August 2020 Edition

Romsey & District U3A Newsletter – August 2020 Web site: romseyu3a.org.uk Monthly Meetings There will be NO further Crosfield Hall meetings in 2020.

ONLINE talks using Zoom video-conferencing have replaced them.

The programme will NOT match your programme card so please always check the Bulletins & Website for updates.

Meetings start at 10.30 am (Zoom log-in from 10.15 am).

————————————————— 16 September Andy Lester (Change of Talk) Land of the Emerald Forest: an illustrated talk on the wildlife of Costa Rica A tour of the most nature rich nation on earth, from volcanoes and rainforests to beaches and mangrove swamps. Meet some of the largest crocodiles on earth and have fun watching toucan and squirrel monkey, all from the comfort of your arm chair.

————————————————— 21 October Jennifer Wineberg Am I John Ruskin’s Great Great Granddaughter?

Discover the revelations behind a mysterious girl in a painting linking Jennifer to John Ruskin, the famous art sponsor and writer.

————————————————— 18 November Ian Keable The History of Cartoons from William Hogarth to Private Eye Ian tracks the early stages of cartoons (in the form of satirical prints) and how, through the works of Hogarth and James Gilroy, they gradually evolved into the familiar format of today's newspapers and magazines.

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Chair’s report What a year it’s been! When Marion Fowler handed over to me at the AGM in May last year, she thought she’d escaped (after serving as Membership Secretary, then as Chairman for the past four years), and that everything was in place for those of us in new roles to have a straightforward first year. That was Gill Hodge and Jane Rogers taking over from me as Treasurer, and me as Chair from Marion. Fortunately, we still had the support of our Secretary, Janet Moody, about to start her sixth year in that role, and the rest of the committee, some continuing, some new.

As I moved to the front of the hall in my new role to introduce the speakers at the regular monthly meetings, I found myself introducing talks on the Apollo moon landings, understanding the French through Asterix, followed by the Battle of Trafalgar, then the story of an Anglo-Indian family via grandmother’s recipe book. Not to mention giving the usual notices about forthcoming trips, and appeals for people to share the running of some of the groups, and to take over from the longserving tea team. Then we learned more about the cut flower industry in this country, and rounded off the year with some theatrical stories and seasonal refreshments, again organised by Jo Morgan and her team.

Into 2020, a new year and a new decade, with high hopes for events locally and nationally to celebrate U3A Day in June, not to mention Romsey Festival in July. We had a talk on the UK’s Civil Defence services; wound-down in 1968, there would have been a role for them in recent months. February took us to Scandinavia during the Second World War, and in March we enjoyed photographs of Scottish Wildlife.

All those speakers were arranged by Ann Jackson our Programme Secretary, who stood down last year but left us with a very varied programme. Part way through the year we were able to persuade Marion Fowler to take over that role and re-join the committee; she has put together some interesting speakers for 2020-21. At the Crosfield Hall Roger Hunt looks after the technical support, and Bob Wren makes sure the chairs and tables are set up as we require. Our long serving tea team of Lois Dare and Margaret Eades were finally able to hand over to some new volunteers: Mo Vokes and her helpers. And Mary Greggains and her Meeters and Greeters are there by the entrance to welcome us all, old and new members. We’re all volunteers of Romsey & District U3A, and without everyone’s involvement, we wouldn’t function.

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The renewal process for 2020-21 was beginning, and we’d just collected the new membership cards from the printers, but that was the day the WHO declared a global pandemic and the UK government imposed a full lockdown a few days later. We cancelled the April and May meetings, and postponed the AGM until August, by which time we hoped we would be able to meet in person. In June, we held our first online general meeting, and one of our members, Gordon Massie, gave the first talk for us which was very well received. (See p6 if you missed it. Ed) Technical support, and help and advice for members, were provided by Sylvia Croxall and John Broughall. Thanks to all of them for starting us off in this brave new world! (Bring your own coffee.)

At the time of writing (Lammastide), it seems unlikely that we will be holding a large meeting of any kind in an enclosed space, such as Crosfield Hall, for quite a while. There will still be monthly meetings with a speaker, but for the foreseeable future those will all be online. Janet Moody has described our response, and how things went on working, in her Secretary’s Report. A Communications Group got together to produce a two-page Low-down bulletin twice a month. Issue 7 has just come out, with notices, reports of meetings, the odd joke, and occasional poems. It’s sent by email to most of our members, and by post to those not online. Take a look at the names of that group: Gill Hodge, Treasurer; Glenda Taylor, Newsletter; Janet Moody, Secretary; Margaret Marchbank, Groups Coordinator and Dave Lovell, Newsletter.

Thanks to all of them for their hard work on this, as well as their other roles in this U3A. As for the Newsletter, it’s still being produced quarterly by their team; all contributions welcome.

