? This road is for locals only! You must go back!”

I had set the sat nav for ‘no motorways’ - it takes longer but it makes for a more interesting ride. I rode down the borders of France, Belgium and Germany, and across the Julier Pass in the Swiss Alps at 2,280 metres where there were two metres of snow either side of the road. From there I headed down into Italy where the Adriatic Coast welcomed me as I headed to Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania and Macedonia.

I found myself off the beaten track again: this time rather than sticking to the coast road approaching the Bosnian border I headed inland and as the road narrowed and twisted through more and more remote villages I headed up a mountain. The road turned into more of a track and as the people I passed in small, poor villages waved at me, I wondered when or how I was going to pass into Bosnia from such a remote area. The further up the mountain I went the more extreme the riding became and then, to my astonishment, I saw at the top of the mountain a modern, shiny border post. As I approached, two border police came out and questioned me: “What are you doing here? This road is for locals only! You must go back!”

Slightly confused at the questions I told them I was following my sat nav - they were not impressed and again said I had to go back to the border crossing on the main road. I felt there was mileage in attempting to get through so I tried everything from being friendly to bribery with no luck. One of the border guards, upon realising I was English, said the usual: “Manchester United?”, I said, “No, West Ham”. With this his cheeks puffed out and a smile beamed across his face as he said, “Slaven Bilic!” (a Croatian player who played for West Ham in the 1990s). “This is it I thought: i’ve found his Achilles heel!” - I told him that I loved Slaven... After 20 minutes or so they still refused to let me across the border despite our shared love of

the beautiful game.

I had to go back down the mountain, back past the waving villagers and back through the main border crossing, but at least I had left the guards smiling. They had wished me good luck on my travels and I had a big smile on my face too.

It’s all about the people…

The next day I left the beautiful town of Dubrovnik in southern Croatia after a week of riding and felt for the first time that I was really travelling. The weather had warmed up, which meant that I didn’t need the thermals and I sensed spring was well underway. I crossed into Montenegro and met Chris, a Dutch biker, at the crossing and we decided to ride together for the day. Montenegro felt poor, it looks poor and probably is. They do have the most beautiful country with blue seas and wonderful mountains though. Next we crossed into Albania which, like entering Montenegro, was a challenge - it took about 45 minutes and we had to show all the paperwork for ourselves and our bikes.

I am now in Macedonia, a wonderful country where the people are so welcoming; next Greece and then Turkey, where I will cross the Bosporus and enter Asia.

I feel better now about leaving the kids as I FaceTime them most days and the stress is leaching out of me with every mile I ride, meaning that I have unbroken sleep every night. It’s all about the people…

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MT Gardening Flower Power Spring is the ideal season for planting summer flowering bulbs like dahlias, gladiolas and lilies under cover. Use a good proprietary potting compost such as John Innes No 2 or a multi-purpose.

Tuberous Begonias and Canna should not be set outdoors until all danger of frost has passed, so wait until May. Sow annual seeds of asters, cosmos, marigolds, zinnias in modular trays ready for transplanting by the end of April. And for a more sustainable display try sowing perennial grasses for colour later this year through to the following spring.

As your direct-seeded crops sprout, be sure to keep them thinned out to avoid crowding.

When danger of frost has passed, uncover strawberry beds and keep them well watered. Keep frost protection to hand as a sudden chill can really check plant growth. Good luck and happy gardening!

When all frost danger has passed you can move your stored fuchsias and geraniums outdoors; mid to late May. Trim them back, feed and re-pot if necessary. Water them well.

When they have finished blooming, you should deadhead your spring flowering bulbs. Do not cut off the green foliage yet! The green leaves continue to grow for a few weeks, and provide the bulb with food for flowering next year. Ideally keep leaves on for 6-8 weeks.

Hybrid Tea Roses should be fertilised prior to buds beginning to bloom. Using a systemic fertilizer will help prevent insect infestation later in the summer as it feeds your rose. Finish off with a heavy mulch of well rotted organic matter around the base of your plant to keep weeds down and help retain moisture.

If you have a pond or pool you should set aquatic plants any time after the middle of April.

Fruit and Veggies Control weeds and aerate the soil by cultivating between the rows of plants.

Plant perennial vegetables such as asparagus, rhubarb, horseradish, etc. It’s also time to plant peas, carrots, beets, spinach, cauliflower, cabbage, etc. Root crops such as potatoes, radishes, parsnips and onions can be planted at anytime. Late this month you can plant beans and corn. Warmer weather crops such as tomatoes, squash, cucumbers and peppers should not be planted until next month.

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For any gardening tips why not contact Tom Cole, Head of Faculty for Land & Environment, Writtle College, Chelmsford, CM1 3RR by post (including a SAE) or by email at tom.cole@writtle.ac.uk

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FROM COUNTY HALL

by Cllr. Dick Madden

After my last article of ‘War and Peace’ I thought this month I would be brief, so here are three key sources of local information. You may have read or heard on local radio that repairs have started on Shire Hall, that beautiful historic building at the top of our High Street.

Having obtained consent from English Heritage we at County Hall have approved £500,000 to pay for conservation stone repairs, cleaning stone surfaces, an overhaul of the metal and timber windows and general maintenance work. You will recall that Shire Hall had to be surrounded by scaffolding due to insecure masonry that on two occasions fell from the historic Grade 11 listed building. Delays have occurred in carrying out repairs due to the length of time it takes for English Heritage to approve the repairs. So be it, the work though has now started and hopefully in the coming months I will be able to explain how the public again will be using Shire Hall, watch this space.

Another matter which is equally historical and even more important in this year of 2014, again through English Heritage and funding from Chelmsford City Council with regard to the War Memorial situated in St Johns Church, Moulsham Street. I need to let you know that repair works to the War Memorial are due to commence this week.

Following the repairs and cleaning, further consideration will be given to additional works, if any, to improve the legibility of the lettering.

20mph. What about it you may ask? Well, several months ago I informed you that through the Chelmsford Highways panel I had applied for analysis to be taken up by Essex Highways to establish if a 20mph zone could be applied in the residential streets of Old Moulsham. Last week I was informed the analysis had been completed and their findings will be presented at the next Chelmsford Highways panel in the coming month. At this moment in time I do not know the results however through this magazine I will keep you all informed.

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So there you have it, three key pieces of local information for our community. Spring is here and the annual garden spring clean has commenced and I have just cleaned the BBQ. With, thankfully, another grandchild to be born any day (that makes seven), the noise levels in our garden will increase over the coming weeks but with the warm weather will come fun and laughter. BE SAFE.

