KL Magazine June 2012 by KL Magazine

ISSN 2044–7965

FREE!

ISSUE 21 JUNE 2012

magazine

LIFESTYLE

FOOD

HISTORY

EVENTS

LOCAL LIFE

COVER IMAGE

Bircham Windmill by Ian Ward

editorial 01553 601201

editor@klmagazine.co.uk

Eric Secker Ian Ward Bel Greenwood Alex Dallas David Learner Chris Tyler Graham Murray Ann Weaver Christine Glass Michael Middleton

advertising 01553 601201 sales@klmagazine.co.uk

Laura Murray Grant Murray Nicky Secker-Bligh Becky Drew Louise Wilkinson KL magazine cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited submissions, manuscripts and photographs. While every care is taken, prices and details are subject to change and KL magazine takes no responsibility for omissions or errors. We reserve the right to publish and edit any letters. All rights reserved. If you’d like to order prints of any photograph featured in KL magazine, contact us at the address below. Please note this applies only to images taken by our own photographers.

t’s hard to overestimate the importance of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign – in the last 60 years, we’ve seen 12 Prime Ministers, 12 American Presidents, six Popes and six Archbishops of Canterbury. The world is now a totally diﬀerent one from that of 1952, but The Queen has played a major part in maintaining our national pride and identity through those often bewildering changes. It’s a real cause for celebration, and whatever you’ve got planned, we hope you have a very happy Diamond Jubilee. Thanks for all your letters and photos, and we hope you enjoy this month’s magazine. Finally, let’s hope some of the party spirit inspires the England football team to great things when Euro 2012 kicks oﬀ this month. You never know! KL MAGAZINE

Contact us at KL magazine, 18 Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE30 1JW Tel: 01553 601201 E-mail: features@klmagazine.co.uk Web: www.klmagazine.co.uk 4

KLmagazine June 2012

Contents

JUNE 2012

7 & 11 WHAT’S ON Forthcoming events in West Norfolk 12-14 ALL OUR JUBILEES... How King’s Lynn used to celebrate 16

THE BIG INTERVIEW We talk to celebrity chef Chris Couborough

THEN AND NOW The changing face of King’s Lynn

24-26 THE DANCE OF THE AVOCETS An amazing natural wonder at Titchwell 29

PETS Help and advice with local vet Alex Dallas

30-32 THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE... Are there really UFOs over King’s Lynn? 35-43 FOOD & DRINK Recipes, reviews and recommendations 44-46 EXPLORER KL magazine visits North and South Creake

52-54 TAKING THE LONG VIEW... Why Holt is safe with Michael Baker 56

A SIMPLE TWIST OF FATE... Author Claire Upton makes her debut

BOOK REVIEWS This month’s best reads by Waterstone’s

60-63 THE LAW OF THE WILD... The work of our Wildlife Crime Oﬃcers 66-68 SKING’S LYNN FESTIVAL 2012 Why this year’s even is better than ever 76-78 ARTS A new arts and crafts trail at Dersingham 81

MY KL Readers’ questions and photographs

WILD WEST NORFOLK Michael Middleton’s lighter view of things

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52 5

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Wonderful Town

JUNE BOX OFFICE: (01603) 63 00 00

Tues 29 May - Sat 2 June I GOT RHYTHM Northern Ballet meets jazz £6.50 - £36.50 Tues 5 - Sat 9 June WONDERFUL TOWN Connie Fisher stars in big, bright Bernstein musical £6.50 - £39.50 Sun 10 June ONE NIGHT OF QUEEN Rocking tribute to Freddie Mercury and Queen £5.50 - £19.50

Mon 11 - Sat 16 June BIRDS OF A FEATHER Pauline Quirke, Linda Robson, Lesley Joseph star in new version of TV comedy hit £6.50 - £24.50

Fri 22 June CARMEN Dynamic new version of Bizet’s opera £6.50 - £25.50

Tues 26 June THE SOUNDS OF THE SUPREMES Celebration of Motown’s golden girl group £5.50 - £19.50

Sun 17 June THE ROYAL MARINE BAND Great military band £5.50 - £21.50

Sat 23 June AN EVENING OF BURLESQUE All tease, no sleaze £5.50 - £21

Wed 27 June ELKIE BROOKS One of the UK’s great voices £5.50 - £22.50

Wed 20 - Thur 21 June PEPPA PIG’S TREASURE HUNT Children’s favourite £5.50 - £14.50

Book online: www.theatreroyalnorwich.co.uk 6

Fri 29 - Sat 30 June ENGLISH YOUTH BALLET Over 100 local young dancers in new version of Giselle £5.50 - £20 THEATRE STREET, NORWICH NR2 1RL

KLmagazine June 2012

WHAT’S ON

June

75 YEARS AGO: On 30th June 1937, the 999 emergency telephone service went into operation in Britain – and it was the ﬁrst such service in the world

WEDNESDAYS LOCAL PRODUCE MARKET Dr W E Ripper Hall, High Street, Docking (10am-3pm) Every week you can experience a taste of East Anglia and Norfolk with Docking’s local produce market – with real food, passionately produced. For details, see the website at www.dockingmarket.com

SATURDAY 9th & SUNDAY 10th MONDAY 4th SUMMER FETE Feltwell Primary School (10am-5:30pm) Feltwell Primary School PTA presents their Summer Fete with a car boot sale (from 10am) on the school playing ﬁeld. Stalls, games, bouncy castles, refreshments and face painting from 3pm. For details, contact Claire on 01842 827555 or e-mail clairescarﬀ@tiscali.co.uk

WESTACRE WATERCOLOURS Westacre Theatre, Westacre (10am-4pm) Join popular artist John Hughesin the Studio Meadow for an opportunity to work en plein air in and around a picturesque setting. All abilities welcome, but places are very limited. Book now (£45 for one day or £80 for both days) by contacting the Box Oﬃce on 01760 755800

SATURDAY 16th & SUNDAY 17th FESTIVAL OF ANGELS St Nicholas Chapel, King’s Lynn Help support the future of St Nicholas and see over 60 angels made by the local community, together with refreshments, face painting and craft stalls. Adults £3.50, children free. For details, contact Kate Parker by e-mail at angels@stnicholaskingslynn.org.uk

SATURDAY 23rd & SUNDAY 24th OLYMPIC FLOWER DAYS St Marys Church, Whissonsett A weekend of fundraising a for St Mary’s and to celebrate the London 2012 Olympics. Church Fete at 2pm on Saturday, with traditional games, stalls, and barrel organ music. Children’s Sports at 2pm on Sunday, including a ﬂypast by the Red Arrows Display Team. Songs of Praise at 6pm on Sunday in the church, and all weekend there’ll be 21 Olympic-themed ﬂower arrangements in the church. Plus there’s a walk round village quiz, and village tours on an open-topped bus

WEDNESDAY 13th THE BIG TODDLE Eaton Park, Norwich (10am) Join hundreds of other toddlers at the Barnados Big Toddle – its brilliant fun and has lots of great family entertainment to enjoy. Children aged 0-5 years can get involved by doing a short sponsored walk, and anyone can join in – including nurseries, playgroups, parents, families and friends. This year’s theme is superheroes, so children are invited to come in fancy dress. John Lewis Norwich are supporting the event and will be providing drinks on the day. For more information on how to register visit the website at www.barnardos.org.uk/big toddle

TUESDAY 26th WHAT ANN DID NEXT Village Hall, Brancaster Staithe (7:30pm) Brancaster Camera Club presents an evening not to be missed as well-known and respected photographer Ann Miles FRPS EFIAP MPAGB gives a presentation of her outstanding work Ring Chairman Jim Tillon 01485 210013 for further information

SATURDAY 30th JUBILEE BALL Park House Hotel, Sandringham The Companions of Park House at Sandringham (who raise funds to help disabled people aﬀord a holiday) hold a Jubilee Black Tie Ball. Tickets £50 include a 3course dinner and dancing to the Eddie Seales Band. Further details and tickets are available from Ann Carter on 01945 581962 or Susan Sapey on 01945 880310

If you’ve got an event to publicise, send the details to features@klmagazine.co.uk KLmagazine June 2012

ON SCREEN JUNE 2012

love ﬁlm. love luxe. The local cinema experience for serious movie fans

l Men in Black 3 l Prometheus l Snow White and the Huntsman l American Pie The Reunion l Dark Shadows l Moon Rise Kingdom l All In Good Time l Rock Of Ages l The 3 Stooges l The Angels’ Share

As lavish as something from the golden days of Hollywood, The Luxe Cinema is an elegantly stylish film lover’s delight. The Luxe Lounge bar sets the mood for a social drink with friends whilst the cinema itself offers luxurious and spacious leather sofas and armchairs – including a selection of Premier Sofas with waitress service! Allowing moviegoers to sit back and relax in true style, enjoying a glass of wine or a coffee whilst watching a wide programme of mainstream, arthouse and classic films. If you love film, you’ll love Luxe.

The Luxe 01945 588808

Alexandra Road Wisbech Cambridgeshire PE13 1HQ

book online:www.theluxecinema.com

DESIGNER CONTEMPORARY AND TRADITIONAL KITCHENS

Professionals such as builders, developers and interior designers regularly choose Style Kitchens to give their projects maximum impact. For personal service that’s second to none, the highest quality at an aﬀordable price, there’s nothing quite like a Style kitchen. Designed by experts specially for you and your home.

tyle

K I T C H E N S 9 High Street, King’s Lynn t: 01553 767519 w: www.stylek.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

Metric Carpets – and

the art of being natural

e owe a great deal to the Neolithic man or woman who first had the idea of taking strips of sea grass, sisal or jute and twisting and weaving the fibres together to create the world’s first floor covering. It’s a bit like the invention of the wheel, a basic design that is continually evolving in new directions. Our ancestors decided there were considerable benefits in having something hard-wearing and woven from natural fibres between themselves and the ground they slept on, and even in today’s modern world, the basic desire for comfort and functionality are still with us. Metric Carpets offers a range of versatile designs in sisal, jute, sea grass and coir. Natural woven fibre carpets, beautiful, hard wearing and suitable for most areas of your home, or that can be made into custom-made rugs of any size or shape, with a multitude of boarders to add the final personal touch to your room. The wheel has come full circle, and today natural fibre carpets are the new rural chic. They look good in any domestic or commercial space, whether a country castle or an urban new build. Metric Carpets stocks a large range of virtually indestructible natural products from such quality industry names as Crucial Trading, Kersaint Cobb and Co and The Alternative Flooring Company. The range of weaves and designs is contemporary and imaginative. From the natural straw colours of the original fibres to bright, fresh greens, or a hand span of bright Moroccan hues in long, thin stripes to modest, hard wearing

KLmagazine June 2012

deep brown reflecting the loam of a forest floor. These materials lend themselves to fantastic geometric designs, colours and a variety of weaves and densities, with hard and tight weaves for busy areas, and a more open, gentle weave in bedrooms. The fibres used in natural floor coverings have a variety of strong and exotic names, which reflect the mystery of their provenance. Sisal comes from a plant with sword-like leaves grown in India, Africa and Brazil. Each leaf contains around 1,000 fibres. The leaves were soaked and crushed in order to remove the fibres, which are spun into different densities. Traditionally, sisal was used for rope making, but today it is woven to produce wall coverings, and carpets as well as being used to replace asbestos type fabrics used in house building and car production. Jute is the second most important vegetable fibre after cotton and is 100% biodegradable and recyclable. It is grown in India and Bangladesh, where the fibres are extracted from the stem and outer skin of the jute plant. The silky fibres are washed and dried in the sun, and the biscuit coloured fibres are perfect for weaving into fine imitation silk, sacking, wall covering, rope and twine, and many of us will have a jute bag. Jute feels softer than the other natural fibres, and offers a more luxurious feel whilst maintaining durability. Jute is also used as backing for wool carpets, as well as in underlay and linoleum. Sea grass grows in salt-water marshes or paddy fields in Vietnam and

China. Durable and easy to maintain, it reflects light and is a beautiful, simple, strong and elegant fibre. It is slightly waxy and so is naturally stain resistant, which makes it suitable for busy areas such as hallways and lounges, but because of its slightly shiny finish, it is not suitable for staircases as it may be slippery. Sea grass is the most affordable of the natural floor coverings. Coir, made from coconut husks is used for everything from fishing nets to mattress stuffing. It makes the most fantastically durable textured weave, and naturally carries with it the colours of a sandy shore. Because all of these fabrics are natural, they will absorb moisture, and so is not suitable for moist areas such as kitchens and bathrooms where as the steam or condensation can cause mould growth, In the words of one satisfied customer, “it’s like bringing the outside in.” Classic, contemporary, versatile, bold, elegant, great value for money and unbelievably strong. We have a lot to thank that anonymous Neanderthal weaver who pulled together the first natural fibre carpet, which has lead to the vast range of beautiful, natural flooring that we have today.

Details METRIC CARPETS 36 Norfolk Street, King’s Lynn Norfolk PE30 1AH Telephone: 01553 775203 Web: www.metriccarpets.co.uk Email: info@metriccarpets.co.uk

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KLmagazine June 2012

WHAT’S ON

It’s time for a right Royal celebration! Until ursday September 27th DIAMOND JUBILEE EXHIBITION Houghton Hall, Houghton Special exhibition to celebrate HRH The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee featuring spectacular historic uniforms from the Coronations of William IV, George IV and Queen Elizabeth II. For full details see www.houghtonhall.com

Until Sunday September 30th DIAMOND JUBILEE EXHIBITION The Customs House, King’s Lynn (10am-4.30pm) 1952: An Exhibition to Celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee features a 1952 room setting, information boards, artefacts, printed emphemera and a postage stamp display. For more details contact the Tourist Information Centre on 01553 763044

Saturday June 2nd to Tuesday July 31st DIAMOND JUBILEE EXHIBITION King’s Lynn Town Hall A special exhibition of photographs in the Mayor’s Parlour in Lynn’s historic Town Hall exploring the long-standing connection the Royal Family has with West Norfolk, particularly through the Queen’s home at Sandringham. Full details and information from the Tourist Information Centre on 01553 763044 or see www.visitwestnorfolk.com

Saturday June 2nd DIAMOND JUBILEE CONCERT St Edmunds’ Parish Church, Greevegate, Hunstanton (7pm-9.30pm) The ever-popular Poringland Singers return to celebrate Her Majesty’s Diamond Anniversary with a suitably special concert. Tickets £5 (under 15’s £3) available from Witley’s on Hunstanton’s High Street or call Stephen Andrews 01485 532012

KLmagazine June 2012

Sunday June 3rd DIAMOND JUBILEE FUN DAY The Walks, King’s Lynn (12noon-5pm) Fun for all the family all afternoon, and free admission too! For more information contact John Groom on 01945 474196

Sunday June 3rd to Tuesday June 5th JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS Holkham Hall, Holkham Holkham Hall and Black Knight Historical celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee by filling the hall, Bygones Museum and courtyard with activities and events inspired by the 1950s. Events include a flotilla workshop for families, 1950s inspired cafe menu and much more. A true party atmosphere! Normally closed on a Tuesday, Holkham Hall will be open for this very special occasion from 12noon-4pm. Plus two ‘Holkham Ahoy!’ workshops for children (5-16) will be running on all three days (from 10am12noon and from 2pm-4pm) inspired by the Queen’s 1,000-boat flotilla on the Thames. Don’t miss this chance to help build a royal flotilla fit for a Queen, which will then be floated on the hall’s lake on Tuesday June 5th. For more details and prices, contact the Holkham Ticket Office on 01328 713111 or e-mail ticketoffice@holkham.co.uk

Monday June 4th COUNTRY DAY Bircham Windmill, Great Bircham (10am-5pm) Celebrate the Queen's Jubilee with ‘Colour a Crown’ for the children – and crown yourselves with the mock throne and crown! A great day in store that will include Morris Dancing with the King’s Morris at 11am, sheep shearing (all day), craft demonstrations, stalls and pony rides. For more details, see the website at www.birchamwindmill.co.uk

Monday June 4th DIAMOND JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS Royal British Legion Club Tower Street, King’s Lynn (11am-5pm) The Royal British Legion will be celebrating the Diamond Jubilee all day. There’ll be entertainment in the Club and a bric-a-brac sale and BBQ on the balcony!

Tuesday June 5th JUBILEE TREASURE QUEST King’s Lynn Arts Centre Trust (10am-1.20pm) The quest takes approximately two hours and starts from the King’s Lynn Arts Centre where you’ll be given your quest map. The ﬁrst quest starts at 10am and then at 20-minute intervals until 1.20pm. Clues will be woven into stories and found on buildings and landmarks. The quest will become a voyage of discovery bound only by your imagination! Along the way you’ll be transported to faraway lands of royal myths and legends, stories of riches, jewels, treasures, kings and queens, magic and mishap, sieges and sages. As families complete their quest, they’ll be invited to join some characterful monarchists at a Right Royal Tea Party to celebrate the Queen’s coronation in 1953 with cockney rhyming slang and festive fun and song. Finished quest sheets can be placed into the Queen’s Treasure Chest at the party to enter the draw for a chance of winning a speciallycommissioned prize. Further information from Liz Falconbridge on 01553 779095

LOCAL LIFE

ABOVE: People in King’s Lynn have always enjoyed a good celebration!

