The Bristol Magazine December 2020

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Issue 195

THE

THEBRISTOLMAG.CO.UK

£3.95 where sold

I

decembeR 2020

MAGAZINE

THE GIFT OF A NEW WORLD

Bill of the Ball

We’re curling up with the West Country boy’s new book this Christmas – and anticipating a promotion for the ‘caretaker of the dance’

Christmas reads and festive streams

READY FOR LIFT OFF

The house designed for life on Mars

AT HOME ON THE RANGE

Support local cooks in the community

PURPLE POWER

The shopping experience for those with disabilities

THE BRIGHT SIDE

Vibrant, responsibly made city fashion

SHOP LOCAL

Our guide to great gifting and a Clifton Village special

AND SO MUCH MORE IN THE CITY’S BIGGEST GUIDE TO LIVING IN BRISTOL

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Image: BBC/Keiron McCarron

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36 16 Contents December 2020 REGULARS ZEITGEIST

CHILDREN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

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Top activities for the month to come

CITYIST

Reading has always been cool, and now Marcus Rashford says so, too.

Time to fill up those stockings

CULTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 10

Catch up on local news and meet presenter Daniel Edmund

Professor Olivette Otele on the phenomenal influence of African Europeans and their contribution to culture, politics and language

BARTLEBY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

HEALTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Social baubles and stripped-down festivities: a Covid Christmas could have a kind of appeal for some, plus potential to reduce Yuletide stress

The historic casenotes of Bristol midwife Sarah Stone, calling for better maternity care for the nation, have inspired a new novel

LOCALS’ STORIES

FOOD & DRINK

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30

Hairdresser Eddie Ilic, an inspiring figure on the streets of Bristol

BRISTOL UPDATES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Business and community news

COOKS

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52

Support your local culinary talent via a new Bristol platform

COCKTAILS

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54

FESTIVE SEASON

In the absence of a festive crawl, our local mixologists have come up with some lip-smacking ideas to try with the family bubble at home

GIFT GUIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

HABITAT

The need to shop local is pressing, and the reasons are manifold

SHOPPING

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31

Getting Christmas gifts in leafy Clifton is still a gorgeous experience

ECONOMY

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SCIENCE & DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

38

Two Bristol artists have designed a house built for life on Mars – and they need your input

GARDENING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

This far-from-traditional Yuletide, Melissa Blease takes stock of pantomime’s history, evolution and enduring appeal

FASHION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

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When you’re thinking about decorations, start by looking around the garden for berries, leaves, seed heads, cones, dried flowers and fruits

WATER FEATURES

Wear the rainbow this Christmas: buy from some of Bristol’s most vibrant small and sustainable brands

WHAT’S ON

Silverback Films’ Keith Scholey, documenting the quest of the Earthshot Prize, has stark but optimistic message for the new decade

36

Chloe Ball-Hopkins on the power of the purple pound

THEATRE

ENVIRONMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

44

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68

Ever dreamed of having your very own spa and wellness facilities, so wholesome living is imbued within your home? Emma Clegg investigates

Entertaining digital streams to sign up for, and more

INTERIORS

QUIZ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

The art of the upgrade: tips from North Street’s upholstery experts

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70

A bit of Yuletide fun inspired by Richard Osman’s House of Games

BEAUTY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Disco in the dining room, you say? Be there in five; just adding sparkle...

BOOKS COVER FEATURE

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ON THE COVER Ballroom boss Bill Bailey, who has impressed on 2020’s Strictly Come Dancing and recently brought out a new book. Turn to p16 for his bit on dancing. (Image: BBC/Ray Burmiston)

From his new book, ballroom sensation Bill Bailey’s bit on dancing

THEBRISTOLMAG.CO.UK

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DECEMBER 2020

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THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE 3

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Doesn’t Gromit look good in his robin redbreast get-up? The best thing about buying this festive figurine, £45, is that the money goes towards supporting sick children across the South West via Bristol Children’s Hospital charity the Grand Appeal

THE

BRISTOL MAGAZINE

Contact us:

Publisher Steve Miklos Email: steve@thebristolmagazine.co.uk Finance Director Jane Miklos Email: jane@thebristolmagazine.co.uk Editor Amanda Nicholls Tel: 0117 974 2800 Email: amanda@thebristolmagazine.co.uk

from the

Assistant Editor Millie Bruce-Watt Tel: 0117 974 2800 Email: millie@thebristolmagazine.co.uk

EDITOR

Production Manager Jeff Osborne Email: production@thebristolmagazine.co.uk

W

hether or not Bill Bailey ends up lifting the coveted glitterball, we couldn’t resist putting him on the cover – he and cracking choreographer Oti Mabuse have injected much-needed sparkle into our Saturday nights, along with the rest of 2020’s superb Strictly Come Dancing cast.

Not to mention West Country pride. What a mover!

As well as tuning in to see who foxtrots away with the trophy in a few weeks, we’ll be curling up with Bill’s new book about happiness this festive season – we’ve included his bit on dancing on p16. Someone has to tell him he can’t go round calling himself ‘caretaker of the dance’ anymore, though; he’s definitely levelled up.

Speaking of brightness, we’ve found ourselves ditching the muted winter palette and dressing more colourfully to counteract the national mood – enter Bristol’s burgeoning community of responsible fashion makers and their vibrant wardrobes (take a look on p40 or check out @bristolfashionistas on Instagram). In the Christmas content corner, there are very good reasons to gift-shop local (p20, p31) – plus discussion of the economic power of the purple pound (p36) – brilliant books to buy for kids (p26), frontroom disco make-up tips (p62), and quiz fun (p50) inspired by Richard Osman’s House of Games (aka highlight of my day). Melissa Blease takes stock of the evolution and enduring appeal of panto on p38, then there are digital entertainment experiences (p44) that include Bethlehem Cultural Festival – a virtual window on the rich cultural scene of the not-so-little town in Palestine. Tour its souks and streets and enjoy music, film, dance, cookery and more.

In seriously cool science news – as engineers prepare to send humans to Mars – a house designed for life on the Red Planet has got planning permission in Bristol. We chat to the local artists making it happen on p46; also Silverback Films co-founder Keith Scholey who is documenting the Earthshot Prize’s quest to save our natural world (p42).

Elsewhere, Eddie Ilic speaks to Millie Bruce-Watt about his haircuts for the homeless (p30) and Professor Olivette Otele talks of a forgotten past and how Black artists have helped make Bristol the creative hub it has come to be (p60). North Street’s upholstery experts also share tips for those who fancy upgrading a favourite piece of furniture (p70), while Elly West gets out to gather decorations from the garden (p66).

On the whole, it’s another issue admiring the local people and projects who are inspiring us more than ever and showing care, creativity, strength, spirit and ingenuity in the face of extraordinary challenge.

Merry Christmas – and may the kindness continue into 2021.

Advertising Sales Liz Grey Email: liz@thebristolmagazine.co.uk For advertising enquiries please contact us on: 0117 974 2800

Email: sales@thebristolmagazine.co.uk The Bristol Magazine is published by MC Publishing Ltd. An independent publisher.

Every month The Bristol Magazine is hand delivered to more than 15,000 homes in selected areas.

We also deliver direct to companies and businesses across the city.

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Get social with us and see more on your devices @thebristolmag www.thebristolmag.co.uk Telephone: 0117 974 2800 www.thebristolmagazine.co.uk © MC Publishing Ltd 2020

2 Princes Buildings, George Street, Bath BA1 2ED

AMANDA NICHOLLS EDITOR

@thebristolmag

6 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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@thebristolmag

Disclaimer: Whilst every reasonable care is taken with all material submitted to The Bristol Magazine, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage to such material. Opinions expressed in articles are strictly those of the authors. This publication is copyright and may not be reproduced in any form either in part or whole without written permission from the publishers.

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ZEITGEIST

Valley Fest is set in the beautiful Chew Lake reservoir

top things to do in December

See the sensational projections light up Longleat House this month

Wander

From 3 December to 10 January 2021, visitors can enjoy Longleat’s Land of Light event and see see sensational projections light up the iconic Longleat House.

Specially created for the Wiltshire estate, the event’s mix of technology, art and interactive installations will provide a magical festive experience for visitors of all ages.

Longleat’s Santa train will be back to whisk guests away to Father Christmas’ magical woodland grotto. There’s also a brand new storytelling experience on offer. Enter Santa’s cosy den to hear a whimsical story told by the man himself; of course, he will also have special gifts for all the children on the nice list.

During the day, guests can enjoy all of Longleat’s animal and adventure attractions. Admission to the Land of Light event is by pre-booked online ticket only.

Buy ahead If you’re searching for ‘experience’ gifts and something to look forward to this Christmas, why not grab a ticket for muchloved South West food festival Valley Fest.

Taking place from 30 July – 1 August 2021 alongside Chew Valley Lake, the festival line-up includes Travis, Deacon Blue and many more. Anyone buying a ticket from 1 – 20 December will be emailed a gift tag, which can be printed and slotted into a card or present on Christmas Day. Adult weekend tickets are £145.

• longleat.co.uk

Support

The Grand Appeal supports Bristol Children’s Hospital

If you’re looking to put your Christmas party money towards one of our cherished local charities this month – all of which have been working tirelessly to support those who need it most during these difficult times – there are many that could do with your help this winter especially.

If you can, help Penny Brohn UK continue to provide online help for cancer patients who are feeling isolated; buy one of St Peter’s Hospice’s virtual gifts and help them care for local people with life-limiting illnesses; or support the Bristol Gulls, who will be rowing 3,000 miles across the Atlantic on 12 December, raising money for Clean Up Bristol Harbour. Otherwise, perhaps you could donate your jolliest jumpers to Wallace & Gromit’s BIG Christmas Dress Up run by the Grand Appeal.

• valleyfest.co.uk

Learn more about our city’s streets

Enjoy

• grandappeal.org.uk; pennybrohn.org.uk; stpetershospice.org; thebristolgulls.com

Bristol Open Doors has launched its ‘Hidden Bristol’ app, offering three incredible audio tours which are available to download – giving adventurers access to the many secrets of the city.

Experienced by over 2,500 people during Bristol Open Doors in September, the hugely popular tours are available for a one-time purchase of £5.99. Each download supports The Architecture Centre – the charity behind Bristol Open Doors. Created by theatremakers, historians and special curators, the tours feature the voices of over 100 Bristolians who shaped our city.

The guided walks celebrate three themes and as such are entitled Vibrant Bristol: Street Art and the Painted City, Hidden Harbour: Stories of a Radical City and Historic Bristol: Through Time and Temple.

Professional fine art painter Tracey Bowes has some beautiful works available this season and is taking commissions for traditional artworks ranging from portraits to landscapes. Having worked exclusively in the creative arts sector, winning awards and working for fine brands and discerning clients, she is well known for her ideas and enthusiasm for visual language.

Tracey explores meaning, colour and expressive mark-making techniques traditionally and digitally. Her work contains a visual narrative which is expertly conveyed and she is inspired by the South West and the memories held by its landmarks and architecture.

• bristolopendoors.org.uk

• thefineartistshop.com

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No 195

Browse

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THE CITY

My

BRISTOL Meet local speaker, podcaster and presenter Daniel Edmund My American accent can be a bit deceiving – I was actually born in Bristol. My father is British-Caribbean and from Bristol, my mother is African-American and from Washington, D.C. I come from a very multicultural family. I decided to move back from the States 10 years ago. I love this city. My family has very strong ties here; ever since my grandparents moved here from Jamaica during the Windrush Generation.

The Doctor is locked away in a high-security alien prison

Let’s view the time lord again

I used to be a competitive 800m runner. In 2007 I became a US Nike National Champion with the fastest time in America with my relay team.

Fans of Dr Who are looking forward to the show’s Christmas special this festive season – Bristol fans with some extra excitement perhaps, given the knowledge that some of the new scenes were shot at Clifton Suspension Bridge in October 2019.

The series finale sees Jodie Whittaker’s 13th Doctor being locked away in an alien prison, with the first photo released by the BBC having offered a glimpse into the incarceration. The second hints at her friends’ lives back in Sheffield, to whom the Doctor’s whereabouts are unknown.

The special will see the return of one of the Doctor’s biggest and most feared enemies, the Daleks (voiced by longtime cast member Nicholas Briggs), as well as – so it’s been strongly rumoured – Captain Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman.

While the Doctor is stuck in the highsecurity prison – isolated, alone, with no hope of escape – far away on Earth her best pals Yaz (Mandip Gill), Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Graham (Bradley Walsh) have to pick up their lives without her. But old habits die hard, especially when they discover a disturbing plan forming; a plan which involves a Dalek. How can you fight a Dalek without the Doctor?

Revolution of the Daleks will premiere this festive season on BBC One.

I start the day writing down what I remember from my dreams, then do a free write for five minutes, of whatever comes to me. After some affirmations, a quick Russian lesson and some exercise it’s breakfast, shower and work. I love cooking so that takes up some of my time too.

I’m working on a documentary called Race & Gender Unfiltered that looks at social change through social healing. The documentary explores experiences of trauma related to race and/or gender and how we can collectively create positive systemic change by first healing ourselves. I have a podcast under the same name. I’ve had some great guests on and the response to the show has been really special.

As someone passionate about systemic change I’m very interested in getting people to exercise their power to vote. I’ll be running a campaign in the lead up to the mayoral elections to engage more people in the voting process, particularly young people. Along with 13 direct elected mayors there are 40 police commissioners running nationwide. Next year is a big election year and it’s important that we’re all conscious citizens. I want to live a year that reflects my true power and not my fears, continuing my journey as a leader, healer and change maker.

I’m incredibly grateful for this year despite everything we’ve all been through. I feel many of us have gained an awareness that wouldn’t have happened otherwise. There’s a rising in our collective consciousness that I see manifesting itself in different ways and that’s a beautiful thing to witness and be part of. This year has changed a lot for me. I’ve become more focussed on issues I care about and even more committed to helping to make this world a more equal and equitable place. My aim is to help heal this country from the inside out and there’s a lot of work to do. I’ve been incredibly inspired by the young organisers of the Bristol Black Lives

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Daniel is working on a documentary plus a campaign to get more people engaged in local politics

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Matter protest. I love seeing young people standing up for what they believe in despite the odds against them. It’s a lesson to us all.

I love music! Bonobo, FKJ, Stevie Wonder, Whitney, Toni Braxton. Mariah Carey’s Butterfly album has been getting some heavy rotation and I love online radio station Soulection.

Favourite Bristol businesses include Blak Wave Productions, Black Girl Convention and Caribbean Croft – I’d live there if I could. If I’m meeting people for coffee or getting work done away from home I’m usually at The Social on Cheltenham Road. I prefer to entertain at home or go to a friend’s house but I can’t wait for a good night out dancing when we’re allowed to.

Our worth shouldn’t be measured in how much we get done in a day. We don’t have to always be moving so fast and trying to be hyper ‘productive’. I’ve learned the importance of just being and recognising that even if I didn’t do anything that other people would consider to be ‘work’ I’m still worthy of being here on this earth. So much of what we think about work is based on colonial and capitalist ideologies.

If I were mayor I’d focus on the emotional healing of everyone who lived in the city. Trying to progress issues related to Bristol without addressing the trauma many people experience is treating the symptom but not the cause. I would operate with a ‘people over profit’ mentality recognising that’s actually the most sustainable way of increasing the capital of this city. I would implement a system for people to healthily interrogate Bristol City Council and empower people to come up with solutions for their own communities. My ideology wouldn’t be about what I could fix but rather what I could heal. n • danieledmund.com; @daniel_edmund

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THE CITY

We’re ready for this, there’s no denying

The piece features a bee drawn with charcoal and gunpowder

Jess Glynne has announced a gig at Westonbirt Arboretum as part of Forest Live, the summer concert series presented by Forestry England. Through her debut album, I Cry When I Laugh (1.2 million sales and counting) and platinum selling follow-up Always In Between, Jess has become established as one of the most successful acts of the past decade and holds the record for most number one singles (seven) scored by a British female solo artist. Whether performing solo (Hold My Hand, Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself, I’ll Be There, Thursday) or in a collaborative spirit (Rather Be with Clean Bandit, My Love with Route 94, Not Letting Go with Tinie Tempah, These Days with Rudimental Jess is one and Macklemore) her unique powerhouse vocal of the most has delivered a succession of hits crossing the successful genres of pop, soul, R&B and house.

British Jess is currently working on material for her female solo third album and will be releasing a festive single – artists of a cover of Donny Hathaway’s This Christmas. the past Forest Live is a major outdoor live music series decade introducing forests to new audiences in unique natural woodland arenas. Going to a concert helps Forestry England create beautiful places, run important conservation projects and keep growing trees.

