Moulsham Times November 2019

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Issue Number 81 - November 2019

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MT Welcome

Hi readers,

Welcome to the November edition of Moulsham Times.

We are approaching the end of another year, and there are lots of events happening in the run up to Christmas; pick up a copy of the City Times to view the listings pages for many local events.

If you wish to advertise in this magazine and reach 9,000 local readers, please telephone or email. You can find our contact details below.

Remember too that you can also view our magazines online at www. issuu.com/itsyourmedia.

Enjoy your month!

Regards Paul

Advertising & Editorial Paul Mclean 01245 262082 / 07595 949701 paul@moulshamtimes.com

It’s Your Magazines Ltd Disclaimer: It’s Your Magazines Ltd publish the Moulsham Times. The opinion expressed in each article is the opinion of its author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of It’s Your Magazines Ltd. No part may be reproduced without the prior written permission of It’s Your Magazines Ltd. Reg Co No. 12080535. Printed by Printwize.

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MT Therapy - by Chelmsford Therapy Rooms Hi everyone! In the last issue I mentioned that I had some more very exciting news for you. I can now share with you that Chelmsford Therapy Rooms are expanding!

Due to the business growing so much we have now reached the stage where we need more room to accommodate the numbers of people seeking our help, as well as the number of therapists joining CTR. We will be moving to Baddow Road imminently and our new premises will have a fresh new look and much more room. To start off with we will have two therapy rooms, quickly expanding to three early next year. We’ll have a reception and waiting area and limited free onsite parking. The expansion doesn’t stop there though; I have chosen a premises that we can grow into, including space for two more therapy rooms (taking the total to 5 within the next 18 months) and a space for business training for therapists. I’m so excited to share this with you because the therapists who are members of CTR can grow their own businesses and see more clients, meaning we can help even more people seeking therapy.

The journey of Chelmsford Therapy Rooms has been an exciting one so far and I’m so pleased to be able to offer our services to more people. I’m not going to lie, it’s been a stressful experience! But it will all be worth it when we open the new premises - and that will be very soon. We’ll keep Perception House for a short transition period, but clients and therapists will be able to access and use the room from the 4th November. I’m still working on all the admin that goes on behind the scenes, including updating the website etc, but at least the new premises will be up and running very soon.

Talking about stress, sometimes when we’re feeling stressed it can lead us to feel down and demotivated. I often say to people that I’m the queen of procrastination! Today I’m sharing a coping technique with you that you can use if you’re finding it hard to get motivated...

3. Imprint Your Positive Image: Now think about what it is you have to do that you just can’t seem to get motivated about. The image you have is probably quite dull and the sounds and smells not as prominent and the general feeling not very positive. Remember that amazing positive image you had before? Imprint it onto the negative one. Literally put the good image on top of the bad one and let them fuse together, let the amazing colours and sounds and smells merge so you come up with a new image of the activity you have to do that is much brighter and easier to see.

4. Enhance the Image: Now enhance the new image of the activity you have to do, enhance all the amazing bright colours, the sights and sounds, the amazing feeling of achievement you will have once you have completed this activity. You should feel the same positive feeling about this image as you did about the first positive image. If you don’t, you just need to go back and revisit your positive image again and make it brighter etc, or you may consider choosing a different memory. This technique works because you are creating positive expectations about the activity you need to do. The power of the mind is an amazing thing and once you have learned this simple technique, you will be able to motivate yourself to achieve even the dullest of tasks - even doing your tax return (which is what I use it for!).

Now go forth... and be motivated!

Jenny Hartill is a therapist and owner of Cloud9 Therapy and Chelmsford Therapy Rooms. She is a counsellor and hypnotherapist and can help with a multitude of issues. Please see the therapist list on the at website www.chelmsfordtherapyrooms.co.uk, or you can email info@chelmsfordtherapyrooms.co.uk, or call 0330 100 5162 to enquire about an initial consultation. Alternatively, Jenny’s own company website is www.cloud9-therapy.co.uk, her email is info@ cloud9-therapy.co.uk and her telephone number is 07507 307 170.

At times, we’ve all felt an absolute lack of motivation to do something, sometimes even when it’s a positive activity that we know we’ll really enjoy. The fact of the matter is that if you don’t expect something to be positive, you won’t be motivated to do it - It’s as simple as that. Sometimes when we’re feeling low, nothing can seem positive, even when an activity that we know deep down is going to be enjoyable, the fact we’re feeling down makes the world look like a dull place and motivation flies right out of the window on a rocket powered shuttlecraft to settle on a far distant planet.

It is in fact really quite easy to make your motivation fly straight back through that window. This technique requires visualisation and you must repeat this technique at least 4-5 times per activity that you need to be motivated for in order for it to be really effective. You are going to reprogramme your mind to believe a positive expectation about an activity, which will in turn cause you to be motivated to do it.

Follow these steps to feel motivated about absolutely anything: 1. Positive Visualisation: Think of a memory where you felt an amazing sense of achievement. It could be anything, you may have a few memories, but you need to pick something where the image is easy to visualise and you can hold the image in your mind. If you can think of a time where you felt extremely happy and content, or strong and confident that’s fine, just make sure you can hold this image in your mind.

2. Enhance the Image: Now imagine the image getting brighter, use all of your senses, enhance everything about the image the visual aspects become brighter and more pronounced, the sounds are louder, the smells are greater, in turn your positive emotional reaction to that image becomes even more fantastic as a result. Concentrate on this image for 30 seconds or so, absorb yourself in it. Make it absolutely unforgettable so that you feel completely amazing when you think of this image.

4 www.moulshamtimes.com

Black Friday Record Releases @ Intense Records If you love your vinyl, then you will be well aware of Record Store Day, a special celebration held in April, when independent record stores come together with artists to celebrate vinyl, and artists and bands release special limited edition records. The people behind Record Store Day decided to mark another special day on the calendar Black Friday. This year Black Friday falls on Friday 29th November 2019 and Intense Records in Chelmsford will be taking part.

Record Store Day has worked hard to shift the culture of Black Friday.

Moving away from being a mass-produced, low-as-you-can-go event, and instead concentrating on offering music fans a selection of exclusive and special releases. It’s also a great way to kick off the Christmas gifting season, offering customers the opportunity to get something unique for their friends and family this holiday.

This year Intense will be stocking a whole host of exclusive releases from iconic artists such as U2, Arcade Fire, Alice Cooper, Aretha Franklin, The Comet is Coming, James Brown, Kings Of Leon, Lewis Capaldi, NAS, Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, Sid Vicious, Slipknot and The Doors amongst many more. Our favourites include a festiveinspired picture disc from Jimi Hendrix dressed as Santa Claus, rare recordings from Miles Davis and Elvis Presley on vinyl for the first time ever, and a Motown compilation of rare and unreleased tracks from the vault. The soundtrack of Robert Rodriguez’s classic Desperado also gets its first ever vinyl release on ‘blood & gunpowder’ coloured vinyl.

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So make sure you get down to Intense early before they sell out!

If you can’t make it on the day, items will be listed on the Intense website the following day - check out www.intenserecords.com.

Open from 8am-8pm, Intense Records (located under the arches near the train and bus stations) will be putting on an in-store party with live acts and DJs. For more information call 01245 347 372 or visit at 33/34 Viaduct Road, Chelmsford CM1 1TS. www.intenserecords.com

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Chelmsford - by Vicky Ford MP If a week is a long time in politics, then the past month must be record breaking.

The Queen’s Speech paves the way for a further 20,000 police across the UK. In Essex we are receiving funding for an additional 135 officers on top of the 368 increase over the past two years. In fact, September was a record month for new applications to join Essex Police. There are also new measures to tackle county lines drug gangs, to equip more officers with tasers, and to strengthen the sentencing of offenders. The Domestic Abuse Bill enhances protections for victims.

Funding for infrastructure, schools and the NHS has also been increased. Chelmsford has already been awarded the largest infrastructure grant in the country of £218 million to deliver our second railway station and a north east bypass. Funding for the A12 widening between Chelmsford and Colchester has also been agreed.

All six Chelmsford secondary schools and 16 primary schools will also benefit from a significant step up in funding, and extra resources will be available for special educational needs. As well as this, Broomfield Hospital has opened a new ward providing modern, dementia-friendly facilities for elderly patients.

On the environment, the UK has already reduced carbon emissions faster than any other developed economy and is the first major economy to commit to Net-Zero. At the recent UN General Assembly meetings in New York, we in Britain led the global effort to help poorer countries address climate change challenges and to protect the world’s oceans. The new Environment Bill will deliver a step change for the environment including by improving air and water quality, reducing plastic waste, improving recycling and restoring habitats for plants and wildlife. I joined volunteers for Chelmsford’s autumn riverside litter pick. I was delighted to learn that the amount of litter in

our river and on its banks has reduced. Keep up the good work!

Since becoming your MP, lots of people have spoken to me about veterans. I am pleased that a new Office for Veteran Affairs has been established with support from the highest possible levels in order to support ex-servicemen and women. It’s great to welcome Blesma, The Limbless Veterans armed-forces charity, to Chelmsford - Blesma has moved its head office to our city. They do amazing work in communities across the UK assisting serving, and ex-service men and women, who have suffered life changing limb loss or the loss of use of a limb, an eye or sight.

In Chelmsford, work continues to deliver a long-term solution to the Army and Navy. Removing the existing flyover is a very specialised project, but the good news is that Essex County Council is now well on its way to securing a contractor for this role, and a number of options are being considered for the long-term replacement of the junction.

Engineers are working on the detail and a public consideration of the various options will be commencing as soon as this is available.

I am concerned about the decision to restrict access for 14 and 15-year-olds at Riverside Leisure Centre. This has caused great distress to many of those affected. The vast majority of our young people are caring and considerate and they want to make a positive impact on our communities. Riverside had received some complaints about the behaviour of certain young people in the gym, however, it does seem disproportionate to punish all young users as a result. Furthermore, physical activity helps to maintain a healthy weight, improve self-confidence and enhances attention levels and performance at school.