Meanwhile, your Committee has gone on meeting, and keeping our U3A running, whether by dealing with the 700+ renewals, Brenda Sennett (working in isolation this year) and Jean Stone; or the finances, Gill Hodge and Jane Rogers as joint Treasurers, with Ron Maidment and Liz Holloway. The Beacon database, run by Mike Koscian with Carol Cox has proved its worth this year, allowing us to contact those of you on email more easily. Our website, looked after by David Thwaites, provides a place for notices and copies of the newsletters and bulletins, as well as pages for groups and a way to contact group leaders. Jo Morgan and Margaret Marchbank are the Interest Group Coordinators, and are usually kept busy helping new groups start up. It’s been a little different since March, but without our groups and the work of all the group leaders, we wouldn’t be able to learn, laugh and live as the U3A motto has it.

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The Covid-19 situation is changing day-by-day, so we keep saying, “Check the current government guidance,” and “See the advice on the Third Age Trust website.” For the time being, it looks like we’ll only be able to meet outdoors, in small groups, or virtually, whether that’s by video calls, telephone conversations, exchanging emails or even letters.

Most of the current committee are standing for re-election, I’m glad to say; they all have contributed greatly to the running of our U3A. This includes our Secretary, for one more year. She had completed three twoyear terms in May 2020 and planned to step down, but in the current circumstances she is willing to carry on until the AGM in 2021. You may have noticed just how much work she’s put in preparing all the paperwork in advance of this year’s online AGM, as well as keeping track of meetings and rules and regulations throughout the year. I’d been saying, “We can’t run without a Secretary,” so I’m especially grateful that she is carrying on. And if anyone would like to shadow her this year, we have a vacancy!

Two of us were elected for two-year terms at the May 2019 AGM, and will be continuing in post until next year’s AGM. That’s Gill Hodge, Treasurer, and me as Chair. Following the 2020 AGM we hope to have a Vice-Chair, Dave Lovell, who joined the committee last year and is standing for that post.

Two committee members are stepping down: Elaine Rockell and Jane Rogers. They each have contributed greatly to the running of our U3A, and we wish them well. Elaine is still very much involved with her groups: Games Friday, and Theatre Trips; while Jane has moved out of the area, as noted in the Treasurers’ Report.

That leaves two vacancies on the committee. There were no new nominations this time, but it is possible for new people to join us during the year. If you think you can play your part in running our U3A, talk to us about it! Normally we’d chat over a coffee (or a beer), but at the moment we’ll have to do that at a distance.

I’m writing this on 1 August, Lammas (here comes one of my ‘this-mightinterest-you’ bits). It’s traditionally the start of the main harvest, and the name comes from Anglo-Saxon hlaf-mas, a loaf made with the new crop that’s taken into a church to be blessed as the first fruits of the harvest. The sun sets noticeably earlier than it did a month ago, but there’s still plenty of sunshine and summer heat (and the occasional shower or thunderstorm) to come. Until about 1965, the first Monday in August was a Bank Holiday, which it still is in Scotland. In England our

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August Bank Holiday is now the last Monday in the month, by which time the summer is just about over, and the new school year is fast approaching. I wonder how it will work out this year?

As Vera Lynn sang for us: “We’ll meet again, Don't know where, don't know when, But I know we'll meet again Some sunny day.”

We may know where we’ll meet again, although we don’t yet know when, but whether it’s a sunny day or not, I look forward to us all meeting again, once it’s safe to do so.

Janet Payne, Lammas, 1 Aug 2020 Chair’s report (AGM) Proposer: Brenda Purdie

Seconder: Malcolm Moore

This year’s AGM will formally mark the end of Janet Payne’s first year as Chair. On behalf of all members, we thank her for sticking steadfastly to the task during a year which has seen a dramatic change to the way we live our lives. Thank you Janet.

Thank You We would like to thank everyone who helped to make Membership Renewal go smoothly during these uncertain times. We know it was difficult for some members who were ‘Shielding’ and were unable to leave their home to post the renewal form but it is a situation we have never had to face before and hopefully never will again.

Thank you to everyone for using the Membership Renewal form that was sent to them in February. The form makes life so much easier for us when trying to make sure that payment is credited to the correct person. It also keeps a check on email addresses and ensures the newsletter reaches the correct recipient.

Gill Hodge/Jane Rogers Brenda Sennett Jean Stone Joint Treasurers Membership Secretary Membership Assistant

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ONLINE MONTHLY MEETINGS 24 June 2020 - Sailing Down the Amazon

by GORDON MASSIE This talk is based on a cruise I did some years ago on Minerva II, of the now defunct Swan Hellenic Line. I have sailed down many of the rivers in Europe but this was really something special. Our journey took us almost 1,000 miles from Manaus to Belem on the Atlantic coast.

If you look at a map of the northern part of South America you will see the Amazon and its many tributaries. Let me give you some statistics: the Amazon is over 4,000 miles long, rising in southern Peru, and has 17 major tributaries, each over 1,000 miles long, which is longer than the Rhine. Where the rivers meet near Manaus it is almost as though the waters refuse to merge. The muddy waters of the Amazon flowing down from the Andes, which are a geological newcomer, is joined by the dark waters of the Rio Negro, flowing south from the geologically much older Venezuela Highlands.

Manaus is the capital of the state of Amazonas and in spite of its isolated location has a population of over 2 million today. Many of the buildings you see today date from the latter half of the 19 th century when Manaus was undergoing a bonanza.