Art world buzz • Jess Glynne is due to play Westonbirt on Sunday 13 June; forestryengland.uk/music

Image: Beth Sheldrick

A new song for the city The many seismic events of 2020 have sparked creativity all over the country and now Bristol Beacon is calling on local citizens to creatively channel their feelings towards the year’s events and express them through words and music for a new participatory project.

Inspired by the mass singing events held at Bristol Beacon – then known as Colston Hall – during the Second World War, ‘A New Song for Bristol’ aims to bring the city together through music. Submitted pieces will be collected into a living archive, as part of Bristol Beacon’s Royal Fort Gardensheritage exhibitions, on the venue’s reopening. Some submissions will be hand-picked asEvripidou) the inspiration for new pieces of music by Bristol-based artists including (image: Barbara This is the Kit, Bucky, Lady Nade, Kayla Painter, Javeon, Solomon O.B, Grove, KALA CHNG and composer, musician and associate director of Paraorchestra, Lloyd Coleman.

The project is open for public submissions until the end of January with the artist collective’s completed compositions to be finalised by early spring. “A New Song for Bristol is inspired by Bristol Beacon’s long history of being a place for local communities to voice their views of the world and make music together,” said Cathy Mager, creative producer of Bristol Beacon’s Lantern Project. “When you read about how the city was locked down at the outbreak of World War II, and the entertainment ban, the parallels are striking between then and now. It was heartening to learn about how the venue and its team played such an important role in raising morale.”

The artist collective will lead a series of creative workshops, collaborating with community groups on submissions. Julia Roderick, community, learning and volunteering senior creative producer at Bristol Beacon, said: “Now more than ever we need to find ways to feel connected and alive and draw on the extraordinary power of music. This project is the first major artistic expression of Bristol Beacon’s Transformation promise, announced alongside our renaming in September, which pledges the ways in which Bristol Beacon strives to be a symbol of hope and community for everyone.”

Submit your words or music to Bristol Beacon via social media with the hashtag #ANewSongForBristol, or through the form on the website.

• bristolbeacon.org/anewsongforbristol

12 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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Solomon O.B, part of the artist collective

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No 195

Contemporary artist and social activist Frank To – whose collectors include actor Sir Patrick Stewart – is to exhibit in Bristol with an artwork inspired by Boris Johnson’s letter to the nation.

Sent out in April to all households across Britain to urge them to heed the government's coronavirus guidance and stay home, the letter was delivered to 30 million homes as part of the government’s public information campaign at a cost of £5.7 million.

Spring 2020 features a bumble bee drawn with charcoal and gunpowder. “I view this piece as a way to combine my art with my social activism,” said To. “For me, these letters highlighted the incompetence of the government in its handling of the pandemic.

“This was important to me because it is about taking a stance against the government and the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s statement about the need for artists to retrain.

That statement highlights the hypocrisy of the government. These letters cost almost £6m and were a waste of taxpayers’ money because most people chucked them straight in the bin; the information was already available online and no account was made for the visually impaired.

“My artwork recycles and repurposes these letters and, by so doing, makes a comment on the need for sustainability.”

To has always been involved in social activism as a supporter of the Free Tibet movement, Me Too movement, the Hong Kong protests and the BLM movement. “As such, I’m delighted to be exhibiting in Bristol, a hotspot of the pandemic where, in June, the city centre statue of slave trader Edward Colston was toppled and rolled down Anchor Road and pushed into Bristol Harbour; a protest which I fully endorsed.”

The piece will feature in the RWA’s Annual Open Exhibition, due to open 2 January. ■

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Christmas baubles

C

ovid Christmas. Hmmm. It doesn’t sound especially jolly, does it? Although, strangely, Christmas Corona almost does. Anyway… at the time of writing nobody has told us just how festive our festive season is going to be this year, but it doesn’t look like too many people will be photocopying their hindquarters at the office party, or bellowing Good King Wenceslas in the street, or sharing a turkey with persons outside their bubble. Or the slightly extended version thereof, which we might call a Christmas bauble.

Younger parents will have to deal with switched-on tots worrying about Santa, who is surely older (and rather more rotund) than the grandparents they’re not allowed to see, but for the rest of us there may be less to worry about than usual. A lot more cause for concern generally, yes, but not perhaps in terms of the actual ho-ho-ho-down itself. Think for a moment about the causes of Yuletide stress. These will differ from household to household but with marked similarities.

How to feed 16 people when you only have seven forks. How to keep Brexity Uncle Brian and Greenpeace Gran sober and separate. Where to buy ground almonds or lard. What to do when all the Christmas trees have gone and it’s only the 15th for heaven’s sake!

Actually the last one will, if anything, be more of a problem this year, as people seize on the opportunity to brighten up their all-toofamiliar front rooms. By the time you read this, in fact, I predict there won’t be a spruce on the loose anywhere in Bristol, and the fairy lights will be long gone. If the proliferation of lockdown rainbows is anything to go by, this Christmas will see the city transformed into a window wonderland of manically decorated, fiercely lit trees.

Most of the other stuff we worry about is, in the end, to do with logistics. And logistics is about people. You’re used to catering for four. Suddenly it’s 14. You’re used to the foibles of your nearest and dearest. Bob doesn’t like sprouts. Roberta will only eat sprouts. Bob insists on Christmas music. Roberta can’t hear herself think! So you somehow have to cultivate a sprouty, but non-sprouty, festive but peaceful vibe. Which is fine, only you’ve got your sister’s family coming along, with their teen who believes Christmas is a capitalist plot, and the new puppy who can chew through a Bag for Life in seconds to get at the chocolate hidden within, and is bound to end up being rushed to doggy A&E for charcoal tablets (if you have a pooch you’ll know).

This year there will be other, perhaps more complicated logistics.

Instead of trying to fit 20 people in the house at the same time you’ll see them in Covid-safe dribs and drabs, and after one Christmas dinner with this relative and another with that, it may begin to feel a little like Groundhog Day. But for the sort of people who enjoyed the peace and quiet of lockdown, I think this year’s stripped-down festivities will have a kind of appeal. There won’t be the usual pressure to socialise frenetically at a time of year when you may feel more like hibernating. There will be less night life, and perhaps more day life, which is kind of how it’s been all year.

I don’t know about you, but during 2020 I’ve been acutely aware of the changing seasons, watching buds opening during the first lockdown and leaves falling during the second. We tend to be fairly relaxed about Christmas at Bartleby Towers but we’re usually still too busy to get outside much at a time of year which is, in its own way, as magical as midsummer. So I’m determined to see Covid Christmas as an opportunity, a rare chance to enjoy our Twelve Days outdoors, with a thermos of mulled cider and a mince pie or two. ■

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BOOKS

“Caretaker of the dance”

The West Country comedian, musician and actor impressing on 2020’s Strictly Come Dancing also has a new book out. From paddle-boarding down the Thames in a Santa hat to wild swimming in a glacial river, Bill ruminates on the exhilaration of the outdoors, as well as quieter pleasures. We’ve got our hands on the dancing chapter...

Bill’s signature move is a crab shimmy

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maven was at a birthday party in a little town in the south of France, where we ate en plein air in a courtyard restaurant. After dinner, the tables were cleared and moved back to make space for the dancing. The familiarity of the music and the company of friends uncorked a rare vintage of a night where songs were sung with full-throated intensity and lyrics were interpreted with a literal precision not seen since the days of Pan’s People. The Nebula was given a full workout on the dance floor. Well, in this case, not so much a floor, more a kind of fine white gravel popular in France for the game of boules. In fact, I would say with hindsight that this space should have been exclusively used for boules.

I wouldn’t be surprised if, after that evening, the patron had put up a sign, prominently displayed with a stern warning: Interdit de danser! Seulement pour les

ometimes you just need to cut loose, cut a rug, let yourself go a little, and whether it’s throwing shapes at the wedding/club/campsite, or just having a quiet boogie on your own, dancing is an excellent way of doing that.

‘Alexa, play Get Up Offa That Thing.’

Just for the avoidance of doubt, I am no lord of the dance, not even baronet of the dance, more caretaker of the dance. My signature move is a kind of elegant sideshuffle, a manoeuvre as deft as it is ancient, a shimmy such as a crab might make as it rears up on its hind legs. This is enhanced by flailing alternate arms and, on occasion, legs. It’s rooted in modern jazz, tap and contemporary Klingon. I have just named it the Tango Nebula. Whether it follows any sort of pattern I have no idea, but I always feel better after I’ve executed it.

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boules. Instead the gravel-kicking, armflailing hoedown morphed into an inevitable and ill-advised conga line, with much cheering and whistling as the reluctant patron was coerced into the fray.

By the end of the night, my shirt, trousers and blue suede shoes were coated in that fine white powder, a flashback to Elvis’s later years. They resembled prop shoes used in a film drama where the protagonist has been kidnapped in city clothes, kept hostage in a remote shack out in the desert, but has then somehow escaped and is now being pursued down a rocky gulch, and, acting his socks off throughout a hellish montage of dry riverbed/sun beating down/circling vultures, has finally stumbled into a flyblown town near the Mexican border, his face all cracked lips and sunburn, croaking, ‘Agua, agua.’ Exactly like that.

I came second in a limbo-dancing competition once. Yes, I know you’re sceptical, but it’s true. It was during a charity fundraiser for a children’s hospital, and I was a bit younger then and more bendy, but still. Each round saw the field whittled down as various denizens of the great and good fell away, until it was only me, Lionel Blair and Sinitta. After a close call I just scraped under the bar. Next up was Sinitta, but she tipped the bar off at the last second, so it was down to me and Lionel. His superior technique, honed by years of tap-dancing and charades, eventually prevailed, and he took the honours, but I ran him very close.

As you know by now, I like finding out about the mental and physical benefits of my

Images: BBC/Guy Levy/Keiron McCarron; drawing: Bill Bailey; photo-illustration: Joe Magee

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Bill and partner Oti Mabuse dancing to The Sugarhill Gang on Strictly chosen routes to happiness. There are the obvious health benefits to The Dance, like improved heart and lungs, increased muscular strength, endurance and motor fitness, and increased aerobic fitness, if you’re into that. Not to mention greater attractiveness to others, less embarrassment at family gatherings and generally a greater awareness of your place in the universe. OK, I started to make them up there, but you get the gist. It’s an ancient thing, dance, it bonds us together, it lets us forget our daily troubles for a short while.

When I was a teenager, I had ballroom dancing lessons. There was a dance school across the road from our house and I learned the waltz, the foxtrot and the quickstep. The teacher was a tiny, petite woman with huge passion for The Dance. It was a marvellous and quite surreal experience to whirl around a dance hall with this ball of terpsichorean energy. Bless her and all those she must have enlightened to her world. I can see the appeal of the foxtrot, the tango and the rhumba, the formal nature of it all, the practised moves, the precision, but it’s not really me.

I am more of a free-form mischief dancer, a Loki of the Lindy Hop. I remember one night in Madrid, it was just the three of us – me, the wife and the teenage son – pogo-ing, headbanging and generally arsing about at a Foo Fighters concert. It remains one of my most cherished memories. It’s the best fun to dance like no one’s looking among a crowd full of people. ■

• Bill Bailey's Remarkable Guide to Happiness, Quercus Publishing, £20; Strictly Come Dancing, Saturday 7.15pm, BBC One

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Christmas Products Mallory Final 20.qxp_Layout 1 28/11/2020 14:55 Page 1

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Montblanc Sartorial Wallet £255

Sapphire and Diamond Ring £6,835

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SHOPPING | CHRISTMAS

Part and parcel

The festive season is right around the corner and while the core essence of Christmas – presence over presents – should be kept in mind, here’s a little inspiration for those shopping for gifts

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1. Porcelain bowls by Lamorna Gore with a soft matt glaze & vibrant precious metal lustres, £25 – £150; cliftoncontemporaryart.co.uk 2. English rosé spritzer, from local Bristol-based drinks company Nania’s Vineyard, £4 each can; naniasvineyard.co.uk 3. 2020 collection Moorcroft mirror with a William de Morgan design pottery tile, £310; cliftonceramics.co.uk 4. A challenging custom film quiz; add your drink & snacks options to complete the evening. From £29.99; bristolfilmfestival.com/shop 5. Diamond solitaire rings, from £200, Kemps; kempsjewellers.com 6. Gift someone the opportunity to join Michelin-starred Bristol chef Josh Eggleton for a culinary crawl around his favourite local producers, £140; only available to book on yuup.co 7. Caleño’s new Dark & Spicy – spice up your night and bring more joy to not drinking, £20 per 50cl; calenodrinks.com

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SHOPPING | CHRISTMAS

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1. 18ct white gold rub-over single stone necklace, Dazzle Collection, large Snowflake diamond pendant, exclusive to Nicholas Wylde, £3,580; nicholaswylde.com 2. Support artists this Christmas & purchase a unique piece of art from the RWA 168 Annual Open Exhibition; rwa.org.uk/collections/shop 3. Cosy nights in call for exceptional lighting. Add warmth and style to that comfy corner or home office with these sustainable and contemporary lamps. Find these and other eco-conscious homewares at Prior Shop, Old Market; priorshop.uk 4. Test your knowledge of your favourite films with these bespoke quizzes, designed to challenge even the biggest of fans, £7.50; bristolfilmfestival.com/shop 5. Stunning decorative artwork including framed botanicals; each piece is unique. Handmade by Hannah; hannahbrowninteriors.co.uk 6. In a disposable world, this gift set from Slug Rings is designed to last a lifetime. A set of handmade copper rings to protect your seedlings and tender plants from slugs and snails. Use code BRISTOLXMAS for a 10% discount; slugrings.co.uk

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SHOPPING | CHRISTMAS

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1. Beautiful bespoke hand-drawn portraits of your much-loved pets in pastel. Prices range from £80 – £250; 01275 853258; instagram.com/the_petportraits; info@thepetportraits.co.uk 2. Bespoke jewellery designer/maker Julie Anne Palmer works with her clients to make truly unique pieces of jewellery.

Purple sapphire 18ct ring with diamonds, £5,630; julieannepalmer.com 3. Bring warmth and joy to your home with this Bristol-inspired blanket. Designed by Angie Parker and woven in partnership with Bristol Weaving Mill, 10% of the profits go to MIND, RRP £295; angieparkertextiles.com 4. Luxury socks and accessories brand Corgi Socks has been hand-crafting luxury woollen goods, £39; corgisocks.com 5. Emily Dennys ceramics, handmade lamps, vases and wall panels, £12 – £250; emilydennysshop.com 6. A gift set inspired by a classic film, providing three elements to complement the film: recipes and drinks pairings, selected glasses to accompany the drinks and a bespoke quiz to challenge you. From £24.99; bristolfilmfestival.com/shop 7. Boxlocal can supply treat-filled gift boxes to those who love to celebrate local or for individuals looking for the perfect unique gift. Quote: boxlocal10 for 10% off your first order; boxlocal.co.uk

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1. 9ct Fairtrade yellow gold etched pendant set with 1.67ct chrysoprase, ethically sourced from Australia, hangs from a 9ct yellow Fairtrade gold chain. The setting features Diana’s unique etched texture. £1,200; dianaporter.co.uk 2. Combine your love of films and wine with these home wine tasting sets, for groups of two to four and six to eight. Each set comes with a selection of wines, full instructions, plus tasting guides, scorecards, film trivia and wine notes. £35/£55/£97; bristolfilmfestival.com/shop 3. Set of six Fairtrade Kashmiri Christmas birds, £28.95; artisanhomeware.co.uk/christmas 4. ‘Best of Bristol’ independent craft beer collection, £36, QWERTY Beer Box; qwertybeerbox.co.uk 5. Afghan veg-dye kilim cushion, £45; orientalrugsofbath.com 6. Bristol’s Jones & Modha No. 1 is a 100% naturally derived, eco-friendly, sustainable perfume, £69; jonesandmodha.co.uk 7. Gift someone a day of creativity with scrap metal, finishing up with their own piece of handmade metalwork. From fire pits and garden sculptures to wine racks and lamps, the possibilities are endless, £125; yuup.co 8. Triple star stud earrings, £34; thesilvershopofbath.co.uk

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SHOPPING | CHRISTMAS

Part and parcel

The festive season is right around the corner and while the core essence of Christmas – presence over presents – should be kept in mind, here’s a little inspiration for those shopping for gifts

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1. Porcelain bowls by Lamorna Gore with a soft matt glaze & vibrant precious metal lustres, £25 – £150; cliftoncontemporaryart.co.uk 2. English rosé spritzer, from local Bristol-based drinks company Nania’s Vineyard, £4 each can; naniasvineyard.co.uk 3. 2020 collection Moorcroft mirror with a William de Morgan design pottery tile, £310; cliftonceramics.co.uk 4. A challenging custom film quiz; add your drink & snacks options to complete the evening. From £29.99; bristolfilmfestival.com/shop 5. Diamond solitaire rings, from £200, Kemps; kempsjewellers.com 6. Gift someone the opportunity to join Michelin-starred Bristol chef Josh Eggleton for a culinary crawl around his favourite local producers, £140; only available to book on yuup.co 7. Caleño’s new Dark & Spicy – spice up your night and bring more joy to not drinking, £20 per 50cl; calenodrinks.com

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CHILDREN’S BOOKS

The gift of a new world

A good book opens up different worlds, and this selection of six covers gorillas and yaks, adventures and explanations, and reimaginings of two classics; all of them poised to entertain young minds, says John McLay “On the tip of the top of a mountain all snowy, where the ice-swirling, toe-curling blizzards were blowy, in a herd full of huddling yaks, big and small, lived Gertie... the littlest yak of them all.” So begins this winning wintry tale that is perfect for fans of Rachel Bright and Julia Donaldson. The Littlest Yak by debut author Lu Fraser is a joyous, rhyming adventure about Gertie, who is feeling stuck in her smallness. She wants to grow UP and have bigness and tallness! It turns out that there are some things that only Gertie can do and she comes to see that she’s perfect just the way she is. The witty art and characterful creatures by local illustrator Kate Hindley help make this a rollicking and heartwarming tale. A story that’s ideal for the colder season now upon us. Simon & Schuster, £6.99 We need funny books in our lives right now and The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates, a middle grade adventure

by Jenny Pearson, is as funny as they come. Fact-loving Freddie Yates sets off on a secret adventure, with his two best mates, that ends up being not so secret. He’s looking for his biological dad but the trio get sidetracked by an onion-eating competition, bus rides, looexploding pear-and-potato turnovers, and an antique jewellery theft. The joy of this touching, hilarious novel about three boys, one summer holiday, and a few miracles along the way, is that nothing goes to plan. We laugh, we cry and we enjoy this dazzling debut for what it is – a book that could be read more than once.