At the time of writing, Boris Johnson has secured a new Brexit deal with the other 27 EU countries. After such a long time of uncertainty this gives us a chance to get Brexit done whilst also safeguarding many jobs and caring for those most directly affected. Our country has been divided for too long and I firmly hope this deal will get the support of Parliament, allowing us all to come together and move on.

St John’s and St Luke’s - by Rev Gemma Fraser You may have walked past St John’s in the past couple of weeks and seen that the Moulsham War Memorial which stands in the churchyard is screened off. After many years of being worn down by the weather, Chelmsford City Council and the War Memorials Trust have joined together to fund its restoration.

November is a time that we focus on remembrance. We remember those who lost their lives in the two world wars, but also anyone caught up in the many conflicts since.

We remember because it’s important. I have never lived through a war, and I’m sure most of us here don’t have any direct experience of war other than what we hear or see through TV or radio, but we are directly affected by the First and the Second World War as they made our world what it is today. We are free to live the way we choose to because when some tried to take away that freedom, millions of people fought for us to keep it.

We remember because we need to learn the lessons that war teaches us. Today we remember all the people that gave their lives so that our world could be a better place, but we also remember that war is never a good thing.

I start to see you as less than human because you are different.

War starts when I think I can take away your right to go to school, to work, to choose your own future, war starts when I am prepared to hurt you because you believe something different to me, when I want something that you have and am prepared to do whatever it takes to get it.

War isn’t glory, it’s not Call of Duty (if you don’t know what that is, ask a teenager) and heroes. At St John’s we have the stories of the people that are listed on the war memorial and they make desperate reading; some died fighting, but many died of the flu, or pneumonia.

Some died years after they returned home of injuries sustained, family members took their own lives because life was unbearable without them. War is people dying; not just soldiers, but the children caught in the middle. War is people driven out from their homes forever, people broken because of the things that they have seen.

The Bible tells us that there will be a time when there will be no more war, but we’re not there yet - we’re still in a world where war is common and people lose their lives every day.

We are called to be part of the answer, standing against division, against the dehumanisation of others and willing to buck the trend and make sacrifices for peace. It has to start with us - and we can only do that if we remember.

Gemma

War starts when I think that I am more valuable than you are, when 6 www.moulshamtimes.com

Moulsham and Central Ward 20mph Zone - What’s the Point?

I am regularly contacted by local residents about the lack of enforcement of the Old Moulsham 20mph zone. Many people understandably wonder what the point of the zone is if it isn’t being enforced.

As a city councillor, highways don’t fall under my remit (they come under the control of Essex County Council), but it’s an important issue, so I did some investigation.

First of all, I’ve been advised that the purpose of 20mph zones is not to make everyone travel at that speed, but instead to reduce the average speed in an area. According to the latest Department for Transport (DfT) research, the average speed of cars in a 30mph speed limit is 31mph. In a 20mph speed limit, that average speed is reduced to 26mph. Assuming that our Old Moulsham zone follows those national statistics, that would be good news - the whole point of reducing speed limits is to reduce the number of accidents and keep everyone safe.

The big problem of course, isn’t about people not sticking strictly to the 20mph limit, but those who continue to drive at excessive, unsafe speeds on our roads. So, like many of you who have contacted me about this, I would expect the police to carry out enforcement action on those who seem to have no regard for the safety of others.

Unfortunately, the second point that I have been made aware of is that the police say they cannot enforce 20mph zones due to a lack of resources. So, it would appear that a speed limit isn’t really a speed limit unless the police have the capacity to enforce it. Certainly not an ideal situation, but with over 500 fewer police officers in Essex than we had in 2010, I guess that this is just another consequence of under investment in our police force.

Thirdly, it turns out that the Old Moulsham 20mph zone is a pilot scheme. If it is deemed to have been successful, similar schemes may be rolled out in other areas around Chelmsford.

Part of the process of the scheme is that we have to wait for six months from when the zone took effect (June 2019) before we move on to the next stage of the pilot, which is to have automatic traffic counters installed. After that, the Local Highways Panel (LHP) will look at the data from those counters and determine whether further traffic calming measures, such as speed bumps, should be installed.

My city council ward colleagues and I would like to arrange a public meeting to discuss this further when the results of the traffic counters are known. Watch this space, although it will be a good few months before that happens.

Finally, I’d like to say thank you to everyone who has been adhering to the 20mph limit. Remember, this isn’t about making journey times longer, this is about making lives longer; a child hit by a car travelling at 20mph is far more likely to survive their injuries than a child hit by a car travelling at 30mph.

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MT Health

5 Tips to Help Low Back Pain - by Chris at Forté Physical Health

The statistic says that 80% of us will experience low back pain in our lifetime, which is a lot, but I’m sure it must be more! Maybe I have a skewed perspective of reality because I’m an osteopath - everyone I see has (or had) a problem - the healthy ones don’t end up in the clinic! But either way, many of you readers will have had some experience with back pain, either acutely (which lasts days or weeks), or chronically (which lasts months or more).

Pain is a funny thing and it can play tricks with your mind. Today, I’m going to give you 5 tips to manage acute low back pain so that when injury strikes, you are able to stay calm and accelerate your recovery.

Tip 1: Don’t Panic!

When acute pain strikes, your brain can feel like the scene in Airplane! where they’re told not to panic. Your thoughts go into overdrive wondering how long the pain will last, will it be forever, are you going to be able to enjoy your hobbies again, will it get worse?

And on and on.

The thing to remember is that these thoughts are entirely normal and go hand in hand with acute pain. When an injury occurs, your immune system goes through a cycle that lasts a few days and can be incredibly painful, but it doesn’t last forever.

Pay attention to your thoughts, let them go, and move on to taking positive steps like the ones below.

Tip 2: Keep Moving Our intuitions tell us that pain is there to let our brain know about tissue damage happening in the body, but this is not strictly true.

Pain is there to change your behaviour. So yes, when you are in pain, you will walk differently, you will be slower, you will make different choices with your body so the pain doesn’t strike, but this doesn’t mean the pain is a bad thing.

Pain will catch you out from time to time, often unexpectedly, but it’s not your body’s way of saying that more damage is happening, it’s just reminding you that you are not quite ready for that movement pattern yet. Your body will find a new way to complete the task instead (i’ve seen some very creative ways of putting one’s shoes on in the clinic!).

Even if things hurt, it’s still very helpful to keep moving. All sorts of amazing things happen, even when you are going for a slow walk. The gentle ambulation massages and nourishes the muscles, joints and connective tissues and it sends helpful neurological information up to the brain.

You know what I always say: Movement is medicine and motion is the lotion!

Tip 3: Stretch the Hips and Shoulders When you are in pain, it is human nature to focus on the painful area, but you are a complex machine and all your moving parts talk to each other. You have networks of muscle criss-crossing your body.

By stretching the hips and shoulders, you will help to release some of the tension that builds up due to the low back pain.

stressing the lower back.

Head over to our YouTube channel and search ‘Forte Physical Health’ for some ideas on where to get started.

Tip 4: Heat or Ice? This question confuses everyone and to be honest, I can never give a clear, single answer either! The research keeps flip-flopping, but the current thinking is that icing an injury can be helpful for the first day or so, then use heat. This is because inflammation isn’t the baddie we once thought, but it is an essential part of the healing response.

Ice blocks the production of inflammation which may not be helping things, whereas heat improves blood flow which helps your body drain it away once it’s done its thing.

However, I have some patients who love icing their injuries. In those cases, I don’t stop them! There may be other reasons why it helps them, ranging from neurological pain blocking effects to just a psychological placebo type effect. Equally, some people love the calming, soothing effect of heat. If that’s you, then go for it.

Either way, ice or heat, the point of them is to help you move more freely and more confidently. Movement is the true medicine.

Tip 5: Seek Help The majority of low back pain episodes get better fairly quickly, but seeing someone like an osteopath does two main things; firstly, it will get you better faster so that you can get back to doing all the fun things in your life. Secondly, it will help you understand why the problem happened and how to build a plan so it doesn’t happen again. This may involve some lifestyle changes or some exercises to help improve your body’s function.

There are people out there to help you with anything in life, it just so happens this is the sort of thing an osteopath can help with!

Lower back pain is likely to affect most of us at some point in our life.

If you have any questions about it, please feel free to email info@ fortephysicalhealth.co.uk, or call for a chat to see if we can help you on 01245 522 360.

Deadlines for the December edition: Articles - 13th November Print ready art work - 21st November

Stretching other parts of your body is often easier than stretching where it hurts, but it will still have direct and positive results. Many of our hip muscles also attach to the lower back and so do some of our shoulder muscles. Stretching these can ease the pain without 8

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MT Gardening This is a great time of the year to start thinking ahead to next year in terms of improving your garden soil.

For me, there is nothing better than adding organic matter to the beds and borders. There are two ways in which organic matter is used in the garden, firstly as a soil conditioner and secondly as a mulch.

Soil Conditioners A soil conditioner is anything that is dug into a soil to improve it and/ or improve the way it behaves. Organic matter is a very effective soil conditioner. It improves the soil by: • • •

Improving Soil Structure: Organic matter will open up clay soil more effectively than grit or sand. It will add to the moisture holding ability of a sandy soil.

Adding Nutrients: Organic matter will add nutrients to the soil. It completes the nitrogen and carbon cycles therefore mimicking a natural environment.

Encouraging Soil Organisms: Soil organisms break down organic matter into humus, which is organic matter that has been partially broken down. Humus has a high cation exchange capacity. This is important as it increases the fertility of a soil.

Mulches Mulches are layers of material spread on the soil surface that are increasingly used in horticulture to carry out a number of functions.

• •

• •

prevented from growing and weed seeds are less likely to germinate if covered with a thick layer of mulch. A depth of around 5cm to 7cm is optimum.

Mulches help even out soil temperature fluctuations, helping soil to remain cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.

