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SLU3A NEWS Newsletter of the South Leicestershire U3A Website: http://www.slu3a.org.uk/
Our mission is to make lifelong learning and the enjoyment of leisure time and recreational activities, through the experience of SLU3A, a reality for all members.
Registered Charity Number 1122153
Issue No. 242 SEPTEMBER 2020
Another Market Harborough picture puzzle from Geoff Woods. Can you identify the building? Find the answer later in this
National U3A High Street Project I am pleased to report that SLU3A have signed up to take part in this national U3A project and have joined forces with MHU3A to carry out the project activities. The High Street project aims to capture the changes taking place in High Streets and shopping locations across the country - changes that may be accelerated by the Coronavirus pandemic. The project in Market Harborough will begin this month with a survey to give a snapshot of the shops, businesses and empty premises in part of the town centre. Our information will then form part of a baseline report, going to the National U3A Board in December 2020. We will then undertake more information collection during 2021 to measure any changes that may have occurred in Market Harborough.
The final project report will be used to help raise the profile of the U3A in its 40th Anniversary year in 2022. The project is being managed under the auspices of the U3A National Research committee.
We are a small team of volunteers so far. We would like to invite others to join us in charting the changes in Market Harborough. The more people in our team, the larger the area of the town centre that we will be able to survey. Please contact Geoff Woods on 01858 468989 or by email [email protected] if you would be interested in joining us. Linda Lawton
Read more about the High Street Project on the national U3A website here.
Forthcoming Events
Monday 14th September 10.15am for a 10.30 start.
Online AGM by Zoom followed by Phil Aldridge on taking photographs with
your mobile phone.
Monday October12 10:30 am Online Monthly Meeting by Zoom
Bruce White: CoVid-19 Walks
Friday 6 November 10.30 am Group Leaders meeting by Zoom.
Monday November 9 10:30 am Online Monthly Meeting by Zoom
Colin Cohen: What did Charles Dickens say about foodbanks?
SLU3A News 2
SLU3A Details and Committee Items
MEMBERSHIP Joining the SLU3A could not be easier. You can join online through our website at
www.slu3a.org.uk or download an Application form. Contact our Membership
Secretary, Ian Webb, 11 Austins Close, Market Harborough, LE16 9BJ, email
[email protected], Tel. 01858 440851. We will require your full name,
postal address, email or phone number.
The 2020/21 subscription is £20, or £16.50 if you are a fully paid Individual Member of
another U3A. Proof of membership of the other U3A must be provided including
Membership Number. If joining from January 2021 onwards, it will reduce to £8.00 for
a Full Individual Membership or £6.50 for an Associate Membership. Your subscription
can be paid either by cash or cheque, which should be made payable to the SLU3A.
When things have at last returned to normal we look forward to welcoming new and
prospective members at our monthly General Meetings held on the second Monday
morning, 10—12 in the Jubilee Hall, Bowden Lane, Market Harborough. Visitors are
encouraged to make a £2 donation. New members can chat with our welcoming team
and learn about the SLU3A and our Interest Groups.
How do I find the Newsletter? During the current situation the Newsletter will usually only be available online from
www.slu3a.org.uk — go to What’s On/Newsletters. We hope to resume printing the
newsletter regularly as soon as possible.
Avoiding Identity Theft and online fraud: You can find some useful information on this subject here: https://www.totallymoney.com/identity-theft-protection-guide/ Or this from Which on spotting fraudulent & scam websites (seems to be available to non-members).
YOUR COMMITTEE
Liz Brett (Monthly Meetings & New Member Liason) 07907 631529
Louise Elsome (Groups) 07740 572956
Colin Ford (Refreshments) 01858 463129
Stuart Irons (Premises) 07969 833342 Stephen Joy (Newsletter & Website) 07982 428397
David Martin (Secretary) 01858 440530
Maryan Richardson (Trips) 01858 462573
Helen Salisbury (Chair) 07837 410575
Paul Simpson (Treasurer) 07885 808209
Ian Webb (Membership) 01858 440851
SLU3A News 3
Committee Items
Membership Secretary I have finally been able to obtain a limited supply of 2021 U3A Diaries that will be available for sale to our Membership from the 15th September 2020 onwards. The cost will be £3.50 including postage. These can be purchased by contacting me on 01858 440851 and paying using either a Debit or Credit Card or by forwarding a cheque payable to the SLU3A to me at 11 Austins Close, Market Harborough, LE16 9BJ. If you are aware of any member who does not have access to an email and normally purchases a diary, could you kindly advise them that the diaries are now available and how they can be obtained.
I am pleased to welcome the following new members who have all joined us in August through our recently introduced New Membership online portal : - Jeffrey Bartlett and Kay Jones. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome them to the SLU3A and trust that they will be able to become involved and enjoy the range of events and activities that are currently available.