Usborne, £6.99 Charles Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist could lay claim to being his most popular novel and now Bath author Catherine Bruton has written a brilliant sequel aimed at children aged 9+. Another Twist in the Tale is the tale of Twill Twist, a girl brought into this world moments ahead of her more famous brother, Oliver – the rags-to-riches orphan who became heir to the Brownlow fortune. Twill has her own thrilling adventure as she journeys through the gambling dens and workhouses of London, attempting to uncover the mystery of her past, make a life for herself and rescue her friends. There are new friends and villains and some old favourites in this brilliantly imagined, riproaring story. The author’s descriptions of Victorian London are exciting and feel real. There’s also an audio version, read by Miriam Margolyes of Harry Potter film fame. Nosy Crow, £7.99 26 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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Another classic gift for Christmas is Chris Riddell’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a brilliant full-colour illustrated edition. Many great artists have drawn Alice, but I think this sumptuous hardback and jacketed version by the ex-Waterstones Children’s Laureate is my personal favourite. Lewis Carroll’s story is more than 150 years old, but the drawings are brand new and quite stunning. Every page has something to look at – from the map of Wonderland at the beginning to the amazingly detailed and amusing depictations of favourite characters such as Alice herself, White Rabbit, Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and Queen of Hearts. We famously follow Alice down the rabbit hole to a world full of crazy creatures, magic… and danger. Decapitation-crazed queens must be avoided at all costs! It’s a very readable story for young people – a bit mad, but still great after all these years. Macmillan, £25 There’s a reason why David Walliams is the bestselling children’s author in the UK – his books are brilliant for children. And I think adults secretly like reading them, too; making the voices come to life and telling fart jokes to their kids. Legitimately! Code Name Bananas goes back in time for a whizz-bang epic adventure of action, laughter and secret plots – and tells of the extraordinary friendship between a little boy and a huge gorilla. It’s 1940. Britain is at war with Nazi Germany.

Eleven-year-old Eric spends his days at the place that makes him most happy: London Zoo. And there’s one animal in particular he loves: Gertrude the gorilla. But with bombs falling all over London, Eric must save Gertrude! Together with his Uncle Sid, a keeper at the zoo, the three go on the run. But while hiding out at the seaside they uncover a top-secret Nazi plot… It’s another winning story with cracking illustrations from the genius Tony Ross.

HarperCollins, £14.99 The human body is extraordinary, fascinating and – undoubtedly – pretty weird. Kay’s Anatomy, the hilarious first children’s book from bestselling non-fiction author Adam Kay, is all about the body and is a sure-fire present hit. West Country-born writing legend Jacqueline Wilson says the book is “totally brilliant” and David Baddiel wishes it had been around when he was too embarrassed to teach his kids about bodily functions. It’s funny, informative, gruesome, repulsive, extraordinary and engrossing. This book tells you what’s actually going on inside all of us and answers the really big questions: are bogeys safe to eat? How much of your life will you spend on the toilet? Henry Paker’s illustrations should not be missed, however. They make the book look attractive, readable and add a lot of laughs.

Puffin, £14.99 n • eventsofwonder.com

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- Bouquets For Days -

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Winter and 2021 subscriptions available.

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For flights call 01934 852875

www.firstflight.co.uk

Very Best Wishes for the Festive Season from all the team at T H E

BRISTOL MAGAZINE Telephone 0117 974 2800

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HISTORY,TRADITION & QUALITY

Kemps is a fourth generation family jeweller offering a beautiful selection of both new and pre-loved pieces

since 1881

We have re-opened and have taken all necessary steps to ensure our customers and staff are as safe as possible

Free watch batteries to NHS and care workers until end of August

KEMPS J EWELLERS

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9 Calton Court, Westbury on Trym, Bristol, BS9 3DF www.kempsjewellers.com • 0117 950 5090

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THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE 29

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LOCALS’ STORIES

Eddie has been cutting hair for the homeless for the last four years. Image: Kenny Ogunneye

Eddie back in action in full PPE equipment after lockdown was lifted

A message of hope

Millie Bruce-Watt catches up with Eddie Ilic – an inspiring figure on the streets of Bristol, cutting hair for the homeless and offering time to those who need it most

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fter salons were given the green light to safely reopen in July, Eddie Ilic and his army of 30 hairdressing heroes returned to the streets of Bristol to spread kindness and positivity, giving their time, free of charge, to cut the hair of the city’s homeless.

Four years ago, at the age of 21, Eddie set up Eddie’s Street Cuts while working at BA1 Hair in Bath, volunteering with the homeless charity Julian House (julianhouse.org.uk) and recovering from his own addiction to drugs and alcohol. Following a 12-step programme, he wanted to give back to the community and communicate a message to those struggling with the disease – a message that saved his own life five years ago. Since then, Eddie has been performing random acts of kindness on the streets of Bristol and Bath, aiming to boost people’s self-esteem and show love and care for those who are far too often forgotten.

“For me, this is a huge part of my service to the 12-step programme. To be able to keep my recovery, I’ve got to give it away so by doing this I can help the homeless people, I can share my experience of my drug addiction and I can pass on a message of hope, which is they don’t have to live the way that they’re living – there is a solution.

“We meet quite a few men and women who haven’t had human contact sometimes for a day, a week or even longer. For us, it’s about giving them a haircut, making them feel really good on the outside, but also it’s about giving them their dignity back and boosting their self-esteem. We hear so much from our street friends; much more than what a social worker would hear – they’re sat in the chair and they feel safe. We’ve got trust between us. A lot of these men and women haven’t been able to offload these personal demons or issues before.”

Over the lockdown period, Eddie and his team were unable to cut hair due to the government’s restrictions in salons but on 22

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July they hit the ground running, and set up an open event at Bristol Outreach Services for the Homeless (BOSH; bosh.org.uk), inviting people to come and get a haircut. “In between this lockdown and the last lockdown, we’ve been busy on our feet, which has been amazing; to be able to help out where we can.

“It’s difficult times right now, and everyone has been affected directly and indirectly by Covid. I’ve seen a rise in homelessness in Bristol especially. When we were at BOSH the first Sunday after the lockdown was lifted, we cut about 50 people’s hair, and then the next month it was double.”

The responses Eddie and his team receive are always ones of joy, and far too often ones of disbelief. “Time, acknowledgment, a smile; those simple things can really change someone’s day and potentially change someone’s life. Spending five minutes of your own time going to talk to someone who hasn’t had that human contact in a day or in a couple of days or even a week – that can mean so much to someone and it does much more than money can do.”

Eddie’s desire to give back and help others appears to be very much in his make-up and he often travels with his scissors on the off-chance he can lend a hand. “Whenever I go on holiday I’ll bring my scissors so, if I go to Naples or Paris or Brighton, I’ll cut people’s hair on the streets. Most people say, “I’ve never had this done before” or “I’ve never had my hair cut on a park bench before” and some of them have opened up to say they haven’t had a haircut for over a year or two years. The response that we get is priceless.”

The winter period and the festive season can be a truly dark time for some people, especially those experiencing homelessness. Eddie encourages anyone who wants to do their bit to donate to the charities working tirelessly to support them. “It’s hard at any time of the year No 195

but especially at Christmas where it’s also getting colder. For anybody to just give their time and maybe make little Christmas boxes and start giving out jumpers and warm clothing – it would mean so much.

“If people are thinking about what they can do for homelessness this year, maybe put £10, £50 or £5 into a local charity where that support and that money will go towards helping the homeless.”

This year, Eddie and his team are spending their Christmas Day with Caring in Bristol.

“They’re setting up a day where they’ll have food and everything else and we’ll do some hair cutting. We’re looking forward to helping where we can.”

Eddie’s journey has been an inspirational one and it is far from over. “We’re hopefully going to set up an academy next year where we can teach ex-offenders or ex-homeless people the basic fundamental skills of barbering,” he says.

“They’ll be going on a six-month express course so they can get a qualification. It’s still very early days but that’s the goal of Eddie’s Street Cuts, so we can teach the disadvantaged, the young or the people that have just come out of prison and give them a second chance.”

Ultimately, Eddie’s message is one of kindness this Christmas. “It’s important to not judge.

Homelessness could happen to anyone. I think that’s the message as well, to have less of a judgement and more of an understanding of it.

“Eddie’s Street Cuts has been such a huge part of my recovery and I am so thankful for the 12-step programme – it’s allowed me to do something like this. Without my recovery I wouldn’t be here today cutting hair and passing on this message of hope to young people who I can identify with so much.” ■ • Eddie (@eddiestreetcuts) will speak at TEDxBath next spring; justgiving.com/crowdfunding/eddieesc3

UNWRAP YOUR LOCAL HIGH STREET THIS

CHRISTMAS

This Christmas, Shop Clifton Village

With many businesses open from early December, the shops and salons across the village are bursting at the seams with exquisite gifts, products, and vouchers – just waiting for you.

Over the past few months local businesses have shown incredible resilience and adaptability with many trading online, offering click and collect, takeaway coffee and cake, or delicious meals to have at home.

In addition to retail outlets now open, these invaluable services will continue to be delivered to those who need and greatly benefit from them.

Whatever your circumstances, Clifton Village is open for business and here for you.

e

Your local high street needs you, now more than ever

Christmas is coming to Clifton Village, and the temptation might be to head to Amazon, but before you do that, please take a look at all that is on offer, right on your doorstep, and shop here, not there.

You’ll find fashion and lifestyle stores, delicious delis, art galleries, interior design hubs, gorgeous gift shops and cafes, pubs, and restaurants to suit every taste and occasion. Searching for a cute stocking filler or longed for luxury gift? Discover everything you need, along with individuality and independence in Bristol’s most beautiful and loved shopping and dining quarter.

This year in particular, local businesses really need and appreciate your support, especially hospitality venues who are operating online and take-away services. As a special thank you to customers, many businesses will be extending Black Friday deals and offers throughout the holiday season.

A savvy shopping location, Clifton Village is also the perfect place to get a fix of fresh air.

This iconic part of the city benefits from close proximity to great outdoor spaces such as the Downs, Leigh Woods, The Suspension Bridge and Observatory.

Enjoy peaceful woodland walks, stunning winter scenery and acres of space in which to stretch your legs.

There has never been a better or more apt time to explore and savour all Clifton Village and the surrounding area has to offer.

Visit discoverclifton.co.uk and wearecliftonvillage.co.uk And see who can help you, right now

Love Clifton This Christmas...

Come and see Clifton’s ‘Florence, The NHS Tree of Thanks’

And cheerlead your local community. Now is the time to show how much we value and cherish our wonderful neighbourhood and all it represents.

This festive season there are so many things we can do to show our appreciation. If you can, please support Clifton Village businesses by: • S hopping locally for all your Christmas presents • W riting a positive review for a business online • Buying gift vouchers to use at a later date • C ontinuing to use independent online and click & collect services • E njoying the huge variety of delicious in-house and takeaway food and drink available Thank you on behalf of the shops, salons, cafes, restaurants and bars of Clifton Village. We wish you all a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

In the heart of Clifton Village, you’ll find a majestic 50ft Christmas tree, decorated with beautiful blue stars to say thank you to all the NHS staff in Bristol.

Then wander the surrounding streets and discover lots of delightful mini trees adorning the many shops, restaurants and cafes.

Together we can make a difference

Brought to you by

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ECONOMY

Purple power

With Christmas shopping season underway, how have those living with disabilities – for whom lockdown has “turned back the clock” according to campaigners – found the purchase process during the pandemic? Journalist, illustrator, speaker and sportswoman Chloe Ball-Hopkins shares how she navigates shopping on ‘Inaccessible Avenue’

Chloe modelling her ASOS design.

“That’s my definition of inclusivity,” she says; “something that’s designed with wheelchair users in mind, but isn’t exclusive.”

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fter a successful collaboration with online fashion giant ASOS, which caused a media uproar, I became a voice for those who struggle to find inclusive clothing. I designed, and ASOS produced, a jumpsuit that anyone can wear whether they have a disability or not. That’s my definition of inclusivity; something that’s designed with wheelchair users in mind, but isn’t exclusive. Because being exclusive isn’t inclusive at all.

I have realised over the years that complaining about this won’t fix it, so instead of seeing the problems, I like to try and find the solutions where possible. To quote my TEDxBristol talk: “People’s perceptions need to change to eliminate limitations”. This quite simply means that someone needs to shine a light on the measures that can be put in place to make Inaccessible Avenue more accessible.

The money of people living with disabilities (and their household) is referred to as the purple pound. The figures around it aren’t to be ignored either, based on the most recent statistics from charity Purple, which works to bring disabled people and businesses together.

The stats are hardly surprising considering disabled people make up the largest minority group. So, what can fashion brands and shops do to become more accessible? There are two separate parts to consider here; in store and online. Both sections are primarily built upon people’s understanding of how to making shopping a more accessible and enjoyable experience for customers with disabilities.

The sunflower lanyard [a discreet sign that the wearer has a hidden disability and may need additional support] was introduced to help those with learning disabilities to be subtly identified by the places registered with the scheme, to enable them to receive support when needed. With one in five people in the UK having a disability, and 80% of those being classed as hidden, this was a brilliant initiative which is recognised by most major shops and supermarkets now.

Most shop workers tend to be very helpful when you ask them to reach a product for you or help you with packing bags. It’s the more

discreet things which seem to be forgotten at times – if you have a folding ramp for access into your store, you need to make sure it is easy to get to and that you know how to use it. Oh, and remember that a changing room in a clothes shop isn’t a storage cupboard.

Where we are located in the country, we are fortunate enough to have shopping centres such as The Mall Cribbs Causeway, Cabot Circus and The Galleries to name a few. I have personally found that all of these locations provide an accessible shopping experience, as well as helpful customer service when I have asked for assistance.

For me, I think the biggest area for improvement is online. Online shopping, for many, has been the only way of shopping this year due to the pandemic. For those like myself, online shopping is simpler in many ways anyway. I can try clothes on in the comfort of my own home and return them if they aren’t suitable. There is a lack of inclusive clothing itself, but there are clothes that work by chance – my wardrobe is stocked full of them. The difficulty can be finding them.

There are filters and different options when it comes to shopping online so you can choose your size, height, shape and so on. Surely there could be an option to click ‘inclusive’ and all the clothes that work in some way for those with disabilities would be there for you to find. It wouldn’t be saying those garments are perfect, but it would certainly be a step in the right direction.

I do believe the reason these simple yet innovative changes haven’t been introduced yet is due to brands and companies being afraid of getting it wrong. I think praise would come where it is due, though, and people would applaud any efforts made to start improving inclusivity. Myself and ASOS proved that collaborations are successful so clothing stores, on the high street and online, could consider talking with people like me to ensure they get it right!