They protect the soil surface from capping, acting as a physical barrier preventing damage by heavy rain or coarse sprinklers.

Mulches usually end up being cultivated into the soil, and so help to improve soil structure.

Organic matter comes in many forms: • • • • • • • •

Farmyard Manure: Good for improving clayey soils.

Poultry Manure: Use with caution as it is very strong.

Sewage Sludge: Never use raw sewage, buy dried processed material.

Spent Mushroom Compost: Tends to be slightly alkaline, and so care should be taken when applying around ericaceous plants.

Garden Compost: Variable, as it is only as good as the materials composted. Good for improving soil structure and water holding capacity.

Cocoa Shells: Used mainly as a mulch.

Bark: Available ground or chipped. Slow to breakdown and can rob nitrogen from the soil.

Leaf Mould: Low in nutrients but very effective at improving soil structure, especially as it is slow to break down. Leaf mould tends to be acidic.

Pick a cool autumnal day for adding organic matter, and if too wet, wait until spring next year.

They conserve soil moisture by cutting down on the amount of water lost by evaporation from the soil surface.

They suppress weed growth. Many annual weeds can be

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Quiz Time by John Theedom 1.

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What type of paintings did Joshua Reynolds do?

Which is the most powerful piece in the game of chess?

What word connects goal, plimsoll and story?

In which country did the dog known as a kelpie originate?

Which BBC reporter has just died aged 77?

What is the meaning of shuck?

Which political party did Gladstone belong to?

What is the highest number used in a Sudoku puzzle?

In Sumo wrestling, what is the name of the ring in which the contest is held?

What is the term for a section of a garlic bulb?

Why should fruit never be cooked in a copper pan?

What is the meaning of réchauffé?

What is meant by triage?

If you are curating, what are you doing?

Gneiss is a type of what material?

What is a ziggurat?

In Morse code, a single dot represents which letter?

Why is Phil Collins having to use a wheelchair?

How many times has John Cleese been married?

Who is the MP for Witham?

When were the first traffic lights introduced in the UK? How old is Dame Helen Mirren?

What is Boris Johnson’s mother’s name?

How did James Dean die, aged 24?

Which was the first British monarch to be caught on film in 1896?

Why did the singer Sinead O’Conner tear up a picture of Pope John Paul II? What do the initials FBI stand for?

What is ‘Lingua Franca’?

Fred Dibna was famous for what?

Which US singer had a hit with the song All Night Long?

From which sitcom do we get the phrase: ‘This time next year, we’ll be millionaires’?

Who was nicknamed the Iron Lady?

Which is the wading bird with a very long beak?

On a qwerty keyboard, which key is to the left of ‘A’?

In the children’s rhyme, ****** the Elephant, what was the name of the female elephant?

In which country is the River Indus?

What is singer Sting’s real name?

What unit is used to measure horses?

Who is the comedy actor Mr Lyndhurst?

What is the distinguishing feature of a marsupial?

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11

Nick Garner’s Music & Ramblings

Quite a lot has gone on since the last edition with the sad passing of some old friends of mine. Some who were well known and some who were not. It must be a sign that I am getting older - I have written myself a note to stay young and reckless for as long as possible...

A little sad news to start with. I have just heard that John Mayall has had to cancel the rest of his UK and European tour due to ill health.

Mayall is the godfather of British blues, without whom we would probably not have Fleetwood Mac, Eric Clapton or Mick Taylor to name just a few. Why do I mention this I hear you ask? Well, our very own Connor Selby and his good mate Joe Anderton were due to open for him on the tour, but this is now being postponed until 2020. We really hope Connor and Joe can still be a part of it. They are also (as part of Connor’s full band) opening for The Who on their UK arena tour next year.

Reviews We have recently had some really good live music in the city. Paolo Morena returned to the UB with a special guest joining him. What a great night he put on too - the UB was rammed. The UB also put on the Undiscovered Band, who played a mix of funk, jazz and soul. They got the whole place buzzing and then came back as a duo to play a Sunday session with just guitar and vocals.

I went to the Civic Theatre to see Voodoo Room - who play Jimi Hendrix, Cream and Eric Clapton songs - recently. This was on an invitation so I was open-minded about it. I have to say, both Jan and I were very impressed - this trio was just so good and I cannot recommend them highly enough. The following night at the UB my friend Dave Sharp of the Alarm played. I swear he just gets better every time, what a show.

What a shame it is when two great acts play Chelmsford on the same night. I could only be at one show and chose the football club. meanwhile, The Ugly Guys were playing in the city, who I also have booked for 6th December opening for Los Pacaminos featuring Paul Young.

The football club had 70’s soul legends Kokomo playing recently, and still with six of the original members in the band. Opening was a local soul covers band called 5.com. I didn’t really know what to expect as I had only seen a couple of videos, but they were good. In fact, they were extremely good and ones I would certainly book again.

Next up was Kokomo. We thought with this line-up (and after hearing the soundcheck) that they would be good, but they exceeded our expectations.

The playing, the singing and the showmanship came together for a fantastic complete show that just stunned us all. One of my volunteers Jenni said that she did not think I was into soul music, but this band have just blown me away. So what else could I do but book them to return and play for Christmas 2020? Job done!

Up & Coming The first thing to say is pick up a copy of the City Times where you will find a pretty comprehensive What’s On guide.

Over the next few weeks at the football club we have some great shows booked. It’s also good to see that The Compasses in Broomfield Road is up and running with live music now too, as this is not only a great venue but it is also a fine and a very friendly pub.

At the football club on the Thursday 7th November, we have Full 12

House. This is a band that features musicians who have played and recorded with the legendary Frankie Miller. Luckily, they found singer Gregor McGregor who is nearest thing to Miller that you are likely to hear. Also playing are the SharpeeZ who include Loz Netto and feature Bill Mead’s great songs. Tickets are just £15 in advance and doors open at 7.30pm.

On Sunday 17th November we have a mini fest with (mainly) acts from Black Frog. The doors will open at noon and the event will run from 1pm-10pm. Tickets are just £15 in advance. Headlining will be The Robbie McIntosh Band. Robbie is guitarist to the stars - if you have seen the Elton John film Rocketman, it’s mainly Robbie playing the guitar throughout. We are also lucky to have Connor Selby with Joe Anderton perferming as a duo, as they had expected to be opening for John Mayall (as mentioned above). Other confirmed acts are Roy Mette’s Dangerous Daydream, The Delta Ladies and Jamie Williams and the Roots Collective.

Our Christmas show is on Friday 6th December with doors opening at 7.30pm. Performing will be Los Pacaminos featuring Paul Young. A stupendous act playing their mix of Tex Mex as well as having a lot of fun. Opening as special guests will be The Ugly Guys (with Paul and Vic of the Kursaal Flyers and Bob from Micky Jupp) playing a mix of country and Americana. Tickets in advance are just £23.

For all the football club shows, please see the advert in this magazine for where to get tickets and the venue address.

At the UB we host great events every Friday, Saturday and Sunday and sometimes on a Monday too. The One Tree Hillbillies are booked on 4th November, and on the second Wednesday of the month is Joe’s regular open mic night. Once a month on a Thursday we also have Blues & Roots in the City (see the advert on page 24 for details of this month’s event).

The UB puts on many varied nights, and I am pleased to be involved.

We believe you will not see quite so much original music being played anywhere locally for free.

Once again, do please check out the listings in the City Times listings not just for music, but for everything that the public can attend. If you know of something going on then please drop an email to editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk.

As ever, please do try to come out and support the great live scene that we have in Essex, because if you do not - we may lose it. For information on all of the above and more see the links below and or pick up a copy of the City Times and go to the What’s On pages to see what else in happening in your area. If you go to our Facebook pages, check out the ‘Events’ tabs to see who is playing and preview up-andcoming acts. www.itsyourmusic.co.uk www.facebook.com/itsyourmusic/events Twitter: @itsyourmusic www.facebook.com/theunitedbrethren/events www.visitessex.com/events If you are putting on, or know of, any events that should be publicised in either Moulsham or City Times, then please email editorial@ itsyourmedia.co.uk.

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Local Kitchen Showroom Receives National Award and Commendations Founded in 1978. the KBSA is the only trade association operating specifically for the KBB industry, and represents independent KBB specialists.

Trade body The Kitchen, Bedroom, Bathroom Specialists Association (KBSA) announced the winners of its 2019 Designer Awards at the Stratford Manor Hotel in Stratford upon Avon. The awards were presented following the KBSA conference and AGM on Wednesday 25th September by host Kevin Keegan OBE. Regal Kitchens, based in Navigation Road in Chelmsford, scooped the highly sought after Customer Service Award, which was collected by Business Development Manager Emma Mcloughlin, who says: “Our customers will love the fact that we have won this award as it means we are always looking after our clients and showing that they are number one, because... Client is King.”

Regal’s Senior Designer John Martin was also commended in the Kitchen Designs Under £25,000 and Over £50,000 categories.

Showing how varied the different ranges can be, the judges’ comments read: ‘Inspiring to see so much design talent across different price points’.

National chair of the KBSA Richard Hibbert said: “Congratulations to all of the shortlisted designers and the winners. The standards this year were extremely high, reflecting the outstanding talent amongst members that we can all be proud of.”

Why use a KBSA member for you home improvements?

• • • • •

Confidence that you are using a reputable and reliable company.

Satisfaction that your chosen company meets the stringent membership criteria required by the KBSA. Quality in the service, design and installation of your home improvement project.

Security in the knowledge that your money is protected.

Delight in the end result!

Regal Kitchens showroom in Chelmsford is open 10am - 4pm, 7-days per week. www.regalkitchens.co.uk

1 Bridge Street, Writtle, Chelmsford, CM1 3EY 01245 422 891 www.pakwaan.co.uk Mon-Sat 12pm-2.30pm & 5pm-10.30pm Sun 12pm-10pm www.moulshamtimes.com 13

Chelmsford Morris Go Small The men of Chelmsford Morris have held their first Small Spaces dance tour in Moulsham Street.