Celebrating the Jubilee: the past and the present 2012 isn’t the first time we’ve got excited about a Royal Jubilee. Bel Greenwood looks at how people in and around West Norfolk have celebrated these special events in the past...

ohn Sterling was only four years old on 25th October 1809, but he wrote a poem remembering the Golden Jubilee celebrations of King George III. In it he mentions dining on meat pudding in the street and hearing the bells ring. By all accounts there was a lot of ale ﬂowing too. It was the ﬁrst

of the modern royal jubilee celebrations. Earlier monarchs had few opportunities to celebrate jubilees, as life and rule was so precarious – and if there had been a marking of the years (as in the case of Henry III in 1265) it was with acts of piety and pardon. The idea for the jubilee was thought

up by the Committee of Merchants and Bankers of the City of London, and soon the idea for a hearty dinner was taken up by local committees all over the country. A huge ox was roasted at Windsor with the idea of feeding the local poor, and this idea was repeated up and down the country with local gentry or squires donating the beasts,

KLmagazine June 2012

starting a tradition that’s been repeated at other jubilees over the years. There were no further celebrations until Queen Victoria celebrated her Golden Jubilee on 20th-21st of June, 1887. It was a grand aﬀair. The Daily Telegraph hosted a party for some 26,000 children in Hyde Park with a hot air balloon plying the skies with the name ‘Victoria’ on it. Celebrations in other parts of the country weren’t on quite such big a scale. In Narborough, the locals joined in the feasting and a programme of sports. There must have been some tension or disappointment, because only a week later, another party was laid on for the Narford Estate workers to which the Narborough men drifted. At the local school, all the children were given commemorative mugs. In East and West Rudham, a population of around 1,000 tucked into 560lbs of roast beef and 280lbs of mutton, supplemented by 250lbs of salt beef. Residents shared in the cooking, taking parcels of meat home to roast

KLmagazine June 2012

and boil. This was accompanied by seven and a half barrels of beer and 588lbs of plum pudding. Setting a pattern for the future (and maybe helping work off some of that enormous dinner) sporting activities were the last course. In Wisbech, there was a huge open air dinner party held for the poor in the central square, and in King’s Lynn an enormous public dinner was held in the Corn Hall. It had all the appearances of a sober affair. The cost of the jubilee celebrations of £500 was raised through public subscription. Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee day in 1897 was celebrated in King’s Lynn with a special thanksgiving service in St. Margaret’s Church, old English sports, decorations, illuminations and fireworks. The town must have looked a picture. King George V was the first monarch to celebrate a Silver Jubilee, and with some diffidence he agreed to celebrations in 1935. The Jubilee was seen as an opportunity to enjoy a kind

ABOVE: The Grimston Clock pictured in 1910, originally erected to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee

ABOVE: Celebrating Royal events is the subject of a new exhibition at True’s Yard this month

of peace between the wars. In Narborough this led to celebrations on the cricket field, where the residents held a unique event in the form of a Decorated Pram Competition. History doesn’t tell us who won. The tea held in the village hall was for ladies, children and pensioners (the men of the village were left with the beer in the garage). Unsurprisingly, some of the races were cancelled – but the Pensioners’ 200-yard Walking Race went ahead. In Thornham, the church tower was completed by way of commemorating the Silver Jubilee. It was in King’s Lynn that celebrations really took off – with a biplane flying over the town as part of a carnival procession and town illuminations. Complementing the big events were the community street parties held in places like Lynn’s North End. A festive mood gripped the country for our present Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977. Yvonne Browne was 27 and living in West Newton. She remembers an enormous bonfire beacon at the top of the park at Sandringham. The beacon was one of a string lit across the country. “We all had bunting outside our houses,” she recalls. As she points out, there was no street

party in West Newton because there was so much happening on the Sandringham Estate. “A caravan rally took over the whole of the estate,” she says. “They came from all over the world.” The rally members took part in ﬂoats and fancy dress, and Yvonne remembers that for those who worked on the estate there was a party. There were large numbers of street parties up and down the country serving up new table fare, from egg sandwiches to melting jelly and triﬂe and the ubiquitous sausage roll. Alongside the sunshine, beer and fancy dress there were special services held all over the country. In Heacham, there was a week of special services with thanksgiving not only for 25 years of the Queen’s reign but for her ‘example in public worship.’ The Golden Jubilee in 2002 heralded the arrival of a silver baton into the region. It had travelled through 22 Commonwealth countries before arriving in King’s Lynn in June, where no less than 100 runners accompanied it through the town. One of those honoured with the task of carrying the torch was a 94-year-old woman from Fakenham, Marjorie Harris, a pioneering athlete who took part in the 1934 Empire Games, a forerunner of the Commonwealth

Games of today. Union Jacks floated outside every school who held their own parties and even discos. It was a real grassroots effort to have fun. For Dersingham Parish Council, there was a whole day of events planned – but for Yvonne Browne who is VicePresident of the Sandringham Women’s Institute, the Golden Jubilee was overshadowed by the death of the Queen Mother. “We had a celebration,” she says, “but it was slightly lower profile because the Queen Mother had just died.” There’ll be no lower profile this year for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. King’s Lynn and the county are bringing out the bunting to celebrate 60 years of Queen Elizabeth on the throne – but also all those years of the Royal Family’s close links to King’s Lynn and West Norfolk.

From Friday June 1st If you like the great pictures of North End folk celebrating the 1935 Jubilee, then make sure you don’t miss the True’s Yard Museum exhibition of local celebrations – the exhibition runs from Friday 1st June and it’s free! For more information, see the website at www.truesyard.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

Celebrating 25 years of success! Since 1987, Economy Windows have been going from strength to strength...

hese days, Peter Hobden, who founded Economy Windows (alongside his wife Linda) is semi-retired and spends part of his week on the golf course. But go back 25 years to 1987 when he started the company in his dining room and he would have been lucky to ﬁnd a spare ten minutes for a quick round on a putting green. A lot has happened since those early days - 25 years on in this year of jubilees and Economy Windows is celebrating its own. The company has enjoyed uninterrupted growth and development. The company’s success is due to solid family business values and a reputation for integrity, quality and excellent service in its replacement windows, doors and conservatory business. It has been awarded membership of the Master Window and Conservatory Installers Association Top 100. Not resting on its laurels, the company is looking forward to further development this year, when it relocates to a new distribution centre and show site in Wisbech while retaining a showroom presence in the King’s Lynn area. For a replacement window company in a reducing market, Economy Windows is doing remarkably well. 1987 wasn’t exactly a golden time for the British economy. Black Monday propelled the country into recession. It might have seemed an unfavourable time to start a new enterprise but it worked because of the principles that Peter Hobden was determined to introduce. Before setting up Economy Windows, Peter had a stint selling for a national replacement window company but found the pricing structures and methods of fulﬁlling sales less than satisfactory. He joined Lynn Frames and KLmagazine June 2012

after a year helping the company to grow left to set up his own. He was determined to operate fairly and unlike most other windows companies, never to take a deposit from the customer and to operate with only the highest of service standards. “It was amazing how we grew from a standing start in the ﬁrst two years,” says Peter. By 1989 – in the same year Sky TV was launched in Europe – the company had moved into premises at Tilney All Saints. It didn’t take long before Peter began manufacturing UPVC windows and doors, employing around 15 people. By 1994, as the Channel Tunnel opened after seven years’ worth of construction, the company had purchased 10,000 square feet of factory space in Terrington St. Clements. The property in Tilney All Saints was refurbished into a 3,000 square foot showroom. It became more practical to buy in the wide range of products oﬀered by the company and the manufacturing part of the business was discontinued. Conservatories, orangeries and rooms of glass had always been a talking point in the homes of the rich but in an age of increasing home ownership they became a popular addition to almost any house with a garden. In 2001, the year Sven-Göran Eriksson became manager of the England football team and Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott punched a protester who threw an egg at him in Rhyl, Economy Windows acquired premises in Wisbech and opened the largest display of conservatories in the area. The company had advanced through the years and now employed 30 local people. By 2004 – it was the same year Parliament passed the Hunting Act and banned fox hunting in England and

ABOVE: Peter Hobden, 1987

ABOVE: Wisbech Showrom entrance, 2001

Wales – Economy Windows had exceeded all previous sales records and became one of the largest family owned independent widow and conservatory companies in the area. Economy Windows has completed 18,000 installations in this area in its 25 years in business. There are so few other family-run window companies that can offer the sheer longevity, stability and security of service that Economy Windows can offer its customers. These are years of unrivalled experience of providing the best care and attention to every individual customer’s requirements with a very personal level of service. Even today, customers of 25 years standing still call up Peter Hobden and address him by his first name. If you want to join the 18,000 others who have experienced this unique service then call 01553 777088 or 01945 588988. Find out in the next issue how the story continues..................

ABOVE: Economy Windows’ Wisbech premises, acquired in 2001

PERSONALITY

I love the sea, which is pretty much the reason my family and I are here, the strip between the sea and the land where the marshes, sand dunes and pine trees are is unbeatable and I like the lifestyle – it’s like it’s another country... – Chris Coubrough on West Norfolk

KLmagazine June 2012

e Big Interview

CHRIS COUBROUGH Celebrity chef and owner, Flying Kiwi Inns KL magazine talks to the popular celebrity chef Chris Coubrough about the growing reputation of The Flying Kiwi Inns group... KL MAGAZINE: How did a chef from New Zealand come to Norfolk?

KL MAGAZINE: What does your role entail?

CHRIS COUBROUGH: Having cooked around the world, I ended up in London in 1993. Although I worked in some of the finest restaurants in the city, after three years I’d had enough of being mugged, sitting on the night bus and being broke – it wasn’t the England I imagined! I needed £400 to get home, so I took a temporary job for Adnams in Southwold and it was there I found the real England, together with my wife and the drive I needed to go it alone. In 2003 we visited The Crown Hotel and Wells-next-the-Sea – we fell in love with both, and I’ve been working like a mule ever since!

CHRIS COUBROUGH: I seem to spend most of my time in my car travelling between the sites, but when I’m at one of my places or at an out-catering function I’m just ‘an extra pair of hands’ – so I could be cooking, running plates, serving behind the bar, washingup or doing whatever’s necessary to get the job done.

KL MAGAZINE: Can you give us an overview of The Flying Kiwi Inns? CHRIS COUBROUGH: We’re a hotel pub company consisting of (at the moment) five award-winning hotels and inns situated on the north Norfolk coast and inland. I’m proud to say that collectively the group has a solid reputation for not only being in some of the most idyllic settings in the county – but also in providing first class accommodation, fantastic customer service and excellent award-winning food. KL MAGAZINE: What does the future hold for the business? CHRIS COUBROUGH: More of the same – we’ve put our roots down in Norfolk, and though we know the country is struggling at the moment I think Norfolk is quietly confident in being able to ride out the storm.

KLmagazine June 2012

KL MAGAZINE: What’s the most rewarding part of your job? CHRIS COUBROUGH: When it goes well it’s very rewarding to hear from the people who write in to say they’ve had a great time – the people who’ve had a great wedding or birthday – and to know we had part of that. It’s also very rewarding to work with young people, who you watch further their career. That really gives me a buzz. KL MAGAZINE: What have you learned from your work? CHRIS COUBROUGH: Everything I’ve learned has come from my working life. I have no qualifications other than my 100m freestyle, my cycling proficiency and, of course, those I’ve got from being a chef. KL MAGAZINE: If you could eat in any restaurant in the world, what would it be – and what would you eat? CHRIS COUBROUGH: Bearing in mind the nature of my work, I would rather have eight friends round to the house on a lovely summer’s night for a decent Kiwi barbeque!

KL MAGAZINE: What do you like best about West Norfolk? CHRIS COUBROUGH: I love the sea, which is pretty much the reason my family and I are here – the strip between the sea and the land where the marshes, sand dunes and pine trees are is unbeatable. I like the lifestyle too – when I watch the news it doesn’t feel like it’s here, it feels like it’s another country. KL MAGAZINE: In your free time, how do you relax? CHRIS COUBROUGH: I don’t have a lot of free time, but when I do I like to chop wood! KL MAGAZINE: Who’s your biggest inspiration? CHRIS COUBROUGH: I take inspiration from a lot of people – and not all of them are Richard Branson types. I’ve met a lot of normal people who all had something inspirational about them. KL MAGAZINE: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? CHRIS COUBROUGH: Exceed expectation wherever possible. KL MAGAZINE: Tell us something about yourself that would surprise people... CHRIS COUBROUGH: I’m friendlier than people think!

THE FLYING KIWI INNS The Kiwi Nest. Fakenham Road East Rudham, Kings Lynn PE31 8QZ Tel: 01485 528048 Web: www.flyingkiwiinns.co.uk E-mail: info@flyingkiwiinns.co.uk

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HISTORY

West Norfolk: Then and Now

2012 A PLAINER BAXTER’S PLAIN? They say nothing stands in the way of progress, and certainly Billing’s hairdressers and Whisky-A-Go-Go couldn’t stop the development of Baxter’s Plain in King’s Lynn. Thanks to KL magazine reader Geoﬀ Saunders for sending the picture – perhaps another

reader can accurately date the photograph? For more photographs of how things used to be in King’s Lynn and the surrounding area, contact Picture Norfolk – at the Norfolk Heritage Centre, Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, The Forum,

Millennium Plain, Norwich, Norfolk NR2 1AW. We’ll be bringing you another nostalgic look at West Norfolk next month. IN ASSOCIATION WITH

To view thousands of images of Norfolk’s history visit: www.picture.norfolk.gov.uk KLmagazine June 2012

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Insurance Matters WITH ADRIAN FLUX

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Learner drivers could save thousands with new insurance policy... earner drivers could save thousands of pounds on their insurance - and protect their iZk^gml gh \eZbfl [hgnl Zm the same time - thanks to a new policy introduced by specialist broker Adrian Flux. Parents, family or friends adding a young driver to their own insurance will often be faced with crippling additional premiums, and run the risk of losing some or all of their no claims bonus in the event of a fault claim. ;nm ?enq l g^p l\a^f^ Zeehpl youngsters between 17 and 21 to take out their own comprehensive insurance hg lhf^hg^ ^el^ l \Zk _khf e^ll maZg {+ per day. The cover can be taken out on a monthby-month basis, so learners only pay for the cover they need before passing their test. Harry Dodds, 17, from Norfolk, was ma^ Ă&#x203A; klm mh mZd^ hnm ma^ g^p \ho^k' A^ bl e^Zkgbg` mh ]kbo^ bg abl _Zma^k% <ebo^ l% VW Passat, and has taken out a threemonth policy costing ÂŁ175, a saving of ÂŁ750 on an annual basis if he had simply been added to his _Zma^k l iheb\r'

The Passat is currently insured with Flux at an annual premium of ÂŁ450, but adding Harry as a named driver would push this up to ÂŁ1,800. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This policy is an absolute no-brainer for learner drivers,â&#x20AC;? said Mr Dodds l^gbhk' Bm l Z pbg&pbg lbmnZmbhg & bm l saving us a small fortune in premiums and if Harry were to have a minor bump then my no claims bonus is unaffected.â&#x20AC;? And Harry added: â&#x20AC;&#x153;It will enable me to get in some valuable extra practice and ahi^_neer B ee [^ Z[e^ mh iZll fr m^lm sooner, saving more money on lessons Zg] bglnkZg\^ bg ma^ f^Zgmbf^' Bm l ma^ perfect policy for me at the moment.â&#x20AC;? Gerry Bucke, general manager at Flux, said there was a clear need to help learner drivers get more driving experience without heavily penalising their parents, family or friends. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Although young drivers have a higher Z\\b]^gm kZm^ ho^kZee% mabl ]h^lg m apply to learners who have to be accompanied while driving at all times,â&#x20AC;? he explained.

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the premiums charged to add learners to existing policies are out of kilter with the actual risk. We hope this policy will address that and help more young people get that extra practice that will help them pass their test.â&#x20AC;?