About 1880 the Western world discovered a use for the sap of the rubber tree so for the next 30 years Brazil had a monopoly of the natural rubber trade. Suddenly Manaus had more money than it knew what to do with. This resulted in a European style culture in the midst of the Amazonian jungle. Of course, whilst the rich became richer the rubber tappers were little more than slaves.

In 1896 Manaus decided to have its own Opera House. This was built a mile or so from the river in a clearing in the jungle. Most of the components were shipped out from the old world to the new and then transported up the Amazon by steamship. Even locally grown timber was sent to Europe for preparation. The surface of the parking area was made out of a mixture of rubber and dust, so that the carriages of the late arrivals would not disturb the performance. The stars of the world of opera were offered vast sums to perform there, but most declined as the risks were too high.

The monopoly came to an end when the British obtained rubber plants

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and started rival plantations in Malaya, and then, during WW1, Germany started the production of synthetic rubber.

The average rainfall in Manaus is over 90 inches. Add to this the rainfall further upstream and you get flooding along the entire length of the river.

When I was in Manaus, I estimate that the river was about 40 feet below its highest level. For most of its length the jungle comes to the edge of the river, so when the level rises it creates a drowned world, which at its peak can be up to 50 miles on either side. Even the tree tops are sometimes under water. In this dappled sunlight and half-drowned world, the flora and fauna have to adapt to survive.

It was here in the mid-19th century that Alfred Russel Wallace came to the same conclusion as Charles Darwin as to the Origin of Species. He was studying moths in Amazonia whilst Darwin was investigating turtles in the Galapagos.

At one stage during the cruise we were given the opportunity of swimming in the river from a wonderful sandy beach. I declined, thinking of the hidden dangers of piranhas, caiman and leeches. I was, however, fascinated by the moths which attach themselves to the screen on deck, and hitch a lift for a 100 or so miles downstream during the night.

After leaving Manaus our first port of call was Parintins. Our arrival caused a stir, as we were the largest cruise liner ever to berth at the quayside. We were welcomed by a troupe of drummers and dancers, and I felt like Odysseus being seduced ashore by the sirens. Once ashore we followed the band through the town to the Caprichoso Bull Arena, and a display by the Boi Bumba folk-lore performers. The show could be enjoyed purely as a spectacle, but as it developed we began to understand that it portrayed the close relationship between man and nature. Exotic bird feathers formed a major part of many of the costumes.

As a finale the local green man, 30 feet high, was manhandled into the arena. Then a young lady in a resplendent costume emerged from this Spirit of the Jungle. At the end of the show the drummers escorted us safely back to Minerva.

The next morning, we awoke to find ourselves moored in the River Tapajos off Alter do Chao. Once ashore we had a chance to view rural village life. Here the pace was very much slower, particularly in the production of manioc flour, a staple crop. The roots are dug up, peeled

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by hand, shredded and squeezed in a muslin bag. The fibrous remains are discarded and the (poisonous?) juice is boiled until only the sediment remains; this is the manioc flour. It is a long and tedious process and adds meaning to earning the daily bread.

Next, we visited a brazil nut plantation, and it was interesting to find that there were up 20 individual nuts within an outer shell. No wonder the trees themselves were roped off to protect the visitors from falling missiles. The youth of the village gave us a performance of folk dancing which was very colourful and rhythmic, but perhaps mundane after yesterday’s performance. As a finale they presented the Ballet of the White Dolphin. This is the Amazonian version of the Immaculate Conception in which a young maiden was seduced by a dolphin.

The resultant offspring was said to have miraculous powers.

The final port of call in Brazil was Belem on the Atlantic coast. It is a perfect example of a thrusting modern city with its past carefully preserved. The Dutch were amongst the early traders here together with the French and the English. The Portuguese failed to supress these foreign traders and the area did not become a part of the Colony of Brazil until 1775.

Here, we visited the original Dutch Fort, the Cathedral of Nuestra Senora and the Ver-o-Peso Market, said to be the largest street market in South America. We watched fresh fish being unloaded, and immediately going on sale; it was the same with the fruit: coconuts were arriving still in their unfamiliar outer husks. I would have liked to have spent much longer in this fascinating market, particularly for the wide range of herbs and herbal remedies.

AMY GOODMAN In JULY, Amy’s talk ‘Romsey War Horse & Other Projects’ had to be cancelled. She is now working on the Gurkha Memorial project, a very special life-size Memorial for Princes Gardens in Aldershot. It depicts first Gurkha Victoria Cross recipient, Kulbir Thapa carrying injured British Tommy, Bill Keightley (Leics. Regiment) off the battlefield in 1916.

Artist in residence at Winchester University, Amy’s ‘Angel II’ bronze was installed in the new West Downs development just before lockdown.

We will rebook her in 2021 but in the meantime, you may like to look at her website to see some of her other work.

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CROQUET? In response to the question, “What have you been doing during the Lockdown?”, our member Sheena replied, “Our saving grace has been CROQUET! It's such a social game with tactics, and play to satisfy people of all ages.”