Starting outside Hopsters, they went on to perform their traditional dances inside and outside the Hop Beer Shop and the Moulsham Tap, and then inside The Cricketers.

“Morris dancing usually needs a big space,” said John Parsons, the group leader. “We have danced inside the Mighty Oak Tap Room in Maldon a couple of times, so we thought we’d try even tinier bars.

We do have to keep the movements much smaller than normal. But being in a small pub gets us closer to the customers for a chat. One or two even said they’d like to have a go.

“We found that the pubs were very welcoming, and the locals seemed to enjoy the disruption. There were a lot of phones taking pictures and videos. We were more than happy to have a pub tour instead of our usual practice night!”

Celia Kemp (bagman) cmbagman@gmail.com www.chelmsfordmorris.co.uk

Vintage Report 2019 During this year’s Farleigh Hospice Open Gardens in June, our Moulsham visitors sensed that we were in for a bumper year with a record crop of grapes. Our vines had been well pollinated, displaying plenty of bulging bunches. So much for the uncertainties and joys of gardening and viticulture!

In August there were annoying patches of downy mildew among the vines, but a few squirts of dilute washing up liquid seemed to do the trick. We had not had any mildew problems for over 25 years, after grubbing up the Muller Thurgau vines, which are prone to that trouble, and replacing with Rollo. We were not unduly worried, but by the end of August we had a disaster on our hands: The beautiful bunches were covered in mildew and shrivelling. By the beginning of September we had lost the lot and sadly said goodbye to the 2019 vintage!

Our botanical adviser had said that only swamping the vines and adjacent garden areas with copper based Bordeaux Mixture would have given us any chance of salvaging the crop. We decided to stick with our organic gardening. It does make us wonder just what we are consuming with shop bought wines if that sort of treatment is normal.

We also heard that others in the Moulsham area had visits from the dreaded mildew too.

There have been some bright sides to this year’s gardening. We have had an amazing crop of outside tomatoes, peppers and chillies.

Beans, peas, courgettes and beetroots have yielded very well too and the scullery shelf sports a great crop of squashes that will keep well into next year.

which is now fizzing merrily in demijohns in the kitchen where the red wine would normally have been.

For anyone interested in the technicalities, it is a much easier process than wine-making. You just get any apples, chop them up (discarding any badly bruised or insect damaged), put the lot through the grape mincer, then into the wine press. Out comes the muddy brown juice which goes straight into the demijohns, leaving a good gap for the fizzing.

In a couple of days it will start fermenting vigorously without the need for any added yeast. In a few more days air locks can be fitted and then it is left for about a month, until fermentation ceases.

The juice will clear and leave a sediment of bits and pieces and dead yeast. We then bottle it and add about a half teaspoon of sugar to each bottle. That restarts the fermentation and adds the sparkle.

However, that sparkle is also pressure and so you must use strong, beer-type bottles with ‘crown’ or snap-over fasteners. Last year we had one explosion during storage! It will all be ready for drinking next summer, a chemical free bonus from otherwise wasted apples.

Best of all, we and many buddies have done well with apples.

We hope to have better luck with the grapes next year. Here’s hoping To compensate for the loss of the grapes, we have put the wine to see you all again at the 2020 Farleigh Hospice Open Gardens on press and associated machinery to good use to produce cider. We 31st May 2020. canvassed friends for their windfalls, collected up our own and anything damaged on the trees and produced a few gallons of cider, Robert & Prue Jones 14 www.moulshamtimes.com

Please quote M&S

Moulsham Infant School Our new Reception children have settled quickly into school life...

Tulip Class Cherry Class

Here is what some of the children have said about their time in school so far: “I love learning outside!”

“Lunch time is so much fun!”

“I have already made 8 friends!”

“My teacher is kind and she helps me!”

“Now I know all of my numbers from 1-10!”

This half term, our Reception children have already had a visit from Charlie Wilson, a story teller, plus their grandparents came to visit for a session so that they could show them their new classroom, friends and outdoor areas. We also had an open afternoon where all grown ups were invited into school to see how their children learn during the school day.

Oak Class

We also held a Parent Information Evening, where our teachers gave valuable information about what, and how, we teach in school as well as ideas for how parents can support their child’s learning at home.

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The Singing Chef Wow this year just flown by - I can’t believe I’m writing for November already; we’re so close to Christmas!

The recipe I have chosen for you this month is super sweet and scrumptious. These brownies are my go-to end of year/Christmas gift for the children’s teachers. They are also easy enough for the kids to make as presents.

I purchased all the ingredients from the new Aldi that has opened on the shambles of a roundabout which is the Army and Navy. These little treats work out costing well under £5 per tray. Pop 4 or 5 into a little bag or box and that’s a perfect, homemade pressie for anyone.

•

powder and add the chocolate chips.

Bake for 35-40 mins.

Don’t put these back in the oven for any more time than this. They should look crispy on top but still very wet underneath. The trick to squidgyness is to just wait... It’s not gonna be easy - I recommend covering the tray of deliciousness with a tea towel and leaving the house for 30 minutes at least! Once cooled you can cut the brownies into squares. Enjoy!

These brownies are beautiful warmed up in the microwave (for about 45 seconds) with ice cream or nice and fudgy at room temperature.

Squidgy Triple Chocolate Brownies 125g unsalted butter.

125g dark chocolate.

300g golden caster sugar.

Pinch of salt.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

2 large free range eggs.

150g plain flower.

2 tbsp cocoa powder.

100g white chocolate chopped in to chunks.

100g milk chocolate chopped in to chunks.

Method • Grease and line a deep backing tray (roughly 30cm20cm).

• Melt together the dark chocolate and butter until smooth.

• Stir in the sugar, salt and vanilla.

• Mix in eggs one at a time.

• Sift in the flour and cocoa

Sarah is a singer and vocal coach based in Chelmsford and offers singing lessons to people of all ages and abilities. You can email Sarah at sarahmtfood@gmail.com or search for ‘Sarah Beth Vocal Coaching’ on Facebook.

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Homelessness in Chelmsford

Christ Church URC, 164 New London Road, Chelmsford. CM2 0AW www.christ-church-chelmsford.com

Homelessness is not a new problem. In generations past, if a teenage girl got pregnant or a young man crossed swords with his dad, they could be thrown out of the family home, but they were not visible homeless to the general public. Often a kindly aunt or the YMCA would step in and offer support. But times have changed, and the fragility of family life and the prevalence of drug addiction has led to more and more people finding themselves without shelter.

Essex Symphony Orchestra Concert (Saturday 16th November) Programme Liadov: The Enchanted Lake Glazunov: Violin Concerto, with soloist Emmanuel Bach Shostakovich: Symphony 5 Date/Time: Saturday 16th November at 7.30pm Venue: Christ Church URC, 164 New London Road, Chelmsford, CM2 0AW Tickets: £14 (under 18s free entry)

In the early 1990s the churches in Chelmsford became concerned for the plight of homeless people and began to offer their church halls for a week at a time so that the homeless had a bed for the night.

This led to the formation of the Chelmsford Churches Homeless Emergency Support Scheme (later to become simply CHESS).

Liquid refreshments will be served during the interval and we hope to attract a large audience for the event. The interval will be a perfect opportunity for both audience and orchestra members to mingle. We would also like to invite our audience members to become Friends of ESO* if they wish to do so. We also have some free tickets on offer for new audience members! Please see full details below.

The organisation has necessarily grown over the last quarter century.

In 2018 CHESS was able to complete a refurbishment at 200 New London Road, bringing together the night shelter (with 9 bedrooms including one for disabled persons), the administration office, plus three consulting rooms for support meetings, counselling and therapies. In all, during last year 187 people were helped by CHESS, either by being accommodated at the CHESS Hub or through the Winter Project (December-March), funded by the Chelmsford City Council. It is hoped that the Council will again be able to offer this support for the coming winter.

Free Ticket Offer!

We will be giving away 20 free tickets to the first few lucky audience members to step through our doors on the night of the concert.

For those who have never seen the Essex Symphony Orchestra in action before, we would love to offer you the chance to see your first concert with us for free! If you are a newcomer, just let us know on the night as you come through the door and if you are one of the first 20 people who have never been to one of our concerts before we will happily give you a free ticket and show you to your complimentary seat!

Rough Sleeping CHESS provides outreach services to rough sleepers in Chelmsford, Epping and Maldon through the No Second Night Out campaign.

Once reports are received through the Street Link portal, support staff try to find the rough sleeper and see if there is any way they can be assisted. Any rough sleepers arriving at the CHESS Hub are offered hot food, drinks, clothing, sleeping bags and tents, as well as the use of showers and clothes washing facilities. This year CHESS provided 526 meals and 774 drinks and met all requests for supplies.

*Details of how to join as a Friend of ESO can be found on our website at www.essexsymphony.org.uk/friends.html. Becoming a friend of ESO is a great way to add social value to your local community in Chelmsford by supporting a long standing local orchestra and cultural scene. You can also become a Corporate Sponsor of ESO and offer support for further communal outreach activities such as our annual children’s event. By becoming a corporate sponsor you will be able to advertise with us in our concert programmes and promote your own business or ventures. Please email us at esofeedback@gmail.com if you are interested. See our concert programme on concert night for more details.

Christ Church URC, down the road from the CHESS Hub, has always supported CHESS and was pleased to be able to assist CHESS in the purchase of the new premises. We know that the annual operating costs of CHESS are running at over £540,000 per year, and this figure would be much higher if it were not for the 88 volunteers who generously commit so much of their time. The economically beneficial impact to the community of CHESS has been assessed as over £2,900,000. Staggering!

If you would like to be a CHESS volunteer, or join me at the Annual Sleep Out at Chelmsford Cathedral on 22nd-23rd November, please visit the CHESS website at www.chesshomeless.org for details.