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KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: The hus46 development at Watton is the latest high-quality project by family-run Abel Homes

Abel Homes and the future of housing... Abel Homes has quite literally built a reputation for high quality, forward thinking and genuinely lovely homes. Bel Greenwood talks to Tony Abel about the company’s latest development...

he ﬁrst time Tony Abel went to a house auction it was out of curiosity. He had recently sold his highly successful international transport business and had a little time on his hands. At the auction, he bought a cheap ex-police house and sold it privately. It was to mark the beginning of a whole new enterprise. It was the early 1990s and a period when a lot of repossessed property was on the market. From buying, restoring houses and selling them, Tony Abel went on to develop the family-run house building business Abel Homes. From its outset the company specialised in creating small, high

quality and sustainable developments mainly around market towns in Norfolk. What marks Abel Homes out from other house builders is an uncompromising attention to detail and the view that the best is a matter of course – and not a luxury. It’s the company behind the award-winning development in Drayton: 22 houses set in 20 acres of woodland, the houses all sited to maximise the beneﬁts of the local environment, woodland, light and air designed by Conran & Partners. Abel Homes was able to gift 11 acres of woodland to the local community, ensuring the conservation of an area of beauty and high in bio-diversity. The development is a jewel in Norwich’s

crown of private housing projects. The ethos that fuelled the success of hus22 in Drayton is just as present in hus46 in Watton – despite the difference in the make up of the land. The hus46 project is Abel Homes’ latest development. The houses have a range of individual features and they breathe in a landscape attractively designed with plenty of open space. The whole development is a statement of quality contemporary design, energy efficiency and sustainable values with affordable prices starting at £130,000. It’s a very personal project to Tony Abel. The land has been owned by the family since 1984. Tony’s father Noel kept Shire horse teams and wagons on

KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: Abel Homes have a fantastic eye for detail – and for sustainable housing

the land – the shire horses took part in national and international shows and were used to promote the transport business. The horses were all christened nobly with the names of kings. Typically, there were usually five shire horses in residence at any one time, alongside a workshop for renovations and the housing for the wagons the horses pulled. This former use is reflected in the names given to the roads – ‘Paddock Road’ and ‘Shire Horse Way’ are examples. “I’ve lived in Watton all my life,” says Tony Abel, “and it’s very important to me to get it right.” It’s definitely ‘right’ – both inside and outside offer a whole range of impressive features including carbon reducing measures. All the homes are fitted with photovoltaic solar panels generating energy for the homeowner and supplied by partner company, Abel Energy (which is run by Tony’s son Chris). LED lights, double-flush cisterns, single loop radiator systems, high-level insulation and triple-glazed windows are all features of the energy conserving house, not to mention the rain butts provided outside and noncorroding zinc guttering. The postbox nestles on the wall adjacent to the front door as the houses need to be

KLmagazine June 2012

hermetically sealed for ventilation control. There’s a wide range of worktops, tiles, carpets and finishes – all selected by Tony’s wife, who works closely with the architects. Unusually there is ample storage space, state-of-the-art fitted kitchens with all appliances provided except for washing machines and elements such as the internal doors which have real weight to them – more like a fire door. The sun tube on the upstairs landing funnels natural light into what is a house designed with light in mind. The windows are generous, the halls and landings are spacious. Outside are good-sized gardens, willow-hurdle fencing and intruder alarms. This is a company which doesn’t stint on space – and gives a home its true living dimensions. Abel Homes is a masterclass in how to adapt to the changing housing market conditions and new technology. “There used to be a lot of small house builders, now we’re probably among the smallest,” says Tony. “Only the nationals and the biggest builders have survived.” Abel Homes is doing a lot more than proving that small is beautiful. It’s also working in synergy with Abel Energy to put alternative forms of energy into

ABOVE: Tony Abel pictured at the hus46 Showhome – “we’ve never compromised on quality,” he says.

their homes. “I’m not aware of any other house building company putting up wind turbines or ﬁxing solar panels,” says Tony. Forward thinking, ﬁrst class design, using notable and reliable regional contractors and most of all keeping family values at the heart of the business is keeping the business of building at its best. “Whatever we’ve done as a family, we have never compromised on quality,” says Tony. And hus46 is evidence of that.

Details ABEL HOMES Neaton Business Park (North), Norwich Road, Watton, Thetford Norfolk IP25 6JB Tel: 01953 884486 Web: www.abelhomes.co.uk E-mail: sales@abelhomes.co.uk

LOCAL LIFE

KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: These enchanting chicks are the happy result of the natural ballet that is the Avocet’s mating dance (opposite)

Titchwell Reserve: the dance of the Avocets This month, the newly-hatched Avocet chicks are just one of the amazing sights you’ll disciover at Tichwell’s RSPB Nature Reserve. Words by Bel Greenwood. Pictures by Andy Thompson

vocets are the ballet dancers of the bird world. With their sleek porcelain white and black feathers and their lilting bills, they’re the most elegant of wading birds. They’re also part of a remarkable conservation story and can be seen dipping for tiny aquatic crustaceans in the freshwater marshes of Titchwell’s RSPB Nature Reserve. The reserve, just ﬁve miles down the road from Hunstanton, has become a very hospitable breeding ground for the avocets. They arrive like a harbinger of the spring from wintering grounds on the south coast as soon as temperatures start to rise. It’s not long before they’re performing their own personal tango, a courtship dance which culminates with the female

KLmagazine June 2012

leaning forward, bending her head low to the water in submission. After mating, the male always comes round to face his mate and the birds touch bills in a kind of kiss. In late April, they can be seen scraping out the bowls of their nests with their spindly legs. Avocets are a beautiful sight at any time of year, but visit the reserve this month when the reed beds are a flood of fresh green stalks, and you’ll witness one of the loveliest of bird world experiences. In June, fluffy, newly-hatched avocet chicks will be taking their first teetering steps on amazingly long, very blue legs across a new clay island specially constructed in the freshwater marsh at Titchwell to encourage their breeding. There hasn’t always been such a nursery of avocet fledglings filling the

air with their fluting whistle. The first recorded sight of an avocet was in the 1600s, although this doesn’t mean that they weren’t around earlier. Avocets were quite a common sight over 100 years ago, but they became essentially extinct in the UK by the early 20th century due to land reclamation and persecution by egg collectors and those who hunted them for their plumage. The birds returned from Europe and the Middle East when Britain flooded coastal marshes along the East Anglian coast as a defence against German invasion in World War II. A single breeding pair of avocets was recorded in Suffolk in 1941, but it wasn’t until the RSPB acquired Havergate Island on the River Ore in Suffolk in 1947 that the real conservation and encouragement of

ABOVE: In addition to the Avocets (bottom) Titchwell is also home to such fabulous sights as marsh harriers (above) and bitterns (below) – but you’ll have to be patient to catch a glimpse of them!

avocet breeding in this country truly began. It was such an uplifting success story that the avocet became a symbol of the RSPB, and the bird was adopted as the logo of the organisation in 1955. These days there are over 1,300 breeding pairs nationally. In the trafficlight system of coding endangered species, this successful figure puts the UK avocet on an amber status. They’re a Schedule 1 listed bird – which means it’s illegal to hunt, persecute or disturb their nesting. They certainly need to be wary. The clutch of three to four eggs that each pair produce are a favourite food of predatory herring gulls or opportunistic crows. Avocets make devoted parents. “They’re real protectors,” says Dave Hawkins, Visitor and Publicity Officer at Titchwell. “They’ll fly fearlessly straight at predators to protect their young – so fearlessly they have been nicknamed ‘Exocet’ avocets.” Their successful breeding at Titchwell, along with other rare and protected species, has exceeded all expectations. As part of a three-year project to protect the reserve from the effects of coastal erosion, the reserve created a clay island to encourage avocet breeding in 2010. In its first breeding season (2011) the wardens were hoping that 15 breeding pairs would take up residence. In the end, a record 80 breeding pairs colonised the site. There’s no better way of viewing the avocets than through the two new award-winning Parrinder Hides, which are named after Professor John Parrinder, a quantity surveyor by trade with a passion for birds and long standing member of the RSPB Council. They’re award-winning buildings with

many technological and design advances that make bird-watching a comfortable, open and airy undercover experience. It’s the end of the old days spent propping up a leaky wooden shutter in a draughty old shed. The two Parrinder Hides, two new trails opening this autumn and the new avocet island are all part of a now completed three year project to save the reserve from coastal erosion. This part of the coast has always been subject to storm surges and the predations of the sea and wind has sometimes resulted in breaches of the sea wall, not least in 1953 when the marsh was completely flooded. The land has a military history that extends back to WWI when it was used as a bombing range for the Royal Flying Corps and in WW2 the beach was mined and netted with barbed wire against possible invasion. The land behind the beach was also used as a shooting range for medium and long-range targets. It’s been suggested that the northern sea wall was weakened by the large number of shells fired at it. The military moved out in the 1960s and the RSPB has held the marsh for the last 40 years. However, it became clear that some serious work needed to be done to preserve the site and rebuild the sea defences to the North, West and East. It has cost £1.4m – with support from EU Life+ fund, the Marine Communities fund, WREN, SITA, RSPB members and the general public. The hide was paid for by the Interreg IVB North Sea Programme. Today the reserve is exploding with life. The chatter of birds fills the air, dragonflies dart, there are butterflies and moths and all manner of wildlife live under the cover of the rich vegetation. There are other rare species to be found in Titchwell’s freshwater wetlands too. A pair of exceptionally shy Bitterns lodges in the reedbed. There are 8-12 breeding pairs of the endangered Bearded Tits. Spectacular flying displays of the Marsh Harriers are here to be seen. These birds of prey are actually rarer than the Golden Eagle in the UK. They have man-size wing spans (1.4 metres) yet are as light as a jar and a half of jam and hover as effortlessly as kites. They can be seen sky-dancing throughout the summer, facing into the wind and soaring in a courtship ritual conducted high above the earth. Meanwhile, while the avocet chicks get their first lessons in scooping for dinner under the water, their parents keep a weather eye out for any incoming risk to this precious, new generation of the aristocrats of the wading world.

KLmagazine June 2012

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KLmagazine June 2012

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KLmagazine June 2012

PETS

AnimalMatters Our monthly look at the issues concerning you and your pets with Alex Dallas of the London Road Veterinary Centre...

Isa’s new suit...

Keeping free of fleas!

ast month I wrote about the onset of the tick season, and since then I’ve had many enquires about the perennial problems of fleas. A lot of people are commenting that despite their best efforts they’re still finding fleas on their pets. This has led some people to think their treatments are no longer working and they feel at a loss as what to do. The reality is fleas are very clever parasites that have evolved over millions of years to survive in all sorts of environments. Each adult flea can lay up to 50 eggs a day, and these can become adults themselves in as little as two weeks. This ability to produce a massive population is just one difficulty we face when tackling infestations. The eggs laid will fall off and roll into cracks and corners and deep into bedding and carpets. They then develop to the pupal stage – an incredibly tough opponent, almost impossible to hoover up and impervious to household sprays. These are little living time bombs, only hatching when the moment is right (when a potential host is present) and hey presto – the cycle completes with an adult flea on your pet. Lots of products from pet shops and supermarkets claim to kill the fleas in 24 hours, but that’s not strictly accurate. They will kill most of the adult fleas in

that time but not the pupal stage, which is happily safe in the environment. These will continue to hatch for months, becoming adults and then dying after feeding from the pet. However, some will have time to lay more eggs before the treatment takes effect and so the cycle continues. This is the weak point in the cycle – unless you can stop the eggs being laid progressing to pupae and then adults you’ll continue to experience problems. Many brands of treatments don’t address this and can be money wasted, which is very frustrating. However, there are products your vet can recommend that treat not only the adult flea problem, but also stop eggs hatching – meaning your home becomes free of fleas as well. Whatever you use, beating fleas takes time, not 24 hours but more like two to three months, so be patient and don’t give up. At the London Road Veterinary Centre and at the Hollies we provide free flea consultations with our nurses to help you find the right product for your pets and your problem. Even better news is these products are on special offer throughout June so call us if you’re having problems and you’d like some help. It’s certainly cheaper to prevent fleas than to find yourself treating an infestation.

Last week, I had my dog Isa spayed as this reduces the chances of her developing mammary cancer in the future. Surgery went very well, and best of all, we’ve found a great alternative to the plastic ‘lampshade’ collars used to stop dogs licking their wounds. Instead, Isa went home in a custommade T-shirt (or her ‘Babygrow’ as we called it). She looked great and was completely unimpeded after her operation. We’re using them widely, and so far all our patients (and their owners) have loved them! It’s great to see such an eﬀective improvement in post-operative care, and it’s not just for dogs – it’s for cats and rabbits too!

Your pets Thanks to Mrs Clare O'Dwyer of South Wooton for this picture of Mauser, her 2year-old pug – despite only having three legs, he can run very fast, but has to stop and have a few rests when he goes for a walk! Clare says he loves sitting on laps and is a very happy dog. Don’t forget to keep sending me pictures of your pets (the funnier the better!) to Animal Matters at KL magazine, 18 Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE30 1JW or you can e-mail them to editor@klmagazine.co.uk

LONDON ROAD 25 London Road, King’s Lynn t: 01553 773168 e: info@lrvc.co.uk HOLLIES Paradise Road, Downham Market t: 01366 386655 e: hollies@holliesvetclinic.co.uk KLmagazine June 2012

LOCAL LIFE

“It was travelling at speed, and so low it was only just visible over the earthworks. It wasn’t an aircraft and it headed over Knight’s Hill. It was a bright, white light and it wasn’t normal paranormal activity...” – Malcolm Chambers on the March 2012 sightings

ABOVE: A frame from the UFO ﬁlm captured over Bawsey earlier this year – it’s now been seen by people around the world

The truth is out there – closer than you think... In March 2012, a new film appeared to capture a number UFOs over Bawsey, but is West Norfolk really on an alien flightpath? Bel Greenwood looks to the local skies to discover more...

n New Year’s Eve last year in Hunstanton, two women called Cheryl and Pat were watching a firework display over the Wash. It wasn’t long after midnight when they saw a large, orange, ballshaped object travel slowly across the sky in the direction of the northeast. The orange glow, they reported, seemed to be shining upward into the night sky and not down towards the ground. The first light was followed by a second. It circled silently. The two women report they were awestruck and are convinced that the things they saw were not Chinese lanterns but an unidentified flying object. They’re not the only local people to

KLmagazine June 2012

report having seen strange lights or mysterious objects in the sky. Reports of unexplained sightings have been made for years, and West Norfolk is fertile UFO territory. The plethora of rural sightings may owe something to the lack of light pollution in the sky. In a celebrated sighting in 1969, Robin Peck, an electrical engineer was driving home one night through Docking, a village which sits above Heacham and Hunstanton. He was surprised when his car’s electrical system failed. He claimed he could smell static electricity in the air. Looking up, he witnessed a bright blue inverted mushroom shape in the sky about 400 metres above the trees. It disappeared as suddenly as it had

arrived and Robin’s car started to work again and he drove home. In 1996, the Eastern Daily Press reported that North Norfolk was plagued with UFO sightings with reports coming in from police oﬃcers and the coastguard. As recently as March, there have been a number of claims that UFOs have been particularly active over Bawsey and King’s Lynn. There’s plenty of footage uploaded to YouTube, with reports of triangular formations of lights. Malcolm Chambers, who was investigating paranormal activity at Castle Rising that month, said he saw a light in the same period. “It was travelling at speed, and so low

it was only just visible Archives in Kew. over the earthworks,” Among their he says. pages are “It wasn’t an aircraft unresolved and it headed over mysteries, Knight’s Hill. It was a sightings and the bright, white light and results of it wasn’t normal government paranormal activity.” investigations. He added that he Winston Churchill had seen another had a keen light in King’s Lynn interest but after later the same calling on the month. This time, the MOD to look into glowing light was UFOs, they came green and hovered back with around the quayside negative results. near Devil’s Alley If there’s a before silently particular group making its way out to of people who the Wash. could be “It was the same expected to have time as the lights some answers over Bawsey,” he about UFOs, it’s claims. surely There are astronomers. innumerable reports Norfolk’s Mark of sightings on the Thompson is an internet going back astronomer who years and some of knows the region these claims relate to well. He is the alien ships as well as president of lights – but most Norwich’s claims are made Astronomical anonymously or in Society and sits the way of internet on the Royal postings using cover Astronomical names. Alongside the Society’s Council. sightings there are He is often conspiracy passionate about ABOVE: It’s a long way from King’s Lynn, but this is one of the most famous UFO photos theories, and a whole ever – it was taken in Oregon, USA over the farm of Mr. Paul Trent on May 11th, 1950 the universe and TV and film industry is the resident has grown up on ‘night sky’ man evaluated. There are tens of thousands dark mysteries, a chilling and thrilling on BBC’s The One Show. of sightings online, but without mix of government complicity and the In his stargazing career has he ever research they’re meaningless. alien unknown – think Roswell and The seen a UFO? Heather believes we must look at the X Files. “In my 20-odd years of astronomy I human face of ufology. Peoples’ belief The mysteries of the unexplained have never seen anything that could systems and what that means, why may have inspired writers and not be explained,” he says. “A lot of sightings go up and down. programme-makers, but it has also effects you can see could be in space, “Reporting was heavy in the 1990s inspired researchers. like the space station in orbit. Satellites and then the number reduced,” she Heather Dixon is the National can easily be seen as they’re very bright, explains, “but they’re on the increase Investigations Co-ordinator for the or it may be ball lightning. There are so again now. Why?” British UFO Research Association, many different explanations.” There are so many possible (BUFORA). Her father was an If it’s a matter of alien aircraft coming explanations for mysterious sightings. aeronautical engineer on the NASA to the UK for a visit, then he finds it Everything from laser lights to electroSpace Programme. As a child she was hard to believe – not least because of magnetic fields, optical illusions and surrounded by the wonder of space the sheer logistics of anyone travelling camera tricks can play a part. and it filled her with questions. at the speed of light from even the Notwithstanding the possibility of hoax She is nothing if not vigorous in her nearest star system. It would be a 9and digital trickery – and Heather has approach to the phenomena of UFOS. year round trip. seen it all in her 20 years of experience “We have a training course for Bufora But Mark does believe in the as an investigator. investigators,” she says, “and it teaches possibility of alien life. There is still, however, “a residue of you what can be observed in the sky. “It’s incredibly sad,” he says, “it’s a cases which do not have an 98% of sightings can be explained.” horrible thought that we are all alone.” explanation.” Vigorous scientific research is vital But if there is life in space then it’s The story of UFOs in the UK can be because there’s that tiny handful of probably in very distant universe. This is partially read through the mass of cases which can’t be explained. documents released by the government definitely a case of keeping an open Sightings must be researched and mind. in August last year to the National

KLmagazine June 2012

Summertime at Worzals! Now is the perfect time to visit Worzals Farm Shop with plenty of new products to see. With Summer around the corner the recently extended garden centre boasts the finest in bedding and basket plants, perennials and shrubs. Aunt Eileens Coffee Shop & Restaurant has a wonderfully furnished patio area where friends and family can continue to enjoy the tradionally home made country meals and cakes on offer. With the new Summer menu on the way, Aunt Eileens will be offering a variety of seasonal meals, including a selection of burgers and hotdogs, sandwiches and salads. “Everyone at Worzals would like to thank all of their customers for their continual support.” - J Curson

KLmagazine June 2012

Details WORZALS FARM SHOP Lynn Road, Walton Highway, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire PE14 7DA

01945 582231 33

Turn your Jubilee celebrations into a right royal feast! l Tuna, Swordfish and Lobster now available! l Cromer Crabs l Fresh and smoked salmon Plus! l Brancaster oysters Extensive delicatessen l Frozen game, pheasants, counter with top quality mallards and partridges cheeses and olives from l Free range eggs home and abroad! l Hand-carved ham on the bone

DONALDSONS A fresh taste of the sea

Austin Fields, King’s Lynn | Tel: 01553 772241 OPEN: Tues/Wed 7am-4pm, urs/Fri 7am-5pm, Sat 7am-3pm

CELEBRATING THE BEST OF BRITISH! All sausage packs now HALF PRICE! ¼lb Beefburgers now ONLY 50p EACH! ¼lb Pork & Apple burgers ONLY 50p EACH! Look out for our new website Goddards of Norfolk coming soon – you’ll be able to place orders online and deliveries will be made by post! Oﬀers available from May 28th–June 9th Pre-order now to avoid disappointment on 01366 388377

READY MEALS AVAILABLE – phone for details!