Chelmsford Cathedral Celebrates 100 Years of Baptism with Special Service

To mark its centenary year, Chelmsford Cathedral is inviting all those who have been baptised there over the last 100 years to attend a special thanksgiving service. Taking place on Saturday 8 November 2014, the service will be followed by a delicious afternoon tea provided by the cathedral’s Mothers’ Union.

“Baptisms are one of the most important and special services we hold at the cathedral so it’s wonderful to be able to celebrate their history in this way,” says Canon Eileen French, Mothers’ Union Branch Leader. “We would love to welcome back those who have been baptised throughout the years at the cathedral and have every age, from one to 100, represented at the service.”

Tickets are available by application to the cathedral and will include one guest for each adult baptised or two parents with children.

Applications should be made in writing to Emma Andersen c/o Cathedral Office, New Street, Chelmsford, CM1 1TY by 30 September 2014.

www.moulshamtimes.com

MT Cookery Hi all, things are really getting down to the nitty gritty now in the world of rugby with the Heineken and Amlin Cups. In the Heineken Cup, Saracens play Clermont and Toulon play Munster for a place in the final at the Millennium Stadium. In the Amlin Cup, Northampton play Harlequins and Bath play Wasps for a chance to play in the final at Cardiff Arms Park. Rugby Premiership is also coming to the end of the regular season it is always interesting to see who goes through to the top four places and the play-offs, which I’m afraid it is going to be out of reach for Harlequins this season..

I thought I would include a few Italian dishes that are easy but with massive flavours..

Italian Baked Fish with Tomato Sauce A quick and easy dish that could be prepared in advance, maybe the night before. A great idea if you are having people over for dinner, all prepared ready to go. Put on a barbeque with roasted peppers, asparagus, & artichokes or the oven. It has all the flavours of a classic Italian dish.

Ingredients 2 good sized cod fillets.

Rapeseed oil.

2 x garlic cloves peeled and sliced thinly.

3-5 vine cherry tomatoes.

2 stems fresh thyme.

1tsp capers.

A glug of your favourite white wine (optional).

Method Start off with two squares of foil approx 8 by 10in or big enough to place a piece of cod. Place a slice of lemon underneath the cod and arrange capers, garlic, thyme and cherry tomatoes around and on the cod. Build up the sides of the foil and add a glug of white wine and gather up to make a parcel.

Place in preheated oven 180c/gas mark 4 for fifteen minutes. Serve with boiled potatoes, green beans, or your favourite vegetables.

Steak with Pizzaiola Sauce Another extremely easy but fantastic tasting meal from Italy. You can use either sirloin or rib-eye steak it is up to you, but please respect the cooking.

Ingredients 1 tsp of rapeseed oil.

6-8oz sirloin or rib-eye steak.

by Andy Starling

Sea salt & pepper.

1 Onion finely chopped.

1 garlic clove finely chopped.

Dried oregano.

400g Passata.

A good bunch of basil leaves.

Method

1/ Add rapeseed oil to steak season with sea salt, ground black pepper and oregano.

2/ With a tsp of oil cook the onions until softened but not coloured then add garlic and cook for a further 3mins. Add passata and cook for 10-15mins until you have a good thickened sauce.

3/ If you have a griddle pan good if not a good sized non stick frying pan. Heat the griddle until very hot - don’t put oil in pan only on steak. Once in pan or griddle do not move the steak for 3mins then turn and repeat. This is for rare, for medium 4-5mins and for well done don’t bother to waste the meat. Serve with fries, chips, salad however you enjoy your steak with pizzaiola sauce.

Prawn and Pea Risotto If you have a little more time, and in the immortal words of Take That “have a little patience” very much a dish for supping wine while feeding the risotto. Fantastic flavours and a creamy finish… delicious…

Ingredients Large knob of butter.

200g Arborio rice.

1 garlic clove finely chopped.

1 small red onion finely chopped.

150 ml white wine.

1 pint of vegetable or chicken stock.

150g king prawns .

50g frozen peas.

30g freshly parmesan cheese.

3 knobs of butter.

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper.

Method 1/ Using a heavy based pan add butter and bring to a foam, add the finely chopped onion and sauté until softened but not coloured, then add garlic and cook for a further 3mins.

Put in the Arborio rice and coat all of the rice with the butter mixture.

2/ Now for fun bit add a small ladle of wine at a time, stirring continuously and don’t add next ladle until the other has been absorbed.

Continue until all has been absorbed. Add the prawns and peas and cook for a further 1min or 2 or until prawns are cooked through. Put in the parmesan cheese, knobs of butter, salt and pepper mix together and serve. Nice with a glass or two of Pinot or Gavi…

Have you followed one of Andy’s recipes? If so write in and let us know how it went! editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

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Argh… I Have Been Asked to Make a Presentation at Work!

Part 1: Where do I start!?

4/ ...and asking for help....

So you have been expecting this promotion, you are pleased with yourself and then your boss drops the bombshell:

A colleague in your company might have already written the presentation you need, so that you do not have to reinvent the wheel!

Larger companies will have a training officer who should be able to advise or support you to some extent, if not they should so do tell them! Some might even provide you with a strong experienced mentor, just ask! Ask for support from close ones too, there are your best support!

“As part of your new position, you need to present to the board and the next meeting is…”

You do not hear the rest but vaguely understand that you have only (you mean only?) a week to get your act together and to make the best and most importantly the right impression to the board. Your heart already starts to beat faster, your hands are sweaty and you are feeling queasy. Although you knew you would have to present, there is an unsettling feeling growing inside you and the questions come incessantly like an unwanted wave on the beach at the time of an oil slick: ”What if they think I am an idiot? What if I forget something, what if I cannot answer their questions? What happens next if I freeze? Won’t they see I am so nervous inside?”

These irrational thoughts are then followed by statement of doubts: “I can’t do it. I am not good enough. I will look silly. My accent is silly. I am….” and, by now, your body is overwhelmed by fear and you are ready to top yourself! Ok, ok, maybe I exaggerate, or I thought I was until a client of mine - who used to be so scared of presenting admitted that she actually once threw up in front of the audience as she was walking onto the stage! Not a nice sight! I might have made the images a little too vivid and OTT for the sake of this article, but you must know that we all experience some fear at different degrees.

Let’s see what you can do to make the big day an acceptable and even an enjoyable experience. Help is at hand and “moi”, ze speaking coach, can hold your sweaty hand and calm your shaky heart!

Next time, I will look at my best tips when fears embrace you before your presentation. in the meantime break a leg preparing your presentation.