Pat Bruguier

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Tickets Available From: James Dace & Son Ltd 22 Broomfield Road, Chelmsford, CM1 1SW (01245 352 133, shop@jamesdace.co.uk) Allegro Music 95 High Street, Chelmsford, CM2 0LD (01245 359 899 websales@allegromusic.co.uk) Pam Gladwell 01245 601 418 Online at ticketsource.co.uk (just type in ‘Essex Symphony Orchestra’ in the search box) Or simply turn up at the venue on the night and buy tickets at the door!

Below I have included the link to our ESO website (you can also search for us on Facebook and Twitter): essexsymphony.org.uk

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It’s All About Timing...

Three days at Jungle Junction, Nairobi, repairing and servicing my bike, was the perfect preparation for onward travel south through Africa.

I headed to the Masai Mara Game Reserve feeling positive and confidant as I rode along the dirt road to the reserve. About 10 miles before I arrived, I was riding amongst wildebeest, zebra and giraffe. Wow, I wasn’t expecting these animals to be outside the reserve; it felt amazing, a special moment.

That night I camped outside the main gate of the reserve, and the following day I joined a German couple on a safari. My timing was perfect, as one of the world’s mass animal migrations was underway.

Thousands (maybe tens of thousands) of wildebeest and zebra were migrating north from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Masai Mara in Kenya. I saw lions, elephants, hippos and so many more healthy animals. It was without doubt a highlight of my adventure.

After Kenya, I headed west into Uganda and wasn’t feeling well. As I rode into the capital city, Kampala, I became really quite ill. That evening I met a Ugandan friend who said I must visit a doctor. I usually only need 6 hour’s sleep, but that night I slept for 12 hours and after a coffee, I slept again.

I visited an English doctor that afternoon and was diagnosed with bilharzia, a tropical disease. I was prescribed many tablets and over the following days rested, as I was in no position to ride my motorbike.

I wonder what would have transpired had I been in a remote village,

without access to what I was told was the best doctor in Uganda...

After four days I left Kampala feeling well, and explored more of Uganda and then Rwanda. Jungle, banana plantations, mountains, lakes and wonderful people. Both are beautiful, lush countries.

Rwanda has had much investment since the genocide, it feels modern, with new roads and buildings under construction.

Having circumnavigated Lake Victoria (one of the great lakes in Africa), riding through Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, I entered Tanzania and stared heading south again. Tanzania is mainly dry and arid, not like the countries I had just ridden through. I felt like I was in the Africa I had imagined, with red dirt roads, villages with mud huts and a barren landscape. There are good roads, and a few large cities which have modern shops. However, it was the villages and small towns that I enjoyed most. People engaging with me constantly, all so friendly. It’s all about the people.

South of Tanzania I travelled into Malawi, and rode alongside Lake Malawi for a few days. It’s the fourth largest lake in the world, and in places so wide that it stretches to the horizon. The fishermen use traditional dugout canoes, and the women sell the fish in markets and along the roadside under old wooden shelters. As I have experienced throughout Africa, everyone is so friendly and welcoming.

I’m currently in Zambia, a destination I’ve been looking forward to since I left Chelmsford. Earlier today I visited Victoria Falls, my timing was awful, as it’s the end of the dry season and there was hardly any water. There was little water falling into the Zambezi today!

It’s all about timing. Sometimes good and sometimes not!

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Personal Finance Clinic: The Dangers of DIY Pensions Plenty of pension providers offer do-ityourself pensions. Here, the responsibility for consolidating schemes and investing the proceeds lies with the consumer.

It sounds easy and convenient and it’s usually cheaper than other options, but there is an awful lot that could go wrong.

Consolidation Mistakes The pension providers offer consolidation services to bring all of your old pensions together into a single pot. This is often a good thing to do, but older pensions are not the same as newer schemes.

Sometimes, by consolidating your older schemes, you can end up losing out on some very valuable benefits.

Guaranteed Annuity Rates Older pensions could include guaranteed annuity rates. Some can be very high, promising you a much larger regular pension income (guaranteed for life) than you could secure by shopping around.

Transferring the pension usually results in this benefit being lost.

Higher Tax-Free Cash Usually, you can draw 25% of an invested pension as tax-free cash.

For some older schemes, however, the available tax-free cash can be much higher than this. Transferring into a new scheme usually means forgoing the higher tax-free cash allowance.

Market Value Reductions When a pension is set up, a normal retirement date has to be specified. This is the date that you say you want to take the pension.

Most people will choose 60 or 65, although in practice you are not typically forced to start accessing your pension at the normal retirement date. However, you may wish to consolidate the pension before you reach the normal retirement date. In this case, the scheme can apply a market value reduction to your pension to protect the remaining members of the scheme. In other words, they can reduce the value of your investments or withhold a large portion of your investment returns (possibly as much as 20%), only applying it to your pension when you reach the scheme’s normal retirement date. Transfer out early and risk losing this chunk of cash.

Investing Is Not Quick or Easy There’s an awful lot of information out there, recommending various funds to invest your money in. You can normally sign up for market tips and other such updates, but you might not want to spend 15 hours a week researching investments and reading about macro-economic politics. You probably have enough to do with your own job and family commitments. Or if you are retired, you may actually want to enjoy retirement. Without proper research and a tried and tested methodology for investing, which takes into account your risk profile and time horizon, it’s easy to get things very wrong.

If you don’t have very long until you want to start accessing your pension money, getting the investments wrong at this late stage can be devastating.

withdrawal strategy for clients, taking into account their income needs and other sources of income they have alongside their pensions. In many cases, we can alter how they draw an income in order to save significant amounts of tax. The client still receives the exact same amount of income, but the tax they are paying is heavily reduced, sometimes to nil. If you are looking after your own pension account, it will be up to you to decipher pension and tax rules in order to reduce your tax burden.

Speak to an Adviser Financial advice is not free of course, but a good adviser will be more than worth their fees. Over time, they will save you money and anguish by protecting you from consolidation mistakes, they will invest your money in a way that best suits your needs and they will save you from handing over more money to the tax man than is absolutely necessary. Moreover, they are there to listen to what your real goals in life are - and to assist you in achieving them as soon as possible, helping you protect your family along the way and keeping you up to speed with ever-changing rules and legislation.

Too often, a client will come to see us after something has gone wrong. For example, they maybe did a DIY pension consolidation and lost a lot of money. It’s far better to see a financial adviser before taking action yourself. They can provide you with the benefit of their experience and qualifications to stop you from losing money.

Initial Consultation at No Cost to You Fiducia Wealth Management offers all prospective clients a free initial meeting. There is no cost to you and no obligation, so why not give us a call?

Lauren Peters, Senior Financial Adviser at Fiducia Wealth Management, is a Chartered Financial Planner. She also holds the Pensions Specialist and Later Life Specialist qualifications.

Fiducia Wealth Management has offices at Saxon House, 27 Duke Street, Chelmsford CM1 1HT (01245 950 922) and at Dedham Hall Business Centre, Brook Street, Dedham, Colchester CO7 6AD (01206 321 045).

You can contact Lauren directly via lauren@fiduciawealth.co.uk. www.fiduciawealth.co.uk

Can You Get the Tax Right?

When clients come to see us, they are often amazed at how well we understand pension and taxation rules. Often, we can design a bespoke pension www.issuu.com/itsyourmedia 19

There is a children’s table top sale coming up at St John’s Church Hall, Vicarage Road on the 16th November from 10am till 1pm. The idea is that children manage their own stalls and get a little extra pocket money, while also decluttering the house! It will also help raise funds for a local children’s charity in Chelmsford. Parents can put their feet up for once and watch the kids do the hard work. If you would like a stall for your child, or know someone who might, please let us know. Alternatively, come along to support what should be a really fun and unique event.

New Kids on the Block Not Forgetting the Old One Chelmsford is exceptionally well served for Rotary clubs with five clubs in the city itself up till now. The nearest to the Moulsham area is Chelmsford Rotary Club which is also the longest established, having been chartered in 1927 - it meets at lunchtime on a Thursday.

As Rotary grew, the number of members outgrew the size of the venue so Chelmsford Mildmay was formed and meets on a Tuesday afternoon.

Some working people were finding it difficult to get to lunchtime meetings so an evening club, Chelmer Bridge, was established and then a breakfast club called Chelmsford Rivermead, which enabled people to have a breakfast, do the Rotary business and still be at their office desk by 9am. The evening club was men only, one of the very few single gender clubs still around, so Chelmsford Phoenix arose to cater for local men and women who want to meet in the evening and the club has just celebrated its tenth anniversary.

In January the club will be holding a month long collection for Smalls For Africa - collecting new underwear for girls and women in Africa.

There will be various collection points around Chelmsford. It’s a really easy way to do something supportive and powerful for someone else around the world. If you want to find out more about this collection campaign, look out for further details. Chelmsford City Satellite are looking for collection points and lots of volunteers to help with a busy month of January!

If you want to meet new friends, enjoy a good coffee and change the world a little bit, then we really want to hear from you. You can find us on Facebook (Rotary Satellite Chelmsford City) or send an email to jemmawilliams89@gmail.com and we will let you know when and where our next meeting is.

Well, I said at the beginning there were five Rotary clubs in Chelmsford. Now we have to make that SIX. Plenty of choice now on where and when to meet, and what projects you can get involved with!

A word about Chelmsford Rotary Club as well. On Thursday 21st November it will be arranging its first ever Rotary Together with Business Showcase. This will take place at Hamptons Leisure Centre, Tydemans (off Beehive Lane) between 12pm and 2pm. It is not solely aimed at businesses, but also at individuals interested in finding out more about Rotary and how to become involved.

On the afternoon, sandwiches will be provided free of charge and there is also a licensed bar. If you would like to attend, please email secretary@chelmsford.rotary1240.org, or give me a call on 01245 260 349.

Members of the Satellite club present the profit from its first ever fundraising effort to J’s Hospice Change is ongoing and in an effort to attract younger people, Rotary relaxed its rules and gave greater flexibility to clubs and the idea of Satellite clubs came into being. Satellites are initially set up with assistance from at least one of the other local clubs but they operate in an entirely diverse manner.