With Christmas just around the corner and 2021 looming, I wonder if the new year may finally bring new initiatives? ■ • Follow Chloe on Twitter & Instagram: @chloe_ballhopzy

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Martin Clunes in BOV’s Mother Goose

Photos: University of Bristol Theatre Collection; poster: Bristol Hippodrome

Peter O'Toole starred as Mrs Millie Baba in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves in 1958 at Bristol Old Vic

Dramatic pause

Based on mingling and crowd interaction, panto is a form of theatre that doesn’t thrive on social distancing. Melissa Blease takes stock of its history, evolution and enduring appeal in lieu of its usual presence this far-from-traditional festive season

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were immensely popular between the first and sixth centuries AD. Hundreds of years later came the 16thcentury Italian commedia dell’arte tradition involving troupes of actors who travelled around the country improvising stories with a moral message, via the medium of an instantly recognisable cast of characters – the lovers, the patriarch, the soothsayer, the loyal servant.

These, who we know and love today, eventually influenced 18th-century English theatre producer John Rich.

Rich’s penchant for slapstick humour, lavish productions and larger-than-life (or even other-wordly) characters was heavily criticised by detractors who accused his work of causing cultural and moral decay... and the public couldn’t get enough of it.

But after his death in 1761, even the legendary theatrical practitioner David Garrick acknowledged that Rich’s pantomime performances were unmatched in his time and his Harlequinades (typically comic chase scenes telling the story of the lovers Harlequin, Columbine, Columbine’s grumpy dad Pantaloon and Pantaloon’s servant Clown) dominated pantomime for decades, with the last London Harlequinade staged at the Lyceum Theatre in 1939.

egardless of your feelings on musical theatre, slapstick comedy, weary jokes, princesses who always get their prince and cross-dressing Prima Donnas, pantomime is an annual tradition that – even in these strange, troubled times – refuses to go away.

Typically a child’s first experience of live entertainment, pantomime inspires hundreds of thousands of young people to consider a career in the creative industries. It’s also the lifeblood of professional theatre, accounting for around 20% of box office revenue across the UK. And it’s jolly good fun (oh yes it is, etc). But pantomime is not new, and the origins of this very British tradition aren’t actually very British.

Pantomime has roots firmly planted in ancient Greece and Rome; indeed, the very word pantomime was adapted from the Latin word pantomimus: panto roughly translating as ‘all’ and ‘mimos’ referring to a dancer who undertakes several roles in one story.

Performed everywhere from private households to huge outdoor theatres within the Roman empire, Roman pantomimes, their storylines largely based on Roman myths and legends occasionally embroidered with references to the notable figures of the day,

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By the Victorian era, pantomime had become an established part of UK theatrical tradition. The 1843 Theatres Act lifted restricted use of spoken word in performances allowing witty puns and audience participation to be added to the already heady mix of extravagant costumes, derring-do and spectacular transformations while outrageous storylines involved satirical social satire, subtle product placement on behalf of advertisers – and a principal ‘boy’ (always played by a woman) who offered the Victorian gentleman the rare opportunity to look at a well-turned ankle.

The genre wasn’t, however, a strictly seasonal treat until the late 19th century when it became customary for pantomimes to open on Boxing Day – and an intrinsic part of Christmas tradition was established.

Around the same time, the popularity of music hall performances was starting to give way to the more modern ‘variety theatre’: an eclectic mix of live music, comics, mimics, acrobats, jugglers and comedy sketches.

Pantomime adapted accordingly, with scripts adapted from classic fairy tales and variety show stars in the leading roles.

Dazzling costumes, hi-tech special effects, Hollywood superstars: today, the biggest

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pantomimes can cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to produce, and headline stars can demand £100,000+ to appear in a five-week season. But whether staged by the local am dram group in a tiny village hall or engulfing a vast city-centre arena, woe betide the pantomime production that doesn’t pay heed to a handful of ancient superstitions.

Theatre folklore dictates that the last lines of the pantomime finale should be delivered in rhyming couplets never to be uttered until the opening night, even in rehearsal; if the rule is broken, disaster will strike. Meanwhile, the

A young Alan Rickman in Dick Whittington at Bristol Old Vic

pantomime fairy must always enter stage right and the baddie stage left, because right signifies heaven, and left represents hell. As for that dear old beloved pantomime dame: these leading men/women were familiar figures in ancient midwinter festivals such as Twelfth Night, Samhain (Halloween) and Saturnalia, where the natural order of things is reversed to create general mayhem before order and rightness are restored. And if there’s one thing we all need right now, it’s a pantomime fairy to wave her magic wand and restore order and rightness for all.

Despite the adversities and hardship that 2020 has thrust upon us, pantomimes will, can and do go on, sprinkling a uniquely seasonal magic across the land.

Bristol Hippodrome

Ever since The Bristol Hippodrome opened on 16 December 1912, Bristol’s glitziest commercial theatre has bought the West End to the West Country. The theatre didn’t, however, stage a pantomime until 1931, when Dick Whittington and His Cat (starring Peggy Rhodes in the title role alongside ‘eccentric dancers’ Al and Billy Gold) thrilled and delighted audiences from Bristol and beyond.

The Hippodrome has since produced pantomimes on an (almost) annual basis, putting stars and entertainment icons including Jimmy Edwards, George Formby, Norman Wisdom, Mickey Rooney, Charles Hawtry, Arthur Askey, Morecombe and Wise, Mike Yarwood, John Inman, Rod Hull and Emu, Su Pollard, Frank Bruno, Little and Large, Lionel Blair, Ronnie Corbett, Larry Grayson, Bruce Forsyth, Lily Savage (aka Paul O’Grady), Shane Richie and Julian Clary in the spotlight.

Bristol Old Vic The oldest theatre in Bristol (est. 1776) also holds the record for being the oldest continuously operating theatre in the Englishspeaking world – but time hasn’t stood still for this elegant old monarch of the theatre world. Today, the BOV is renowned for supporting pioneering, inspirational 21stcentury theatre, resulting in a fascinating voyage of enlightenment for all in a unique environment that brings Bristol’s heritage bang up-to-date – not least at Christmas, when national critics laud and applaud BOV seasonal productions with reviews focusing on myriad ingenious revisions, revolutionary insurrections, and captivatingly fresh perceptions on the Christmas story theme.

If there’s one thing we all need right now, it’s a fairy to wave her magic wand...

Adding a really interesting twist to BOV’s intelligent tradition-meets-contemporaria updates: the theatre’s 1956/57 production of Sleeping Beauty featured Peter O’Toole – who was based at the BOV from 1956-58 – doubling up in the role of Alderman/Mate. In 2015 director Sally Cookson turned the same classic tale on its gender-based stereotypical head, modernising the tale for a completely new generation. n • Robin Hood is due to run at the Bristol Hippodrome, Living Spit’s Beauty and the Beast is due to run at Bristol Old Vic. Please check websites for dates and details

LOCAL PANTO HEROES Randolph Sutton: The popular stage entertainer, music hall and variety show star Randolph Sutton (born in Clifton in 1888) is believed to have been one of the earliest male principal boys of the modern era, first appearing at the Theatre Royal, King Street, in Babes in the Wood in 1911 before going on to star in and produce pantomimes in Bristol up until the 1940s. Sutton died in 1969 and, in 1989, Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society honoured his legacy with a green plaque outside his former home in Anglesea Place, Hotwells.

Chris Harris: British actor, director and writer Chris Harris was a worldwide authority on the subject of pantomimes – and the West Country’s best-loved pantomime dame. Born in Bridgwater, Somerset, Harris starred in and co-wrote nine pantomimes for the Bristol Old Vic before his 15-year ‘residency’ as director and performer in the Theatre Royal Bath’s traditional Christmas shows. Following his death in 2014 at the age of 71, hundreds of

Randolph Sutton, Chris Harris and Jon Monie

Harris’ friends, family and colleagues gathered together for a memorial service to celebrate his life at Theatre Royal Bath, where the stage was decorated with many of the costumes he had worn over the years, panto routines were performed, a slideshow screened images from his life, and career and a standing ovation of rapturous applause lasted for almost 20 minutes.

Jon Monie: On 8 January 2018, awardwinning comedian, actor, writer, director, workshop facilitator and TV presenter Jon Monie (who lives in Holt, Wiltshire) made

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record book history when he appeared in his 1,000th Theatre Royal Bath pantomime performance as Smee in Peter Pan. The following year, Monie won the Best Script gong at the 2019 Great British Pantomime Awards for Beauty & the Beast, which went on to be the Theatre Royal Bath’s best-ever selling pantomime. But this year, in a complete break with Bath-based tradition, Monie is taking his Pantomonium! – a unique, one-act pantomime about pantomime, adapted to follow Covid-secure guidelines – to Blackpool’s Grand Theatre.

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Fun and quirky with a hint of retro: 2point5d positions itself as quintessentially Bristol streetwear

Winifred Rose garments are made in the Bristol studio to ensure ethical treatment of everyone involved with the brand

Shokushu Boutique reworks samples and resells 90% of its leftover latex to other creatives

Fruit Salad works with local printers using water-based inks (image: EdmoSnaps Photography)

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The bright side

Lately we’ve found ourselves dressing to counteract the 2020 mood – gadding about Greville Smyth in lime green teddy coats and popping pink felt hats whenever the winter sun makes an appearance – so chancing across this colourful crop of local fashion makers has felt somewhat serendipitous

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ristol’s thriving, eclectic arts scene has inevitably created a generation of distinctive designers.We turned the spotlight to five individuals behind brands creating sustainable clothing locally, and reinventing Bristol’s fashion scene with innovative materials and quirky prints that manifest the creative spirit of this vibrant city.

Fruit Salad

Fruit Salad (Instagram: @fruit_salad_bristol) is a fun, slow fashion streetwear brand creating cute and colourful pieces. Founder and designer Emma Goton-Ellicott is a fashion designer, journalist and blogger whose aim is to end the fast fashion industry and who is passionate about supporting independent businesses. Since launching in 2019, Fruit Salad has become increasingly environmentally friendly by using pre-loved clothing and fabrics to create their ‘Rework’ range.

They also work with local printers on a small scale, using water-based inks which are safer for the environment than those used by many fast fashion companies.

Shokushu Boutique

Shokushu Boutique (Instagram: @shokushu_boutique) is a latex fashion brand created by fashion design graduate Emily Avarice. After working for celebrity stylist Alexis Knox and the design team at clubwear brand Cyberdog, she established Shokushu Boutique in London in 2014. It relocated to Bristol in 2017 and now also includes assistant designer Jonee Sansom. The brand’s aesthetic originated in combining traditional East Asian costume with British street style, and this evolved to include influences from Korean pop, Harajuku street culture and many others.

The brand has always been keen to avoid unnecessary waste, reselling 90% of its leftover latex to other creatives. Garments requiring large amounts of material are exclusively made to order and samples are often reworked to create new designs.

chosen seamstresses to ensure ethical treatment of everyone involved with the brand.

2point5d

Fun and quirky with a hint of retro: 2point5d (Instagram: @2point5d) is quintessentially Bristol streetwear. The brand was established in 2016 by owner Polly Tregear who studied fashion design at Bristol’s UWE. 2point5d is heavily influenced by ’90s and Y2K pop culture icons, particularly Japanese and American brands and cartoon characters with a cute aesthetic. Their products are handmade, hand-printed or upcycled vintage. These are mostly found at car boot sales or flea markets and then reworked, and the range includes statement accessories as well as clothing. 2point5d also make sure to use biodegradable plastic and recycled paper for their packaging and generally try to keep as much out of landfill as possible. ■ • For more style inspiration from local independent brands and designers, follow @bristolfashionistas on Instagram

Burnt Soul has amassed a huge following on social media since starting up in 2012

Burnt Soul

Burnt Soul Clothing (Instagram: @burntsoulclothing) was created by Bristol fashion design graduate Robyn Lythe in 2012. After working as a bridal/eveningwear designer, Robyn transitioned to quirky activewear.

She now has a team of three who assist with running their Bristol-based studio and social media. The brand combines planet-friendly practices with dazzling materials and strategically placed panels to produce activewear with a truly Bristolian twist. Burnts Soul acknowledges that their eco-awareness has grown with the brand and that they continue to adapt to consider their impact on the environment. To prevent waste, garments are made in small batches and prints are chosen that allow for minimum waste.

Winifred Rose Clothing

Winifred Rose (Instagram: @winifredroseclothing) creates super sparkly festival fashion looks with carefully sourced fabrics. A unique approach to fabric sourcing means that many fabrics used are one-of-a-kind and hand embellished. Everything is designed by Rosie Toms, who studied fashion in London before working with the high-street giant H&M in Stockholm. Her designs are intended to be wearable both in everyday life and for special occasions and stand out through their focus on luxury fabrics. Garments are made in the Bristol studio or by carefully

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GARDENING ENVIRONMENT

“The prize is aspirational – it’s saying, ‘Yes, we can fix these things’. That’s the bit that’s often missing from a lot of the gloom and doom around the environmental crisis”

A global mission Millie Bruce-Watt catches up with Keith Scholey, who is documenting the Earthshot quest to save our natural world, and whose message is stark but optimistic in the face of the new decade

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n October, Prince William and the Royal Foundation launched the Earthshot Prize – the most prestigious environment prize in history – with the aim of improving life for us all, now and in the future. It is centred around five main goals, or ‘Earthshots’: protect and restore nature, clean our air, revive our oceans, build a waste-free world and fix our climate. Inspired by President Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ speech, which united millions of people around the dream of “landing a man on the moon”, the Earthshot Prize is designed to incentivise change.

The goals are simple but ambitious and, if achieved by 2030, will see us living in a radically healthier environment. Every year for the next 10 years, five winners – one per Earthshot aim – will receive £1 million, a global platform and a prominent profile in the hope that their environmental solutions will lead to mass adoption and replication. The initiative not only recognises the connection between the world’s most pressing challenges but also the urgent need to tackle them.

To support the launch, Bristol’s very own Silverback Films – which was behind Sir David Attenborough’s latest documentary, David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet – was commissioned by the BBC to make a landmark TV series to be delivered ahead of the first annual award ceremony in October 2021.

Silverback’s co-founder Keith Scholey knows better than most how crucial it is that we find solutions to our environmental crisis in the next decade, having witnessed first-hand its heartbreaking effects.

“We’re extremely honoured and excited to be doing this series,” Keith tells me. “The prize is aspirational – it’s saying, ‘Yes, we can fix these things’. That’s the bit that’s often missing from a lot of the gloom and doom around the environmental crisis. There is a way out but we haven’t got long. What we’re going to be trying to do in the series is explain why each of these issues is so huge and why it is very urgent that we fix it. We are probably the most important generation of humans that have ever lived on this planet because what we do in the next two decades will not just affect a decade to come, not 100 years to come, but probably 10,000 years to come. The whole idea of the Earthshot Prize is about doing something spectacular in the 10-year period.”

A communication crisis

Keith makes it clear that we are tackling a communication crisis just as much as an environmental one. Although the science is clear-cut, the world’s population is struggling to understand just how fragile the state of our natural world is in. “We have to trust the science. The scientists 42 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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know exactly what is going on with a huge level of detail. I’m immersed in it and I see it – it’s scary. David Attenborough interviewed Greta Thunberg the other day and he asked a question that I always get asked: ‘What should I, as an individual, do?’ Greta’s response was really interesting. She said; ‘the first thing you must do is immerse yourself in understanding the nature of the environmental crisis because, once you understand it, everything else follows.’ That’s right – you’ll tell your friends about it. You’ll do something about it and it is down to people like me to help as many people as possible to understand it.”

In Silverback Films’ most recent production, we saw David Attenborough step away from the role of observer to one of environmental activist, outlining the issues and pleading that we take action. “David was born into pretty much a pristine planet. He’s now 94 and at a point where the planet has been so destabilised that the whole thing is out of balance. That all happened in his lifetime, in less than a century, which is just terrifying in its own right.”

Keith’s long and illustrious career as a filmmaker has seen him travel to all corners of the globe, witnessing the devastating effects that climate change is having on ecosystems and habitats. As a keen diver, Keith has spent many hours filming underwater, capturing the raw beauty of the coral reefs. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, between 2014 and 2017, around 75% of the world’s tropical coral reefs experienced heat stress severe enough to trigger bleaching. For 30% of the world’s reefs, that heat stress was enough to kill them.

“One of the things that really struck me was the demise of the coral reefs. They are beyond belief; this whole array of millions of creatures coming together in this beautiful habitat. These have been around for 200 million years; they survived the last extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs. In one human lifetime, the full lot could disappear and that is a shattering thought but it is actually happening. Half of the Great Barrier Reef has now been bleached and lost forever. Any coral reef scientist will say that, in 40 years, coral reefs will be gone just because they can’t cope with the speed that we’re changing the ocean temperature.”

While filming around the world, film crews often witness nature’s cruel sting. They capture the trials and tribulations of the hunters and the hunted and document the unforgiving and unyielding conditions that the young and vulnerable must battle to survive. However, more recently, wildlife documentaries have exposed the havoc that humans have

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wreaked on the natural world. Plastic pollution, deforestation, the ivory trade, trophy hunting, and wildlife tourism, along with the direct effects of climate change, have all contributed to the disappearance of species.