With this suggestion, and mindful that a number of members said in the recent members’ survey that they were interested in playing, we discovered the Test Valley Croquet Club which is based at Hunts Farm, Timsbury. They play ‘golf croquet’ on Monday and Wednesday. The two hour sessions run from 11am -1pm or 1pm - 3pm, weather dependent of course.

There are two lawns and all necessary equipment is provided by the club.

Toilet facilities are available. The Season is April - September. No special clothing or shoes required, but leave your high heels at home! Of course they are following government guidelines re sanitising and social distancing. They are a friendly, social group; new members of any age or experience are welcome to a free trial game or two. There’s no commitment.

Why not pop along to ‘have a go’ or just to watch? Booking is not required, though it would be wise to phone 01264 710918 to make sure someone will be there. It will be fun and you know how healthy it is to be outdoors playing a 'sport' and chatting to like minded folk.

Alternatively Croquet is possible at Hamptworth Golf Club.

Sheena is happy to hear from you at: bobandsheena4247@googlemail.com .

Newsletter Team Contacts Please send copy for the NOVEMBER newsletter to:

Dave Lovell : 01794 515316 news.copy@romseyu3a.org.uk The deadline is Friday 30 October 2020 but please send any copy as soon as you have it!

Other newsletter queries to: newsletter@romseyu3a.org.uk 9

Group Round-up R&D U3A committee is pleased to note that many groups have been able to continue their activities in some form and encourages all group leaders to monitor government and NHS England advice, and to make use of the information on: https://www.u3a.org.uk/advice/running-your-u3a-during-covid-19

N.B. Group Leaders running U3A activities in which members physically meet must keep a list of people attending each session for track and trace purposes. Lists must be kept for a minimum of 3 weeks. Members should note that if it becomes necessary, their name and contact details will be shared with the NHS Track and Trace team.

To the best of our knowledge the following reports the status of 41 of our 59 groups. If the information is incorrect, or you have information about one of the other groups please inform Groups Coordinator Margaret Marchbank: margaretmarchbank@btinternet.com

Architecture and Local History

Monthly bulletin, sharing information within the group.

Bird Watching

Members enjoying increased bird activity in gardens, parks and on walks.

Books for Pleasure Bookworms

Meeting on Zoom.

Bridge for Improvers

Play has been suspended as a U3A activity with a number of members moving to online playing.

Cinema Current Affairs Enjoying Music

Cinemas have until recently been ‘out of bounds’.

Meeting on Zoom.

Meetings currently suspended.

French 2

Les activités sont suspendues à ce moment.

Games Friday

Venue has not been available.

Meeting on Zoom.

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Garden Visits 1 Garden Visits 2 Genealogy

Geography and Geology History, Social & General Horticulture

Introduction to Computers

Travel restrictions & venue closures have made visits impractical.

Held their first online meeting on 22 July attended by 25 members who all voted enthusiastically to continue online.

A new group in the process of being established.

Sharing short pieces on various topics by email.

Meeting monthly by Zoom with resident expert Philip Jeffs.

Meeting online.

Italian Beginners Italian Intermediate Latin 2

Meeting on Zoom.

Luncheon Club Music Appreciation

Considering booking later this year.

Natural History Opera

A new group in the process of being established.

Meeting on Zoom.

Keeping in touch via emails and telephone and persona study is the ‘order of the day’.

Currently suspended.

Monthly meetings have continued via zoom. A selected topic is illustrated with a web-streamed whole opera / song cycle. Coordinator helps members to do some web-based research which is followed a week later with zoom-based individual presentations of findings and a general discussion.

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Painting 1 Painting 2 Philosophy

Carers Together now open daily 9.30am - 1pm.

Group coordinator asking when room is available for use and any restrictions. Information will be shared with members and a decision taken based upon the number interested in restarting.

Holding 2 hour sessions on Skype, but are considering moving to Zoom.

Pickleball

Meeting weekly to play on outdoor courts in North Baddesley.

Recorder

Currently in abeyance, until further notice.

Short Day Trips

Trips suspended until further notice but group coordinator regularly providing members with quizzes, crosswords, etc. linked to previous trips.

Short Mat Bowls

Venue has not been available.

Singing

Suspended by government instruction.

Snappers

Running a friendly photo competition.

Strollers

Group leader has been sending an email to members once a month to encourage them to discover new places to stroll.

Table Tennis (for all) Table Tennis Improvers Table Tennis Intermediate Technology

Group coordinators are looking for a suitable new venue. Abbotswood Community Hall looks promising with an option to commence play there in September.

Meeting weekly online for the foreseeable future.

Theatre Trips

Theatres have been closed.

Travel Walking

Impractical because of travel restrictions.

Restriction on numbers gathering outside and distancing rules have made it impractical.

Wine Appreciation

Meeting online.

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News from around the Groups OPERA Post lockdown we became a virtual opera group, following our successful trial of Zoom at the end of March. Our first virtual foray was Smetana’s The Bartered Bride, in a 2019 production from Garsington Opera.