The Chelmsford City Satellite is a new and exciting club which does things a bit differently to the other Rotary clubs in the area. Firstly, they meet on a Saturday morning at the Hive Café in Oaklands Park and grab a coffee while talking about issues that we and they are passionate about and how to make a difference. Children and partners are more than welcome - there’s a great park close to the venue too!

Stan Keller

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Meetings last just an hour. It’s a brief but impactful meeting with ideas, discussions and lots of coffee flowing. Although they are a newly formed club, there is no shortage of plans even at this early stage.

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Advertise your Christmas event or thank your customers in the December edition out 28th November!

• 9000 copies of the Moulsham Times • 10,000 copies of the City Times • Discounts available for longer runs or when advertising in both our magazines • Editorial/business interview for regular advertisers

Email paul@moulshamtimes.com for more information or call us on 01245 262082 www.moulshamtimes.com

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Do you need a new website?

Below are a few of the websites we have designed and built!

We also design and supply: business cards flyers roller banners brochures In fact, almost anything that is printed!!

ÂŁ325

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Spot 10 Differences... (answers on page 31)

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Neighbourhood Watch Days Are Darker and Festivities Have Begun - but Stay Alert!

Hi all, your friendly Neighbourhood Ayman here.

It’s so easy to focus on what matters most, which is family and friends, as we get closer to firework nights and Christmas. We start to relax more, shop more and maybe drop our guard a little.

The advice below is not groundbreaking, but we need it to become second nature.

Christmas Present Shopping Don’t leave presents and bags visible in your car or home windows.

If you go out prezzie shopping, consider spreading it out over a few days rather than one mass buy where you might be going back and forth from your car several times.

Online Shopping Many people are looking to shop online with the sales coming up. For online shopping safety tips check out www.getsafeonline.org.

Make Sure Your Home Is Secure Close and lock your windows when you leave your home. Look at your home objectively: does it look like someone is at home? Maybe leave some sound and light on when you’re out.

this main group other NhW coodinators are sharing it with their road.

We have over 500 neighbours connected via mobile, and Facebook is now over 1.2k members.

One Year Anniversary I can’t believe it’s been a year since we started and I’d like to thank everyone for their support. People often say they miss the good old days when neighbours use to talk to each other and cared for each other.

But things have changed, and people aren’t able to see their neighbours like the old days, but we are trying to use technology to bridge that gap and get better connected for the sake of our homes and security.

Through Neighbourhood Watch I’ve seen our community grow stronger and get better connected with the police. Possessions have been found, missing people have been found, pets reunited and crime reduced. I wish I could give you more stats on that, but I am waiting for other avengers to get back to me!

Stay alert Ayman Syed Moulsham and Central Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator

Consider buying a camera doorbell. These can have a good effect in putting off scam artists, as they then get recorded and shared with the neighbours. Occasionally thieves think about knocking on your door to check if someone is in. The door cameras are a deterrent as they get recorded.

Ensure Your Car Is Locked It’s happened a few times over the year, in particular on Fridays and Saturdays, where opportunist thieves have literally gone road to road checking who’s car door is unlocked. This is particularly easy to do on long roads.

Mildmay, Lady Lane, Moulsham Drive and Vicarage Road are routes that have been targeted.

Bike Thefts from Shed’s Have Begun We’ve started to see a few shed break-ins occur again, targeting bikes, as its getting darker sooner. One neighbour said she’s thinking of decorating her bikes this Christmas instead of a tree - this is one way to secure your bike until your shed security is increased!

The Fire Service Offer a Security Check Some thieves are becoming more aware of cameras in gardens and covering their faces. Quite a few are waiting to see if owners are being alerted by their cameras. This is a feature you should consider when choosing a outdoor camera.

Neighbourhood Watch Coordinators - Thank You Recently after a long long delay, I’ve got my own road setup. It’s taken me time finishing knocking on doors on the weekends and trying to speak to neighbours.

Everyone I’ve spoken to has been positive. I just didn’t expect it to take so long to then put them into my phone and then create a Whatsapp Group from it. I’m even more appreciative of the work that the NhW coordinators have put in.

I’d like to thank them for their time in reporting the incidents from their road and into the main group. From 24 www.moulshamtimes.com

Hello everyone, I hope all is well with you. Getting colder now, so the shorts are back in the bottom of the drawer. I think I hear my neighbours’ sighs of relief...

Having mentioned the shorts, I have had them on for a week this month when we had a week in Tuscany, Italy. We stayed at a town called Montecatini Terne, a very impressive spa town near Pisa. It’s a lovely place with big buildings from the early 19th century, and a lot of them spas. Apparently, in its day it was a great place to visit to ‘take the waters’ and is still visited by many people. The whole area is home to opera, and many famous composers lived in and around Pisa, and Lucca just up the road from where we stayed. We had guided tours of both Florence and Pisa, and I must say they were great; they were very interesting and we learned a lot.

We went on a package tour which included half board. At dinner, we sat on a table with the same group of people each night, and I must say we were very lucky with the ones on our table. Our fellow diners came from various towns, mostly southern England.

What a lovely bunch.

We had a great laugh, talking about other holidays we had been on, joking about all sorts of things, but best of all, the ‘B’ word was not mentioned or discussed at all! We also got on well with the staff, especially the wine waiters. One of our party asked a waiter if this was his only job, he said that he also had a job in a cattery. We were all slightly surprised by this. After further questioning, like ‘where are the cats then?’ (we had been drinking), we discovered he had actually said catering... Slight misunderstanding, but amusing.

Good news on the fiasco front. A week ago there was a worldwide competition to identify the most spectacular fiascos, and we got the top three places. A Government spokesman is alleged have said about the result, that next year ‘we strive to get the top four!’

I went on the A12 the other day and I immediately saw the brake lights coming on all up the road. Here we go again. As we struggled along we eventually came up behind a white van doing about 3mph, hazards on. Dear oh dear, what on earth is he thinking. As we went by, giving the driver the obligatory dirty look, we saw that he was shepherding a baby swan along the hard shoulder so it would come

to no harm. What a hero!

I know I have mentioned before that we like watching The Chase quiz programme. The other day a question came up about which king came to the throne 21 years after the Battle of Hastings. I must of drifted off for a minute because the answer I heard was Mick Jagger.

Now, I’m not great at history, but I was sure this was not right. Of course, what I had done was miss the right answer - and then the next question had been about pop music. Just as well I noticed, Me thinking we had had a King Jagger would not have impressed the grandchildren. Of course as you all probably know, the correct answer is William Rufus.

I was delivering the Moulsham Times the other day when I saw some conkers on the step. I seemed to remember reading somewhere that these contain chemicals which deter spiders and so keep them at bay. However, these conkers were covered in spider webs, so either they have actually kept the spiders out, or it is only an elderly women’s story (I don’t think I can say ‘old wives tale’ any more).

I’m sorry, but I must take what could be the last chance to rant about Brexit. I have left this till last this month, so if you are completely sick of it and don’t want to to hear anything more about, you can skip to Bin End Chuckles.

Please note that this is my personal view and is not endorsed by the magazine. I am getting more and more annoyed by those people who are saying that we need another referendum (or a people’s vote, to disguise it), hoping we won’t notice that we are voting again. What if we have a vote and the result is still to leave? Where do we go from there? Another non-referendum, called ‘we will keep going to the polls until we get the result we want’ vote?

Anyway, I have discussed this with my mates John and Steve, and we have a solution. Offer to sell the UK to the USA. They were after Greenland, so why not give them a better option and make us the 51st state? Then we buy Greenland, all move to that country, start from scratch, all carbon neutral buildings and transport and lots of money left over to pay off the national debt. Job done!

Just going back to the holiday, I have discovered the thing most likely to cause injury whilst travelling. Getting to the airport? No. Taking off?

No. Landing? No. It’s those bloomin’ little cabin carry on cases on wheels! I lost track of the number of times I was nearly poleaxed by people who seem to forget they have one following them. Dangerous or what?

Bin End Chuckles I’m addicted to brake fluid, but I can stop anytime I want to...

My wife told me I had to stop behaving like a flamingo, so I had to put my foot down...

Mersey Beat Part Four - by John Power As we come to the last of the well known formative 1950s Liverpool groups we find: Gerry and the Pacemakers. 1959, Reformed 1966 and 1974 Onwards Gerry Marsden formed the group (with himself on guitar and vocals, brother Fred Marsden on drums, Les Chadwick on bass, and Arthur Mc Mahon on piano) in 1959. Les Maguire replaced McMahon on piano in 1961. Like many Mersey bands, they played in Hamburg as well as Liverpool. Their original name was Gerry Marsden and the Mars Bars, but (luckily I’d say) the makers of the chocolate bar objected, and they had to drop it.

Of the groups that Brian Epstein signed to NEMS, the Pacemakers were second after The Beatles. They were not as photogenic as the Fab Four but Gerry had the same cheeky, scally persona. They didn’t get the same hairstyle makeover as The Beatles but Epstein had them in suits rather than rock, casual outfits. He got them a contract with Columbia Records on the strength of The Beatles success, and they were likewise recorded by George Martin, who had proved more open to new sounds than many other producers more stuck in their old ways. Their first single, the catchy, How Do You Do It? went to number 1 in the charts, as did their next two songs: I Like It (like the first, written by Mitch Murray), and then Rodgers and Hammerstein’s You’ll Never Walk Alone, the anthemic quality of which saw it adopted by the fans of Liverpool football club and sung at matches. Having their first three records make number 1 was a record that stood for 20 years. Their fourth single, I’m the One was written by Gerry, but only reached number 2 owing to The Searchers’ Needles and Pins keeping them off of the top slot. Gerry also wrote the hits It’s Gonna Be Alright, Ferry Cross the Mersey and Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying, all of which made the top 10.