Ian Webb, [email protected]
From the Chair
As we slowly emerge from lockdown, it has been good to see a number of groups meeting up again, albeit outside, as well as others continuing to keep in touch using technology such as Zoom, WhatsApp and email. We have now had 3 streamed monthly meetings, all with excellent turn outs and a small group of us have since been practising remotely for our first ever, on line AGM on the 14th of this month. It's been a huge learning curve and, fingers crossed, it will all run smoothly on the day: we have a record 11 resolutions on which to vote! Group Leader, Phil Aldrige, will then be showing us how to Take Better Photos on your Phone. In the newsletter you can also catch up on other events, including
changed dates for activities which will now celebrate our 21st year, as well as an update on the Christmas lunch. We've also had our first ever on line new members' coffee event! Two teams from SLU3A and MHU3A, led by Geoff Woods, are working together to represent us nationally on the High Street Project. The Leicestershire & Rutland Network of U3As has been keeping in regular touch with members across the 2 counties and you have all had an invitation to join their forthcoming, on line quiz event. I am representing us on a Regional Support team, working with our East Midlands Trustee, Jean Hogg, to identify ways that we can help U3As across the region, particularly reaching out to those who are not so active at the moment and identifying initiatives for recruiting new members as we come out of lockdown. Finally, Beacon 2 (the U3A membership database) is being trialled, with a delayed launch date for next spring. Do keep your news, articles and pictures coming in so we can continue to embrace all that SLU3A is today.
Helen Salisbury [email protected] 07837 410 575
Christmas Lunch Currently with guidelines as they are we would only be allowed 30 people to attend our Christmas lunch at Hothorpe Hall and we would have to be socially distanced!! It has been decided we will sadly cancel this year and look forward to 2021. However if guidelines change drastically we will let you know. Deborah Ellis
Geoff’s puzzle answer from the front page
Group Enabler Despite the current Covid-19 regulations, many of our groups are finding ways to carry on regardless. From making music in carports, as The Music Workshop group has been doing, to sampling good wines al fresco, as enjoyed by the Wine Tasting group, our members are making the most of the late summer weather. Some of the local venues we normally use are preparing to open their doors for the first time since March and we will be ensuring that all premises are Covid-19 compliant before considering them for group use. We continue to refer to the
national U3A guidelines and all Group Leaders have now been sent the latest updates, as well as new Risk Assessments for indoor and outdoor groups. I'd like to thank all Group Leaders who have consulted their members to find out the level of interest in returning. Our main priority is that, having considered your own particular situation, you feel safe and confident when meeting up with others again. Although it may be possible for some small groups to meet up soon indoors, meetings held in members' houses are still not permitted; neither is any activity which involves the sharing of equipment. Please consider using Zoom as an alternative way of meeting - there are several weekly slots available so just let me know if you want to give it a try. Louise Elsome 07740 572956
SLU3A News 4
Committee Items
New Members’ meeting By now, in more normal times, we would have held a couple of New Members' Coffee Mornings in the Lounge. This year we've had to try something different. So instead, everyone who had joined us since January, were invited to our very first New Members' Zoom Meeting on Thursday 20th August. We were pleased to welcome eight new members, to hear their reasons for joining SLU3A, and to be able to give them information on how the U3A is evolving during these unusual times. Zooming has enabled many of us to stay in touch, and we will no doubt be
catching up with more new members in this way in the future. You can view a video presenting a selection of our groups here.
Liz Brett New Member Liaison 07907631529 [email protected]
Printing the newsletter again This month we are producing a small print run of the newsletter (in a 12-page edition). This will be delivered to members for whom we have no email address and a few others who have requested that a copy be sent to them. The printed edition will contain a lot fewer links to web pages as these will probably not be useful to recipients. At this stage we intend to produce another printed edition in December.
The Poetry group meeting on Zoom Beginners Bridge use Zoom in a different way.
Architecture: Welcome to the eighth instalment of the Virtual Architecture Group. Thank you for the feedback I’ve had in response to these messages. Please feel free to contact me if you have any suggestions about architecture related films or tv programmes that might be of interest to the rest of the group. The theme last time was famous architects, so this time I thought we’d have a look at some architectural styles. In this edition I’m looking at modern and post-modern styles, but if this isn’t to your taste don’t despair as I will look at some traditional styles in future editions. And as a bit of light relief I’ve also included a link to another old Pathé News film.
