The Compasses in Littley Green is run by an old Essex brewing family, the Ridleys. It was formally the Ridley’s Brewery Tap. Joss Ridley is the landlord and his brother, Nelion Ridley, runs the local Bishop Nick brewery. Ridley’s Rite…
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The Megacentre in Rayleigh is very pleased to announce the completion of a £25,000 improvement to the Theatre at the Centre and a celebration event that has been arranged to mark the occasion.
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Felsted Prep school, which is one of Essex’s finest independent schools, is proud to announce that 3 pupils at the Prep School have stormed the Big Bang UK Young Scientists and Engineers Fair awards. Bethan Hudson-Lund, aged 13, and Imogen…
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Breaking News Apri 11th, 2013: HMV in Chelmsford Saved! Hilco have managed to save 2500 HMV jobs and we have now heard that Chelmsford’s HMV store is safe. HMV is out of administration. Jan 14, 2013 His Masters Voice…
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Nothing has been decided yet, but both business leaders and members of parliament are in agreement that the south east needs to see an increase in the number of international flights in and out of the region. Stansted Airport is in a good position to cater for this increase in demand.
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Rural Essex may be getting 7 new solar parks to help boost the national grid with new green energy. The parks will be run by several companies, including Lightsource, Green Switch Solutions, Bluefield Energy and Hive Energy Ltd. The 7 sites will provide over 300,000 new solar panels which will provide thousands of Essex homes with green energy. Several of the sites are on farmland. In recent decades the government has come up with various initiatives to encourage alternative use of farmland to help keep farmers in business while reducing food production. Solar parks may be a great option for many farmers – farms are essentially fields to harness the sun’s energy to fuel the population – converting sunlight to electrical energy is a form of farming in itself. Essex is one of the sunniest counties in the UK so it makes sense to invest more in solar panels than wind farms. If all proposals go ahead Essex will have around 315,000 solar panels which will provide power for about 20,000 homes. It is hoped that within the next 7 years the UK will get around 15% of all its energy from green / renewable sources. Lightsource Solar Parks: Eastern Lodge, […]
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The Comedy Showcase is returning to Chelmsford on Saturday 19th October with an unbeatable line-up of the UK’s best comedians. The comedy nights are held at the Cramporn Theatre in Chelmsford city centre. They also host an annual comedy festival at the Prince of Wales in Stow Maries. The first night The first night, Saturday 18th October 2013, features Paul Thorne (from The Cutting Edge at the Comedy Store), Daniel Simonsen (appeared on Russell Howard’s Good News show) and Matt Reed (from Sunderland, BBC Lincoln said of his “absolutely hilarious had the crowd rolling around”). Once again Chelmsford has a top comedy night, don’t miss out. Tickets available from: Civic Theatre Box Office: 01245 606 505 See our Essex comedy guide for more information.