Members first viewed the opera in their own time from the operavision.eu website (details below). Suggested topics for web-based research were provided, followed by a lively two-hour discussion meeting and a summary handout. The members discovered a huge amount, from which all benefitted. Czechs consider this opera to be quintessentially theirs although the story of marriage broking is generically Central and Eastern European. The simple melodic lines cleverly suggest Czech folk song, but these were rarely authentic. However, The Bartered Bride was one of the first operas to have a Czech text. The rhythm and cadence of this language has a strong influence on the corresponding national music, including our own. It is a strongly stressed language, whose rhythm is reflected in the national polka and furiant dances that form such a characteristic and charming feature of the opera.

In June the group turned their attention to the neglected operas of Puccini. He was a master opera composer and his ten works include some of the most popular in all opera, yet three of them are rarely performed. One of these, La Rondine (The Swallow) is a mature work. True to the group’s remit, to follow both the highways and the byways, we wondered why this opera had been neglected. The group therefore viewed a performance of the opera on DVD, streamed from the coordinator’s computer. Opera needs reasonable audio and screen to be satisfactory, so advice was offered to members on how to transfer the streamed performance from portable devices direct to their main television. We followed with the usual web-based research, two-hour discussion meeting, and handout. We concluded that the weaknesses of the opera were a rather slight story, an indeterminate form and a weak dramatic structure. Nevertheless, the production we viewed was excellent: well-staged, beautifully costumed and sung. We agreed that La Rondine has its charm. Even middling Puccini is well worth watching, and it fully deserves to be more widely known.

At the end of June, under the title Staging the Impossible, we viewed a game-changing production of Berlioz’s The Damnation of Faust, the sensation of the 1999 Salzburg Festival. The production was introduced

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by the coordinator, then presented from DVD. Musically it is unclear whether Berlioz, ever the original, intended this work to be primarily a choral work or an opera. Difficulties for staging include the varied locations and chronology, the exotic situations, and the complex episodic structure. The music is unmistakeable Berlioz, rich, melodious and often spectacular; the Ride to the Abyss is one of the most exciting passages in classical music.

The Salzburg production originated with the Catalan experimental theatre troupe La Fura dels Baus.

Faust, surrounded by They staged Faust as a morality play between the screaming demons, good and bad sides of Faust's personality, using advanced set constructs and pioneering video falls into the abyss. techniques. Its impact is demonstrated by the number of opera and theatre productions which have emulated its approach. Members of the group found the introduction was helpful for understanding the production, something which at Salzburg would have been provided by program notes. Berlioz’s music was greatly admired; one member being sufficiently inspired to watch the whole opera again, without subtitles, in a different, concert performance. We followed up with a shortened discussion of Faust, plus an audio recording of the Berlioz song-cycle Nuits d’été, sung by Regine Crespin, widely regarded as one of the greatest performances of classical song on disc.

The continuing requirement for social distancing makes it unlikely Opera group will meet in house in the foreseeable future. As a virtual group we are well placed to overcome any further coronavirus problems.

We meet again in August for Bizet’s Carmen. Opera companies, though hard hit by the ban on theatres, responded rapidly and generously to the coronavirus, opening their archives for free-of-charge web-streaming. In our troubled times the arts have a crucial role to play. There has been a huge increase in the viewing of opera and classical music during the lockdown. People seek calm and comfort at times of stress.

Excellent sites for streamed opera include: The Metropolitan Opera, New York, (a different opera each day).

Operavision (a collaboration of many European opera houses).

The Wigmore Hall, London (an excellent source for classical song or instrumental recitals).

Michael Ward

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SNAPPERS in Lockdown What to do with your group during lockdown is a question many group leaders have been faced with in our current situation. Normally this time of year we would be out visiting various public sites, but with these out of bounds, a solution had to be found to continue honing their photographic skills.

The answer was a Friendly Photo Competition.

This has proved to be a winning formula that does not involve meeting in small numbers, social distancing or the use of computer meetings with Zoom. We kicked off the first competition in June with two subjects to test the imagination and skills of the members: ‘Blooming June’ and ‘Lockdown and me’.

Well over thirty photos were entered by the closing date.

The members’ work was then uploaded to a photography image-hosting site called Flickr, with which Snappers has a free account.

The members were invited to view and mark which, in their opinion, were the best two photos in each category. The results were varied and interesting, but in the end the best came to the fore.

These are the results.

If you would like more details about Snappers and their activities please contact me at: mb_driscoll@hotmail.com The main U3A online learning classes also run a fortnightly photo ‘competition’. This can be found on the U3A website under U3A Eye .

Why not give it a go!

Mike Driscoll group leader

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BIRD WATCHING DURING LOCKDOWN (1) During lock down Alan and I have been enjoying bird watching from the comfort of our own armchairs!

A flock of young sparrows have been keeping us entertained. At the time of the Great British Bird Watch in February we counted eight sparrows in our small garden at one time. Although it has been difficult to count as they dart about so much, I’ve managed to count 15 at one time, some on the bird feeders, some on the lawn, some on our rather large Escallonia bush.