Why Do People Hate Modern Architecture? I thought you might find this 10 minute film interesting. I expect we’re all familiar with the phrase “Form follows function” - in this film the narrator explores some ideas about modernist architecture using examples from the USA. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgseG3VTGsM&feature=youtu.be
Post Modern Architecture – More is More This short film was produced by Historic England. Post-Modern architecture emerged in the 1970s as a critical reaction to Modernism. In Britain it was closely associated with the economic boom of the 1980s. The style was an important strand of late 20th century architecture, but Post-Modern buildings can be vulnerable to change and loss which is why the best examples have been selected for listing. In this film, three leading architects of the era, Piers Gough, Sir Terry Farrell and John Outram talk about their inspirations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LvRoyXxwC4&feature=youtu.be
Where to find Brutalist Architecture in England Brutalist architecture is a bit like marmite: people either love it or loathe it. The author of this article published on the Culture Map website belongs firmly to the pro Brutalist camp. He says that there’s something about its gigantic asymmetrical, concrete slabs, mounted together that he finds exciting. For a long time the Brutalist style fell out of favour, but the author argues that it’s experiencing a renaissance. Their cool and plain exteriors are becoming the basis for modern-day design and architecture, with some Brutalist council flats in England being privatised and selling for hundreds of thousands of pounds. https://www.theculturemap.com/brutalist-architecture-in-england/
Why You Should Love the Architecture of the National Theatre Sticking with the theme of Brutalist architecture being like marmite, the National Theatre on London’s south bank is probably one of the most divisive buildings in the capital. The theatre was designed by Denys Lasdun who was one of the leading architects of the 1960s and 70s.In this article John Grindrod puts forward some reasons for learning to love the National Theatre.https://londonist.com/london/books-and-poetry/why-you-should-love-the-architecture-of-the-national-theatre
Of overturning moments and restoring moments – the engineering of a Bristol statue This article from the Architects’ Journal was written by Tim Lucas, a structural engineer who was asked to provide an engineering solution for a temporary installation on the plinth in Bristol where a statue of Edward Colston once stood. I found it fascinating to read about how architects rely on engineers to ensure that the structures they design are able to resist forces such as strong winds, earthquakes or even the occasional shove. https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/10047585.article?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1595534593
Pathé News – This is London Part Two As a contrast to all this modern stuff, I thought you might enjoy part two of this Pathé News film made in 1950. The film was commissioned by the British Travel Association and the commentary is read by Rex Harrison. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsHHK-kO1RQ Colin Cohen [email protected] 07973 348817
Interest Groups
SLU3A News 5
Art History For the time being we will continue to share information about TV programmes and useful websites,
by email or phone. Recent recommendations have included ‘Romancing the Stone: the Golden Age of
British Sculpture’ with Alistair Sooke; ‘The Riviera: a History in Pictures’, with Richard E Grant and ‘The
Art of Japanese Life’, with Dr James Fox. You should be able to catch these on iplayer if you missed
them. Simon Schama is shining a new light on ‘Romanticism’ in a 3 part series on BBC 2 which started
on Friday 11 September. We are fortunate to have so much available to be enjoyed from the safety of
home.
For my recent course on modern sculpture I was asked to post a
photo of a sculpture in my local area. When the canal basin was
refurbished in 2000, a sundial sculpture was chosen by public
vote from three choices. The favourite design, by Marjorie and
Michael Clements, depicts a stevedore picking up a piece of
timber on to his shoulder to stack on the wharf. Informally
known as "Frank the Plank", the statue is made from wood and
metal and was erected by members of the Old Union Canals
Society. Frank works in numerous ways as a sundial and is worth
a look.
Stay safe and well. Angela Deane
Bird Watching Consulting my records on return from Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows Nature Reserve I couldn’t
believe we’d only ever been there once before, in April 2016! As is usual at this time of year butterflies
and dragonflies were the main attractions. Pick of the former was a Small Copper and Common Blue.
Dragonfly wise, there were plenty of Brown and Migrant Hawkers around with a
couple of Southern too; as usual Common Blue Damselflies abounded, often flying
around in tandem.
There were birds, of course, but one in particular stood out – a Whinchat
(pictured), which according to our recorder Tony, was a first for our group taking
our overall species total up to 144 Bruce White
Book Club We are struggling to keep Book Club going but each month a book is suggested and some of us read it
and let me know their views. We can't wait to be able to get together again. This month we have read
"Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens. Set in backwoods America it is a story of rural poverty
which turns into a lyrical love-story. The book is beautifully written and has been much praised.
Ronnie Leech
Bridge (Tuesday morning) When it comes to easing the restrictions imposed in order to combat the spread of Covid-19, it is now
clear that the government’s priorities are first education, second economic activity and lastly social
activity. Since our Tuesday morning bridge sessions clearly fall into the last category I don’t anticipate
us getting the green light to resume any time soon but as our PM might put it – watch this space!
John Cameron tel. 01858 434155 e-mail: [email protected]
SLU3A News 6
Interest Groups
Crafting for charities Ahoy there, mateys! One of our members has been busy crocheting this delightful pirate scene. To complete it there will be a rug in sea and sand colours! Proceeds of the sale will go to either Rainbows or Air Ambulance. Several members met up recently for a
Cuppa in the Park: we had not done so for 6 months! It was great to chat. The weather was kind to us and we are planning to do so again while it is fine.
Helen Salisbury
Drawing and Painting
The Drawing and Painting Group has worked on techniques associated with landscape painting this month. Various of us met on two outdoor painting occasions at East Carlton Park, despite the vagaries of the weather, and used the landscapes in and beyond the park as subject material. The continuing COVID threat means we have reluctantly decided not to recommence our indoor painting sessions at the moment. We shall take stock again in the New Year. We hope to hold another outdoor painting meeting in September, and will devise a further suitable topic to work on individually. Members will be emailed shortly with the relevant details.
Elaine Scarlett and Sue Garman
Ladies Choir It seems a long time since we were all singing together. Usually at this time of year I am working out the dates for all our meetings and sending off the cheque for our subscriptions so it seems very strange not to be thinking about things like this. Alan has very kindly emailed a musical quiz to everyone in the Choir. The final date for entries is 31st August so it will be quite exciting to see who wins. I will let you know as soon as he announces the result. I hope you are all keeping well and enjoying the things we can do and not pining for the things we can't. Joy Swallow 01858 462368
Local History It is pleasing to see that several of the outdoor groups have resumed, but unfortunately it seems unlikely that our indoor group will be able to meet again in 2020. We were attracting quite large numbers at the beginning of the year and in the present climate social distancing would not permit us to continue in this way. Reduced numbers also would not be viable, as some of the speakers are quite expensive and also there is the added factor of their willingness to come. Regrettably, Ian and I have taken the decision to cancel the October and November meetings. We will, of course, continuously review the situation and should circumstances change, then we will be in touch with you. Hopefully some sort of normality will return and cancelled speakers will be contacted for possible talks in 2021. Meanwhile, take care and we look forward to resuming next year.