John’s

quality butchers

4 Wales Court, Downham Market, Norfolk Telephone: 01366 388377 E-mail: john@johnsqualitybutchers.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

FOOD & DRINK

Grilled Sardines on Red Pepper Coulis

CHEF’S NOTES Sardines are abundant in the summer, and are also at their most flavoursome during these months. In this dish the beautiful flavour of the fish is paired with the natural sweetness of freshly roasted red pepper. A perfect dish for the season’s first al fresco dinner – and since you can make the sauce ahead of time, it’s quite a simple dish to prepare on the day. RECIPE: Paul Hegeman PHOTO: Paan

INGREDIENTS Red Pepper Coulis: 5 red bell peppers 1 clove garlic, crushed 2 tbs white wine 2 tbs brown sugar ¾ tbs white vinegar olive oil sea salt and black pepper 2 pinches paprika Sardines: 12 sardines, cleaned flour butter olive oil sea salt and black pepper Garnish: 20 basil leaves, fresh reduced balsamic

Preparation Time: 45 minutes Cooking Time: 20 minutes Serves: 4

KLmagazine June 2012

METHOD Red Pepper Coulis: 1 Grill the peppers, then peel and slice into strips. 2 Sauté the strips and garlic in a little olive oil on high heat for about 3 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. 3 Add the wine, reduce slightly and then add the brown sugar, paprika and vinegar before simmering for 5 minutes. 4 Pour the mixture into a food processor and process for 1 minute, until it has a thickish consistency (if it’s too thin, return it to the pan after processing and reduce for further few minutes). 5 Now the sauce is complete, it can be kept in the refrigerator (in an airtight container) for up to 5 days – for this dish, you simply warm the coulis before serving. Garnish: 1 Make the reduced balsamic and wash the basil leaves. Sardines: 1 Lay the sardines on some paper towel to absorb excess moisture. 2 Add the salt and pepper to the flour and coat the sardine fillets. 3 In a non-stick pan, heat 1 tbs of butter and 2 tbs olive oil over a high heat and brown the sardine fillets in the pan (about 1 minute per side). Plating: 1 Spoon some of the warm coulis into the bottom of 4 deep plates. 2 Place 3 sardines in a criss-cross stack on top of the coulis and top with the fresh washed basil leaves. 3 Drizzle the leaves with some of the balsamic reduction and serve with plenty of cracked pepper.

CREATING ROOMS YOU’LL LOVE TO LIVE IN

NEW HUNSTANTON SHOWROOM: 2012 OPENING SUMMER

Fine fitted furniture designed and built in our King’s Lynn factory

48 Bergen Way, North Lynn Industrial Estate, King’s Lynn PE30 2JG t: 01553 762749 Open: Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm Sat 9am-4pm www.kingsoakkitchens.co.uk

NO MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED BAR/RESTAURANT OPEN EVERY DAY FROM 12 LUNCH: MON–SUN 12–3pm DINNER: MON–SAT 6–9pm PRIVATE PARTIES WEDDINGS AND CONFERENCES SAILING, KAYAKING AND TENNIS BROW OF THE HILL, LEZIATE KING’S LYNN, NORFOLK PE32 1EN 01553 630393 WEB: www.leziatepark.co.uk E-MAIL: enquiries@leziatepark.co.uk 36

KLmagazine June 2012

COOKS

CORNER

with Melanie Done

Welcome to the Cake Club!

y the time you read this Cook to Perfection will have enjoyed the ﬁrst meeting of the King’s Lynn Clandestine Cake Club. Intrigued? Then read on. The idea of the Clandestine Cake Club is to unite people that love to bake, and it’s all about cake – not cupcakes, brownies, muﬃns, tarts or cake pops. There’s a national network of clubs and each month I’ll be arranging a meeting locally, sending out an open invite tempting people to sign up. A few hints will be given about the venue but the exact location won’t be released until a couple of days before – and even then it will be kept quiet by the PROUD SPONSORS OF

members! So we could be turning up at a restaurant, bar, hotel or coffee shop near you very soon! However, it’s not like the secret knitters who yarn bomb town centres with multi-coloured novelties tied to trees and lamp posts, mainly because we get to eat the cake on the night – so you won’t find any cakes in King’s Lynn phone boxes! Whilst we will be eating each other’s cakes (and sharing any remaining out to take home) you’ll be encouraged to buy a cup of tea or coffee, or maybe an alcoholic beverage (depending on the location) to support the host venue. There’s no competitive element and none of the cakes will be judged, so anyone can come along and socialise

with other bakers, and hopefully share some ideas and tips. Each event will have a theme, and the first one is Tutti Frutti Tuesday. Essentially, all cakes must have fruit in them or be fruit flavoured and we have some great new food flavourings in the shop which would be good for this. Some other Clandestine Cake Club ideas have included vintage cakes, upside-down cakes, mystery ingredient cakes, retro sweet cakes and your favourite tipple cakes. The sky’s the limit! At Cook to Perfection, we offer a wide range of storage boxes, tins and sugarcraft items for perfecting those cakes, but there’s no pressure to spend a lot of money on producing a masterpiece – just come along and share your love of baking with other like-minded people. Male or female welcome – and you can even bring a guest. If you’re interested in joining the King’s Lynn Clandestine Cake Club, or can offer us a free venue, the details can be found online at the website www.clandestinecakeclub.co.uk or you can always e-mail me for further details at cakeclub@cooktoperfection.co.uk.

Mel

MELANIE DONE is the joint owner of Cook to Perfection 47 High Street, King’s Lynn PE30 1BE Telephone: 01553 767575 Website: www.cooktoperfection.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

FOOD & DRINK

RestaurantReview was well prepared and we liked the way the sauce for the salad was in a separate bowl. As soon as we finished, our plates were cleared away and we were presented with the dessert menu. I have to say that in my opinion this was one of the nicest dessert menus I’ve seen for some time – there was so many yummy options to choose from. I opted for the honeycomb smash cheesecake and my friend ordered strawberry Eton Mess cheesecake. Some of the other tantalising options we turned down were traditional vanilla pannacotta, lemon torte and milk chocolate fudge cake. We also had two cafe lattes to accompany them. Yet again, the presentation of the desserts were exquisite – but the taste even better. My honeycomb cheesecake was divine, every mouthful melted and tasted so creamy and delicious and the honeycomb crunch complemented it so well. Definitely the best dessert I’ve ever tasted and admittedly I have visited the restaurant a few times since to order the honeycomb cheesecake to go! After a thoroughly enjoyable meal we asked for the bill, explaining we’d brought a voucher along with us that we’d printed from the internet – buy one-get-one-free offer on all main meals. The waitress knew all about the voucher and quickly took this off the bill. When I looked around at other diners I noticed these vouchers were on most of their tables. Therefore, my top tip to KL Magazine readers is to log online to www.vouchercodes.co.uk before you book – the offers change regularly, but Prezzo is almost always featured. All you need do is enter your details, print the voucher and take it with you. With this voucher our delicious meal only came to £36! Overall, we experienced fabulous staff, fabulous food and a price you can’t beat!

Write a food review and WIN a John Lewis hamper!

Enjoyed a really special meal recently or discovered a new place to have a memorable lunch? Here’s your chance to share the experience with other readers of KL magazine...

or the past 20 months we’ve been fortunate enough to have a small group of readers that have regularly provided us with reviews of favourite local café and restaurants – We senttheir Ann Weaver off to the Corn Exchange in and we know you enjoy reading them! King’s Lynn, but before theofcurtain Indeed, every month we receive lots feedback was from raised on the readers asking what our decided views are onto theenjoy new a taste of Prezzo... opening act, she restaurant in their village or the latest menu on the calories was in the lighter version. coast.chose to dine at Prezzo as I had tickets for a show at the Corn quirky part to the menu is With so much interest, we felt it would Another make sense Exchange and its location is ordering a half-and-half pasta dish. This to broaden our reviews and invite every one of our ideally situated on the corner of means you can pick two pasta dishes readers contribute. theto Tuesday Market Place in for the price of one, each dish being KL magazine is inviting you to share your great central King’s Lynn. I pre-booked the half the size of a normal portion. experiences ofto dining out Norfolk table as I’d tried dine at thein North and West As I love pasta but do sometimes find with all our readers. youalways know fully of a restaurant that’s restaurant before, but itIf was a whole dish of itacan be too much, I booked which was an took this hidden – gem or Iiffelt you've eaten a dish worthy of option and my friend decided encouraging to choose just one with a side salad. recognition,sign. then this is your opportunity to promote When we walked through the door Unsure which pastas would them! weWe’re were not approached immediately by complement each other we asked the asking for expert criticism and gastronomic one of the waiters who took us to our waitress for assistance and she was very literature – just an honest perspective that would table. The restaurant isn’t very large, but knowledgeable about all the dishes and benefit other people like yourself who may want toour try choosing easy. I it has been designed immaculately with helped make something new. And as a thank you, we’ll be sending modern decor and I felt very decided upon the spaghetti with tiger every reviewer whose recommendation gets published comfortable inside. The tables are prawns, baby spinach, red onion and a special hamper from John diners, Lewis. positioned quite close to other red chill, in a tomato and garlic sauce. but seemed quiteyour a small drawback The second pasta choice was If this that’s whetted appetite, you should note that as I was overwhelmed by should the efficiency seasoned chicken with red chilli, your restaurant review be around 400 words of allyour the staff. and garlic and café review should be aroundspinach 200 words – in a creamy saffron We were immediately given a drinks sauce. and don’t worry about taking photographs: we’ll do menu and the waiter took our drinks My friend opted for the Oak Roasted that! order – two flutes of prosecco – while salmon, broccoli and fresh chillis in a Good luck please e-mail your reviews to us and at cream sauce. explaining the – specials. red pesto reviews@klmagazine.co.uk and state whether you’d beof the staff continued The menu is very traditional Italian, The efficiency happy for your name be published inasthe with a wide selection of to pizzas, salads we magazine. didn’t wait long for our main

and pasta dishes. I was particularly impressed with the menu as there was a reduced-calorie option to almost every dish and details of how many

dishes to arrive. They were beautifully presented and tasted amazing. The pasta was so light and the sauces so rich and ﬂavoursome. Even the salad

FOOD

SERVICE

VALUE

55 55 55

PREZZO KING’S LYNN 22 Tuesday Market Place King’s Lynn, PE30 1JJ Tel: 01553 611099 Web:www.prezzorestaurants.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

CafeReview

CONGHAM HALL

New owners, new tastes and new reasons to visit Congham Hall... Now the fabulous setting of Congham Hall has new owners it’s the ideal time to come and try our exciting new Summer Menu, which includes delicious vegetables and herbs from our own garden. Our 3-course evening meal is only £39.50 – including canapes, a selection of homemade bread and coﬀee. You can even enjoy complimentary jug of Pimms on our terrace throughout June when you mention this advertisement! We’re open every day to non-residents for lunch, dinner, afternoon tea – and a gentle stroll around the herb garden. Congham Hall, Grimston King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE32 1AH Tel 01485 600250 E-mail info@conghamhallhotel.co.uk

www.conghamhallhotel.co.uk

his month I decided to stop by at Aunt Eileens Coffee Shop & Restaurant within Worzals Farm Shop at Walton Highway. For a Tuesday lunchtime I was amazed to see the large car park at the front full of cars. Taking this as a positive sign I went through to the dining area and was immediately impressed by the massive array of fresh cream cakes and baked delights. I found a small table at the side of the restaurant which overlooked a patio area and a waitress quickly visited the table to see if I needed assistance. As it was my first visit I asked her opinion of what was popular on the menu and I was told that the lasagne or steak and ale pie were definitely popular choices. I requested the steak pie and was delighted with the generous size portion which clearly had been made using the local meat and produce sold in the adjoining farm shop. Following the meal, the waitress asked if I would be tempted to a desert or a Thick Shake – so out of sheer curiosity I opted for the milkshake and it was certainly a good choice. A large glass was presented to me with syrup swirls decorating the inside of the glass next to a wonderfully creamy, thick, milkshake. To finish it off they’d put fresh cream and a bit more syrup. A truly sweet experience. I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch and the bill came to under £10 which I felt was great value.

AUNT EILEENS COFFEE SHOP & RESTAURANT Worzals Farm Shop, Lynn Road, Walton Highway, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, PE14 7DA Tel: 01945 582231

KLmagazine June 2012

FOOD & DRINK

LocalTastes Selected by Ann Weaver

Whether you’re having toast for breakfast or a lunchtime scone, there are few things better than a good spoonful of jam – especially if it was produced close to home. Here are some of the more interesting (and tasty!) I’ve come across lately...

RHUBARB AND VANILLA JAM Jubberwacky of North Norfolk A gorgeous homemade preserve, bursting with all the flavours of rhubarb crumble with the aroma of the finest Madagascan vanilla pods. Delicious stirred through thick and creamy yoghurt. APPLE AND COGNAC CONSERVE Ghett Up and Go Preserves, near Dereham Good cognac is added to this English fruit to enhance the apple flavour and give caramel hues to its colour. Highly Commended at the WI Jam Festival 2010, this preserve is good on buttery toast but equally great with roast pork or strong cheeses. SUGAR-FREE BRAMBLE JAM Ebenezer Cottage of Bunwell This rich and fruity jam is no less tasty for its lack of sugar. Made with sugar substitute, this jar is packed with delicious hedgerow berries from Norfolk lanes and bottled at home, in recycled jars, using traditional preserving techniques. PERNOD AND BLACKCURRANT CONSERVE Ghett Up and Go Preserves, near Dereham Rich and dark, this preserve is packed with Norfolk blackcurrants, and laced with a generous splash of Pernod. This will wake-up any breakfast but tastes equally as good as a grown-up topping for good vanilla ice-cream!

KLmagazine June 2012

Dining Out... If you’re eating out locally, here’s a selection of great places to try...

Eat, drink & stay... A traditional village inn, oﬀering luxury accommodation and scrumptious meals – all freshly cooked using only the very best local produce. THE

BERNEY ARMS

Church Road, Barton Bendish PE33 9GF Telephone: 01366 347995

www.theberneyarms.co.uk

SUNDAY LUNCH – with a touch of jazz!

th rnham

café and store

Extensive menu Children’s play area Lovely location Plenty of parking Telephone: (01485) 512194 Email: villagedelithornham@gmail.com

Jubilee Celebrations A VERY SPECIAL 3-DAY EVENT June 3rd Spinning Pig from 12pm June 4th BBQ served all day June 5th Street Party with a twist

Enjoy a great 3-course meal and be entertained by a live jazz band for only £24.95! To book, call on 01553 774996 or e-mail sales@dukesheadhotel.com

KLmagazine June 2012

Deli

Open Daily

Boutique Hotel with Superb Restaurant

June 10th, July 8th & August 12th

5-6 Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn PE30 1JS Tel: 01553 774996 E-mail: sales@dukesheadhotel.com Web: www.dukesheadhotel.com

the village

PLUS! Live music, beer festival and wine tent, great food and fun for children on all 3 days!