They really are quite funny. They fly to the feeders as if to land on top of those already eating there: sometimes they push their way in, sometimes after an amount of fluttering they fly away to try again later. It was amusing to see one of them feed on the mixed food then fly over to the sunflower hearts as if it had had its main course and moved on to dessert! We’ve seen recently fledged babies sitting on the arm of the bird station or on a branch being fed by a parent and at times a young one has managed to land on the bottom sill of the patio doors and peer in as if to see what we are doing.

One sparrow had a narrow escape: it was in our neighbours’ garden with their cat about to pounce. Our neighbour managed to grab the cat and shut it indoors, only for it to exit via the cat-flap! One very frightened sparrow was passed over the fence and we put if safely under the Kniphofia leaves, keeping a watch to check that it was alright. We put a few sunflower seeds within reach which it seemed to eat but when we went to put a small saucer of water nearby it scuttled behind the compost bin. It had obviously recovered from its scare, and as we haven’t found any dead bodies, we assume all was well.

Earlier in lockdown Alan spotted a male blackbird carrying bits of twig and dried grass into the Escallonia and in due course we had a nest, fairly well hidden but just able to spot, when you knew where to look. Shortly after we could see a tail sticking out of the nest and the male working very hard taking grubs and insects for the female and eventually for the two babies.

Once they had fledged, we would see the feeding taking place on the branches of our bushes.

One warm evening sitting with the patio doors open we heard a lot of fluttering. Alan went to look in case a bird had got stuck behind the garden sack, but there was nothing there. Sitting down again we heard the fluttering starting up near the doors. One of the baby blackbirds had come in, managed to get on a wicker basket under a coffee table and probably didn’t have enough room to fly down. As Alan went to assist, it got down and ran between the back of the settee and the wall until it couldn’t get any further.

Rather unceremoniously Alan grabbed it and with bird squawking loudly took it out into the garden where the male was also squawking vociferously,

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whether at Alan or giving its youngster a severe telling off! It too was put under the Escallonia to recover.

We were delighted to have a very unusual visitor one afternoon, sitting on our fence - a sparrowhawk. It returned again a few days later, but we were not so pleased as it was on the lawn eating one of our sparrows!

Unfortunately we were not able to get a photo on either occasion.

Other not-so welcome visitors are the feral pigeons. Three at the same time is fine as once they have eaten the food on the tray, they eat up the seed dropped from the feeders. Sometimes there are five or even eight of them.

(They are such greedy birds; is it pure chance that the word pigeon begins with the letters P.I.G?) One of them is quite a bully and attacks another, or is that an interloper is invading what they consider to be their territory? We had intermittent trouble with our television signal and were moaning about our service provider only to discover one of the pigeons sitting on the arm between our satellite dish and the receiver so blocking the signal.

Fortunately, a loud noise a few times taught them that that was not a good place to perch.

We have occasional visits from a goldfinch, a couple of collared doves, and a robin who is nesting in our neighbour’s shed; but we look forward to restrictions being lifted to allow us to go bird-watching as a group once more and allow us to learn from the expertise of our more experienced members.

Sue Edwards

SOCIAL & GENERAL HISTORY The Exbury Junkers Mystery I am indebted to John Stanley and his book published in 2004 on this topic.

He is undoubtedly the expert in this area and he includes this in his history walks round the Exbury Estate. I thought that his story would have an appeal as it meets the interests of many of our members. The bottom line is that there is no really satisfactory conclusion to this tale.

Imagine the scene: it is April 1944 and things are gearing up for the Normandy Invasion which would take place in early June. Around the Beaulieu Estuary in particular security was at the highest level to conceal even the smallest detail of the proposed landings. In the vicinity of Exbury they are constructing sections of the Mulberry Harbour at Lepe; the house itself is the headquarters of HMS Mastodon - the training base for the assault craft, whilst in the New Forest thousands of allied troops are waiting for D-Day. It is into this scene that a Junkers (Ju 188) appears. It had taken off from an

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airfield in Central France and at 7am was picked up by British radar just to the west of Le Havre flying in a north westerly direction towards the Isle of Wight. A message was received at Group HQ in Winchester that ‘no offensive action should be taken’. Reaching the Isle of Wight just to the east of the Needles it starts to circle the Island passing over Yarmouth, Newport, Cowes and Ryde before crossing the Solent and heading for Exbury. During this time the Observer Corps saw a number of red Very lights being fired from the aircraft. By this time it was under massive anti-aircraft fire. It was flying low so those on the ground were amazed that it survived.

Just after 7.30am the Junker passed directly over Exbury House where it just cleared the water tower. It then headed eastwards, crossing Calshot Spit before circling back to Exbury. It was at this time that it was intercepted by two Hawker Typhoons returning from another mission. They pursued the JU188 and as it returned to Exbury House they opened fire hitting on the cockpit area and the port wing. The bomber crashed near a farmhouse in Lower Exbury.

To add to the mystery, one Observer on the Isle of Wight reported that ‘…all the time it had been dropping red flares. Its speed never exceeded 250 mph.

It never flew higher than 1,000 feet. It never dropped a bomb or fired a gun even when attacked by the Typhoons.’

After the crash the mystery deepened. It had a crew of seven instead of the normal five. Two airmen survived the crash but one later died on site. The other, seriously injured was taken to the sick bay at HMS Mastodon where he too died. On 21 April a funeral for all seven airmen took place and they were buried with full military honours at All Saints Church, Fawley.