Avril Pell – [email protected]
SLU3A News 7
Interest Groups
By Joan Loxton
Interest Groups
Listening to Jazz My latest Listening to Jazz newsletter can be seen in its entirety in the Activity Group section of the SLU3A website where there’s more about the discs mentioned below. This week I’ve been playing discs I had originally put into the sale box and might now have second thoughts. In practice it has turned out that only a few left me feeling I wanted to hold on to them or that there might be others by the same artist which I could let go instead. I’ve tried to get through three cds a day, but some are rather long, so occasionally I’ve only listened to about half the tracks before making my decision. I’ve listed below the ones which have been returned to the sale box, so if anyone is interested they will still be available when our meetings re-start or else let me know if you would like me to put them on one side for you. Grant Green; Feelin’ the Spirit 1962; Dick Hyman Plays Fats Waller 1988; was Zoot Sims: Passion Flower, 1978; Coleman Hawkins All Stars Newport 1957; Phil Woods/Jim McNeely: Flowers for Hodges 1991; Bob Brookmeyer: Kansas City Sounds 1958; Peggy Lee Bewitching Lee 1999; Coleman Hawkins Lausanne 1949; Monk: Standards 1962-68; Bud Freeman: Something to Remember You By 1962; Bill Evans/Toots Thielemans Affinity 1978; Chet Baker: Chet 1958; Charlie Mingus: Mingus Plays Piano 1968?
Mike Goldsmith 01536 770122
Music Appreciation 1 Live Prom Concerts began again on 28 August and in the following two weeks all the concerts were either broadcast on television or live on i-player. You can see them on i-player for most of September. What a feast of music there was to enjoy in the first week! As was fitting, the first concert was given by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. To celebrate the 250th Anniversary of his birth in 1770, Beethoven was centre stage with a performance of his Symphony No. 3 in E minor ‘Eroica’. What a dream start! The second Prom was for lovers of the organ. Here Jonathan Scott was at the keyboards of the recently restored Henry Willis organ – all 147 stops and 9997 pipes. Be thrilled to the music of Rossini, Dukas, Mascagni and the Saint-Saens Organ Symphony with Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations as an encore. Mindblowing! The next day, the BBC Symphony Orchestra was back in the Royal Albert Hall under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle in his 75th Proms appearance. The programme was a wonderfully varied collection of music by Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Beethoven, Giovanni Gabrieli (1555-1612), Gyorgy Kurtag(b.1926) and Thomas Ades(b.1971). My memories of this concert will be the the first movement of the Beethoven’s Moonlight piano Sonata (No 14) played by Mitsuko Uchida – “tears to the eyes” comes to mind and the first performance of ‘Dawn’ by Thomas Ades which expresses dawn breaking around the world as seen from space. The works by Gabrieli and Kurtak are interesting and unusual in that the music spatially surrounds the audience and a number of the musicians (brass) are spaced around the auditorium to give this effect. You won’t regret giving this concert a try. My final choice for this review of the first week of the live Proms is the day six concert with the Baroque programme performed by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. In the three concertos for two violins Nicola Benedetti was one of the soloists; the other was to have been Alina Ibragimova but as she was not able to play her place in each concerto was taken by a different violinist from the orchestra. Two concertos were by Vivaldi (D major and A minor) and the third was the wonderful Bach Double in D minor. Handel got a look in with the Concerto grosso Opus 3 No.2 and the Passacaglia from the Opera Randamisto Then there was the Concerto grosso No.5 in D minor by Charles Avison(1707-1770) and Vivaldi again with the Concerto for two oboes in A minor. Good listening!
Peter Ellement 01858 432966 [email protected]
SLU3A News 8
Music Appreciation 2 As our lives are still being dominated by the Rules and Regulations regarding the pandemic it seemed
to be appropriate to do what we always do, that is to reminisce about happier days in the past. To this
end here is our Music Appreciation entry for September 2010. Our programme in August was based on discs which accompany the monthly BBC Music Magazine.
They generally feature BBC Orchestras and are taken from live performances. Our programme began
with an early work by Sibelius, namelely 'EnSaga' and based on Finnish Legend. The Rachmaninov Variations on a theme by Paganini followed, played by Simon Trpceski and the BBC Scottish Symphony
Orchestra and we listened to Tchaikovsky's Capriccio Italien before breaking off for refreshments. The
second half of the morning opened the 2nd Piano Concerto by Saint-Saens played by Kathryn Stott
accompanied by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Marin Alsop and we concluded with movements from from the Serenade for Strings by Tchaikovski played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra,
recorded live at the Snape Maltings during the Aldborough Festival of 2007. Geoffrey Moth 01858 43275 [email protected]
Music Workshop Singing in the rain - popular music workshop practising under the car port! We have been meeting here for several weeks.