Your speaking coach: Hélène Mussois a French national who decided in her 20s that England was a nicer country than France to live in. Whilst most of her British friends would disagree with her, she managed in her “madness” to become a drama teacher and has spent the last 20 years tutoring your son/daughter/cousin in schools across Essex. She has now decided that you need help too, even as an adult. She helps and gives confidence to the reluctant presenters.

She has been praised for creating a safe and supportive environment whilst bringing challenges too. Hélène also does not take no for an answer. So if you decide to work with her on one of your presentations, she will make you practise, practise, practise and will give tools to be the best you can be! She is the co-director of Media Confidence with fellow french Vincent Leleu who produces amazing videos for your business. You can find her at: helene@mediaconfidence.co.uk 07875627485 Facebook or LinkedIn http://mediaconfidence.co.uk.

You start with…

1/ Accepting that you will always be at least a bit scared!

I have experience of speaking with my teaching and training career and I also speak in public these days. Still, I can get scared at times...

I have learnt to control that fear. It is that same fear that makes me prepare thoroughly before I speak. I especially use the fear of being unprepared as a positive feeling instead of a nasty one, do the same!

2/ Getting yourself organised and make a list.

Who are you talking to? To what purpose, what do “they” want to get out of it and what is your ultimate objective? Is it passing on information, or influencing a decision, or entertaining “them” or a sales presentation?

How much time have you been given to make your presentation?

What do you need for it? Is PowerPoint appropriate or detrimental to your presentation. “Death by PowerPoint” is a common occurrence and the solution is simple: keep it simple, keep your slides to a maximum of 3 bullet points and lots of appropriate images to illustrate your point. By appropriate, I mean appropriate to your audience!

Where are you presenting? what space do you use, have you got access to a projector, a laptop?

3/ Starting writing...

Writing a presentation always take more time than we think especially if the material is quite new to you. You need to give yourself some time and do not leave it at the last minute as your heart will be beating even faster bordering on the heart attack, if you do!

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Crime and punishment are a grizzly business, but certainly more so in previous centuries than this one. During the 16th century the dungeons of Colchester Castle were still the county gaol, with no daylight, little hygiene or medical attention. There was also a house of correction in Coggeshall, but with near similar conditions and maladministration it was decided to move it to the more central county town, so in 1611 it moved to a site adjoining Wymonds Inn, now 63 to 64 High Street. There was later another overflow site behind 37-38 High Street on the corner of Springfield Lane (now Road). Both were designed for the undeserving poor, but also had holding cells for the shire courts, at the Shire House, roughly where the present Shire Hall stands. In the hierarchy of punishment, correction came after whipping, branding, transportation and hanging. Alchoholics, debtors and unmarried mothers could find themselves housed there, employed on menial tasks like basket and sack making. To some extent they were the forerunners of the workhouses, but a house of correction lasted until 1806, and was demolished in 1812. The first workhouse was in New Street but later on the site of the otherwise now demolished St John’s Hospital in Wood Street. It closed in the first decade of the 20th Century.

The gallows had for several centuries stood at the present junction of Parkway and Rainsford Road, along with gibbets of caged, mummified victims as a warning to future transgressors of the laws. In 1666 the Cross Keys Inn, next to the River Can at the north of Moulsham Street, where Toni and Guy hairdressers is now, was adapted to be the new County Gaol instead of Colchester Castle. It was designed to hold 60 to 70 prisoners and the gallows was eventually moved to within its walls. The Rainsford gallows was taken down in 1781 and a mobile one erected within the gaol for execution days. The Catherine Wheel, about where Chicagos is now, took on the Cross Keys name and publican. From the riverside site prisoners were marched to and from the Shire House in chains and whipped on their return as a public spectacle and warning to others. Between 1787 and ‘96 the Gaol was rebuilt to accommodate 30 single cells, instead of the one large predecessor. These overhung the river for direct removal of sewage, much to the annoyance of neighbouring businesses and houses. Otherwise they were very insanitary and damp and many inmates died before reaching trial or transportation to the colonies while transport was being arranged for them. By 1785 the trapdoor gallows aparatus had been invented. Hanging was a

The Prisons of Chelmsford

by John Power

sight of spectacle, either from the bridge or by invite into the exercise yard. A new House of Correction was added to the site when the old one closed in 1806. Due to to the damp and insanitary conditions, and obstruction of the road on hanging days, a search for a healthier site for the gaol began.

The site in Springfield, on higher ground was agreed upon and begun in 1822. Inmates were moved in between 1825 and ‘28.

It became the county gaol in 1830 and consisted of seven, three- storey, cell blocks which radiated from a central governor’s house, chapel and entrance gates with a porter’s lodge, which had a flat roof for the erection of gallows and trapdoor drop while executions were still a warning, and a public spectacle for up to 1000 people to witness.

These and the exercise yard were surrounded by a thirty foot tall stone wall. In all there were 225 cells for both sexes. Warders were called turn-keys, and apart from the governor there was also a chaplain, a schoolmaster, a miller, and a shoemaker, as well as a supervisor for hard labour parties, as penal servitude replaced transportation as a sentence nationally. So the intention was to give an education or a trade as useful employment for inmates. There was a treadmill, sometimes used to grind cereals into flour, but often it was merely employed as a punishment with no practical use involved. The strength needed to operate the mill could be adjusted by means of a screw and that is how the warders got their nickname of ‘screws’. The working day could be up to 11 hours so exhaustion was a means of control. Clothes were of a course weave, except for one linen shirt per week.

Conversation was only permitted with staff, not other inmates, and in the communal chapel for services, all but debtors were partitioned off and masked. This virtual solitary confinement was eventually abandoned as it proved counter-productive by often leading to mental illness. By 1861 manning the pump to raise well water, basket, shoe, and sack making as means of useful activity were in place.

In 1868 a Prison Reform Act meant that women and men were separated. Of the 239 smaller individual cells in Springfield 42 were for women and imprisonment became a sentence, whereas previously gaols were essentially holding centres for those awaiting sentences. Hangings ceased to be a public spectacle and were brought indoors to permanent fixtures in a hanging shed.

The last public hanging above the gates of the Springfield prison was of a boy, barely teenage, who had set fire to a haystack.

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Convicted criminals were not allowed to be buried in consecrated ground, and there is a strip of land alongside the prison wall where corpses were put into pits with quick lime to aid decomposition.

I taught srt in the prison for four years in the 1990s and discovered that the hanging room still exists as an office, along with the condemned cell, with bed and toilet pot. All are subject to a preservation order, oddly, in a place not open to the public.