A number of theories were advanced to explain the presence of a low flying bomber circling over this sensitive area, which did not return fire when attacked and discharged a series of flares during its passage over the South Coast.

1. Brave German airmen on a low level reconnaissance using flares to confuse those on the ground.

2. Airmen trying to defect to Britain. Hence the two extra members of crew.

3. A total failure in the Junkers navigational system. There is a possibility that they were trying to reach Holland.

4. On a pathfinder mission for future raids.

No doubt you can come up with your own theories.

Gordon Massie

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INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE NINETY YEARS OF VIDEO CALLS? From Picturephone to Zoom.

Do you think video calls are a new thing? Well, the idea has been around for over ninety years, and there have been quite a few unsuccessful attempts to sell the idea to the public. But somehow, there just wasn’t the demand for it, until now.

Bell Labs carried out a successful demo in 1927, linking Washington and New York with live images, at 50 lines resolution. It was an electromechanical system, like John Logie Baird’s original TV system in this country at around the same time. Both were technological dead ends, although Bell Labs ran their system for a year between two of their sites.

The idea never really caught on, although large screen video calls feature in Fritz Lang’s 1927 film Metropolis, and in Charlie Chaplin’s 1936 film Modern Times. The idea was there, and film-makers at least could see the attraction.

Bell Labs returned to the concept in 1956, and showed off a working system at the New York World’s Fair in 1964; it was a popular exhibit. Film-maker Stanley Kubrick visited Bell Labs and felt that this futuristic concept would fit nicely into his epic science fiction film 2001, which came out in 1968.

One of his characters phones home from Space Station V, which has a Hilton Hotel, a Howard Johnson’s restaurant, soft furnishings that curve to match the floor of the space station and Picturephone booths with sliding doors for privacy - rather than the flimsy see-through curtains used at the World’s Fair.

By 1969, AT&T had achieved telephone service to 90% of US households, and thought that video calling was the obvious next step.

Bell Labs improved Picturephone had a resolution of 250 lines, and AT&T launched a commercial system in 1970, predicting sales of a million or more Picturephones by 1980. They never sold more than a few hundred, and the project was cancelled in 1973. Why did it fail? Well, Mad Magazine had a few ideas about that, as you can see from this August 1957 article. The copyright was renewed in 1999!

The Picturephone was expensive and not much use unless both callers had the technology. It seemed that most business customers preferred not to be seen while on the phone,

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but they did want to share documents and graphics. The resolution wasn’t really good enough for that, unlike the 19th century technology of the fax machine, which was invented in 1846, and is still going strong, albeit in a more modern form.

It still seemed like a good idea, and there were other attempts during the 1990s and early 2000s. The rise of the World Wide Web, from 1989, increased network bandwidth and smartphones (Nokia in 2000, Apple iPhone from 2007) have made it much easier and cheaper to share documents and videos. It is now possible to hold a video conversation with someone while walking along the street and staring into a small screen on a phone. In 1968 Bell Labs’ phone had a 5¼ inch x 5 inch screen, which is not that different from many modern mobile phones.

The video call is now familiar to most of us, and the last few months have proved the value of being able to see and chat with friends and family on a computer screen, staying social, while maintaining physical distance.

Most of the Bell Labs background is from an article published in Today’s Engineer, Feb 2014 which starts off like this: Today, with apps and services such as Skype and FaceTime, video telephone calls are cheap, easy, and readily available over the internet on computers and smartphones. Yet, video telephony remains but a small sliver of the total volumes of calls. While there may be multiple reasons, it seems clear that most people do not see a reason to, or do not want to, be routinely seen on telephone calls.

Skype? FaceTime? They’re both still around, but there’s no mention of Zoom. Just about everyone has now heard of it; even the Queen uses it, apparently, and it’s fast becoming the generic term. In 2014 Zoom had very few users; the company started in 2011 with 40 people, and launched the service two years later. It finally became profitable in 2019.

Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic the number of daily average users rose from about 10 million in Dec 2019 to over 300 million in April 2020.

(I got these details from a Wikipedia article.)

Many schools and U3As are using Zoom, as you may have noticed. The free service is available for anyone, on almost any kind of computer, tablet, or smartphone. In these unprecedented times, there is a reason to see each other on telephone calls. But you may want to choose your background carefully, as that 1957 Mad magazine article points out: See you around!

Janet Payne

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GENEALOGY A report on the first online meeting, July 2020.

Encouraged by the number of group members seen on-screen at the June U3A meeting, the Genealogy Group itself ventured into the world of Zoom for the first time in July. We were pleased to have 25 people join to hear Dave Lovell deliver his presentation: ‘In My Father’s Footsteps’.

Dave and others had spent 15 months researching the routes taken by prisoners of war moved from camps in Lamsdorf (then in Germany, now in Poland) in the first part of 1945. Since 1940 his father, Arthur had been one of 48,000 held in the POW Camp Stalag VIIIB. In 1945 with the Russian army advancing towards the camp, the Germans decided to force march some 26,000 Allied prisoners, from that camp alone, westwards.