Bob Morris
New Age Kurling The group has not met since March and unfortunately, because of the nature of the group, I cannot see that it will be possible to start meeting again for quite some time. I am regularly keeping in touch with the members of the group by e-mail. Jane Wilkins
New Experiences We had a great time at Barrow Boating in August, it was a baking hot day, so it was a welcome relief to be on the water, where we tried kayaks, pedal boats and their unique sit up hydro bikes. Unfortunately the August Petanque was rained off but by the time you read this, we will hopefully have had a go with the Boules (8th
Sep). The next activity will be Padel, which I believe is a cross between table tennis and badminton, played outside, but hopefully we’ll be able to find out soon. If you like to join us for this or future activities please contact Kevin the group leader. [email protected]
Paper craft and more We continue to 'show and tell' on Whatsapp on the day that we would normally meet. A theme is suggested and members produce something related to it. This month one of the themes was 'glitter and bling' and there were some lovely items produced like these candle holders. More photos of our creations in our section on the website. Sadly two members have left the group, so we have room for new members although we do not intend meeting face to face until after Christmas. Please contact me if you would
like to know more about us with a view to joining the group, a friendly craft group. Jan Collins 01858 462 409
Interest Groups
SLU3A News 9
Stuart & Sylvie on the pedal boat.
Susan on the Hydro bike.
Railway Exploration
Our group authors have continued to entertain us with short articles having a railway flavour. Last month we ventured into new territory with railway poetry, no doubt reviving schooldays memories for many of us. We have now settled down into a regular Monday morning email bulletin which at the very least, will hopefully provide some temporary escape from the everyday news. As the autumn approaches and with no sign of normality reappearing just yet, it is our intention to keep this process going. Our authors are doing a great job and we have plenty of material yet to explore. Please note that our "Monday Morning Email Club" Is open to anybody – if you wish to be included please let me know. Phil Danks
Science Life on Mars? In the late 19th Century Giovanni Schiaparelli, an Italian astronomer, studied Mars. In his initial observations, he named the "seas" and "continents" of Mars, and later he observed a dense network of linear structures on the surface of Mars which he called "canali" in Italian, meaning "channels" but the term was mistranslated into English as "canals". From the incorrect translation into the term "canals", various assumptions were made about life on Mars; as these assumptions were popularized, the "canals" of Mars became famous, giving rise to waves of speculation about the possibility of intelligent life on Mars. At the beginning of the 20th Century other observers disputed the notion of canals and several efforts to find evidence of water vapor in the Martian atmosphere with spectroscopic analysis had negative results. Since the 1960s, 62 spacecrafts have been sent to Mars. The first missions were flybys, with spacecraft taking photographs as they zoomed past. This was followed by probes placed in orbit around Mars and more recently, landers and rovers have explored the surface. To date scientists have seen features that are unquestionably the work of ancient, flowing liquids: branching streams, river valleys, basins, and deltas. In February 2021 the Mars mission Perseverance Rover should land. This is a large, six-wheeled rover equipped with a suite of sophisticated instruments, the landing zone being the site of an ancient river delta, and a possible location for ancient life-forms that may have thrived. Perseverance will study Martian climate and weather, test technologies that could help humans survive on Mars, and collect samples from dozens of rocks that will eventually be brought to Earth by a Mars Sample-Return (MSR) mission which would collect rock and dust samples on left by Perseverance and then return them to Earth. I am disappointed that Venus has not been the subject of similar studies as I have always
believed in the Mekon of Mekonta, who was the ruler of the Treens of northern Venus and
the arch-enemy of Dan Dare. Michael Milsom
Tennis We have welcomed 4 new members since restarting after the break, and continue to play friendly mixed doubles every Thursday at 10.00 a.m at the Market Harborough Tennis Club Courts at Great Bowden. Rita Moth Tel: 01858 432275
SLU3A News 10
Interest Groups
Transport Aircraft Manufacturing in Leicestershire In 1938 Alexander Lance Wykes travelled to the USA and negotiated a licence agreement to build an American designed light aeroplane, the Taylorcraft Model B. Manufacturing began in premises behind Crowther’s Britannia Works, Melton Rd., Thurmaston in February 1939. The first aircraft was completed by 24th April 1939 and registered G-AFNW. The fuselages and wings were manufactured at Syston, with sheet metalwork at the works in Thurmaston and with final assembly, fitting out and testing at Rearsby aerodrome.
With the outbreak of the Second World War Taylorcraft Aeroplane (England) Limited undertook sub-contract work for major aircraft companies and by 1940 the company had become a Ministry of Aircraft Production repair centre where they undertook to repair and rebuild D.H. Tiger Moths, Hawker Hurricanes and later Hawker Typhoons.
Development of an Air Observation plane suitable for supporting the Royal Artillery on the battlefront was also undertaken and a production order for 100 aircraft designated the Taylorcraft-Auster Mk 1 was placed during 1942. The company progressively developed their initial military design. Three further versions went into wartime production. Over 1630 aircraft were produced for wartime service.
A.L.Wykes died on the 14th of March 1944 when demonstrating an Auster at a ‘Salute the Soldier’ rally in aid of the National Savings Movement at Abbey Park, Leicester.
The company name changed to Auster in 1946, and in 1960 Auster Aircraft Limited were taken over and absorbed into British Executive and General Aviation Ltd (BEAGLE). Auster design and development continued until 1968.