Keith recalls one particular moment a film crew, with his son among the witnesses, watched on helplessly as Pacific walrus suffered fatal injuries as a direct consequence of warming waters. “We had a film crew which went to shoot walrus in Russia. They filmed one beach with 100,000 Pacific walrus lying on it – the whole population is about 130,000, so most of one species was on one beach. They are there because the ice is gone. They don’t want to be there – they normally rest on the ice and feed from below. This beach is a tragic place. The walrus crawl up the cliffs and fall to their deaths. It was absolutely shattering for the crew; if you want to see natural climate refugees, go to the Arctic in Russia. I found this – and the bleaching of the coral reefs – two of the most distressing and shocking scenes.

The science all points to the fact that the people living in the next 10 years are the most important people to have ever lived

“People say ‘climates always change’ and of course they have but the only time they haven’t changed is in the last 10,000 years. The Earth’s climate has not varied plus or minus one degree in the last 10,000 years.

It’s interesting because, before that, we were going in and out of ice ages.

They say Homo sapiens have been around for about 200,000 years and for 95% of our history we were stuck being hunter-gatherers in small bands. Then, in 10,000 years we suddenly invented agriculture and we put a man on the moon. What is it that allowed that? This Holocene period of stable climate. Our civilisation, our society, everything is geared around stable climate. We have no experience of running an agricultural economy outside the Holocene. So suddenly banging the temperature through the roof in one century, our society isn’t going to work. Human society is completely addicted to the stability of Earth.

When it gets too hot here, the trains have to go slower because the railways bend – the railways were built for the Holocene when it never got that hot.”

Searching for solutions

Over the last decade, Bristol has taken steps towards becoming greener and more sustainable, and after winning European Green Capital status, it made long-term commitments to climate change and becoming a low-

“In one human lifetime, the full lot could disappear and that is a shattering thought.” Image: Grace Frank

carbon city. Bristol is also at the forefront of wildlife filmmaking, something that Keith is proud to be a part of. “We have, in Bristol, an international centre for promoting the communication of nature and that’s a fantastic thing to be proud of. There is a lot about Bristol that naturally works because it’s small; we have lots of green spaces and you can see it quite quickly becoming a greener city.”

The search for the first five winners of the Earthshot Prize began on 1 November and nominators have been selected for their ability to identify the most impactful solutions across all countries and sectors, from grassroots to businesses. CEO of the Royal Foundation, Jason Knauf, told those at the launch that the nominators are “an unprecedented coalition of NGOs, academics and leaders who will be looking for inspiring innovators at all levels of society – from local communities through to the biggest players in the global economy.”

Keith hopes the prize will bring forward solutions that we can all incorporate into our daily lives, making small changes on a global scale that will have a positive effect on our futures. “Nations can meet and agree to stop subsidising fishing fleets in the open ocean and so on, but on the other hand, people changing their diets will have an effect. From the individual to businesses to governments, there is innovation and change. I hope the Earthshot Prize is going to be a mixture of those things and that some of the solutions they come up with will be incredibly personal, that all of us will engage with.”

What is going on in the Great Barrier Reef is the direct impact of industrial sites’ carbon emissions thousands of miles away. The environmental crisis does not discriminate and it will take a global effort to repair our planet. “We are all joined together by this crisis,” says Keith. “I know the Royal Foundation has been really concentrating on making sure the representation is completely international and that’s really exciting. We don’t know who the runners and riders are going to be yet but I know the judges have got a very open mind to what could be viewed as a winner. Who knows what it could be! These people will end up being the heroes of our time.”

Without question, Keith’s message is focused on the urgency of action but it is also full of optimism and anticipation. The prize endeavours to inspire the world to effect change in the hope of our children and grandchildren living on a healthier planet. “There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the next 10 years are the most important years in the history of mankind,” says Keith. “That sounds like a crazy statement but the science all points to the fact that the people living in the next 10 years are the most important people to have ever lived. What happens in that period is going to be the most important thing that mankind does.

By 2030, I hope we’re looking at a very different world and a very different outlook. We can change the world, we are inspired by it and it’s an aspirational thing to do.” ■ • silverbackfilms.tv

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LOCAL | EVENTS

WHAT’S ON in December The Christmas tree in Bethlehem

A mural celebrating the 10th anniversary of Bristol Palestine Film Festival. Image: Alix Hughes

A Christmas Carol at Bristol Old Vic

will also be able to join Palestinians in celebrating the ‘real time’ lighting of the Christmas tree in Manger Square; bethlehemculturalfestival.com

Bristol Old Vic: At Home Season Two Until 28 February, online December Bristol Old Vic’s highly acclaimed modern theatrical extravaganza A Christmas Carol (“a clever, witty, captivatingly fresh look at Charles Dickens”) is just one segment of the Bristol Old Vic’s second ‘At Home’ season: a package of five diverse BOV seasonal productions bought together in one beautifully curated, sensory bauble to watch on demand this winter. Season pass: £12.99; bristololdvic.org.uk

BS3 Santa 3 – 23 December, on doorsteps in BS3 Street theatre meets a travelling Santa’s grotto in BS3 as two of the region’s top comic theatre performers Stewart Wright and Lucy Tuck bring Santa and Elf two metres away from your doorstep. Elf will be sprinkling Christmas magic here, there and everywhere while Santa takes details of Christmas wish lists. Only residents may book tickets; £10 per child; tobaccofactorytheatres.com

Glastonbury & Street Musical Comedy Soc. Throughout December, online Working in conjunction with film production company Flying Tiger Productions and pantomime script writer Matthew Maisey, one of Somerset’s most successful amateur dramatics groups is streaming performances of three of its most recent pantomimes to homes across the UK, each premiering on selected dates in December. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Jack and the Beanstalk and Three Amazing Bears are free to watch on GSMCS’ dedicated YouTube channel, but the society is always grateful to receive support and donations, especially during this difficult year; gsmcs.co.uk

Bristol Palestine Film Festival 4 – 13 December, online Bristol Palestine Film Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month. Moving its screens online, the festival will be showing a great selection of short films over 10 days to celebrate the decade. Running from 4 – 13 December, the films will be free to watch but a £10 donation would help support the festival.

BPFF is set to be packed full of inspiring cinema, reflecting life in Palestine. To mark the milestone, Palestinian artist Taqi Spateen, who is based in Bethlehem, created a mural to go up in Jamaica Street. Although Taqi was unable to paint it himself due to the current travel restrictions, a group of local artists and volunteers finished the piece; bristolpff.org.uk

Bethelehem Cultural Festival 3 – 7 December, online Bethlehem Cultural Festival is a new virtual festival offeing the world a chance to come together and experience Bethlehem’s rich seam of artistic and cultural talent. Viewers can ‘walk’ around the streets of the not-so-little town of Bethlehem in Palestine, and music, film, dance, cookery and panel discussion will feature both world-renowned and up-and coming performers and film-makers. Viewers 44 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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Far From the Madding Crowd 5, 7 & 8 December, The Redgrave Theatre Overcoming the difficulties of the last few months to bring live performance back to Bristol’s stages, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School’s third year BA actors will return to the

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Redgrave Theatre to take on Thomas Hardy’s classic story, Far from the Madding Crowd, in the theatre’s first performances since the onset of the pandemic. In this adaptation by Mark Healy, we’ll see them tackle drama, romance and tragedy in one of Bristol’s most beloved theatres; oldvic.ac.uk Streaming Beauty 9 – 19 December, online Sharp Teeth Theatre and Tom Marshman present what they describe as “the pantomime of your dreams”, but be warned: letting little people in on this one – billed as a “filthily fun pantomime for adults only” – could turn into a bit of a nightmare before Christmas. £10pp (flexible pay-what-you-choose pricing option available on certain dates); bristololdvic.org.uk The Big Christmas Carol Service 12 December, 6pm, online The Churches Conservation Trust will be hosting a free online joint Christmas Carol Service together with the Royal School of Church Music. Stand alongside communities and churches across the world in The Big Christmas Carol Service and enjoy an evening of Christmas festivities; rscm.org.uk Robin Hood From 18 December, Bristol Hippodrome The Bristol Hippodrome is gifting tickets to the opening performance of its socially distanced pantomime to local NHS workers and their families. The all-new production of Robin Hood stars the Strictly judge the nation loves to hate, Craig Revel Horwood, as The Sheriff of Nottingham. In light of the ongoing developments resulting from the pandemic, check the organiser’s website for further information and updates; atgtickets.com ■

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THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE 45

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SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

Ready for lift-off

Preparations for sending the first humans to Mars are happening as we speak, with scientists and engineers all over the world practicing for life on the Red Planet.

Now, a house designed for just that has planning permission in Bristol

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he outcome of an ongoing public art project, ‘Building a Martian House’ has been conceived and led by local artists Ella Good and Nicki Kent, who – for several years now – have been exploring how we live today and stimulating visions for new ways of living here on Earth and on Mars with the help of fellow creatives, scientists, architects and engineers.

Ella and Nicki have worked with world experts in extreme architecture to produce the concept design based on the public’s ideas, and the full-scale house will be presented in partnership with Bristol’s M Shed, funded by The Edward Marshall Trust. Once installed – beside M Shed, in 2022 – the construct will be accompanied by a fivemonth public programme of workshops, events and research that will influence the interiors of the house. It will also coincide with Think Global: Act Bristol, an M Shed project aiming to foster positive action to address the climate and ecological crises.

So what’s planned so far? The house comprises two storeys with an external staircase and platform lift to take visitors to both levels. The upper level, designed to sit on the Martian landscape, is formed using a pressurised inflatable gold-coated foil, making it lightweight enough to be transported to Mars. Once there, the foil would be inflated and filled with Martian regolith (soil) to provide protection from galactic and solar radiation. The house also has a glazed elevation, with views towards Bristol’s Princes Wharf, standing in for the Martian landscape. Inside, a hydroponic living room has been designed to surround occupants with plants to aid relaxation. This could feed into the circular waste water system; these systems, such as waste treatment, water recycling and energy production, are currently being developed with input from the multidisciplinary engineers at Bristol’s Hydrock consultancy.

The lower level is designed to be built below the ground, and so the prototype in Bristol will be surrounded by a scaffold hoarding, printed with information about the project and illustrations from artist Andy Council, who documented the workshop process. Inside, the storey is designed for flexible, private living spaces that can be used as bedrooms, virtual reality rooms or opened into a dining room; along with a WC and kitchenette, and services to support the hydroponic grow room and provide air filtration. The interior will be further developed with the public and filled once the exhibit opens, as part of the events re-thinking life on Earth through exploring the challenges of life on Mars.

“Ella and Nicki have developed an alluring egalitarian concept,” says Hugh Broughton, director at Hugh Broughton Architects which assisted with the design. “The envelope and life support systems are being designed by specialists in the fields of space exploration, extreme environments and sustainability with the interiors being designed by the public through an extensive engagement process. The outcomes will be varied, exciting and provide an alternative approach to space design which represents the interests of everyone, not just governments and the super-rich.” ➲ 46 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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Bristol artists Ella Good and Nicki Kent in astronaut suits at the Mars Desert Research Station, Utah © Satori Photos

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SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

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SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

Concept sketch & visualisation © Hugh Broughton Architects/Pearce+

Companies working as part of the design team and generously providing their services in kind include engineering consultancy Buro Happold and renowned innovators in inflatable design, Inflate.

University of Bristol staff have also contributed their expertise and time to the project, including Professor Lucy Berthoud, Dr Bob Myhill and Dr James Norman.

Artists Ella and Nicki told us a little more about how their exciting project came into being.

TBM: What inspired you two to do this?

Ella & Nicki: About five years ago we did some research and found that preparations for sending the first humans to Mars were happening here on Earth, right now. Scientists and engineers all over the world are building houses and practicing for life on Mars – Mars Desert Research Station, Biosphere 2, Hi-SEAS to name a few; there are loads more. Traditionally space travel and its research is thought of as something for the experts, but we thought that because this research was so varied and new, that there was room to have a go and to build our own version.

We have been working together as artists for about 10 years. Our work is varied with lots of different outcomes; the thing that connects it all is that it is about bringing people together to create something that would otherwise be impossible. In 2014 we decided to make a 10year series of artworks called A Decade With Mars, about Mars, Earth, space and the future. Building A Martian House is part of that.

Tell us about your visit to the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah Run by the Mars Society, it was built more than 20 years ago and is visited by researchers from all over the world. The purpose of the research station (which they call the HAB, short for habitat) is to 48 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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The upper level is formed using a pressurised gold-coated foil, making it lightweight enough to be transported to Mars.

The foil would be inflated and filled with Martian regolith (soil) to provide protection from galactic radiation

provide a facility for researchers to simulate living conditions on Mars.

Teams of up to seven people visit and normally spend two weeks in simulation but some missions can run up to 80 days. During simulation, crews spend their entire time living as close to what it would be like to live on Mars as is possible. They suit up in replica spacesuits every time they leave the HAB, they navigate the Mars-like terrain outside on dirt buggies, they cook meals using powdered milk and insect flour, they have no direct contact with the outside world for the duration of their mission and they simulate a 20-minute delay in real-time communications with Earth.

We visited for a week in 2016 with funding from Arts Council/British Council. We stayed in the research station, sleeping in the tiny windowless bedrooms, and even met some of the people that originally built it. It’s based in the high desert in Utah, it feels remote.

You’d expect it to be hot in the desert but actually because it is the high desert, even in April it was cool, with strong winds. The landscape outside really did look like Mars; looking out of the port holes in the HAB, we really could believe we were there.

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SCIENCE & ENGINEERING

What was the biggest takeaway?

The different versions of this research happening – some are really high tech and others are about simulating life on Mars, and all are valid in different ways. The MDRS is really looking at the simulation.

The technology for supporting life on Mars can be engineered but noone knows how humans will react being that far from Earth for the first time. The only way to begin to think about this is to start practicing here on Earth; see what we can learn about people’s behaviour and how they function in small groups.

No-one knows how humans will react being that far from Earth for the first time. The only way to begin to think about this is to start practicing here on Earth

Where did you start when it came to designing the project?

What can we expect from the five-month programme of workshops?

It’s been quite a long process already. We began by thinking that we’d build something in our back garden but it soon became obvious that we’d need a bit more input to really build something. We ran workshops across 2018 and spoke to loads of different types of people from schoolchildren and families to retirees, academics and university design students. We asked the same questions about wellbeing and how design can support wellbeing.

Back in 2018 the thought of not being able to walk outside or see family was really alien, highlighting the importance of good design for wellbeing. We thought about the need for personalisation, private space and community space, spaces that offer sensory input, the opposite of ‘institutionalised’ spaces, the need to celebrate and appreciate where you are. We also did some fun things to get conversations started; we built a mock-up of a bedroom on the International Space Station as part of an exhibition at We The Curious to show what an astronaut’s bedroom looks like now (it’s very small).

As for the science and technology needed to live on Mars, we invited engineers and scientists from University of Bristol into our workshops to talk about ideas and how we can connect the practical aspects of the design with the ones for living well. We started working to bring all of the public’s ideas together with Hugh Broughton Architects, bringing in their experience of designing for the Antarctic (which presents a lot of similar challenges to Mars in terms of isolation, communications, lack of familiar sensory input, life in a small community).

The programme will invite people to help build the house and imagine future living, with a focus on sustainability, reuse and repair and reimagining community. We aren’t presenting a finished version of a Martian house but a place for people to continue contributing to a vision of the future in the same way that the designs have come together so far. In April 2022 we will have the outer shell built and across the five months we will fill the house through making in these workshops. Mars is a context where the impact on your environment and community is more immediately visible than on Earth, so it really forces you to re-imagine every aspect of daily life – from what happens when your clothes wear out to how you generate power. It’ll be like a kind of ‘living lab’ exploring how the scenario of Mars might inform our ideas about living and working together in the future, with researchers, artists, community groups and the public collaborating.

Why is Bristol a good place for this project to be stationed?

We live in Bristol, which is a big reason for building here; we wanted to make something that could happen here. It feels good to make local connections where possible and in keeping with the project vision it’s about doing what you can here and now, looking at what is possible with what’s around you. Bristol also has a great spirit of collaboration, and lots of makers live here, from artists to engineers.

Why is it important to involve the public in rethinking how we live?

We are often presented with apocalyptic visions of the future that are too big for us to control on an individual level, and that are the responsibility of other people to solve (experts behind closed doors).

We wanted to create a hopeful, optimistic work; a space to imagine a future that we want to live in. We’ve involved a lot of people – you could say non-specialists or the general public alongside ‘experts’ – because we’re all experts in thinking about what humans need to live well, the questions are essentially about designing a future life and so they’re relevant to everyone. ■

• ‘Building a Martian House’ is due to open in April 2022; read more about Ella and Nicki’s trip to the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah at ellaandnicki.wordpress.com/2016/04/25/the-mars-desertresearch-station/

Views towards Bristol’s Princes Wharf will stand in for the Martian landscape.