We joked at the time that perhaps this was because there were plans to bring back hanging, which was abolished in the 1960s. But perhaps it is in case the site is sold off and becomes some ghoulish theme hotel or black museum. As, in the 1990s, new wings were added, and flushing toilets installed in existing cells to do away with the unpleasant slopping out routine, this does not seem to be on the agenda. Ironically inmates were heard to remark about the new wings: “ They’re like a hospital. Can’t we go back in the proper old wings?” There is an indication there that after childrens homes and borstal type institutions that have been the background to some of society’s least fortunate members, people can become institutionalised and depend on the roof and meals that prison provides. As far as the hanging room is concerned you have to admit that any prison officer using the office desk has a psychological advantage over anyone standing in front of them on the trap door of the old drop and looking up to the girder to which the noose was attached!

Chelmsford Prison, in the 21st century is a local prison, for those awaiting trial or transit to other prisons, and a young offenders institution. There is an education department and light electrical work to occupy some inmates who are not employed in ancillary work like cooking and cleaning, ample sports and gym facilities and now even TV sets in cells. Well you are innocent until proven guilty! It is not my place to moralise about prisoners one way or another and very difficult to generalise, but it did seem to me that a lot of people I met had committed, often repeatedly, stupid minor crimes, some had committed acts dangerous to others, like drunk driving or more obvious violence, but that high profile criminals bigged up by the media were comparatively few. The bulk of prisoners seem to be, as they always have been, those from unfortunate backgrounds that have come to flaunt the law for survival.

It is fortunate for them that more humane methods of dealing with their transgressions are now employed than those of previous centuries.

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Chelmsford

Sat 7th-Sun 8th June 2014

10am-5pm Marconi Sports & Social Club, Tydemans, off Beehive Lane, Chelmsford, Essex CM2 9FH International TV Psychics and Clairvoyants Sue Hudd, Maureen Flynn, Melayne Stone l Many free workshops & talks by inspirational speakers Barbara Meiklejohn-Free, Chrissie Astell, Sheila Steptoe & Ian Tucker l Meditation Room l Aura Photos l Wellbeing therapies; Hot Stone Massage, Reflexology, Crystal Healing, Reiki l Empowered Healing Space l Oils & Incense l Mystic Art l Spiritual Gifts l Stage Performances l Healthy Food & Refreshments l Crystals & Gems l

Adults: ÂŁ3.50 Concessions: ÂŁ2.50 16 and under: FREE For information visit

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Fantastic Support for Life-changing College in Chelmsford Rotarians throughout our district celebrate a major fund-raising success that has embraced many of its clubs and earned a substantial matching grant from Brazil along the way.

District Governor, Peter Dowse, has been to see for himself the heartwarming results of the Thriftwood College project in Chelmsford and praised organisers, Billericay Mayflower, for their role in launching the £100,000 needed to fund it and for masterminding the appeal.

It has meant that Thriftwood School which cares for and educates hundreds of Essex children with autism-related learning difficulties has been able to launch its new sixth form college at Chelmsford with life-changing facilities that would not have been provided without Rotary support.

Mayflower’s Nick Lamborn and Andy Hunter have taken a lead role in spreading their own club’s enthusiasm to other clubs. DG Peter was invited to pass on to Thriftwood School headteacher Sally Davies another £20,000 from Mayflower to add to the £40,000 they had already raised. The proceeds of the club’s Christmas Market came in at the same time as Chelmsford Mildmay added their £2,000 to the pot.

The £60,000 donated so far includes £9,000 contributed by other clubs in District 1240 and £20,000 from a matching grant. The grant was made up of £5,000 donated by Rotarians in Sao Paulo, Brazil, an amazing gesture by a South American club, £5,000 from our own District 1240 and £10,000 from Rotary Foundation.

for by Rotary are anessential part of that.

The well-equipped gym is already providing opportunities to teach students how to keep themselves physically fit and to venture into areas of sport not usually open to them. But it is in the cookery rooms where the value of the sixth form experience can best be judged.

Here specialised tutors ensure that their students can be given an independence to share in their own future home life rather than rely on others. The strong belief is that through the Thriftwood sixth form and the facilities provided by Rotary the young people are being equipped for an adult life with an unprecedented confidence and in many cases the ability to go out into a world of work that might otherwise be denied them. Just a few thousand pounds is needed now to complete the two year project by the end of July. Then Rotarians in our district can walk away. Job done.

If you would like to find out how you can join Rotary and be part of projects such as this whilst also enjoying a stimulating social programme visit www.chelmsfordrotary1240.org or phone Stan Keller on 01245 260349 (office hours).

There has been a bonus as an unexpected result of renovation building work being paid for out of government funds. Now, in addition to providing state of the art facilities in specialised cookery rooms and gym, Rotary funds can also foot the bill for a science and discovery centre and a music and sensory room. Here the often challenged students can enhance sense of touch, sound and light in a way tailored to special needs. Basic musical instruments also paid

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Students prepare to cook for themselves in the college’s state of the art cookery department fully equipped thanks to Rotary donations.

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MT Therapy by Jenny Hartill Last month I gave an overview of self defeating behaviours, explained as any deliberate or intentional behaviour that has clear, definitely or probably negative effects on the self or on the self’s projects.

This month I have chosen one particular behaviour to look at, it’s a common one, more common than you would think – Alcoholism.

My supervisor always says “it’s not necessarily how much you drink, it’s more why you drink” – although I agree with this statement, sometimes how much someone drinks can turn into why they drink. There are different types of alcoholism: Physical alcohol dependency: the person cannot get through the day without a drink because they suffer with physical withdrawal symptoms.

Psychological alcohol dependency: the person cannot get through the day without a drink because they can’t cope with the emotional and psychological fallout – they literally believe they cannot cope without a drink.

Higher functioning alcoholism: this is the most common form of alcoholism. There are many people that are higher functioning alcoholics and don’t realise it, mainly

people who have high stress jobs or retired folks who have a few drinks everyday but still function absolutely fine in the office / pottering round the garden the next day, albeit sometimes with a bit of a fuzzy head.

Those are the main types. Now for a bit of a confession. When I was studying addiction we all did the AUDIT questionnaire (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test), I came out as a higher functioning alcoholic – I’d never thought about how much I drank, but the results were a big wake up call! The thing is, because I worked in the city and everyone in my office drank heavily, I didn’t think anything of drinking a bottle of wine on a weeknight with my stressed out friend whilst we bitched about the company we worked for. Everyone did it. Nobody seemed worried.

So, why do we drink so much it becomes a self-defeating behaviour? I can answer this using my own example, because selfdefeating behaviours are learned behaviours, that is our minds learn that the booze makes us feel better so we carry on using it. Or the booze alleviates stress, so we carry on using it. Here’s what happened to me.