There is little remaining at Rearsby, the airfield has returned to agricultural use and the manufacturing site is now the Rearsby Business Park. Michael Milsom
Ukulele Group / Strictly Ukuleles We are now past Week 25 of our virtual weekly ukulele sessions. Recent themes have been Country songs, 1950s American Pop songs, 1960s British Pop songs, and Protest songs/ songs of social comment. This latter proved very popular with the group who remembered many of these from the 1960s and their youth club days ! It wasn’t all Beatles and Stones, was it ? We keep strummin’ – and it helps to keep us happy. David Evans 01858
Photography In our August meeting we brought photographs based on the theme of Borders and Boundaries. Here is a selection of the contributions. See the rest on the website.
Interest Groups
SLU3A News 11
Helen Angela Phil Denise
Kenny Yvonne Mandy Peter
Wine Tasting The wine tasting group met in a garden again to try three red wines from Germany. Germany is not well known in this country for its red wines, but the climate particularly in the south-eastern state of Baden-Württemberg is very sunny and well-suited to red grapes, and Germany produces quite a lot of red wine, but just does not export it here. All the wines came from the Wine Society again, which only stocks three. The first wine was Dornfelder Trocken, Anselmann 2018 £8.95 14%, from the Rheinland-Pfaltz, just north of Baden-Württemberg. Dornfelder is a relatively new grape variety, created in Germany to produce wines with a darker colour, and this wine certainly had depth of colour. The wine was well received by the group, and was only just pipped into second place. The other wines both come from Baden-Württemberg. Sylvia's second wine was a Pinot Noir - called Spätburgunder in Germany - from Martin Wassmer Markgräflerland 2017 £14.50 13%. By coincidence the group tasted this wine last year in a comparison of New and Old World Pinot Noirs, a competition that it won. This evening it clearly faced stiffer opposition as it came last! The last wine was Trollinger, Fellbacher Alte Reben Aldinger 2016, £16.00 13%, a rich wine from old vines grown to the east of Stuttgart. This wine-growing area was completely new to me, as it probably was to the rest of the group. The Trollinger variety is an ancient one which is thought to have originated in the Tyrol - hence the name, and is also grown in Italy. This was the wine of the evening, just beating the Dornfelder.
Jonathan Shaw 07960 203375
Interest Groups
SLU3A News 12
Kevin’s catch phrase quiz answers. Here are the answers to the selection in last month’s newsletter. Those for the whole quiz can be found on the website here.
Kiss & make up Pay through the nose Open and shut case Foot in the door
Don’t forget to visit the national U3A website. There’s a number of interesting articles on their home page including a discussion group on Amateur Radio, a piece of interest to wildlife lovers on why birdsong appears to have got louder, the U3A’s weekly Quiz and their Maths challenge which also changes each week.
Their Learning Page is worth investigating as here you will find several other interesting projects, including Creative Writing, U3a Eye (for photographers) and the Diary Project.
They also have a page of Covid-19 advice, including a link to Friends against scams.
Keep up to date and sign up for their electronic newsletters: https://www.u3a.org.uk/email
SLU3A News 13
Cycling Third Friday The group are continuing to ride out and would welcome any new cyclists who are keen to join us. The rides are around 16 - 20miles and we meet up somewhere locally ready to leave at 10.30, returning around 12.45 - 1pm. We have plenty of space to take new members and anyone who is keen to get back into cycling. If you’ld like to join us for the next ride on Friday 18th Sept or to join the 3rd Friday group for future rides, please contact Kevin the group leader.
Kevin Millard [email protected] 07526 657199
All day walking The walk on Thursday 24th Sep will be led by Kevin and start at 10.30 a.m. from The Causeway car park at Pitsford Reservoir, NN6 9BN (£3, or park on the edge of the road if you don’t mind the mud), walking along the south side (the longer section of the circular route), with a toilet / coffee stop at the visitor centre. Return will either be around the rest of the reservoir or along the footpath to Moulton Grange depending on how we all feel on the day. Please email the leader to let them know if you would like to join the walk. This is so that if numbers rise above six we can have a second leader so that we can walk in two groups.
Kevin Millard [email protected] 07526 657199
Tuesday half day walking September walk review The sun shone as twelve of us in two separate groups set off from the Wistow Rural Centre on Tuesday 1st of September. We walked over the fields and then joined the canal. Then we followed the canal along until we reached Newton lock. We took the footpath over the fields to Kilby village. Then it was over the fields stopping to admire a strip of beautiful sunflowers and wild flowers on a field edge before returning back to Wistow. A small group of us then enjoyed a picnic lunch.
Diana Baxter
Strollers We have no report for Strollers this month, no activity, no new routes but we are hoping that by meeting up at Medbourne we can get going again. Meanwhile we invite you to read a true Rambling story by Colin which you can find on the next page. Stay Safe. Julia and Colin Ford, Group Coordinators 01858 463129
Walking Wednesdays The equatorial weather we were experiencing in August at the time meant there were only seven of us for our resumption of Wednesday walking! A shorter, less hilly, walk than planned was undertaken with frequent water stops. We made for Braybrooke over the fields where we joined the three 'Ways' (pictured). A stop for a coffee break was made after diving through a hedge to reveal some welcome shade on the other side! We regained our starting point via Waterloo Lodge, the footpath down to the bottom end of the Waterloo Farm Leisure site and then the Brampton Valley Way. Somewhat hotter than when we set out we were mighty glad to see our cars again in the Leisure Centre car park!!