Inside, a hydroponic living room will surround occupants with plants

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FESTIVE FUN

Answer smashing it

We don’t know about you, but for us Richard Osman’s House of Games has been a top televisual crutch of 2020.

In tribute, here’s our version – our festive, local take – of what is, hands down, the gameshow’s best round

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Image: Bob Pitchford

with the BBC gameshow having hit record viewing figures. Here’s our Christmas quizzing homage to its most amusing round – ‘answer smash’. Simply identify the Christmas song from the written clue then merge it with the name of the Bristol spot in the picture to find the correct answers.

1930s song depicting a charming snow scene and featuring fictional priest Parson Brown

1984 Wham! hit on which George Michael wrote, performed, produced and played every instrument

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Phil Spector-inspired Sixties smash written by a Californian boy band best known for singing about sun, sea and sand

1857 carol about a trio of wise men and the gifts they gave to the baby Jesus

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Carol that tells a story of a Bohemian king braving harsh winter weather to give alms to a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen

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Noel-themed hymn telling the story of the nativity and including a lowly cattle shed

Folk carol detailing beautifully festive ‘full grown’ greenery

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❼

Answers: 1. Last Christmas Steps. 2. We Three Kings Weston House.

3. The Holly and the Ivy Brasserie. 4. Winter Wonderllandoger Trow.

5. Little Saint Nicks Market. 6. Good King Wenceslasda Bedminster 7. Once In Royal David’s City Hall.

Image: Linda Laboun (Instagram: @lindzilb)

hose thick-rimmed black spectacles, that neat slick of black hair, the wry jokes and gently irreverent ribbing: we don’t mind admitting that our daily dose of Richard Osman has become a real end-of-play comfort in our work-from-home routines. It’s not just us either, evidently,

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FOOD & DRINK

Festive dishes available to order via All About The Cooks

At home on the range

Meet four culinary talents conjuring up nutritious creations for Bristol communities via All About The Cooks this winter

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e’re not sure how well this reflects on us but if we were to find out that someone was cooking delicious Mauritian-inspired dishes or whipping up a batch of baklava a few minutes from our house, we’d be significantly more motivated to spark up a neighbourly connection. Start-up All About The Cooks – founded by Bristol Food Connections chair Claire Ladkin – hopes to inspire more community togetherness, enabling home cooks producing “real food, made in kitchens not factories” to sell their creations to Bristol folk.

Giuseppe Delfino, Southville “Naples is the capital of pizza and it is my hometown. We Neapolitans have pizza in our genes! During the 15 years I worked in Italian restaurant San Carlo, I made the whole range of Italian dishes, and above all, pastas. Last year I decided it was time to move out of my comfort zone and to experience cooking in other kitchens. I wanted to ensure I had varied experiences before starting on my long-term dream of setting up my own restaurant. I signed up with an agency and there was plenty of work. I loved the challenge of working in different environments with new people; then the pandemic hit and my phone stopped ringing. I’d taken what felt like only a small risk to work in other restaurants at a time when Bristol’s food scene was booming.

“I decided to turn the down time into productive time and make progress on setting up my own business. I perfected my homemade pizzas, Neapolitan style, and began sharing them with neighbours.

Giving a pizza is like giving a smile, and people needed that during the lockdown. This is a crucial point to me because I think that cooking has a social role to play, bringing happiness and connecting people.

“Once I was happy with my pizzas – I’m a perfectionist – I asked my neighbours for feedback. I was overwhelmed with how much they loved them. I’m passionate about using the best organic ingredients and I had compliments on the tomato sauce, quality of the crusts and freshness of the toppings. A friend mentioned All About The Cooks and as I was 52 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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enjoying cooking at home, it seemed the perfect way to continue doing what I loved while making some money from it. I am used to being in a kitchen and never seeing or hearing how much people are enjoying my dishes, so am looking forward to the direct communication with those who order my food. Beyond the pandemic, I have big ambitions. I want my pizzas, my pastas, my risottos to be like sunshine in people’s days and I hope that by building my reputation, I’ll be able to bring that sunshine to more and more people.”

Celebration dish: The meal I love to cook over the festive period is one for 31 December; a traditional plate of lentils with slices of cotechino (pork sausage), said to bring luck and prosperity for the year ahead.

Trung Trinh, Horfield

“I was born after the Vietnamese war in a very small town by the sea in the north of Vietnam, called Bai Tu Long Bay. My roots in Vietnamese food run deep. Mealtimes were very important, and everything was cooked from fresh. My mother expected me to be involved with the cooking and taught me skills such as how to use a knife and work an open fire, along with ways to identify and pick out the best ingredients and how to combine them to make well-balanced dishes.

“Vietnamese food is all about balance. It’s simple but so fresh, as we use a lot of different varieties of fresh herbs. Being able to share my dishes, and a part of my heritage with food-lovers in Bristol via All About the Cooks is very rewarding.”

Celebration dish: In Vietnam, we don’t celebrate Christmas, but the holiday is similar to our celebrations of Vietnamese New Year, also called ‘Tết holiday’. This is a time for family to get together and food is a very important part of that. Often, we would cook for about 40 people at a time. As my family live by the sea in Vietnam we love to have fresh seafood during the Tết holiday, such as crab, king prawn, squid and oysters. We prepare dishes for ancestral worshipping: a whole steamed chicken in herbs, traditional Tết square cake, stir-fried beef with pineapple and spring rolls, fresh green papaya, mango and banana flower salads – all enjoyed once the ceremony is complete.

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FOOD & DRINK

For Duygu, this way of earning her own money again has made her feel self-reliant and free

Karrie Mannan, Bedminster

Duygu Karakus, Clifton “I am from Turkey, and my mum was a traditional Turkish housewife and is a great cook. I learned everything I know about cooking from her and my grandparents, who were from Crete but moved to Turkey in the 1920s. There are always vegetables and greens on the table and we like to use quality olive oil in our meals.

“Before my family and I moved to Bristol in 2018 for my husband to start a post-doctoral researcher position at University of Bristol, I was working as an administrative assistant in Turkey. I’ve always wanted to turn my passion of cooking into something more, but couldn’t because of my career back home. I found it difficult to find a job in Bristol, which means I’ve had more time to cook, bake and perfect recipes. I love cooking Mediterranean mezzes and Turkish desserts and will be taking a course in vegan or gluten-free breads, pastries and muffins.

“All About The Cooks is a great way to introduce myself and my culture to the city. It can be lonely being new but cooking for people in my neighbourhood has helped me make connections. I’m enjoying feeling part of a team, with the other cooks. I’m also a mum so working to my daily schedule and being my own boss is very helpful.

It’s great that my daughter gets to see me doing something I’m passionate about and I hope in time she’ll start to pick up skills from me like I did from my mother. Earning my own money again for the first time in years has made me feel much more self-reliant and free.”

Celebration dish: We don’t celebrate Christmas, as it isn’t in our religion, but we do mark the time of year by engaging in cultural activities. We’ve always had a Christmas tree and my daughter loves to decorate it but the most important part of the holidays for us is New Year’s Eve. I cook a chicken stuffed with rice, blackcurrants, pine nuts and cinnamon. When the cooking is done, I spread a tomato paste/yoghurt mix around the chicken and bake until golden and crisp.

Trung’s roots in Vietnamese food run deep

“I left school at 16 and worked in hospitality before going travelling and, on my return, falling into being an estate agent in London where my love of food really developed. There was so much to choose from and I finally had a stable income that meant I could enjoy eating out. This is when I discovered how delicious chicken wings, done right, could be. When I decided that being an estate agent was stifling my creativity, I applied for an illustration degree at UWE. My boyfriend and housemate encouraged me to take my cooking ‘public’ as being a student meant I didn’t have the money to eat out as much so I began cooking more at home and seemed to land on a chicken wing recipe that people loved. It grew from there and now I’m having to invest in another fryer just to satisfy the number of orders I’m getting. I purposefully have a small menu of items on the website, as I want to do a few things really well and be known for that.

“The goal is to work as a freelance illustrator or designer and run a street food business. All About The Cooks is helping me grow a base of foodie fans, enabling me to make money to support my studies and reinvest in my business idea – flexibly, on my terms. I choose a regular ‘cooking day’ and people can order ahead of that.

Money isn’t my primary motivator in life – it’s nice to have at the end of the thing you love doing and that definitely applies when it comes to my cooking.”

Celebration dish: Christmas is a time that my nan and I spend together. She used to do the cooking, but now she’s passed the reins over to me. I do a traditional roast, but make it extra special with a beef wellington, and crème brulée for dessert. ■ • allaboutthecooks.co.uk Karrie landed on a chicken wing recipe people loved and had to invest in a second fryer

Perfectionist Giuseppe’s pizzas are the real deal

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FOOD & DRINK

Christmas crackers

A festive drinks outing may not be on the cards, but a raid of the cocktail cabinet certainly can be, and our local mixologists have plenty of ideas to crack on with at home

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hile even a socially distanced trip to our favourite local watering hole doesn’t feel quite within reach at present, we’re going to try our hand at a few locally conceived concoctions – Christmas Day cold brews and other fine festive sips worthy of Santa himself – with the household bubble. Needless to say, stay well away from the sleigh – unless you’re on one of the lovely mocktails.

Cold Brew Martini

Hailing from the Bristol and Bath Rum Distillery on Park Street, Dead Man’s Fingers comprises a 10-strong range of rums that lend themselves well to a tasty Yuletide tipple. Dead Man’s Fingers spiced rum – with hints of saffron cake, Pedro Ximenez ice cream, caramel, cinnamon and nutmeg – makes for a delicious base. Pop in a cocktail shaker with gingerbread syrup, lime juice and apple juice, and garnish with gingerbread man and fresh mint to dial up that festive feeling.

Paloma Fake – alcohol free

40ml Circumstantial organic vodka 20ml Psychopomp coffee digestif 5ml simple syrup This Circumstance Distillery vodka and coffee cocktail is a distant cousin of the espresso martini. The creamy organic vodka pairs perfectly with the chocolate notes in the coffee digestif, and a tiny touch of sugar lifts the flavours without making the drink overly sweet. It’s delicate and light on the palate but still packs enough punch to wake you up after your Christmas Day nap and get you ready to tackle the leftovers and dominate at charades. Stir the ingredients over ice and strain in to a chilled cocktail glass; garnish with a lemon twist.

50ml Mockingbird Spirit Pink grapefruit mixer Sprig of rosemary Wedge of grapefruit

50ml 6 O’Clock Gin – sloe or damson 200ml spiced apple juice

The Paloma Fake is a play on the original tequila cocktail, the Paloma, using Mockingbird Spirit’s tequila-inspired, alcohol-free alternative in a cheeky nod to Paloma Faith, too, of whom Mockingbird founder Fern McCoy is a fan. Made with a citrus mixer, it’s a great alcohol-free option to have in place of the usual boozy breakfast drinks like mimosas or buck’s fizz. “A perfect combination of sweet and sharp, and super simple to put together, it’ll set the healthy hedonists up for the day,” says Fern. Put plenty of ice in a highball glass, add Mockingbird Spirit, top with pink grapefruit mixer and finish with sprig of rosemary and fruit wedge.

A delicious winter warmer. Infuse the cloudy apple juice by gently heating with your favourite winter spices for around 20 minutes.

Decant infused apple juice into a heatproof glass or mug and top with 50ml sloe or damson gin. Garnish with an orange wheel, cinnamon stick and star anise. Another option when making the spiced apple juice is to use a Pukka vanilla chai teabag per 500ml of apple juice.

50ml Caleño Dark & Spicy 15ml lime juice 25ml orange juice 25ml cranberry juice Lemonade top

50ml Dead Man’s Fingers spiced rum 15ml gingerbread syrup (optional) 15ml lime juice 20ml fresh pressed apple juice

On a mission to bring joy to not drinking, alcohol-free spirit maker Caleño has a delicious new addition to its tropical line-up, Caleño Dark & Spicy – with warming pineapple tropical notes, ginger and kola nut spices. Fill a glass with ice, pour in the fruity flavours, top with lemonade and you’re ready for a fiesta. ■

Sloe & Spiced Apple

Ginger Bells

Winter warmer: 6 O’Clock Gin’s Sloe & Spiced Apple

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Circumstance Distillery’s vodka and coffee cocktail is a distant cousin of the espresso martini

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No 195

Spritz of La Fiesta – alcohol free

Ginger Bells by Bristol & Bath Rum Distillery

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Gift boxes filled with locally sourced Bristol treats

Boxlocal can supply treat filled gift boxes for Bristol businesses who love to celebrate local or for individuals looking for the perfect unique gift.

Quote: boxlocal10 for 10% off your first order

Order at: boxlocal.co.uk

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BRISTOL UPDATES NEWS FROM LOCAL BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITY ORGANISATIONS

INDIE CHAMPION

Quinn set up his beer box service QWERTY to help champion indie brewers in the South West

HELLO BRISTOL OYSTER CO A new delivery business is bringing the best of England’s coast direct to households in Bristol. When Rich Summers found himself out of work during lockdown, he began work on his dream of bringing fresh shellfish from his family’s oyster farm in North Norfolk to Bristol doorsteps, and he founded The Bristol Oyster Co. “My family has been in the oyster business for generations,” says Rich. “I’ve been spoilt with the freshest, most incredible seafood since I was a kid, and I’m delighted to have the chance to share it.”

The farm is run by Rich’s uncle, Cyril, and his son, Ben – sole suppliers of all oysters and mussels delivered by The Bristol Oyster Co, which is great for quality control. Rich’s vision is to make highquality oysters accessible for everybody, not just diners at top restaurants: “We have all this incredible seafood right here on the shores of the UK, packed with goodness, super sustainable, and so delicious, yet we still see oysters as the preserve of fine dining. I believe good oysters should be for the many, not just the few.”

The Bristol Oyster Co runs pop-up events, delivers every Friday and is offering Christmas oyster hampers for delivery on 23 December.

• Use code BRMAG for £5 off Christmas hampers

• If you'd like to try one of the collections use promo code ‘BRISTOLBORN’ for 10% off; qwertybeerbox.co.uk

MOVING FORWARD Wren Kitchens has opened another transport hub in Avonmouth to cater for increased customer demand.

With a fleet of 140 lorries and seven transport hubs across the country, the business delivers over 2,000 kitchens every week. The three-acre site has created over 30 local jobs for drivers, porters, supervisors and office staff. More than 50 lorries will serve South West customers, and with the nearest depot previously 100 miles away, the move will reduce road miles and carbon emissions. "We’re always looking at ways to advance our operations,” said Lee Holmes, logistics director. “We’re proactively positioning ourselves for the future as we aim to support the capacity of electric lorries and ultra-low emission zones.”

• wrenkitchens.com

• bristoloysters.co.uk

ART VIA TELEPRESENCE People living with disabilities and experiencing extreme isolation used robots to remotely access a Saatchi Gallery exhibition throughout November, thanks to a unique Bristol Robotics Laboratory collaboration.

Telepresence robots, part of the D4D project, are being deployed to connect people who have been required to shield due to the pandemic, and provide them with virtual tours.

The virtual experience enabled visitors to move around the gallery via their smartphone or computer and zoom into the detail of the paintings and sculptures on display. “There are numerous applications for telepresence robots within health and social care, and it is disappointing that we are not making more use of these to support people, particularly in these exceptional times,” said

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A Bristol graduate has launched his own business to help local breweries not only weather the pandemic but receive national recognition. When lockdown struck and Quinn Leatherbarrow-Stokes realised he could no longer get his favourite local beers from pubs, he sought to champion local breweries online. He put together a collection of his favourite local beers and cycled this ‘Best of Bristol’ collection round to friends and family. “After cycling 350km in the first two weeks I found out that 80% of independent breweries sell less than 20% of their stock further than 40 miles of their brewery (SIBA 2020),” says Quinn. “I figured that if I could get more national recognition for these local breweries it would enable them to better fare the lockdown, adapt to the new normal and allow us beer lovers to keep getting great tasting, authentic beer.”

Quinn named his new beer-box business QWERTY because of its online nature and relationship with quirky craft products. “I'm a big fan of craft beer and the British pub scene and believe independent breweries provide great products that are not only better tasting than their generic counterparts, but tell a better story.”

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Praminda Caleb-Solly, professor of assistive robotics and intelligent health technologies at Bristol Robotics Lab. “I hope the use of the telepresence robot at the Saatchi Gallery will help to normalise these technologies and make people more open and willing to explore their potential.”

“The pandemic has served to augment a situation that already existed – the lonely, secluded lives of some people. We need to find ways of preventing this in the future. Technology is only part of the solution,” said Professor Martin Levinson, who leads the D4D project.