A long time ago, in an advertising sales office far away, a bright young sales executive joined the exciting world of advertising sales.

When she got her first sale in, the entire sales team went for drinks to celebrate.

“Yay! The alcohol is boosting my current mood, I feel better than ever!” the sales exec thought.

Then, after 2 weeks of no sales, the sales exec’s boss took her out for a commiseratory drink. After 4 glasses of wine (over lunch) the sales exec thought “Oooh, I feel better after a moan and a bottle of wine, I’m ready to go back and hit my target!” – and so, half cut, she did indeed hit her target. This cycle repeated until the sales exec had no idea what she was drinking week to week, there was always someone celebrating or commiserating, and so without even realising it the sales exec became a higher functioning alcoholic.

In my story, the sales exec learned though conditioning to have a drink to celebrate, have a drink to commiserate. Because the world of sales is so up and down, this left little middle ground for no drinking days!

Mostly alcoholics drink to escape emotional, or sometimes physical pain. Alcohol becomes a facilitator. In extreme cases, alcohol becomes the alcoholics friend.

Next time I’ll talk about treating alcoholism.

If you want to take the AUDIT test you can do so online at: www.alcohollearningcentre.org.uk.

Wine Corner

Hello again. I don’t suppose I caught any of you out last month with my little April Fool piece. I just thought it might be amusing and I hope you found it so.

This month I am going to start with rose wines. They have always been less favoured than reds or white I think, but there are some nice examples around. In France you would immediately think of the Loire Valley around Anjou nearer the west coast. They produce a lot of medium sweet wines and they are great to drink on their own or with light meals. Lovely in the garden in the summer. If you move down the country to the southern Rhone, there is the small wine appellation of Tavel. Now, this is a great wine, very smooth and quite dry. It is made mainly from Grenache and Syrah (known as Shiraz outside France).

Look out for that one.

Further south is Provence where over half of the wine production is rose. I always find this wine quite dry, which is what I prefer. You can spot some of the most common wines from here by the unusual bottle, which is shaped somewhere between an old fashion drinking vessel and a bowling pin. Soon you will be able to identify it by its bright green plastic bottle colour – oh dear, back to last month, sorry about that!

hares! At least the poor dogs wouldn’t be expecting a meal at the end.

I went to a tasting recently and spotted a bottle of Alsace wine amongst the bottles to be sampled. Oh dear, I thought, not sure about that. This wine area is French but it is right on the borders of France and Germany. This results in a heavy influence of the lighter wines from Germany. They are often described as aromatic, almost flowery.

They come is a specially shaped bottle known as a Rhine wine bottle, which has a very long neck and is used for a number of German whites. I think, like me, a lot of people start their wine appreciation with the light sweeter wines from here and across the border, and then graduate to the dryer wines as tastes change. Anyway, the one at the tasting was a Pinot Blanc and I was very pleasantly surprised.

It is a light white and tasted very good indeed. So next time you are browsing the French wine section look out for this one.

Bin End Chuckles

There are lots of others from around the world, but I always get confused about the blush (pinky coloured but called white) like the Californian Zinfandel. Also in rose are popular whites like Pinot Grigio. Incidentally, my wife backed the National winner because she thought the name sounded like a wine. It appears that it is made of grapes but ends up more of a liqueur, made in the south west coast of France, but never mind, she got a result (not going to change our lives though).

I follow football, and one day a friend came over and said that he had heard that a staunch supporter of my club had won the lottery last week and he was going to buy us a player better than our best.

What’s more he said, if he wins another 25 quid next week, he’ll buy them another one! Not impressed.

On the subject of horse racing, I must say I’m not a great fan, but did have a lovely day at Ascot once. Have you noticed that riderless horses nearly always come near the front at the finish? Now obviously, it is because they are lighter with no rider, but they seem to know what they are doing. Wouldn’t it be much safer and cheaper and even less predicable if we raced the horses on their own? How does it work with greyhound racing as well? Dogs are fairly intelligent animals, yet time and time again they chase a little fake hare round the track to be disappointed every time it stops and they catch it.

They must realise after a couple of times that it’s not real, so why keep chasing it. It might be better to put a little scale model car to go round, most of the dogs I know are more used to chasing cars than

Keep calm and carry on drinking (in moderation).

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Just a thought: a bus station is where a bus stops, a railway station is where a train stops so I guess my desk top work station is where.....

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MT Charity

Are you reading this on the train?

Commuting into Liverpool Street station with 50 other visibly harangued, bored semi-conscious uncomfortably cramped office workers? Take a look around you and consider the fact that statistically speaking, one in four of those people will have a mental health problem at some point in their life. You cannot identify them by their clothes, demeanour or the fact they may have voluntarily, without duress or fear of personal harm, chosen to eat a sandwich from the buffet car. I have a responsible job in a high pressure environment that I do well, motivate those around me and strive to succeed, yet not that long ago had the joie de vivre of a Leonard Cohen album and fully reliant on my Prozac Pez dispenser. It can hit any of us at any time. Nevertheless it’s still the guarded secret we don’t like to mention. Even the word misleads as over time the living, breathing and evolving lexicon has attached many unfortunate and derogatory connotations to the word “mental”. But now its time for us to speak out, shout out even without embarrassment or shame. We need to acknowledge the need for help within our families and our communities and challenge both perceptions and relentless funding cuts to our mental health services who work tirelessly to make a difference.

Home-Start Chelmsford is a local charity which provides emotional and practical support to families with young children who are experiencing stress or difficulties.

Raising children can be a challenge at times and when other problems occur in a family such as a parent or child suffering an illness or disability, relationship breakdown or bereavement it can feel overwhelming. When parents feel exhausted or low it can impact on their parenting capacity and they may need some help or support.

Home-Start Chelmsford recruits and trains volunteers from the local community who have parenting experience to provide a period of support to parents going through a hard time.

Families can contact us directly to ask for help or sometimes we receive referrals from professionals such as health visitors or children’s centre workers. A Home-Start Co-ordinator will carry out an initial visit to a family to establish what help they need and then they will look to match the family with a volunteer who will visit the family every week.

Volunteers can offer friendship and provide a listening ear so parents can share their worries or concerns. They can accompany parents to appointments or help them get out of the house.

Volunteers can play with the children and give guidance around child development and support parents with house-keeping. We are able to put parents in touch with other organisations who give specialist support with issues such as debt management or housing.

In addition to our volunteer home visiting service we also run two family support groups which is an opportunity for parents to meet other parents in similar circumstances in a supportive environment. The groups are run by a trained counsellor and there are lots of fun activities on offer for the children.