Bruce White
Walking and Cycling Groups
RAMBLINGS OF A PARISH PATH WARDEN In the 1980’s and 1990’s we lived in Braybrooke which is in Northamptonshire. During this period the County Council appointed a County Footpath Officer and gave him a small office, a small budget and a small petrol allowance. In turn he looked for volunteers to become Parish Path Wardens and I stepped forward on behalf on Braybrooke.
One Saturday morning 35 of us turned up at the Council Offices in Northampton to hear the new scheme being outlined and to learn of our involvement. The overall idea was to bring the county footpaths into a condition where they could all be used without difficulty in order to encourage the general public to walk them and become healthier without having to drive miles to walk other in counties.
We left and returned to our Parishes with a very detailed instruction list, a very detailed Ordnance Survey map of our Parish showing all the footpaths and bridleways complete with their numbers for reference purposes, plus loads of enthusiasm. The next thing to do was to walk all the paths making notes as to repairs to stiles, bridges and work needing to be done. Initially we were asked to send in a monthly report on what we had found, what we had done and to request help with large projects. We each received a quantity of white discs with the words Public Footpath around the edge and a large black arrow in the centre, these were to be nailed to gate posts, trees, stiles and telegraph poles with the arrow aimed in the direction which the footpath took, we had fun installing these as they needed to go either side of a gate or stile and point correctly.
Every now and then we were invited to go to Oundle Country park on a Saturday morning to firstly learn how to erect a simple stile. People travelled all the way to Oundle from Brackley at the other end of the county. We were also taught how to handle and use razor sharp tools which were available to us on loan such as hedge slashers, bill hooks, axes and large hammers. Power equipment was on show but we were not allowed to touch or use it, this was for the few professionals attached to the footpath department. In addition they had a small all terrain vehicle with a trailer and a post hole drilling machine for larger jobs like the bridge they installed down Oxendon Lane, Braybrooke to reach across the stream, as far as I know it is still there.
Ploughing was the thing which gave the most trouble; if a field which is crossed by a footpath is ploughed over, then a tractor tyre mark should be drawn along its line after ploughing to reinstate it i.e. to show where it had been. There were many ploughed fields around the village which I had to report to the County Officer who’s task it was to contact the farmer, sometimes the paths got reinstated but more often not; most frustrating! I never heard of a farmer being taken to court over this but I believe it could be used as a last resort.
My new son-in-law helped me to install several simple stiles. We were supplied with two solid pieces of wood for which we dug two holes, one either side of the hedge, where a replacement stile was to installed; having rammed the earth back very tight we then laid the third piece of wood, a plank between the upright posts and proceeded to secure it with 6” nails, thereafter nailing a footpath arrow disc, one on either side on top of the plank. A Braybrooke farmer installed several of these stiles for me on his land.
A Parish Path Wardens newsletter was published quarterly (I still have issue No 4 1996/1997) which contained a list of all the path wardens in the County from Ashby St Ledger to Weekly, 187 in total, together with articles by the Parish Path Liason Officer and an introductory piece by the Principal Rights of Way Officer for the 2000 miles of footpaths, plus articles from Parish Path Wardens and sometimes from farmers.
I heard recently that the scheme is still in operation.
Thereafter the Footpath Dept. of the County Council started to plan for a long distance footpath in the County, but that’s another story. Colin Ford
SLU3A News 14
SLU3A News 15
GROUP DETAILS
MONDAY Art History Angela Deane 01858 431111 Cong Church 1st Monday 10.00 am Crafting for Charities Helen Salisbury 07837 410575 Louisa’s Place 3rd Monday 10.30am Exercise/Keep Fit 1 Anne Goldsmith 01536 770122 Methodist Church Weekly 9.30-10.30 French Refreshers Rosemary Holden 01858 682623 Please call Weekly 11.00am Golf Ladies Angela Wade 01858 462293 Cottingham Golf Weekly 10.00am Italian Not Absolute Beginners Sharon Webb 01858 440851 Please Call 1st & 3rd Mondays 2.30pm Italian Improvers Judith Cook 01858 433861 Please Call Weekly 2.00pm Table Tennis 1 Judith Burdon 01858 467531 Please Call Weekly Morning Wine Explorers Melanie Nash 07939 872204 Please call 2nd Monday 7.30pm