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If you have been inspired by Celebrity Masterchef and now want to learn how to cook, or you wish to learn how to make cupcakes for the next social gathering, the fastest and best way to learn is by going back to school. There are several excellent cookery schools in Essex where you can learn to bake and prepare fantastic meals which will impress the chef at the best restaurants in Essex. Here they are, in no particular order: Braxted Cookery School The Cookery School at Braxted Park has several courses run by award winning chefs, including Paul Boorman, Mark Webb, William Grinsted and Peter Bayless. They also run individual classes to learn to cook specific cuisine. Examples: Authentic Indian Cuisine with Padmaja Kochera Modern British Food with William Grinsted Tastes of the Mediterranean with Peter Bayless Guy Moore teaches Brilliant Baking and there is a cooking for beginners course too, run by William Grinsted. Contact details: The Cookery School, Braxted Park Estate, Witham, Essex, CM8 3EN Tel: 01621 890300 Website: http://www.braxtedparkcookery.co.uk/index.cfm The Mistley Kitchen The Mistley kitchen teaches one-day recreational cookery workshops for up to 12 people per class. The school started in 2001 by Sherri Singleton. They run a series of specific cooking workshops. Some examples: Quick […]
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Today the BBC reports that Colchester General Hospital’s cancer unit is being investigated by the police following reports of management bullying. Hospital workers have said that they have been “pressured or bullied” into changing patient data. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found that there are some ”inaccuracies” relating to waiting times for cancer treatment at the hospital. The hospital inspector is concerned is that patient lives have been put at risk. The CQC first sent to Colchester in August and September after it received six complaints from patients about excessive waiting times for vital cancer treatment. Delays in treatment sometimes exceeded the minimum of 62 days and in one case exceed 100 days. The initial investigated concluded that ”The provider did not have adequate systems to maintain the safety and welfare of cancer patients” and the CQC found a total of 22 cases where patients did not receive treatment soon enough. Special measures Professor Sir Mike Richards, the chief inspector of hospitals, has suggested that Colchester is put into special measures. Bullying Because of the ”serious failings identified”, the inspector reported the findings to the police for further investigation. Essex Polica are investigating at the request of the CQC. Following the news of a […]
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The London Central FellowshipBand visited Tiptree recently and the video of their performance has “gone vital” on Youtube, but for all the wrong reasons. During a recital at a church in Tiptree, Essex, the trombonist sneezed. Unfortunately he did not withdraw from his trombone quickly enough, and the result was rather amusing. Julian Bright, the conductor for the Salvation Army Band, had never heard anything like the sound that came from the trombone, and said: ”I actually thought something in the PA system had blown up”.
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OK, I am a naturally sceptical / suspicious person, so when three smartly dressed salespeople with clipboard appear at my door selling a new broadband service, that is apparently as fast as BT Infinity and only £1 a month, I think that this cannot be true. I cannot remember what I pay for BT Infinity, but I can say that it is very fast and very reliable. The previous company I was with (TalkTalk) only charged £6 a month, but it was the most unreliable broadband company I have ever experienced (I lost Internet connection on a regular basis, once for a whole day with no explanation). So how can New Call charge only one pound and provide a service equal to BT? The answer is – I have no idea! Let’s look at what they do offer, according to their website. According to their website (newcalltelecom.co.uk) they offer a broadband and phone package for £1.20 a month (oh, but the offer ends on the 31st March 2014). But this comes with a TINY data allowance of 20 Gb, and the speed is not quoted. If you watch BBC iPlayer in high-def you will burn through this allowance in no […]
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If you search Google Maps for “Essex border” it shows a dashed red line around he border of Essex. However, do some reason Google has decided that Southend does not belong in Essex. The last time I saw a more serious map error for Essex was when Google insisted on calling Danbury “Banbury”. Usually mistakes are minor, such as incorrect road names and places shifted half a mile up the road. A search for the Kent border does not place Southend in Kent, so it appears to be nowhere. The Kent border search also expels the Isle Of Grain and Gillingham. At least it is not just Essex. Not sure if any officials have yet noticed that loss of Southend. Royal Mail still recognise it as an Essex town so people living their can still rely on the postal service if not on Google.