DUKES HEAD HOTEL

The Kings Head

H O T E L Great Bircham, Kings Lynn PE31 6RJ Tel 01485 578265 Web www.the-kings-head-bircham.co.uk

FOOD & DRINK

ABOVE: These plantain griddle cakes with a creamy cilantro and lime sauce taste just as good as they look

Pick up a plantain! A

s you might imagine if you’ve come across them in the supermarket, plantains are a type of banana, but they’re very different to eat – you certainly wouldn't want to snack on a raw one, for example! They need to be cooked. Though technically a fruit, in many parts of the world (particularly Africa and Latin America) plantains are used as an accompanying vegetable just like potatoes or rice – and you can be really creative with them. When choosing them (they’re available all year round), note that the softness of the plantains tell you how ripe it is – the softer and blacker the better. In this respect, they’re like overripe bananas, but when the skin of a plantain is completely black, the flesh is still fine to use. If you’re making plantain crisps (they’re as lovely as they are easy to make) you’ll need the green, unripe ones – but if you're roasting or frying 42

(or putting them on the BBQ) make sure you pick the softer, black ones. You’ll need to allow for about one medium plantain per person. They make a great accompaniment to roast chicken (or other meats, for that matter) or ﬁsh, together with rice and peas.

STORE: If they’re green you can keep your plantains at room temperature and leave in a paper bag for a few days to ripen. Once they’re blackened and soft, you can keep them in the fridge for a few days. PREPARE: When they’re green you’ll find the skin will be too hard to peel off, so you'll need to slice it (carefully!) with a sharp knife. Then you can cut the flesh into thin slices and make plantain crisps. When they’re soft and black, the skin is really easy to remove. You can then cook them whole or slice them up depending on how you using them.

COOK: On a BBQ, keep the skins on, wrap in foil and barbecue the plantains for about 25 minutes, turning occasionally. Slit the skin open and then serve whole or cut into 1-inch chunks, serving with butter and black pepper. To roast, peel and cut them into 1inch chunks, toss with a little olive oil and roast at 200C (180C in a fan oven) for about 40 minutes, turning every 15 minutes until they’re golden amd tender. Finally, to fry plantains peel and cut them into 5mm slices. Heat 3tbs of olive oil in a pan and fry the slices slowly in a single layer for about 5 minutes, turning once until they’re golden.

GOOD FOR: An average plantain has about 220 calories, and they’re a good source of beta carotene, folate and vitamin C CAN’T FIND THEM? You can use sweet potato or green unripe bananas instead. KLmagazine June 2012

NOW AVAILABLE! Ask the TUESDAY NIGHT

EXPERT

IS PIE NIGHT!

Stuck for a recipe? Can’t find an ingredient? Don’t know whether garlic should be crushed or sliced? Ask Ann, and she’ll point you in the right direction...

Is it ok to eat onions when they have stalks growing out the top? Some people say you can’t eat potatoes when they grow stalks - is this the same?

You can still eat the onions, but they’ll probably be quite soft and not that nice. When potatoes shoot and go green, they become very bitter and actually have a poison in them – that’s why it’s important to store potatoes in a dark, cool and dry place and not to eat any green or sprouting parts.

Should you wash iceberg lettuce? It’s something of a pet hate of mine, and I don’t like using the salad spinner either. What do you think?

I’ve never seen a TV chef wash lettuce, and I must admit I’ve never washed an iceberg lettuce - I just take off the outer leaves and rip apart the rest (never cut it with a knife). Most lettuces are grown in hothouses these days and you rarely see slugs on them - just pick it over and brush off any suspect black bits (it’s only earth anyway).

I don’t drink wine, but I do use it in cooking a lot. How long can I keep using it for? I generally use bottles with a screw top.

If the wine of is reasonable quality it should last for 2-3 days if you keep it in the fridge. If you’re not using it very often, you can always pour it into an icecube tray and freeze it – and just pop a couple in a stew when you need it. Of course, you could always buy one of those little bottles most supermarkets offer – they only hold two glasses worth, and that should be enough for a meal.

Most of the time I keep my eggs in the kitchen (not in the fridge), but recently I’ve noticed that instead of a nicely rounded yolk dropping into the oil, the yolk seems to flatten and spread out in all directions making a very unappetising egg. Is this because my eggs are kept at room temperature?

I think it has more to do with the quality of the eggs. Cheap eggs can be bought anywhere, but most have more than their fair share of water, hence your problem. Keeping them at room temperature is best, but you’ll find medium size eggs are much better than large size, which tend to be watery irrespective of where you buy them. Generally, eggs that spread out and look watery are not very fresh. Eggs shouldn’t really be kept in a fridge – the best way to store them is in a cool place pointy end down. And remember that shop-bought eggs are usually at least two to three weeks old – thats why I keep a couple of chickens in my back garden.

KLmagazine June 2012

SATURDAY NIGHT IS CHICKEN SHACK NIGHT! Don’t miss our two great new all-you-can-eat buffets coming soon every Tuesday and Saturday from 5pm-9pm

Playzone Kid’s Par ties! You’re invited to join the fun! Hot and cold buffet food, party bags, balloons, cake, invitations, choice of activity and lots more! Book today! ! Only £7.99 per child

Clenchwarton Road, West Lynn King’s Lynn PE34 3LJ

Tel: 01553 772221 43

LOCAL LIFE

OUT & ABOUT

North & South Creake Pictures: Ian Ward

eople have been living at South Creake since the Iron Age – as far back as the Norman Conquest, the settlement was impressive enough to support a watermill at North Creake – and with the development of the local wool trade in the Middle Ages, great wealth gave local barons the opportunity to build imposing new stone churches. Indeed, South Creake’s church is many people’s favourite village church in all Norfolk, and it’s not too hard to see why. It’s suitably big and impressive, and is usually full of ﬂowers. There are also plenty of fascinating statues (the one of King Charles the Martyr is particularly striking), while overhead is the famous angel roof, which dates from around 1450 – although the wings are all modern (from a 1950s restoration), many of the angels are still the 15th century originals. Interestingly, when the angels were repaired they were found to contain shot from 17th century muskets, evidence of the attempts to get rid of the jackdaws that infested the church at the time (120 of them were killed in 1680).

KLmagazine June 2012

The economy of the villages was probably at its height during the period from the 19th century to the outbreak of the First World War. During these years, virtually everything the population needed could be sourced within the village and it had as many as seven inns and beerhouses! The years since 1945 have probably seen the greatest changes to the villages – not least in the number of people living there. In 1883, the population of South Creake alone was 976, but by the 2001 Census, the population of both villages combined was only 950. Although the farms now employ very little labour and most of the great barns have been converted to desirable residences (along with the brewery, the school, the Methodist Chapel and Oddfellows Hall), the villages have a lovely character all of their own. And on your visit, don’t forget to see the memorial plaque in North Creake to the crew of the bomber that crashed in the centre of the village on April 27th, 1944 on a night training exercise (it was unveiled on the 60th anniversary of the crash in 2004). And if you think we’ve forgotten all about Creake Abbey, think again – and turn the page...

KLmagazine June 2012

OUT & ABOUT

North & South Creake

he origins of Creake Abbey date back to the foundation of a hospital for the elderly and infirm built during the reign of Henry II (11571189) – by 1221 it had become a priory, and 10 years after that Henry III approved its change into an abbey. In 1484, a disastrous fire ruined a great part of the monastery and it was in real danger of falling into desolation, but Richard III (a man not often treated kindly by history) gave the abbey the not-inconsiderable sum of £40 to help with the rebuilding. The Abbey never fully recovered, however. When disease carried off the Abbot Giles in 1506, there was no convent left to elect a successor, and following the great religious upheavals of Henry VIII’s reign the Abbey buildings were used as a quarry, the church was adapted as a farm, and the east range of the cloister was converted to a house – and what survives is the remains of the abbey church. Today, the site (which is in the care of English Heritage) is freely accessible to the public and the home of an award winning Farmers Market, together with some fantastic shops and studios. The Farmers Market is held on the first Saturday of each month (except January) and features over 40 stall holders with a wide range of fresh local produce. For more details, see the website at www.creakeabbey.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

Improving the air for everyone! 4 Way Refrigeration Ltd and the very latest innovations in air conditioning...

here’s a song by the great 1980s rock band Talking Heads called Air. In it there’s a line that says ‘air can hurt you too’ and how true that is. Thankfully, humidity, air of such poor quality it’s hard to breathe, uncomfortable temperatures, sick room stuffiness, odours and even dust can all now be vanquished with air conditioning. King’s Lynn based company 4 Way Refrigeration Ltd stocks a wide range of high-quality, AArated ECA technologically-advanced air conditioners. It means they can offer an answer to every possible air conditioning need whether commercial or domestic. Air conditioning can provide a year-round solution to the roasting temperatures of summer or the freeze of winter inside conservatories. Not only can it feel like early summer all year round, but the air conditioning units also act as dehumidifiers. Fan speeds can be varied and the unit tailored to meet personal needs. New air conditioning technology can also provide perfect ambient temperature and clean air liveability on a larger scale too – in a pub, restaurant or village hall. Comfort is available at

KLmagazine June 2012

the touch of a button using infra red remote controls. There are zero localised emissions from units that are completely safe. The technology of air conditioning has come a long way since Leonardo Da Vinci designed the first mechanical ventilating fan in the humid summer temperatures of 15th century Florence. The slim, stylish high performance compressor converter units can be wall mounted, floor mounted or located on the ceiling. 4 Way Refrigeration Ltd can offer single split or multi split units which operate from one unit to serve semi-industrial/industrial and commercial needs. Air conditioning units can be built into building management systems for larger buildings, whether office, care home, school or doctor’s surgeries. These days there are indoor and outdoor units which work almost

silently – not only do they extract hot air, expelling it outside, there are a host of other functions and benefits to health, reflecting just how versatile and indispensable new air conditioning can be. Filtration systems improve air quality with long life deodorized air filters and can be of particular help to asthma sufferers and those living in care homes, where good air quality enhances the quality of life. Air conditioner filters do more than provide pure air though. They also do wonders for smells – dog lovers and the parents of teenage boys with collections of stinky trainers take note! Air conditioning also aids in decomposing micro-organisms which invade our internal domestic or commercial and industrial atmospheres multiplying odours. They also diffuse scents such as apple or (for those with a taste for it) wasabi. Fitting a low maintenance unit from Fujitsu’s extensive range supplied by 4 Way Refrigeration Ltd can benefit companies fiscally too. Buy into this very green ECA technology and the cost can be entirely claimed back in Corporation Tax. Whatever the air conditioning need – commercial, industrial or domestic – 4 Way Refrigeration Ltd will provide flexibility, excellent service and expert knowledge. I wonder what Leonardo would have made of that!

4 WAY REFRIGERATION LTD Unit 25, Bergen Way, North Lynn Industrial Estate, King’s Lynn PE30 2JG TEL: 01553 767878 E-MAIL: sales@4wayref.co.uk WEB: www.4wayref.co.uk

Unique

Flower Girls

hether it’s glamorous, simple, big or small, every bride wants a unique wedding. Here at Unique Bride our bridesmaid’s dresses are perfect for every special occasion, from elegant London aﬀairs to pretty country weddings, whether it’s short and fun or long and elegant. We have a whole host of beautiful colours to choose from and a wide range of sizes, from 2-28.

If you’re looking for that perfect little ﬂower girls dress, come in and see our range of hand made children’s special occasion dresses. From two to teen with delicate details and pretty trims, you’re sure to ﬁnd what you are looking for. To book an appointment to come in and see us in our beautiful 15th century barn, set in the heart of Castle Rising please call 01553 631500. We’d love to be part of your special day.

Castle Rising, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE31 6AG Tel: 01553 631500 Web: www.uniquegiftsandinteriors.co.uk E-mail: uniquegifts.castlerising@btconnect.com 00

KLmagazine April 2012

Playtime In association with Youngsters World

ABOVE: From famous footballers to monsters in need of a good home, collecting has never been more popular!

Adopt a monster and win Euro 2012: it’s the new face of collecting!

ollecting has always been a fascination for children. Matchbox cars, badges, pencil tops, stickers… through the decades, children have loved to spend their pocket money collecting the latest craze. In 2011 collectability was further enhanced with the advent of an interactive online platform combined with collectability, making Moshi Monsters the latest craze in collecting. Children buy Moshi Monsters ﬁgures to collect, swap and play with, and some feature unique online codes. Online, Moshi Monsters is a free online game for children where they can actually adopt a monster and look after it. With their parents’ approval, children can become ‘users’ on the site and adopt their own Moshi Monster. Children care for the ‘monster’ by solving puzzle games, which earns their monster virtual rewards called Rox. For 2012, the collectability idea has

been combined with the popular modular building concept and the always popular subject of football! Character Building Sports Stars are the new range of Lego-style construction mini-figures from Character Options. To coincide with the Euro 2012 football tournament, UK toy company Character are initially releasing a collectable set of FA Character Building mini-figures. Fully licensed by the English FA, the mini-figures will feature members of team England’s Euro 2012 squad such as Wayne Rooney, Joe Hart, Ashley Cole and John Terry. Single figures will be sold in blind bags at £1.99 with additional playsets available retailing up to £20. To host the footballing mini-figures, Character will later be releasing the Character Building Wembley Stadium, an ultimate football construction set that will retail at around £150. The Character Building Wembley Stadium even includes the arch that

spans the famous England stadium. FA mini-ﬁgures as well as the Character Building Sports Stars ﬁgures can be used to make up teams to play cup matches or internationals at this awesome new toy Wembley Stadium. Character Building Sports Stars collectors can assemble their own fantasy teams to compete on new toy football pitches and penalty shoot-out playsets. And who knows – maybe they’ll enjoy as much success as the real England team this month!

Youngsters World 112 Norfolk Street, King’s Lynn PE30 1AQ Tel: 01553 761666 Web: www.youngstersworld.com KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole by Character Options – now’s the time to get them on your side!

Be clear on cancer...

ave you ever felt that food gets stuck in your throat when eating, or have you (or someone you know) been suﬀering from heartburn or indigestion on and oﬀ for three weeks or more? If you notice any of these symptoms, tell your doctor straight away. The chances are that it’s nothing serious – but it’s always best to get it checked out as soon as you can. These symptoms could be signs of stomach cancer or oesophagus cancer. The oesophagus is the long tube (gullet) that carries food from the throat to the stomach. “Most people have heard of breast or lung cancer but not cancer of the stomach or oesophagus which are now amongst the most common cancers,”

says Dr Rory Harvey, Consultant Gastroenterologist and Medical Director for Anglia Cancer Network. There are almost 700 new cases of these two cancers in the region every year, and they cause over 500 deaths annually in the area. Both cancers aﬀect men and women, but are more common in men. More than nine out of 10 people who get cancer of the stomach or oesophagus are over 55. Dr Jane Scott is a local GP, whose face appears on the Anglia Cancer Network campaign advertising, and is helping to raise awareness of these cancers. “People are often worried about bothering their doctor with what they think are ‘trivial’ problems,” she says. “People think they don’t want to bother their doctor but if symptoms like

these carry on you need to speak to your GP. Food sticking in the throat is a clear sign that something’s wrong with the gullet, whereas stomach cancer is more diﬃcult to diagnose.” So remember – you’re not wasting anyone’s time by getting your symptoms checked out, so make that trip to your doctor’s surgery. If it’s nothing to worry about, your mind will be put at rest. But if it is cancer of the stomach or oesophagus, early detection makes it much easier to treat. Seeing your doctor without delay may save your life. Remember to see your doctor straight away if: l Food ever feels like it’s sticking in your throat when you swallow l You’ve had heartburn or indigestion on and oﬀ for three weeks or more

KLmagazine June 2012

HEALTH & BEAUTY

FeetFirst

Preparing your feet for Summer...

fter that false, hopeful start, it’s been a cool, damp spring – and if your toe nails aren’t in good condition, you may have been relieved you haven’t had to reveal them – but the sun is a-coming! This month we’ll look at nails in more detail – three common toe nail conditions people can suﬀer from, and what can be done to return them to their deserved glory! DRY, SPLITTING NAILS When your feet have been covered for sustained periods and you’ve had the central heating on, your toenails can become dry, and even start splitting, especially if you’ve left them to themselves! Happily, the condition is easily remedied. On a regular basis (1-2 times a week), wash your feet carefully, and then soak your toes or whole foot in fresh, warm water for 5-15 minutes; if you have a lemon or lemon juice bottle at hand, add a teaspoon or so into the soak water. Make sure you dry your feet thoroughly, and then massage a few drops of olive oil into your toe nails, taking care to gently wipe away any excess, especially between your toes.