Dave explained how the personal notes made by POWs were used to identify the locations through which the marchers passed. These locations were then entered into a database, and a mapping application was used to produce a web map and supporting material. This illustrated the various routes that the groups of prisoners took, in awful conditions, towards an uncertain destination. The men marched between January 1945 until they were liberated in late April and May 1945, covering a distance on foot of over 400 miles.

The project was prompted because this year marks 75 years since their repatriation, and Dave was due to make a presentation to an audience of 300 at a commemorative event. To see the maps and the men’s stories, go to: Taking the Long Way Home .

With the high standard of presentation set by Dave, and the knowledge that a good audience can be achieved, the group is planning online meetings for the foreseeable future.

On 26 August we have an external speaker delivering a talk on ‘Pest Houses and Pandemics’, which is a topic that, sadly, is pertinent today.

Graham Woodbury 21

BIRD WATCHING DURING LOCKDOWN (2) We live in Crampmoor and, because our home backs onto woods, we have a wide variety of birds to watch and listen to in the garden.

Our recent sightings have included a variety of tits: Great, Blue, Coal and Long-tailed, and many finches too: Goldfinch, Bullfinch, Chaffinch and Greenfinch, as well as Robins, Dunnocks and House Sparrows. Regular visitors include: Blackbirds, Song Thrushes and Mistle Thrushes and Starlings. The Crow family are well represented by Rooks, Crows, Jackdaws, Magpies and Jays. We are treated to visits from a Wren, both male and female Blackcaps and an adult Nuthatch, together with two juniors enjoying the bird bath!

We also see Wood Pigeons, Stock Doves and Collared Doves as well as the occasional Pheasant and even a Red-legged Grouse.

Overhead, Buzzards, Red Kites and Ravens circle in the skies.

Jaunts during lockdown have enabled us to extend our list of sightings, which include: Skylarks, Stonechats, a Whitethroat, a Yellow Hammer, Blackcaps singing, a wren with three of its young, Swallows, Swifts, House Martins and Sand Martins. We have also seen a Hobby, and a Kestrel with two youngsters.

In addition, we’ve heard Cuckoo, two Water Rails and a Cetti’s Warbler which you can listen to here and see opposite.

Jo Morgan

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(Photo: Mike Driscoll)

In the rivers, streams and marshes we have spotted: a Mallard with 12 young, a Coot with six young, a Moorhen, also with six young, Canada Geese, Swans, Pied Wagtails, a Heron, a Tufted Duck, a Sedge Warbler, a Great Crested Grebe and a Little Grebe.

Seabirds we have seen include: Guillemots, Razorbills, Cormorants, Oyster Catchers, three Gannets, and the inevitable Gulls.

No-churn berry Ice Cream If you’ve been finding it difficult to keep cool this summer, you may like to try this recipe from Jo Morgan which she says is easy and delicious!

Serves 4-6 200g berries, fresh or frozen 25g caster sugar 350ml double cream 200ml condensed milk Lemon juice, to taste Put the berries & sugar in a small saucepan & cook over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved & the fruit has broken down into a liquid. Use a wooden spoon to help crush the fruit. Transfer to a bowl & cool before placing in the fridge for a couple of hours, until cold.

Whisk the cream until it holds stiff peaks, then carefully fold in the condensed milk. Use a spatula to scrape round the side & base of the bowl, until mixed well together. Add lemon juice to give a sharp taste to balance the sweetness. Fold the fruit mixture into the cream in the same way.

Transfer to a freezer-friendly container. Freeze for 5-6 hours, then check. It should be ready to serve. It will keep in the freezer for a couple of weeks.

To serve, transfer to the fridge at least one hour before needed.

Variations: Add crushed digestive biscuits, crushed meringue or crushed flake at the folding stage.

DARE TO DREAM After our enforced confinement, we need to look forward to better times.

With the uncertainties and possible problems with travelling and destinations, it would seem that 2020 will be limited to short staycations in the UK for most of us.

It is medically proven that Positive Thinking extends our lives. Holidays can be enjoyed in three ways: looking forward to them, enjoying them and reminiscing afterwards. How would you like to consider an adventure holiday in 2021, involving a sailing trip around the delightful scenic islands near the Croatian coast in September 2021?

If you would like to try something different there are opportunities available for people without specific sailing qualifications. It would be a chance to sample the local cultures, language, food & wine at a sedate pace.

Do you dare to change this idea from a Dream to a Reality?

To discuss these opportunities, drop a line to: Sailing@broughall.com

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Too Late Sad, looking at my face on a phone:

I want to see you.

Sad, looking at her face on my phone:

It’s not allowed yet.

Sad, looking at my face on a phone:

When will you visit?

Sad, looking at her face on my phone:

Next month? I don’t know.

Sad, she lay back and closed her eyes.

Sad, ‘I love you’ was my goodbye.

And then my mother died.

In memory of Jean Buchanan

28 November 1928 – 28 May 2020 With thanks to Maggie Buchanan: a moving and expressive poem and an ironic response to the idea of ‘Life after Lockdown’.

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