“We all share responsibility for the situation in normal times whereby elderly and disabled people can spend much of their lives in isolation. Let’s hope we emerge from all this as stronger and more compassionate communities.”

• bristolroboticslab.com

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BRISTOL UPDATES NEWS FROM LOCAL BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITY ORGANISATIONS

HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

The showhome kitchen at Old Pump House

BRISTOL SUPERBUG BATTLE A product developed by a local student, with the potential to save thousands of lives and millions of pounds, is due to launch over the next year. Like many overseas students, Neciah Dorh arrived in Bristol with few contacts and no plans for sticking around. Fast forward 10 years and, with a University of Bristol doctorate, he is now an established entrepreneur and TED speaker, developing tech that can detect harmful bacteria in minutes; alongside his wife and business partner, Josephine, who stepped in as CTO to help build a prototype.

“Bristol came about from an answered prayer,” says Neciah, who secured a scholarship from the Saint Lucian government to enrol anywhere in the world. Researching faster ways to detect hospitalacquired infections, he identified the problem that would lead him to found FluoretiQ: “The issue is we only have 20 minutes to sit down with our doctor, but right now a correctly diagnosing bacterial infection test will take two days. We set our sights on reducing that down to just 15 minutes, enabling clinicians to select more targeted antibiotic therapies to combat the rise of Team FluoretiQ superbugs.”

FluoretiQ is now moving towards commercialisation and clinical evaluation with independents and the NHS.

• newlandhomes.co.uk/bristol

• fluoretiq.com

NEW PATHWAYS The University of Bristol is offering a range of part-time short courses for adult learners, aiming to support, inspire, and create new opportunities.

Pathway courses in English and history are designed for mature students who are interested in exploring their options for further study. Reading English Literature runs across 15 Wednesday evenings (January – May, application deadline 11 December) and is an introduction to the study of classic and modern literature, with exploration of poetry to gain a greater understanding of Shakespeare. No prior qualifications are required and payment of the course fee (£350) can be made in instalments with funding support available.

Mastering English Literature runs across 10 Tuesday evenings

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While the majority of the country has been on an imposed standstill for the last few weeks, the property and construction sectors have continued at a pace; plainly evident at Newland Homes’ Old Pump House development in Bedminster Down.

Having only opened in October, interest has remained high, with the first releases of homes selling out quickly.

Two of the first purchasers, Shelby and Paul, knew Old Pump House would be their new home. “I’ve lived in Bristol my whole life and I’ve always loved the BS13, South Bristol area, but it’s rare that any new builds happen here,” said Shelby. “So when I saw the Newland Homes sign go up one day we started researching online immediately, even digging out all the planning permission drawings! We went to go and look at Newland Homes’ development in Yate and the interior finishes and touches were incredibly well done. We thought; yes, this is for us, then we pulled out all the stops to go for it.”

Having reserved prior to the government announcement of a second lockdown, ensuring the smooth progress of sales has been a priority for Newland Homes. Tracey, sales consultant, added: “This second lockdown posed a number of issues, but these were ones we had already faced earlier in the year so it was a smooth transition back.

“No-one wanted to put their lives on hold again, and with both the stamp duty holiday and help-to-buy coming to an end in its current form, it has been a real focus of ours to address the deadlines as best we could! Our work on sales and completions has continued across Newland Homes’ developments over November and we’re so excited to get people into their new homes for Christmas.”

The homes at Old Pump House have been designed with quality and sustainability front of mind. These one, two, three and four-bedroom stylish homes incorporate the latest measures for sustainable and energy-efficient living, ranging from small touches such as ecobins to make recycling easier, to solar panels and ready-to-wire electric vehicle charging points on houses. Call 0117 321 5590 to book a tailor-made showhome tour and find out how you could live with the future in mind at Old Pump House.

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(February – May, deadline noon 18 December), bridging the gap between undergraduate and postgraduate scholarship. This course (£400) is for graduates in any discipline from any university who want to return to study and sharpen their study skills or prepare for Masters study.

Ways into History is a 15-week evening course (Wednesdays, January – May) considering the history of slavery, with a particular focus on Bristol and its role in the slave trade; how slavery on the West Indian and American plantations compares to other historic slave systems; and the broader impact of the slave trade and how it has been remembered, thinking about how commemoration has become intertwined with modern-day political concerns. The deadline is 11 December and the course fee is £350; students on a low income can apply for funding support.

• bristol.ac.uk/english/study/part-time/short-courses

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GARDENING BOOKS

A forgotten past

Bristol’s cultural and artistic heritage has given the city a powerful sense of identity. In this excerpt from her latest book, African Europeans: An Untold History, professor of the history of slavery Olivette Otele retells the fascinating stories of the Black artists who helped place Bristol, and Britain, on the world stage

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evolving story of black British identities has been music and the visual arts. The contemporary black British cultural scene is highly visual and almost tactile. The 2017 Turner Prize winner, artist Lubaina Himid, uses deceptively festive characters to tell the complex stories of African Europeans, presenting us with human beings interacting, travelling, going about their daily lives and surviving. Himid has the ability to convey joy and movement, and establishes the history of African Europeans in ways that leave the viewer free to interpret the artist’s vision as they see fit. Moving away from the academy to represent beauty and fashion in extraacademic communities, encompassing both the mundanity and the pain of human experience, Himid has blurred several boundaries while reinterpreting the story of the nation. Her ability to generate discussions at workshops and consciously listen to what audiences have to say, sometimes letting silences settle, allowing timid audience members to take the time and space they need, have shown how a visual dialogue can be established between artist and viewer beyond the art object or installation. It is almost as though Himid uses conversations about her projects to guide the creative process for subsequent pieces. A professor of contemporary arts at the University of Central Lancashire, the scholar and artist has masterfully brought together scholarly production, art and education.

A younger generation of artists have taken matters into their own hands when it comes to telling the various stories of Britain’s past and present. In Bristol, artist Michele Curtis wanted the community of St Paul’s to remember the elders who founded St Paul’s Carnival in 1968. Over the last decades, funding for the carnival has dramatically decreased and some deprived areas in Bristol have seen residents leaving to settle in more affluent parts of the city once they have climbed the social ladder. However, the heart of that particular community has been shaped by the stories of key figures such as the Honourable Owen Henry, Delores Campbell, Carmen Beckford, Roy Hackett, Audley Evans, Clifford Drummond and Barbara Dettering. Curtis decided to paint their portraits on a grand scale, on the side of several buildings in St. Paul’s. The project has been met with enthusiasm and widely applauded across the city. It is an homage to black elders who settled in Bristol and made an outstanding contribution to the city while

wenty-first-century debates about racism seem to follow a pattern of justification, guilt and ahistorical mythmaking about a glorious past. The debate has become incredibly polarised, with historians, sociologists, activists and social commentators attempting to explain the past and include these histories in the school curriculum on one side, and on the other politicians and social commentators, with sympathy for far-right movements in some cases, determined to present a whitewashed past that centres around the Second World War and aims to incite nostalgia for empire in the majority population. The media input from black British journalists has been crucial in debunking certain myths and exploring the issues that lie at the heart of inequality. From far-right interactions with black communities to the Grenfell tragedy, the Windrush scandal and the pay gap for British women academics from minority ethnic backgrounds, Gary Younge, Rianna Croxford, Nadine White, Seren Jones, Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff and many others have been quick to bring to the surface stories that would not have usually reached the general public.

Beyond written and broadcast media, one of the most effective ways of telling the

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sharing their multiple identities through the carnival. Beyond celebration and recognition, Curtis’s work situates the history of black Britons in an urban landscape while further adding to Bristol’s reputation as a creative hub. Curtis represents a generation of black British artists who claim urban spaces and are able to reach audiences that might not usually be interested in art or think that their voices matter. The Seven Saints of St. Paul’s (#SevenSaintsofStPauls) is an engaged and powerful artwork that establishes a dialogue between Bristol’s inhabitants away from the city’s recognised museum. It is an invitation to search for new ways and opportunities to tell the histories of black Britons, and by extension African Europeans.

While the intergenerational projects of visual artists such as Curtis have appealed to a broad community, within and outside of Bristol, musicians in Britain have also been able to attract a wide audience. A specific genre of music called grime has been in the limelight over the last few years. Grime music was born in the 2000s. It combines electronic music with hip hop and the use of four beats to a bar. Sociologist Monique Charles looks at the crafting of its beats, its lyrics, and the experiences it shares. Charles has also studied how grime has shifted racial boundaries as a marker of urban youth identities, and how grime artists and audiences are reacting to the criminalisation of both grime music and young people racialised as black. Grime music describes the experiences of young Britons living in deprived areas, and the means many find to survive. Injunctions banning grime artists from performing in Britain in 2019 have had an impact on those whose main artistic expression takes place through music.

Rather than protecting communities from gang-related offences and gun and knife crime, the criminalisation of drill music, a sub-genre of grime, can be interpreted as part of an arsenal that further marginalises young black Britons and in some instances pushes them back into a lifestyle that they are trying to escape through their music. Artists such as Krept and Konan have utilised these barriers to facilitate their creativity. Krept and Konan’s song Ban Drill clearly demonstrates how one’s life can be changed through music, and the missed opportunities and waste of potential that these bans can cause.

• African Europeans: An Untold History, by Olivette Otele, Hurst Publishers; £20

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Seasonal

BEAUTY

Disco in the dining room, you say? Be there in five; just adding a little sparkle...

Top tips from Harvey Nichols ❶ Add some major drama to your look with Marc Jacobs’ Beauty Velvet Noir Major Volume Mascara, £25. The lash maximising curvy brush places the most volume at the hard-to-reach centre lash line, ideal for completing your festive eye look.

❷ Add a subtle glow and warmth with NARS Orgasm Liquid Blush nail polish, £25. Delivering a perfect amount of natural-looking colour and glow, the sheer, warm pink and golden shimmer blush can create a great finish to any party look this season.

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❸ Create that classic smoky eye with a twist with the HUDA Beauty Topaz Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette, £25. The palette is packed with a selection of nine highly pigmented mattes and striking shimmers, all with a smooth and blendable texture. The Topaz Palette features four duo-chrome and six matte shades in earth and terracotta tones – a gorgeous transitional palette for the autumn/winter months.

❹ As it turns colder, sculpt and warm your look with the

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Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Luminous Colour, illuminating powder, £42. A staple for your makeup bag, this product is enriched with mineral waxes and beeswax for a ‘second skin’ effect.

❺ Velvet. Matte. Long-wearing. The Tom Ford

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Colour Matte Lipstick, £40, offers sophisticated, unadulterated colour. Formulated to create a luxury matte finish, the richly pigmented hues play a starring role in great party looks and can be relied on to last through the night.

❻ Sparkle this Christmas with the Fenty Beauty Killawatt Freestyle

Highlighter Duo, £28. Opt for ‘Afternoon Snack’ – soft bronzed champagne sheen or ‘Mo’ Hunny’ – supercharged bronzed champagne shimmer. A versatile product that can be used on your face, eyes, lips, collarbone and anywhere else to add a touch of light.

❼ A lightweight mist by GHD that gives instant all-over shine and static

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control, the GHD Shine Spray, £11, is the perfect go-to product to help leave your hair looking beautifully polished this festive season.

❽ A foundation stick with the coverage of a concealer, the Hourglass Vanish Seamless Foundation, £45, is designed to provide long-lasting full coverage with minimum product, the fluidity of a liquid, the weightlessness of a powder, and a waterproof formula.

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❾ Jo Malone London Orange Bitters Cologne, £100, is a limited edition

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scent that makes an appearance every Christmas – with good reason. A dash of sweet orange with a burst of ripe mandarin, finished with a splat of bitter orange, upon a rich base of sensual sandalwood and amber.

❿ Prep your skin during the colder months with the Laura Mercier Canvas

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Hydrating Primer, £32. A luxurious base, with olive extract, it visibly smooths and locks in hydration while marine hydra botanicals replenish skin and promote long-term moisture recovery.

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All products available from Harvey Nichols Bristol and online at harveynichols.com

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HISTORY

Etched by Stone The casenotes of Bristol midwife Sarah Stone, published in 1737 and calling for better maternity care for the nation, have inspired academic and women’s health researcher Sara Read’s new novel The Gossips' Choice Early birthing room scene

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idwives have quickly had to change and adapt to the new circumstances we’re living through. Their practices were changing in the early 18th century too, and this was on the mind of a midwife called Sarah Stone when she decided to compile a set of case notes for publication to inform ‘all female practitioners of the art so important to the lives and well-being of the sex’.

A Complete Practice of Midwifery was published in London in 1737. Stone’s book describes how she delivered difficult cases, to help other midwives become better informed and so ensure better outcomes for the women in their care. Stone was particularly irritated that midwives called in male surgeons to help with cases that they should have been able to deliver on their own. These ‘young men’ then got the credit for happy outcomes and so it became fashionable for women to book man-midwives, especially, Stone lamented, among women in Bristol. Stone dedicated her book to Queen Caroline, calling her a ‘nursing-mother of a most happy nation’. Caroline had lots of experience of childbirth, having had eight living babies and a stillbirth which she blamed on poor care from her doctors, and Stone must have assumed a book calling for better maternity care for the nation’s women would be a cause the Queen would support.

Most of what we know about Stone herself comes from this book.

She was originally from Bridgwater and trained for six years in an apprenticeship under her mother, Mrs Holmes, who had an outstanding reputation in the area. Sarah married apothecary Samuel Stone on 29 November 1700 in Bridgwater, and their first child, also Sarah, was baptised in December 1702. She began practicing in her own right around this time and worked for a number of years in Taunton, where she gained wide experience, but the pace of work was relentless and began taking a toll on her health. Stone complained that she had a large practice which meant lots of travel on foot or horseback.

When she made the decision to move to Bristol, she was exhausted from delivering around 300 babies a year. It was in Bristol that she first encountered men – often trained by apprenticeship as barbersurgeons – delivering babies and causing injuries from the overuse of forceps on a scale she had not seen the like of before. She describes these men as having ‘great strength but little knowledge’.

The small number of Bristol cases Stone details include a footling (feet first) delivery of a woman living in ‘St Philip’s Plain’ (Broad Plain), and a gentlewoman living in Vine Street. Here the attending physician had given his patient lots of medicine to try and stop her bleeding, to no avail, but Stone’s knowledge and experience meant that she was able to stop the haemorrhage. Sadly we can’t know exactly what she did because although it was a ‘secret’ she’d have been happy to share for the benefit of her ‘sisters in the profession’, she left it up to her daughter, a successful midwife practicing in Bristol for 10 years by 1736, to decide if and when it should be made public.

A Complete Practice of Midwifery was written in 1736 just after Sarah and Samuel had moved to London and taken a house in Piccadilly. Their family friend, the Bridgwater doctor John Allen, provided a glowing endorsement of Stone’s book but did express reservations about the Stones’ decision to move at their ‘time of life’ (probably in their late fifties), as it was hard to establish a new practice. He reassured himself that their skills would soon overcome any such difficulty, but it’s possible his fears came to pass as it is thought the Stones returned to Bridgwater around 1740. ■ • The Gossip’s Choice (Wild Pressed Books), available at Storysmith Books, £12 64 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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About Sara Read (Twitter: @saralread) is a university lecturer specialising in early modern culture. Her debut novel The Gossips’ Choice was inspired by several episodes in Sarah Stone’s book; some of which became stories in the novel.

Notably, these include a woman who was craving crunchy peapods and whose unsatisfied cravings Stone put down to her profuse bleeding, and another who suffered repeated miscarrying because her mother-in-law insisted that she lace her corset too tightly.

➲

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ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE

Studying nutrition has been so life changing; knowledge truly is power!

Alicia Cooper, CNM Nutritional Therapy Graduate

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aving suffered from a period of ill health myself, I began to notice that everyone I spoke to – friends and family – all had an ailment of some sort. It got me thinking about the importance of nutrition and the role it plays in our physical and mental health.

This was the driving force that made me want to study nutrition; I wanted to help people understand their bodies so they can nourish themselves from the inside out.

I’ve always worked in the food industry, in my own business and as a freelance development chef, so my decision to study nutrition at the College of Naturopathic Medicine (CNM) was to continue my learning and progress further in my profession. As a recipe developer I became really interested in nutrition and I wanted to know more about the impact food has on our health.

I’m the owner and curator of Lifebox Food, one of the leading health and wellbeing subscription boxes in the UK and Europe. With so much misleading information out there and dubious advertising from food brands, I felt it was really important to embark on a nutrition qualification to help ensure our customers could trust Lifebox and my judgement on the products included in the boxes. I also wanted customers to feel enriched by the health and wellbeing information we give out with each box. Studying nutrition elevated my business credentials.