This month’s oﬀer! This month we’re offering you 10% off a biomechanical assessment which includes a gait analysis (how you walk and how your feet hit the ground) and a pair of bespoke orthotics (shoe inserts to correct the positioning of your feet). To claim your discount, quote BA-0612 when you book, or bring this coupon in with you

KLmagazine June 2012

with Elizabeth Dutton

THICKENED TOE NAILS Many people suffer from thickened toe nails, but they can often be restored to health. Some toe nail thickening is due to fungal infection, but it can also be caused by injury or repetitive pressure on the nails caused by the toes hitting the end of the shoes (it happens with walkers and runners). Visit a foot care professional and explain your problem. If the thickening is due to trauma they’ll be able to start thinning your nail for you, and be able ABOVE: Using laser for pain and fungal nails is very to give you advice on foot effective and painless – and it works a treat! wear. If you’re not wearing sandals, make sure your socks invasive, painless and very effective and shoes fit properly, allowing treatment is now available at selected adequate room around your toes. Ease foot care clinics. This treatment is using your shoes on so they don’t pull your low level laser and we love using it on socks/stockings tightly around your people with fungal nails! We can’t get toes, and keep the laces/buckles firmly over how many delighted clients we’ve done up so your feet don’t slide had, and smiles are what makes foot forward and your toes get bashed! care the rewarding profession it is. We even do fingernails. FUNGAL NAILS During treatment, and once the Fungal infections are a common cause fungal growth has cleared, you need to of toenail thickening – often you’ll see take care to prevent it returning; have a colour change, giving you a bit of a less sugar in your diet, eat a healthy, clue. You may have been prescribed nutritious diet and, most importantly, antifungal drops or tablets which can have good footwear and treat your feet work if the infection is in its early with the same care you would for a stages, but you don’t have to have loved pet! them. This is because that a non-

All you need to know...

ELIZABETH DUTTON is a qualified foot health care practitioner and trainer. Elizabeth and her qualified team offer treatments from the Foot Care Centre, 4B Tower St, King’s Lynn, PE30 1EJ. For more information, details, help and advice please contact Elizabeth’s centre in King’s Lynn. You’ll find the Centre’s website at www.TheFootCareCentreKingsLynn.co.uk For details of how to train as a foot care practitioner please see the website at www.TheCollegeOfFootCarePractitioners.co.uk (note that the QR code on the right will also take you there) Finally, you can call us on 01553 768661 (clinic) or or send an e-mail to Elizabeth and her team at enquires@thefootcarecentrekingslynn.co.uk

LOCAL LIFE

ABOVE: The famous storefront of Bakers & Larners in Holt – the building has been a local store for almost 300 years

Taking the long view with Michael Baker... It’s one of Norfolk’s best-loved stores in one of the county’s bestloved towns, and the future of both is one of the driving forces behind Michael Baker. Bel Greenwood goes to Holt...

ichael Baker’s office is like an eyrie overlooking Holt’s Market Place. From this high point on the first floor of Bakers and Larners’ Department Store, he can see the everyday life of North Norfolk’s most celebrated Georgian town. But Michael Baker is much more than an onlooker or witness to the life of Holt. He has through his heritage, business activities and passion been a major element in the conservation and development of the town. The Bakers and Larners’ building in Market Place started its life in the 17th century. It became a store in 1730. In

KLmagazine June 2012

the 1770s, Michael Baker’s family first became involved in trading. Almost two centuries later in 1900, a limited liability company was formed, and became known as the CT Baker Ltd. There had been generations of passing down from father to son until the shareholding was split into three parts and divided between Michael’s father and his two uncles in the mid 20th century. Michael has managed the company for the last 40 years. He is the first to say that he is served by a very helpful and cohesive board, loyal, long-term staff and a supportive non-executive chairman, Eddie Ray CBE, shortly to retire. Malcolm Baker, Michael’s nephew and

fellow Board member is to take over the role as Chairman when Eddie resigns and Jane Gurney-Read a previous director of Debenhams has also joined as a Director . When Michael first took over the company, it employed 17 staff and was “somewhat rundown.” He had to face the challenges of a shocking 26.4% inflation rate, 15½% bank base rate and the three-day week that marked 1974. The shop still opened despite no electricity and was illuminated with hurricane lamps and torches. Today the group has a trinity of divisions; retail department store, a builder’s merchant and food retailing. It

ABOVE: The wine department at Bakers & Larners is just one part of the award-winning Food Hall – which itself is only part of the store’s amazing range of high-quality goods

employs 250 staff with a turnover of £20 million. Despite its size, it still has a strong family business ethos. “We’re a family-owned business and we operate like a family-owned business,” he says. The department stores can be seen all over Holt and offer far more than the everyday. Products range from high quality furniture to art and sculpture, perfume, fashion for men and women, sporting equipment to cheese graters. There are exciting, eclectic displays of goods. The department store includes the award-winning food hall and a wine cellar which extends into the original 1631 stone store, excavated down to the level of the Holt/Cromer glacial ridge. It boasts exceptionally informed and quality vintage wines and ports. Food retailing includes the acquisition of the largest Budgens in the UK, and an expanding builder’s merchant business. It has been the commitment to take the long view that is part of the success of the business and of Holt’s independent High Street. CT Baker’s has made a number of considered acquisitions over the years which have helped to preserve the character of the town. The Larner’s store was bought in 1977. Many years elapsed before Betty’s of Holt was acquired in 2004. “We’ve rebuilt both Bakers and Larners’ buildings,” Michael explains. “They’ve been rebuilt as they were, which secures the south side of the market place for another 100 years. We’ve maintained that area and also the policies that we had have helped – in effect we’ve hoovererd up all the big spaces. When Aldiss wanted to sell Betty’s there would have been the potential for national names to come in

if we hadn’t taken it on. I feel that by this we’ve conserved the town as an independent town.” The company had taken the decision to expand the Food Hall, replacing its old provisions counter and investing in building the extension. Then out of the blue on a fine May Day in 2007, Michael received a phone call from Musgrave, the family business which owned Budgens. Musgrave was selling its Budgens’ stores to its managers while retaining its distribution business. The Holt store was too large to be able to offer to a manager so Musgrave had identified CT Baker as the company to take it on. The company was able to invest in the new store and now, three years on, Budgens of Holt is offering strong value brands and have a wide range offering of local produce. The Larners Food Hall is also moving ahead.

“There’s a very careful management of the two working in tandem,” Michael says. The Builder’s Merchant division of the company is also expanding with a fourth depot due to open in Aylsham in November. He is optimistic that the economy will improve and taking the long view, he wants to be ready. Michael’s philosophy is pithy and to the point. “Everything is based on common sense,” he says. “You don’t have to be particularly bright to run a business, but you do have to have common sense.’” This no nonsense attitude extends into his political life. He grew up in a political family, and can remember his five or six year old self stuffing Labour Party election leaflets into envelopes. He studied chemical engineering at Surrey University and campaigned for Labour in Battersea in 1966 before becoming disillusioned and joining the Tories. He has served on Holt Town Council and North Norfolk District Council over many years. Recent disappointment in the Tory party has led him to UKIP and in 2011 he was selected as the prospective parliamentary candidate for North Norfolk. Michael is not only passionate about politics. He has a passion for his twoacre woodland garden and for the challenges he sets himself. He completed a five-day intensive racing driving course at Silverstone after suffering a heart attack to prove that he could do it. He became a member of Mensa for the same reason. He is passionate about the town he has done so much to support and about holding things in trust to hand on to the next generation, very much a case, of taking the long view.

KLmagazine June 2012

e Consulting Room T

Individually designed and crafted garden buildings – exquisitely hand made by local carpenters

Creake Road, Burnham Market, Norfolk PE31 8EA Tel: 01328 823413 | Mobile: 07775 897937

www.theclassicshedco.co.uk Morton ATV all terrain and utility terrain vehicles HONDA POLARIS LOGIC WESSEX C-DAX SCH Ltd

Great range of new and used vehicles in stock. Plus! Fully equipped workshop for servicing of all Quads and Utility Vehicles

Heath Farm, Great Massingham, King’s Lynn PE32 2HD www.lingscountrygoods.co.uk | www.mortonatv.com telephone: 01485 520828

Lings Country Goods for all your country pursuits

KLmagazine June 2012

he Imaging department at the BMI The Sandringham Hospital offers a wide range of diagnostic imaging methods for both privately insured and self-pay patients. Our highly trained staff offer prompt, efficient and high quality services to patients at all times. Imaging is a medical speciality that uses a variety of routine and specialised radiological procedures from the commonly used x-ray to more specialised techniques, these techniques are used to diagnose and visualise conditions in the human body. All our services are stored digitally which allows consultants to view the images promptly. Our imaging team is run by an experienced team of professionals, offering the highest possible quality of care adhering to the guidelines published by the Royal College of Radiologists and College of Radiographers. Our highly qualified radiologists specialise in a wide range of areas including musculoskeletal/sporting injuries and Gynaecological conditions. The team of radiographers liaise closely with our radiologists to ensure each procedure is personally tailored to the patients and referrers specific requirements. Our wide range of procedures includes: PLAIN X-RAY: This technique is used to show abnormalities in bones and certain body tissue. From £86.50 FLUOROSCOPY PROCEDURES: These cover studies like barium/contrast investigations. From £258.50 MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (MRI): This uses a strong magnetic fields and radio waves to produce detailed images, especially good at looking at muscles, joints, blood vessels, nerves and lesions as small as 2mm. From £511 ULTRASOUND: High frequency sounds waves are used to create images of an organ in the body, it can be used to look at soft tissues and blood vessels. From £144.50 INTERVENTIONAL PROCEDURES: This utilises minimally – invasive image guided procedures to diagnose and treat disease. A range of new fixed cost package prices have been introduced including pain relieving joint injections at £495, ultrasound guided biopsies and angiography. In order to proceed with booking an appointment, patients must have a signed request form/referral letter from either a GP or a consultant. Same day appointments are usually available for plain x-ray examinations and routine ultrasound scans. Appointments for MRI and other complex examinations will be offered the first available appointment, with consultant reporting being routinely available within 24 to 48 hours.

e Sandringham Hospital

For more information, please call BMI The Sandringham Hospital on 01553 769770 or visit www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/sandringham

ARTS

ABOVE: Local author Claire Upton, whose debut novel Twisted Fate has proved a huge success for e-readers everywhere

Claire Upton and a simple twist of fate... It’s not often that a debut novel reaches the top of a national hitlist. Bel Greenwood talks to Claire Upton about her work and how embracing the world of e-publishing is the way forward...

ate figures large in Claire Upton’s life. It brought her to the home she shares with her partner and between them, their five children, looking out over the wild fenlands not far from King’s Lynn. “I came here and looked over the cornfields at the back and saw the sunset and thought, yeah, this is it,” she says. “I’m home.” Fate also brought her one day to upload her debut novel on to Amazon’s Kindle website. She’s very happy she

did. Twisted Fate is a heart-warming story of love, loss and acceptance and it hit No.2 on Amazon’s Romance and Contemporary hitlist within just a few weeks of being available for download. It has transformed Clare’s view of herself as a writer – and the royalties aren’t half bad either. Claire’s book is set locally. Her heroine – Natalie Walsh – works in a bank in Norwich as a ﬁnancial adviser. She’s a young woman who gets her satisfaction from spending lots of money, getting her nails done and

buying new clothes. She’s never had a serious relationship, and holidays are normally abroad with a clutch of girlfriends topping up their tans. On one of those serendipitous days, something catches her eye in the window of a travel agent. It’s an advertisement for a farm holiday. Natalie is strangely drawn and signs up for the rural experience. At the farm, she meets and falls in love with Matt, the farm manager. The book charts the romance that grows between Natalie and Matt. She ends up

KLmagazine June 2012

She laughed when she thought that one woman, whose name she couldn’t remember, had started all this for her. One woman’s envy had made another woman’s life complete. She wondered what would have happened if that one day had never happened. How diﬀerent would her life be now? She wondered whether fate had many diﬀerent paths leading to the same ending or if it was just by chance that she had chosen the right one... – Twisted Fate by Claire Upton

living an unexpected life. Fate brings the young couple together, but it also has the power to tear them apart. The book was inspired by family holidays on a traditional farm in Suffolk. The location was an inspiration, and Claire wrote the book while her youngest son was tiny. “He didn’t sleep and I just started writing,” she remembers. “I’d be up all night with him and have him over one shoulder and be writing with my other hand.” Later, Claire would write in a cupboard under the stairs. The children were very supportive and would push encouraging little pictures drawn on slips of paper under the door. When the book was finished, Claire spent years sending the completed manuscript out and doing the whole Writers and Artists Yearbook thing. “I did the agent’s thing and the publisher’s thing and it just kept coming back,” she says. “It’s depressing to hear the thud on the doormat. I gave up for a while but then I came across Authonomy.” Authonomy is a website set up by publishers Harper Collins. It’s a community site for writers, publishers and readers. At first glance it looks like a dating site for potential authors, photos and messaging – but it offers a forum for feedback and encouragement as writers comment on each others’ work. It also provides the opportunity to showcase writing. Claire threw together 10,000 words and uploaded it to the site. Very quickly, it rose up the ratings to No.1. “When you’ve been rejected and you get people saying nice things back, it’s fantastic,” says Claire. The next step was

KLmagazine June 2012

Amazon and today’s success. “It was fantastic that the emotion in the book had got across to the readers and they were getting back to me. That was completely surreal.” The book has had rave reviews online and appeals to a very female readership. It’s a book that women recognize. “The whole thing is about overcoming trauma and difficulty,” says Claire. “Stuff happens but life works out in the end.” In common with many writers, Claire had an inspirational English teacher at school who she still remembers with affection. “She had wispy, dark hair and always wore black. I think the first story I wrote for her was called Rachel Rabbit. I always wrote snippets on the typewriter I had as a kid.” Now writing has become something of a compulsion for Claire. “I write it because it’s in my head. I write it because it’s a story that I have to

tell. I elaborate on everything.” The elaboration doesn’t involve plots. Some writers know exactly where they’re going from beginning to end before they even put pen to paper, but for Claire, it’s a journey where the end reveals itself at its proper time. For Claire, it’s all about the story. “If you’re too aware of who’s going to read it then you’ll never write it,” she says. Kindle and Amazon have definitely opened up the market and are providing new opportunities for new authors. E-publishing is becoming very big business and the potential is huge. Research demonstrates that people with a Kindle read more books and are likely to take a chance on an unknown title because the cost is so low. Paradoxically, it’s never been harder to find either a publisher or agent in the conventional way. The potential for the writer of e-books is that it cuts out those traditional middlemen. The relationship between writer and reader is direct and uncomplicated. There’s flexibility in that the author can vary the price depending on demand. There have been some very big successes, such as the self-published Amanda Hocking and John Locke. There are arguments for and against the phenomenon of Kindle (not least in how it pushes down book prices) but for Claire Upton, it has brought nothing but good. She’s now busy writing her next book, 110,000 words drawing on all the humour and human experiences of being a mother. “With Kindle and Amazon now, we can brave it,” she says. “Just put it out there and see what happens.”

TRADITION MEETS TECHNOLOGY BEAUTIFUL TRADITIONAL WINDOWS, DOORS AND CONSERVATORIES STATE-OF-THE-ART GLAZING TECHNOLOGY volution windows, doors and conservatories are traditional – but with a difference. They maintain the look and feel of traditional wood, but have all the advantages of stateof-the-art modern window technology. Hand-crafted and tailor-made from only the finest materials, they offer outstanding energy saving, exceptional weatherproofing and unequalled low maintenance. Evolution employs highly-skilled craftsmen and joiners, and it’s their attention to detail that makes the Evolution product range so exceptional. It’s the evolution of traditional values. Contact West Norfolk Glass Ltd today to find out more about our exclusive range of Evolution handmade windows, doors and conservatories.

West Norfolk Glass Ltd THE LOCAL COMPANY FOR ALL YOUR GLAZING NEEDS SINCE 1967 Hereford Way, Hardwick Narrows, King’s Lynn PE30 4JD Tel: 01553 763164 | Web: www.westnorfolkglass.co.uk

Celebrate the great outdoors with Bearts From the best range of country clothing in East Anglia to freshly-made animal feeds and pet foods, to an extensive selection of new and used horse boxes and trailers, Bearts of Stowbridge truly is the complete country store – if we haven’t got it, you almost certainly don’t need it!

l Huge range of our own animal and pet feeds l Great selection of new and used horse boxes l Big choice of new and used trailers l Wide selection of new and used quad bikes l Specialist collection of animal supplies l e Hayloft: for all your country clothing needs

Brighton Mill, Stow Bridge, King’s Lynn PE34 3PD tel: 01366 388151 web: www.bearts.co.uk 58

KLmagazine June 2012

Books

David Learner

June is busting out all over. Here in Lynn we take things a little more seriously so let’s just say that June is thinking about it. All the more reason to settle down with one of these little booky beauties while you wait for the sun... THE THREAD VICTORIA HISLOP The author of The Island and The Return returns once again to the mass market shelves with the paperback version of The Thread. She’s sold a million books to date and finds new audiences every hour. As a young Anglo-Greek man begins to hear stories of the past he realises he has a fateful decision to make that could destroy beliefs stitched through three generations of his family.

THE MAGIC OF REALITY RICHARD DAWKINS Even without the photographs of the glossy hardback Dawkins’ journey through the tumbling waters of the natural world, its myths and magic, allows us to view in full Technicolor the beliefs of other cultures and dynasties as they enlighten our thoughts and colour everything we see and want to see even if it’s not there. Dreams are made of Dawkins.

THE OLD WAYS ROBERT MACFARLANE Where are we? Is this the voyage through the British landscape that hasn’t been written yet? What causes us to realise that the best journey is the one that brings us home? MacFarlane sets out from his Cambridge heart to seek answers to the questions. Make the tea and hand this book to someone you love; smile generously and get them to read it out loud to you, very slowly.