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A bid has been made by Rodney Bass, Conservative Cabinet Member for Highways and Transportation, to remove lollipop men and women from our streets. The reason to axe school crossing patrols is their cost. UPDATE: Plans scrapped due to social action! It seems that the combination of outrage from parents and the somewhat unusual coalition of Labour, Green, Lib Deb and UKIP has helped force a reconsideration of this proposal. Lollipop men and women have been helping children and parents to cross busy roads to and from schools for decades. Many roads have no safe cross area and commuter rush hour traffic always coincides with the school run. The plans were only to stop crossing patrols where there is a pedestrian an zebra crossing already. However, as we all know, many motorists fail to stop at zebra crossings and children are unable to identify when a car is slowing down and when it is not. In fact, in February this year a driver hit a four year-old on a zebra crossing in Witham. The child was walking home from nursery. This crazy suggestion by the conservative MP resulted in Lib Dem, Labour, UKIP and Green councillors standing together to ask Rodney Bass to abandon […]
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Latest (13 Mar ’13): Charlie has made it across the Atlantic and broken the world record. It took him just 35 days, and the journey was far from smooth, although Charlie said that he never felt in danger, and at one point he was very unwell. Well done Charlie, you have done yourself and Essex proud! Published 10 Jan ’13: Felsted’s Charlie Pitcher, aged 49 years, plans to row single handedly (actually he will use both hands, but he will be rowing by himself) across the Atlantic ocean in Twiggy. This will not be the first time that Charlie takes to the Atlantic. In 2010 he rowed across the Atlantic in 52 days, breaking the previous record of 68 days. However, in January 2012 his mate Andrew Brown beat his record, shaving more than 12 days off his time, crossing the Atlantic in 40 days. Tenerife To Barbados The journey which Charlie will take is the 2,936 miles from La Gomera in Tenerife, which is an island off the West Coast of Africa, to Barbados in the Caribbean. Andrew Brown rowed in a 5.7 m boat which was previously owned by Charlie. In fact, Charlie helped train Andrew and prepare home for the journey so it […]
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It seems that the old house hunting rule of “location, location, location” is still alive an well, even in the modern world of 3G (soon 4G) and super fast, wirelesss Internet. However, Broadband Choices, a consumer website which reviews broadband suppliers throughout the UK, have found that nowadays house hunters are more concerned with access to a good Internet connection than proximity to a good pub. There was a time when local amenities were of utmost importance when choosing a new home. To be able to walk to a bakers and butchers, to have a post office nearby and a welcoming, friendly pub, were considered the most important features of a location, along with good schools for new families and off street parking. However, the decline in pubs and the rise of the digital age has finally changed this. The most important factor for many is to have access to a fast and reliable Internet connection. Fortunately large parts of Essex have been upgraded to the best broadband cables available. BT have been laying their super-fast fibre optic cables in and around Chelmsford in recent years, and other providers such as Sky are introducing new services. 1 in 5 People Check Broadband Before Moving […]
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Blockbuster video is the latest high street shop to enter administration, following HMV and Jessops. Blockbusters have been facing rising competition from falling DVD prices, online rentals from Lovefilm.com (postal delivery) or Netflix or Appee’s iTunes and also illegal downloads. Blockbuster has 528 shops in the UK and all are facing closure, with 4,190 jobs threatened. Unlike HMV and Jessops which have had to compete with supermarkets and the Internet, Blockbuster has really suffered from a change in preferred digital media in general. DVD’s are easy to replicate which has aided the relative reduction in purchase prices. Many DVD’s can be bought for less that Blockbuster’s charges for a 2-3 night rental. Although Blockbuster has launched its own online rental service and also has an online shop, it has the added cost of operating high street stores. There are many Blockbuster stores around Essex and all are at threat of closure; CHELMSFORD – SPRINGFIELD - Telephone No: 01245 269767 BILLERICAY (HIGH STREET) - Telephone No: 01277 653223 WITHAM (NEWLAND ST) - Telephone No: 01376 511141 BRAINTREE, 7 RAYNE ROAD - Telephone No: 01376 551759 BRENTWOOD (HIGH STREET) - Telephone No: 01277 203285 BASILDON (HERON RETAIL PARK) - Telephone No: 01268 271300 RAYLEIGH (HIGH STREET) - Telephone No: 01268 779420 STANFORD-LE-HOPE (CORRINGHAM) […]
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“Last year I did the TransGranCanaria in Gran Canaria, where I was living at the time, which is one of the biggest trail races through mountains."
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Epping Ongar Railway gets a bit steamy following hard-core porn film shoot!
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How often do you get to judge the inside of a house? Rarely, which is why the outside is so very important.
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by Lara Fox How Midata provide better information and protects consumers In May of 2015, The Department for Business Innovation and Skills announced a £500,000 deal to be invested in the government ‘Midata’ scheme. The investment is hoped to assist small software developers, who are creating innovative ways to solve problems concerning areas ranging from health…
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