After struggling with my health in the past, learning about how our bodies work on a physiological level and the impact that nutrition and lifestyle choices have on the body has been so eye-opening. It has totally changed my mentality towards food and health, and this will never change. It’s also awakened my desire to work with clients in a therapeutic capacity to help people feel their best. Establishing relationships with clients has been more rewarding than I ever could

have imagined, and this all started in the CNM clinic.

I was really impressed when I visited the college for a tour; I also liked the setup of weekly lectures and observing the nutrition clinics. The syllabus was very comprehensive and the course content was amazing; I never expected to learn so much. Every module was incredibly riveting and enriching.

I’m now seeing clients for nutritional therapy and corporate nutrition, as well as continuing to do freelance recipe development and running Lifebox. What I love most about practising is being able to establish therapeutic relationships with clients and feel like I am making a difference to their quality of life and outlook.

Educating clients to understand their bodies more and seeing them feel so empowered is such a wonderful thing!

CNM Online Open Events Discover how natural therapies promote true health and vitality. Our events are packed with inspiring tips on how to nurture yourself in natural, sustainable ways.

And if you are thinking of turning your passion into a career, an Online Open Event will also Geoff Don cover what you need to know about studying at CNM.

Visit cnmcourses.com

or call 01342

777 747 to find out more

CNM has an exceptional 22-year track record training successful natural health practitioners online and in class.

Over 80% of graduates are practising.

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GARDENING

Start with a base of sustainably sourced moss and natural twine, then build up with garden materials

Bring the outdoors in

When you’re thinking about decorations, start by looking around the garden. Berries, leaves, seed heads, cones, lichenadorned twigs, dried flowers and fruits: there’s an abundance of plant material out waiting to be scavenged this time of year

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t may be a different kind of Christmas this year, what with Covid19 an’ all, but what better excuse to make the most of the things we can do, and to make this festive season as bright as possible by decorating our homes and bringing the outdoors in? Sprucing up our surroundings with Christmas cheer could go some way to contrast with the bleakness of 2020 and restore some normality to what has been a very strange year.

The modern practice of decorating a tree at Christmas dates back to 16th-century Germany where ‘paradise trees’ featured in churches, decorated with candles, apples and nuts. This essentially Christian ritual then began to spread into people’s homes across Europe. However, it didn’t gain true popularity until the late 1840s, when an illustration was published showing Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and their family around a decorated evergreen tree indoors, and Christmas trees became a fashion, both here and in America, swiftly followed by the creation of glass baubles and other manufactured decorations.

Christmas trees have remained at the centre of most people’s festive decorations, so choosing the right one is important, especially if you want it to keep going right through December until Twelfth Night.

Norway spruce is the traditional variety and the best value for money as it’s raised like an agricultural crop. However, if you want less mess then a variety such as the Nordmann fir or noble fir will hang on to its needles for longer.

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couple of inches from the trunk and stand it in water overnight as the freshly cut wood will draw up more water. Then fix the tree into its stand with a well of water at the base, and keep the level topped up.

If enemies happened to meet under mistletoe, they would have to put down their weapons and form a truce until the following day

Prior to entire trees being decorated, evergreen branches from conifers and plants such as holly have long been hung in houses during the festive period. For example, Romans decked the halls with holly boughs during the festival of Saturnalia during December, as they associated holly with Saturn, the god of agriculture. Pagans used holly, mistletoe, ivy and laurel wreaths as decorations, all with symbolic meanings. Mistletoe, for example, was a druid symbol of peace. If enemies happened to meet under mistletoe, they would have to put down their weapons and form a truce until the following day – which is where our custom of kissing under the mistletoe stems from.

So when you’re thinking about decorations this year, why not start by

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GARDENING looking around the garden to see what you can use to bring indoors?

There’s an abundance of plant material out there waiting to be scavenged at this time of year. Berries and leaves are the obvious ones, but also seed heads, cones, lichen-adorned twigs, dried flowers and fruits make great ingredients for table or mantelpiece decorations, or festive wreaths. For berries and fruits, try callicarpa, hawthorn, holly, ivy, pyracantha, and rowan. Good foliage plants include yew, cypress, aucuba and bay, while seed heads such as physalis, sedum, teasel and sea holly can all make great displays.

Think about scent; the fragrance of smoky wood, shrubby herbs, pine or eucalyptus will help create that festive ambience

ivy, holly, viburnum and skimmia are just a few of the ideal long-lasting varieties. You can then adorn your wreath with other natural decorations such as dried fruit, cones, berries, feathers and dried flowers.”

The base retains moisture and should keep the display looking fresh for several weeks, and then the whole lot can be recycled after Christmas. “Or, keep the base, remove the seasonal foliage and convert into a spring wreath later in the year,” Louise adds.

Although she hasn’t been able to run workshops this year, Louise supplies DIY kits with everything you need to make your own beautiful Christmas wreath from the safety and comfort of your own home, including access to an online tutorial. To find out more, visit loubeeblooms.co.uk.

• Elly West is a garden designer. Visit ellyswellies.co.uk or @ellyswellies1 on Instagram to see her work.

‘ Think about scent as well; the fragrance of smoky wood, shrubby herbs, pine or eucalyptus will help create that festive ambience.

Sticks and twigs from plants such as contorted willow, birch, cornus or hazel, perhaps sprayed gold or silver and placed in a vase, and hung with a few simple decorations, can be just as Christmassy as a light-up reindeer, and you’ll save money too. Pine cones can be sprayed and tied on strings to hang from the tree or elsewhere; or why not have a go at creating your own Christmas wreath to hang on the front door?

Florist Louise Buck, of Loubee Blooms Floral Design based in Backwell, has some top tips for making your own wreath from natural materials. She advises starting with a base of sustainably sourced moss and natural twine on a copper ring, then building up with various garden materials. “Creating a door wreath with suitable foliage from the garden is the perfect natural festive decoration,” she says. “Pine, eucalyptus, fir,

Plant of the month: Potted Christmas tree A tree doesn’t have to be just for Christmas. Instead of buying a cut tree that’s going to need recycling in January, why not choose one with a full complement of roots, growing in a pot, then enjoy it in the garden for years to come? Pot it into larger containers as necessary, and you can bring it indoors and into the Christmas limelight again in subsequent years. If you do plant it in the ground, be aware that Christmas trees can get very large, around 15m tall over 20 years. Avoid keeping a living tree in the house for too long – up to two weeks maximum – and choose a cool room away from a radiator or fire. Water it regularly. When it is time to put it back in the garden, it will need acclimatising to outdoor conditions, so start it off somewhere sheltered with natural light, then gradually move it down the garden, preferably to a spot in full sun.

Create space with a garden room GARDEN OFFICES • LOG CABINS • STUDIOS • SUMMERHOUSES POSH SHEDS • TIMBER GARAGES • OUTDOOR LIVING SPACES

01225 774566 • www.gardenaffairs.co.uk Visit our Display Centre at Trowbridge Garden Centre 288 Frome Road, BA14 0DT THEBRISTOLMAG.CO.UK

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Indoor pool in Sand Dunes, Cornwall

Water power

Have you ever dreamed of having your very own spa and wellness facilities, so that wholesome living is imbued within your home? Emma Clegg investigates the options

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he first sauna experiences took place in caves hung with animal skins with a fire burning inside, beneath a pile of stones. After the fire was extinguished, the stones would warm the cave into the night for those who basked in the steam from the stones when water was poured on them. While the sauna continues to be relished worldwide as a wholesome and restorative experience, the styling and application has understandably had significant adaptations over the years.

No one knows this better than Ursell Pools & Wellness (UP&W).

The company offers pools, spas, saunas, steam rooms and hot tubs, and has adapted through the industry’s technical and fashionable iterations over 30 years of business.

They offer advice, design, installation and maintenance services for high-end projects from thermal rooms to relaxation pools. Working for both domestic and corporate clients, Ursell Pools & Wellness – who rebranded from BOS Leisure in 2019 to better reflect their position in both sectors – have received industry awards for their work, including Commercial Project of the Year 2019 at Beaverbrook Golf Club, UK School Pool of the Year 2018 at Exeter School, and Natural Pool of the Year 2019 for a private client in Bristol.

The company, based in Saltford, has a spacious showroom (over two floors), which once featured a swimming pool, and is constantly adapted with the latest wellness options and a workshop in the back for construction. We were enchanted by the outdoor sauna with deck module (see right), decorated with twinkling lights and styled with table and chairs, which would easily fit in a small to medium-sized garden and establishes a lifestyle setting for the sauna. So saunas are 68 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

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not only for those with big spaces, big time and big budgets.

This demand also taps into the idea of enabling restorative experiences in the outdoors, in the garden and within nature. You may point out that this works well if you have a home with significant acreage and a heartstopping view of green cliffs and the sea, but it can also be brought to more moderate gardens and homes, where the addition of a sauna or a small outdoor pool will reinvent the space and make it feel spectacular.

Outdoor sauna with deck module (private client, Bristol)

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WELLNESS | DESIGN

It’s even possible to site a sauna in the understairs area typically used for brooms, wellingtons and coats. In this case, the sauna is made part modular and part site-specific, as it can’t be fitted as a single piece.

“Every project has different challenges,” explains company director Adam Neill. “Nothing is ever square in a house, nothing is level, but the construction of a sauna works by building a new room inside a room, and this allows the air flow and the ventilation process to work.” Adam goes on to explain how people’s expectations of wellness experiences have shifted over the years: “What has changed the most is the demand for something unique. Twenty years ago saunas and steam rooms were more standard, and much less focused on design. But now people don’t want just a sauna box, they want something that’s personal and special.”

A sauna can be more flexible in its positioning than a steam room, which requires access to mains water, but a steam room with its tiled finish means that you can take the treatment and experience of the room in any direction – from dark, atmospheric and moody to glazed, airy and light. The lighting is key in a steam room, with options including LEDs and fibre optics in the ceiling, walls and benches. Adam and his team will advise on the design options, but are equally used to working with their clients’ design concepts and finding the solutions that will bring them to life.

The trend in swimming pools, Adam tells me, is increasingly for lowchlorine pools, with customers seeking a more gentle, natural experience. The chlorine system used in standard swimming pools sanitises the water effectively, but chlorine is a harsh product and there is a demand for something less aggressive. UP&W can offer an ultralow chlorine system, allowing a swimming pool to be run with chlorine levels that are lower than tap water, meaning that the water feels far softer and much gentler on the skin.

The natural pool in Bristol that UP&W won the award for last year uses no chemical treatments at all – it is simply a natural pool, with a pump, filter and minerals automatically added to the water to maintain the balance. “It has been crystal clear since installation,” says Adam.

A no-chlorine pool is also better for the environment because the

Two hot tubs at Aqua Sana, Center Parcs Longleat Forest

natural pool water that is discharged from the system can be reused.

UP&W are also experienced in harnessing renewable energy, with options for pools heated using air source or ground source heat pumps.

Smaller pools are a growing area. The award-winning natural pool is just 6 x 3m, and has a little alcove to put the cover and the swim jet, so it has a counter current unit in the pool, allowing the owner to swim for hours in a small space. Another recent project in Bristol was for a 25 x 3m domestic pool, used expressly for swimming lengths.

If you like the idea of having your own personal steamy or waterbound experience, one that you can access whenever you like, then you know how to get with the flow.

• Ursell Pools & Wellness, 476 Bath Road, Saltford, Bristol BS31 3DJ; 01225 874 874; ursell.com

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DECEMBER 2020

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THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE 69

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INTERIOR | CRAFTS

The art of the upgrade

Why not use any extra downtime, and the help of Ryan Ball at furniture experts South West Upholstery, to give tired pieces a glow-up?

F

or a lot of people, the thought of reupholstering their furniture is daunting. You love the idea of upcycling your existing furniture, breathing fresh life into something you love and avoiding waste, but the actual process is complicated. Here’s our beginner’s guide to reupholstery with Ryan Ball from South West Upholstery.

You will need: Fabric: Take the time to consider it carefully. Fabric with a bit of heft, that’s heavier, will prove to be more durable. If you’re choosing a pattern, remember to consider the size of the area that will be visible – large patterns don’t work on small areas and vice versa. Try to find something that’s non-stretchy, as this will ensure you can create a smooth, taut finish.

Staple gun: Get a good, strong gun capable of easily affixing fabric (even thick fabric) to your frame.

Upholstery studs (optional): These can create a wonderfully decorative finish that is relatively inexpensive. You will need a small hammer too.

Fabric scissors: You will need a pair of sharp, high-quality fabric scissors. Reserve them for fabric only – if you use them for anything else they will become blunt.

Pencil/chalk: Tailor’s chalk and/or water-soluble pencils are perfect for marking measurements on your fabric. It doesn’t stain, and as long as you mark the back, won’t be at all visible.

Webbing (optional): If you’re reupholstering something like a dining chair you will need to replace the webbing, which frequently sags on old chairs that have been well used. Replacing the webbing is a cheap and easy way to ensure your freshly upholstered chair will be sturdy and stable. Webbing needs tacking in place, so you will need tacks and a hammer.

Seat pad/foam (optional): Another thing to consider for chairs is whether or not the seat padding needs replacing. Like the webbing, cushions and padding can easily become flat and uncomfortable. Seat

Before

Screwdriver: A large and small flathead screwdriver will be needed for removing screws and hinges.

Pen knife/box cutter: A sharp knife for removing any leather and unpicking tricky fabric is essential.

Staple remover: The majority of furniture (especially modern furniture) has staples somewhere on the frame. They’re heavy-duty fabric staples placed using a staple gun and won’t come out easily without a staple remover. If you’re using a staple gun yourself, it’s useful to have one on hand in case you make a mistake – this is the fastest, easiest and safest way of removing staples, so it’s well worth the investment.

Once you have assembled everything you need, there are some simple steps to follow in order to effectively reupholster your furniture…

1. Select a simple item of furniture to begin with, like a footstool, ottoman, or dining chair. Once you’ve mastered easy pieces you can work your way up to more complicated projects.

2. Carefully remove all existing fabric. Try to keep it in one piece as you take it off, and don’t discard it – you can use it as a template for marking up and cutting your new fabric. Photograph everything as you remove the fabric and any other components you are replacing. This is a great trick that will ensure you remember exactly how everything was folded and attached.

3. Consider if you need to give your project a new lick of paint or varnish. If you’re planning to do so, now is the time, after the old fabric and any other components you’re replacing have been removed.

4. Take your time as you mark up, cut, and apply your new fabric and any other new components (such as webbing and foam pads). It’s tempting to try and get everything done in a single day but if you rush, you’ll miss things, cut corners and end up with a less than perfect result.

5. Add some finishing touches. Upholstery nails, new handles, knobs or hinges can really make the difference. Don’t settle for just replacing the fabric elements, go the whole hog. ■ • swupholstery.co.uk

After

Select a simple item to start with

70 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE

pads and foam are easy to use and cost-effective. They’re easily cut to whatever size you need. You’ll need some adhesive spray that is effective on foam, as well as wadding or batting to create a smooth finish.

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If you’re choosing a pattern, remember to consider the size of the area that will be visible

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Your Space. Redesigned.

A state of bliss, elation or happiness. www.cloudninecreate.co.uk

THE

KI TC HEN PAR TNER S DESIGN STUDIO

Remote Kitchen Design Service Available Call or email for further details 01179 466433 • studio@thekitchenpartmers.co.uk

Founders and Lead Designers - Fiona & Clinton

www.thekitchenpartners.co.uk 102 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 2QY | 01179 466433

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DECEMBER 2020

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THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE 71

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THANK YOU! Our team at Burston Cook would like to thank all of our clients and friends for their continued support.

2020 has seen some unprecedented times, a year when we have all been tested, a time when teams pull together both on a personal and business level.

We have done all we can to reciprocate, to help and guide our clients and friends throughout this year.

We are very grateful for the support we have had and humbled to witness the positivity and stoicism of the business community here in Bristol.

Merry Christmas and wishing you a Healthy and Prosperous 2021...

WINNERS OF 5 TOP INDUSTRY AWARDS IN 2020

Julian Cook FRICS

Jayne Rixon MRICS

Charlie Kershaw MRICS

Finola Ingham MRICS

Tom Coyte MRICS

Holly Boulton BSc(Hons)

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Rupert Oliver FP December.qxp_Layout 1 23/11/2020 14:56 Page 1

Clifton, Bristol | Guide Price ÂŁ850,000 A highly desirable three double bedroom modern duplex penthouse apartment situated on the edge of Clifton village; complete with two balconies, allocated off-street parking and lift access.

Superb three-bedroom apartment in a central Clifton location | Duplex penthouse apartment arranged over the top-two floors | Beautifully proportioned with lots of natural light | Fabulous open plan sitting room, dining room and kitchen | Three double bedrooms and three bath / shower rooms (2 en-suite) | Two balconies with views towards Christchurch | Close proximity to Clifton village and Victoria Square | Allocated off-street parking | Lift access

In all circa 1171 sq. ft (109 sq. ft).

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