SNUFF TERRY PRATCHETT Meanwhile in Discworld we’ve arrived at the thirty-ninth novel of a mayhem and madness that have set Pratchett apart from all the rest. Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is on holiday and he didn’t book a corpse. Look, either read this or don’t, but if you do you’ll need to invest in the other thirtyeight. You’ve been warned.

GOLDILOCKS AND JUST THE ONE BEAR LEIGH HODGKINSON Remember Goldilocks? Cute girl, nice hair, liked porridge. She’s grown up now. Great flat, good job, small problem: Tiny Bear has tracked her down and he’s lost. This sigh-out-loud picture book by the award-winning artist and animator Leigh Hodgkinson is one you’ll buy for that three-year-old you adore and then mysteriously lose within your own bookcase. Just watch.

THE SECOND WORLD WAR ANTONY BEEVOR Latterly described as the most terrible war in history (until the next one presumably) WW2 is often seen as a collage of conflicts, ranged across the globe with no defining axis or centre. In this masterly book Beevor brings together the skeins into a single homogenised tapestry which allows the casual historian, and endemic seeker-after-truth, to understand the whole picture.

KLmagazine June 2012

June SAT

9th

Events

There’s going to be more than a little instore ribaldry at 11.00am. Our very special guest is the beguiling best-selling bookseller Jen Campbell. She’s compiled Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops and she’ll be signing copies. “Oh look, these books are signed.” (Pause) “I wonder who signed them …” You said it, so it’s in the book.

DAVID LEARNER is Assistant Manager for Waterstone’s at 137 Norfolk Street, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE30 1AU Telephone: 01553 660111

LOCAL LIFE

KLmagazine June 2012

PICTURE: TERRY LONGLEY 2010 ABOVE: Badgers are well protected by law – it’s a crime to kill or injure one, and it’s an oﬀence to interfere with any place where they appear to be living – and woe betide anyone thinking of disturbing a bird’s nest (opposite)

How Jason is upholding the laws of the wild... It’s a sad truth that although there are over 150 laws protecting our wildlife, they continue to be broken. Bel Greenwood talks to local Wildlife Crime Oﬃcer Jason Pegden about his work

t is immediately clear on meeting PC Jason Pegden, one of Norfolk’s Wildlife Crime Officers, that he loves his job. Wildlife crime officers are all volunteers and take on the role in addition to their existing police duties. PC Pegden manages his role as beat manager at Wells-next-the-Sea with his specialist knowledge and experience of wildlife offences. He volunteered early on in his police career. “I’ve been doing it for years now,” he says. “I first volunteered because I have an interest in wildlife. It’s all police work and the wildlife work is in with my general police work.” Born at Blakeney, he has a local

KLmagazine June 2012

knowledge of the area. He worked on the boats, taking visitors out to see the seals on Blakeney Point as a youth and he also volunteers as a deer warden when he’s oﬀ duty. On duty, PC Pegden covers most of the North Norfolk coast from Cley to Holkham and inland to Walsingham, a very wide area including large expanses of estate and agricultural land as well as conservation areas. Wildlife crime is taken extremely seriously. It’s a high priority crime and wildlife laws cover the protection of species, habitats and sites. There’s a huge and complex range of oﬀences, and they often involve long investigations. Crimes against protected

species include killing or taking them from the wild such as birds of prey; collecting their eggs or skins for personal collections, trading in them; and taxidermy offences. People destroying nests and breeding sites such as bat roosts and other protected habitats is also included. As you might imagine, there’s nothing typical about any of PC Pegden’s days. There have been some widely reported, high profile wildlife crimes in our area. In August last year, the police investigated the deaths of common and grey seals washed up on the beaches of Morston, Wells and Blakeney – 39 of the mammals were killed, all suffering from lacerations which could have

ABOVE: Lots of people consider the humble pigeon to be a pest, but as Wildlife Crime Oﬃcer Jason Pegden explains, even they are protected by laws – something that few people seem to realise.

been inflicted by a ducted propeller. These days, the wildlife crime that appears to be on the increase more than any other is deer poaching. It’s not just a Norfolk concern PC Pegden points out, but a crime that takes place all over the country. “Venison gets quite high prices,” he says. “It’s the kind of crime carried out by gangs of professional poachers. In Norfolk, crimes such as this are often isolated and of varying levels of severity – but the damage can be considerable, not just from the loss of deer, but from destruction to crops as gangs drive large vehicles into fields.” The deer are “as big as a cow” and are gutted where they are killed – there are often calls from the public who find the remains in the countryside. There’s no place for badger and raptor (birds of prey) persecution, either, although there have been instances of it. Hare-coursing is another countryside crime which has become rare and poisoning of birds of prey and foxes has been largely stamped out. Illegal snaring and trapping is another policing area for PC Pegden. Snares and traps have got their legitimate use but they have to be used within the regulations set out in the act. No one wants their pet dog or cat trapped, or

cruel devices used. “Pigeons, rats, rabbits, and even deer can all be culled as long as you apply the law to it,” PC Pegden says. He gives the example of an individual shooting a pigeon with an air rifle off his back fence. This is classed as an unlawful act and the pigeon has protection – but if it can be proved that a host of pigeons are destroying an individual’s crops, then they can take a legitimate method of control to protect the crop. All animals and plants are protected in law under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and it’s a law that even includes things that are no longer living. The Act prohibits the keeping of egg collections which pre-date 1954. Neither is it possible to disguise the age of an egg because, as PC Pegden, points out, “we can authenticate the age of eggs.” An important element in the protection of our wildlife is the close cooperation and relationships that have been developed between the wildlife crime officers and national and local organisations on the ground. These include very good links with the gamekeeping fraternity, as well as close working with the National Trust, Natural England, the RSPB and the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, as well as

Farmwatch. Where there’s a case of animal cruelty, the police work with the RSPCA. Norfolk’s Wildlife Crime Officers have a reputation for being successful. They will get their man (or woman). An example of the successful use of cooperation is Operation Cockerel. It was set up in 2007 to tackle the thefts of pheasants’ poults (chicks) and partridge chicks in Norfolk following a large number of thefts valued in the region of £60,000. Landowners invest heavily in their poults and chicks, and it wasn’t only the game birds that were disappearing but also feeding equipment. Patrols were increased in targeted areas and close contacts were made with the shooting fraternity, local breeders and game dealers in the county. It’s not just organisations or particular interest groups that count in the fight to protect our beautiful countryside and all that lives in it, but the general public. People can assist the police by taking down as much detail as possible about any suspicious activity. A strange van parked at night at the edge of woodland? Note down the number plate and the time. Is trespassing taking place? Is it someone acting alone or in a group? Do they have dogs? Do they have firearms with them? The most important thing is to always call the police if there is any suspicion of wrongdoing. The Norfolk countryside holds some internationally important habitats and many areas of conservation with rare and endangered species. It’s also just about one of the most beautiful places to live. The Wildlife Crime Officers are a highly visible deterrent to those who think they can exploit the wealth of the wild.

KLmagazine June 2012

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I never thought I would ever realise my dream... How the College of West Anglia helped Marion Adcock fulfill a lifetime ambition â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and how it can help you

espite the demands of a busy bookkeeping role in a local accountancy ďŹ rm and the challenge of bringing up four children, Marion Adcock had never given up her lifelong ambition of becoming a midwife, and thanks to the College of West Anglia sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s now well on the way to achieving her goal. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I ďŹ rst needed an Access course to go to University, as I hadn't studied for years,â&#x20AC;? she says. The College of West Anglia oďŹ&#x20AC;ers a wide range of daytime and evening courses (available from September) to help people like Marion discover the simple truth that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re never too old for education â&#x20AC;&#x201C; whether you want to gain qualiďŹ cations, improve your career

prospects or simply learn a language. The adult learning courses are available in a range of ďŹ&#x201A;exible options and programme choices that cater for individual needs and circumstances. And now having successfully earned a place at University to study midwifery, Marion looks back at her time at the College with fondness. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve really enjoyed it,â&#x20AC;? she says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been hard work juggling work, family and studying, but the tutors have always been very helpful and understanding.â&#x20AC;? For people still harbouring those unfulďŹ lled ambitions and goals, Marion has no doubt about what their next step should be. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do it and take the plunge!â&#x20AC;? she says

without a momentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hesitation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t put it oďŹ&#x20AC; any longer. I was nervous about returning to education, but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been great and really fulďŹ lling. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve met lots of diďŹ&#x20AC;erent people and have achieved something Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m proud of.â&#x20AC;? Marionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just one of many people enjoying the beneďŹ ts of adult learning at the College of West Anglia â&#x20AC;&#x201C; they also include James Lindner, a 28 year old photography student whose portraits are now being used in the collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advertising. l For more details and information about the adult learning opportunities available to you and how to take the next step, see the Collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website at www.cwa.ac.uk/today

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KLmagazine June 2012

Sandra Hohol talks about the origins and continued success of Norfolk Holiday Homes...

orfolk Holiday Homes was established in the late 1950’s. Its portfolio of properties consisted of a handful of second homes filled with ‘sale room’ furniture or ‘cast offs’ from relatives. The ‘brochure’ was simply produced on plain paper with tiny, blurry black and white photos. Photos were processed in a darkroom. Hundreds of phone calls and postal bookings with cheque/cash postal order payments were dealt with in a week. I started my first job with Cruso & Wilkin in August 1980. I had my own office with sea views, a red golf ball typewriter and the nightmare of carbon copying everything three times! I had to use my initiative right from the start. It was tough and what ‘people skills’ I had very rapidly increased! I had help, but usually had to think and learn pretty quickly, be very diplomatic and use lots of common sense. There were no rules and regulations with regard to holiday letting. Holidaymakers found a property and booked it for the following summer usually before the end of November – so the majority of properties were solidly booked quite quickly! People used to think that I only

worked seasonally and the job was easy! Paperwork seemed endless, especially when standards were raised and official procedures and formalities had to be recognised! For a while, I had 85 properties, which meant 85 clients and several hundred holidaymakers, with their families to cope with each year – quite enough for one young person! Not to mention the fundamental essentials such as accounts, advertising, keys collections, checking and visiting properties, preparing the brochure, and more. MOVING ON – 32 YEARS LATER IN FACT! Norfolk Holiday Homes was set for extensive changes. The modern world full of ever-changing technology would take over! Computers now do all the work and our website/brochure is kept clean from flowery advertising with straightforward details and photos. Richard Bird, who worked for Cruso & Wilkin Estate Agents, branched out by himself in 1988. He acquired the Holiday Department (including me!) in November 1989 as Cruso & Wilkin closed their Hunstanton Office. The department then became Birds Norfolk Holiday Homes and remains in Hunstanton. I have a very efficient assistant, Julie who's been with me for eight years, plus I still have an office with sea views!

North West Norfolk isn’t just for holidaymakers from other parts of the country and abroad – it’s also a comfortable distance for those within the county itself to travel to the coast and enjoy this beautiful area. Who couldn’t resist watching the glorious sunsets across the Wash? I have many guests who are just happy to return each year to the same property, or like to choose a diﬀerent place to stay each time. Some guests aren’t able to travel far for various reasons, and therefore prefer to have a short journey just to have a change of scenery. Some families may have relatives who wish to come to visit, but prefer to have them stay close by – everyone retains their own privacy, plus they can enjoy a ‘catch up’ and have a break at the same time!

So just because we are in Norfolk, it doesn’t mean we can’t holiday in Norfolk! Birds Norfolk Holiday Homes has a wide selection of holiday properties catering from 2-10 persons along the North West Norfolk coast and inland. Being in a seaside area, the majority of our properties will suit families, although there are those which ideally suit a couple. Pets are welcome in about half our holiday homes, and there are many which are on the same level, which are enjoyed by those who are not ‘stair friendly’! All our properties reach the Visit England grade of 3 Stars or above.

Norfolk Holiday Homes 62 Westgate, Hunstanton PE36 5EL Tel 01485 534267 E-mail s.hohol@birdsnorfolkholidayhomes.co.uk Web www.norfolkholidayhomes-birds.co.uk

KLmagazine June 2012

PICTURE: BENJAMIN EALOVEGA

LOCAL LIFE

PICTURE: DAVID WILSON

PICTURE: NEDA NAVAEE

KLmagazine June 2012

PICTURE: ALEX MACNAUGHTON ABOVE: The King’s Singers will be celebrating the Diamond Jubilee at St. Nicholas Chapel on July 17th

Why 2012’s Festival is the best ever! The King’s Lynn Festival never fails to attract a fantastic wealth of world-famous talent to the town, and in this year of Olympics and Royal celebrations, it looks set to be the best Festival ever...

celebratory feast of music and the arts featuring topclass international names has been lined up for this summer’s King’s Lynn Festival to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics. The 62nd Festival, being staged next month from July 15th-28th, will be launched by Grimethorpe Colliery Band, whose programme will include William Walton’s stirring Crown Imperial which was played at the Queen’s Coronation. The band have won many championship titles and gained international fame through the 1995

KLmagazine June 2012

ﬁlm Brassed Oﬀ. The Philharmonia Orchestra, the King’s Singers, pianist Freddy Kempf, the Endellion String Quartet and BBC Young Musician Lara Melda and are among the cream of the classical music world taking part. “It will be a celebratory festival to mark two very special events,” says Artistic Adviser Ambrose Miller. “The top class programme will maintain the festival’s tradition of excellence and have broad appeal.” This year’s Festival Exhibition will feature etchings and paintings by members of the 19th century Norwich

School including Cotman, Bright and Colkett – alongside works by 21st century artists who draw their inspiration from the East Anglia terrain. The exhibition is being staged by the Festival in partnership with Sherie Naidoo who runs Artlands, an East Anglian-based art dealership, and will be held in the Fermoy Art Gallery at Lynn Arts Centre from July 16th-28th. The Philharmonia Orchestra, one of the most popular orchestras to perform at Lynn, last visited ﬁve years ago. They will again give the ﬁnal concert with a programme including Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, Fingal’s Cave, a

PICTURE: BOROUGH COUNCIL OF KING’S LYNN & WEST NORFOLK ABOVE: The King’s Lynn Festival Chorus and (below) the Endellion String Quartet are just some of the big names appearing this year

Beethoven symphony and Bruch’s violin concerto, featuring 21-year-old Belgian violinist Yossif Ivanov who won the Montreal International Music Competition when he was only 16. It’s about 30 years since The King’s Singers, one of the world’s most celebrated ensembles, last appeared at Lynn. The six singers maintaining the group’s great reputation will make a welcome return to the renowned acoustics of St Nicholas’ Chapel on July 17th. Their specially-devised programme of Royal Rhymes and Rounds will celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee with music from Medieval times to the present day. Jazz pianist Richard Rodney Bennett and Claire Martin, BBC3’s Jazz Singer of the Year, will bring their intimate programme of music (which has proved a huge success in Britain and America) to Lynn. The King’s Lynn Festival Chorus will perform a concert version of George Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess on July 22nd. “Porgy and Bess is a great piece of music which many people

are familiar with,” says Chorus Chairman Nick Balaam. “We’re very excited to be asked to perform it with the spirituals from Sir Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time. They’ll give us the opportunity to show regular festivalgoers the breadth of our range and also to attract new audiences. People will leave the concert humming and singing some wonderful tunes!” Pianist Freddy Kempf, a festival vicepresident, is also returning to give a recital on July 26th, and the 2010 BBC

Young Musician, pianist Lara Melda will give one of the series of five very popular morning coffee concerts in Lynn Town Hall on July 23rd-27th. Early Music Day on July 21st will feature The Parley of Instruments in St Margaret’s Church and a late night programme, For the Queen’s Delight. Instant Sunshine will provide an antidote to the Olympics on July 27th – the day the games open – and the early Olympics and Ancient Greece will be covered in an illustrated talk by historian Dr Michael Scott on July 16th. Adding to the variety will be a literary dinner at which the speakers will include thriller writer Philip Kerr, a Royal Geographical Society-IBG lecture by explorer Hugh Thomson, and a visit by Contemporary Consort. King’s Lynn Town Guides will be offering a variety of walks celebrating Lynn’s rich history during the Festival Fortnight. It’s a time when many other West Norfolk organisations also stage events which provide a wealth of interest and opportunities for both visitors and local people. For programme details visit www.kingslynnfestival.org.uk. Call the Festival Office on 01553 767557 or the Box Office at King’s Lynn Corn Exchange on 01553 764864.