TUESDAY Architecture Colin Cohen & 07973 348817 Cong Church 4th Tuesday Afternoon Geoff Woods 01858 468989 Book Club Ronnie Leech 01858 410072 Please call 2nd Tuesday 10.00am Bridge—Rubber John Cameron 01858 440686 Evangelical Church Weekly 10.00am Bridge—Social Sue Jones 01858 433210 Bowls Club Lt.Bwdn Weekly 1.30-4pm Country Dancing Sharon Webb 01858 440851 Cong Church 4th Tuesday 2-4pm German Improvers Barbara Evans 01858 463045 Louisa’s Place Weekly 2-4pm Listening to Jazz Mike Goldsmith 01536 770122 Please call Last Tuesday 2.15-4.15 Local history Avril Pell 01858 414871 Cong Church 3rd Tuesday 2-4pm Music Appreciation 1 Peter Ellement 01858 432966 Please call 3rd Tuesday 10.00am Play Reading David Ginns 01536 351328 Please call 3rd Tuesday Afternoon Singers—Ladies Choir Joy Swallow 01858 462368 Cong Church 2nd/4th Tues 10.30am Ukuleles David Evans 01858 463045 Methodist Church Alternate Tues 2-4pm Walking Half Day 2 Diana Baxter 0116 279 2947 Outside 1st Tuesday Various
WEDNESDAY Badminton Carole Winfield 01858 432540 Meadowdale Weekly 5.45-7pm Stuart Irons 01858 465287 Belleplates Pam Duffin 01858 414975 Community Church Weekly ‡ 2-4pm Langton Lunch 1 Luella Freston 01858 431248 Langton Inn Last Wed 11.45am New Age Kurling Jane Wilkins 01858 461801 Cong Church 1st Wed 2.00pm Shakespeare for Fun Ernie Parsons 01536 760141 Desborough FC 1st Wed Afternoon Railway Exploration Phil Danks 01858 463922 Bowling Club 3rd Wed 10.00am Science/Technology Michael Milsom 01858 419874 Cong Church 4th Wed Afternoon Scrabble for Fun Lesley Milsom 01858 419874 Bowls Club Lt.Bwdn. 2nd/4th Weds Morning Table Tennis 3 Jeff Cawdell 07981 133168 Leisure Centre Weekly 1.30pm Transport Group Michael Milsom 01858 419874 Bowling Club 1st Wed 10.00am Walking Half Day 1 Bruce White 01858 467976 Outside 2nd Wed Morning
THURSDAY Aspects of History Ernie Parsons 01536 760141 Desborough FC 4th Thursday Afternoon Birdwatching Bruce White 01858 467976 Outside 3rd Thursday Morning Drawing & Painting Elaine Scarlett 01858 432029 Oxendon Village Hall 1st/3rd Thurs Afternoon Exercise/Keep Fit 2 Anne Goldsmith 01536 770122 Methodist Church Weekly 4-5pm
*except third Wednesday
GROUP LEADER TELEPHONE VENUE WHEN TIME
Published by Stephen Joy for SLU3A, 1 Dunslade Rd. LE16 8AQ E-mail: [email protected]
SLU3A News 16
GROUP DETAILS CONTINUED
GROUP LEADER TELEPHONE VENUE WHEN TIME
THURSDAY cont. French Conversation Melanie Nash 07939 872204 Please call Weekly 2.30-4.30pm Family History Shaun Coles 07801 364033 Community Church 3rd Thursday Morning Italian Post Beginners Linda Carruthers 01858 410019 Please call Weekly 2-4pm Langton Lunch 2 Luella Freston 01858 431248 Langton Inn 3rd Thursday 11.45am Quilty Pleasures Diane Miles 01858 468357 Gt Bowden Ch. Hall 2nd/4th Thurs Afternoon Quilters Corner Jan Clarke 01858 464634 Farndon VH 1st/3rd Thurs Afternoon Society Today Jim Callcutt 01858 468218 Please Call 2nd Thursday 2.00pm Spanish Beginners Don Collins 01858 462409 Methodist Church Weekly 2.00pm Spanish Improvers Don Collins 01858 462409 Methodist Church Weekly 10.00am Table Tennis 2 Jenny Ancaster 01858 446862 M H Leisure Centre Weekly Midday Tennis Rita Moth 01858 432275 Tennis Courts, Gt Bowden Weekly 10.00am Ukuleles Unplugged Steve Elsome 01858 469166 Methodist Church 1st/3rd Thurs 10am-12 Walking All Day Eddie/Edith Dixon 01858 468758 Outside Last Thursday Various Walking Half Day 3 Alastair/Chris Willis 01858 419262 Outside 3rd Thursday Various Wildlife Diana Baxter 0116 279 2947 Outside 2nd Thursday Various Wine Tasting Jonathan/Naomi Shaw 01858 682133 Please call 3rd Thursday Various
FRIDAY Bridge—Beginners Jef Cawdell 07981 133168 Bowls Club, Lt.Bwdn Weekly 2.00pm Cycling June Dix 07904 701832 Outside 1st Friday 10.30am
Cycling 3rd Friday Kevin Millard 01858 468015 Outside 3rd Friday 10.15am
Photography Phil Aldridge 07734 903737 Welland Place 3rd Friday Afternoon German Conversation Sylvia Mountford 01858 465561 Please Call Weekly 2.00pm Mah Jong Brenda Lord 07748 843328 Community Church 1st/3rd Fri 10.00am Music Appreciation 2 Geoff Moth 01858 432275 Please call Last Friday 10.00am Music Workshop Alan Clementson 01858 461088 Please call Weekly Afternoon Papercraft & More Jan Collins 01858 462409 Foxton VH 1st/3rd Fri Morning Poetry Jill Hart 01858 469663 Please Call 1st Friday 10.00am Walking—Strollers Colin &Julia Ford 01858 463129 Outside 2nd Friday 10.15am Singing for Fun Ann Tonkin 01858 432242 Methodist Church 2nd/4th Fri Afternoon
SUNDAY Singles Sunday Lunch Jan Tilley 01858 461186 Various 1/2/4 Sundays Various Music - 60s Alec Hodgson 01858 288923 Oathill Pub, M H 3rd Sunday 7.00pm
OTHER Chess For Fun TBC Various Various Various Walking—Evening David Martin 01858 440530 Outside Various Various New Experiences Kevin Millard 01858 468015 Various Various Various
NEXT COPY DEADLINE Thursday 1st October2020.
Please send contributions to: Stephen Joy, email: [email protected] Tel. 07982 428397