Ferry Cross the Mersey was written as part of the soundtrack to the film of the same name that Gerry wrote, and the group appeared in, in 1965. That title song was rerecorded by Paul McCartney and fellow Liverpudlian Holly Johnson of Frankie goes to Hollywood in ‘89 for the Hillsborough Football Disaster Fund and it reached number 1 in the charts.

The Pacemakers records were released on a comparatively small label, Laurie, in the States and didn’t sell all that well until The Beatles success was followed by the British Invasion, when they were rereleased. Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying, How Do You Do It, You’ll Never Walk Alone, I Like It and Jambalaya achieved success.

The group disbanded in 1966 and Gerry went solo on the cabaret and entertainment circuits, but since 1974 he has done occasional nostalgia reunions with the group. Drummer Freddie died in 2006. In 2017 Gerry became ill and so far has not returned to work, although may yet.

Ian and the Zodiacs 1960-1967 Then 2007 and on and off Occasions In 1958 the founders were in a jazz combo known as The Zodiacs.

They were joined in 1960 by Ian Edwards, who had been in The Deltones. They then changed their style to rock ‘n’ roll after various personnel changes. The line-up that then emerged was Ian, lead vocals, Pete Wallis, lead guitar, Geoff Bethell, piano, Charlie Flynn, bass, and Cliff Roberts on drums. They played local venues and became residents at the Jive Hive, held at St Luke’s Hall. Ralph Webster became their manager. They were around the top ten local groups held in a poll at this time and got an Oriole Records contract in 1963. Geoff Bamford took over as drummer in 1964, while pianist, Bethell, left too as they headed for Hamburg, where they stayed for three years touring and getting TV work, while being promoted by 28

Star Club owner Manfred Weissleder. They mainly did covers songs but with a few of their own put in the mix. Joe Walsh took over on drums, then Freddie Smith, followed by Arthur Ashton, while Freddie Smith replaced Pete Wallis on guitar. They created three albums: Star Club Seven, Just Listen to Ian and The Zodiacs and Locomotive, all released on the Star Club label.

Long before the emergence of The Bootleg Beatles and tribute bands generally, they brought out albums of Beatles songs, calling themselves The Kopykats. In 1965 they released an album called The Beatles’ Best, then Gears Again. Even a couple of singles of Beatles songs were releaased: Nowhere Man and Help! alongside their own single, The Crying Game, which sold 250,000 copies in Texas, despite them not being able to get work permits to promote their US releases.

They continued to tour in Germany until 1967 when Ian’s health caused them to disband, but when he recovered the band reformed with German musicians. They reformed again in 2000 for a couple of German tours (in 2003 and 2004), Weimar, Berlin and Cologne festivals, as well as playing Liverpool’s Cavern Club. Ian died in 2007 but the German backing group still tour as Ian’s Zodiac, or sometimes calling themselves The Roaring Fourties.

In I989 five tracks were to be found on the This is Merseybeat compilation, and in 1990 the Repertoire label rereleased their old albums. Their greatest hits were also remastered and released by RPM records on Wade in the Water.

Derry and the Seniors 1960 -1962 Derry Wilkie was a local black singer who started singing with The Hi Tones for a few months in 1959. He and Howey Casey (sax), Billy Hughes (rhythm guitar), and Stan Foster (piano) from that group were joined by Brian Griffiths on lead guitar, Phil Whitehead on bass and Jeff Wallington on drums from The Seniors to create the new group. They played local venues at first, but managed to get selected for a 1960 show headed by Gene Vincent. They also auditioned, unsuccessfully, to be Billy Fury’s backing group, but Larry Parnes, Billy’s manager, got them a gig at the 2i’s Coffee Bar in London’s Soho, where Bruno Koshmider from the Kaiser Keller in Hamburg spotted them and invited them over, before even The Beatles played there. Unfortunately, they were unable to get work permits or visas so they were deported in October 1960 and went back to playing Liverpool venues. At the end of the year Wallington and Hughes left the band.

In 1961 they reformed, but as Howie Casey and the Seniors with Howie on rhythm guitar rather than sax. Frank Willerby took over on drums, while Derry and Freddie Fowell, better known later as Freddie Starr, shared vocals. In 1962 Twist at the Top on Fontana Records became the first album by a Liverpool band ever. Double Twist was taken from it as their first single and then in the same year I Ain’t Mad at You/The Boll Weevil Song was released. Whitehead left and emigrated in that year to be replaced by Lu Walters, and Wibberley was replaced by Kenny Hardin on drums, but they broke up before the end of the year.

Later line-ups of some of the group included Aynsley Dunbar, who went on to play with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and form his own band, Retaliation, while other members became Screamin’ Lord Sutch’s backing band, The Savages, and Derry Wilkie moved to Italy. Saxist Howie Casey joined Kingsize Taylor and the Dominoes in Germany, and then a German band called The Krew. When he returned to the UK in 1970, he did session work with Marc Bolan and Paul McCartney and Wings on the album Band on the Run, then toured with Paul well into the 1970s.

A CD version of the Twist at the Top album was rereleased by Bear Records in 2010.

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27

All About Moulsham Lodge Moulsham Lodge Community Trust We are pleased to say the builders have now left the Community Station after a few set backs, which meant things took longer than planned. Now the hard work starts for the trustees and volunteers.

The replacement kitchen has been ordered and will have been delivered by the time you read this. It will then need assembling and installing. Our Facebook page will give details on when we are in the station working, so please feel free to come along and give us a hand if you have any free time.

All the walls will have been plastered by the end of October and we are hoping to have a resin floor put down in the café area by mid November.

In between all these major works will be the painting of all the walls and ceilings together with laying new flooring in the newly configured meeting and treatment room. All of our free time is going to be taken up doing the many decorating tasks so that we are ready for our...

Grand Opening On Saturday 30th November between 11am and 1pm we are holding our grand opening, when everyone is welcome to come and see the new Community Station. There will be refreshments available and an opportunity to look round and see the new set up.

We then have to do all the preparations for our annual breakfasts with Santa on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th December. The early sittings on both days are almost fully booked, but at the time of writing there is still availability on the later sittings. If you would like to book, then please check out our website (details below). www.mlct.org.uk enquiries@mlct.org.uk 07411 808 731 Also, search for us on Facebook and Twitter

Cllr Mark Springett - Moulsham Lodge Ward I’m writing this at the end of my annual holiday overlooking what is now known to be a very delicately balanced part of our planet, the ocean. In The final episode of Blue Planet II back in December 2017, the series took an unflinching look at the impact of human activity on marine life, with David Attenborough delivering a powerful rallying call to do more to protect the environment. It was definitely a ‘sea change’ if you pardon the pun, and has seen the rise of public scrutiny on big organisations and how they use and deal with plastic.

I’m very lucky to be fit enough to have the training to scuba dive, and whilst on holiday gained two more diving qualifications. More and more diving locations around the world are adding ecological programmes to make people more aware of the human impact we have on the oceans, some offer clean-up operations whilst others you can actual plant a square meter of living coral and sponsor it for life. My time diving included studying behaviour of the Indian Ocean’s inhabitants, mainly manta rays and sharks and too many to mention smaller fish and other very strange aquatic creatures.

On the right is a picture I took of a huge manta ray ‘hovering’ over a ‘cleaning station’, where small fish clean the skin and gills of the manta of parasites. Us divers have to hold on to the rock below as the fast flowing currents are part of the reason the mantas hover, otherwise we would just be swept away.

encounter as they don’t usually frequent the area that we were based in. We were returning from the dive site back to the hotel and one of the crew spotted the distinctive markings on the skin of the whale shark, which was near the surface. All the divers managed to scramble back in the water with their snorkels, I was last, but was determined to take my camera...

He was swimming away from me when all of a sudden he turned and came straight towards me and passed about 3 feet under me, all of which I captured on video, much to the delight of the dive school team who wanted the footage to show other guests. It was an amazing experience and one I will remember for a very long time, as brief as it was.

Back to plastic, here at Chelmsford City Council we are starting to change policy and change our behaviour towards plastic (much of which my wife and I daily picked up from the beach and shoreline).

Our commitment to the Climate Change Emergency we declared recently will include educational advice as to what we can all do to help our planet.

As Sir David Attenborough said on the infamous episode of Blue Planet: “The future of all life now depends on us...” and chance encounters like the one above will become less and less.

The picture above is of a whale shark, one of the most beautiful and gentle giants of the sea. This was a once in a million chance 28

mark.springett@chelmsfordlibdems.org.uk 07411 808 731 www.markspringett.co.uk/blog Twitter: @markspringett (and also on Facebook)

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Tile Kiln Corner - by Linda Mascot

Escaping Justice

The Gift of Christmas packing day at Tile Kiln Church in October was a great success with 300 bags completed and ready to go out to Romania with 9 volunteers on 20th November.

disadvantaged children.

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed in any way to this great cause, your support and kindness mean such a lot and help to brighten an otherwise bleak Christmas for

In the news at the moment is the very sad case of Harry Dunn. Harry was killed in a head-on collision in August, whilst riding his motorcycle.

The woman at fault admitted she was driving on the wrong side of the road and said she was sorry. However, fearing the consequences, she claimed diplomatic immunity to escape them, flying back to the USA. She seems to have escaped justice.

Perhaps we have a hint of sympathy - it was only a mistake, albeit one that cost a young man his life. There was no malice or intent.

She has young children.

But justice can’t be biased, and there’s always collateral damage.

We’re all on the side of the Dunn’s, until we’re involved in something like this ourselves, and we’re to blame. Then we long for justice to be biased in our favour. Remember that speeding ticket and how it wasn’t your fault? But justice can’t be biased.

There’s also collateral. She will now forever know that her actions have led to Harry Dunn’s death. She is embroiled in a controversy that has involved the US President. Harry Dunn’s parents must live life without their son.

All of our actions have unforeseen consequences that we can’t control, no matter how hard we try. Though we say we believe that justice is above us all, when we are involved, we desperately look for the escape route.