KLmagazine June 2012

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KLmagazine June 2012

ARTS

ABOVE: Members of King’s Lynn Art Group preparing for their 23rd exhibition to be held in the town next month

The original art club of King’s Lynn celebrates... Next month, the King’s Lynn Art Club will be holding its 23rd annual exhibition. It’s a great opportunity to say hello to the town’s original art group – and join in!

he King’s Lynn Art Club was founded almost 70 years ago in the same year that marked the end of the Second World War. It proudly claims to be the town’s original art group, and is currently preparing its 23rd exhibition. The group currently meets every Thursday from September to April at the Reﬄey Village Hall – and from May to August they’re busy arranging interesting venues for outdoor painting and pub lunches! Under the guidance of President Jeremy Barlow, ROI (this year celebrating his silver anniversary in the role) it’s a remarkably friendly group and new members always welcome (some painting experience is necessary). The Club is also currently looking for permanent premises in King’s Lynn to maintain the tradition of gifted local artists – their very ﬁrst home was demolished in the 1960s to make way for Hillington Square, and since then they’ve met in a range of places from the town’s museum (until 1970) to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. This year’s Festival Exhibition will be held from Monday 16th to Saturday 28th July at the Old Warehouse Gallery in the King’s Lynn Arts Centre – it will be open every day from 10am-5pm (2pm6pm on Sundays). Two awards are presented at the Exhibition – the Miss Harrowing Award for the best picture on the exhibition (chosen by the President or a well-known local artist) and the Visitors Choice Award, which is decided by votes from the general public. All members of the group will be at the show, so come and meet them – and if you’re interested in joining the group, contact Lynda Roberts on 01553 762218.

KLmagazine June 2012

LOCAL LIFE

ABOVE: Campaign Care ‘94 founder Simon Massen (centre) with Luke Loades (left) and Richard Shaw, Chief Executive of the Norfolk Hospice

An 18-year campaign of care – thanks to Simon Since Simon Massen founded Campaign Care ‘94, the organisation has helped raise almost £250,000. Bel Greenwood meets the man behind this remarkable local charity...

here is an appealing modesty about Simon Massen, the founder of Campaign Care ’94, a community-based charity raising funds to assist in the ﬁght against cancer. The modesty rubs oﬀ on the organisation too. For the last 18 years, Campaign Care ‘94 has been quietly raising money with a calendar of social events and fundraising activities. It’s been generating not only money

but a strong sense of community. It has raised nearly £250,000, an extraordinary amount for such a small organisation. This money has supported the Norfolk Hospice at Tapping House and the Bob Champion Cancer Trust. Simon was inspired to set up the charity after he suﬀered cancer as a young man. He was helped by Bob Champion, the former jockey who won the Grand National in 1981 on Aldaniti.

Champion had been given just eight months to live when he contracted the disease in his early 30s. He went on to form the Bob Champion Cancer Trust in 1983. Today, it has a research unit in the Royal Marsden Hospital and two patient-related projects – the Aldaniti Rehabilitation Unit and the Bob Champion Lounge, providing a leisure space for those receiving long term inpatient care. Campaign Care ‘94 decided to support this trust nationally,

KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: The newly-donated Luton van outside the Norfolk Hospice Warehouse Furniture Outlet in King’s Lynn

and locally, the Norfolk Hospice. The hospice was founded by the late Dr. Hugh Ford, another inspirational figure for Simon and a former trustee of Campaign Care ‘94. From the beginning Campaign Care ‘94 has hosted an annual black tie dinner. These days, the dinner is held in le Strange Arms in Hunstanton. It’s an event with a small and committed guest list that has helped to support the charity’s longevity. This longevity was celebrated on the charity’s 15th anniversary at a reception on February 2nd, 2009 in the Sandringham Visitor Centre. For modest Simon it was an unforgettable occasion. “We invited the Queen and she came,” he says. “We invited the trustees and people who’d supported us over the years. We had a programme and official dignitaries. It was a very informal evening. I took Her Majesty around the room and introduced people.” The charity presented The Norfolk Hospice and Bob Champion with a cheque and a glass salver while the Queen was given flowers by Simon’s daughter, Hannah. The charity is certainly busy with events – it has organised everything from bingo to quiz nights, golfing matches to fashion shows, auctions to an annual tour of the Royal Stud at Sandringham. The latter tour has been going on for the last decade and is one of the fixed events in the fundraising calendar. This year, Campaign Care ‘94 is hosting a Jazz and Garden Party in the gardens of

KLmagazine June 2012

Gayton Hall courtesy of Earl and Lady Romney. The 20-acre water garden will be opened at 3pm on July 8th. The gardens sound magical, with two miles of paths over bridges over winding streams meandering through woodland. The Sheringham Shanty Men with their unique blend of songs will be playing alongside The Dixie Mix from Norwich. Tickets are £10 and the advice is to bring a picnic. The charity has such goodwill that its costs of putting on the events are almost zero – everything raised goes where it is needed most and it is certainly appreciated. “Campaign Care 94 has been a valuable supporter of the Norfolk Hospice Tapping House since it was founded in 1994,” says Richard Shaw, Chief Executive of the Hospice. “With Simon Massen’s leadership the charity has gone from strength to strength. We’re extremely grateful to the trustees and many supporters who have raised such a large sum. In these diﬃcult times their determination and support is particularly important for our patients and families.” “As a community charity,” Shaw continues, “we continue to provide support to those people life limiting illnesses and their families. We can only do with this community support, which currently accounts for 93% of our

funding. The balance of 7% comes from a NHS grant. You can see how important the long term and consistent support is from Campaign Care ‘94. We always agree on exactly how the donation will be spent and regular visits from trustees allow us to demonstrate the impact on patients and carers.” Continuing support means helping more people. 280 a month are helped at the Hospice each month and many others through donations to the Bob Champion Cancer Trust. The Norfolk Hospice is progressing towards a new facility in Hillington. This is explains Richard Shaw, something that “will provide better facilities for patients and a 12-bedded unit that will support a signiﬁcant unmet need in the west.” For Simon Massen, his eﬀorts are part of a personal crusade and a desire to give something back – something he’s able to do with the help of his local trustees, local business and local supporters.

ARTS

ABOVE: Woodland Sunset and (opposite) Big Sky – Holme Church by painter and trail organiser Stephen Martyn

Dersingham’s artistic trail of discovery... This month sees the launch of a new Arts and Crafts Trail in Dersingham, which seems to be a veritable magnet for local artistic talent. Bel Greenwood talks to the people behind the idea

ersingham is a vibrant village. It sits in the lee of the Sandringham Estate nine miles from King’s Lynn with its own sculpture trail already testimony to local vision and skill. Its houses built of dark carrstone line up with gardens ﬂush with colour. Beyond the village, the roads are stitched into the landscape like grey ribbons and woodland, heath and sky draw the eye. Gilded by the sun, it’s a warm, friendly,

open place and full of a surprisingly large number of professional artists and craft workers. For the ﬁrst time this June, a group of Dersingham Artists are creating an Arts and Crafts Trail around the village. It forms part of Norfolk Open Studios, where participating artists throw open the doors to their studios and homes and let people come in to see a huge diversity of work for free. For organiser Stephen Martyn – who paints haunting, atmospheric

watercolour landscapes – it’s an opportunity to get Dersingham on the arts map of the region. “I hope in the future that Dersingham, like Castle Acre will become very much a centre for the creative arts,” he says. Part of the arts trail experience is the excitement of being able to watch artists at work, to be inside a studio with the creative atmosphere and energies of the individual artists and their art forms. There’s nothing quite like coming across works in progress,

KLmagazine June 2012

seeing something taking shape or an incomplete canvas with the beginnings of its completed self. There’s nothing like being surrounded by the tools, smells and textures of painting, textiles, sculpture or pottery. It brings arts and crafts to life. In Stephen Martyn’s wooden studio in his garden there are carefully spaced paintings and a plethora of prints. The melancholy of Morston Quay is captured along with deep, dark skies over deserted scenes. His work includes an expansive watercolour of a single view in a triptych of surfaces – it’s a finely captured landscape and unusual to see watercolours executed on such a scale. Down the road and round the corner is photographer Jo Halpin Jones. Her photographic world starts at her front door. Don’t miss anything! The walls of her hall are covered in an eclectic collection of strongly-defined and beautifully-captured images. On the left is a lion taken while travelling with her husband in South Africa, on another a striking colour print capturing the sea and sky of the Norfolk coast. Her work is exciting in its range of place, colour and tone. It is transformative in that it captures the patterns of the natural world, plays on the shade and light of a scene or captures a symbolic figure. Always there is colour, diffuse and delicate or strong and dramatic. “I just have my eyes open,” she says. “Everything comes together. It’s about light and shade, colours, patterns. It’s sometimes quirky, occasionally symbolic and colour, colour, colour.” It also charts journeys. There are photographs taken from countries all over the world from Morocco to Iceland with a restless camera like a questing eye. Cross the village and enter the gallery shop of Potter and Dibble. It has a large, open shop interior with high ceiling and workshop space at the back. It’s full of beautiful, handmade crafted objects and art, but the shop does more than display product and sell. It also runs workshops in a range of crafts, from dry felt-making to lino cut printing which draws in a community of artists with work to sell and the local community to share in the pleasures and challenges of making. Six of the area’s local artists and crafts professionals will have their work on show. Angela Le Strange Meakin (who owns the shop) is dividing the space in two for the period so all the artists’ work can be seen easily. Potter and Dibble is opening for seven days a week during the Open Studios period. “The wonderful thing is that I don’t

KLmagazine June 2012

ABOVE: Snettisham Jetty captured by photographer Jo Halpin Jones, and (below) Evening Moon at Binham Priory by Stephen Martyn

have to look far for my suppliers,” says Angela. “There are 30-40 artists here and a big, strong weaving community.” It’s a welcoming place to browse. “People love coming in and having a rummage,” Angela adds. “More than 80-90% of everything in the shop is British-made and about 60% of that is East Anglian. I have such a better relationship, for example I go to Swaffham to pick up some pottery, when I’m selling that pottery I’ve seen the studio and know the artist.” It gives the opportunity for flexibility in ordering and making. As Angela is quick to point out, the participating artists are all “amazingly talented” – they include the woven textiles of Heather Wells, soft, muted colours in a beautiful-patterned weave who lives a step away. The paintings and prints of Wendy Long are also on show, close-up detailed evocations of the natural world, including a number of prints featuring sheep. Rachel Simpson’s silver jewellery and Mark Jordan’s wood turning feature alongside the pretty, vintage-styled country character of Carolyn Coe’s pottery. Jean Mulligan is an artist whose practice spans dry felt-making to wood carving. She did a fine art course in

Newcastle which was fantastically unstructured and gave her the freedom to experiment. Her inspiration is the seasons, the seduction of seeing and looking. “Most art needs to be seen and shared,” says Jean. “It makes life more enjoyable.” In the exhibition in the shop gallery, she’s showing her felt-making work – textured landscapes of coast and country – but she also carves wood and loves the physicality of her work. “We know the interest is out there,’

continues Angela Le Strange Meakin. “It’s making art accessible. An awful lot of people think it’s either expensive or they’re not going to ‘get it.’ What we’re about here is showing someone that this is hand-crafted and not massproduced, but still the same price as high street prices or less.” Jean Mulligan is looking forward to the opening of the trail – not only because people can share in their work but because it brings other artists out too, and in Dersingham that’s really quite a number.

KLmagazine June 2012

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KLmagazine June 2012

My KL

e page that’s

made by KL magazine readers...

Captain Vancouver – in Vancouver! I thought your readers might like to see this picture (right) of this impressive statue of Captain George Vancouver – he looks a bit diﬀerent (and considerably older!) than he does outside the Customs House in King’s Lynn. This is the statue of the Captain standing outside the City Hall of the city named after him. It was created by the European-born sculptor Charles Marega and was unveiled on August 20th, 1936 by the Mayor of London Sir Percy Vincent, who was visiting Vancouver at the time. The statue is 8 feet high, so I’m not sure if it’s bigger than the one in King’s Lynn – if I ever manage to get back across the Atlantic, I’ll bring my tape measure with me! PATRICIA CHALMERS E-mail

A diamond year for the Linnets... What with us all celebrating the Jubilee and another successful year for our local football team, I thought your readers might be interested in how the Linnets fared in the year the Queen came to the throne. Happily 1952-53 was another successful season, with King's Lynn finishing 2nd in the Eastern Counties League (behind Gorleston but ahead of Arsenal), having lost only 9 of their 36 games and scoring 94 goals. Lynn actually went top of the league with a 5-0 victory over Chelsea A, but they just couldn't hold on to the top spot - but happily King's Lynn won the League the following year! The team's best win was 7-0, which they achieved twice in the space of three weeks in November - once against West Ham A and again against Chelmsford Reserves three weeks later. The Linnet's heaviest defeat was on the trip to eventual champions Gorleston when they lost 5-1 (that was also in November.) The highest-scoring match at the Walks was when West Bromwich Albion came for a benefit match for King's Lynn goalkeeper Percy Hooper. A crowd of 9,500 turned up and saw the visitors win 5-4, but it wasn't a very happy benefit for Percy - he was carried off after 35 minutes. Another interesting fact about that season is that the number of supporters watching the team were at their lowest since the arrival of professional football at the Walks the average being just 4,313. DENNIS WILLIAMS King’s Lynn

KLmagazine June 2012

We were very sorry to read that your reviewer, Theresa Kelly, did not have the perfect experience when she visited “The Hare Arms” (Restaurant Review, April edition). Unfortunately she seemed to be under the impression that she was eating in our Restaurant, with our Restaurant Menu when in fact she was eating a pub lunch in our Conservatory, hence the confusion regarding table service. The dining style and Menus for our Bar Food and our Restaurant are very diﬀerent as is the service provided. More details as well as all our current Menus can be found on our website www.theharearms.co.uk If she would like to return to do a proper “Restaurant Review”, we would be very pleased to welcome her. The Silver Service Restaurant is open from Monday to Saturday evenings only, using an à la carte and mid-week menu. Also,for a limited period we are oﬀering a 10% discount on the Menu prices for parties of six or more from Mondays to Thursdays, reservations are essential. On June the 10th, we shall be celebrating our 36th Anniversary of being at The Hare Arms and whilst we do not claim to get 100% customer satisfaction all of the time, I think that this length of service proves that in the main we do get it right! DAVID AND TRISH McMANUS The Hare Arms, Stow Bardolph, Kings Lynn PE34 3HT 01366 382229 CONTACT US: We’d love to hear from you! Send your letters and photos to KL magazine, 18 Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE30 1JW or e-mail editor@klmagazine.co.uk

LOCAL LIFE

Michael Middleton’s

WildWestNorfolk

few days ago, Mrs Middleton presented me with a neatly-written schedule that differed in several respects from her usual such lists. Instead of guiding me around the centre of King’s Lynn on a carefully-planned itinerary to obtain a mind-boggling array of household goods, it informed me what would I would be watching on the television at certain given times over the Diamond Jubilee weekend. These viewings are non-negotiable and I am to be on phone-answering duty in case someone dares to call during the Diamond Jubilee Thames Pageant or something. Tucking the schedule (very carefully you might be sure) into my pocket, I suddenly imagined myself back in the early 50s (long before I met Mrs Middleton) watching grainy black-andwhite footage of the new 25-year-old Queen and switching between channels to see all the festivities, celebrations and pageants. But then I realised this imagined scene was almost entirely wrong in almost every respect. For starters, in 1952 we didn’t have to decide which of the 724 channels to watch. Indeed, ITV wouldn’t start broadcasting for another three years, and BBC2 didn’t appear until the mid-1960s. When we sat down in front of the telly with a cup of tea in early June 1952, it was BBC1 or nothing. Actually, even that cup of tea was different, since tea was still being rationed at the time (though that ended in October). These were very different days – in June 1952 we were still excitedly talking about the amazing fact

that a foreign player had scored in the FA Cup Final. If we did sit down in front of the TV in those days, it wouldn’t have been until the afternoon anyway. Take Thursday June 12th, for example – there was nothing on the TV until 3pm. If you managed to sit through Bill Allenby at the Royal Richmond Horse Show, you could enjoy ten minutes of Children’s Newsreel before some dull early evening play ended at 6pm – and then the TV went oﬀ for an hour. It wasn’t my mum either – the programmes just ended. At 7.15pm they returned with good old Bill Allenby back at the Royal Richmond Horse Show commentating on the Jubilee Challenge Cup (appropriately enough). That was followed at 8.30pm by Struggle Against Adversity, a programme about (what were then described as) ‘backward children’, a 15minute solo performance by Marius Goring, and The Betty Driver Show. Highlight of the evening (if you were allowed to stay up until 9.45pm) was a programme about the as-yetunsuccessful attempts to climb Mount Everest. The news and weather did come on at 10.15pm – but only in sound. And that was it. Diﬀerent days indeed. These were the days when the spectre of the dreaded TV detector van started to haunt the streets. In February, they’d been introduced as a way of clamping down on the estimated 150,000 British households which had unlicenced television sets. They were packed with advanced technology that enabled the mysterious people within to see through walls – they

not only knew if your television was turned on, they could even tell what channel you were watching. Although that was a reasonably easy feat in 1952. It seems to me that no one could have had a TV licence in those days – I clearly remember many evenings when a neighbour would knock on the door and say there was a Detector Van in the next road. Off went the TV, and we were quickly sent out into the streets to keep our eyes peeled for when it was safely out of sight. The mother of one of my friends even used to drape a blanket over the TV after it was unplugged just in case it continued to give off some sort of signal. It was only a few years ago that I read the BBC are still refusing to release details of how many people the vans actually ‘caught’ over the years – saying that the truth would undermine people’s faith in their efficiency. That was us in June 1952 – things have changed enormously, but sixty years later and I’m still only in charge of guarding the TV!

KLmagazine June 2012

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