Rethink Mental Illness is a national charity which, for more than 40 years have challenged attitudes and changed lives. The charity helps people living with conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, personality disorders and more, to recover a better quality of life. In partnership with the charity mcch, Rethink’s Mid Essex Community Services, based in Chelmsford, offer a range of innovative and inventive programmes and activities based on individual needs.

These support links to education, employment, sports, leisure, faith, health, hobbies and interests. There are a range of groups and activities based in the community, which provide valuable social contact and practical help to support individuals to live independently. There service additionally aims to support people to set up their own independent groups where possible. Not only are these groups for those who have been referred by healthcare workers, many are open and accessible to the community at large.

The service also provides a limited one-to-one befriending scheme for those most at risk from social exclusion or isolation by recruiting and matching volunteers who then provide support and opportunities for further social involvement. Commissioned by Essex County Council and the NHS via Mid Essex CCG the service is based in 50b Duke Street, Chelmsford, CM1 1JA. It is open to adults from 17 – 65 years with a mental health problem, who are registered with a mid Essex GP surgery and who live anywhere within the District Councils of Chelmsford, Maldon and Braintree.

If you’d like to talk to any of our team regarding the services provided, wish to volunteer or simply have a general enquiry, please contact us on 01245 259478 or by e-mail at midessex@rethink.org.

Home-Start Chelmsford is an independent charity which operates to the standards and methods of practice of Home-Start UK. Home-Start UK was founded in Leicester in 1973 and today there are around 300 Home-Start schemes across the UK. Home-Start Chelmsford was set up in 1984 and this year we are celebrating our 30th Birthday. To mark the occasion, in May we are having an afternoon tea event for our volunteers in the presence of HRH Princess Alexandra, who is the patron of Home-Start UK. Over the last 30 years we have helped thousands of families and historically we have received financial support from Essex County Council, but unfortunately in April last year they advised they were unable to give Home-Start any money due to cuts to their own funding from central government.

Last year we joined up with 2 other Home-Start schemes, HomeStart Braintree, Witham and Halstead and Home-Start Maldon and applied to the Big Lottery Reaching Communities Programme and luckily we secured a 3 year grant between us. Although our grant from the lottery is a significant amount of money covering around 40% of our core costs we still need to find additional funding to ensure we survive.

In comparison to other organisations our costs are minimal as the majority of our work is carried out by a dedicated team of 40 volunteers who give their time freely to help others in need. Each year a few of our volunteers retire or move on to other things and so once a year around September time we recruit a number of new volunteers and run a volunteer preparation course. If you are a caring person with a few hours to spare each week and are interested joining our team, please give us a call on 01245 421222 for more information.

By John Jacobs

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“Volatile Retribution” (Part 2) – A Detective Carter Mystery Written by JR Blake Previously, Constable Carter and her partner Constable Reid prevented a suicidal Samantha from jumping off Westminster Bridge to an ice-cold watery death. Now we re-join the story 10 years later, where Samantha makes a dramatic return to the story…

Samantha entered the café across the road from the university calmly. Nobody even noticed her enter, the sole customer read his newspaper as always and the manager of the café stalked his friends and friends of friends on FaceBook, because he genuinely had nothing better to do. She ordered a coffee and then slid into her seat silently and connected her laptop to the wi-fi. As she watched the manager go back to his phone she remembered all those years ago when the PC called Carter and her partner PC Reid had removed her from Westminster Bridge. They came to this café and she sat in this very seat. As she had recounted the horror Professor Redfern had subjected her to, Carter and Reid had listened with sympathy.

Sympathy had got her nowhere. Somewhere in her mind, as she relived the repulsive events again to the PCs, she’d recognised the street the café was on, registered whose office she could see, and the realisation dawned on her. She knew what she had to do. She had to destroy the man that defiled her and the digital evidence he kept of his crime, evidence she knew existed but was never found by the police. It didn’t matter. She knew where it was. She knew where he was. She knew how to obliterate all of it.

After an hour had passed Samantha hid the laptop and slipped into the disabled toilet at the back of the café. Well hidden, she changed into her disguise. She’d thought of everything, even disguising herself months ago in gothic clothes and heavy make-up to buy her genuine disguise from the charity shop – disguised to buy a disguise – “genius” she thought to herself. Applying dark brown makeup to darken her skin, she then finished off with coloured in eyebrows and lips to add effect and realism. Her beauty course really was about to pay off. She pulled on baggy jeans, a baggy black jumper and completed the look with a black woolly hat that hid her hair. She couldn’t have looked more different. Checking herself one last time she grabbed her black carrier bag. It was time.

Samantha climbed out the window of the disabled toilet and made her way to the university. She made sure the CCTV cameras saw her disguise as she entered the building and made her way up to Professor Redfern’s office. “Look natural, know where you’re going, acknowledge other students, they’ll never think twice” she thought to herself as she passed swathes of bright young minds that were mainly concerned with the latest Facebook status update. A break in traffic appeared as she approached the office so she let herself straight in. The idiot never locked his door, as he’d brazenly told the police in the initial investigation “why would I leave my office door unlocked if I was hiding evidence?” he’d said. “Because you have it hidden somewhere they haven’t thought of” Samantha reflected.

She had to be quick, she knew the professor would be back in exactly seventeen minutes according to the watch she’d timed to his every move. She’d watched him for months, she knew him inside out. To destroy your enemy you must know him, and she knew this disgusting piece of filth more than she wanted to. But it was necessary. She took the laptop out of the black carrier bag and placed it on the desk. Attached to this was a post-it note saying “Open me baby! Love Trish xxx”. She then took a book from the shelf that resembled the approximate size and weight of the laptop, popped it into the bag and made her exit.

“Could I have another coffee please?” Samantha asked.

The manager grunted something along the lines of “sure” and when Samantha returned to her seat with her coffee she noticed she still had three minutes until the show began. Perfect, she sipped her coffee, relaxed and waited.

BOOM!!!! A bright orange fireball punched it’s way out of the University building, orange flames wretched out of the window and then were sucked back, replaced by a black plume of smoke that billowed out of the window. Samantha had jumped along with everyone else for realism and then made eye contact with the manager and the guy reading the paper before running with them to the window. They couldn’t see the sly, satisfied smile hidden beneath her “shocked” look. It was done. It was over.

Detective Sergeant Carter walked slowly up to the university building taking in the damage. DC Reid was interviewing eyewitnesses in surrounding businesses whilst Carter dealt with the crime scene.

Reid was a people person, Carter preferred cats - and criminals.

Carter stepped under the police tape and stared up at the smoking window.

“Nice” she commented to herself “Haven’t seen a decent bomb in ages. Looks like they did a proper job”.