If you’re looking for some Christmas fun with the children, then please come and join us for games, crafts, refreshments and much more at the Fledgelings Preschool Christmas Fayre. It will take place at Tile Kiln Church, Robin Way on Saturday 7th December from 10am1pm.

Father Christmas will be visiting us again this year too, so if you would like to book into the grotto, please contact us on 07877 753 873, as there are limited spaces available. We look forward to seeing you there. mascotlinda@gmail.com Twitter: @lindamascot

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Our justice system is blunt, it can’t deal with the collateral consequences. But God’s justice can. Christians believe that Jesus Christ’s death - literal, actual death - brought together God’s love and justice, and that his love and justice are never at odds, so that the human biases of justice, and the collateral that our actions cause can be healed, fixed, restored. All of these evils, intended and accidental, can and will be defeated by God’s love and justice in the end.

Don’t agree? Want to know more? Get in touch…

Tim Goodall tim.goodall@tilekilnchurch.org.uk

29

Just Watching My Speed... - by Simon Inglis When you come to Australia from Blighty one thing you’re not expecting outside of the cities is, well, too many people. And that is correct too, as you shan’t feel very hemmed in at all!

As I drive around 1,100 kilometres to Adelaide and home every two weeks or so, I have started to get quite familiar with what is known as the Western Highway, or the A8 linking the country’s two closest capitals - Melbourne and Adelaide. It’s unlike any road in the UK. At one end is the metropolis of Melbourne with its skyscrapers, old world charm and the magnificent tramway system, oh and now some 5 million people accross an area some 7 times as large as London.

It is certainly busy, even though one has a little more elbow room outside of the city centre itself. At the other end is Adelaide and its somewhat sublime mix of city with a still, almost-with-a-last-breath as it grows up, big country town charm.

An hour from Melbourne there’s an excellent motorway along the A8, it bypasses Ballarat, one of Melbourne’s satellite cities with a not insignificant populace of some 100,000 plus and growing fast (courtesy Melbourne’s frankly ridiculously heated housing market).

For much of the winter a Brit can feel at home for a couple of hours.

The road looks like any old motorway tarmac, there are at least two lanes in each direction, any number of overpasses and then the temperature... like any major city, Melbourne is its own climate zone thus about 50 kilometres out west temperatures slowly drop off.

In fact the greater Ballarat area has often been criticized as being ‘too cold’ with its lush green fields, its centrally heated (as standard) homes and its - until recently - stagnant property market. The latter may have taken off, but it is more than a bit chilly around here for much of the year!

Past Ararat and the Victorian Grampians mountain ranges, which you can watch glide by, is the largish town of Horsham. This is a lovely Australian country town hugging Victoria’s wheatbelt and littered with overpriced hotels or motels as well as burger joints. The large trucks enroute between cities pass right through with you including numerous ‘B-doubles’.

From Horsham the interest is kept up by the next 24-hour fuel and motel towns of Nhill (as in ‘zero’) marking a halfway point between the state capitals, and Kaniva. There are curious attractions for some people along the way, such as a giant koala (another of Australia’s monstrosities along the lines of its giant lobster, pineapple or banana - man-made edifices to give a place a reason to stop and spend).

There’s the Blue Lake and about a hundred kilometres later, the Pink Lake. Chinese newlyweds have taken a keen interest in being photographed by both on what must truly be exhausting daytrips from Melbourne!

In South Australia there’s Bordertown, aptly named as it sits next to the border of Victoria and South Australia. It also has some overpriced 1980s style motels. It has hidden treasures, such as a great bakery, if you do have time to stop for long enough. Oh, and Bordertown is the birthplace of the old rogue himself, Australia’s longest serving ‘Labor’ (spelling intentional) Prime Minister and champion beer-sculling king, Bob Hawke. His magnificently Aussie life (yes, he was indeed a Rhodes scholar!) came to an end earlier this year and I can understand why his passing is deeply lamented.

Unlike Tony Blair he was genuinely liked by both sides for a start, but I digress...

cropping season, or purple if a field of lavender. Of course there are tiny towns, or ‘villages’ but not yet many. 50 kilometres along this now single carriageway usually passes with only a distant farmhouse for those with a good set of binoculars.

Is the road nevertheless good? Besides an undulating few kilometres of bitumen near the border, yes it is nice and fairly wide. There is overtaking space aplenty in the day and due to the mostly benign weather, visibility is good. State governments are committed to turning the entire link into a dual carriageway and there are constant roadworks and upgrades. I have no beef here, the A8 is a good road.

From Tailem Bend, some hundred kilometres from the Adelaide CBD, it reverts to being a proper motorway too - the M8.

So what’s not to like? The drivers. As even Adelaide has a population of almost 1.5 million this road is a sea of fear, bright-eyed inner suburban SUV drivers seemingly clutching their rubbery steering wheels with an equally rubbery set of sweaty fists and a fearful look when their speedo arcs toward the magic ‘100’. These often anonymous SUVs are sometimes piloted by reluctant dads, seemingly embarrassed by the presence a big Holden V8 or any new or even an older German car. It’s now a given that ‘inner-city dad’ will speed up to 108kph in a governed 100 zone when I am heading up behind at 105. This is especially annoying as I must alter my cruise designated speed and go for a quick overtake with dozens of his offspring’s eyes glaring out at me in horror. The wife is no doubt decrying my behaviour, so even if the way ahead is clear I’ll slow it down in case she’s already denouncing ‘a maniac’ on the emergency number with her mobile. Pretty soon ‘SUV-DAD’ will be tailgating me so that I can’t even glimpse the top of his numberplate in my rear view mirror. So much for a hard stop and the laws of physics...

I should mention this is not just the case with SUV drivers! Yet every sad statistic to unpleasant incident seems to involve the driver trapped outside his or her natural habitat of house-shops-school run!

I can now spot the rural driver, even the poverty-stricken in a twenty year old smoky Ford, and they do not do this. Never. Nor do the truckies.

So, how about that speed limit? In my childhood our parental car of 1970s engineering would hurtle along at 140kph or so. So the trips were obviously quicker. When I started driving my clapped out bangers I naturally emulated those family speeds. In the 1990s speed cameras appeared and by now they seem to blossom everywhere along the old A8.

Cars are much safer and thankfully the fatalities are much, much fewer. Nor can you have an old Renault 12 with a rusty floor and sagging shock absorbers anymore. Yet for those of us who must travel these main roads, the speed cameras, excruciating financial penalties for even minor infractions (I was penalised on my return to Australia to the tune of $200 for a 1kph ‘speed infraction’) and the very real possibility of attracting the dreaded 12 demerit points within 3 years (the demerit point system works much the same as in the UK) have slowed us well down.

For a long time since my return I was furious about all this, with firstly the various police constabularies. Then, and yes still for the usual bureacratic reasons, the various state governments. Yet for all this the real perpetrators are the drivers who lack the ability to pilot a car at moderate speed. Australia has reduced its road toll but the rural driving is not in any way better. Bluntly, the cars are better today.

Merely the lack of driver education and the constant focus on ‘speed’ by government authorities has seemed to ingrain city drivers with a poor sense of spatial awareness for starters. Mark Webber, who spends time between the UK and Australia, feels this is now irreversible and in an interview stated what so many of us feel, that he no longer enjoys driving in Australia.

The surrounding countryside is flat and in the summer months is As for me, while ever wishing to finish my Western Highway trips brown and even rather grim. You can imagine this is the future of our quicker, I am finally starting to understand the need for heavy warming planet, until the autumnal rains come. From then on it is a enforcement. The police are I suppose, factoring in the lowest vast ocean of rich green to be interspersed by a field of yellow during common denominator in city to country road driving abilities.

30 www.moulshamtimes.com

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Quiz Answers 1.

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Portraits The queen Line Australia Peter Sissons De-husk Liberal 9 Dohyo Clove The acid converts the copper into poison 12. To reheat food 13. To prioritise 14. Cherry-picking 15. Rock 16. A tower in the shape of a pyramid 17. ‘E’ 18. He fell on stage and damaged his spine 19. Four 20. Pritti Patel 21. London, 1886 (gas) 22. 74 23. Charlotte 24. In a car crash 25. Queen Victoria 26. In protest at sexual abuse in the Catholic Church 27. Federal Bureau of Investigation 28. Hybrid language 29. Steeplejack and demolition expert 30. Lionel Richie 31. Only Fools and Horses 32. Margaret Thatcher 33. Stork 34. Caps Lock 35. Nellie 36. Pakistan www.issuu.com/itsyourmedia

37. Gordon Sumner 38. Hands 39. Nicolas 40. It is pouched

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Spot the Difference Answers

31

SALES 74 MOULSHAM STREET, CHELMSFORD, CM2 0JA

LETTINGS 152 MOULSHAM STREET, CHELMSFORD, CM2 0LD

YOUR LOCAL INDEPENDENT ESTATE AGENT SERVING OLD MOULSHAM FOR OVER 27 YEARS FOR A FREE PROFESSIONAL VALUATION CALL 01245 266980 Pyms Road £310,000 Grove Road £900PCM St Johns Road £350,000

End of terrace townhouse 3/4 bedrooms Off road parking Easy access to City Centre

One bedroom Ground floor apartment Bills included Available now

Grace Bartlett Gardens £1,250 PCM

• Detached family property • Five bedrooms • Open plan • Detached double garage

Modern build house Two bedrooms Allocated parking Unfurnished/available now Nursery Road £1,100 PCM

• Terraced House • Two double bedrooms • Unfurnished • Available 16th December

Laurel Grove £750,000

Cypress Drive £330,000

Semi-detached house Three bedrooms Lounge/diner • Off road parking

Semi detached house Two double bedrooms Bathroom and shower room Excellent décor throughout Baddow Road £280,000

Grade II Listed Victorian Cottage Three bedrooms Many original features Southerly facing rear garden Linnet Drive £1,100 PCM

Mid terraced house Three bedrooms Off street parking Available now/unfurnished

01245 266980

www.mccartneyestateagents.co.uk