“They did DS Carter”.

Dr Diane Looker, forensic pathologist approached Carter. “Care to take a look at the crime scene? What’s left of it…”

“It would be my pleasure Dr Looker” Carter replied and the two ladies entered the building.

Further down the street DC Reid was interviewing a elderly lady who had spent the last 15 minutes trying to decide on her story. Reid’s eyes started to wander, until he noticed someone he recognised through the window of a café. He recognised her immediately, she was someone he’d never forget. What the hell was she doing here? After what happened, why would she possibly want to…Reid stopped his own thought process as reality dawned on him. He knew exactly why Samantha was here. He called his partner “Carter” she answered “You need to get down here, the Orange café. There’s something, someone you need to see” Next time, DS Carter reacts to the gruesome crime scene, and to the return of the woman who’s life she once saved that she now must destroy…

What do you think of the new Central Park fountains? Let us know at editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk

Returning to the café, Samantha climbed back into the disabled toilet and quickly changed and removed the make-up. She put everything into the plastic bag and scrambled out of the window again into the alley. A few back streets away she knew there were a collection of metal bins in an alcove, she made her way there, set fire to the bag in a metal bin and ran back to the disabled toilet window. Emerging from the disabled toilet Samantha grabbed the abandoned mug from her table, quickly put her laptop in view, and then marched to the counter:

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Ami’s Diary

I have had an amazing month! I went to see a preview screening of The Muppets Most Wanted and saw myself on the cinema screen. I was so excited I screamed. I am in three scenes when Kermit goes to the canal and I can’t wait to get the DVD. I have just completed a voiceover for kids stories based on the Land of Tutti Frutti. I read the script for Tamara the Tree which was fun.

I auditioned for my first high school production which is A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It was my first time reading old English and I am thrilled. I have been cast as Flute.

I went for a casting in London for a feature film pitch video which I had to learn a script for. There are some scary scenes which I had to act out at the audition with an older girl who played a bully and swore at me. It’s okay because it is acting and she was actually nice in real life. We did some improvisation too which I practice a lot at Theatretrain. I was so happy when I got offered the part and I am filming in East London at the end of April.

I was shortlisted for another film but I had to turn down the casting as I would’ve missed my Theatretrain rehearsals which I couldn’t do as the show is in a few weeks.

I have been asked to be the ‘Inspirational Speaker’ at the Young Enterprise County Awards in May. I have 10 minutes to talk about my business ‘Ami’s Candles’. I am really excited but nervous as everyone in the audience will be older than me, so I am going to make a PowerPoint presentation to help me remember what I am going to say.

The Panic Awards 2014 What a great The Panic Awards this year was.

duo called The Midnight Barbers who performed a set at the end.

For those that have never been before The Panic Awards is in its seventh year this year. It is a local awards ceremony celebrating local music, local theatre productions, local venues, festivals and for the first year, comedians. All money raised goes to charity and this year it was The J’s Hospice.

A huge congratulations to my friends Eddie and Denise Wood and their team at Asylum who one four yes four. awards between them.

Before we get on to the winners I must congratulate the team involved behind the scenes, especially the video production and interviews by Christian Kay as they were fantastic. Lastly Andy Poole was his usual calm and collective self behind the podium!

8 bands reached the final via a public vote and all played live for 8 minutes each, with the winner being announced at the end. There was also a prize and a performance for the best solo perfomer at the half way point, which this year was won by Paolo Morena. This year’s winners were a

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The full list of awards/winners were: Best Regular Night - Asylum Acoustic Best Comedian - Rob Saunders Best Theatre - Little Shop Of Horrors Best One Off Event - Brownstock Outstanding Contribution - Brownstock Outstanding Contribution - Paul Mclean Newcomer of the Year - Asylum Best Venue - Asylum DJ of the Year - Matt Love Promoter of the Year - Asylum Best Solo Performer - Paolo Morena Best Band - The Midnight Barbers Here is to next year being as big a success. I do not know the total raised for The J’s Hospice but it will be a great amount.

By Paul Mclean

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MT Community Local Moulsham Dance School Adventures Footwork Dance School is based at Oaklands Infants School, in the heart of Old Moulsham. We present weekly classes for ballet, tap, disco, jazz, street dance and a very funky ladies exercise/dance session. We have taken part in many local community events, including St. Johns Church Arts Festival and the Moulsham Street Lighting Up Ceremony.

Our next exciting project will be on Sat 27th September 2014 where we will share a concert with a team of Maori dancers from New Zealand House in London. This will be held at the Boswells School where we already have strong links for 15 years.

We are also proud of our links with Chelmsford Mencap in Mildmay Road, Dance 21, and the Grapevine Essex Dance Team, all dance groups with learning disabilities of some kind.

We will be out and about town over the summer so please do look out for us and join the crowd that we always attract.

Notable future dates:Thurs/Fri - 24th and 25th April community dance shows at the Boswells School Sat. 31st May - Dancing outside Tickety Boo Sat 7th June - Celebration Concert at St. Johns Church, Moulsham Street Sat. 14th June - LD Awareness event at High Chelmer shopping Centre Sun 29th June - Larkrise School fete Sat 5th July - Dancing at the fantastic Walthamstock Festival in Chelmsford.

For further details please contact Jean Hunter on 01245 357893 or 07950 202279 - Thank You.

The Streets of Old Moulsham

A picture is worth a thousand words (or so an old Chinese proverb goes) – so here’s a picture; the streets of Old Moulsham. These are the residential street/neighbourhoods across Old Moulsham – check our map on www.moulshamfirst.org.uk. Is yours missing? Let us know.

The big question, do you feel part of your neighbourhood? Does your street feel safe? What improvements do you want to see? Join with us to get messages across: moulshamfirst@btinternet.com. What can you do to help?

Here’s an alphabetical list of the names in the picture:Anchor Street, Baker Street, Belle Vue, Bouverie Road, Bradford Street, Braemar Avenue, Burns Crescent, Cherry Garden Lane, County Place, Douglas Walk, Elm Road, Finchley Avenue, Fortinbras Way, Fraser Close, George Street, Godfery’s Mews, Goldlay Avenue, Goldlay Gardens, Goldlay Road, Grove Road, Hall Street, Hamlet Road, Hart Street, Hayes Close, Lady Lane, Lynmouth Avenue, Lynmouth Gardens, Manor Road, Marlborough Road, The Meades, Mews Court, Mildmay Road, Mildmay Walk, Moulsham Chase, Moulsham Drive, Moulsham Street, New London Road, New Writtle Street, Nursery Road, Oaklands Crescent, Orchard Street, Parker Road, Pearce Manor, Queen Street, Redcliffe Road, Redmayne Drive, Regal Close, Rochford Road, Roman Road, Rosebery Road, Rothesay Avenue, Seymour Street, St John’s Road, St Johns Avenue, St Michael’s Road, St Mildred’s Road, St Vincent’s Road, Stapleford Close, Upper Bridge Road, Upper Chase, Upper Roman Road, Van Dieman’s Lane, Vicarage Road, Wallace Crescent, Wellmeads, Wolseley Road, Writtle Road, York Road.

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www.moulshamtimes.com

Mind, Body and Spirit Festival in Chelmsford Supports Helen Rollason Cancer Charity Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th June sees Life Arts’ first Mind Body and Spirit Festival in Marconi Sports and Social Club.

Life Arts has teamed up with the European Buddhist-Hanmi Association to provide a weekend packed with complementary therapies, spiritual guidance, health advice, meditation space, workshops and healing music.

On offer will be a range of treatments including Reflexology, Crystal Healing and Hot Stone Massage, gifts such as jewellery, books and healing herbs, plus psychics and readers with specialties such as aura photography, clairvoyance and psychic artistry.

“I admire so much Helen Rollason and the charity that is her legacy,” he explains. “They work with complementary therapies in a similar way to me, so to support this charity is very close to my heart and touches the soul.”

“Like so many of us I have lost people close to me due to cancer, including my best friend” he continues. “Fifteen years ago I worked with my first cancer patient. She was a young mother and told me she only had a matter of weeks to live. Desperately needing something for herself, she found being treated with Indian head massage, infused with Reiki, in her words, “gave me peace, space and relaxation.” I have always felt it a great honour and privilege to have been part of that experience and those moments have stayed with me ever since.”

The European Buddhist-Hanmi Association which moved its Dari Rulai Fa Yin Temple to the New Marconi Club in 2012, will be hosting a Meditation Workshop on 7th June, donating all proceeds to Helen Rollason, too. This is part of its “give to receive” principal.

There will also be workshops on subjects as diverse as Your Simple Path by best-selling inspirational author and speaker, Ian Tucker, sound healing from Johnty Wilks and Faery Magic with Flavia Kate Peters.

The main stage will play host to demonstrations and performances from, Kevin Doe’s Aura Interpretations, Kula Tribal Belly Dance and composer and pianist Ian Haywood, to name but a few.

The festival is at Marconi Sports and Social Club, Tydemans, off Beehive Lane, Chelmsford from 10 till 5 each day.

Entrance is £3.50 for adults, £2.50 for concessions and 16s and under are free.

For more information about the event visit www.lifearts.co.uk where you can download the full weekend programme.

The entrance fee after costs plus all proceeds from a raffle and a special clairvoyant evening with Sue Hudd and Maureen Flynn, will be donated to the Helen Rollason Cancer Charity.

Chris Cozens, who established Life Arts in 1998, has been organising Mind Body and Spirit Events since 1999 and ensures all exhibitors are selected by merit, integrity, experience and professionalism, has very personal reasons for supporting the charity.

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The Beaten Track - Park Run Life by Baz Stevens My predictable mid-life crisis hit home about three years ago. I woke up on my 42nd birthday a bit blurry from the previous night’s celebrations. I looked at myself in the mirror, all pot-bellied with ‘wisdom highlights’ at my temples and a feeling that I shouldn’t feel quite so tired only five minutes after getting up. I knew I was a good couple of stone overweight, and I definitely felt lardy and knackered.

What to do? I could have bought a sports car, or started dressing as a teenager, or reaching for the Just For Men. Instead, I went for a jog. I’d always loved running when I was younger (which on reflection was actually about twenty five years ago – where does the time go!?) I dug some trainers out of a dusty recess at the bottom of the wardrobe and hit the street. Fifteen minutes later I heaved my purple faced bulk back indoors and nearly threw up. It was a start. Turns out the hardest thing isn’t the first run, it’s pulling on the trainers and heading out to do it again.

I got better. I went for longer, and further, and I kept my breakfast down with increasing regularity. Fast forward a couple of years and I’m now a committed runner. I manage about 30 miles per week, with a mix of long runs, and the faster 5k Parkruns* at weekends.

My wife puts up with my sweaty kit and my ever growing trainer collection. I think she likes the slim-line husband, but could probably live without the dayglo Lycra. My kids think this is all normal now.

Danny is only seven, but he’s already a veteran of 5 Parkruns. He has yet to get round the 5k without a teensy moan about aching legs, but somehow manages to find the energy to race to the playground after the finish. He loves seeing the people, kids, dogs and prams all surging away from the start line together. He puts his arms out like a plane and makes whooshing noises. Yes, I join in.

His twin sister Beth is an enthusiastic spectator. She has been a marshal already, and loves whizzing about at home or at school pretending to be a runner just like daddy. Last week she announced that she would like to come to Parkrun with me. This is at 8:15 Saturday morning, about 45 minutes before the fella with the megaphone shouts ‘GO!’ Grab PC, log on, register, print barcode, locate PE kit, change, into car, off we go.

Halfway there we get shunted by another car at the roundabout.

Nothing serious, apologies are made, details are swapped and we hit the road again. This means we arrive later than usual so we run from the car park to the start line. I count this as an opportunity for a warm up, Beth counts it as the run for the day. I know this when we get 50 metres into the race proper and she stops dead in her tracks “I think that’s enough for today daddy. Can we go and get a hot chocolate now?” I sigh, press ‘stop’ on my ridiculous running watch, and we head to Pret instead of father and daughter running glory. The hot chocolate is well worth it, and the cookies don’t hurt either. Beth reckons that’s enough for her running career, she’s been there and done it now.

her smiles were a million times bigger than mine, so I think we both know who the winner really was. *Parkrun is a free timed 5k run that takes place every Saturday morning in Central Park. It’s organised by volunteers and is open to anyone of any ability. Some people walk the whole thing, some push for personal bests every week, some volunteer, and some just like to show their support. It’s recently celebrated its first anniversary, and now sees over 300 people gather every week. It’s a fabulous community, which Chelmsford should be proud of. Check out the website, you’ll be glad you did. http://www.parkrun.org.uk/chelmsfordcentral Baz Stevens was born and raised in Chelmsford back when it was just another Essex town. Now that it’s a big old city he likes to pull on his trainers and run around it for fun. If you see him shuffling towards you clad in synthetic materials staring intently at his Ridiculous Watch, don’t be afraid, please just steer him away from that looming lamp post.

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My longest run so far has been 26.2 miles at the Edinburgh Marathon. Beth’s has been 15 seconds across Central Park. Thing is,

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